First Coast Connect

Each Friday, our media roundtable dives into the biggest stories of the week. Among our topics this week:

• Duval school leaders discipline a City Council member for kicking a student, even as she announces plans to challenge her suspension. 
• A comic book version of Orwell’s dystopian classic 1984 is banned after complaints that it is “pornographic” and inappropriate. 
• The mayor’s race gets real as Republican state Rep. Wyman Duggan formally enters the contest.
• And local lawmakers delay a vote on incentives for a much-anticipated Publix until after the Amendment 3 vote in November.

Guests:

• Trinity Webster-Bass, education reporter, The Florida Trib
• John Daigle, political consultant, former government reporter
• Jim Piggott, former City Hall reporter at News4Jax
• Megan Mallicoat, education reporter at Jacksonville Today

From Cinderella and Snow White to Britney Spears and The Feminine Mystique, an upcoming community theater production features it all, while putting a spin on the traditional happily-ever-after ending. Set to the soundtrack of the Princess of Pop herself, Once Upon a One More Time follows what happens when a book club made up of Disney characters and princesses is given a copy of the 1963 feminist classic by Betty Friedan. The program is staged at Arts Collective Theatre on select dates from Oct. 9 to Oct. 25.

Guests:

• Ally Mecca, choreographer, Once Upon a One More Time, staging at Arts Collective Theatre
• Kanesha Mitchell, actor in the role of stepsister, Once Upon a One More Time

If you’re eyeing the other side of the 2026 midterms as a respite from the political assault of election season, brace yourself. Jacksonville’s city races are already underway and promise to be just as confounding and enervating in the lead-up to Election Day on March 9. Among the seats up for grabs: mayor, sheriff, supervisor of elections, tax collector, property appraiser and all 19 City Council seats. But a new nonprofit created to combat the worst of the electoral excesses is also in motion, with a focus on providing independent polling, public records requests and accountability from public officials. We talk to the three founders about why they feel now is the time for nonpartisan scrutiny and what resources they will use to seek clarity for voters.

Guests:

• Warren Jones, former City Council president and Duval County School Board chair
• Hank Coxe, attorney, former president of The Florida Bar
• Michael Ward, former chairman and CEO, CSX Corp.

An eccentric, exuberant and visually febrile artist, Memphis Tennessee Wood taught generations of Jacksonville art students in addition to creating a (sometimes literally) large body of work that ranges from oil paintings to sculpture. But it is her genre-defying fabric creations that are the focus of author Tim Gilmore’s latest book exploring the life and legacy of Jacksonville’s “First Lady of Art.” We talk to him about what went into his 27th book ahead of its local launch at the Mandarin Museum on Oct. 15.

Guests:

• Tim Gilmore, historian, educator and author, Memphis Wood and the Sanctified Fecund
• Brittany Cohill, executive director of the Mandarin Museum & Historical Society

A new initiative that aims to marry music and mental health is taking shape under the auspices of a couple that has literally married those two endeavors. Jazz educator and musician John Lumpkin II and his wife, licensed mental health counselor Jessica Lumpkin, are launching their program, The Mental Note, combining themed jazz performances with a therapist-led conversation about managing and exploring emotional response. The couple’s next event is Saturday.

Guests: 

• John Lumpkin II, jazz artist, producer and adjunct faculty, University of North Florida School of Music
• Jessica Lumpkin, licensed mental health counselor, Imperfectly Perfect Counseling Services

From a massive financial shortfall at the Jacksonville Transportation Authority to a formal Republican challenger in the race for mayor, we dig into the latest political and policy developments with the city’s mayor. We also discuss Mayor Donna Deegan’s recent executive order calling for mandatory ethics and financial training for all city board members and get her thoughts on the efforts of a new nonprofit focused on fiscal and political transparency in the upcoming city elections.

Guest: Jacksonville Mayor Donna Deegan

With a dad like Oedipus, you’re bound to have some issues. And such is the case for Antigone — but not for the reasons you might expect. The daughter of Oedipus Rex and central character in the titular Sophocles tragedy, Antigone is forced to choose between individual morality and the demands of the government. In a contemporary adaptation of the play, Antigone: Unmasked, playwright Brian Niece transports the defiant character to the present day and, as he describes it, “A country. Not this one. Close enough.” We talk to Niece and two of the show’s actors about the power of a principled dissident and why they believe the ancient tragedy still has resonance today.

