Coastal Breeze News

By Patricia Huff For the past six months, visitors to the historic Smallwood Store & Museum have had to drive through the unsightly property owned by Florida-Georgia Grove LLC. In early August, Collier County Code Enforcement Office issued a “Notice of Violation” for the overgrown weeds and disrepair of the fence on the construction site. After the owners received notice from the County in early September that a “Nuisance Abatement” process had been initiated for the violation, the owners requested a “vegetation removal” permit. The property is now scheduled for re-inspection by the County. Currently, there is an active building ... Read More »

By Coastal Breeze News Staff Coastal Breeze News asked the nine candidates vying for four seats on City Council the same question: What are your priorities if you are elected to the city council? The candidates, Jerry Gibson, Larry Honig, Ken Honecker, Paul Meyer, Amadeo Pettrica, Frank Recker, Larry Sacher, Wayne Waldack and Duane Thomas, had to respond in 400 words or less. This is the third installment of responses; the first ran in the September 7th edition of Coastal Breeze News and the second on September 21st. All but one candidate have responded. Responses run in the order they ... Read More »

On 10/08/12 at 0223 Hrs, Marco Island Police Officers were dispatched to the 1400 block of Jamaica Road reference a single vehicle crash. The caller noted that an individual was observed walking eastbound away from the scene of the crash. Officers arrived two minutes later and observed a 2008 Maroon Jeep Grand Cherokee which had sustained heavy damage and a significant amount of vehicle debris strewn about the roadway and yards. Marco Island Police and Fire Rescue personnel immediately discovered a male who had sustained obvious fatal injuries lying in the swale of 1423 Jamaica Rd. Preliminary investigation at the ... Read More »

By Kathleen Zehler Wednesday, September 26, 2012, marked the date as the first official meeting for the New Chapter of Toastmasters of Marco Island. Toastmasters Club is a driving force with a noble mission: To help more men and women learn the arts of speaking, listening, and thinking – vital skills that promote self-actualization, enhance leadership potential, foster human understanding, and contribute to the betterment of mankind. The group brings together all walks of life from high school youth to adults in various professions. The meeting was held at Centennial Bank under the direction of Naples Toastmaster Chris Pritchard and ... Read More »

Donna Fiala [email protected] Recently the Chamber had a marvelous After 5 event at the Marco Island Florist showroom. I had no idea that they had anything more than flowers, but what a delightful surprise to step into a shop of lovely gifts and decorations, PLUS flowers! Remember the old Hallmark shop that Lou & Pat Smith owned and that we all loved? I would have to say this darling shop filled that gap………..plus the staff was friendly, helpful and knowledgeable! Just to mention a few treasures they offer besides gorgeous floral arrangements are: blooming plants, home décor and accents, candles ... Read More »

By Monte Lazarus [email protected] It finally happened…I’m “Macified”; or you might say “Appleized.” In any event I’ve come under the spell of the brooding omnipresence of Steve Jobs. After many years I’ve abandoned P.C.; and a MacBook Air has joined my relatively new iMac. It’s painful. It’s expensive. It’s destiny. It all began years ago when I bought my first computer – a $5,000, clunky, creaky, nasty IBM. It cost the equivalent of a BMW, but performed a lot worse. The original was heavy and huge. It had a single floppy drive that accommodated only one large droopy (hence “floppy”) ... Read More »

By Coastal Breeze News Staff The Marco Island Academy football team played their first ever homecoming game against Imagine High School. Thundershowers in the area threatened the start of the game. It was an intense game but many fans in attendance wondered if ‘replacement refs’ were on the field after some questionable calls left coaches and players a bit frustrated. Regardless, the Rays worked the field and although the loss of 42-6 stung, Coach Andy Delgado pledges more hard work will produce a tighter team. Support for the school, and their football team, was evident on the sidelines and in ... Read More »

By Natalie Strom [email protected] The collaborative effort between the Harry Chapin Food Bank of Southwest Florida and Meals of Hope couldn’t be stronger. Closing out September’s Hunger Action Month, the two organizations came together to celebrate their latest joint venture. At an open house held on September 25, guests were treated to a tour of the Meals of Hope warehouse, which it will now be sharing with the Harry Chapin Food Bank. Based out of Fort Myers, the Harry Chapin Food Bank distributed 15 million pounds of food last year to hungry Southwest Floridians in five counties: Lee, Charlotte, Collier, ... Read More »

By Coastal Breeze News Staff Physicians Regional Healthcare Systems’ parent company, Naples-based Health Management Associates (HMA), recently donated $10,000 to both Mike Davis Elementary School in Naples and Lake Trafford Elementary School in Immokalee. Each school ultimately chooses how best to use the money, however, Mike Davis Elementary Principal Melanie Fike has shared plans to help fund the school’s computer-based Ticket to Read program. For his part, Lake Trafford Elementary School Principal Brian Castellani has several initiatives in the works including the purchase of new PE equipment, positive behavior incentives, and grade-level performances to showcase student talent. Both donations are ... Read More »

By Natalie Strom Dogs, cats, hermit crabs, goldfish and their owners gathered at St. Mark’s Episcopal Church on September 25, for the annual Blessing of the Animals. After a brief service that celebrated pets no longer with us and included songs like “All God’s Critters,” and “Dog Breath,” animals in attendance had a chance to be blessed by Father Kyle. Read More »

