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Cutler Bay
MAY 29 - JUNE 11, 2012
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305-669-7355
Town Hall Meeting attracts large turnout of residents
BY GARY ALAN RUSE
A
regularly scheduled Cutler Bay Town Hall Meeting on Wednesday, May 16, brought such a large turnout of hundreds of residents that even the spacious council chambers, perhaps the largest of any local city, could not hold the crowd. “I got there a few minutes after 7 p.m. and the place was packed,” resident Bill Meiklejohn said. “I couldn’t get in or even hear what was going on, so I left. Some other people did, too.” The record attendance was due to two different and unrelated issues — the recent firing of the town clerk and concerns over regulatory changes, according to Mayor Ed MacDougall. “Virtually everyone called for the resignation of the manager,” MacDougall said. “It was pretty much that and the issue of the Land Development Regulations. It was a very well attended, vocal, citizen outcry meeting that was, I think, considering the heated issues, pretty smooth. “We had J. C. Bermudez, the ex-mayor of Doral who was there with Richard Cooper, who is the executive director of the Miami-Dade County League of Cities. They’re doing a tour of cities so they were there. They walked in and J.C. and Richard came up to me and said, ‘What is going on in this place? We’ve never seen anything like this.’ I told them that we have some pretty involved citizens.” MacDougall said that the issue of the clerk came up and the 12 questions, and everyone there wanted to know who made that list. “I know the manager made it,” MacDougall said. “I’ve already spoken to the attorneys about it.” The mayor said that regarding the other issue, a member of the public “who shall remain nameless” put out a notice that inflamed the situation. “They told people that we’re not going to allow parking in the driveways of commercial trucks and all these different things that really were not the case,” MacDougall said. “It was the second reading on the Land Development Regulations and the public is right, it’s been
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TOWN HALL, page 6
Christina Redwine receives annual Diego Family Spartan Scholarship
Family Summer Kick-Off to promote childhood health, education, safety BY MATTHEW BEATTY
T
he Healthy Start Coalition of Miami-Dade (HSCMD) has partnered with Early Learning Coalition of Miami-Dade/Monroe (ELCMDM) to host the Family Summer Kick-Off, a funfilled day promoting childhood health, education and safety for pregnant women and families with children up to age 8. The event will take place on Saturday, June 9, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., at the Miami-Dade County Fair and Expo Center: 10901 SW 24 St. Encouraging whole families to enjoy quality time together in an all-ages environment, the event is completely free and features early pregnancy, childbirth, home safety, early literacy, bike safety, car seat inspection and first aid classes,
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FAMILY, page 6
ALL TYPES OF COVERAGE FROM OVER 100 TRUSTED, COMPETITIVE, INSURERS Christina Redwine of Miami Southridge Senior High School is presented the Diego Family Spartan Scholarship Award by Keith Diego during the school’s annual Awards Ceremony on May 11. The criteria for the one year, $2,500 award includes excellence in academics, dedication to community service and well-rounded participation in extracurricular activities. The recipient also must be attending a four-year college outside of the tri-county area. The scholarship was created by the Diego Family (Miami Southridge alumni) to recognize annually one Miami Southridge student who exhibits the Spartan Spirit and to help encourage and assist them in their efforts when leaving home for a well-rounded college.
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May 29 - June 11, 2012
May 29 - June 11, 2012
COMMUNITYNEWSPAPERS.COM
Dr. James A. Thomas visits Narita-San Temple in Japan
Dr. James A. Thomas, president-elect of the Perrine-Cutler Ridge/Palmetto Bay Rotary Club, attended the recent Rotary International Conference in Southeast Asia and took some time to visit Narita, Japan. Dr. Thomas, who took along a copy of the Cutler Bay News, is pictured at the Narita-San Temple in Narita City, Japan
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COMMUNITYNEWSPAPERS.COM
May 29 - June 11, 2012
Area Girls State delegates ready for Tallahassee trip BY GARY ALAN RUSE
Young ladies from high schools in cities ranging from Coral Gables to Key West gathered at American Legion Post 133 in Palmetto Bay on Sunday, May 20, for an orientation briefing prior to their participation in the annual Girls State program in Tallassee next month. The meeting was hosted by the post’s Women’s Auxiliary, which runs the local part of the program. The 14 delegates chosen for 2012 are Lourdes Pomar, Ambar Mesa, Aubree Driver, Erin Czerwinski, Alexandra Fernandez, Sheyla Seara, Jenny Valfre, Jasmine Perez, Lisie Ramos, Rachel Dugard, Taylor Konrath, Malorie Hill, Sarannal Robinson and Avalon Hoek Spaans. Jenny Valfre found out about the program at Coral Reef High, the school she attends. “I’m really excited to go,” Valfre said. “It’s a great opportunity to learn about politics and explore possible college majors.” Lisie Ramos, also a student at Coral Reef, and from the Kendall area, agreed. “I think it’s a great opportunity for young girls, especially since it’s all girls,” Ramos said. “It helps us shine.
