Florida Power & Light (FPL) is combining holiday spirit with energy awareness this season through its Care To Share® initiative and interactive House of Savings experience.  

FPL’s Care To Share program provides customers facing financial hardship with up to $750 during a 12-month period to help pay the FPL bill.   

FPL’s House of Savings challenge is designed to make learning about practical energy-saving tips interesting for all ages. The interactive experience takes customers on a virtual home tour to spot energy-saving opportunities by interacting with items like the thermostat or fridge.  

As part of this online experience, Floridians can make a difference by helping neighbors in need while learning ways to save energy during the holidays.  

For every House of Savings game completed by a registered player from now through Dec. 22, FPL will donate $5 to the Care To Share® financial assistance fund, up to $10,000. These funds will provide vital emergency assistance funds to Floridians who are facing crisis situations. 

Pay Holiday Energy-Efficiency Forward  

In addition, participants have a chance to win one of 80 Holiday Energy-Efficiency Boxes, valued at $150 each. Each box includes practical items designed to make the holidays brighter while using less energy. Winners can also nominate another registered Floridian to receive a box, spreading the holiday cheer, all season long.  

Winners can choose from two themed energy-efficient prize boxes, including:  

n Kitchen: Smart outlet, toaster oven and LED-lit wreath.  

n Outdoor: LED string lights, outdoor timer outlet, solar lawn stakes, and snowflake window clings. 

Tips for a Holiday-Ready, Energy-Efficient Home 

As Floridians get their homes into the holiday spirit, FPL is also offering simple energy saving tips to keep bills as low as possible this holiday season:  

1. Deck the halls with LED string lights to save nearly a dollar per string of lights per month as they use 80% to 90% less energy and last 10x as long as incandescent. Consider adding solar powered lighting to your holiday décor, which uses zero energy.   
2. Plug your lights and inflatables into an outlet timer and program them to turn off automatically when you’re asleep. Running a medium-sized inflatable overnight costs an average of $4.90 extra per month, which adds up with multiple inflatables.   
3. If you opt for inflatables, consider a smart power strip to avoid phantom energy usage, which draws from decorations that appear off and can cost the average household as much as $100 per year (or $16 during the holiday season). 
4. Go energy free and decorate for the holiday with ornaments, wreaths, ribbons and pathway decorations.   
5. Making holiday treats? Consider using a small appliance instead of the oven like a microwave, toaster oven or air fryer whenever possible. These use about one-third the power of an oven broiler.  

For more tips, programs, resources and rebates, customers can go to FPL.com/WaystoSave, where they can access FPL’s savings tools like the Energy Manager and House of Savings. 

1. A local heritage you can count on.
Bob Taylor’s Carpet One is a family-owned business, celebrating over 60 years of excellence. The Crestview location itself has served the community for 25 years, so when you walk in you’re benefitting from decades of flooring experience and local know-how.
2. A showroom built for inspiration.
With a state-of-the‐art showroom, you’ll experience everything from sumptuous carpet options to elegant hardwoods, durable laminates, stylish tile, backsplashes and luxury vinyl. Whether you’re redesigning a living room or renovating a whole house, they’ve got the breadth of product to make your vision real.
3. Expert guidance every step of the way.
Not sure where to start? Their flooring experts help you navigate styles, materials, performance and maintenance—so your final choice fits your lifestyle, your design tastes, and your budget.
4. Flooring built to last.
Explore tile that withstands heavy foot traffic and moisture, carpets designed for comfort and durability, and hardwoods and luxury vinyl built to perform. Their detailed product descriptions emphasize longevity and value.
5. Your satisfaction matters.
You’ll find offerings such as the “Beautiful Guarantee®” (which showcases their commitment to getting your floors right) and free estimates so you can plan confidently.
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Featured Services & Flooring Options
• Carpet: Soft underfoot, quiet and cozy—ideal for bedrooms, family rooms and spaces where comfort is key. Their specialists walk you through pile heights, fibers, textures and pattern options.
• Tile: A strong and stylish option for busy or moisture-prone spaces like kitchens, baths or mudrooms. Their collection ranges from wood-look porcelain planks to classic ceramic mosaics.
• Hardwood & Luxury Vinyl: For timeless appeal and high-performance wear, these options bring style and substance—whether you’re going traditional, modern or somewhere in between.
• Laminate & Sheet Vinyl: Stylish, practical alternatives for high-traffic areas, budget-friendly rooms or transitional spaces.
• Full Service: They offer measurement, installation, and a wealth of guidance—so you’re supported from selection to completion.
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Testimonials:
“Great experience! Good selection. Good prices. Working with the team was such a pleasure…making the process of choosing flooring easy!” — Kay R.
Working with the team at Bob Taylor, is EXCEPTIONAL!!!! They have a deep understanding of the latest products for any challenging or normal situation … If you want a superior result for your home project look no further. … Ours had uneven concrete, tiles were cracking and hollow. The Bob Taylor team knew exactly what the challenges were…” — Rick F.
“HIGHLY recommend!!! My floors are beautiful!! … Friendly, knowledgeable and honest … I am SO happy and pleased, I wish I could give 10 stars! Such a wonderful experience. Family-run businesses are THE BEST!! Shop Local :)” — K. Brown

