Mortgage Broker in Malabar, FL

Amid the charred wood and furniture and under a grey sky, some color seeped through the site of Sunday's triple homicide and arson in Malabar Thursday.

From the rubble, the colorful belongings of 9-year-old Sebastian Meachum peeked out. A pack of felt-tip markers. Clothing featuring the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Some books from the Sweet Pickles series.

Sebastian's half-sister, Alexis McGuire, 20, returned to her mother's property Thursday for one last attempt to recover anything of sentimental value from the blackened remnants of the home on Atz Road. The partial remains of the stairwell and the front of the garage are all that was left standing from the two-story home.

The property will be turned over to an insurance company Friday.

Sunday, Chrissy Hughes, her son Sebastian and her sister, Linda Woods, were found dead in the home, which was set on fire, the Brevard County Sheriff's Office said. Her husband, Tony Hughes, has disappeared. The state medical examiner's office has ruled the deaths as a homicide based on signs of trauma, but has not released the causes of their deaths.

More:Father to son: Young Malabar slaying victim was a 'happy spirit'

More:'Heartbreaking': Community mourns mother, child and aunt in Malabar triple-slaying

About 17 volunteers joined McGuire Thursday for the digging effort.

"We found lots of jewelry and some photo albums," she said about a dig earlier this week. "One of the albums had my baby photos."

Many of Sebastian's photos had been saved digitally, she said.

Six members of the Malabar Fire Department were among Thursday's volunteers. Some of them worked Sunday to put out the fire at the home.

"These guys feel a responsibility to help the family any way they can," Fire Chief Leonard Thomassen said. "It's a form of closure for them."

Woods, who taught advanced placement social studies in Rogers, Arkansas, will be missed by her students and her fellow faculty members, the public school district there said Thursday in a statement.

“Linda has been a strong teacher at our school since it opened in 2008,” said Rogers Heritage High School principal Karen Steen.

Woods had taught in the district since 2005, beginning as a special education teacher. She had also served as a Quiz Bowl adviser at the high school.

Nearly an hour after the fire was reported at the home Sunday morning, Tony Hughes’ truck was found at Fisherman’s Landing in Grant-Valkaria. Then at 2 p.m., Hughes’ 18-foot Grady White motorboat was found empty, with traces of blood inside, circling the waters several miles off of the Sebastian Inlet Park.

More:BCSO: Third victim found in Malabar house fire, triple homicide suspected

By Tuesday, the U.S. Coast Guard called off their search efforts. Sheriff’s investigators were attempting to determine if the blood was even Hughes'.

Brevard County Sheriff's spokesman Tod Goodyear said detectives consider Hughes a missing person. No evidence revealed publicly yet points to Hughes as the person responsible for either his family members' deaths or the arson.

Lamaur Stancil is a breaking news reporter for Florida Today and TCPalm.com. He can be reached at 321-242-3662 or 321-987-7179. E-mail him at lamaur.stancil@tcpalm.com. Follow him on Twitter at @TCPalmLStancil.

The importance of honey bees can’t be overstated.

"We don’t do it for money; we do it because we like it, and we have been doing it for over 30 years," Lee Jones said.

Her husband agrees.

"Beekeeping is so interesting as a hobby, and gratifying as a business," Lyndon Jones added.

The Joneses are honey beekeepers and owners of Trevena Bee Farm in Malabar.

"Bees are important. If there were a decline of bees, within four years, we would decline with it. We wouldn’t have enough food to eat and we would starve," Lyndon Jones said.

Every third bite of food eaten by humans is due to pollinators — honey bees are the primary pollinators and support the overall health of the ecosystem.

According to the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (FDAC), commodity crops in Florida such as blueberries, watermelons, cucumbers and onions would produce little to no fruit if it were not for the honey bee.

What started as an enthralling hobby for the Joneses grew into a small business when they relocated to Florida. With 150 hives, each containing 65,000 honey bees, Trevena Bee Farm harvests up to 4,000 pounds of honey each year.

The owners are proud of their success in maintaining healthy bees, reducing the risk of parasites and, especially, avoiding the use of any chemicals. Their honey is sold to the public from their farm, with a credit given for returned glass bottles to express customer appreciation as well as to encourage recycling.

