Our community thrives on the foundations of civics, and here at The Osceola Chamber, we were very excited to recently introduce the National Civics Bee® to Osceola County and Central Florida! This initiative encourages middle schoolers to learn about American democracy, engage constructively in their communities, and build trust in their fellow citizens and institutions. In partnership with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation, The Osceola Chamber hosted the first local competition of the National Civics Bee in Central or South Florida last Friday, April 25.
Last November, The Osceola Chamber worked with the Osceola County School District to invite middle schoolers in 6th, 7th, and 8thgrades from public, private, charter, and home schools to participate in a civics essay competition as a first round. Students identified a civic issue in their community and proposed a solution. Community leaders from across the country reviewed the essays and the top 20 highest-scoring students from the area were invited to participate in a live competition. This local final round was one of only three that took place across Florida this year, which is the first year our state has participated in any capacity.
The local competition featured two rounds of civics quiz questions emceed by Chamber President/CEO John Newstreet, providing a platform for students to showcase their civics knowledge. The five top-scoring students from the first two rounds then moved on to a Q & A round of questions that directly dealt with their essay topics. These questions came from a panel of guest judges. Judges for the local competition were Tameara Crespo, City Clerk, City of Kissimmee; Mia Poinsette, Executive Director, Poinsette Foundation; Robin Hinson, Emergency Management Officer, Osceola County Office of Emergency Management; Kate Hammond, VP of Education, Junior Achievement; and Judge Christine Arendas, Ninth Judicial Circuit.
At the end of the Q & A round, the winners were Araoluwakiitan Afolabi of Voyager K-8 in St. Cloud in first place, Benjamin Gideon Bruehl of Altamonte Christian School in second place, and Mitran Loganathan Mohanraj of PineView School in Sarasota County in third place. Following the competition, all finalists enjoyed pizza donated by our friends at Papa John's and had fun taking photos with our National Civics Bee backdrop and giant check! We applaud the 15 students who came to play that day and the excellent job they did answering questions that many of us would find challenging! We are sure to see great things from them in the future! Who knows? Maybe there is a future mayor, senator, or even president among them?
All participants took home the Amazon Fire tablet used in competition, as well as a National Civics Bee t-shirt and goody bag. Local winners received $500 cash for first place, $250 for second place, and $100 for first place. They will now go on to compete in the National Civics Bee® Florida State Finals at Florida State University in Tallahassee on May 31. At the state competition they will have the opportunity to win additional cash prizes, and the first-place winner of the State Finals will earn a trip to Washington, D.C. to compete in the National Championship in the Fall of 2025. Prizes at the National Championship include a grand prize of $100,000 for first place, $25,000 for second place, and $15,000 for third place.
As John put it, “Our great country and every community within the United States is built on the foundation of civics. Middle schoolers are at the perfect age to become better informed about American democracy as well as learn to respectfully and constructively engage in our community. The National Civics Bee provides a great platform for our young Americans to build greater trust in others and in our institutions. Kissimmee, St. Cloud, and Osceola County will benefit in the short term and long term when citizens are knowledgeable about how government works, lessons learned from our past, and constructive ways to engage in the process – a process which affects each and every one of us each and every day.”
Want to learn more about the National Civics Bee? Click here to watch a sizzle reel and here to visit the National Civics Bee “How It Works” page.
Our hometown team, the Osceola Magic G-League Basketball team, were crowned Eastern Conference Champions two weeks ago with a win over the Maine Celtics, 135-122. This propelled them info the G-League Championships against Western Conference Champs the Stockton Kings. After a 129-118 win over the Kings at Osceola Heritage Park on April 8, they suffered a loss at Game 2 of the Finals series in California.
Tonight, your Osceola Magic return home to host the winner-take-all Game 3 at 8:00 pm at Silver Spurs Arena! Perhaps you’ve had the opportunity to cheer on the Magic this year in person, met their mischievous mascot Swish out and about int he community, or heard about the team’s slam dunk champ Mac McClung? Your love has been felt and the Magic appreciate the energy the Osceola community has brought this season as they look forward to your support at THE CHAMPIONSHIP Game! This is like the Super Bowl/U.S. Open/World Series, of the NBA G-League!!!
The Magic previously won the G-League championship in 2021 as the Lakeland Magic, but this will be first time they attempt to claim the title as the pride of Osceola!
As we prepare to cheer on the Magic in tonight’s final game, join is in a trip down memory lane of the Osceola Magic’s past two year’s in Osceola!
In 2024, the Chairman of The Osceola Chamber was Carlos Velez, Vice President of the Osceola Magic. He and the team welcomed our board for a retreat during which they did valuable planning, spent some time on the court, and enjoyed a Magic win courtside. They even posed with Swish and high-fived the team as they entered the arena.
The Downtown Kissimmee Council recently awarded their Downtown Beautification & Innovation Award to White Rose Books & More, Downtown Kissimmee’s first independent bookstore.
Throughout the year, the Downtown Kissimmee Council will take notice when businesses make strides to enhance the Downtown area with projects that include either physical upgrades or improvements to their properties or innovative programming that improves the Downtown experience. For their first presentation of 2025, Downtown Kissimmee Council Chair Candice Shields of the Osceola Library System and members of the DKC Board dropped by to present White Rose with a signed letter and certificate as well as an a-frame sign that is theirs to display until the next award is presented.
White Rose was opened in Downtown Kissimmee in 2023 by former school media specialists Erin Decker Kratter and Tania Galiñanes. They got the keys and in two short weeks in November 2023 transformed the space into a working bookstore. Out front they added storefront signage. Inside, they create a children’s corner in partnership with the Early Learning Coalition, decorated with artwork by local artists, and have kept their shelves stocked with popular first-run books, used books, items from local vendors, and more.
They have brought novel (excuse the pun…) programming to Downtown Kissimmee in the form of book-related events and activities that have included everything from book fairs and author signings to book clubs and audio book walking groups, and several projects in partnership with other local businesses.
In addition, White Rose accepts the DKC’s Downtown Dollars, has an in-house coffee cart, and offers a personal greeting from canine mascot Teddy.
