Coastal Breeze News

By Coastal Breeze News Staff  Recently, Coastal Breeze News featured several businesses and individuals that helped make the 20th Anniversary wedding vow renewal extra special for Marine Master Chief Chris Aldis and his wife, Paula Aldis. Chris served in Afghanistan at the time of the ceremony and was on a two week leave for R & R. Two decades ago the couple had eloped between deployments due to money and time constraints but their dream was to have a beach wedding. It took many local businesses to make their dream wedding come true. In this issue, we are featuring three ... Read More »

Read My Tips Doug Browne Entries have already rolled in from the Player’s Club, Fiddler’s Creek, Eagle Creek, and Island Club and of course, Hideaway Beach for the 2nd Annual Open Doubles event at Hideaway Beach beginning Friday, March 2nd. Due to the success of last year’s event, past participants already sent in their entries last week; the first sixteen teams in each division are automatically placed in the draw and each one after number 16 will be placed in a waiting list!  Here are some of the key particulars:   New, new, new – 4.0 doubles for men and women.  In 2012, ... Read More »

By Coastal Breeze News Staff The City of Marco Island is hosting a photo contest in honor of Earth Day 2012. The contest opens Wednesday, February 1st and runs through April 6th. The theme of the contest is Southwest Florida Native Flora and Fauna. The contest is open to any amateur photographer, 14 years or older, who resides in Collier County full or part-time. Nancy Richie, Environmental Specialist for the City of Marco Island commented, “We live in such a beautiful and diverse area, why not celebrate it through photography? The Southwest Florida and Everglades’ environments with all of the ... Read More »

By Natalie Strom [email protected] What is it that holds Marco Island together? It took years of dredging and filling, building roads, constructing bridges and paying countless dollars in taxes to build such a beautiful island. Yet, all of this construction is not the glue that holds Marco together. As a barrier island, Marco, Goodland and the surrounding areas are truly held together by our mangroves; and they are dying. Driving along State Road 92 from Marco Island to the Goodland Bridge, it is clear that the mangroves on either side of the road are in trouble. The area, known as ... Read More »

By Jim Prange The tide is turning. Every January, the sales statistics from the previous year are reviewed to gauge how the real estate market is doing and to help prepare State of the Island Real Estate Report, and my Deal or No Deal Part IV. The latest statistics are incredibly uplifting! With the exception of a 7 month speed bump as a result of the BP oil concerns, our sales on Marco Island have increased every year since 2007. 2011 was the year of reality…we saw record low prices in some areas and, in the last six months, we ... Read More »

By Vincent Giannone  In its seventh annual run, Hideaway Beach hosted the much anticipated “Hideaway Chips Away at Cancer.” The event consisted of many different opportunities for members of the Hideaway Beach community to donate to the American Cancer Society. This year, the committee was hopeful for an even greater response from the community which raised over $120,000 in 2011. An amazing sum! Bill Dean, chairman of the “Hideaway Chips Away at Cancer” committee, was very happy with the turn out for the January 29th event, with 95 players for the Golf Tournament and 165 for the dinner and auction ... Read More »

BUSINESS BASICS  Camden Smith  DREAMFly Marketing Facebook, the second most visited website in the world, has grown even beyond a social media giant into a serious investment opportunity. On Wednesday, Feb. 1, 2012, the social media king filed papers to raise $5 billion or more with a stock offering this spring. Facebook filed its intention with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) online. The SEC has reported it may take until May for the Facebook stock to become publicly available. Financial experts have been flooding the television with estimates on the soon-to-be net worth of Facebook founder’s Mark Zuckerberg as ... Read More »

Donna Fiala [email protected] This past week Collier County sent representatives to the Florida Association of Counties 2012 Legislative Day in Tallahassee to call upon our Legislators to present the county approved State Legislative Priorities. As the elected (by the BCC) commissioner to the Florida Association of Counties, I was honored to represent Collier County. Among the priorities we advocated were the overall principles of preserving the Home Rule authority of local governments, opposing state Preemption, Opposing Unfunded Mandates, and protecting against Trust Fund Diversions. We asked the Legislators to oppose legislative or Constitutional restriction on County authority to determine local ... Read More »

By Monte Lazarus [email protected] As we progress through life, if we’re lucky enough to improve our fortunes (admittedly more difficult these days) and if we live long enough, we tend to move for any number of reasons. Families are no longer staying in one neighborhood, or even one city. Those of us who attend a college probably move into a rooming house or dormitory joining another one to three roommates. Usually one or more are – to put it bluntly – slobs. On the other hand, a few of us wind up rooming with an obsessive/compulsive neatnik. Which is worse? ... Read More »

I would like to send my condolences to the Paterno family. Joe saved my life. After my accident in Pennsylvania he very selflessly sent a picture of himself with a note: To Steve, “We are all behind you” I looked at that as a sign I didn’t want to let Joe down. I also would like to thank these businesses on the Island for being so great to me: 1. The south Seven Eleven. 2. Always There Home Health Care. 3. CVS. 4. The Bank of America. 5. The Island Bike Shop. Peace to all who enter here, where there ... Read More »

