Coastal Breeze News

According to local lore the famous pirate Jose Gaspar was born in Spain in 1756 and joined the Spanish navy as a boy until age 27 when he mutinied and commandeered a ship to the Gulf of Mexico. Gaspar’s decision in 1782 to rebel, and leave his wife and children forever, was because his theft of the Spanish Crown jewels had been detected. A price was declared on his head and he swore a vengeance on all Spaniards. Leading a group of escaped convicts, Gaspar with his stolen ship established a home base in 1783 in the area of Charlotte ... Read More »

One of my all-time favorite comedians is Dom Irrera, from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, who does this great bit about his friends, who always love to give medical advice, when a buddy is sick called, “not a doctor.” “Oh, you got that flu? Yeah. Drink plenty of fluids and get a lot of rest,” his good bud suggested. “Boy am I glad that I ran into you. First of all, you’re not a doctor, are you? Because I don’t know where you got that kind of information. I was just about out of my house when I was about to do wind-sprints and ... Read More »

When my husband and I first started traveling to Europe, we knew a tour group was not for us. Good little lemmings we are not. So, we did the “grand tour” on our own, spending a few nights in each of the locations we wanted to visit. Soon, though, we discovered the joy of settling in to one “hometown” and using it as a base to savor the sights, tastes, sounds, and culture of an area. And, we discovered a company, Untours, that makes this all the more pleasurable. Untours, based in Media ,PA has been providing a unique travel ... Read More »

The Boy Scouts of Troop 234 on Marco Island traveled to Sarasota’s Mote Marine Laboratory to obtain their required Eagle Scout merit badge for Environmental Science on March 14, 2010. We camped in Arcadia on Friday night after driving through a torrential rain storm. The boys toughed it out and set up camp in the darkness. The scouts rose early on Saturday, prepared a gourmet camp breakfast of pancakes and sausage, then headed northwest to Sarasota’s Mote Marine Laboratory. Their instructor, Kat was a wealth of knowledge with a diverse background in oceanography and wildlife management.  She took control of about 50 rambunctious scouts from various ... Read More »

Is this how you feel on Friday? It’s Friday! Hallelujah! It’s the weekend baby! Isn’t it amazing how good you f eel and the excitement that is generated on Friday? Wouldn’t it be wonderful if you could feel this good everyday and generate the same kind of excitement and enthusiasm Monday thru Thursday? Could it be that you’re so excited about the weekend because it is a great time for self care?  Except this year you’re neglecting your self care (massages, pedicures, walking on the beach, meditating) because you have the opportunity to work doubles, odd hours and extra days.  ... Read More »

Recently I met someone who was looking for a home to buy on Marco Island. They asked me to suggest some good buys. After discussing their lifestyle, I made a suggestion. Then they asked “why do you recommend this particular property?” “It’s one of the few that meets your criteria and budget”, I replied. The next response from the prospect was, “how long has it been on the market?” After considering the question, I wanted to ask the relevance, but instead responded “Three years”. It seems in today’s market,  everyone thinks that the longer the property is on the market, ... Read More »

Maria Curiale has been a master carpenter, woodworker and mason most of his life.  Owner of Marco Building Supply for over 20 years, Curiale recently opened Marco Plumbing and Electrical Supply on Bald Eagle. “Combining the two facilities,” Curiale said, “offers a one stop shop for all encompassing home repair and building material needs for residential and commercial properties.” Working in his father’s carpentry store as a young boy in Italy, Curiale learned the traditional way of working as a craftsman. Curiale’s family moved to New Jersey while in his teens. He started his own carpentry business while going to ... Read More »

Part 2 of Living Legally OK, OK, sorry I made you wait. So what are the consequences you have to worry about if your house is sold at a short sale or foreclosure sale, transferred by a deed in lieu of foreclosure or is just getting smaller in the rear view mirror as you drive away? A big one is taxes.You know those things you pay when you earn money, when you buy property, when you sell property, when you give property away, and ultimately when you die – yep – you get taxed. So the honeymoon is over and ... Read More »

Dear Coastal Breeze News, There is a scam going around and I want to warn residents. I am a CPA and prepare tax returns. One of my 84 year old clients called me almost in tears. Someone called her and said they were from the IRS and she owed $25,000. She told them she had a CPA and this wasn’t possible. They said they would call to speak to me and explain it. She called me afterwards and I assured her it was a scam. To calm her down, we called the IRS together. Sure enough, she does not owe ... Read More »

We recently were contacted by a family who had been red tagged by the City of Marco Island. These folks had been victimized by someone who had portrayed himself as a licensed contractor and who had given them the impression that he had taken care of necessary paperwork (permits, etc.). It turned out he was unlicensed and obviously not an electrician. The City of Marco became aware of the unpermitted work and issued a “Stop Work Order.” What we found upon checking the job was highly dangerous wiring. Open wire splices had been made in the attic, there were no ... Read More »

Women from La Peninsula condominiums on Isles of Capri prepared an international feast for friends and neighbors. The first of what will be an annual event embracing international traditional, music, foods and drink was celebrated on Isle of Capri. Included in the festivities was Germany, Ireland, Italy, Mexico and Japan. Rosa, who is on staff at La Pen, not only lent a hand with Mexican foods but treated party goers with traditional Latin ballads. Bob Bernard soon inspired a sing-a-long with such Irish favorites My Wild Irish Rose and Danny Boy. Read More »

