The Shields Painting Difference: Perfection with Every Brush Stroke
Many painting companies in Florida rely on flashy marketing and big promises to try and attract new clients. But when it comes time to work, they fall short of their promises. This is often due to a lack of experience, qualified painters, and a drive to overachieve. At Shields Painting, we do things a little differently than other painting companies in Citrus County. We believe that a professional paint job should be as close to perfect as possible. Our goal is to leave you 100% satisfied, whether we're touching up an old residential paint job or performing a complex commercial project. It might sound simple, but we achieve that goal through honesty, hard work, beautiful results, and reasonable pricing.
As a family-owned and operated painting company in Sugarmill Woods, FL, we strive to provide personalized, professional, and friendly service. Shields Painting has been in business since 1968 for a good reason. Whenever possible, we go the extra mile to make sure our customers are happy. Unlike some of our competition, we want to know all about your house or business painting project: your vision, your preferences, your challenges, and your goals. When we understand your needs, we can present you with a fantastic final product - one that you're proud to show off to friends and neighbors.
At Shields Painting, we combine our extensive experience with time-tested, meticulous painting processes, resulting in the highest quality painting results around. As a painting contractor in Citrus County, we can take on a variety of residential, commercial, and industrial projects in Florida.
A few of our most popular painting services include:
- Interior Painting
- Exterior Painting
- Residential Painting
- Commercial Painting
- Cabinet Painting
- Ceiling Painting
- Fence Painting
- Sign Painting
- MUCH More!
Our commercial, industrial, and residential painting contractors take the proper steps to protect your property and belongings while we work. Our team will clean up after ourselves, so your property is left clean and free of debris when we're done. After all, we think there's only one way to do a job, and that's the right way.
Painting Services

Eco-friendly & clean work area.

PDCA Certified Member.

Your Go-To House Painting Company in Sugarmill Woods, FL
Your home is a haven of relaxation and solitude. It is uniquely you - a place where you can express who you are through style and design. Whether you need interior touch-ups for your crown molding or a new exterior coat of paint, hiring a reliable painting contractor is the best way to get quality results.
At Shields Painting, we know how important it is to have a home that highlights your tastes and personality. That's why we offer an extensive array of residential painting services in Citrus County. As tempting as it might be to try a DIY paint job, without the proper skills and experience, there is a good chance that the results will turn out less than satisfactory.
High-quality painting requires skill, experience, and patience. If you're a homeowner who needs residential painting services but doesn't have the time, patience, or skills to handle the job, look no further than Shields Painting. We offer accuracy, precision, and longevity with each paint job we perform. Our customers choose Shields Painting for their home because they receive:
- Free Quotes with Detailed Project Breakdowns
- Affordable Pricing
- Expert Painting Contractors
- High-Quality Paint Products
- Combo of Traditional and Modern Techniques
- Well-Maintained Tools
- Unmatched Craftsmanship
- Friendly, Personalized Service
- Good Old-Fashioned Hard Work!
The majority of our house painting services come in two forms: interior and exterior.
Interior Residential Painting
As an interior painting contractor with decades of experience, our expert technicians have developed an interior painting process that maximizes quality and emphasizes customer satisfaction. We understand that interior painting goes beyond aesthetics. It protects your ceilings and walls and helps you sustain a healthier place to live for your family. When only the finest craftsmanship will do inside your home, Shields Painting is here for you.
Our seasoned team of painting experts and craftsmen is dedicated to respecting your space and providing you with the look and feel you're craving inside your home. Whether you bought a new house and want to make it your own or need minor touch-ups but have no time, Shields Painting is ready to tackle the job, no matter how small or large.
Unlike some painting companies, our interior house painters take the time to get the details right, every time. For instance, color is only one aspect of your interior paint job. The paint sheen or finish is just as important. Certain finishes are better for living rooms and bedrooms than in kitchens and bathrooms. We'll help you find the right finish and paint colors for your home, so you don't have to worry about touch-ups or repainting.
