The overcast, chilly, damp & breezy weather will continue into the weekend. We finally get back into the sun next week along with much milder temps. that will push 70+ by midweek. The recent lack of sun had me checking on the avg. sun/year for Jax. Turns out we get a lot - no surprise - 221 sunny or partly sunny days per year. That also turns out to be the lowest in Fl.! Other cities & their avg. # of
sunny or partly sunny days/year:
Ft. Myers: 266
Key West: 259
Miami: 249
Tampa: 244
Apalachicola: 241
W. Palm: 234
Tallahassee: 231
Pensacola: 228
So as we head into Thanksgiving, travel weather looks pretty decent across much of the U.S. through T'giving Day with the exception of the Pacific Northwest. The weekend following T'giving for return travel doesn't -- at this point -- look too bad either. I'll update through next week.
Speaking of Thanksgiving....a nice donation of turkeys to our NE Fl. Salvation Army from a survivor of "The Miracle of the Hudson":
“Miracle on the Hudson” Survivor to Donate 300 Turkeys to The Salvation Army just in time for the holiday season”
(Jacksonville, FL) Casey Jones was the last person to evacuate the icy left wing of the submerged U.S. Airways Flight 1549, which landed in the Hudson River in early 2009. He lost his footing on the listing plane and slipped into the Hudson before being delivered – in donated clothing – to the warm safety of a New York City hotel room. Jones had a life-altering moment when he looked at his post-crash reflection in the hotel room’s bathroom mirror.
“My hair was going everywhere and I felt for the first time a cut on my head – the shirt I was wearing was too small and my pants were six times too big,” said Jones, a Fruit Cove area resident and local technology manager. “In that moment, I had this realization about what it must be like to be homeless. I was nowhere near homelessness, at that very moment, I felt completely helpless. Complete strangers gave me my clothes and food. In that moment I went from being judgmental about why someone is homeless, to ‘holy cow, we need to do something!’
Since then, Jones has shared his story with groups across Northeast Florida. The part of Jones’ story that really resonates with people is how he responded to his realization. His personal “call to action” came through the radio. In 2010, he heard The Salvation Army needed 200 turkeys to feed families in need in our community.
Jones penned a letter to five of his closest friends asking each of them to donate to the cause. Jones handled
all of the logistics, from collecting the donations, to purchasing, to delivering the turkey to providing a receipt to the donor. Jones’ letter generated enough money to purchase 140 turkeys for The Salvation Army
--- in less than 24 hours!
Jones was so moved by the response he received from his friends, he went at it again in 2011. Instead of reaching out to 5 friends, Jones’ expanded his list to 10. He raised enough funds to purchase 160 turkeys for The Salvation Army!
This year, Jones sent another letter request ---this time to 15 friends. The result? Jones raised enough funds to cover the purchase of 300 turkeys for The Salvation Army! “My experience,” said Jones of his airplane crash incident, “has led me to continue to seek ways to help the homeless and those less fortunate in our community and to do so with love and compassion, without judgment or discrimination.”
The Salvation Army still needs turkeys for the holiday season:
Please deliver your purchased turkey to:
The Salvation Army Towers Memorial Social Services Center (open 24 hours)
900 W. Adams Street
Jacksonville, Florida 32204
(904) 301-4780
**The entrance gate is located on Lee Street just south of Adams.
To make a cash donation, please call (904) 301-4855 or mail your donation to:
The Salvation Army of NE Florida
P. O. Box 52508
Jacksonville, Florida 32201-2508
Attn: Turkey Donation
The Leonid meteor shower occurs through the weekend but viewing from the First Coast will more than likely be obscured by clouds. Click
here for more info from EarthSky.
The "Friends of the Library Book Warehouse Sale" will return this weekend on University Blvd. Click
here for info. on Facebook.
