North Fort Myers Living

North Fort Myer's best-known animal shelter is pr oviding a tem por ar y hom e for a Sanibel saver of animals of a different sort. The Animal Refuge Center — ARC — has shar ed its facilities with the C linic for the Rehabilitation of Wildlife CROW in the wake of Hurricane Ian's devastating damage to Sanibel.

Dr. Robin Bast

NFMCA gears up for annual awards program

Story by Chuck Ballaro

Those who have been named recipients of the North Fort Myers Civic Association’s Community Service Award program never sought recognition they simply believed that giving back to the community is just the right thing to do.

If you know somebody who exemplifies that giving spirit, this is your chance to put them forward to be recognized

From now until midnight, Dec. 31, applications are being accepted for the third-annual North Fort Myers Community Service Awards, which recognizes men and women who do more than just write a check, as well as those who have made North Fort Myers the community it is today

“There are people we see every day Everyday heroes who quietly go around making the world a better

place We’re trying to recognize these people through the awards,” said Christy-Lee Iwanow, vice president of the North Fort Myers Civic Association.

The awards program was created in 2020 by thenpresident Doug Dailey, who wanted to do something in the memory of Tom Cronin, the late owner of the Shell Factory & Nature Park and great contributor to the community

He wanted to not just recognize a person, but people who devote themselves to North Fort Myers.

There is the Tom Cronin Award, which goes to an individual or business owner who has done good in the community That recipient also is Person of the Year.

The Cheryl Diamond Award goes to the woman who has made a significant impact in the community, and is named after the first female president of the civic association.

The Ron Hoover Pioneer Award was named after

the late coach of the North Fort Myers High School football team (and recipient of the first pioneer award) last year. It goes to someone in the past who made North Fort Myers the community it has become

If you know someone (it could be yourself) who either lives in North Fort Myers or owns a business there and is worthy of this honor, you can nominate them by going to the NFMCA website www nfmcivic com/community-service-award-program/ “We’re looking for a nominee to tell us what great things they do and pull our heartstrings so we know we feel the passion and the love from the committee when we read these nominations,” Iwanow said “A lot of people don’t put it online for all to know.”

The time, day and location of the awards ceremony has yet to be announced The first two ceremonies were held at the North Fort Myers Recreation Center

Civic invites you to help recognize those who give community connection

Hello friends and members, the weather people say winter is now here, doesn’t seem like it when the daytime high has been close to or breaking records By the time you read this we will have had our annual Christmas with Santa event in Palmona Park This year may challenging as we were not able to do all of the events for collecting toys as in the past, but hopefully Santa get make magic happen again.

We were able to have the Angel Tree at the North Fort Myers Recreation Center and had 73 Angels that received gifts

We will also continue with the annual Awards Program. Read Chuck Ballaro’s story above and

visit the Civic website and make your nominations. All nominations must be received by midnight Dec. 31 Selections will be made in January for a ceremony to be held later

That about wraps up 2022 and brings us to 2023 We will not have the annual Wiffleball Bash or Clash of the Irons as there will still be much work to recover from Ian. It is my belief that to many of our sponsors and players are still trying to recover from Ian and it is not the right time for the NFM Civic to look for money or players

We are going to possibly try to have Clash of the Irons in the Fall 2023

There are other events being talked about, but

the pulse Happy holidays

As the newly elected School Board Members were sworn in on Nov 22, 2022, I was honored to be among them. I feel privileged to serve again for the next four years as a representative for District 4 My work continues as we rebuild our community in the aftermath of Hurricane Ian

I am so impressed with the way our community has come together to help each other In October, some of the Miami Dolphins players, including alumni and Running Back Zaundre White, joined the Red Knights at North Fort Myers High School to distribute food, water, toiletries, and generators to hundreds of families in need Warm meals, supplies, and smiles brought

nothing solid as of yet.

We have elections coming up in February at the Annual Membership meeting There are six Board of Directors seats to be filled

Please stay safe and I hope to see you at the Jan 10 meeting

We meet the second Tuesday of each month 6:30 p.m. at the North Fort Myers Recreation Center 2000 North Recreation Way North Fort Myers.

Danny Ballard President NFMCA

and thank you!

relief to so many Most recently, Neighbors Helping Neighbors out of North Fort Myers, worked together to collect 2,000 backpacks These backpacks are being distributed to students and schools in need Helping to distribute backpacks to some of our Fort Myers schools will be the Fort Myers fire chief, along with some firefighters, which will be an exciting visit for the students!

The students at North Fort Myers Academy for the Arts (NFMAA) were preparing to take the stage for the 20th annual production of Tchaikovsky’s Holiday Classic, The Nutcracker , as I wrote this This was the 12th performance at Barbara B Mann, and showcased

hundreds of students ages 6-14 in a multi-faceted arts experience Proceeds from the Dec 12 show will support the incredible ongoing arts education programs at NFMAA

My commitment to the School District of Lee County has not changed. My work will continue to focus on our students, staff, and community

I wish you and your loved ones a wonderful holiday season

Debbie Jordan School Board Chair

NFMNL

Big things coming to North Fort Myers Story

& Photography

by Chuck Ballaro

Soon, in the not-so-distant future, motorists who are either coming or going into North Fort Myers will look to the area where the Hancock Square Shopping Plaza is and see two things: An empty lot and a new potential.