Guests:

• Brian Niece, playwright and director, Antigone: Unmasked at Lumen Repertory Theatre
• Maggie Cox, Antigone, Antigone: Unmasked
• Zonnetta Marie, Chorus, Antigone: Unmasked

An increasingly unaffordable place to live, St. Johns County has seen a predictable rise in the number of unhoused individuals. But the number of unsheltered seniors has been a particular surprise, surging more than 70% in just the past two years, according to the 2026 Point in Time Count conducted by the St. Johns County Continuum of Care. The data make the need for fundraising more urgent, and that’s the focus of an upcoming event hosted by the Homeless Coalition of St. Johns County. Since its founding in 1998, the organization has helped family units stay together, provided unhoused parents and their children with stable housing and assisted parents in accessing life-skills training, job opportunities and affordable childcare. The group is hosting the Fall Low Country Boil Fundraiser at Genung's Fish Camp in Crescent Beach. Ticket sales support shelter and services for families experiencing homelessness. The event is 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. Saturday, weather permitting, and features food, drinks and a musical performance by the Jam Boyz.

Guest: Jamie Mackey, president, Homeless Coalition of St. Johns County board of directors

The much-hyped power of protein has transcended the supplement and influencer market and taken over the junk food aisles. Does the promise of protein salvage the downsides of white bread, sugar cereal and snack chips? We ask Dr. Joe Sirven for the nutrition breakdown in his monthly house call to First Coast Connect. We also discuss a controversial new blood test that can screen for 50 kinds of cancer, and the potential for dementia patients to recover lucidity near the end of their lives.

Guest: Dr. Joe Sirven, Mayo Clinic neurologist and host of WJCT’s What’s Health Got To Do With It?

A new exhibit showcasing the artistic reciprocity between mentor and mentee is on display at Yellow House to honor the organization’s ninth anniversary in Northeast Florida. Reciprocal: Art, Mentorship and Mutual Influence features work from 15 artist pairings and invites viewers to reflect on how educators and arts education in general has affected their lives. Established in 2017 by artist, educator and activist Hope McMath, Yellow House focuses on the nexus of art and community as a force for social change and civic engagement. We ask McMath about the importance of the space at the current political moment and ask two of the exhibition's artists how they’ve learned from each other. Reciprocal is on view until Nov. 22.

Guests:

• Sheila Goloborotko, artist featured in the Reciprocal exhibit at Yellow House and in the solo show What Was Then Is Now at the South Gallery of Florida State College at Jacksonville.
• Rachel Brown, featured artist, Reciprocal
• Hope McMath, co-curator, Reciprocal founder and director of Yellow House

Visitors can get a glimpse inside some of Arlington’s most famous structures during the 10th annual Arlington Mod & More Home Tour, held from noon to 4 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. Featured homes include the mid-century modern rotunda home known as Geodesico and the Sammis House built around 1850 on what was an 8,000-acre Strawberry Hill and Plantation. First occupied by John S. Sammis and his wife, Mary Kingsley, the youngest daughter of Zephaniah and Anna Madgigine Jai Kingsley, the Classical Revival home has seen many iterations over the last century and a half, including a stint as a boarding house after the Civil War. We’re joined by one of the home tour’s organizers as well as the newest steward of the Sammis house.

Guests:

• Trish Kapustka, board member and event chair, Old Arlington Inc.
• Tyler Shields, participating homeowner, Arlington Mod & More Home Tour
• Jeff Shields, participating homeowner, Arlington Mod & More Home Tour

The small private college in the nation’s oldest city is now receiving national accolades after the school earned a top ranking by the U.S. News & World Report last month. It’s the first time in Flagler College’s 58-year history it has been recognized with two No. 1 rankings. Flagler College President John Delaney called the honor a “milestone” and attributed the school’s success to the achievements of faculty and students. It isn’t the school’s first national recognition this year. In August, Flagler College was recognized in Princeton Review’s Best Colleges guide and received high marks for professor accessibility and quality of life. We ask Delaney about the significance of the ranking and also talk to him about JEA & JTA, his take on the upcoming Jacksonville mayoral race now that state Rep. Wyman Duggan has officially entered the race and his abiding love for Bob Dylan.

