People
Vito Russo
Vito Russo has lived in Palatka for nearly 15 years. This year, a shift in ownership of a vacant building presented an opportunity to revitalize the community that Russo has seen suffer. The patterns of poverty continue to repeat themselves. The community needs vision, and Russo is determined to bring his vision for this city to fruition.
“My Dad always told me this verse, Proverbs 29:18,” Russo says, “Where there is no vision, the people will perish.”
Today, in Putnam County, the graduation rate differs immensely from the state average. According to 2014-2015 data from the Florida Department of education, only 54.9 percent of students graduated high school within four years of starting in ninth grade. Of these, approximately 59 percent of graduates pursue higher education within 16 months of graduating, 2013/2014 Florida Department of Education data shows; 41.1 percent of minors were reported to be living under the poverty line in 2015, according to state data. These patterns continue to prevail each year, and the community needs revitalization.
Of the 21 schools in Palatka, 11 are failing. The rest – excluding one A-rated combined middle/high school that has the Cambridge Program, one charter school and one elementary school –are hovering just above this level with C ratings.
Palatka visitors may not see these hardships facing the city and its people at first glance. The warmth of old-fashioned diners and eclectic bingo parlors welcomes tourists with plates of southern comfort food and sides of genuine smiles. The St. Johns River sparkles under the Memorial Bridge. Plantation-style homes in the south historic district sit amongst lush foliage, embraced by wrap-around porches and coated in eggshell and pastel exteriors.
But when The Washington Post article surfaced, the charming vision of a small town eroded to reveal harsh realities. Though many Palatka natives expressed that they felt the article was misrepresentative of their city and insensitive, when Russo read the article, the biggest issue he found was that it offered no solutions. Rather than wait for federal assistance from the Trump administration, Russo sees a golden opportunity to give the city the economic and educational rebirth it longingly craves.
“This building is a gift from Heaven,” Russo said as he looked up at the beige concrete walls of the Campbell Building at 200 S. 7th Ave. “We need to grab it with both hands and bring it back because of the dramatic and immense cultural and economic impact it is going to have in this community, not just for this generation, or for you. This is for generations to come.”
For a small window of time, the building is available. The School Board of Putnam County owned the building since August 1997. This October, the school board relinquished ownership of the building and gave it to nonprofit organization Lift Putnam.
Lift Putnam is a registered nonprofit organization that raises and collects funds to send 4-year-old children to a pre-school program. However, the organization does not use the building. The Lift Putnam board has the ability to sell the building if it wishes, but Russo hopes to convince the organization to hold back on selling it so that it can be used for a cultural arts center.
Lift Putnam is a registered nonprofit organization that raises and collects funds to send 4-year-old children to a pre-school program. However, the organization does not use the building. The Lift Putnam board has the ability to sell the building if it wishes, but Russo hopes to convince the organization to hold back on selling it so that it can be used for a cultural arts center.
The program Russo envisions will generate enough funds to pay for the building’s utility costs and plunge into community programs that will ideally attract tourism, retirees and help enhance children’s school performance.
On the second floor, he hopes to convert four of the classrooms into lofts in which artists from any part of the state, country or abroad can live affordably. In the courtyard, he sees a vibrant stage on which musicians and dancers can perform. These performers will be contracted by St. Johns River State College’s Flo Arts program. In tandem with this support, college students involved in Flo Arts will intern at the center to teach dance, music and visual arts classes to children who attend the program’s after-school programs. The community severely needs these areas of the arts, Russo said.
“Every police officer I have spoken with and every sheriff deputy I have spoken with has said that this community is in desperate need of after-school programs to keep the kids busy,” Russo said. “We can provide that.”
Aside from artistic outlets, the after-school program would run from 4-6 p.m. Monday through Friday and offer classes and workshops teaching life lessons from financial management to minor vocational and gardening skills. Russo hopes through this center students gain the confidence they need to be self-sufficient.
Russo has presented his plan for this anticipated cultural and economic driver to the school board, commissioners, civic leaders and the general public by talking about his plan on the radio.
“I have been pushing that boulder uphill,” Russo said, “trying to get a coalition to help build that vision and help me manifest it.”
In Russo’s presentation to Lift Putnam, he hoped that the board would expand its mission statement to include the mission of the cultural arts center. This way, Lift would still own the building so the step of purchasing the building for these implementations would be removed.
Russo said that Lift has since rejected his proposal and wishes to sell the building. Now, he is exhausting every resource at his disposal to give this community the breath of fresh air that he believes this building will provide.
