It’s that most wonderful time of year – for bad guys and gals.While we’re out shopping and visiting with family and friends during the holidays, we can be vulnerable to people who want to prey upon us.But it doesn’t have to be that way.“Your involvement in crime prevention allows us to better serve your community,” Miami-Dade Police Major Javier Ruiz said.Ruiz leads the agency’s Miami Lakes department and offered tips that residents can use...

HistoryCelebration Point is a condominium community built by The Graham Companies in the mid-1980s that is on the east side of Miami Lakes.Located at 15549 Miami Lakeway North, it is a triangular shaped property that points east toward a 60-acre lake.There are 434 units spread among 22 gold painted buildings that are two or three stories tall.The property’s 13 acres are nestled beneath mature oak trees. It is near several schools and is just...

Families wearing Christmas T-shirts and sweaters filled downtown Miami Lakes to celebrate Small Business Saturday and enjoy the 35th Annual Main Street Festival of Lights. The crowd gathered after sunset near the fountain on Main Street, waiting for Santa Claus to arrive and for all of the decorations to glow. Liliya Passman of Tampa held her 16-month-old son Adam as they swayed to “All I Want for Christmas,” a tune spun by a...

When Juan Campiz steps up to home plate at Miami Lakes Optimist Park, opponents have to be ready. The nimble athlete swings the bat as if he had played pro ball. And he can field and catch, too. No one would guess that Campiz is 93-years-old. Campiz is one of the Geezers, a group of 30 men, mostly retirees, who gather two mornings each week to play softball in the park. They follow Geezer Ball rules, which means they don’t run around...

Hundreds of marchers stepped off on a gorgeous Sunday morning in a parade through the center of Miami Lakes to honor veterans and those who are serving in the United States military. About 115 groups participated on Nov. 10: Brownies, Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts and beauty queens; the town council; town volunteers and even costumed “Star Wars” characters such as Darth Vader and Stormtroopers who greeted kids along the route. It...