Guest: John Delaney, Flagler College president, former Jacksonville mayor

For senior citizens living on fixed incomes, food insecurity can be a stark reality. Rising costs have forced some older adults to make difficult decisions with their money like choosing between paying for groceries or their utility bill. Now in its 10th year, a St. Johns nonprofit organization has committed to delivering fresh produce to low-income seniors. Pie in the Sky started as a small pie shop and has expanded its services to address community needs. They celebrate their decade of service to senior care with a fundraiser Oct. 15 at The Tringali Barn in St. Augustine. The Harvest Hoedown will feature a supper prepared by chef and fried chicken expert Johnny Barnes, live music and auctions.

Guests:

• Malea Guiriba, founder and CEO of Pie in the Sky
• Johnny Barnes, chef, Pie in the Sky volunteer

After last week’s blowout against the Patriots, the Jaguars faced off against the Bengals in Cincinnati on Sunday afternoon. Both teams entered the contest with 2-1 records. The Bengals were the only team in the AFC Trevor Lawrence had failed to beat until yesterday when the they fell to the Jags 22-17. The rivalry between both teams’ quarterbacks dates back to the 2020 College Football Playoff National Championship when Joe Burrow’s LSU team dominated Lawrence’s Clemson Tigers. We recap the "gritty" performance with our sports correspondent and look ahead to next week's game in London.

Guest: Rachel Phillips, sports reporter and anchor, First Coast News

Each Friday, our media roundtable dives into the biggest stories of the week. Among our topics this week:

• JTA’s spending is in the crosshairs of the City Council and the state attorney general, as subpoenas are issued and investigations begun.
• A local dad is wrongfully arrested after police rely on faulty facial recognition technology in an online child predator sting.
• City Council member Kevin Carrico won’t seek reelection, but a state attorney’s criminal investigation remains unresolved.
• Gov. Ron DeSantis labels more than 90 groups as “terrorist organizations,” a move that has already prompted constitutional challenges.

Guests:

• Frank Powers, former assignment manager at News4Jax
• Randy DeFoor, former Jacksonville City Council member
• Kate Payne, state government reporter, The Florida Trib
• Sylvia Perry, editor of the Jacksonville Free Press

The hosts of the popular PBS show America’s Test Kitchen bring their fail-safe tips and favorite recipes to the First Coast as part of the Jacksonville Home + Patio Show at the Prime Osborn Convention Center this weekend. Fans can expect live cooking demos and culinary conversation with the pair during two appearances — at 5 p.m. Friday and 1 p.m. Saturday. We ask them about kitchen must-haves, cooking no-nos and what it takes for a novice chef to achieve gastronomic greatness.

Guests:

• Julia Collin Davison, host of PBS’ America’s Test Kitchen and Cook’s Country
• Bridget Lancaster, host of PBS’ America’s Test Kitchen and Cook’s Country

Concerns about staffing and safety are the focus of railroad union representatives, who say they’re worried that increasing automation will affect operations. Amid job cuts at Jacksonville-based CSX Transportation, the union reps say that about 900 employees will be furloughed by Nov. 15 and that human track inspections have dropped 40% in the past three months. The railroad has said it’s making the adjustments “to better align teams with seasonal workflows and the maintenance work required across the network,” but that its “focus on safety is unchanged.” We talk to two senior union representatives who say the Jacksonville community should be paying close attention.

We invited CSX Transportation to join the show or provide a statement. They provided the following:

"Safety is a core value at CSX and the cornerstone on which the reliability of our railroad is built. Contrary to union claims, we don't compromise safety, regardless of profits. Our results show it. In the first half of 2026, our FRA personal injury rate improved 19% and our train accident rate improved 29% compared to last year. In the second quarter alone, the injury rate improved 19% even as total employee hours fell 7%.

"CSX also values its maintenance of way employees and our excellent relationship with the BMWED union. We have long and fruitful relationships with — and respect for — Mr. Thompson and Mr. Cardwell, and we appreciate their advocacy for the CSX employees they represent. In this case, however, they're getting their facts wrong.