Some of our most popular interior house painting services include:
- Ceiling Painting
- Popcorn Ceiling Removal
- Living Room Painting
- Bathroom Painting
- Basement Painting
- Color Consultations
- More

Cabinet Painting
Citrus County cabinet painting deserves its own section on this page because it requires more time, skill, and quality paint than most sections of your home. If your home's cabinets are built into its woodwork, replacing them can be obnoxiously expensive. Compared to the cost of installing new cabinets, painting your kitchen cabinets is much more affordable.
At Shields Painting, we specialize in transforming old cabinets into new, gorgeous features that are just as usable as they are beautiful. Each step of our cabinet painting process is meticulous and thorough. And we'll take care of the entire job, from cleaning, prep, and sanding to priming, painting, and reassembly. This unique service lets you enjoy a brand-new look in your kitchen without having to go into debt by replacing your cabinets.
Whether your cabinets are new, but you want to change their color or you'd like to transition wood cabinets to a painted finish, Shields Painting has the expertise and experience to give you a new look you'll love.

Exterior Residential Painting
Your home - it's a place that not only keeps your belongings safe. It protects your family and loved ones, too. It's one of your largest investments, and like anything else of value, it should be protected. However, Florida weather can take a toll on your home's structure and paint, lowering your home's value and even putting your family at risk.
While it's true that a beautiful exterior affects your house's value, it shouldn't take thousands of remodeling dollars to make a positive change to your home. There's a fine line between reasonable pricing and top-quality painting, and that sweet spot is what Shields Painting aims for. If you want to transform how your friends and neighbors see your home, never underestimate the power of a professional paint job.
Our exterior residential painting services are designed to boost curb appeal, give your home a fresh look, and help it stand up to Florida's unique weather. But we provide more than that. When you hire Shields Painting for your outdoor painting project, you will enjoy peace of mind in knowing that your home is in truly capable hands. Our goal is to exceed your expectations and help bring out the best in your property, whether you need to re-stain your deck or remove old, peeling paint from your siding.
If you're on the hunt for the very best exterior painting contractor in Sugarmill Woods, FL, look no further than Shields Painting.
Some of our most popular exterior house painting services include:
- Vinyl Siding Painting
- Deck Painting and Staining
- Stucco Exterior Painting
- Wood Exterior Painting
- Porch Painting and Staining
- Soffit Painting
- Fascia Painting
- Window Painting
- Front Door Painting
- Thorough Painting Prep
- More

The Premier Commercial Painting Company in Sugarmill Woods, FL
When it comes to first impressions, your businesses' appearance plays an important role. Your commercial property's paint job factors into its overall aesthetics. A great-looking, well-maintained paint job can mean the difference between a customer walking in your storefront and passing by. Conversely, an old, worn-out commercial paint job can send the wrong message to prospective customers. If you can't take the time to keep up your property's appearance, why would a customer spend their hard-earned money on your products?
The same goes for your businesses' interior paint. Would you want to do business with a company that has peeling paint or unsightly crown molding? At Shield's Painting, our goal is to create a beautiful environment that your customers and employees will love inside and out. When you work with our business painters, you can rest easy knowing we treat your business like it were our own. We always clean up after ourselves and know that operations cannot come to a halt just because we're painting. As such, we'll work with your busy schedule to ensure the job gets done right the first time without disrupting your day-to-day commitments.
With decades of commercial painting experience, we know the demands of a commercial painting project necessitate a disciplined and focused approach from the start. Our team of business painters is committed to delivering quality, on-time results on every project, every time - no excuses

We offer professional business painting services to a variety of building types, including:

01
Industrial Painting
A high level of care and finesse are required to effectively paint an industrial property. At Shields Painting, we know that industrial paint jobs involve much more than aesthetics. That's why our industrial services are customized to your specifications, using industrial-grade materials that stand up to heavy-duty operations.
02
Retail Store Painting
Our commercial painters apply effective, yet appealing interior and exterior paint that stand up to the daily rigors of busy retail environments.


03
Small Business Painting
Do you own a restaurant franchise? Have a small "mom and pop" location that needs a fresh coat of paint? Shields Painting has the resources and reliability to efficiently get the job done the first time. That way, you can focus on serving your customers, not having your business repainted.
04
Healthcare Location Painting
From walk-in clinics to long-term care facilities, Shields Painting is sensitive to your patients' needs. We know you must protect your patient's privacy while maintaining productivity. Our approach to healthcare location painting centers around your schedule to avoid disruptions in care.


