President's Report

PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE

Through the years many people have made their way

and settled in this premiere planned community called

Tuscawilla. All of our residents are special and have added

something to make this a great place to live. My ninety-four-

year-old neighbor just passed away. He was a Colonel in the

Air Force and flew jets off aircraft carriers in two wars. He

was one of many of my neighbors that demonstrated the

value of community service.

Not too many years ago I remember attending the dedication

service for the plaque at the base of the flagpole on the east

end of Winter Springs Blvd. The plaque is in memory of

all our service men and women. At the ceremony there

was a survivor of the Pearl Harbor attack on December 7,

1941. Also, there was another Tuscawilla resident named

“Spike” who was one of the paratroopers who landed at

night in Normandy prior to the June 6, 1944 invasion of the

European Continent in World War II.

I have another neighbor named Don Jonas who was a famous

football player in the Canadian Football League and later

joined the Philadelphia Eagles. He was also the first football

coach at UCF. We have living among us engineers, doctors,

authors, scientists, educators, television personalities,

politicians, clergy, business owners, athletes and more.

One of those athletes recently passed away. His name was

Wayne Allan Granger, and he is a member of Cincinnati

Reds Baseball Hall of Fame. Wayne was a formidable relief

pitcher whose dominant performances were a hallmark of

the Cincinnati Reds early “Big Red Machine”. He signed

with the St. Louis Cardinals in 1965 and was traded to

the Cincinnati Reds in 1968. It was there that he quickly

established himself as one of the League’s premier closers.

In 1969 he led the League with ninety appearances and

twenty-seven saves.

In the 1970 baseball season Granger

continued his dominance setting a

National League record with thirty-

five saves, a mark that stood for

many years. He also had the historic

distinction of throwing the final pitch

and earning the last victory at the

Reds’ venerable home, Crosley Field,

before the team moved to Riverfront Stadium. Leaving the

Reds, Wayne also pitched for several other teams including

the Minnesota Twins, New York Yankees, Chicago White

Sox, Houston Astros, and the Montreal Expos, before arm

injuries ultimately cut short his career in 1976. Wayne was

a long-time resident of Tuscawilla.

The Tuscawilla Today is always interested in recognizing

our residents who have or had an interesting career. We

are thankful for each of you and hope you will continue

to support us as your association works to keep this a

wonderful place to live.

Dr. Kurt Miericke

THOA President

Publisher, Tuscawilla Today

Email: THOAws20@gmail.com