After many years of seeing this mostly vacant center on busy U S 41, the plaza will be coming down with its new owners promising something great to come in its wake, Lee County officials said, adding older properties in North Fort Myers are getting new

The Hancock Square Shopping Plaza sits empty. A buyer has proposed to tear down the vacant plaza.

life and there are many other things are on the horizon for 2023.

Lee County Commissioner Brian Hamman is very excited about what’s to come for one of the last wideopen spaces of Lee County

“The year 2023 is the year we are seeing an effort from the private sector investing in North Fort Myers,” Hamman said “We’re going to see a lot of work done on Merchants Crossing and other areas.”

Hamman was most excited about Hancock Square Plaza and its expected development.

“They’re coming to meet with our community development staff to talk about a new development This is the year of hope for North Fort Myers where we see what were once rundown developments turn into developments that will be catalysts to grow the business and residential community,” Hamman said “If people who made promises to me keep their promises, we’re going to see that Hancock Square Plaza come down, which I’ll be excited about.” Hamman said

Merchant Crossing, at Cleveland Avenue and Pine Island Road, is going vertical, building apartments

North Fort Myers Neighbor Living northfortmyersneighbor.com

Preliminary work is under way for the mixed-use project proposed for Merchants Crossing Shopping Center. Construction is set to begin in early 2023

CONTINUED ON PAGE 16

North businesses hit hard by Ian

Story & Photography

by Chuck Ballaro

We have all seen the havoc and destruction Hurricane Ian has created, with homes and lives being flipped upside down some literally Businesses in North Fort Myers were not spared from the wrath of the near Category 5 storm, with many of them out of commission for weeks and some, perhaps, permanently.

The North Fort Myers Chamber of Commerce is doing what it can to help these businesses by offering the use of its office at the Shell Factory for members to use to stay open as businesses stake their first steps on the road to normalcy

The amount of damage was tied to proximity to the Caloosahatchee River Those who were relatively close or on lower ground were hit the hardest with flooding and storm surge. Those that were further away from the river (maybe) avoided the flooding, though that didn’t guarantee the ability to re-open once the power came back on Some North Fort Myers businesses share their stories

Sign-a-Rama/ All American Printing

Bruce Vanderveen, owner of Signarama and AllAmerican Printing on Bayshore Road, did not do so well. His business suffered substantive damage.

“The roof is gone, we cut drywall out to dry it out, and all my machinery is gone My copiers and everything like that is history,” Vanderveen said “I wanted to sell the business I didn’t realize the insurance company wanted to buy it so badly ”

Whether that happens or not remains to be seen Adjusters came in and spent three days doing inventory on the business from the machinery to the paper plates, Vanderveen said.

As far as moving the business, Vanderveen said there aren’t many buildings available because many of them have roof issues as well

Until then, he will have to play the waiting game and be thankful that no friends and family were hurt “It will probably be March or April before we get a roof. I can’t put equipment in there because I don’t know if it’s going to leak,” Vanderveen said. “It hasn’t happened so far. We’ll see what happens. You can replace equipment and buildings You can’t replace people That way, we were blessed ”

True Eye Experts

Unlike Vanderveen’s business, a half-mile down the road, Terry Tucker ’s old office on Bayshore Road did a pretty good job handling the storm It’s proximity away from the river as well as its elevation allowed True Eye Experts to get away, dinged but OK.

Tucker, who works at True Eye, said there was

some tree damage and the air conditioner on the roof got twisted and tore a hole, but a new AC was installed within a week and some electrical work had to be done

“There was no real major water damage to the practice itself That was good,” Tucker said “We were back at work in about 10 days We were fine ”

Lee County Insurance

John Gardner, owner of Lee County Insurance wouldn’t say that he got hammered by Ian He used the work "annihilated " Not only for his business but his home

When he saw the disaster in front of him at the office on Pondella Road, his thought was figuring out a way to get them open as fast as possible, since customers were going to want to contact them with their own claims.

“We wanted to see what we had to do to get back in place We had tons of customers to deal with You’re dealing with your own needs and when you’re in the insurance world, your job revolves around that promise to be there at claim time,” Gardner said

To do this, they have had to work remotely as best they can The office didn’t have power for nearly two weeks and there were people at the office if someone was to show up in person and ask how to file a claim or had other questions.

The office has been gutted and the company will move into a temporary unit so the gutting can be completed

“It’s a challenge to navigate these waters We had damage with Charley in 2004 at the house, but not at the office That was an easy one to get through,” Gardner said. “This is different. Flooding is different than wind.”

Gardner said Lee County Insurance is doing things in phases. They were expecting be ready to go in their temporary home by the beginning of December It will be months before they get the approvals for the remodel of the primary office, which means it will likely be late spring before the office reopens

McDaniel Insurance Solutions

Another insurer, McDaniel Insurance Solutions, didn’t fare much better, as their office on Hancock Bridge Parkway got flooded and was forced to close

“We had to remove flooring, carpeting, drywall, furniture. We’re in the process of building back and we’re one of the few agencies that was able to open immediately in a temporary location,” said Reid McDaniel, owner “We have people working from home remotely ”

McDaniel said he expected the damage, considering his proximity to the river on Hancock Bridge Parkway But he did learn some lessons from this experience.