05
Apartment Complex Painting
Erase signs of wear and make your apartment complex or multi-family building a more desirable place to live with a stunning, professional paint job.
Florida's Most Trusted Painting Contractor
Shields Painting has been in the business since 1968. In a world where so much has changed, we are proud to uphold the ideals that make us successful: hard, honest work, getting the job done right, and excellent customer service. Providing you with trustworthy, quality work will always take priority over rushing through a project to serve the next customer. That is just not the way we choose to do business.
As professionals dedicated to perfection, we strive to provide a unique painting experience for every customer - one that focuses on their needs and desires instead of our own. Whether you need residential painting for your home or commercial painting for your business, we encourage you to reach out today to speak with our customer service team. Whether you have big ideas about a new paint project or need our expertise and guidance, we look forward to hearing from you soon.

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Latest News in Sugarmill Woods, FL
Big changes coming to World Woods Golf Club
Michael Bateshttps://www.chronicleonline.com/news/local/big-changes-coming-to-world-woods-golf-club/article_0b9fa094-1b17-5968-8a4d-11177aa05eb9.html
Cabot, the Canadian developer that recently purchased three golf courses in the area, has released plans for one of them: World Woods.In the deal, Cabot also bought Sugarmill Woods and Southern Woods in Homosassa. Spokeswoman Rachel Maher said more details on what’s planned for those courses will be released as soon as details are finalized.But first comes World Woods and some big changes are planned.For now, the 1,200-acre property off U.S. 98 – on the border of Citrus and Hernando counties – will stil...
Cabot, the Canadian developer that recently purchased three golf courses in the area, has released plans for one of them: World Woods.
In the deal, Cabot also bought Sugarmill Woods and Southern Woods in Homosassa. Spokeswoman Rachel Maher said more details on what’s planned for those courses will be released as soon as details are finalized.
But first comes World Woods and some big changes are planned.
For now, the 1,200-acre property off U.S. 98 – on the border of Citrus and Hernando counties – will still be known by World Woods. Renovations to the course will begin in spring 2022.
In 2023, it will open as Cabot Citrus Farms with amenities that will include two revitalized 18-hole courses, a par-3 course, a new clubhouse and practice facilities with a putting course and driving range.
Cabot Citrus Farms will have retail, restaurants, fitness and spa amenities, communal gathering points and a farmer’s market.
Gene McGee, a member of the Citrus County Tourist Development Council (TDC), said if the new owner spends the money to improve World Woods, it will attract golfers from all over who will find their way to Citrus County.
An avid golfer, McGee said Pine Barrens and Rolling Oaks are gorgeous courses. And they’re public, which makes it better.
“It will be a draw for tourism in Citrus County,” he said. “People are likely to stay in (local) hotels and RV resorts in Citrus County because the golf course will be so close.”
It’s so close, he said, that some people think World Woods is in Citrus County, instead of Brooksville.
Cabot is searching for golf course architects to improve the overall playing experience and “bring out the best of this spectacular site,” according to a Cabot news release.
“I couldn’t wish for a better location for our first U.S. development,” said Ben Cowan-Dewar, CEO and co-founder of Cabot. “The property is a nature lover’s paradise that rivals the most spectacular sites I’ve seen across the world.
“We are excited to build upon the amazing legacy established at World Woods and forge a new path for Cabot Citrus Farms as a vibrant golf and residential community that showcases the Sunshine State’s abundant natural offerings,” Cowan-Dewar said.
World Woods was established by Yukihisa Inoue in 1993 and garnered acclaim for its two championship golf courses – Pine Barrens and Rolling Oaks – and impressive practice facilities.
Pine Barrens was previously a mainstay on the World Top 100 list, while Rolling Oaks remains one of the top courses in the state, according to Cabot.
Cabot also said Citrus County will realize an increase in tourism when the new facility opens.
“Visitors will delight in one-of-a-kind experiences including exceptional hiking, biking and nature trails at neighboring Withlacoochee State Forest, spring-fed rivers and bountiful lakes at Crystal River, and world-class fishing in the Gulf of Mexico,” the company said.