Pictured (l-r) are Beverly Evans, 14th District chair; Becky Miller, Girls State Staff; Avalon Hoek Spaans; Sarannal Robinson; Malorie Hill; Taylor Konrath; Rachel Dugard; Lisie Ramos; Jasmine Perez; Jenny Valfre; Sheyla Seara; Alexandra Fernandez; Erin Czerwinski; Aubree Driver; Ambar Mesa; Lourdes Pomar; Patti Tripp, 14th District president, and Alma Zeller, 14th District chaplain. –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––
I’m very excited to go and learn about the government.” Girls State staff member Becky Miller gave the introductory presentation to let
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the delegates know what to expect and also what was expected of them. There are a number of ground rules set by the Girls State organization, by Florida State University whose dormitory houses the students and by Capitol officials. Miller was excited about making the trip this time. “I didn’t get to go last year because I had a child,” Miller said. “I’m very excited to go back this year and see all the girls. It’s always wonderful to see a different group of girls and what ideas they have and the different laws that are concentrated on this particular year.” Miller, who is in her eighth year with the program, said that there is a lot of work leading up to the event each summer. “We had our first meeting in January,” she said. “There’s a ton of work before the trip. It’s a good program, and a lot of the girls they meet they’ll go to college with. I ended up going to college with a couple of girls I met. I was a Girls Stater in 2000.” District 14 chair Beverly Evans of Post 133 will get up early on the morning of June 15 because the delegates must arrive at 2 a.m. at the post for the bus that will leave at 3 a.m. to take the group to Tallahassee. “They have to be here on time so I can check them all out to be sure they have all the forms and things on their list,” Evans said. “They have to read everything in their packets. There have been some changes this year.” Among the changes dictated by Tallahassee officials for 2012 are new dress codes. Delegates attending session in the
Capitol building may wear only plain black slacks with their blouses, not skirts, dresses or other types of pants. They also are required to wear “flats,” no high-heel shoes. Evans said that another change is that this year the girls don’t seem as enthusiastic about government and that many who might have been delegates were more interested in music camp or other summer programs. But she was pleased by one improvement. “At least this year they knew what parliamentary procedure was,” Evans said. “Last year they didn’t.” Now 80, Evans has been involved with the Girls State program for 43 years. The work in Tallahassee, with 300 total delegates and 40 staff members to look after, is daunting but fun. The program, which involves setting up city and state government groups in two fictitious parties, the Nationalists and Federalists, lasts a week and includes elections, a pep rally, bill writing and committee hearings. There even is a mock trial in the State Supreme Court. Things wrap up with a special dinner and awards night before the return trip home. Starting in 1947, Florida Girls State is a program designed to “instill an understanding of the privileges and responsibilities of citizenship and public service.” The Women’s Auxiliary of the 17 American Legion districts statewide fully funds the costs for the girls attending Girls State, everything from transportation to food and laundry. Several college scholarships are awarded through the program each year.
