Barber Billy Hume's Cuts for Cops annual fundraiser moves to 3 Daughters Brewery

Billy Hume, who owns Billy's Corner Barber Shop on Fourth Street N and lives in Maximo Moorings, started hosting Cuts for Cops several years ago as a way to raise money for the Suncoast Law Enforcement Charities Fallen Officer Fund. The organization supports the families of area law enforcement officers who have been killed protecting local citizens.

Billy's annual event has always been a fun community event, with businesses like Old Northeast Pizza, Outback Steakhouse, California Tacos, and others donating food and beverages, and local residents turning out to show their support. The activities have filled the parking lot in the business center near 22nd Avenue where Billy's shop is located.

Last year, Cuts for Cops was followed by Hops for Cops, an extension of the party at 3 Daughters Brewery on 22nd Street South in the Warehouse Arts District. This year the whole event will be at 3 Daughters. Billy Hume will move his chair down to 3 Daughters and will give cuts for $100 donations for the cause. Meantime, there'll be plenty of food, live music by J Klein, a raffle and auction, and a corn hole tournament. 3 Daughters has even brewed a special beer just for the occasion.

The festivities begin at 4 p.m. and run until 11 p.m. 3 Daughters Brewery is at 222 22nd Street S. You can email Dawn Peters at dawnmp01@hotmail.com for more information.

Thank you to Billy Hume for starting this event and supporting our law enforcement officers. You are another reason that this area is a great place to live.

Scammer's call dupes Gulfport businessman

Taso Papargiriou, who owns TLC Food Mart in Gulfport, got a call at the store recently that put him in a dither. The caller said he was from the electric company and that Taso's power would be shut off in 30 minutes unless he wired cash immediately. Taso sent a payment, concerned that being without power at his convenience store could cost him a lot of money. Then he called Duke Energy to tell them the payment had been sent. That's when he discovered that no one from the power company had telephoned him, and that the call was from a scammer. Authorities are investigating but Taso wants everyone to know in hopes it'll prevent someone else from getting scammed, too. You can read more about Taso's story in The Gabber.

Historian Minson Rubin honored as a South St. Petersburg Pioneer and Trailblazer

Minson Rubin grew up in the Jordan Park Projects, graduated from Gibbs High School during the segregation era, and after earning a degree in education at FAMU, came back to teach in Pinellas County. A few years ago, he retired from Bay Point Middle School after 33-year teaching career. Along the way, Minson Rubin always had a fascination for local history. He collected memorabilia from the early days of Gibbs High School, the Jordan Park projects, and historic 22nd Street, heart of the old African American business district and the home of the famed Manhattan Casino.

So, it was a great pleasure to see this man, who has done some much to contribute to the good of the community, honored as a Pioneer and Trailblazer by the Jordan Park Projects Nostalgic Association. Minson Rubin was cited among a dozen former Jordan Park Projects residents in the organization's annual Black History Month program.

The Minson R. Rubin Collection is on display at the St. Petersburg College Midtown campus as a major part of the St. Petersburg College Foundation's new exhibition, In Black and White: Stories of 22nd Street South. The exhibition gives a glimpse into everyday life in the South St. Petersburg area during the segregation and civil rights eras. Minson Rubin served as a resource for two books about the African American community in St. Petersburg, Black America Series: St. Petersburg, Florida (2003) by Sandra W. Rooks and St. Petersburg's Historic African American Neighborhoods (2008) by Rosalie Peck and Jon Wilson.