The City of Winter Parks officially goes interactive via the internet with the launching of their new online resources on Facebook, Twitter, and The Green Button. Aside from logging on the city’s official website www.cityofwinterpark.org, interested individuals can also click these sites for more information and queries about Winter Park.

–          For Facebook: www.cityofwinterpark.org/facebook

–          For Twitter: www.twitter.com/WinterParkFla

–          The Green Button: www.winterparkgreenbutton.org

The move was approved in October this year, resulting in the creation of a new city Social Media Policy as well as official Facebook and Twitter accounts for the city. The goal behind these online resources is to expand the city’s target audience, giving curious web visitors the chance to know more about the culture, heritage, attractions, and people of Winter Park. Not only that, updates are made in real time, with news having the potential to spread in merely seconds to minutes with the power of Facebook and twitter posts – or “tweets” as they are commonly called.

The Green Button on the other hand is the eco-friendly arm of the city’s official web site, an online resource created by Winter Park’s Environmental Review Board to help the public learn more on environmentally conscious living.

Surfers now have the best of both worlds with the launching of these online domains. Whether you’re looking up green and clean ways of living, or news and updates on the city, Winter Park presents these choices to in the matter of a simple mouse click.

This November 18, 2009, the City of Winter Park FL will host the 8^th annual Central Florida Chapter of the National Institute of Governmental Purchasing (or NIGP) Reverse Trade Show. This event, also brought to you by Winter Park’s Purchasing Division, will happen in one session that lasts from 9:30 in the morning to 2:30 in the afternoon. The City of Winter Park, FL is very proud to host such a big event.

While the City of Winter Park FL may have a small town feel, don’t let its appearance fool. The city has played host to some major events, and is the home of some notable celebrities and public figures. The fast green scenery, with the mix of today’s modern innovations gives it the perfect balance of old and new.

Purchasing professionals who spend over $1 billion annually on various different goods and services like office supplies and construction are expected to gather at the NIGP Reverse Trade Show. Aside from that, the event also welcomes vendors to meet, interact and connect with governmental purchasing professionals from various governmental sectors such as Lake, Orange, Osceola, Seminole, and Volusia counties, cities of Orlando, Palm Bay, Port Orange, Winter Park, Volusia County School Board, the Greater Orlando Aviation Authority, KUA, OUC and many other governmental agencies.

Early registrants can be admitted to the event at only $85 per person, per session, through Saturday, October 31. While as of Sunday, November 1, the registration fee is at $110 per person. For details and more information, log on to the section of the Winter Park FL’s official Web site at www.cityofwinterpark.org. Head to Departments > Administration > Purchasing > Reverse Trade Show Application.

Our very own Winter Park FL Fire-Rescue Department Chief, James White, and the rest of the boys in his department brings one home from the recently concluded 2009 Fire Rescue International (FRI) Conference and Exposition held at Dallas, TX with none other than the “Garry Briese IAFC Safety Performance Award” which was cosponsored by Salamander Technologies.

The award is one of 4 awards given by the Safety, Health and Survival Section Awards Program and it is presented only to the International Association of Fire Chiefs (IAFC) member to commemorate the individual’s achievement and commitment in the health and safety fields.

What could our beloved Winter Park FL Fire-Rescue department have done again this time to deserve such a prestigious award? Nothing much really. They just somehow manage to design, develop and then implement a safer patient compartment for the country’s ambulances used by firefighters. Dubbed the Ambulance Safety Initiative (ASI), the compartment features a vast improvement in the restraint systems in ambulances that the paramedics and patients use. Overall, thanks to the ASI, paramedics can now safely treat patients thanks to the innovative design of the device.

Just to put things into the right perspective on how difficult it could be to win this award, the IAFC is composed of more than 1.2 million able and witty fire chiefs and emergency responders in the country. And we all thought our guys at the Winter Park FL Fire department had more than enough to take care of, they still managed to squeeze in some valuable time to come up with something totally worthy of everyone’s praise. Oh well, must be just another day at the office for Chief White and his crew.

On October 31, 2009, The City of Winter Park FL will host its 6th annual Family Fall Festival, happening from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., in Central Park. This serves as the kick-off event for Orange County’s Week of the Family Celebration which also runs on the 31^st of October until the 7^th of November. Aimed at bringing together families and the community, the ceremony—to start at 11:30—will be lead by Mayor Kenneth W. Bradley.

With plenty of family activities such as interactive inflatables, a children’s costume parade, old-fashioned hay rides, pumpkin patches in the park, family history information and interactive displays by Winter Park FL Historical Museum, art workshops by Crealde School of Art and many more, this is one event everyone in the area should watch out for.

In addition, patrons are sure to enjoy the free popcorn, snow cones, cotton candy, hot dogs and assorted drinks offered at the event. But it’s not all fun and games, as they are also requested to donate much needed shoes for the Week of the Family “Heart & Sole” shoe drive in support of the Coalition for the Homeless of Central Florida.