Russo said that Lift has since rejected his proposal and wishes to sell the building. Now, he is exhausting every resource at his disposal to give this community the breath of fresh air that he believes this building will provide.
“Culturally, this is a once-in-a-century opportunity,” Russo said. “That building is available to be converted… It has a small window of opportunity.”
"Palatka has so many resources to offer," Archer said about what would bring people in the city. "If we could just have local, small businesses. It's hard for businesses to stay open [when Walmart opened.] But we have the St. Johns River, we have a lot of land. We have a lot of infrastructure."
Archer is a domestic violence survivor. In 2002, Archer's second husband kidnapped her from their home, stowed her in her van and drove her to a secluded area where he hogtied her, ropes wrapped around her neck. He threatened to kill her, tossing pictures of her five children so that she could "look at [them] for the last time."
Archer escaped her ex-husband and was brought to a hospital. Two weeks later, Archer was at her home again, her ex-husband waiting for her. He slashed Archer with a butcher knife, the top part of her left ear cut off and a slash on her cheek. He swung a cast iron pan to Archer's head so hard that when she woke up at UF Health Jacksonville, she was unrecognizable. During her stay, Archer had surgeries to reattach her ear and plates on her cheeks. Archer's close friend was with her at the time and was beaten and unidentifiable as well. Her family, the law enforcement and the medical team who found her couldn't identify her because her face was so badly beaten. Her ex-husband was charged with two life sentences and 60 years.
After her incident with domestic violence, Archer saw the outpour of help from the Palatka community. People she has never met before, agencies and churches that would visit her and help her while she recovered.
"What I experienced in Palatka is how agencies worked together to reach out in support of those families that didn't have any other means," Archer said. "Whether it was for Christmas or back to school, or a local business owner who would hold a yard sale. I was just so embraced."
Archer didn't expect the reaction she received from the community after her incident. Because of the people she has met along the way, she started volunteering with agencies that have helped her and she felt the need to give back to her community. Today, she helps victims go back to school, get a job and find a place to live. She also believes that Palatka is destined for a better future.
"I see potential in Palatka," Archer said. "I want Palatka to be a hub for jobs. I want people to come here for jobs and stay here. We have so much to offer."
Tangie Archer
In her 26 years living in Palatka, Tangie Archer has made a name for herself. As a domestic violence advocate at the Lee Conlee House, she helps women and their children in Palatka get to safety after escaping from a domestic violence situation. Archer facilitates domestic violence survivors back to school at the St. Johns River State College. After being promoted to the Outreach branch at the Lee Conlee House, her focus now is on bringing business and collaboration into Palatka. Like many others in the community, Archer aims to bring more people into her community rather than watching them move away to find jobs and affordable living. |
| Tangie Archer, 48, court advocate for the Lee Conlee House, a domestic violence shelter located in Palatka, Florida. |
"Palatka has so many resources to offer," Archer said about what would bring people in the city. "If we could just have local, small businesses. It's hard for businesses to stay open [when Walmart opened.] But we have the St. Johns River, we have a lot of land. We have a lot of infrastructure."
Archer is a domestic violence survivor. In 2002, Archer's second husband kidnapped her from their home, stowed her in her van and drove her to a secluded area where he hogtied her, ropes wrapped around her neck. He threatened to kill her, tossing pictures of her five children so that she could "look at [them] for the last time."
Archer escaped her ex-husband and was brought to a hospital. Two weeks later, Archer was at her home again, her ex-husband waiting for her. He slashed Archer with a butcher knife, the top part of her left ear cut off and a slash on her cheek. He swung a cast iron pan to Archer's head so hard that when she woke up at UF Health Jacksonville, she was unrecognizable. During her stay, Archer had surgeries to reattach her ear and plates on her cheeks. Archer's close friend was with her at the time and was beaten and unidentifiable as well. Her family, the law enforcement and the medical team who found her couldn't identify her because her face was so badly beaten. Her ex-husband was charged with two life sentences and 60 years.
After her incident with domestic violence, Archer saw the outpour of help from the Palatka community. People she has never met before, agencies and churches that would visit her and help her while she recovered.
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| Recently promoted as a court advocate, Archer helps victims get back on their feet through filing injunctions and services. |
Archer didn't expect the reaction she received from the community after her incident. Because of the people she has met along the way, she started volunteering with agencies that have helped her and she felt the need to give back to her community. Today, she helps victims go back to school, get a job and find a place to live. She also believes that Palatka is destined for a better future.
"I see potential in Palatka," Archer said. "I want Palatka to be a hub for jobs. I want people to come here for jobs and stay here. We have so much to offer."