Coastal Breeze News

Marco Island student Alexandra Diaz, a junior at Lely High School was presented with the Collier County Sheriff’s Department “Do the Right Thing Award” by Sheriff Kevin Rambosk at a ceremony held on Monday November 15th. Alexandra along with nine other Collier County students were acknowledged at a function held at the Lorenzo Walker Vocational Institute, which was attended by more than sixty family members, friends, faculty and sheriffs. Each honoree was presented with a “Do the Right Thing’ trophy, certificate, gold medal and also received a congratulatory letter from Senator Bill Nelson. Alexandra was nominated by the Dean of ... Read More »

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By Carl and Joan Kelly Applause greeted the table of Collier County engineers and project managers as they announced the end of Phase I of the water project on the Isles of Capri. It began in April and is nearly done this month. There are a few details to correct and the entire length of road is to be repaved with completion expected in January. Phase II is already starting with Haskins Incorporated getting the bid. It will be done in two parts since there are more houses involved. With 400 service connections and 37 fire hydrants Phase II is ... Read More »

By Tara O’Neill All writers dream of the day when a dilly of a story will just fall into their laps. Or, in my case, smack them in the head. Either way, the recent realization of that dream has me all fired up. There I was, at desk, struggling to turn a list of calendar events into prose. And it hit me. No, really, I dropped my head (a little too hard) onto a pile of freshly-printed e-mails and the top one actually stuck. I peeled it off my forehead, replaced it with a bag of ice, and minutes later ... Read More »

By Jeane Brennan The Art League Marco Island’s Center for the Arts worked with focus and determination to relieve their debt. Now, as the new year approaches, Executive Director D Michaels, Ken Stroud, Board President Elect, Art League staff and volunteers are anticipating another active and successful year. The Artistree in Motion tree painted by Inez Hudson is one way of thanking the Art League’s Angels of the Arts, Benefactors, staff and volunteers. It’s important though to remind the community of Marco Island to volunteer and support local associations and organizations. Classes beginning in November at the Art League are ... Read More »

By Capt. Carl Kelly Every boater has heard that to clear a starboard (right) side berth one should back off slowly at first. But why? The answer is side force. Side force is caused by the turning of the propeller. At low speed side force moves the stern of the boat to the side, almost as though the prop were crawling along the bottom. On a single screw vessel (single engine/prop) side force moves the stern to starboard in forward and to the port (left) in reverse. So, when docked on the starboard with a single screw, clear by starting ... Read More »

By Francis Diebler Life aboard is not always smooth sailing. Sometimes unexpected things happen and you should be prepared to handle most, if not all, accidents. Yes, I know, the old cliché “we are only going in the bay, or the sound, or out to the first marker.” I don’t know the accurate statistics of injuries afloat and where they happen, but if you are planning to cruise in the true sense of the word, accidents will happen in the most remote or distant places you can be at the time. That may not be any famous rule, but it ... Read More »

By Capt. Pete Rapps Since we have recently experienced our first cold front of the fall season here in SW Florida, I thought it would be appropriate to explain how cold fronts affect our local fishing patterns. Mother Nature has programmed into a fishes head that it’s time to hunker down and find shelter when the barometric pressure builds. They come equipped with what is described as a “lateral line”. You can see the line running down the side of just about every fish. This line is in fact a sensing organ. …… a barometer of sorts, that fish use ... Read More »

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The Optimist Club of Marco Island has kicked off its 2010 Fall Soccer program on November 8th with new Soccer Program Director, Bob Poling at the helm. Currently, there are over 220 youth participating in the program and still growing. OCMI is still taking registrations to fill roster spots. This year, the theme is World Cup Soccer with the team taking on the names of World Cup country’s the likes of Spain, Germany, England and more. A total of 27 teams are broken out into separate boy’s and girl’s divisions grouped by kindergarten through 1st grade, 2nd through 3rd grade, ... Read More »

By Matt Walthauer Last issue I explained steel and aluminum bicycle frames and their pros and cons, now I will explain the next two popular materials and lastly the mystery frame material Carbon Fiber- plastic strengthened and reinforced by a graphite textile Carbon fiber has become the most popular frame material used today; it is used in most higher end road racing frames and also higher end hybrid (a cross between mountain tire and road tire) and mountain bicycle frames. The tubing used to construct carbon frames is really quite different than used in metal frames; because of the fibrous ... Read More »

