Volunteer for Big Brothers and Big Sisters. Your reward will more than match your gift

Jack Sheppard led the award-winning Sports Department of the Tampa Bay Times for 21 years and still found time to volunteer with Big Brothers Big Sisters. Now that he has left the Times, Jack is advocating for the organization in a big way. He's the managing director of marketing and partnership development.  We couldn't help but notice the nice story in The Gabber about the volunteering opportunities with the Big Brothers and Big Sisters program in our community. Jack is part of that story. The message in all this? Volunteering with Big Brothers Big Sisters Tampa Bay is a most productive way to spend the summer.

MLK Dream Big Parade will feature the famous, fabulous FAMU marching band

Did you see the Tampa Bay Times story the other day about the famous, fabulous FAMU marching band making a appearance at the MLK Dream Big Parade on Monday? First time in St. Petersburg in 10 years. It's an interview with the band's new director, Shelby Chipman, and it's worth your time to read it. The big parade is shaping up to be quite an event. The Tuskegee University Marching Crimson Piper Band, a talented outfit in its own right, will be in the parade, too. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Jameis Winston will be grand marshal. In the same story, you can get all the details about the parade and the free Family Fun Festival that follows in the Tropicana Field parking lot. A free block party follows at the Deuces on 22 Street S at Ninth Avenue.

Thank you TBT columnist Ernest Hooper for mentioning some of our favorite things

It gave us great delight that Tampa Bay Times columnist Ernest Hooper made several mentions about our community in his 2016 edition of "You haven't lived in Tampa Bay until ... " feature. Most prominent, with a picture and all, was the recently reopened Goody Goody old-time hamburger place Tampa's Hyde Park. And, to be sure, the secret sauce is worth the trip. But eventually Mr. Hooper got down to some of our favorites. "You haven't lived in Tampa Bay until you've fished from the Sunshine Skyway Bridge Pier." Or "you haven't lived in Tampa Bay until you've imbibed on a Famous Margarita from the VIP Lounge on Treasure Island. Or, and this may be our favorite,  "you haven't lived in Tampa Bay until you've searched for life's true meaning while walking the sandy beaches of Pass-a-Grille." Good choices, Ernest Hooper. That's all we're saying.

The youngsters of the Fourth Estate are gathering and disseminating all the news

It warms the heart to see youngsters reading a newspaper. We couldn't help but notice the article in The Weekly Challenger by Demorris Lee, formerly of the Tampa Bay Times but now communications coordinator with the Pinellas County School Board. The paper in question was the Manatee Messenger, the student-produced newspaper at Melrose Elementary. Students in the third through fifth grades serve as reporters and photographers. The 16-page tabloid newspaper was printed in full color, which kind of cancels out the old riddle: What's black and white and read all over? Answer: a newspaper. Time was when newspapers were people's primary source of news, and although that is changing, the important role that journalists play in our democracy is just as vital as ever. Melrose is a journalism magnet school, along with John Hopkins Middle School, and Lakewood High School. Glad to see these youngsters learning these important skills in critical thinking. We say bravo!