An upbeat feeling is stirring Goodland these days.  We know spring is coming, but this feeling is more than that.  It’s a bona fide spirit. For starters, events like the Mullet Festival, Boat Parade, Pancake Breakfasts and Garage Sale have been quite successful. New and long-time residents have been working side-by-side contributing time, effort and money to support civic projects. We have had record-breaking participation and profits. We work well together. Several folks have been hospitalized for one reason or another. One of those who came home after fourteen days had a casual luncheon for her neighbors who’d sent notes, flowers or other ... Read More »

It’s a question I am often asked, seeing that I make my living, designing creating, and repairing jewelry, but it is still a tough question to answer. For centuries gold has been a symbol of wealth and success. Wars were fought, regimes toppled, civilizations even erased. Tons of gold was well spent or frivolously squandered. For example, amongst the Egyptians, Greeks and Romans, their royalty and high society wore pounds of the gleaming metal to symbolize their wealth and position. Kind of like our rap music stars of today. That was then, this is now. Some folks may possess only ... Read More »

Grip, Posture, Backswing, Downswing and Impact Zone or Release Every aspect of the fundamentals is important and each one needs to be understood clearly. The proper grip can make your association with the club a positive and good starting point. The only thing that will contact the ball is the club face and the only thing that touches the club is your hands. Most new golfers, as well as many experienced ones, tend to hold onto the club in a comfortable way and that appears to be the beginning of a poor grip. When a person has a comfortable grip, ... Read More »

The question comes up often…… “I would like to do a fishing charter with my wife, but she is not really into fishing like I am. Can we do a combination of a fishing/sight seeing charter? The truth is that there is so much natural beauty to enjoy while out on the water here in Southwest Florida. Much of the wildlife that can be seen, is in the calm and shallow backwaters of the 10,000 Island and the Everglades National Park. The same water that we fish. As you can see from my photos, on a typical fishing charter we ... Read More »

United Church of Marco Island 320 N. Barfield Dr. 239-394-6572 [email protected] Wesley United Methodist Church 350 S. Barfield Dr. 239-394-3734 www.wesleymarco.com Jewish Congregation of Marco Island 991 Winterberry Dr. 239-642-0800 www.marcojcmi.tripod.com First Family Baptist Church 1450 Winterberry Dr. 239-394-1646 www.fbcmarco.org San Marco Catholic Church 851 San Marco Rd. 239-394-5181 www.sanmarcochurch.com St. Finbarr’s in Naples Holy Family in Everglades City Marco Lutheran Church 525 N. Collier Blvd. 239-394-9073 www.marcolutheran.org St. Mark’s Episcopal Church 1101 N. Collier Blvd. 239-394-7242 www.stmarksmarco.org New Life Community Church of God 590 West Elkcam Circle 239-394-3469 www.newlifemarco.org Marco Presbyterian Church 875 W. Elkcam Circle 239-394-8186 www.marcochurch.com Goodland Baptist ... Read More »

Marco Island firefighter EMT, Christian Holmes, performs the Hip Reach that works on the flexibility of the hips and pelvis, releasing tension on the knees, hips and lower back. Christian was born in Staffordshire, England and moved with his family to the U.S. when he was 16. Asked if he dreamt of being a fireman when he was young, Christian answered, “For as long as I can remember I have wanted to be a fireman. And now that I am a fireman, it is more than I ever thought it would be. I love it.” Volunteering first at the Isles ... Read More »

So often I have heard people on Marco Island say something about not knowing where their tax dollars go. I thought I would just outline a few services that Marco taxes pay for, such as our wonderful library, the Caxambus boat ramp, maintenance, etc., the new 951 boat launch and expanded parking, Tigertail Beach maintenance and operations, South Beach maintenance, Department of Animal Services, Jail, the State required Sheriff’s Department for such things as SWAT team and general assistance and surveillance, Court System, 911 Emergency Service, Emergency Operations for major events such as Hurricanes and cleanup after major storms and ... Read More »

Game #1 @ 6:15pm:  Sunset Grille def. DaVinci’s, 14-11 Sunset Highlights 4 HITS:  Cory Banister 2 HITS:  Donnie Montroy, Pat Baldwin, Lee Vanderjagt, Rick Hanscom 1 HIT:  Chad Clawson (HR) DaVinci’s Highlights 5 HITS:  Bobby Natale Jr. (2HR)) 3 HITS:  Mike Radlovacki & Mark Feola Jr. 2 HITS:  Taylor Goldsmith Game #2 @ 7:30pm:  Sand Bar/Integrity Insurance def. Nacho Mama’s, 27-7 Sand Bar Highlights 4 HITS:  Eric Nagel, Paul Thomassen (2HR), Brad Frazier (HR) 3 HITS:  Jason Berning (2HR), JP Nachef 2 HITS:  Pat McGuire, Brian Kocak (HR), Evan Holewinski, & Rob Ashe Nacho Highlights 2 HITS:  Joe Valencic, Kevin ... Read More »

Green Zone is a thriller and piece of historical fiction and even more: it ignores the old injunction against mixing war and politics. Like it or not, the gloves come off and the movie questions why the United States went to war in Iraq. Was it because the Administration in 2003 seriously believed there were weapons of mass destruction in Iraq? In the novel “Imperial Life in the Emerald City” author Rajiv Chandrasekaran raises that and other questions. The movie is purportedly “inspired” by that book. Director Paul Greengrass, noted for the most recent Bourne films, locates Matt Damon in ... Read More »