May 29 - June 11, 2012
COMMUNITYNEWSPAPERS.COM
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Don’t miss these two Cutler Bay special events Michael Miller EXECUTIVE EDITOR
AROUND TOWN Popcorn anyone? Summer Movie Night in the Park returns on Friday June 8, at 7:30 p.m., brought to you by the good folks of the Parks & Rec Dept. It’s at Cutler Ridge Park, 10100 SW 200 Street, and the movie starts promptly at 8:00 p.m. so don’t get there late. “Start the summer off under the stars with your family and friends,” they tell us. “Free admission. Bring your lawn chairs and blankets. Refreshments available for purchase throughout the night.” The movie is Academy Award nominee Puss in Boots, with the voice of Antonio Banderas. For addition information contact the Parks and Recreation Department at 305-238-4166. Love grillin’ and chillin’? On Saturday June 9 is “The Rib Ticklers Ball” First Annual Cutler Bay BBQ Challenge 2012, from 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., and it’s also at Cutler Ridge Park, 10100 SW 200th Street. It features Brisket, Chicken, Pulled Pork and Ribs, so whether you’re into cooking or just eating, this competition sounds like a don’t miss event. “Fire up your grills and smokers and show everyone that your BBQ is the best in town,” says the flyer. It’s sponsored by Mercedes-Benz of Cutler Bay, BB&T Bank, Air on Demand Air Conditioning, Publix Supermarket and Lowe’s Home Improvement Center. To register as a chef or for additional information, contact Fred Bobson at 305-2384166. A missing name… Our May 1 issues ran a story about a new ‘Business Training Program’ of the Economic Development Council of South MiamiDade (EDC) and mentioned three of the
first graduates of the program who joined EDC’s Chairman of the Board Dr. James A. Thomas for a presentation at the April 12 meeting of the Cutler Bay Business Association. While two of the graduates had their businesses named, the third, Fernanda Katz-Junkins, only had her name listed. Fernanda is Ecolectric President of Company, electrical contractors specializing in ‘green’ technology. “We cater to clients that are interested in alternative energy solutions,” says their mission statement. “Ecolectric Company is dedicated to providing unsurpassed customer service, value, safety and eco-conscious solutions. Ecolectric will provide expertise that will save you money over time offering you a significant return on your investment.” For info visit their website at <www.ecolectric.us> or call 305-482-1788. The Concerned Citizens of Cutler Bay are pleased to host Fernanda Katz-Junkins, President of Ecolectric Company. Katy Sorenson, Executive –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– Director of the Good Government Initiative at the University of Miami, as the guest speaker at their next meeting on June 5, from 7 to 9 p.m. at Cutler Ridge United Methodist Church, 20740 Old Cutler Road. Following the presentation, there will be an open discussion about items of public interest. Concerned Citizens is a nonprofit civic organization whose purpose is to ‘Promote Community Awareness and Citizen Involvement.’ The meetings are publicly noticed, meet all the requirements of Florida’s Sunshine Law and are conducted in a friendly roundtable format. All of the Cutler Bay Council Members are invited to meet-
Cutler Bay News
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PUBLISHER .................................................................................................................................. Grant Miller EXECUTIVE EDITOR .....................................................................................................................Michael Miller EDITOR.................................................................................................................................. David Berkowitz WRITERS, COLUMNISTS.............................................................. Ron Beasley, Kenneth Bluh, Robert Hamilton, Linda Rodriguez-Bernfeld, Gary Alan Ruse, Lee Stephens, Al Sunshine, Richard Yager ADVERTISING ACCOUNT EXECUTIVES..........................................................Albie Barnes, Beatriz Brandfon, Roberta Bergman, Ana Caceres, Celia Canabate, Diane Chasin, Henry Chau, Sharon Christian, Diane Maddox, Denzel Miles, Ann Robbins-Udel, Fara Sax, Lori Schwadron, Diane Sedona Schiller, Walter White LEGAL ADVERTISING ..................................................................................................................... Georgia Tait BOOKKEEPING ............................................................................................................................ Jesus Toledo PROOF DEPARTMENT....................................................................................................................Isabel Vavrek
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ings, and everyone is welcome. For more information, call Steve Zarzecki at 305-255-4351. A spectacular cosmic event occurs Tuesday, June 5 when Venus transits the sun, the last time this century, from 6:05 p.m. until about 8:10 p.m. Southern Cross/FIU Astros focus solar-filtered high-tech professional equipment on it from two free locations: the large western parking lot at ZooMiami, 12400 SW 152 St., and the FIU rooftop garage, west side of SW 109 Avenue at SW 8 Street on the Modesto Maidique campus. SCAS adds a warning: Retina burn could cause permanent blindness. Sunglasses are not safe protection; use #14 welder’s glass or solar glasses. Thought of the Day: The biggest human temptation is to settle for too little. — Thomas Merton
Gary Alan Ruse andRichard Yager contributed to this column. Got any tips? Contact me at 305-6697355, ext. 249, or send emails to <Michael@communitynewspapers.com>.