“We could have prepared a little better and we can take a few more preventative measures. I’m happy where we’re at now and still able to serve clients,’ McDaniel said

McDaniel said he has spoken with other businesses who said they did not suffer as much physical damage The problem has been the burden of getting their work in

McDaniel did not have a timeline on when the office will reopen.

SeaCraft Water front Tiki

With its location right on the water in Marinatown, you would have thought the relatively new restaurant

The outside of McDaniels Insurance Solutions on Hancock Bridge Parkway. The building sustained flooding from two feet of storm surge.

Communities slowly recovering after

Ian

When you go through some of the manufactured home communities in North Fort Myers, you see that many homes are worse for wear, but that the streets have long been cleared of the debris that lined the streets.

When you went to other places in the areas at the end of November, it almost looked like Hurricane Ian, which hit the area Sept 28, came through the day before

Cleaning up after one of the most destructive hurricanes ever is going to take some time, and officials say it may will be years before things return to " normal"

In the manufactured home communities, such as Swan Lake, if you didn’t look carefully at the houses, you would have thought that Ian had never hit at all The debris was off the streets and placed on property behind the community thanks to a private company that handles its waste disposal

“We started the day after the storm cleaning up We had a number of volunteers from the community and RVers up north come and to chip in for a few weeks,” said Steve Jordan, who manages Swan Lake. “We got the place back in shape and accessible.

None of the homes had to be taken from the park or demolished The homes that sustained the worst damage were in the process of being repaired

This happened thanks to Jordan allowing contractors, adjusters and FEMA to be housed on their grounds, who then took on many of the repairs that needed to be done.

In the days after the storm there were residents cooking up breakfast for the volunteers with food

that would have spoiled otherwise.

“There were people calling and saying there was food in the refrigerator that’s only going to go bad Give it away to whomever or cook it up,” Jordan said “We had residents cook up the food on the grill and provide it to anybody who needed it, inside the park or out ”

At Tamiami Village, it was pretty much the same thing, clean streets aligned with some heavily damaged homes. Again, private waste removal companies got the debris out of there.

Laurie Campbell and Evelyn Reiner, who live in the village, said they put together a Facebook Page to let people know what was happening and connect with those who were there, which wasn’t many immediately after the storm hit

“Through our Facebook page, we were able to get the information out to the neighbors who were still up north. It was a great relief to many people,” Reiner said. “We were able to organize the cleanup. Within three to four weeks, it was clean, with all the debris gone It’s kudos to our management for that ”

At Horizon Village, they saw a lot of carports and lanais lost, but not entire homes or, most important, lives

“With blue tarps, people were able to stay in their homes. All the homes received some damage, but were livable after the storm. Some needed major repairs, some minor,” Margaret Black said, who runs Horizon Village “We had no flooding whatsoever ”

“It’s in the back so it isn’t lying on the street along Littleton Road,” Black said. “We have no horticulture on the roads and no construction debris on our roads We have a few where a roof is stuck between two houses, but the roads are all clear ”

As for the largest mobile home park of them all, Suncoast Estates, their residents were still struggling and may be struggling even further in the near future.

A lot of homes were badly damaged and even destroyed by Ian, which gave these residents few options on what they could do to shower or wash their clothes

With the help from the state, particularly State Rep Spencer Roach, they were able to get temporary washers and dryers, showers and restrooms located at the Suncoast Community Center

Michael Jenkins, vice president of the Suncoast Community Task Force, said his team has worked constantly to get the area cleaned up, but things were far from perfect two months post-storm as they have had issues with FEMA, DCF and the speed in which the community has been getting help

The state is taking out the showers and restrooms, he said

"These people have no money, cannot go to laundromats and we’re actually saving them right now,” Jenkins said. “These people have a need for this and the state is pulling them out on us.”

The restroom facility at the Suncoast Community Center at Suncoast Estates . These facilities are set to be removed by the state because funding has stopped.

Black said cleanup has been a little slower, with some work still to do which will be handled privately, but the streets looked pretty good and the debris had been moved to a secure location

The community has had a mental health association that has been priceless by helping to push them in the right direction, Jenkins said Again, state funding was drying up

Story & Photography by Chuck Ballaro

The cleaned street at the Swan Lake manufactured home community. A private company came in and removed the debris from the side of the road.

ARC provides temporary home to CROW Shared Space

Story by Meghan Bradbury

Photos provided by CROW

North Fort Myer s best-known animal shelter is prov ding a temporary home for a San bel saver of animals of a different sort

The Animal Refuge Center ARC has shared its facilities with the Clinic for the Rehab litation of Wildlife CROW in the wake of Hurricane Ian's devastating damage to Sanibel.

CROW has set up operations in two of ARC s buildings, its former cl nic and another that allowed CROW to set up a nursery Thanks to ARC's generos ty and outreach from other centers the big cha lenge of find ng a temporary home for continuing operations was met

CROW staff then worked together to meet the challenge of getting back to work.