"The union's release treats seasonal furloughs and permanent eliminations as one number. They aren't the same thing. About 200 craft positions across Maintenance of Way and Communications & Signals are being eliminated, out of an Engineering craft workforce of about 5,500, and some of those positions were already vacant. Separately, about 1,000 employees on system production teams, which do capital project work, will be temporarily furloughed this winter. The end-of-year suspension of this construction work is customary throughout the industry and consistent with CSX's historic practices. These employees are expected to be recalled under their collective bargaining agreements when work resumes early next year. The start date is timed so crews aren't working frozen ground in January, when construction work is least productive. Required inspections and maintenance continue, and our capital program is unchanged.

"Finally, the public should understand that BMWED is engaged in a national effort to stop new technologies and automation, which it perceives as threatening union jobs. Technology adds to our inspections. It does not replace them. CSX uses autonomous track assessment cars that ride on trains around the clock and flag conditions such as geometry and gage conditions, and every condition they detect goes to our workforce for follow-up and repair. CSX supervisors are not encouraging track inspectors to overlook defects or cover up issues in the development of these new technologies, and we would not expect any maintenance of way professionals to carry out such unlawful instructions.

"For more on automated track inspection across the industry, visit https://www.aar.org/ati-waiver/."

Guests:

• Brian Thompson, general chairman, Allied Federation of the Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employees Division of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters union
• Tony Cardwell, president, Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employees Division of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters union

A former prisoner turned criminal justice reform advocate has written a memoir documenting his decade behind bars, as well as his discovery of yoga as a means of coping with the realities of imprisonment. St. Augustine native Emmett Tatter, now a certified yoga instructor, refers to the five daily inmate head counts conducted by prison staff in the title of his new book, Count Time. For Tatter, that amounted to 15,523 counts over a 10-year sentence. We talk to him about the challenges of surviving beyond prison, the complexity of reentering life on the outside and his work helping other inmates endure carceral system-related violence and PTSD.

Guest: Emmett Tatter, prison reform advocate, author of Count Time

From the complexity of the cosmos to the celestial sightings of earthbound stargazers, WJCT’s resident space man, Eddie Whistler, keeps us grounded in the realm of the universal. He joins us each month for an update on sky science, interplanetary exploration and just cool discoveries from deep space. He also keeps us abreast of MOSH outreach programs during the Museum of Science & History’s three-year physical hiatus, as the 55-year-old institution relocates from the Southbank to its new Northbank home.

Guest: Eddie Whisler, director of planetarium and outreach, Museum of Science & History

In 2022, Duval County voters approved a 1 mil tax to support school athletics, teacher compensation and the arts. School boosters and board members are hoping voters are equally supportive this year. It could be an uphill battle, with a proposed statewide property tax cut, Amendment 3, complicating messaging, and an overall feeling of economic malaise. But, as supporters note, the tax generates a lot of bang for the buck, with a roughly $300 annual contribution per household that generates more than $120 million for Duval Schools.

Guests:

• Cindy Pearson, Duval County School Board member, District 3
• Celita Wilson, president, Duval County Council of PTAs

A plan to smuggle thousands of Cuban children out of the country and into the U.S. was realized in the early 1960s through the cooperation of the State Department and the Catholic Church. In the end, some 14,000 kids were relocated, some to foster care and orphanages. And while most were reunited with their parents within months, some waited years. A new graphic novel explores the experiences of those children, using composite characters to recreate both the promise and the trauma of the remarkable migration. We talk to the author, a North Florida native, about the inspiration behind We Are Pan, which he published this summer.

Guests: Andre Frattino, author, We Are Pan

An upcoming endurance challenge raises funds to benefit seniors facing housing-related threats in Northeast Florida. The money raised during the 10th annual Freed to Run Challenge supports the legal services for vulnerable seniors experiencing issues like eviction, foreclosure, unsafe living conditions and other threats to their housing. The event includes multiple races, ranging from a traditional 5K to a 12-hour challenge and a newly added 5K ultra, where runners are challenged to run a 5K every hour for 10 hours. The race begins at 7 a.m. on Saturday, Oct. 3, at the Jacksonville Equestrian Center.