https://www.bobtaylorscarpetonecrestview.com/

Hours
Monday
7:30 a.m. – 5 p.m.
Tuesday
7:30 a.m. – 6 p.m.
Wednesday
7:30 a.m. – 5 p.m.
Thursday
7:30 a.m. – 6 p.m.
Friday
7:30 a.m. – 5 p.m.
Saturday
9 a.m. – 2 p.m.
Sunday
Closed

PHONE: 850-398-4612

Why is it important to have an organized garage, especially during the holidays? 

Who wouldn’t want to arrive home to a beautifully organized garage? Life is hectic enough, and why not start unwinding from the moment you pull into your perfectly organized garage. The holidays are the best time to do this, before the entertaining begins! Create an organized space for your holiday decorations and your surplus of holiday supplies. Make it easy on yourself and keep up with that holiday inventory so you do not purchase the same thing twice.  

How can Closets by Design  

help with garages? 

Holidays aside, the garage is an important room in the home. It is not intended to be a throw-everything-in-it junk room. When everything has a place, it makes life more peaceful. 

Are you able to pull your car into your garage? Are you able to walk around your car while parked in the garage? If not, you need to call Closets by Design. They offer a large array of options and cabinetry to help you organize your garage and create workspaces for your weekend hobbies. Large or small, they have the right combination of storage to fit your needs.  Their design consultants would love to meet with you for a free consultation and review your needs to create a beautiful, functional space.  

Why stop at garages?  

Holiday organizing does not need to stop at the garage, this is a great time to do a pantry clean out and prepare plenty of room for the festive meal supplies. 

Hobby rooms are sometimes converted to wrapping stations and also make a great area to store all the things you need for wrapping.  

Are there any sales going on?  

Closets By Design has some great holiday specials. They are offering an additional discount on orders between now and December. 

They also offer special, free financing for 18 months! You can apply and be approved during your appointment with the designer.   

It gets better. This October, all Closets By Design clients get a 40% discount plus an additional 5% discount on their project for mentioning this article. 

To begin your journey to a more organized and peaceful home, schedule a free in-home consultation today by calling Closets by Design at (850)669-6972. 

It was mere hours after the winds of powerful, category-four Hurricane Ian blew over the hotel where Charles Leitner and several other FPL employees were sheltered that he stepped outside to see what remained of Punta Gorda. 

“I had never seen ground zero of a hurricane before,” he said. 

Leitner, an engineer for FPL’s Information Technology Emergency Response Team, was in southwest Florida to staff a Storm Pod—a shipping container modified to be a mobile office and communication trailer—following landfall. 

“We deployed Storm Pods above and below Tampa thinking even if the storm goes a little farther north or south, we are out of harm’s way and in the area,” he said. “Instead of being on the outskirts of the storm, we were actually dead in the center of (Hurricane) Ian.” 

Leitner and other members of FPL’s Emergency Response Team pre-position Storm Pods and other equipment across the state ahead of every storm. This proactive approach helps to speed restoration following storms by giving field crews a place to check in, a place to work and a place they can communicate back to the FPL Command Center — the hub of all restoration efforts. 

“They want to be out in the middle of it because they have to communicate with all of these workers who are coming in from other states, so you want to have a home base, but you also need to make sure all of the communications are secure,” Leitner explained.  

As technology has evolved, the company’s response to severe weather has too. FPL has always leaned into technology to better serve customers—the company has leveraged technology to improve grid resiliency and storm response. 

Three years ago, FPL started experimenting with satellite high-speed communication inside Storm Pods to make that communication faster and easier. “We have been growing and changing each year,” Leitner said of FPL’s Information Technology Emergency Response Team. 

Still though, Leitner and his team had to wait hours for a generator to arrive in Punta Gorda to power the Storm Pod before it could come online, which was the standard following every storm. 

But Leitner knew FPL could set a new standard. 

“In the early 2000s, it would take over a week to set up these sites,” he said. “Then, we got them up in a day or two, but I was thinking, can’t we go even faster than that?” 

It was when he first stepped out of his hotel and felt the sunshine following Hurricane Ian that the thought came to him. 

“Solar would be great to power these,” Leitner told his co-workers. 

Leitner said his boss, Steve Greenstein, initially came up with an idea to use DC power inside Storm Pods rather than traditional AC power, so he took that idea one step further by adding solar panels to the top of one Storm Pod ahead of the active 2024 hurricane season. That step allowed the IT equipment to be up 24/7, with zero setup. 