"Honestly the most rewarding th ng for me has been the teamwork," said CROW Staff Veterinarian Dr Robin Bast "We have aways been very lucky in having a really solid supportive team at CROW Regardless of whatever chal enges we come up against, they rise to the challenge and find positive spins to put on things and lift each other up to help get through this We have a really great team and despite all the challenges that arose from the storm we are sti l grateful to be able to achieve our mission and thankfu for the support of our community "

On a personal note, Bast and CROW s associate veterinarian had to deal simultaneously with persona loss both lost their apartments and everything inside "We were dealing with gutting our places and try ng to keep pat ent care going and finding a new place The staff didn t even bat an eyelash in offering to help and really be ng there for each other " she said of the phenomenal teamwork

Hurricane preparation and evacuation

Along with many other organizations in Southwest Florida, CROW has a storm preparat on plan

CROW Staff Veterinar an Dr Robin Bast said they have a storm prep plan that is reviewed at the start of every storm season with staff This year, that storm prep plan began with implementing preparation procedures when Hurricane Ian began showing potential of impacting Southwest Florida

When the path abruptly changed, Bast said they kicked everything into high gear and began evacuating Tuesday, Sept 27

The evacuat on entailed evacuating more than 150 patients The baby squirrels, possums and raccoons went with Bast, students on site and a couple of staff members to a hotel in Fort Myers

"We rode out the storm there and continued to care for the ba-

b es in the hotel They are relat vely transportable compared to other patients we had " Bast said, adding that obviously they were thinking temporarily

The students and Bast stayed n the hotel for about 10 days before they helped the students arrange travel arrangements back home as CROW no onger had housing available for them.

"We needed to get ourselves back and running before we cou d get back to teach ng " Bast said

The intensive care and rehab patients were transferred to CROW s partner rehab organizat ons across the state to the South F orida Wi dlife Center and Conservancy of Southwest Flor da as well as the Keys

Bast said some of the patients that they did not want to take to the hotel but were close to being released or easily cared for, went home w th staff members who are certified rehabilitators Hawks and owls rode out the storm in their garage

After the storm any new patients admitted to CROW went through BluePear Pet Hospital in Fort Myers, which is a 24/7 dog and cat emergency room CROW staff would go to BluePearl twice a day and triage any injured or s ck wildlife that was dropped off The wildl fe was stabilized treated and kept overnight at the hotel or at a staff member's place before going to the Conservancy

Starlight Auction a purr-fect fundraiser for ARC

Dur ng one of the most challenging times Southwest Flor da has ever faced it is great to know there are still many people in the area ready to give More than 200 people came to the Sanibel Harbour Marr ott Resort & Spa in November to raise money for the Animal Refuge Center at the 28th annual Star ight Auction

Whi e the exact numbers were st ll being computed, it is bel eved the event raised we l over $200 000 perhaps c ose to the record of $252 000 set three years ago.

Considering that eight weeks before it seemed like y there wouldn’t be a Starlight Auction made the night a l the more amazing

Wayne Leinen, ARC president said this event is the b ggest fundraiser of the year providing about a quarter of the nearly $1 million it takes annually to keep the she ter going.

“On our best year, we’ve gotten about 250 We have about

North Fort Myers Neighbor

The first day CROW officially had everything moved into ARC’s building surgery was preformed on an eastern cottontail rabbit that had sustained wounds from a dog attack

CROW students feed patients in their hotel rooms .

Story & Photography by Chuck Ballaro

Aerial shot of the Clinic for the Rehabilitation of Wildlife's buildings after Hurricane Ian.

Tim Walton, title sponsor, bids for an item at the Animals Refuge Center ’s 28th-Annual Starlight Auction held Nov. 14 at the Sanibel Harbour Marriott Resort & Spa.

Story & Photography by Chuck Ballaro

ARC provides temporary home to CROW Shared Space

Story by Meghan Bradbury

Photos provided by CROW

North Fort Myer s best-known animal shelter is prov ding a temporary home for a San bel saver of animals of a different sort

The Animal Refuge Center ARC has shared its facilities with the Clinic for the Rehab litation of Wildlife CROW in the wake of Hurricane Ian's devastating damage to Sanibel.

CROW has set up operations in two of ARC s buildings, its former cl nic and another that allowed CROW to set up a nursery Thanks to ARC's generos ty and outreach from other centers the big cha lenge of find ng a temporary home for continuing operations was met

CROW staff then worked together to meet the challenge of getting back to work.

"Honestly the most rewarding th ng for me has been the teamwork," said CROW Staff Veterinarian Dr Robin Bast "We have aways been very lucky in having a really solid supportive team at CROW Regardless of whatever chal enges we come up against, they rise to the challenge and find positive spins to put on things and lift each other up to help get through this We have a really great team and despite all the challenges that arose from the storm we are sti l grateful to be able to achieve our mission and thankfu for the support of our community "

On a personal note, Bast and CROW s associate veterinarian had to deal simultaneously with persona loss both lost their apartments and everything inside "We were dealing with gutting our places and try ng to keep pat ent care going and finding a new place The staff didn t even bat an eyelash in offering to help and really be ng there for each other " she said of the phenomenal teamwork

Hurricane preparation and evacuation

Along with many other organizations in Southwest Florida, CROW has a storm preparat on plan

