NO.8
AUGUST 2018
AUGUST 2018 The Peridot issue:
Luxury Chamber 9 Year Anniversary Lamborghini Champagne Luxury Cruise Options with Frankie Blankenship Dawn V. Gilmore Nicklaus Childrens Hospital Roger Plevin and the 007 Miami Dolphins Party Luxury Chamber Expands Harvest Seasonal Grill The Delray Soiree
Man & Woman of the Month: Joe D'Amico & Irene Yovu
FOUNDER | Jay Shapiro Luxury Chamber Media Group jay@southflorida.in
Assistant to the Editor | Kolleen Poirier kolleen@southflorida.in
Fashion Editor | Juliana LaBonte juliana@southflorida.in
Travel Editor | Frankie Blankenship
Business Editor | Cindy Ragan
Real Estate Editor | Venus Proffer
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Allen Kopelman, Frank LoRe Jr., Venus Proffer, Eirini Kalaitzopoulou, Suze Francios, Kris Victoria
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Rutz Roberts Productions, Mark Thompson amd Dawn V. Gilmore
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Contrasting Elements: OPA LOCKA Miami's New Concours Club to Offer Membership at $350K
Concours Club Artists Rendition
Miami, a city famous for its mind-numbing traffic and slow-cruise culture, is lately looking like the best city for cars in America. Soon after Formula One won its bid to hold a race there next year and Grand Basel announced it’ll have an automotive event there in February, two developers have solidified plans to build a $220 million racetrack and private members club just 11 miles from Miami’s artsy Wynwood district. Set to open at Miami-Opa Locka Executive Airport in May 2019, The Concours Club will offer more than 2 miles of racetrack designed by Alan Wilson, plus an infinity pool and jacuzzi, full spa and a hammam, wine and cigar storage, restaurant and bar, and full concierge services. “The amenities are what set us apart,” said co-founder Neil Gehani. “We want to be sure we bring in the right people, and then we want to keep everyone here once they get here.” Gehani and co-owner Jay Pollak will offer 40 founding memberships costing $350,000, with no annual dues. Founding members will then invite friends and colleagues to buy “legacy memberships” capped at 150 people. Those will cost $125,000 plus annual dues. Corporate memberships may be offered shortly after the initial opening. If that all sounds like a steep ante, it is. But it’s consistent with the pricing of other private tracks around the world such as the Thermal Club outside Palm Springs, Calif., and the Monticello Motor Club, set in the lush Hudson Valley of upstate New York. And, to put it in perspective, it’s less than the cost of even one of the cars—a Pagani Zonda costs $1.4 million, for instance, and a Koenigsegg Agera costs $2.1 million—owned by the prospective members, who will be a mix of wealthy international collectors and local, well-connected driving enthusiasts.
Man & Woman of the Month - August 2018
Joe D'Amico & Irene Yovu Joe D'Amico is a car industry veteran who owned and partnered
Irene Yovu’s busy schedule keeps her in perpetual motion, but she
with several car dealerships and automotive industry companies
always finds time to support those in need. When she was introduced
and professionals over the years including Reynolds & Reynolds,
to Glam-A-THON™, she knew immediately that working with
Massey Yardley, Don Kott, Dan Agan and many others.
powerful women who are making a difference in the community, and doing it in high heels and lots of bling, resonated with her spirit of
Joe is originally from Pittsburgh, PA and comes from an Italian-
giving.
American background. He worked in Finance in London England and he is also a Purple Heart Honored Veteran who
Irene earned a Bachelor of Arts Degree from Pratt Institute in
served his country proudly in the Vietnam war and comes from a
Brooklyn New York, and an Associate Degree in Hotel and Food
strong military family.
Management from Paul Smith’s Jr. College, Paul Smiths, New York.
Joe works together with Irene who is his soulmate. He brought her to the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota out of the desire for
She consciously strives to treat others with kindness and grace, and
"NOTHING BUT THE BEST" and she means the world to him.
spreads the gift of friendship easily and often. She relishes her involvement in Temple Adath Or in Davie, theater arts, spiritual
Together they work hand in hand to make the world a better place
growth.
and they dedicate most of their free time to Glam-A-THON™
After a successful 25 year career in sales & marketing in the grocery
which is a breast cancer non-profit that donates funds directly to
industry, Irene is enjoying her ultra-active retirement filled with
the victims. Irene's Birthday is in August and there is nothing Joe
friends, travel, philanthropy and her glamorous 7.5 lb Persian cat,
would like for you to do more than to make a direct contribution
Maggie. Irene celebrates four blinged out years on the Glam Board.
in her name: https://strut.everydayhero.com/us/irene
Debbie's Dream Foundation Hosts Its 2018 Board Appreciation Reception and Installation Ceremony DDF welcomes five new and distinguished board members to contribute to its mission of raising awareness of stomach cancer and funds for research
DDF hosted its annual Board Appreciation Reception and Installation Ceremony on July 19, 2018, at the DDF headquarters in Plantation, Florida. The ceremony was held to induct a new class of influential professionals to serve on the Board of Directors for DDF. Attendees included current and past members of DDF's Board of Directors, Corporate Advisory Council, Scientific and Medical Advisory Board, and Honorary Board.