Leitner tested his innovative solution across Florida during the 2024 storm season, with Hurricanes Debby, Helene and Milton. 

Create an emergency plan with your family

• Determine if your home or business is in a flood and/or evacuation zone and review evacuation routes.
• Determine your backup power source or make arrangements to relocate if a storm warning is issued.
• The Division of Emergency Management recommends keeping gas tanks at least half full during hurricane season. For electric vehicles, make sure to maintain a 50%-80% charge at all times.
• Contact your local emergency management office if you or anyone you know has special needs, in case of evacuations. Apply for our Medically Essential Service if someone in your home is dependent on electric-powered, life-sustaining medical equipment.

Build an emergency kit

• Check radio, flashlights and batteries that can support you in case you experience a power outage during a storm.
• Have a phone charger, power banks and a car charger available.
• Gather supplies such as non-perishable food, disposable dinnerware and utensils, medications and prescriptions, personal hygiene supplies, baby supplies, pet food, trash bags, toilet paper and soaps and detergents.
• Collect important documents and put them in a waterproof container – including insurance policies, health cards, birth certificates, Social Security cards, a list of important phone numbers and medications and a copy of your FPL bill.

Prepare your home

• Store outside objects inside, fasten doors and windows, cover valuables and furniture with plastic and move away from windows.
• Turn off and unplug any unnecessary electrical equipment, including pool equipment.
• If your roof or windows leak, water in your walls and ceiling may come into contact with electrical wiring. Immediately turn off your circuit breakers, disconnect all electrical appliances that are still plugged in and turn off all wall switches. Never stand in water while operating switches or unplugging any electrical device.
• Set your refrigerator and freezer to their coldest settings ahead of time to keep food fresh longer in the event of a power outage.
• DO NOT attempt to trim any vegetation growing on or near any overhead power lines. Only hire specially trained line-clearing professionals to trim trees and other vegetation near power lines. Visit FPL.com/trees for more information on our tree trimming policies.
• Look up and note the location of power lines before you begin working on a ladder. Be sure that ladders or scaffolds are far enough away so that you – and the ends of the tools you’re using – don’t come within 10 feet of main or neighborhood power lines.

Stay safe and informed

• If you use a portable generator, read and follow all the manufacturer’s instructions. Be sure to set it up outside – not in your home or garage – and connect appliances directly to it. Do not wire your generator directly to your breaker or fuse box, because the power you generate may flow back into power lines and cause injuries.
• Bookmark FPL.com, download the FPL Mobile App and save 1-800-4-OUTAGE (1-800-468-8243) to your cell phone to report and check the status of your restoration.
• Stay far away from and do not touch any downed power lines or flooded and debris-laden areas that may be hiding downed power lines. Call 911 and 1-800-4-OUTAGE (1-800-468-8243) if you see downed power lines or damaged electrical equipment.
• Follow local news and @insideFPL for updates on storm conditions and heed warnings.

Across northwest Florida, volunteerism is shaping the future in tangible ways. Local food banks and organizations, like Manna and the United Way of West Florida, can provide thousands of additional meals and resources because of volunteer support. Seniors and veterans are living in safer, more energy-efficient homes thanks to hands-on assistance alongside organizations like the Council on Aging of West Florida . Parks, beaches and neighborhoods are cleaner and greener due to dedicated efforts from volunteers. Nationwide, nonprofits are feeling the need for additional community support, with rising operating expenses, lack of adequate resources and limited staffed capacity listed as their top challenges. Locally, more than 60% of Panhandle individuals are participating in formal volunteer efforts, according to a Volunteer Florida study.

The impact of corporate volunteerism has never been more significant. When northwest Florida businesses encourage employees to give their time, communities reap the rewards. Whether it is providing meals, mentoring young students or assembling emergency relief kits, these efforts directly improve lives.

This month, hundreds of volunteers participated in FPL’s 17th annual Power to Care Week, coming together to make Florida an even better place to live, work and raise a family. Here in Pensacola, FPL employees had all hands on deck, cleaning weed and trim overgrowth throughout the area, laying down pine straw, planting new landscaping, and assembling basketball hoops at The Arc Gateway. Across Florida, others made a difference by planting trees, cleaning beaches, and aiding families, children and seniors in need. And our commitment extends beyond a week; last year alone, our employees contributed more than 58,000 volunteer hours to local communities, supporting hundreds of nonprofit organizations.

As we look ahead to the next 100 years, the question isn’t just how businesses can give back —it’s how we can continue to uplift one another and power strong communities. Volunteerism is more than simply an investment in a cause; it is an investment in the people and places that make Florida home. The more we commit to service, the stronger our communities will be.

In 2025, let’s challenge ourselves to do more, support the organizations that work tirelessly to provide for Florida’s people and recognize that the time we give is just as valuable as the donations we make. When we come together, whether for a single volunteer event or a lifetime of service, we don’t just give back – we power the future of our community.