CROW Staff Veterinar an Dr Robin Bast said they have a storm prep plan that is reviewed at the start of every storm season with staff This year, that storm prep plan began with implementing preparation procedures when Hurricane Ian began showing potential of impacting Southwest Florida

When the path abruptly changed, Bast said they kicked everything into high gear and began evacuating Tuesday, Sept 27

The evacuat on entailed evacuating more than 150 patients The baby squirrels, possums and raccoons went with Bast, students on site and a couple of staff members to a hotel in Fort Myers

"We rode out the storm there and continued to care for the ba-

b es in the hotel They are relat vely transportable compared to other patients we had " Bast said, adding that obviously they were thinking temporarily

The students and Bast stayed n the hotel for about 10 days before they helped the students arrange travel arrangements back home as CROW no onger had housing available for them.

"We needed to get ourselves back and running before we cou d get back to teach ng " Bast said

The intensive care and rehab patients were transferred to CROW s partner rehab organizat ons across the state to the South F orida Wi dlife Center and Conservancy of Southwest Flor da as well as the Keys

Bast said some of the patients that they did not want to take to the hotel but were close to being released or easily cared for, went home w th staff members who are certified rehabilitators Hawks and owls rode out the storm in their garage

After the storm any new patients admitted to CROW went through BluePear Pet Hospital in Fort Myers, which is a 24/7 dog and cat emergency room CROW staff would go to BluePearl twice a day and triage any injured or s ck wildlife that was dropped off The wildl fe was stabilized treated and kept overnight at the hotel or at a staff member's place before going to the Conservancy

Starlight Auction a purr-fect fundraiser for ARC

Dur ng one of the most challenging times Southwest Flor da has ever faced it is great to know there are still many people in the area ready to give More than 200 people came to the Sanibel Harbour Marr ott Resort & Spa in November to raise money for the Animal Refuge Center at the 28th annual Star ight Auction

Whi e the exact numbers were st ll being computed, it is bel eved the event raised we l over $200 000 perhaps c ose to the record of $252 000 set three years ago.

Considering that eight weeks before it seemed like y there wouldn’t be a Starlight Auction made the night a l the more amazing

Wayne Leinen, ARC president said this event is the b ggest fundraiser of the year providing about a quarter of the nearly $1 million it takes annually to keep the she ter going.

“On our best year, we’ve gotten about 250 We have about

North Fort Myers Neighbor

The first day CROW officially had everything moved into ARC’s building surgery was preformed on an eastern cottontail rabbit that had sustained wounds from a dog attack

CROW students feed patients in their hotel rooms .

Story & Photography by Chuck Ballaro

Aerial shot of the Clinic for the Rehabilitation of Wildlife's buildings after Hurricane Ian.

Tim Walton, title sponsor, bids for an item at the Animals Refuge Center ’s 28th-Annual Starlight Auction held Nov. 14 at the Sanibel Harbour Marriott Resort & Spa.

Story & Photography by Chuck Ballaro

CROW temporar y home

Temporar y site

Conversations began in finding a temporary site to get CROW up and running until they could return back to Sanibel Island.

ARC Board Trustee Dr Laura Leinen said in a nice twist of fate they had been talking with the board about how to repurpose the former clinic, as ARC's new state-of-the-art clinic opened over the summer

"It was wonderfully vacant when Ian came through," she said. "Knowing the position that CROW was in, it was quite fortunate it was emptied out."

Leinen said she was so excited to offer the space to CROW, as they have always been friends with the organization and ARC's damage was much more minimal than a lot of other organizations

"It meant that we were in good shape and we could offer to others," she said "I know they would have gladly done the same thing for us if we were in that situation."

Leinen said she and Bast, both veterinarians, have been connected for a long time in the community

"We are thinking this is pretty cool We are finally working together," she said "Both Robin and I are both passionate about the one health model health of wildlife interconnected with health of people and domestic animals "

Bast said they moved into the ARC facility at the end of October.

"We are now in a position to now actually keep patients and treat them here longer than 24-48 hour period," she said, adding that ARC offered two of its buildings for CROW to use, the old clinic building, as well as another where there are lots of babies undergoing rehab care

The old ARC clinic allows CROW to perform ICU and surgery, as well as do intakes.

Bast said they did surgery the first day they officially had everything moved into ARC's building. The surgery was on an eastern cottontail rabbit that had sustained wounds from a dog attack Since then, they have done hook removals from turtles, as well as removing an injured eye from a burrowing owl

"Luckily, we are in the position now to get back to doing a lot of the things we are able to do," Bast said. "We are so blessed. When I first heard we had the possibility of moving the facility out here, so we can continue to function, it was a huge relief "

After the storm, it was hard for the CROW staff to predict how much wildlife would be admitted

"Some days we would have 25 to 30 admissions in a day that we would be triaging, and some days one or two," Bast said "Obviously people are very busy and it's hard to get things transported to where they could get help. (There was) definitely a lot of animals affected. I don't think we are getting slammed with a lot of patients because a lot of them didn't do well "

On Nov 12 CROW had about a dozen patients in care with half of them being in intensive care

"It's definitely a lot quieter than usual We are all kind of waiting on pins and needles on how red tide is going to turn out this season. We are praying it isn't as bad as 2018 after Irma," Bast said.