For more information, see www.cabotcitrus farms.com.
County to end Homosassa, Sugarmill fixed bus route service
Mike Wrighthttps://www.chronicleonline.com/news/local/county-to-end-homosassa-sugarmill-fixed-bus-route-service/article_57497f44-25a8-11ea-884b-33a67943f022.html
Three times a week Dennis Flack walks from his Homosassa home to a bus stop a mile away to ride the Citrus County Transit.Flack uses the bus for errands, shopping and to visit with friends.The ride is free — Flack fits the county criteria for free use of the Orange Line fixed-route system. He’s older than 60, a military veteran, disabled from an industrial accident and has an income level that meets the threshold.“I basically use it for anything when it’s running,” Flack said.In two w...
Three times a week Dennis Flack walks from his Homosassa home to a bus stop a mile away to ride the Citrus County Transit.
Flack uses the bus for errands, shopping and to visit with friends.
The ride is free — Flack fits the county criteria for free use of the Orange Line fixed-route system. He’s older than 60, a military veteran, disabled from an industrial accident and has an income level that meets the threshold.
“I basically use it for anything when it’s running,” Flack said.
In two weeks, for residents of southwest Citrus, including Homosassa and Sugarmill Woods, the fixed route ride is coming to an end.
County commissioners voted in November to end the Homosassa Orange Line service so that the county can split the popular Inverness route in two. The county was able to do this without adding personnel or buses, because it eliminated one route to divide another, transit director Lon Frye said.
“The Homosassa route was stretched too far. Ridership was declining,” Frye said. “As we saw ridership decline on this route, we had to make a change.”
When the Homosassa route ends on Jan. 6, it’ll leave about 7,000 riders who rely on the bus now needing alternative transportation.
The county will still offer door-to-door service — at $3 a ride.
Of the four routes — Beverly Hills, Crystal River, Homosassa and Inverness — Homosassa has the fewest number of riders at about 8,700 in 2018 and around 7,000 this year. Frye said the Homosassa numbers have dropped steadily, though he doesn’t know why.
The route stretches 28 miles from the transit office in Lecanto, down Grover Cleveland Boulevard to U.S. 19, then south to U.S. 98 and back again.
Inverness has more than 22,000 annual riders on a route that includes Hernando and Floral City, and spans 34 miles, according to a county transit report.
The split sets half of Inverness-Floral City as one route and the other half of Inverness-Hernando as the other.
When county commissioners considered the issue at a Nov. 5 public hearing, no one from the public showed up: the Homosassa route deletion wasn’t mentioned during the brief board discussion. Commissioner Ron Kitchen Jr., whose district includes Homosassa and Sugarmill Woods, wanted only to ensure the change would occur without additional expense.
Kitchen did not return a call for comment. He has previously stated publicly he will no longer speak to the Chronicle.
Flack said he didn’t know anything about the planned change until after a bus driver informed him the service would be ending in January.
“Why wasn’t there a notice on the bus to let us know the county commissioners were even going to vote on it?” he asked. “We couldn’t go if we didn’t know about it. I would have gone.”
Frye said drivers handed out notices of the county commission hearing to passengers.
“It’s possible we did not reach every nook and cranny,” he said.
Commissioner Chairman Brian Coleman said he sympathizes with Flack and other riders, but the move was prudent.
“We have a certain amount of money to spend on bus service,” he said. “We try to get the most bang for the buck."
Of the $3 charge Homosassa riders will now face for door-to-door service, Coleman said: “Three dollars is a lot cheaper than an Uber or a taxi.”
Commissioner Jimmie T. Smith, who chairs the Transportation Disadvantaged Coordinating Board, which advises the county on transit matters, said the county needs to place buses where the need is greater. And that’s in Floral City, Hernando and Inverness, he said.
“We make decisions based on the best use of the resources,” he said. “We’re still doing what we can to make sure they still have availability of the resource. It’s just not free.”
Coleman, who became chairman two weeks after the transit vote, said he hasn’t received a single complaint about the county dropping the Homosassa-Sugarmill Woods route. Still, he acknowledged the plan may merit more discussion.
“I have no problem looking at it again,” he said.
Flack said the decision is unfair to southwest Citrus residents.
