Five years ago, 2021

• Retired U.S. Marine Ron Zaleski made a stop at the Orange Park Presbyterian Church on June 3 as the guest of the Rotary Club of Northeast Florida after walking more than 3,400 miles barefoot across the United States to deal with pent-up anger he felt after returning from Vietnam. He implored other veterans to find their releases.

• The Green Cove Springs City Council voted to lower the metered rates for solar power users by eight cents for each kilowatt.

• The Orange Park Town Council searched for ways to enforce ordinances that will keep yard debris out of waterways, streets and gutters.

10 years ago, 2016

• Clay County Sheriff’s Office Lt. Shawn Gordon shot Timothy Van Griffin, 33, of Jacksonville, during a traffic stop after Sheriff Rick Beseler said Griffin put his truck into reverse and attempted to back over the deputy. Griffin was listed in critical condition. It was the first officer involved shooting for the agency in nearly four years.

• U.S. Army Maj. Frank W. Towers told a group of veterans and their families at Camp Blanding Joint Training Center that there are still 601 graves still to be adopted in Europe from World War II.

• Work continued with a $3.28 million renovation project in Orange Park to replace antiquated asbestos water mains on Plainfield Avenue.

20 years ago, 2006

• Mark Monsees suffered broken bones and several cuts when he was struck by a car and dragged by a man driving a stolen truck in Orange Park. Christopher Shane Summerford was charged with grand theft auto and DUI.

• Green Cove Springs Police Sgt. John Jenner shot Joel Jack Craven, 32, of Baxley, Georgia, after Craven left his pickup wielding a shotgun following a police chase that ended on State Road 16. Craven was wanted for killing his wife, stepson and a family friend in Appling County, Georgia. Craven died of his injuries.

• The Clay County Sheriff’s Office arrested Fred Ray Foley of Valdosta, Georgia, for grand theft for stealing four boats a year earlier from a Green Cove Springs storage facility.

30 years ago, 1996

• Clay County Sheriff’s Office deputy Gary Cannon said a new program raising awareness about underage drinking in Keystone Heights gained traction with retailers and curbed illegal sales to minors.

• Orange Park Town Attorney C. Edward Rich said a lawsuit the town filed against River Road resident Rene Wilke “may be fading” after Wilkes blocked a bulldozer with her body to prevent sidewalk construction.

• Clay County Teacher of the Year Susan Sailor earned a $10,000 check from Burdines.

40 years ago, 1986

• The Clay County Sheriff’s Office charged George Harry Morris of Orange Park with three counts of attempted murder and one count of discharging a firearm after he fired a pistol at his wife and his two daughters.

• Parents at S. Bryan Jennings Elementary formed a committee to stop the transfer of Sara Reese, the school’s principal. Superintendent Ann Wiggins planned to move Reese to Clay Hill Elementary as an assistant principal.

• Clay County Library Director Bob Lipscomb urged the Board of County Commissioners to “look to the future” and purchase two adjacent parcels of land near Orange Park Library.