DDF Board members (l to r) Elkin Alfred, David Kubiliun, Esq., Noemi Sanchez, Jill Ginsberg, Esq., Pat Campola, Marsha Levy, Michael Ehren, Esq. (President), Madelyn Zelman (Secretary), Tamar Shatanof, MS, Jonathan Perillo, Michael Brin, CFP, MBA, Liz Gassew, RN, Cynthia Peterson (Vice President), and Libia Scheller, PhD, MBA
Guests of the reception enjoyed dinner and networking, and later participated in a ceremony recognizing current, incoming, and transitioning DDF board members. The newly installed members include Pat Campola, President and Founder of Campola Consulting and DDF Patient Resource Education Program (PREP) mentor; Jill Ginsberg, Board Certified Elder Law Attorney at Ginsberg Shulman Attorneys at Law; Christy Leonard, Data Manager at Perspecta and DDF North Carolina East Chapter Co-Founder; Tamar Shatanof, Certified Public Accountant and DDF's founding treasurer; and Mitchell Starr, Partner at Bienenfeld Lasek & Starr, LLC. Each board member serves a two-year term advising, governing, overseeing policy and direction, and assisting with leadership and general promotion of DDF as to support the organization's mission.
Ferrari 488 Pista Spider - The 50th drop-top model from the Maranello marque he Prancing Horse’s new Special Series model, the Ferrari 488 Pista Spider, has been unveiled during the worldfamous Concours d’Elegance® at Pebble Beach in California.
The Ferrari 488 Pista Spider is the 50th drop-top model from the Prancing Horse and a premiere in the US was a natural choice given that, ever since the 1950s, North American clients have always been keen connoisseurs of high-performance convertibles.
The new car sets a new benchmark for Ferrari for spider performance with an unprecedented weight-power ratio of 1.92 kg/cv. A result made possible by the adoption of the most powerful Ferrari V8 engine ever, which was recently named Best Engine in the world for the third consecutive year at the 2018 International Engine of the Year Awards. The 3902cc twin-turbo V8 unleashes 720 cv and combines that power with increasing torque at all engine speeds for continuous and unending acceleration all the way to the red line. The unique engine sound is now even more riveting thanks to the open-top configuration.
The Ferrari 488 Pista Spider represents the natural development of the defining design of the coupé version. The Ferrari designers’ primary objective was to maintain unaltered the perfect marriage of aerodynamic efficiency, purity of form and racing spirit.
This concept is underlined by the characteristic central livery which runs the whole length of the car, expanding towards the rear where it finishes at the end of the rear wing next to the spoiler. This continual expansion of the stripe recalls the movement of the airflow and exalts the lines of the car.
The philosophy that imposed an uncompromising choice of materials for the bodywork is also revisited in the interior solutions, with weight being saved by the use of lightweight, pared-back components. As well as the generous use of carbon-fibre and Alcantara® throughout, the carpets have been replaced by patterned aluminium foot plates and the driver’s-side door handle is now a simple strap.
In terms of engineering, the Ferrari 488 Pista Spider is directly derived from the 488 Pista which encapsulates all the racing experience gathered on world’s circuits with the 488 Challenge and the 488 GTE. As a result, the new Spider offers the highest level yet of technological transfer from the track to a road-legal drop-top car.
The vehicle dynamics honed for this Special Series 8-cylinder convertible deliver a seamless combination of razor-sharp acceleration, braking efficiency, lightning-fast gear shifting, precision steering, grip, stability and superb handling. The result? A completely captivating and unprecedented driving experience. This was achieved thanks partly to the new lateral dynamics control system, the Ferrari Dynamic Enhancer (FDE), which makes onthe-limit driving more intuitive, controllable and predictable.
The car features new diamond-finish 20” alloy wheels with a novel 10-spoke star-effect interpretation of Ferrari’s traditional mid-rear engine berlinetta-style rims. Also available are the optional one-piece carbon-fibre wheels which offer a 20% weight reduction over the standard forged alloys.
ZUCCARELLIS
WEST PALM
Frankie Blankenship (877) 4-VAYCAY
frankie@frankietravel.com
August 2nd 2018 - Associations Night with Miami Dolphins Luxury Chamber was invited to a night of cocktails and networking with Miami Dolphins Legends OJ McDuffy and John Offerdahl. Some of the prominent members in attendence included: Frankie Blankenship with Cruise Planners, George Khoury with GK Realty Brokerage, Khalilah Camacho-Ali, Venus Proffer, Jay Shapiro, Barbora Kassdikian, Harvard Professor Dr. Jerald Feinstein, Chef Irie, Karel Grimberg, Joe D'Amico and Irene Yovu