Plant City Family Celebrates Birthday With Trip To Burma

PLANT CITY - "Burma is difficult to describe," said Jean Hehn of Plant City. "It is majestically beautiful with the spires of golden pagodas rising from the green hills along the river; the people are so welcoming with gentle smiles; both men and women are elegant in longyis sarongs; it's a land of rubies, sapphires, jade, dance and music."

Hehn, her husband, John, her sister and brother-in-law Betsy and Marc Hehn (John and Marc Hehn are brothers), and her parents, Martha and Brand Laseter, celebrated her father's 90th birthday with a trip to Thailand, then Burma.

Jean Hehn, a family counselor, said her dad made all the travel arrangements via his computer.

She found the landscape and people equally interesting.

"Thanakot is a paste women and children spread on their faces to protect them from the sun and also it's considered beautiful. No well-groomed Burman woman would go out without a thick coat of thanakot on her face. The paste is made from grinding the wood of the thanakot tree and adding water."

Cub Scout Reels In The Big One

PLANT CITY - No doubt about it, Jacob Bentrovato, 10, is a quick study.

In December, Cub Scout Pack 733 went to the Tenoroc Fish Management Area in Polk County for a fishing derby and annual Christmas party. The derby was sponsored by the Get Reel organization, with T.J. Vail as guest speaker. At the event, Jacob was given instruction on fishing techniques and fishing lure.

The following weekend, he and his grandfather, Larry Granger, went fishing and Jacob reeled in a largemouth bass using his new lure. The catch weighed more than 9 pounds and measured 24 inches.

10-Year-Old Featured At Civitan Meeting

PLANT CITY - Clint Walden, 10, son of Cary and Terry Walden, and grandson of Barbara and Vernon Porter, gave a special presentation recently to the Plant City Civitan Club about a pig he is entering in the Florida State Fair.

The Walden Lake Elementary School fifth-grader is in the Hillsborough County 4-H Dairy Club and has been showing pigs at the state fair for three years. He enjoys playing hockey and going on cruises. As he follows his project for four months, the pig will grow from 80 pounds to more than 250.

Clint will be at the fair from Thursday through Sunday showing his pig.

Hospital Appeals For Blood Donations

PLANT CITY - Shannon Mitchell, marketing manager at South Florida Baptist Hospital, said there is a blood shortage and the first blood drive of 2008 will be from 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Feb. 15 in the hospital's Community Conference Room.

If you would like to donate, schedule an appointment by calling Mitchell at (813) 757-8512, Ext. 38507.

Bird Making Annual Return To State

PLANT CITY - Purple martins have arrived, and the Purple Martin Conservation Association suggests if you want to host them, call the association at (814) 833-7656 or go to purplemartin.org for a booklet and learn about the largest North American swallow.

Purple martins are dependent on man-made housing and faithfully return to the same locations each year. The earliest arriving martin in Florida was spotted in Naples on Dec.22, and they are making their way upstate.