Marianna Jazmine, Ms. St. Petersburg from the Ms. Corporate America competition, and several other community leaders need additional volunteers for their Community Clean-Up Day event and barbecue in South St. Petersburg. The group will provide toys for children who participate. The event is from 4 p.m. until 7 p.m. Sunday at 2680 5th Ave. S. For more information, visit the website here.
WalletHub recently compared 180 cities across 41 metrics, including parks per capita and restaurant meal costs, to determine the best places for vacationing close to home. St. Petersburg ranked No. 32. Tampa placed 7th, and Cincinnati bested Orlando for the top spot.
The Tampa Bay Rays have partnered with professional skateboarder and Olympian Jake Ilardi, who will serve as a brand ambassador for the team's Nike MLB City Connect Program through December 2026. Ilardi, a Sarasota County native, will wear Rays City Connect apparel during premier events, including the Olympic trials and X Games in Japan, which begin Sunday. He represented the U.S. skateboarding team at the Tokyo Olympics in 202 and finished 11th in the men's street event.
Alex Bowen, 17, of St. Petersburg participated in the auto racing GT Sprint Championship (GT3 category) in Italy in May, coming in third for his first race of the year. He drives for Imperiale Motorsports. Read more about "St. Petersburg's racing phenom" in this Catalyst story from February.
The St. Pete Works job placement initiative will end this month after five years of connecting hundreds of residents with employment, career training and support services. St. Petersburg College partnered with the City of St. Petersburg and community organizations to facilitate the program, designed to bridge the gap between underserved job seekers and employers. SPC President Tonjua Williams called St. Pete Works "more than a job placement program - it was a symbol of hope, opportunity, and community-driven change."
The 2025 Valspar Championship generated $1.64 million for 100 local nonprofits. Copperhead Charities, the PGA tournament's host organization, has now raised nearly $53 million since 1977. The week-long event concluded March 23, with Viktor Hovland earning a win on the Copperhead Course at Innisbrook Resort in Palm Harbor.
The Tampa Bay Rowdies have partnered with the Hillsborough and Pinellas County Education Foundations to collect school supplies for area students. The team encourages fans to bring items like binders, backpacks and writing utensils to the Wednesday, June 25 match versus Indy Eleven at Al Lang Stadium. Kickoff is at 7 p.m., and four or more items will receive a ticket for a future home match. For a list of needed supplies, visit the website here.
Publix Super Markets shoppers have raised over $10 million for St. Petersburg-based Johns Hopkins All Children's Hospital through decades of donating $1 as they pay for their groceries. The annual Children's Miracle Network Hospitals' Miracle Balloon campaign occurs each summer at Publix stores throughout the Southeast. The funding supports All Children's facilities in Citrus, De Soto, Hardee, Highlands, Hillsborough, Manatee, Pasco, Pinellas, Polk and Sarasota Counties.
The St. Petersburg Police Department has arrested a man accused of making over 16,000 calls, most not related to emergencies, to emergency dispatchers over the past five years. Investigators told WFLA that Samuel Thomas has already called 911 over 3,000 times in 2025, with more than 600 targeting one family on his street. Officers arrested Thomas after he reported someone firing an AR-15 rifle. Police found children playing in their yard and a family barbecue.
The Times Publishing Co., which publishes the Tampa Bay Times, has resolved a legal dispute with the late widow of its former owner through an out-of-court settlement. A federal lawsuit filed in March claimed that the Time owed a trust in the name of Marion Poynter, the late widow of Poynter Institute founder Nelson Poynter, over $7 million in missed payments. The lawsuit was dismissed earlier this week, and settlement terms were not disclosed.
Jabil, the St. Petersburg-based technology company, is planning to build a $500 million manufacturing facility in the Southeast United States to support its cloud data center business, with an emphasis on artificial intelligence. A location for the facility has not been announced, athough Jabil intends to have it operational by the middle of next year. To learn more, visit this link.
