The Future of Educational Technology Conference (FETC) is held in Orlando, Florida, each year and gives teachers, administrators, and school district leaders the opportunity to meet players in the educational technology ecosystem. It is the largest gathering of strategic ed tech decision makers who explore the future of educational technology, network with thought leaders, discover innovative solutions, and participate in hands-on workshops designed to empower educators and administrators.

Six educators from Montverde Academy’s academic divisions met to attend workshops, keynotes, and the exhibitor hall to get fresh ideas to integrate into their classrooms to inspire innovative teaching methods. They are now tasked with applying that fresh learning in their classrooms, to be advocates for integrative technology in their buildings, and provide professional development for the faculty that were unable to attend. Dr. Caryn Long, Director of Educational Technology and Innovation at MVA, is a strong supporter of attendance at this conference. “Each year, it is my goal to bring new cohorts to this amazing conference to inspire the use of ed tech in the classroom,” said Dr. Long. “It is a larger field than screen time, which most people think of when they hear the word ‘technology.’ It is about hands-on, active learning using technology. This conference provides ways to make that happen within our classrooms and therefore deepen learning for our students. It is technology used purposefully.”

The post Montverde Academy Faculty Attend FETC To Bring Innovative Technology To The Classroom appeared first on South Lake Tablet.

This successful local family-owned business offers over 50 authentic family entree recipes!!! Not part of a chain, Guru Indian Restaurant proudly and independently serves their own unique appetizers as well as their cooked chicken, beef, lamb, seafood, Biryani, vegetable, and vegan entrée dishes while always custom preparing and cooking them to perfection. They always ask you for your desired tastes and spice levels. Each dish is created the way you want it, flavored from mild or normal, medium, or hot and extra spicy. Guru Indian Restaurant serves generous portions of fine quality fresh foods and ingredients available.

Kadam started a simple and very authentic Indian restaurant for the South Lake community. They proudly serve generous 16-ounce portions of the finest quality foods and ingredients available today. Each entrée comes with a generous 16-ounce portion of rice, so there is often enough to take home for an extra meal. Everything is always made and served fresh. Each Guru Indian Restaurant dine-in experience is started with a complimentary dish of Pappadam chips, served with onion and sweet mango chutney.

Guru Indian Restaurant has proudly been awarded dozens of fine dining awards from the Clermont Sun, Orlando Sentinel, South Lake TV, Style and Orlando Family Magazines, and Orlando Weekly. Guru welcomes you for your birthdays, anniversaries, staff meetings, holidays, and all special occasions. Celebrate on your birthday at Guru for a FREE Dine-In Entrée with ID Proof. Guru is open 365 days every year, including Thanksgiving, Christmas as well as for New Year’s. Guru has become the best place to host outdoor parties.

Kadam notes, “I am very appreciative of our loyal patrons, our South Lake community. I remain very proud and thankful for my talented Guru staff team, as they consistently strive to deliver top quality customer service experiences every day!”

Guru Indian Restaurant is open from 10:30 AM to 10 PM every day. They generously offer a bonus beverage with ToGo orders by visiting: www.MyGuruToGo.com. You can have Guru dishes delivered with Door Dash, Uber Eats or EZ Catering services. They are located at 2400 US Highway 27, Suite 101, 34711. Call 352-241-9884. Visit: www.GuruRestaurantCatering.com to see their full menu. Follow them on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/gururestaurantclermont.

The post Foodie Spotlight Shines On Guru Indian Restaurant appeared first on South Lake Tablet.

By Grace Rabano & The Clermont Garden Club

 

Every month from September through May, Clermont Garden Club members loan plants to Cooper Memorial Library and Clermont City Hall to promote horticulture awareness and connect our community to Clermont Garden Club’s programs, civic activities and community outreach.

 For the month of November, Clermont Garden Club member Donna Ferraguto loaned a Money Tree Plant to Cooper Memorial Library. The Money Tree plant (Pachiraaquatica) gets its name from the Feng Shui belief that it will attract good fortune and positive vibes. To care for the potted plant, provide bright, indirect light and water when the top inch or two of soil is dry. Maintain medium to high humidity. The money tree plant prefers well-draining soil. Money tree plants are pet-safe and non-toxic, making them a worry-free choice for homes with pets and young children.

