• Children’s Home Society of Florida has three new board members. Rosa Beckett is director of development and marketing at the Jacksonville Aviation Authority and has served on the Gator Bowl Committee. She was also a member of Leadership Jacksonville. Tye Crews is a financial services professional at New York Life Insurance Company and a member of the Ponte Vedra Beach Chamber of Commerce. Bryan Hipsher is a financial analyst and consultant with Fidelity National Information Services. He received both his bachelor’s degree in finance and his MBA from Jacksonville University where he played on the basketball team.
• Eleven eateries at the Landing have joined the “two-for-one” discount lunch movement. Buy an entree and two beverages and receive a second entree of equal or lesser value on Tuesdays only at American Heroes, Apple a Day Deli, Benny’s Steak and Seafood, Bourbon Bayou, Flamers, Great Wraps, Koja Sushi, Meyer’s Latin Flair, Sbarro, Twisted Martini and Vito’s Italian Cafe.
• The North Florida Cystic Fibrosis Foundation (CFF) raised a record-breaking $210,000 during this year’s annual Great Strides Walks, a 31 percent increase over last year’s total. Nationally, Great Strides Walks raised more than $34 million at nearly 600 sites. Research supported by CFF has led to an improvement in median survival age for people with cystic fibrosis from early childhood in the 1950s to 37 years today.
• City Council isn’t the only one taking a summer break – those in the mood for some Downtown Italian cuisine at La Cena will have to wait a couple weeks, too. A note on the door says the eatery is closed until July 15.
• Regency Centers is hosting a blood drive on July 10 from 8 a.m.–2 p.m. at Independent Square. The hope is to have at least 41 participants, said contact Danielle Calhoun, with all blood going to the Florida/Georgia Blood Alliance. To sign up, call Calhoun at 358-5502.
• The Second Harvest Food Bank was the beneficiary of the 18th Annual Jacksonville Food Fight on June 5, which was attended by over 1,200 people and raised $55,000 to fight hunger in North Florida. Both were records.
• No word on the Mudville Grille on West Adams St. The doors are locked and signs advertise the space is for lease.
• The Salvation Army will kick off its “Operation Stuff the Bus” Tuesday all over town. Big “Stuff the Bus” barrels will be placed at Publix supermarkets in Duval, Clay, St. Johns and Nassau counties locally and it other areas across the state. The objective is to collect school supplies for the kids of needy families.