The Joneses have an infectious admiration for the short life and work of bees.

"They’re amazing — they are an organized species, they make beautiful honey combs, they keep themselves warm when it’s cold. And, they are hard working. Bee venom also might improve certain medical conditions," Lee Jones said.

Bees from Trevena Bee Farm collect nectar from wildflowers, palmetto and gallberries within a five-mile radius from their farm. The bees feed on their own honey.

The Joneses are happy to share tips with prospective beekeepers as a hobby or as a business. Detailed information about the state’s requirements for beekeeping can be obtained from the FDA’s website at fda.gov/animal-veterinary/animal-health-literacy/helping-agricultures-helpful-honey-bees.

Trevena Bee Farm is located at 2885 Corey Road in Malabar. For information, call 321-956-7850.

Transportation engineers rank Malabar Road as an inadequate D- or F-rated roadway across most of the 4-mile western stretch between Minton Road and the St. Johns Heritage Parkway in Palm Bay.

Worse, the number of crashes the past five years has increased from 88 to 137 — a 56% jump.

Now, a $1.4 million engineering study is underway to someday widen this section of Malabar Road from a two-lane street to a four-lane divided highway.

What's more, new traffic signals or roundabouts could be added at the St. Johns Heritage Parkway, Bending Branch Lane, Hurley Boulevard, Jupiter Boulevard and Garvey Road.

Thursday night, Kittelson & Associates, an Orlando transportation engineering firm, described the Malabar Road widening project during a virtual public meeting. An ongoing project development and environment study is scheduled for completion in winter 2022.

Preliminary road-widening cost estimates: $83.8 million to $85.3 million (with traffic signals) or $93.8 million to $97.0 million (with roundabouts). No funding has yet been identified.

Engineers project the four-lane widening project will reduce crashes 35% to 40%. And if roundabouts are added, crashes may drop another 10% — accompanied by a 45% drop in fatal and injury crashes, compared with signalized intersections.

Traffic volume on the 4-mile Malabar Road corridor is projected to almost double by 2050. Average daily vehicles between Minton Road and Jupiter Boulevard could increase from 16,000 to 28,000. To the west, between the St. Johns Heritage Parkway and Krassner Drive, daily vehicles may jump from 7,200 to 16,000.

More:Minton Road rush-hour traffic congestion under study in West Melbourne, Palm Bay

More:Future east-west expressway linking Brevard-Osceola counties under study

Adding a traffic signal typically requires less right-of-way and costs less than a roundabout, according to the presentation. But, over the long run, roundabouts boast lower maintenance and operation costs.

The highest crash locations along this stretch of Malabar Road are at four intersections: Minton Road, Jupiter Boulevard, Maywood Avenue/Daffodil Drive, and the Winn-Dixie plaza entrance. Combined, these intersections account for nearly 60% of the crashes across the 4-mile zone.

The city's Jupiter Elementary Safe Routes to School project will add a sidewalk along Malabar Road from Hurley Boulevard to the post office. Construction will start later this year.

In 2018, the Florida Department of Transportation completed a similar PD&E study on widening Malabar Road from two to four lanes between U.S. 1 and Babcock Street.

However, FDOT has not earmarked any funding for design engineering, right-of-way purchases or construction, said Georganna Gillette, executive director of the Space Coast Transportation Planning Organization.

Rick Neale is the South Brevard Watchdog Reporter at FLORIDA TODAY. Contact Neale at 321-242-3638 or rneale@floridatoday.com. Twitter: @RickNeale1. To subscribe: https://cm.floridatoday.com/specialoffer/

MALABAR — Brevard County investigators were searching a heavily wooded area in Malabar Wednesday after a work crew discovered human bones there Tuesday evening.

Deputies and forensic investigators remained at the Absaroka Lane site throughout the day Wednesday. The neighborhood lies just off Malabar Road a quarter-mile west of the Malabar Fire Department.

The bones were believed to be that of an unidentified man, said Cmdr. Dan Singleton, spokesman for the Brevard County Sheriff’s Office. Investigators were working to determine if foul play was involved, he said.

