- March 20, 2025
Ormond Beach resident Maggie Nugent and Holly Hill resident David Metzger have fun flying kites at the Granada approach. Photo by Michele Meyers
Ormond Beach Spikes 12U Baseball team tryouts. Photo by Michele Meyers
'34 Ford. Photo by Michele Meyers
David Blakemore sells Trump MAGA flags, shirts, hats and more in Ormond-by-the-Sea. Photo by Michele Meyers
Summer practice for the Seabreeze High School cheerleading team. Photo by Michele Meyers
Nyla Parks participates in summer practice with the Seabreeze High School cheerleading team. Photo by Michele Meyers
Ormond Beach Spikes 12U Baseball player Ryan Desimmone gets timed as he runs to first during tryouts. Photo by Michele Meyers
Ormond Beach Spikes 12U Baseball players Bryson Wilkins (left) and Ryan Desimmone (right) run with a player who was there to tryout. Photo by Michele Meyers
Johnny Robinson Jr. has been cooking and selling boiled peanuts for close to eight years. He said boiled peanuts are totally American. Photo by Michele Meyers
Johnny Robinson Jr. has been cooking and selling boiled peanuts for close to eight years. He has been at the Ormond Beach location for two months. Photo by Michele Meyers
Kolby Strickland is on the Ormond Beach Spikes 12U baseball team. Photo by Michele Meyers
The Pumphouse BBQ's architectural design is reminiscent of a 1950s gas station. Photo by Michele Meyers
Tedd Foxx (left) and 16-year-old Mainland students Hope Bronson and Colten Haley work the line at the Pumphouse BBQ restaurant on Granada in Ormond Beach. Photo by Michele Meyers
Pumphouse BBQ manager Sam Dulas said it's people who want to enjoy good food with good people...that's the American dream , right there. Photo by Michele Meyers
Pumphouse BBQ co-owner and chef Bryan Brymer said for him, Americana means going back to the roots of family and friends and enjoying life for what it is. Photo by Michele Meyers
Neighborhood Scoop employee Gabby Buckner serves a traditional root beer float. Photo by Michele Meyers
Neighborhood Scoop employee Gabby Buckner pours a traditional root beer float. Photo by Michele Meyers
Pumphouse BBQ manager Sam Dulas slices a brisket for her customers. Chef Bryan Brymer said barbecue is the oldest form of cooking. Photo by Michele Meyers
Neighborhood Scoop employee Gabby Buckner said Americana for her means a community of people coming together to experience new things. Photo by Michele Meyers
In the spirit of America, Bearded Dragons Georgia (front), Snowflake, Gracie and Tebow (back, left to right) are treated like family and taken for an outing under the Granada Bridge. Photo by Michele Meyers
Seabreeze cheerleaders practice routines for the upcoming fall season. Photo by Michele Meyers
Seabreeze cheerleaders practice routines for the upcoming fall season. Photo by Michele Meyers
Seabreeze cheerleaders--Savannah Bauknecht, Nyla Parks, Jordan Kelly, Regan Gallagher, Lily Kilic and Enily Powers. Photo by Michele Meyers
Ormond Beach resident Mike Patterson is transitioning from the Air Force to civilian life after serving in the military for 15 years. He is currently a reservist at Patrick Space Force Base in Cocoa Beach. Photo by Michele Meyers
Colin Moore fishes the Halifax River near the Granada Bridge. Photo by Michele Meyers
The Ormond Yacht Club was granted permission to build the clubhouse in 1910. It was added to the list of historic buildings to save in 2023. Photo by Michele Meyers
Lifeguard Jacob Hucka graduated from Seabreeze High School in 2024. Photo by Michele Meyers
The mansion known as Rowallan is located on Jon Anderson Drive and is an Ormond Beach landmark. It was built in 1913 and is listed on the U.S. National Register for Historic Places. Photo by Michele Meyers
Seabreeze rising junior Casey Jensen Gainey rides her Palomino Pie. She is practicing for the NBHA Youth and Teen World Championships. Photo by Michele Meyers
Seabreeze rising junior Casey Jensen Gainey rides her Palomino Pie. She is practicing for the NBHA Youth and Teen World Championships. Photo by Michele Meyers
Ormond Beach Spikes 12U Baseball team tryouts. Photo by Michele Meyers
Chase Goerke fields a ball at the Ormond Beach Spikes 12U Baseball team tryouts. Photo by Michele Meyers
Ormond Beach Spikes 12U Baseball team tryouts. Photo by Michele Meyers
Catchers prepare for the next drill at the Ormond Spikes 12U tryouts. Photo by Michele Meyers
Players run the bases during the Ormond Spikes 12U tryouts. Photo by Michele Meyers
Seabreeze rising junior Casey Jensen Gainey leads her horse Pie to the arena for some barrel practice at Pellicer Community Park. Photo by Michele Meyers
Seabreeze rising junior Casey Jensen Gainey runs barrels with her horse Pie at the Pellicer Community Park arena. Photo by Michele Meyers
From the halls of Seabreeze High School to the ranches west of I-95, Ormond Beach residents agree that the spirit of America is based on freedom and the community that enjoys those freedoms together.
Reservist and Air Force veteran Mike Patterson was in active duty for 15 years and uses fishing as a means to relieve the stressors associated with transitioning from military to civilian life. He has been fishing off of the Granada pier for years.
I have a tattoo that says 'liberty'. To me, the spirit of America is freedom. It's that liberty. I think we are very lucky to have the freedoms that we have and we need to enjoy them. For me, it's fishing. It's coming out here and knowing that I have the ability to fish safely. The spirit of America is simply being free." — MIKE PATTERSON, United States Air Force veteran and reservist
"I have a tattoo that says 'liberty,’” Patterson said. "To me, the spirit of America is freedom. It's that liberty. I think we are very lucky to have the freedoms that we have and we need to enjoy them. For me, it's fishing. It's coming out here and knowing that I have the ability to fish safely. The spirit of America is simply being free."
Bryan Brymer, Pumphouse BBQ co-owner and chef, said barbecue is the oldest form of cooking — by utilizing wood and fire, the food was prepared simply.
"Americana means going back to the roots of family and friends and enjoying life for what it is," he said.