“That messed up a lot of us who use it as our main source of transportation,” Flack said. “I don’t care what the numbers are. That’s like discriminating against the people of Homosassa.”
Sugarmill Woods project axed; Residents blast developer during raucous meeting
Fred Hiers Chronicle Reporterhttps://www.chronicleonline.com/news/local/sugarmill-woods-project-axed-residents-blast-developer-during-raucous-meeting/article_f66ded83-91ef-5dcc-8844-8811b3fc4fb2.html
The owners of Sweetwater Homes of Citrus are back to square one in its hopes of the county rezoning nearly 50 acres in Sugarmill Woods’ Oak Village. The current and unchanged zoning there limits development to a maximum of 95 single-family homes.For the more than 100 Sugarmill Woods residents in the county commission chambers Thursday, the commission’s unanimous decision to deny the developer’s request to allow as many as 250 rental units in the area was a home run.The developer, Sweetwater Homes of Citrus, no...
The owners of Sweetwater Homes of Citrus are back to square one in its hopes of the county rezoning nearly 50 acres in Sugarmill Woods’ Oak Village. The current and unchanged zoning there limits development to a maximum of 95 single-family homes.
For the more than 100 Sugarmill Woods residents in the county commission chambers Thursday, the commission’s unanimous decision to deny the developer’s request to allow as many as 250 rental units in the area was a home run.
The developer, Sweetwater Homes of Citrus, nor its engineer, returned the Chronicle’s telephone call, as to their future plans.
Nearly 40 residents addressed the county commission on the issue of whether to allow the rezoning. The developers, during the 3 1/2 hour meeting, were almost friendless in the standing-room only chambers. Almost all the speakers were in opposition to the change, and many peppered the developer and his few supporters, with shouted insults, personal attacks, and accusations of greed and a willingness to ruin their community with rental units.
The county commissioners were little better off and often a target of speakers accusing them of already having their minds made up in support of the developer and the hearing merely a formality.
Some in the audience during public input time warned commissioners that Sugarmill Woods typically had a high voter turnout and the county’s five elected officials on the dais would do well to remember it.
Ocala attorney Lauren Merriam, representing many of the residents, said the trend over the decades from the original Sugarmill Woods design was for density to decline and the trend needed to continue rather than reverse.
“We need to reduce, reduce, reduce,” he said to a cheering audience.
He warned the design that developer and CEO of Sweetwater, Steve Ponticos, was showing the commission was not binding and could change.
Under the proposal, all the units would be rentals and owned by the developer or sold to another investor.
He called Ponticos’ presentation a sales job.
“It’s salesmanship. Good salesmanship, but it’s salesmanship,” he said.
Sugarmill Woods resident Patrick Goodman lives near where the developer wanted to build.
Goodman said he bought in the community, in part, because it attracted people in an income bracket who could afford the properties, have finance management skills, and an ability to financially maintain their properties.
If the developer had his way, Goodman said, he and his neighbors would have nothing in common with the new development of rentals or the people who lived there.
Resident Thomas Sholar said Ponticos’ presentation was misleading because the 250 units, a mixture of duplexes, townhomes, and villas, would be built on just over 30 acres. That’s because some of the near 50 acres would be earmarked for retention ponds and other infrastructure.
“That’s not compatible with Oak Village,” he said. “It’s too many structures on an acre of land, OK.”
Part of Ponticos’ pitch was that as seniors approached their 80s and 90s, they wanted to downsize, and many can’t afford to maintain their larger homes anymore.
His project would help solve that because it allowed those “super seniors” to stay in their neighborhoods, close to friends, and their religious communities.
Resident Dan Donoghue said the proposed area wasn’t designed for that many units, that many people, or the traffic they would generate.
He asked the commissioners if the county would allow such a development in Black Diamond or Pine Ridge.
Ron Rewald, a former real estate developer, reminded the commissioners that state law allowed the commission to keep the zoning as it was.
He also asked whether the developers had submitted traffic and flood studies.
He also warned that while much of the proposed development was also meant for young working people, in addition to seniors, the younger lifestyle brought with it a louder lifestyle, and music, and motorcycles.
“That’s what’s going to happen here,” he told commissioners.