Gale Saunders loaned a potted chrysanthemum to Clermont City Hall. The chrysanthemum, or “mum”, belongs to the Asteraceae family which is the largest family of flowering plants and includes over 23,000 species. Florist mums are usually the ones that are sold indoors during the fall season. While technically a perennial, these are bred as annuals because  chrysanthemums don’t have a rooting system that makes them capable of returning year after year, so planting these in an FL garden is not optimal. Mums need bright light and should be kept moist, but not wet. Trimming the spent flowers will help produce more buds.

 

Guests and prospective members are always welcome at the Clermont Garden Club meetings. Come and join us at our next meeting on Wednesday, Nov 19 at the clubhouse located at 849 West Avenue, Clermont at 9:30 am-noon.

 

Additionally, special club events are happening in November at the clubhouse:

• Sat., Nov 15 at 9:00am to 2:00pm – Annual sale of plants grown by club members.
• Sat., Nov 22 at 10:00am to 3:00pm – Art Stroll in collaboration with the South Lake Art League where art will be shared throughout the clubhouse grounds. Raffles, kids, crafts, table and scavenger hunt available.

Clermont Garden Club is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization.

 

The post Planting Knowledge in the Community: Nov2025 Plants for Cooper Memorial Library & Clermont City Hall appeared first on South Lake Tablet.

The campaign embodies a simple but powerful idea: when you invest in education, you invest in people—and in the future of the community.

For more than a decade, the LSSC Foundation has provided life-changing scholarships to students across Lake and Sumter counties. In 2025, the Foundation proudly awarded a record-breaking $1.7 million in scholarships, helping hundreds of students take the next step toward rewarding careers and personal success.

Every dollar given represents a story of perseverance, hope, and opportunity. When the community comes together to support higher education, amazing things happen—not only for the students but for the entire region.

For many students, the impact is deeply personal. One of the LSSC scholarship recipient said the scholarship allowed him to focus on his studies without worrying about how to pay for school. Another student shared that the ability to continue his studies and the belief that people in the community truly care about his success, gave him the confidence to continue his learnings.

Funds raised through the Annual Campaign also strengthen academic programs that prepare graduates for local, in-demand careers, driving economic growth and vitality across Central Florida.

As the Foundation looks toward 2026, it hopes to set a new record—continuing the momentum that has already changed so many lives.

There are many ways to give, including bequests, life insurance, retirement accounts, and RMD giving. Each contribution, large or small, helps make a lasting difference.

To learn more about the LSSC Foundation, scholarship opportunities, or how to get involved, visit www.lssc.edu/foundation.

To learn more about LSSC Foundation and Scholarships, vist website: LSSC Foundation

The post Lake-Sumter State College Foundation Launches 2026 Annual Campaign: “Making Dreams a Reality” appeared first on South Lake Tablet.

The Neighborhood Center of South Lake (TNC) is pleased to announce the addition of two new board members to our team. Mike Radzik and Kelly Armstrong. 

Kelly Armstrong is a proud South Lake County resident whose family has called the area home for over 25 years. She brings a powerful blend of leadership, empathy, and expertise to everything she does—driving meaningful change and strengthening the community she loves. 

A committed servant leader, Kelly is known for her people-first approach and exceptional relationship-building skills, which shine through in both her professional career and her extensive volunteer service. She now brings that passion and experience to her new role on the Board of Directors for The Neighborhood Center of South Lake. Professionally, Kelly thrives as a project manager, where her strategic insight, foresight, and coordination skills help guide large-scale, complex initiatives. She has notable successes in organizational development, management, and training; and most recently, she served on the construction project management team for Universal’s Epic Universe, a major new theme park in Central Florida. Her leadership played a key role in bringing this transformative attraction to life—an achievement expected to have a lasting economic impact on the region. 

In her free time, Kelly enjoys family adventures, traveling, weekly trivia nights with friends, and restoring her 100-year-old historic home in downtown Clermont. WELCOME KELLY! 