Sanibel CROW campus

There is a lot of clean-up to do at the island campus

"It is hard to find words to describe it It is incredibly changed and different than before," Bast said of Sanibel.

With that said, the main buildings are all still standing, such as the hospital, student housing and educational center

"From that perspective, we did well," she said

The inside of the clinic had some water on the lower level, but not a great deal The top floor, which houses all the main equipment, such as diagnostic and surgery equipment, did completely fine A great deal of that equipment was able to be moved to the ARC facility, with the exception of the X-ray machine.

"We are able to share the X-ray machine that ARC has in the new hospital," Bast said

With an emergency pass still needed to enter Sanibel, several trips to get the equipment were planned ahead of time, as not a lot of people were able to go at once

Leinen said their new state-of-the-art facility has a large full digital -ray system, as well as a laboratory blood testing equipment that CROW is able to use.

"They come over with patients when needed It's such a luxury we have at this point to have the space to accommodate both groups that way, " she said

Although all of the outdoor enclosures sustained some level of damage, the newer ones that were done this year fared really well.

The older enclosures either need to be completely rebuilt, or undergo significant repairs, Bast said. For this reason, CROW is partnering with other local wildlife hospitals for rehab for their bird patients until they can get the enclosures up and running again

As far as the student externships, are put on pause until at least January

"Luckily, housing on island was not impacted structurally," Bast said of student housing, which was without power and so the students could not return

On the plus side, she said two veterinary interns remain and are getting advanced training in special species medicine The two began in July and so far have had a rough start

"They have done an amazing job in terms of helping the students get through it and all of us continue to take care of patients. I am super proud of the students we had during the storm and super proud of

interns. They continue to do good work and have a positive attitude and are still wanting to learn despite the challenges," Bast said, adding that they are receiving great disaster work experience

Community support

Those who would like to support CROW may do so by making monetary donations by visiting www.crowclinic.org and clicking on the hurricane lief fund. Bast said t monetary donations will help CROW rebuild its enclosures, as well as continue to purchase supplies needed to take care of patients. When there is more access the island, she said y reach out for volunteers who would like to help clean up the campus

Scan the QRCode above to dontate to the CROW Hurricane Ian Recovery Fund

Helping wildlife

The injured wildlife hotline remains open from 8 a m to 5 p m daily, including holidays, by calling 239-472-3644 CROW staff will walk the caller through if the wildlife needs to be rescued, or how to rescue the animal

"Our volunteers were hugely impacted by the storm as well," Bast said. "We don't have as many active volunteers able to assist with transport and rescue. Anyone interested in that, or willing to help if they find an animal, can call us to get the help they need "

Currently, she said all wildlife is being routed to BluePearl before going to CROW at ARC

ARC

Leinen said although the main buildings are structurally fine, there was damage to the property, such as the trees and fencing and as well as damage to some of the dog lodges

ARC is open for adoptions by appointment She said she understands that some are not able to add to their family right now

"If you have been thinking about adopting a dog, or a cat, and your living situation was not heavily impacted by Hurricane Ian, now is a great time to look for a new friend. Saving a pet from us right now is opening up space for a shelter for someone who has to make a decision to relinquish a pet," Leinen said "If you are in the position, it really never has been a better time "

ARC also is sorely in need of donations post-Ian To make a donation visit animanlrefugecenter com

There

From left, Keith Ricciardi and his wife, Basia, and Tonia Archer and

husband, John, with Toby

the Animals Refuge Center ’s 28th-Annual Starlight Auction on Saturday at the Sanibel Harbour Marriott Resort & Spa.

auction

FROM PAGE 11

220 people, so considering what has transpired recently weather wise, that’s not bad,” Leinen said. “We have all sorts of things to auction off, such as a safari, jewelry, a trip to Panama, a tequila lover ’s package, you name it ”

The event raised more than $70,000 in sponsors alone thanks, in part, to Paul and Rosalie Walton, the title sponsors of the event and a longtime major sponsor

what you get from a pet.”

The highlight of the evening was the matching grant from two donors who would match what those at the auction gave up to $55,000 They did and then some, with the result being more than $130,000 raised

“It’s super cool this event has been going on for a very long time. We donated and I decided to see how it all works out,” said Gottesman, who lived in California for a few years “I’d love to take all of them home, but I can’t ”

David Nichols, another major sponsor who won a few items in the auction, said his wife is an original

do

“I love dogs, I love animals, I trained and handled shepherds in the Marine Corps I have a long association with animals I grew up with rabbits, dogs, cats, birds, chickens, even a seal I’ve always been an animal person,” Paul Walton said “We kill thousands of animals weekly that we consider pets. They are animals, but nobody gives you

was even an actor there Orli Gottesman, a 16-year-old who will guest star in three episodes of “Yellowstone” this season She said she always loved pet shelters as a child and how ARC is a nokill shelter

volunteer from the 1980s and still

ARC vice president Rob Spicker, serves as auctioneer at the Animals Refuge Center’s 28th-Annual Starlight Auction on Saturday at the Sanibel Harbour Marriott Resort & Spa.

her

at

“We’ve gotten four or five dogs from them.We also work with CROW (from Sanibel, which is using the ARC facilities while their home is being rebuilt)

ARC will take animals nobody else will adopt,” Nichols said

ARC vice president Rob Spicker was happy by how things went, saying people aren’t close to being spent out of helping others

“I am amazed. I didn’t think it would be that easy. We had trepidation after the hurricane and that spending would be tight, but raising $130,000

in a matter of minutes was amazing.” Spicker said.