“That’s what’s going to rest on your shoulders.”
He warned he was considering a recall petition of the commissioners.
A few speakers, however, were in favor of the rentals and told stories about how they, or their children, needed a temporary place to live before they could afford a home of their own. Those kinds of comments were not well received by the audience.
Commissioners said they understood that the county needed workforce housing, but agreed it wasn’t fair to residents to put it in Sugarmill Woods and among single-family homeowners.
Commissioner Holly Davis said that while she’s supported workforce and affordable housing in the past, Sugarmill Woods was not the place for it.
But she also said she took offense when audience members accused commissioners of already having made up their minds before public input and they were working hand-in-glove with developers.
Davis said she offers communities every opportunity to meet with her and to invite her to be a speaker where they live.
To those who described commissioners as corrupt, she said, “I feel sorry for you. You have every opportunity to know my heart.”
Davis said the “anger and vitriol” between neighbors, residents, and toward local elected officials, needed to stop.
Fred Hiers is a reporter at the Citrus Chronicle. Email him at fred.hiers@chronicleonline.com.
Sugarmill neighbors take notice of man's garage
Mike Wrighthttps://www.chronicleonline.com/news/local/sugarmill-neighbors-take-notice-of-mans-garage/article_5ab2500c-4c99-11eb-8d25-9fdd26f2db56.html
Donald Dozier’s garage is causing quite the stir with his Sugarmill Woods neighbors.Depending on who’s doing the speaking, the $49,000 18-by-38 foot garage is attached to the house. Or it’s not.The distinction is big in Sugarmill because deed restrictions do not allow for detached garages.And while deed restrictions are normally private matters between owners of deed-restricted property and the associations that govern then, citizens instead are also blaming Citrus County government for issuing Dozier t...
Donald Dozier’s garage is causing quite the stir with his Sugarmill Woods neighbors.
Depending on who’s doing the speaking, the $49,000 18-by-38 foot garage is attached to the house. Or it’s not.
The distinction is big in Sugarmill because deed restrictions do not allow for detached garages.
And while deed restrictions are normally private matters between owners of deed-restricted property and the associations that govern then, citizens instead are also blaming Citrus County government for issuing Dozier the wrong permit.
“I want the county to uphold their own standards,” resident Barbara Perreault said. “It’s an eyesore.”
Dozier said he’s done everything above board.
“I don’t care what people think,” he said.
The issue is one that combines a regulatory agency — the county — and deed restrictions, which the county has nothing to do with.
According to interviews and public records, this is what happened:
Dozier, a member of the Cypress Village Property Owners Association board of directors, applied for a building permit for a garage. His notice of commencement, which formally begins the construction process, was filed with the clerk of court on Oct. 30, 2020. It reads: “Construction of a detached garage.”
Dozier called that a “clerical error” and noted a second notice of commencement was filed Dec. 8 that said “construction of an attached garage.”
Dozier said the error caught the attention of neighbors who believe he’s trying to get away with something.
“The people around here really latched onto that,” he said.
The county, meanwhile, determined the garage was attached because of a breezeway that connects the building with the house — though there are no doors in the breezeway connecting the house to the garage.
Neighbors say this goes against the county code for an attached garage. According to code, a garage is considered an accessory structure to the main building, a house.
The Land Development Code states: “An accessory structure attached by a common wall(s), foundation and under the same roofline of the principal structure.”
The county, for its part, says it doesn’t get involved in deed restriction issues. And County Administrator Randy Oliver noted in an email that Building Director Carl Jones plans to clear up the confusion in the definition of attached vs. detached.
Neighbors like Sue Hale say a breezeway, which isn’t connected with doors to either building, doesn’t fit the definition.
“A 3-year-old child could look at this and see it’s not attached,” she said.
Former property owners association board member Carol Bush said the difference is significant.
“Now anybody else can build a detached garage, connect it to their house with a breezeway, and what are we going to stay?” Bush said. “It doesn’t make any sense.”
Asked what he planned to park in the garage, Dozier said: “A boat? RV? Whatever I want to put in it.”
Contact Chronicle reporter Mike Wright at 352-563-3228 or mwright@chronicleonline.com. To view more of his stories, go to www.tinyurl.com/y3bakm6w.