Mike Radzik takes an active, people-centered approach to community service. A longtime leader in Groveland—The City with Natural Charm—Radzik believes that the city’s true charm lies in the spirit of its people and their shared commitment to growth and progress. 

Since falling in love with Groveland’s scenic beauty in 2004, Radzik has proudly called it home. He was first elected to the Groveland City Council in 2010, later served as Mayor, and returned to the Council in 2015, 2017, 2019, and again in 2024. He currently represents District 2 and serves on numerous local and regional committees. 

For over 15 years, Radzik has championed impactful local initiatives—professionally and personally. His early involvement helped establish the original skate park at Lake David, and he has supported youth-focused causes such as Ronald McDonald House fundraisers. Today, he continues to give back as Treasurer and Board Member of The Neighborhood Center of South Lake, a nonprofit dedicated to food security and family stability.

Together with his wife, Rose, Radzik co-founded Groveland Cares Inc., a nonprofit that provides free annual Thanksgiving dinners to residents in need. This initiative reflects the Radziks’ deep-rooted belief in giving back and uplifting their neighbors. 

Radzik holds a Master’s degree in Accounting and a Bachelor’s degree in Business, with specialized expertise in Governmental Accounting. Yet, his proudest achievement remains using his knowledge, leadership, and compassion to help Groveland thrive—uniting its natural beauty with civic excellence. WELCOME MIKE! 

The post The Neighborhood Center of South Lake Welcomes Two New Board Members  appeared first on South Lake Tablet.

Clermont residents Christopher and Anne Condie just returned home to Central Florida after serving for three years as mission leaders for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Salt Lake City, Utah. 

Many Floridians have seen this Church’s young missionaries proselyting in pairs with their familiar black name tags.  But fewer are aware of the role of the missionaries’ mission leaders. Such leaders, typically more experienced devotees of the faith such as the Condies, are married couples who oversee missionaries in one of 411 missions around the world. The missions span 150 countries in six continents and comprise some 72,000 missionaries who teach in one or more of 60 different languages. The Condies were assigned to serve in the Utah Salt Lake City mission, where they supervised over 700 missionaries, during their three years, hailing from six continents and over 30 countries.

Specifically, the Condies oversaw the missionaries’ efforts to teach people about the gospel of Jesus Christ and to render service in various non-profit, charitable organizations, including refugee centers, women’s shelters, animal shelters, food banks, hospitals, and other relief organizations.

The majority of the 700 missionaries under the Condies’ supervision were between 18-25 years of age and served for 18-24 months.  These young men and women put their lives and education on hold to serve as unpaid volunteers. In fact, the missionaries and their families typically pay the cost of these Christian missions. “We loved these young men and young women who sacrificed two years out of a very busy time in their lives to serve Jesus Christ. They became surrogate children to us, and many of them even referred to me as their ‘mission mom’”, said Anne Condie. 

Christopher’s family has a legacy of devoted missionary service. His father, DeLyle Condie, felt called to serve a mission while playing basketball for the University of Utah’s basketball team. This was remarkable not only because of his willingness to put his promising basketball career on hold for two years but also because at the time, his team was ranked 2nd in the nation. His basketball coach cautioned him soberingly, “If you leave to serve a mission, you will not play basketball on this team again.” So when DeLyle left for his mission in Australia, he expected to never play basketball again.  But after his arrival to Melbourne, the Australian National Basketball Team contacted DeLyle’s mission leader to ask whether the American missionaries could help prepare its inaugural Olympic basketball team for the 1956 Olympics, being held in Melbourne Australia. The mission leader agreed. The young missionaries assembled a talented team of players with college basketball experience to scrimmage against national teams from around the globe. Soon enough, the Australians dubbed this make-shift squad of Latter-day Saints the “Mormon Yankees.” In an astonishing feat for the “Mormon Yankees,” DeLyle, the team captain, led them to beat many national teams during scrimmage games. These missionaries’ saga is depicted in a 2016 movie, Spirit of the Game featuring DeLyle Condie as the protagonist. DeLyle’s father is played by Kevin Sorbo, a popular Christian actor. DeLyle’s missionary story and legacy lives on through his posterity, including Christopher and Anne Condie.