The money will allow ARC to continue its mission, to provide forever homes for these dogs and cats, who soon become members of the family

“Once these animals are in your family They are family In the end, the dogs and cats adopt you because you can’t live without them,” Spicker said

For more information, including how to make a donation, visit animalrefugecenter.com.

NFMNL

Jean Laack bids for an item at the Animals Refuge Center ’s 28th-Annual Starlight Auction on Saturday at the Sanibel Harbour Marriott Resort & Spa.

From right, actor Orli Gottesman, and her parents , Lisa and Oren at the Animals Refuge Center ’s 28th-Annual Starlight Auction on Saturday at the Sanibel Harbour Marriott Resort & Spa.

big things coming

for what will become the mixed-use development that people want it to be.

As for Paradise Isle, it remains pending. All the permits are in and there are no plans to do anything different than what has been proposed, Hamman said

Hurricane Ian spurred the tenant who will be leasing the Waterway Estates Marina property an opportunity to get to work even earlier, be providing services after the storm

“There are tons of boats out there that are damaged and not where they need to be. Safe Harbor Marinas got approval recently to open a boat triage on the property,” Hamman said

The company will take in boats that are able to be repaired and moved to their final destination, at auction or another boat yard They will not be destroying

FROM PAGE 7

boats and the unit needs to be compatible with the neighborhood, Hamman said.

“In that time, they will be applying for the permits they need for the marina that will be a real jewel for the community We expect that to take place within the next 18 to 24 months,” Hamman said

To the east, there has been a lot of single-familyhome development, which Hamman said will be what ultimately drives the economic vehicle in the area to being new business here

“If you’re going to open a business, the first thing you want to know is if you’re going to have customers. They will be moving to North Fort Myers,” Hamman said “This is the year where we can really see some business and job growth ”

Other things in store from the county side will be improvements to hub that is the North Fort Myers

businesses hit hard

would have been inundated And, indeed, it took an eight-hour beating and sustained serious damage.

Blake Morris, manager at SeaCraft, said after the storm, everybody checked things out, saw it was salvageable, and went to work on getting the restaurant back in shape

“Our staff was incredible Everyone showed up and we cleaned and knocked things down and got everything bleached,” Morris said “Honestly, we were waiting for the power to come back on so we can get to work again.”

The roof to the tiki was damaged, which was fixed within four days. There was water from the canal through the restaurant to the parking lot

They waited 11 days for the power to return Once it returned, it was time to rock However, being a restaurant and needing refrigeration to keep food from spoiling, when the refrigeration went, so did the food, which is usually their biggest expense

“Again, the staff showed up and the owners did a real good job. But we lost about $30,000 to $40,000 worth of food. Still, we wouldn’t be here without them,” Morris said

Eagle Roofing & Restoration

As December began, Melissa Martin and her family’s company was working from their kitchen table after their house was flooded and remained in the recovery process

However, being a roofing company and the fact that most homes in Southwest Florida need some kind of roofing repair or replacement, things have been really busy at the Martin household

“At first, we were getting between 75 and 100 calls a day. Now, it’s slowed down to about 25 to 30. People need roofs,” Martin said. “We don’t expect to slow down anytime soon. Not within the next two years I’d say ”

Martin warned homeowners there are scammers out there claiming to be roofers The local companies

FROM PAGE 8

are reaching out to warn people to make sure they are local roofing companies.

“Make sure they have a license. Make sure they are with the Better Business Bureau. Make sure they’re legitimate,” Martin said “We just had a neighbor sign with someone from Colorado You can’t do roofing if you’re not licensed in Florida ”

Mar y Lou’s Western Wear

Mary Lou’s Western Wear not only sells cowboy boots and hats at the store on Bayshore Road near the interstate, but also sell hay for horses, which is very important because they have to be fed, too Which is

Community Park. Shade structures will be built at the library, the shuffleboard courts (to allow for big tournaments to be played there), and the park will receive improvements to the disc golf course

“We will continue to put the money into North Fort Myers that will give the private sector interested in investing money a reason to spend,” Hamman said

The widening of Littleton Road has been in progress for quite some time as the county has been purchasing land to be able to do it. Construction engineering has been hired and inspectors are there

Adding the turn lanes to the three-lane road is expected to make traffic flow better and add one more east-west corridor from the Cape

“This will draw in more residents to draw more business in North Fort Myers This will start after the New Year, sometime in the first quarter,” Hamman said.

why they opened two days after the storm

Mandy Duet, co-owner of Mary Lou’s, said the inside of the store also did well. They were without power for about five days, but ran on a generator.