Good doubles teams have a true sense of where to be at the right time. Experienced teams move to the middle when necessary, cover the alleys when the ball moves far to one side and go backwards to cover the tough lob. However, too many CTA and USTA league players are caught moving to the wrong angles of the court and are completely unaware when the opponents are going to lob. In order to gain an early edge with your opponents, make mental notes during the warm-up. For example, if your opponent always runs- around her backhand, it is a ... Read More »

By Melody Kappauf Island Country Club has been a well-known and respected fixture on Marco Island and a support to the community since 1966 when it was developed by the Deltona Corporation. The club has a strong foundation for future growth, and boasts of its unique, historical link to the golfing world. “Champagne” Tony Lema was the Island Country Club’s first resident golf pro. Lema had nineteen professional wins including the 1964 British Open and back to back Buick Opens in 1964 and 1965. He was a member of the 1965 and 1965 Ryder Cup Team and his record (9-1-1) ... Read More »

By Mike P. Usher Tonight the Moon is just two days away from full and will blot out the lesser stars until nearly dawn. With the naked eye you can clearly see the Moon has two types of surfaces – the darker maria and the lighter highlands. The maria (mare is singular) have been given colorful names in Latin and are generally referred to as “seas” although they are merely dry lava flows. The circular sea in the middle of the northern hemisphere is Mare Serenitatis (sea of serenity), just to the southwest of Mare Serenitatis is Mare Tranquillitatis (sea ... Read More »

This column is the opinion of a 3 year old African Grey Parrot named “Simba” who has an extremely high intelligence level. While he does not possess a degree from any college or university, he does have a strong opinion of himself and feels that he is the best candidate to answer the complex questions of today’s discerning pets…and the humans they own… Dear Simba, I must say I thoroughly enjoy your column. With Thanksgiving around the corner, I see more and more people coming to our beautiful island due to the onset of season. There is a lot more ... Read More »

In 2003, Mark Zuckerberg a Harvard sophomore “invented” Facebook. Over the years, young Mr. Zuckerberg (he’s now only 26) became the world’s youngest billionaire – although he insists that what he does has nothing to do with making money. In any event, the intervening period between then and now has been filled with wheeling, dealing and alleged double-dealing. Enter Aaron Sorkin of “West Wing” fame. Mr. Sorkin has taken the Facebook saga and written a tight, entertaining and thought-provoking screenplay. Top speed dialog, neat camerawork and excellent acting make this film, “The Social Network”, far more than the Facebook story. ... Read More »

by Abraham Verghese Published by Knopf, Feb. 2009 USA Sister Mary Joseph Praise boarded the ship for a long grueling voyage from her home land in India to the mission village in Ethiopia. She was glowing with the anticipation of her new calling as a surgical assistant in the small hospital in Addis Abada. During the crossing, she saves the life of a handsome English doctor. Years later she is surprised to find herself working alongside the striking doctor for whose life she had saved. They quickly fuse together into a finely tuned machine. Sister Mary Joseph could anticipate his ... Read More »

By Vickie Kelber Although it is best known for beer, Munich, the capital of Bavaria, offers much more. True, there are hundreds of beer gardens and cellars, as well as Oktoberfest, but it is also a world class cultural center with easy access to the Bavarian alps. The most famous beer hall, Hofbräuhaus am Platzi, seats 4,500, while the Augustinerbrau claims to be the oldest. Oktoberfest runs for 16 days the end of September to the beginning of October and is host to 7 million people in a tent city a 15 minute walk from the main train station. There ... Read More »

Submitted by Pat Holmes The Marco Island Area Association of Realtors held its General Membership Luncheon at Hideaway Beach Club. The President of the Board, Susan Ackerson, thanked all the committee chair people, staff, and members for a great year. Judith Slocum of Slocum Properties co-chaired the Professional Standards Committee with Ian Clausen of Clausen Properties. Judith gave a brief summary of the committee’s activities and progress over the past year. Read More »

Thanksgiving – a time to gather with family and friends, to share the beauty and bounty of the season and to ask for blessings for all those who are still in need. Photo Courtesy of Marco Island Florist by Val Simon Read More »