Brandon Patch Postings (Feb. 21-27)

The week got off to a somber start with a community’s large-scale mourning of Riverview High School honor student , who died from a bull-riding accident Feb. 18. Our intent at Brandon Patch was to help teens cope with their grief as they met at the makeshift memorial at the Greater Brandon bullring throughout the week and leading up to the Feb. 24 funeral.

The Community Roundtable held its annual and announced this year’s recipients of the Non-Profit of the Year award, the Alice B. Tompkins Community Service honoree and the first recipient of the scholarship program named posthumously for Maureen Krzanowski.

We celebrated with her 88th birthday and learned more about “Whiz Kid”, a 4-year-old preschooler. We covered Bunco fundraisers at Center Place () and The Bridges () and updated the numbers for the upcoming 2011 Season.

There’s more, of course, and it’s listed below. 

Also, archived for posterity are Brandon Patch news articles from Feb. 20 back through Jan. 24. Included in .  For archived listings from Dec. 15, 2010 (launch date) through Jan. 23, visit  

Another way to find the news you might have missed, or want to revisit, is to search by keyword on the home page — or on any page you visit at Brandon Patch. Just use the search box found in the upper- right-hand corner, right under the day's weather summary.

Enjoy!

BRANDON PATCH NEWS COVERAGE (Feb. 21-27):

(Note: after clicking through to an article below, please use your back-arrow key to return to this recap.) 

•  — Students mourn loss of popular teens, killed Friday night after being kicked by a bull. / D’Ann White

•  — Friends gather outside the cross and poster board that marks a memorial for Brooke Ann Coats, 16, who died Feb. 18 after she fell off, and was kicked by, a bull at the Remington Rough Stock bullring arena on U.S. 301. / Linda Chion Kenney

•  — The Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office issues a report in connection to the bull-riding accident that led to the death of 16-year-old Brooke Ann Coats. Visitation is Feb. 23 and her funeral is Feb. 24. / Linda Chion Kenney

•  — Director April Golombek announces her cast for the family friendly production of "Bye Bye Birdie." Forty-eight community theater thespians have been cast for parts in the musical loosely tied to the 1957 draft of Elvis Presley. / Linda Chion Kenney  

•  — We'll update you weekly on what has become the major local fundraiser of the year in terms of people participating and money raised: the American Cancer Society's grassroots Relay For Life. / Linda Chion Kenney

•  — Three featured animals at Hillsborough County Animal Services are among many available for adoption as adult pets. / Linda Chion Kenney

•  — A snapshot look at some news you can use with links to explore the issue further. Might not apply to you? Feel free to share the link to others. / Linda Chion Kenney

•  — You might be crazed with demands on your time but your kids might be bored — and that’s not a healthy mix. Think ahead, be prepared and get creative. / Jeanette Henderson

•  — Young Crusader girls run out of steam against veteran Trinity Christian, 72-55. / Joel Ridley

•  — The viewing for teen bull rider Brooke Ann Coats is tonight, Feb. 23, at Stowers Funeral Home in Brandon. The memorial at the bullring site continues to grow with messages of grief and remembrances of an accomplished teen with a ready smile. / Linda Chion Kenney

•  — The line wrapped around Stowers Funeral Home on Feb. 23 as friends and family gathered to pay their final respects to Riverview High School student Brooke Ann Coats, who died after a bull-riding accident. / Linda Chion Kenney

•  — Tickets still available for the Feb. 24 “Bunco for the Kids” fundraiser at Center Place. The event is hosted by the Kappa Kappa chapter of Kappa Delta Phi. / Linda Chion Kenney

•  — Close to 150 people attended this year’s Community Affairs Dinner, which featured local voices from the past and present, Nat Storms, Brandon’s first honorary mayor, and Col. Lenny J. Richoux, MacDill’s base commander, spoke about Brandon. / Linda Chion Kenney

•  — Plant City Entertainment and a variety show at the James McCabe Theater in Valrico are on tap this weekend, featuring musical comedy and student variety show entertainment, respectively. Links to G-rated and PG-rated movies included. / Linda Chion Kenney

• — Quick overview and links to review the Hillsborough County School Board’s March 1 agenda. The meeting is set to start 3 p.m. at the Raymond O. Shelton School Administrative Center in downtown Tampa. / Linda Chion Kenney

•  — As March approaches, news you can use from the Florida Department of Transportation as you plan your daily commutes and evening activities. / Linda Chion Kenney

•  — Local fixture in Brandon has been serving up smoked meats and Southern sides for about 10 years. Secret to success, owner says, is passion and love. / John Majeski

•  — New bar at Brandon Mall features 60 beers on tap. Brass Tap offers refuge for "beer geeks" and others curious about brews beyond Bud Light. / John Majeski

•  — The “baby” of the Mulrennan clan turns 88 on Feb. 27. At a party in Valrico, a large crowd gathered on the eve of her birthday to wish her well. The Mulrennan groves today house a road and a middle school in the Greater Brandon community of Valrico. / Linda Chion Kenney

•  — More than $2,200 was raised Feb. 26 at the Bunco dice-game fundraiser hosted by the Brandon Chapter of the All Children’s Hospital Guild at The Bridges in Riverview. / Linda Chion Kenney

•  — Cariss Pettigrew attended a Feb. 26 fundraiser for the Brandon chapter of the All Children’s Hospital Guild at The Bridges in Riverview. She took time out assisting her mother, Janine, the guild’s co-president, to talk about life in general. / Linda Chion Kenney

•  — A military wife with time to spare took a class on framing at an air base in Japan and ended up with a passion and a career. Today Jo Powell is the owner and operator of Frames by Jo in the Greater Brandon community of Valrico. / Linda Chion Kenney

• — Billed as a wedding, reunion and retreat getaway, Cross Creek Ranch in Dover offers some startling scenery in a relaxed atmosphere reminiscent of a French country inn. There, on Feb. 27, the Rotary Club of Brandon held its annual Mad Hatter’s Tea Party. / Linda Chion Kenney 

• — Veteran community theater actress Cindy Miller-Ray and her husband, John, open their Greater Brandon home every year for a grand Oscar Night celebration. / Linda Chion Kenney

• —The awards are in and top prizes go to a couple of toys, a couple of black swans and one blue valentine. In the youth category, prizes go to "Harry Potter" and "Easy A.” / Linda Chion Kenney