🌱 'Santa' Moms Help Clearwater Dad + Pinellas Trail Speed Study

Hey, people of Dunedin! It's me again, Kristen, your host of the Dunedin Daily.

First, today's weather:

Mostly sunny and beautiful. High: 78 Low: 66.

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Here are the top 5 stories in Dunedin today:

1. Dunedin resident, Amber McDowell, took to her Dunedin Moms Facebook group to get help for a single father in Clearwater. Pierre Fitzpatrick was featured in a story about low-wage workers navigating high prices in Tampa Bay, revealing he wouldn't be able to give his three kids the Christmas they hoped for on his $11 per hour wage. McDowell was able to collect decorations, clothes, furniture, and other goodies for Fitzpatrick's family so they were able to properly decorate their Christmas tree. (ABC Action News)
2. Local young artist, Mya Pearson, was selected to appear in the fall 2021 edition of the national magazine “Teen Mosaic Magazine.” The 15-year-old is currently a sophomore at Service Learning Micro-School in Clearwater. Pearson has had a life-long devotion to the arts, and plans to pursue digital art in college. The piece titled "Black Magma" is currently on display at the Dunedin Public Library. (Bay News 9)
3. Dunedin Parks and Recreation is offering a Youth Flag Football League for kids ages six to 16. This league is a cooperative instructional league with several North Pinellas cities designed to teach the skills and rules of the game for new or seasoned players. Attendance to one evaluation session is required to participate and will be held on January 5 and January 8. Evaluations and games will all be held at Dunedin High School. (Press Release Desk)
4. Love sushi? Pisces Sushi and Global Bistro will be hiding 12 gift cards around Dunedin this weekend with values between $5 and $50. Starting the morning of December 19 you can find hints on where the Pisces elves have hidden these gifts by watching the restaurant's Facebook and Instagram stories. (Facebook)
5. Looking for some things to do in Dunedin this week? Check out The Dunedin History Museum's The Christmas Experience where kids will make reindeer food, holiday crafts, participate in a snowball contest, get a visit from Santa, and more. Additionally, drive-in movie night on Friday will feature "The Santa Clause" at Highlander Park. Santa's Workshop: Parents/Kids Night Out will provide an evening of fun and activities for kids at the Martin Luther King Jr. Recreation Center. Other events include live music, dolphin yoga, The Big Christmas Concert, wine tasting, and more. (Dunedin Patch)

Today's Dunedin Daily is brought to you in part by our friends at Ring, the home security company. Ring does a lot more than doorbells: check out their full suite of smart home products at Ring.com. And thank you Ring for helping to make local news happen in Dunedin!

Today in Dunedin:

• Woodcarving, Wood Burning, and Folk Art Painting at the Hale Senior Activity Center (9:00 AM)
• Chair Yoga at the Hale Senior Activity Center (9:30 AM)
• Virtual Coffee And Conversation With Artist Annette Gloomis (12:00 PM)
• Happy Taps at the Hale Senior Activity Center (3:15 PM)
• Intergenerational Drum Circle at the Hale Senior Activity Center (3:30 PM)

From my notebook:

• The City of Dunedin thanks everyone who joined the annual Dunedin Holiday Parade by sharing some photos from the event. (Facebook)
• Dunedin American Legion Post 275's Christmas lamp pole won second place with an ornamental theme honoring their service dogs. You can check out their lamp pole outside of Café Alfresco along the Pinellas Trail. (Facebook)
• A USF intern conducted a speed study using seven fixed trail counters along the Pinellas Trail and found interesting results. Only one percent of the 2 million users on the Pinellas Trail exceeded the posted speed limit and in Dunedin, only 0.5% of trail users exceed the posted speed limit. (Facebook)
• The Dunedin Blue Jays shared photos from the Dunedin Holiday Parade thanking the community for coming out to celebrate with them. (Facebook)
• Happy 40th Anniversary to Honeymoon Island State Park! (Facebook)

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That's it for today. I'll see you soon!