Also participating are the Winter Park FL Police and Fire-Rescue departments who will give fire safety advice, biking safety tips and free candy and treat bags. To help families live healthy lifestyles, the Crosby Wellness Center YMCA, the Winter Park FL YMCA and Orange County Public Schools Food and Nutrition Services Department will sponsor heath and nutrition programs aimed at educating the public.

Even more, Scooby Doo will grace the event to mingle with the kids, courtesy of Bright House Networks™. And last but not least, families are set to have a blast with “Trick or Treat on Park Avenue” with everyone getting treats from different stores between 11 a.m. and 2 p.m.

These and other more activities happening at Orange County’s Week of the Family Celebration!

For details and information on the City of Winter Park’s 6th annual Family Fall Festival, kindly call 407-599-3506 or visit www.weekofthefamily.org.

For the fifth time in a row, Rollins College of Winter Park FL still holds the top honor for the annual rankings of “America’s Best Colleges”. The college has bested 117 master’s-level universities in the South of the country yet again.

One of the main factors that has contributed to Rollins’ firm grip on the top spot of the rankings include small class sizes with 67% of the classes that has students numbering less than 20. This figure makes Rollins College of Winter Park FL better than Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cornell University, University of Notre Dame, Dartmouth College, and John Hopkins University whose respective ratings for the category are 65%, 58%, 55%, 63%, and 65% respectively.

While smaller class sizes make for better learning, the quality of faculty makes for quality lessons and 94% of the faculty working full-time at Rollins College of Winter Park FL, students has a better chance of landing with a subject matter expert that is proud and happy as a college professor. This percentage makes Rollins better than larger-than-life names like Princeton University or even Yale University among others.

For Rollins College, the honor of being the South’s best college is just one of the many fruits of the hard labor that their students, faculty, alumni, and recruiters who have been dedicated in producing students who are not just extraordinary leaders but also active contributors in their respective communities since 1885.

With all the distinctions garnered by the Rollins College of Winter Park FL, any student planning to get a degree in the field of Arts or Business is far from being wrong to choose Rollins College, America’s Best College in the South.

Let’s Eat! is your answer to providing healthful delicious meals for your family in less time. By joining Let’s Eat!, you can reduce shopping trips, avoid all preparation work like cleaning meats and vegetables and chopping, and you leave the cleanup to our staff. Once your freezer is stocked with a month of gourmet meals, you simply thaw and have dinner on the table in a fraction of the time. That means more time for your family and yourself — and the satisfaction of knowing you are providing the best possible meals for your family for as little as $3 per serving.

Let’s Eat! has everything you are looking for in preparing a healthy complete meal for your family. You don’t have to be a good cook, Let’s Eat! staff will be there to help you along the way. There are lists of suggested meals for every month. And each dish comes with a wine suggestion, how great is that? All you have to do is visit your local Let’s Eat! centre and begin creating your easy, delicious meals. Choose your recipes of choice, all the ingredients are ready for you to assemble your dishes. You can custom the recipes to your family’s likes or dislikes. If you have any questions, the friendly staff of Let’s Eat! are there to help you. Visit Let’s Eat! today, it’s the smart way to do dinner.

Let’s Eat! Winter Park, 155 East Morse Blvd., Winter Park, Phone: 407-539-0064, Email: winterpark@letseatdinner.com, Website: www.letseatdinner.com

Click Here for their listing.

The Winter Park Sidewalk Art Festival takes place in Central Park, along Park Avenue, in Winter Park, Florida.
Festival Hours: 9am to 6pm on Friday March 20th and Saturday, March 21st and 9am to 5pm on Sunday March 22nd.

The Winter Park Sidewalk Art Festival is one of the nation’s oldest, largest and most prestigious outdoor art festivals, consistently rated among the top shows by Sunshine Artist and American Style magazines. Each year more than 350,000 visitors enjoy the show. This year about 1,200 artists from around the world applied for entry and an independent panel of judges selected 225 national and international artists to attend the show. The National Endowment for the Arts, The White House, Congress and many others have lauded the Festival for promoting art and art education in Central Florida. An all volunteer board of directors runs the annual Festival, now celebrating its 50th year. Come out to this event to enjoy a wide variety of outstanding artwork including media such as clay, digital art, drawing and graphics, fiber, glass, jewelry, leather, metal, mixed media, painting, photography, sculpture, watercolor and wood.

The entire family can take pleasure at The Winter park Sidewalk Art Festival. Your children can create their own artwork at the Children’s Workshop Village. Easel painting is very popular and local art centers and museums feature a variety of fun, hands-on, art activates for children. Participating museums include: Albin Polasek Museum and Sculpture Garden, The Charles Hosmer Morse Museum of American Art, Cornell Museum of Fine Art, Crealde School of Art, Maitland Art Center, The Mennello Museum of American Folk Art, Orlando Museum of Art, and Zora Neale Hurston National Museum of Fine Arts.

Admission is free, and participants may keep what they make. Children’s Workshop Village hours are 10 am to 4 pm Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Easel painting is from 10 am to 3 pm Saturday and Sunday.

Come out to Central Park, enjoy some beautiful artwork, take in some gorgeous weather and have a great family day with loved ones. You can do it all at The Winter Park Sidewalk Art Festival.