TAMPA - Here are five things you need to know happening in Florida on Wednesday, February 22.
(1) Breakfast with the Mayor
St. Petersburg Mayor Bill Foster will be up early Wednesday morning to talk with city residents one-on-one.
Foster holds his monthly Breakfast with the Mayor at The Dome Grill at 561 Central Avenue beginning at 7:00 a.m.
The restaurant opened in 1990 following the construction of the then Florida Suncoast Dome, now Tropicana Field. It serves a traditional American breakfast and lunch with Greek influences.
Residents are encouraged to bring their appetite and questions for the Mayor.
Foster will host his Breakfast next month on March 28 at a location yet to be announced.
For information on future Breakfast with the Mayor dates and locations, visit www.stpete.org.BreakfastWithMayor .
(2) Lee Roy Selmon Athletics Center dedication
The University of South Florida will rename the Athletics Center in honor of the school's former Athletic Director Lee Roy Selmon on Wednesday.
The USF Board of Trustees unanimously approved the change in September shortly after Selmon's death on September 4.
Lee Roy Selmon first made his mark in the Bay Area as a star defensive end with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers beginning as the teams first ever draft pick in 1976. Selmon was named to six Pro Bowls during his nine-year career and was the 1979 NFL Defensive Player of the Year.
He was enshrined into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1995 and inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1988.
He served as USF's assistant athletic director from 1993 to 2001 and Athletic Director from 2001 to 2004. Selmon then became the president of the fund-raising organization USF Foundation Partnership for Athletics.
As the USF Athletic Director, Selmon launched the school's football program. He helped lead the move into Conference USA and then into the Big East Conference.
"What better way for the university to honor Lee Roy ... than to name the facility that is home to our student-athletes after USF's 'father of football' Lee Roy Selmon," said USF President Judy Genshaft in September.
The Lee Roy Selmon Athletics Center dedication ceremony will take place at 4:30 p.m. Both President Genshaft and current Athletic Director Doug Woolard are scheduled to speak at the event.
(3) F-35 production facility ribbon cutting
A ribbon cutting ceremony for the expansion of Lockheed Martin's aircraft part production facility in Pinellas Park will take place on Wednesday.
The facility is expanding as the military's F-35 Joint Strike Fighter ramps up production. The F-35 is the newest fighter jet for the U.S. Air Force, Marine Corps and Navy. Thousands are expected to be produced for the U.S. military and militaries around the world.
The assembly of canopies for the new F-35 required the opening of a new facility.
Representative Bill Young, Chairman of the House Appropriations Committee, will joing Lockheed Martin officials for the 11:00 a.m. ribbon cutting ceremony.
A tour of the existing Lockheed Martin facility will follow.
For more information on the F-35 project, visit www.f35.com .
(4) PlayStation Vita releases
Sony releases its latest gaming system on Wednesday, the heldheld PlayStation Vita.
The Vita is the successor to the PlayStation Portable (PSP). It features two analog sticks, a 5-inche OLED multi-touch capacitive touchscreen, a rear touch pad, front and rear facing cameras, built-in microphone and stereo speakers, built-in GPS, and supports Bluetooth, Wi-Fi and optional 3G.
The device is backwards-compatible with all digitally-released PSP games released on the PlayStation Network (PSN) via the PlayStation Store.
Games will be released on a PS Vita card or on the PlayStation Store via an online download.
Besides playing games, users will be able to surf the internet, chat with other players and friends, play music and take photos.
Users can access 3G cellular networks for a monthly fee from AT&T.
For more information, visit us.playstation.com/psvita/ .
(5) Ash Wednesday
For most people of the Christian faith, today is Ash Wednesday and the first day of Lent. In Eastern Rite Catholic churches, Lent begins two days earlier on Clean Monday.
Ash Wednesday always falls 46 days before Easter.
Roman Catholics are encouraged to attend Mass on Ash Wednesday, though the day is not a Holy Day of Obligation.
During Mass, ashes which give the day its named are distributed. They are made by burning the blessed palms that were distributed the previous year on Palm Sunday. Many churches ask parishioners to return any palms they took home so they can be burned.
After the priest blesses the ashes and sprinkles them with holy water, he dips his right thumb in the ashes and makes the Sign of the Cross on people's foreheads while saying some variation of "Remember, man, that thou art dust, and to dust thou shalt return."
On Ash Wednesday, Catholics ages 18 to 60 in good health are required to fast and abstain from meat on day. Only one complete
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