UPDATED STORY:Mystery bones yield few clues in Malabar

More:Boeing suffers anomaly during Starliner test of launch abort engines in New Mexico

More:Man's body found in locked car at mobile home park in Melbourne

Before the remains were determined to be from a man, Tricia Mangat was hoping there would finally be closure in the Brandy Hall case. Hall was a firefighter who worked at the fire station down the road and went missing in 2006.

"I want her family to get closure so bad. And because it's right here," she said.

Mangat has lived in the neighborhood for six years. Surrounding her house are half-finished homes and the wooded lot where the body was discovered.

Kurt Panko arrived early Tuesday morning to install air conditioning ducts in one of the new houses.

"It's surprising. You wouldn't expect that in this neighborhood. It's a nice neighborhood," Panko said.

The remains will be investigated by the medical examiner's office. No timeframe was immediately available from Brevard County Sheriff's Office officials on when the man might be identified or his cause of death determined.

Contact Vazquez at tvazquez@floridatoday.com, 321-917-7491 or on Twitter @tyler_vazquez.

Support local journalism: To sign up for a special summer sale offer for new subscribers, visit floridatoday.com/subscribe

BREVARD COUNTY • PORT MALABAR, FLORIDA – Port Malabar Rifle and Pistol Club, located at 610 Hurley Boulevard SW in Palm Bay, Florida, will host a Project Appleseed rifle marksmanship clinic June 17 and 18.

Registration begins at 8 a.m. The clinic starts at 8:30 a.m. and will continue until 5 p.m. both days.

Participants are taught fundamental rifle marksmanship skills that are to allow a rifleman or riflewoman to be accurate out to 400 yards, with iron sights or a scope, a standard rifle and surplus ammo.

Most of the instruction at a Project Appleseed event is conducted on the firing range at 25 yards, at reduced size targets to simulate 100 to 400 yards.

Related Story:Get Brevard County’s Best, Most Trusted News Free – Download the Space Coast Daily App

Students will learn rifle shooting from the standing, sitting, kneeling, and prone positions, sight alignment, and breath control, along with safe gun handling, proper use of a sling, and Revolutionary War history.

Participants should bring their own ear/eye protection, a rifle with sling, ammunition, rifle mat, bug repellent, hat, sunscreen, a packed lunch, snacks, drinks, and plenty of water to stay hydrated.

A .22 caliber rifle is recommended due to the cost of ammo, but a centerfire rifle can be used if preferred. About 250 rounds of ammunition will be needed per day.

Marksmanship Clinic Fees:

• Adults: $60 (2-day events)/ $40 (1-day events only) • Youth under age 18: $20 (2-day events)/ $15 (1-day events only) • Additional club range fees may apply.

Project Appleseed is a nationwide program of The Revolutionary War Veterans Association, a non-profit educational organization operated by volunteer instructors dedicated to maintaining the ideals and traditions of the Founding generation of our country.

Volunteer instructors travel across the country teaching those who attend about the difficult choices, the heroic actions, and the sacrifices that the Founders made on behalf of modern Americans for our country’s freedom and independence.

April 19, 1775 – the day of the “Shot Heard ‘Round the World”…..

Project Appleseed teaches rifle marksmanship and the true story of Patriots’ Day, April 19th, 1775, the day of Paul Revere’s Ride in weekend clinics all over this great nation. By taking our participants back to that fateful day and teaching rifle marksmanship, we hope to reconnect “ordinary” Americans with their “extraordinary” heritage.

The ideals and traditions of the men, women and children who created this country resulted in the freest and most prosperous nation the world has ever known.

Project Appleseed‘s heritage program vividly portrays the Battles of Lexington and Concord. Modern listeners are confronted with the danger, the fear, and the heartbreaking separations that arose out of the choices made on April 19th, 1775.

Related Story:Cape Canaveral National Cemetery Commemorates Flag Day With Avenue of Stars and Stripes

They are also reminded of the marksmanship skills and masterful organization that ultimately helped set the colonists on the path to success. Those who attend gain a better understanding of the fundamental choices faced by our ancestors as they began to set the stage for the nation we now enjoy.

For more information, please contact Project Appleseed Southeast Regional Coordinator, Trey Dawson, at 727-452-4650 or tdawson@tampabay.rr.com Or visit: Facebook.com/FloridaAppleseed or AppleSeedinfo.org

CLICK HERE FOR BREVARD COUNTY NEWS