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Sea of Galilee Baptism Water Accidentally Tossed By Gov. DeSantis' Cleaning Crew

ABUKAR ADAN
/
WJCT News
Gov. Ron DeSantis and his family are pictured on Nov. 6 in Ponte Vedra Beach.

When Gov. Ron DeSantis makes his first international trip to Israel, he plans to tout Florida but also will have a chance to get a new supply of water --- and probably will do a better labeling job.

Water from the Sea of Galilee that DeSantis and First Lady Casey DeSantis saved from a past trip to Israel and used last week to baptize their 9-month-old son Mason was tossed out by a cleaning crew at the governor’s mansion.

“We’re not used to having people pick up for us,” the governor said Tuesday while in Boca Raton. “I think the folks who clean didn’t realize what it was.”

The governor noted he and his wife kept the water left over from the baptism in a nondescript Zephyrhills-style water bottle that wasn’t marked as being anything special.

In the Bible, the shores of the Sea of Galilee feature prominently in the ministry of Jesus.

“Now, we don’t have any bun in the oven right now,” DeSantis, the father of two, continued. “But I think we do need to go back to Israel to make sure we have a stock of that water on display.”

In announcing a planned trip to Israel after the 2019 legislative session, DeSantis said the aim is to increase commercial ties, boost tourism to Central Florida and explore research that could include addressing the state’s red tide outbreaks.