By Coastal Breeze News Staff A small girl slurped on her thumb as 12 Cub Scouts of Den 6, Boy Scout Troop 234 gathered on Thursday night at the Wesley United Methodist Church. The wee lassie and a number of young girls were enjoying the side room as their brothers met under the direction of Jim and Linda Chute. It was a kickoff meeting celebrating the local cub scouts’ First Annual Cake Bake. One dozen newly iced cakes rested comfortably in the church’s kitchen thanks to the efforts of various mothers and the assistance of their sons – the icers. ... Read More »

By Kathleen Zehler There are numerous events that take place in our communities that support very worthy causes and it is in the giving of ourselves that makes these charitable events a success; thus forming the exceptional community that we live in. Meals of Hope exemplifies this truth as you see many organizations, individuals and local businesses coming together to give of their time, talents, and monetary means. The group’s mission is to bring communities together to feed needy children and families in Collier County. A project of the Marco Island Sunrise Rotary Club, the Kiwanis Club, and the Noontime ... Read More »

By Coastal Breeze News Staff Eight years ago, Victor Meza worked as a painter for a large painting company. He saw going into his own business as a goal he was ready to take on and so he began, Commex Painting. Victor already knew the bidding process, the hiring (and sometimes firing) workers, job requirements, materials specifications, and more. Victor saw an opportunity to run a job the way he wanted to run it with Commex. It gave him a fresh new outlook, sort of like a fresh new coat of paint on the buildings. Running your own business has ... Read More »

SOUTHERN SKIES By Mike P. Usher [email protected] It’s autumn in Southwest Florida, even when it doesn’t feel like it, when the irregular “w” of Cassiopeia rises high in the northeastern sky. This particular area of the celestial sphere is the home of one of the most dysfunctional families in Greek mythology. Found here is Cepheus the King, the aforementioned Cassiopeia the Queen, and their daughter Andromeda. The short version of their story goes like this: Cassiopeia bragged that she was more beautiful than the sea nymphs; who upon hearing this complained to Poseidon, the god of the sea. He sent ... Read More »

FOLLOW THE FISH Capt. Pete Rapps [email protected] Fall is officially here and October will bring a change in the local fishery. As we get further into the month, the daytime air temperatures will average around 87 and water temps will hover around 81. October shows a much welcomed cooling trend, which will help prolong the bite throughout the day. We are seeing some schools of large live bait pour into the area. Get them with your cast net close to the shorelines at high tide, and out just a little deeper in the low tides. Follow the tide line and look ... Read More »

By Natalie Strom [email protected] Rookery Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve celebrated National Estuaries Day in a big way on Saturday, September 29. Hundreds of all ages came to learn about the history, research, recreation and marine life of Florida’s mangrove systems; where fresh water blends with salt water. Rookery Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve manages 110,000 acres of estuary from Naples south, around Marco Island and into the Ten Thousand Islands. The Reserve hosted boat rides, kayak and paddle board tours, fly-fishing lessons, face-painting, laboratory tours, nature hikes, animal encounters and a special backcountry seminar hosted by artist and television ... Read More »

By Coastal Breeze News Staff Well before the cut-off, just under 70 children had already signed up to try their throwing and kicking skills at the NFL’s Punt, Pass and Kick competition held at Mackle Park recently. The senior men’s baseball team measured the distance of each throw or kick, relaying the measurements to Alex Galiana, who recorded it. Winners of each age group listed are to be honored by the City Council. There are five sections in our area, the top four scores in each age division will advance to sectional finals. The competition will be held at a ... Read More »

BUZZ FROM THE SWAMP Patricia Huff [email protected] The Everglades City area continues to offer residents and visitors a number of exciting programs. Winter residents are beginning to return, and they won’t be disappointed in the events coming up this year. The October exhibit in the Pauline Reeves Gallery at the Museum of the Everglades is entitled “Everglades through the Perspective of Matt Milligan.” Matt is 16 years old, has been photographing scenes of our natural environment since the age of 9, and is the son of our Lieutenant Mark Milligan. Matt has shown his art work locally in our Art-in-the-Glades event. ... Read More »

PLANT TALK Mike Malloy [email protected] I’d like to introduce you to one of South Florida’s most magnificent landscape plants… Crape Myrtle. Originally grown in Japan, China and parts of Southeast Asia, it’s the supermodel of the plant world. It’s beautiful and a real head turner, of course, but crape myrtle is versatile, too. You can have it in either shrub or tree form and in myriad colors, including purple, white, pink, red, or a combination of colors. Even the bark on this plant is attractive! The lovely crape myrtle blooms all summer long and into the fall, with long-lasting, crepe-like ... Read More »

Submitted The Arbor Day Foundation will brighten up your fall by offering five free crape myrtle trees when you join the Foundation in October. The free trees are part of the nonprofit Arbor Day Foundation’s Trees for America campaign, a program dedicated to environmental stewardship through tree planting. “Crape myrtles are especially beautiful in the fall and were selected for this campaign because of their elegant color and form,” said John Rosenow, founder and chief executive of the Arbor Day Foundation. “Crape myrtles make an attractive addition to the home landscape.” The trees will be shipped postpaid between November 1 ... Read More »