Women of Sugarmill Woods honor scholars
Rochelle Kaiser/For the Chroniclehttps://www.chronicleonline.com/news/education/women-of-sugarmill-woods-honor-scholars/article_dd6c3b36-52f8-11e8-95b2-3f17d75740d0.html
Members of the Women of Sugarmill Woods proudly hosted their annual scholarship luncheon and introduced 11 young adults ready to pursue their dreams.The scholarship committee, led by Sandy Rundell, begin months in advance preparing for the special moment. They spend hours poring through numerous applications from students in need of financial assistance as they enter college. It’s a chance to see the benefits of their hard work with fundraising.“In addition to providing each of these young students with a $1,500 sch...
Members of the Women of Sugarmill Woods proudly hosted their annual scholarship luncheon and introduced 11 young adults ready to pursue their dreams.
The scholarship committee, led by Sandy Rundell, begin months in advance preparing for the special moment. They spend hours poring through numerous applications from students in need of financial assistance as they enter college. It’s a chance to see the benefits of their hard work with fundraising.
“In addition to providing each of these young students with a $1,500 scholarship, we will also donate $4,375 to our Jeanne Balmer Take Stock in Children Scholarship, a $3,000 Withlacochee Technical College Scholarship and $2,500 to the Homosassa Elementary School Accelerated Reading program,” said Rundell. “This was all made possible by our annual School-astica Golf Tournament. ”
Get more from the Citrus County Chronicle
These scholarships were awarded:
Ashley Shuler is enrolled in the International Baccalaureate program at Lecanto High School and has been National Merit commended. She has been preparing for a career in business administration and may continue her education to become a veterinarian.
Yousra Jatt is applying her love for art and the medical field by pursuing a career in biomedical engineering following studies at the University of Florida. She has maintained a 4.5 GPA in the IB program at Lecanto High School while volunteering, working at Winn-Dixie and participating in Envirothon.
Macee Dixon is graduating from Citrus High School, where she’s been taking AP and honor courses along with participating in student government, cross country and weightlifting. She plans to attend the University of Central Florida to begin her journey of becoming a nurse practitioner. She would like to work with newborn babies in the NICU.
Colton Flynn will soon be on his way to the University of Central Florida. A pending graduate of Crystal River High School, Flynn has participated in student government as student body president and class president and was chosen Mr. CRHS by staff as a model student. He started a project to bring certified therapy dogs to the schools and has already contributed 175 volunteer hours at the Key Training Center. He is a certified mechanical and architectural drafter and is working toward an engineering degree.
Elisabeth Petrovsky, “Lizzie,” is dual enrolled at the College of Central Florida and has completed 21 college credits upon graduation at Lecanto High School, where she is currently president of the Lecanto Dramatic Arts and a member of the Thespians International. She plans to continue her education in theater, with a backstage focus, at Flagler College.
Grace Blyth has participated in the IB program at Lecanto High School, where she has been the varsity swim and dive team captain. She plans to attend the University of South Florida to become a teacher.
Ashley Evans has a passion for music and plans to attend the University of West Florida to study music education. She will soon graduate from Lecanto High School, where she has worked with Thespian Troupe 4009 as a performer, director and choreographer.
Dana Houpt is combining her passion for the human skeleton and forensics to follow her dream of becoming a medical examiner after attending the University of Florida. She has excelled in academics at Lecanto High School and participated in soccer, cross country, track and student government, all while earning 200 volunteer hours.
Attending the Health Academy in Crystal River helped Melanie Medeiros decide to pursue a degree in dental hygiene. She will begin her pursuit at Santa Fe College, then transfer to the University of Florida for her bachelor’s degree in health science.
Madison Cassidy will graduate from Citrus High School, where she has taken many AP classes and has been dual enrolled at the College of Central Florida. She dreams of working in business and will study business administration at Santa Fe College in Gainesville.
Joelle Suydam is this year’s recipient of the Women of SugarMill Woods $1,000 College of Central Florida Endowed Scholarship as she continues studying at CF, working toward a degree in elementary education. Suydam is fifth in her class and has excelled in AP classes while dual enrolled at CF.
“Joelle has already earned 30 college credits,” said Rundell.
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