There was some damage to a gutter and a bit of a drip in front but, despite their proximity to the river, there was no water damage They were able to sell clothes and everything on Friday and put a clearance rack outside for discontinued boots

“We had a hay truck come in on Friday because people need to feed their horses. We were open, but running on generators until we got power on Monday,” Duet said of the week after the storm, which hit Lee County's islands on Wednesday, Sept 28 with winds of 150 mph Sixty-one people died in Lee County alone

When asked how the were able to get open so fast without a whole lot of damage Duet had a theory

“The good Lord above He’s watching out for us,” Duet said. “And my mama. She’s watching out for us. She started the business.”

The Chamber of Commerce

Being a member of the North Fort Myers Chamber of Commerce can be a real benefit to those companies that suffered from Hurricane Ian Of course, with these companies having lost power and internet service, it was probable that the Chamber office would have the same issues

Wendy Murray, executive director of the Chamber, took whatever action she could by forwarding the Chamber phone to her cell phone so it would automatically ring to her

“We didn’t have electric for 10 days at the Chamber, but after the second and third day we got calls,” Murray said “I was able to refer a lot of chamber members Every third call I got was for a refer I referred them to roofers, gutter people, AC, construction, handymen.”

Mandy Duet, co-owner of Mary Lou’s Western Wear, inside her store. Mary Lou’s sustained little damage from the storm.

community slowly recovering

That means Jenkins is going to have things return to normal with the food pantries on Tuesday and Toys for Tots and the Santa Sleigh for Christmas

While the kids are going to be taken care of, Jenkins said not enough was being done for families, and the volunteers they had working had their own families to worry about after a while.

“They’ve only taken the horticulture off the road They haven’t started on the debris from the homes We had people here to help residents put tarps on roofs for 21 days After that, I had to get back to work, and we couldn’t do the tree cutting or roof repairs because the volunteers had to go back to work,” Jenkins said at the end of November. “Before that we had our own people, burning their own fuel and saws, doing this.”

Roach was also able to get new generators for those who needed them, chain saws and 400 gallons of fuel As great as that was, many were still on generators, which weren’t strong enough for those who needed to pump their water

Jenkins said people need more funding from the state. He said Fort Myers Beach still looks like it did the Friday after the storm.

“They’re cutting back and they’re starting with the small communities like this We have 5,000 trailers and 20,000 people here, but they’re not transitioned over yet,” Jenkins said

Sharon Cobb was doing her laundry with a friend, Tanya Crawford, she met at the makeshift

businesses hit hard

Murray was also able to find volunteers to check on people’s homes because some people were still up north, worrying about the condition of their homes

And as soon as they were able to safely open their office at the Shell Factory, Murray allowed those whose offices were destroyed or uninhabitable to work out of the chamber offices

“At one point we had five businesses

FROM PAGE 9

laundromat She has to Her house was destroyed She will have nothing left if they take out the things they need

“We’re going to be stranded We’ve lived in a camper in someone’s driveway,” Cobb said. “There isn’t any water in the shower today. It’s really bad.”

“They haven’t picked up debris and a lot of people are disabled here That makes it very hard to get help,” Crawford said two months after the storm “We need outside help here The more the word gets out, the more it would help us ”

Those who suffered the most were those who live right along the river They were the ones who got the storm surge and three feet of water in their homes.

Those residents, many of whom live in higherend homes, have been able to bring in their RVs to live in, while hooking up to the electricity in their homes to power things

Charlotte County will allow residents to live in their RVs for two years by lifting the ordinance that prohibits it

At this time, Lee County is issuing temporary permits for use of a mobile home or RV, pursuant to Lee County Land Development Code (LDC) Sec. 343046(a). This allows the use of a mobile home or RV for up to 540 days after the Presidential Disaster Declaration

On the streets, it still looked as though the storm had come just yesterday There were still piles of debris on the side of the road, and a neighbor was

FROM PAGE 16

using our office, out computers, phones and whatever to run their business,” Murray said “We still have a couple businesses running things out of our office ”

The perks of being a Chamber member are getting around, as 10 new businesses have joined, Murray said, many of whom just came from elsewhere and wanting to be in the chamber

sweeping off the street near her home, still dirty from the water.

Angie Cloutier, who runs her realty company, Cre8ive Realty, from her home along the river, said her home is basically unlivable and unworkable

“We lost the house and we’re in the process of putting it back together We had two feet of water inside and everyone along the river had pretty much the same issues,” Cloutier said. “My son just bought an apartment and we’re moving in with him.”

Before that, they lived with some friends from Illinois Once they have sheetrock and tile in the kitchen, the Cloutiers will be able to move back in The doors weren’t expected to arrive for another couple months, but they planned to put covers on the doors in the meantime

“We don’t expect to be moved back in until after the new year when the doors come,” Cloutier said. “We hope we can get in for Christmas, but that’s just four weeks away,” Cloutier said.

As for the streets, they had piles of debris so high they were basically left with a one-lane road And with contractors looking to get through the piles, Cloutier was finally able to call someone to get some of the mess picked up

Lee County launched a Hurricane Ian website, www.leegov.com/debris, to better provide information to residents with features such as tips, data, timelines, photos, videos and other information about Hurricane Ian debris collection efforts

NFMNL

Bokeelia. 5383 Ann Arbor Dr. Sat. Dec. 17th 8am-1pm Christmas Decorations, household goods, women’s clothing and shoes.