Guest: Mike Freed, attorney and organizer of annual Freed to Run Challenge

A new book by local authors tracks the culinary, linguistic, architectural and spiritual footprint of the Gullah Geechee people, descendants of West and Central Africans who lived under enslavement from Wilmington, N.C., down to St. Augustine. Jacksonville is the largest city in the federally designated Gullah Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor, and the book, Jacksonville’s Gullah Geechee Heritage, highlights what authors Adrienne Burke and Ennis Davis say is “a living culture that continues to evolve.” We discuss the book ahead of a community conversation moderated by Jacksonville Today reporter Will Brown at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 29, at WJCT Studios.

Guest: Ennis Davis, author, Jacksonville’s Gullah Geechee Heritage

More than 100 local artists portray, interpret and appreciate Florida’s abundant flora and fauna in a new exhibition hosted by the Ixia Chapter of the Florida Native Plant Society starting this weekend at CoRK Arts District. The group exhibition Floribunda – Celebrating Florida’s Unique Biodiversity is curated by artists and/or plant lovers Crystal Floyd, Adam Arendell and Betsy Harris, and offers a range of perspectives on Florida’s natural history, wildlife and wild places. We talk to the minds behind the show about planting the seed for artistic exploration. The exhibition opens with a public reception Saturday, Oct. 3, from 6–9 p.m. at CoRK Arts District, 2689 Rosselle St., and remains on view through Oct. 25.

Guests:

• Crystal Floyd, artist and studio director at CoRK Arts District
• Adam Arendell, officer, Ixia Chapter of the Florida Native Plant Society

Girls' rugby has all the toughness and teamwork of rugby, albeit without the “pub culture” of the adult version, and it's currently recruiting. Open to middle- and high-school girls of all backgrounds, Duval Tides Girls Rugby holds its first practice Oct. 6 at Westside Middle School, and every Tuesday and Thursday thereafter, from 6-7:30 p.m. No tryouts are required, no experience is needed and the team promises all participants a chance to make connections, build confidence and develop both physical and mental dexterity.

Guests: 

• Melissa Butler, head coach, Duval Tides
• Miranda Barnard, coach, Duval Tides
• Jaelyn Battle, high school junior and Duval Tides player

For years, the state Department of Children and Families has allowed patients with diagnosed mental illness to remain in city and county jails rather than admit them to state psychiatric facilities. The practice is against state law: Florida Statutes require mentally incompetent defendants to be placed in state custody within 15 days. The state has failed to meet the standard for hundreds of patients. DCF’s own data show the average wait is 124 days. State officials attribute the lapse to a shortage of forensic hospital beds. And according to a new lawsuit, the state isn’t moving to correct the problem. Though Florida needs an estimated 2,034 new beds if it wants to meet industry standards by 2029, and 1,602 new beds just to maintain its current occupancy rate, DCF didn't seek any money for new beds in the 2026-’27 budget.

Guest: 4th Judicial Circuit Public Defender Charles Cofer

The transformation of the state of Florida from a largely uninhabitable backwater into a home for millions of residents is due in great part to the invention of air conditioning. But it was the railroad that opened up the coastline to waves of vacationers, who came to stay at luxury hotels or recover from various ailments in the area’s sulphur and mineral springs. A new exhibition at St. Augustine’s Lightner Museum captures life at the dawn of that era. Florida Before Flagler is a collection of photographs by Hugo Meyer, who documented Florida in the 1870s and 1880s, before it was transformed by railroad magnate Henry Flagler. We talk to the museum’s executive director about what the show tells us about Northeast Florida then, and now.

Guest: David Bagnall, executive director, Lightner Museum

After falling to the Denver Broncos at Mile High Stadium last weekend, the Jacksonville Jaguars returned to home soil to face last season’s Super Bowl runners-up, the New England Patriots. The Jags dominated from the onset, winning 35-6. The upset was so significant, the NFL RedZone stopped covering it dubbing it a “runaway” victory. We recap the matchup with our Jaguars season correspondent to see if injuries plaguing the Patriots made an impact and what to look for next week when the team faces off against the Bengals in Cincinnati.

Guest: Rachel Phillips, sports reporter and anchor, First Coast News