Christopher Condie is a retired attorney and title insurance executive.  Anne Condie holds a Bachelor of Science in Health Education.  The Condies have four children, two living in central Florida (a son in Minneola and a daughter also in Clermont). “I cannot express what a wonderful blessing it was to serve Jesus Christ by sharing His gospel and His love with those with whom we served over the past three years. It was the hardest thing I have ever done, but it also brought me some of the greatest joy I have experienced in my life”, said Christopher.

For more information about The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, visit www.ChurchofJesusChrist.org. 

The post Clermont Residents Return from Three-Year Mission appeared first on South Lake Tablet.

To learn more about the Kiwanis Club of Clermont, visit https://www.kiwanisclubofclermont.org

The post Kiwanis Club of Clermont Honors Fallen Heroes At Oak Hill Cemetery appeared first on South Lake Tablet.

The post Another Incredible Bras For The Cause and Boxers Too Event in the Books! appeared first on South Lake Tablet.

On Saturday, March 29, the City of Groveland celebrated its annual Founders Day, but this time, the event took on a special significance. Departing from tradition, the festivities began with speeches and a meal at the recently restored Oak Tree Union Colored Cemetery. In attendance were the mayor, his council, and descendants of the founders of Groveland, once called Taylorville. Among the crowd was Mr. Michael Jaycox, Vice Commander of The Trilogy of Orlando Veterans Association (TOVA), who came to pay respect to the ten World War I veterans buried there. During the occasion, he had a discreet conversation with Groveland’s Fire Chief, Kevin Carroll, the driving force behind the cemetery’s transformation. When Carroll first encountered the site, it was overgrown and unreachable by vehicle or foot. 

TOVA has a standing commitment to honor veterans, visiting Bushnell National Cemetery biannually to place flags on Memorial Day and wreaths during the Christmas season. On this day, though, Mr. Jaycox’s purpose wasn’t to make a grand statement. Instead, he quietly shared with Chief Carroll that TOVA volunteers would now extend their tribute to the Oak Tree Union Colored Cemetery, ensuring these valiant soldiers receive the same ongoing recognition. 

Please follow this link for further information at https://groveland-fl.gov/709/Restoration-of-the-Oak-Tree- Union-Colore 

The post Groveland Founders Day Festival Kicked Off At Oak Tree Union Colored Cemetery appeared first on South Lake Tablet.

Give A Day Foundation, Inc. organized the first Non-Profit Showcase on Monday, March 31st, at the Bella Collina Club Ballroom, located at 15920 County Road 455, Montverde, to bring attention to the mission statements of each organization in attendance.

The showcase, which accommodated 40+ organizations, was an event that gathered various non-profit organizations and community members to display their work, network, find collaboration opportunities, and offer new membership opportunities to area residents. The idea was born by Bella Collina resident Sandra Stewart to bring attention to so many organizations in the area that do so many wonderful things. The Bella Collina Club Ballroom provided a picturesque and inviting venue for the event, adding to the showcase’s success.

Organizations such as New Beginnings, Nurturing Spirit, Kiwanis Club of Clermont, Hands of Hope America, U.S. Naval Sea Cadets – Clermont Battalion, Clermont Fire Department Cadets, Christian Men in Action, Clermont Woman’s Club, South Lake Junior Women’s Club, Well of Hope, Thrive, Greater Clermont Cancer Foundation, Find Feed & Restore, The Neighborhood Center of South Lake and Building Blocks Ministries were but a few of the many organizations in attendance. Members of the non-profits also took advantage of the opportunity to learn more about their neighboring non-profits.

Give A Day Foundation (GADF) is a local non-profit that organizes volunteer opportunities for special events, non-profit functions, cleanup projects, and much more in the Clermont area.

 GADF was founded to help connect people who enjoy giving back to their community with volunteer service. The GADF also organized the local Think-Tank meetings – a bi-monthly gathering of volunteer organizations that share information, needs, and ideas.

Visit GiveADayFoundation.org for volunteer opportunities, community service hour needs, and meeting schedules.

The post Community Spotlight Shines On Give A Day Foundation’s First Non-Profit Showcase appeared first on South Lake Tablet.