COASTAL HISTORY  Craig Woodward  [email protected] The first full time minister in Southwest Florida was George W. Gatewood. Before Reverend Gatewood, at age 24, came to scout out the area in 1886, there had been traveling Protestant preachers who held periodic revivals as well as Roman Catholic priests, from Key West, who came to the Chokoloskee area to attend to the spiritual needs of the Santini family and other Catholics; but none of them actually resided here. In the late 1800s, Key West was the principal city of the area and a number of the Conchs were Methodists. “Conchs” being the name ... Read More »

Submitted  On January 24, at MICA’s Annual Social Vice President Jim Johnson presented MICA’s 2012 Humanitarian of the Year Award to Mr. Howard Jordan. Johnson noted that “Howard Jordan has spent countless hours working on behalf of the residents of Marco Island, big and small!” He was honored for his 11 years of service on the MICA Board of Directors, his sports coaching efforts, and for the formation of the “Upon a Star Foundation.” The MICA Humanitarian of the Year Award was first presented in 1998 and has become one of the most prestigious awards on Marco Island. It honors ... Read More »

By Coastal Breeze News Staff The 29th Annual Marco Island Prayer Breakfast will be held on Tuesday, February 14, 2012, 7:30 AM at the Marco Island Marriott Resort and Spa. Chaplain Brigadier General Douglas E. Lee (USA Ret.) will be guest speaker. A full plated breakfast will be served. Cost is $20.00 per person. Tickets are available from the Marco Island Chamber of Commerce and the Marco Island Churches. Brigadier General Lee had a distinguished career in the United States Army and rose to the office of Army Assistant Chief of Chaplains for Mobilization and Readiness, retiring in 2008. He ... Read More »

BEYOND THE COAST Tarik Ayasun [email protected] It was a cold and dreary New Jersey February in 1985, when I flew down to sunny Trinidad and Tobago to visit my customer and personal friend Everard Scott. He met me as usual at the Port-of-Spain airport and drove me to the upside down Hilton where I would spend the week. The hotel is called upside down because it sits atop a hill and all the floors are built along the edge of a cliff below the lobby level. Floor numbers start from 1 and go to minus 12 as the elevator takes you ... Read More »

By Coastal Breeze News Staff Teresa Dorris recently hit a major milestone of continuous service to Collier County with 30 years of employment. Larry Ray, Collier County Tax Collector was there to present her with a 30 year service award saying, “Teresa is a real asset to the Tax Collectors Office. Her expertise in all services provided by the Tax Collector combined with her outstanding customer service skills makes the Marco Island a great place to do government business.” Teresa works at the location on Winterberry Drive. Read More »

By Holly Benedict  Author John Dandola debuts Dead in Small Doses, his newest mystery novel set during 1943.  Each year, author-screenwriter-playwright John Dandola makes several trips to Marco Island, spending in total at least two months here. He not only relaxes but he finds the quiet, easy atmosphere conducive to writing. His newest mystery novel, Dead in Small Doses, is one of his 1940’s Hollywood series which will surely generate reminiscences among readers. The author’s Dead series got its start due to the late Orson Welles. Just out of college, Dandola was asked to tag along with a friend who ... Read More »

By Jane A. Marlowe [email protected]  The Naples Philharmonic Brass Quintet will present an evening of classical music interspersed with works from popular artists like Gershwin and Ellington from the days of the big bands and great jazz musicians. The Quintet will be making its sixth consecutive appearance at the Jewish Congregation of Marco Island, the host for this popular event. The Brass Quintet will perform on Wednesday, February 15 at 7:30 PM. The talented group includes Aaron McCulla on tuba; James Dallas, percussion, Matthew Sonneborn, trumpet, David Dallas, percussion and Tracy Leonard on horn. There will be a reception following ... Read More »

By Dianna Dohm For the fourth consecutive year, the two Rotary Clubs and the Kiwanis Club of Marco Island have worked together on a very successful joint venture. The Marco Island Seafood Festival is the island’s single largest community event. This year the event will be held Saturday, March 24 from 10:00 AM to 9:00 PM and Sunday, March 25, from 10:00 AM to 6:00 PM at Veterans Park in the center of Marco Island. With over 10,000 visitors asking for an expanded format and extended festival hours on Saturday and Sunday, this was a natural choice for event organizers. To ... Read More »

Submitted by Friends of the Fakahatchee The first Coastal Cruise of 2012 to historic Fakahatchee Island was enjoyed last month by over 20 people who set out in glorious weather on a chartered boat tour from Everglades National Park throught the mysterious mangroves of the Ten Thousand Islands. Upon arrival at Fakahatchee Island, biologist Glen Stacell (author of A Guide to Native Wildflowers in Southwest Florida) led them up the shell-mound path, pointing out unusual plants such as “the largest pencil cactus tree I’ve ever seen”. At the pinacle, they wandered through the small cemetery, reading headstones that commemorate pioneering ... Read More »

Morning Conversation: Why Research is Important to the American Association of University Women (AAUW), hosted by AAUW Ft. Myers/Lee County Branch on January 27, gave members of area AAUW branches the opportunity to meet Dr. Catherine Hill, AAUW Director of Research. Dr. Hill spoke about the past, present and future of AAUW research. AAUW’s first research project, in 1885, found that higher education does not harm a women’s health. By using empirical data obtained from AAUW members and other women college graduates, AAUW put an end to this serious impediment to education for women. For nearly 130 years, AAUW’s research ... Read More »