It’s one week ’til Christmas, and Hanukkah ends on Monday. From all of us at LkldNow, we hope you have a happy holiday season!
One thing you don’t have to stress about while you celebrate is staying up to date on the local news. Here’s what happened in Lakeland news since last Thursday:
Top of the list, reporter Anna Toms sat down with School Board member Kate Wallace to discuss her appointment and perspectives on education.
Kate Wallace to Serve on Polk County School Board After DeSantis Appointment
The former Lakeland Leads executive director will serve one year, filling a vacancy left after Rick Nolte’s death.
LkldNow’s biggest fundraising season ends Dec. 31. Right now, every donation is matched dollar for dollar through NewsMatch and local partners — doubling the impact of your gift.
We’re making progress, but we’re not there yet. To keep delivering local news every week in 2026, we need about 250 readers to become supporters. That’s about one in 10 people who open this email. If each gave $10 a month, we’d meet our goal.
We know rising costs are straining many households. That’s exactly why keeping LkldNow free and accessible matters. If you’re able, please consider supporting this work.
Meanwhile at City Hall: A lot happened at the last City Commission meeting of the year. Cindy Glover breaks down the votes, decisions and impact for Lakelanders.
Lakeland Commissioners Reach Compromise on Mass Market Sales
December 18, 2025
Lakeland Pulls Plug on Stalled Oak Street Project — Keeps $205,000
December 16, 2025
MORE LKLDNOW NEWS
New Exhibit at The AGB Showcases Works Never Seen Outside Italy
December 12, 2025
Last week, we asked:
Are you planning to shop local this holiday season?
67% said Yes
33% said No
LAKELAND NEWS FROM AROUND THE WEB
A new PCSO policy means Polk County deputies now ask for place of birth during any encounter | The Ledger (Paywall)
Lakeland optician arrested after armed road rage incident | Fox 13 Tampa Bay
Lakeland ranks 4th in Florida markets where home values declined | Herald Tribune
White House press secretary speaks virtually at SEU commencement | The Ledger (Paywall)
To the 163 donors who have supported us during this NewsMatch drive, thank you so much.
I’m so grateful to Barry for the vision that started this experiment in nonprofit local news, to our small but mighty team of Cindy, Kayla, Anna and Erin for the hard work they put into this organization every day and to our sponsors and donors who see the power of local news to create community connections and trust us to deliver on it.
We love this work, and we just want to keep doing it.
As ever, thank you for being a LkldNow reader.
Trinity Laurino
Executive Director, LkldNow
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