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May 29 - June 11, 2012
TOWN HALL, from page 1
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rushed. We haven’t had enough input, so the council voted last night to have a minimum of one additional public input meeting which is scheduled for a week before the June Council Meeting [Wednesday, June 20].” MacDougall said he thought that all in all the Town Hall Meeting was extremely positive. The day after the meeting, town manager Steven Alexander addressed the matter of the list of 12 improvements for the town clerk by releasing an official statement to clear up the issue of who created the initial draft of the Clerk’s 60day plan. The document was dated May 16, 2012, 4 p.m., and was signed by Alexander and town attorneys Mitch Bierman and Chad Friedman. That statement reads as follows: “I have discussed this with the attorneys and this is our collective recollection of the events. The plan was generated after a discussion in January in which Mitch Bierman participated along with the mayor and manager. The discussion was initiated by the manager
FAMILY, from page 1
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plus a giant slide, rock wall, obstacle course, inflatable play town, bounce houses, arts and crafts, raffles and giveaways for the entire family. “We are thrilled to be part of the first Family Summer Kick-Off,” said Evelio Torres, president and CEO of the Early Learning Coalition. “These events offering free services, resources and products to families in need allow access to proper care and healthy, constructive enjoyment for all Miami-Dade County residents. Our work and the efforts of our partners have helped build a community where our children are the priority.” The event will feature an 11 a.m. program including remarks from South Florida’s elected officials, community partners and social serv-
as an effort to better coordinate the work of his office and that of the clerk and in response to complaints from other council members about various issues. “Previously the clerk was asked to provide a list of improvements and how she would make them. Chad, the manager and mayor had a subsequent conversation and the consensus was that the clerk’s response did not adequately address the issues, and so the manager took a stab at preparing a simpler list of achievable goals to be addressed. “The mayor distributed the list to the council by email on Jan. 25, 2012 and the council held a brief discussion during the public portion of a meeting following a January executive session for the Bay Point Case. Following a brief discussion it was the sense of the council that they supported the plan and that the mayor should provide the list to the clerk with directions to take steps to address the issues in the next 60 days.”
ice organizational leaders. “With state and federal funding cuts to early education and childhood health programs, citizens across the county are looking to us for help,” said Manuel Fermin, CEO of Healthy Start. “We and our partners are being called to step up to the plate, and I’m so glad South Florida’s noted leaders support our efforts for happier and healthier MiamiDade families.” Thousands of mothers and caretakers are expected to participate in the free event. HSCMD also is offering opportunities for corporations and local health and social service organizations to join the effort. To secure your organization as a partner or sponsor, please contact Manuel Fermin at 305-541-0210. For more information on the event, or to pre-register (recommended if planning to attend classes), call Miami-Dade Area Health Education Center (AHEC) at 305597-3666, or visit hscmd.org.
JUMPS FOR CUTLER BAY
May 29 - June 11, 2012
COMMUNITYNEWSPAPERS.COM
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County commissioners accused of ‘bait and switch’ on UDB R. Kenneth Bluh KENNETH’S COMMENTARY Miami-Dade County commissioners are at it again. It seems that they just voted to expand the use of 42 acres outside the Urban Development Boundaries (UDB) out on N. Kendall Drive west of 167th Avenue that previously had been approved for commercial use only. The use expansion will permit the building of 546 homes. The 42 acres had been approved, over community objections, for commercial use only in 2008. Prior to 2008 the parcel’s use was limited to agriculture. The fight at that time was bitter. Everyone, except a few developers and their commissioner friends, fought against the extension. The planning department said that there was more than sufficient vacant land inside the UDB that could be developed for commercial use. Over the planning department’s recommendations the commission voted to permit commercial, and only commercial, inside the 42-acre westward expansion. The commissioners’ promise to the community in 2008? No residential use on the 42
acres. Why? Not only was there then, and there still is, sufficient land for residential development inside the UDB but residential expansion requires costly services such as expanded bus routes, extended roads, waste pickup, schools and additional law enforcement protection — which financially we cannot support. Right now, today in 2012, we are cutting back on bus routes and frequency of trips within the existing community because of a lack of funds. We can’t afford to add new routes to accommodate the possible 546 homes. You and I, the taxpayers of MiamiDade will bear the cost of paving all those streets. Yes, the county requires developers to pay toward the cost. But, believe me they do not pay the entire cost. We do. Watch, the commissioners will fall back and place the blame on the assistant planning director Mark Woerner, who told the commissioners, in essence, that in 2008 there was plenty of land. Today we are running out of residential-use land. By county policy the county must maintain a 13-year supply of land for housing. The rule I understand. The lack of land I doubt. I congratulate and thank Commissioner Dennis Moss for the wisdom and courage to go against the rest of the commission and vote against expanding the use to permit residential construction.
VIEWPOINT I agree with Commissioner Moss when he said, “Some folks voted for this application [originally] because it excluded residential. So now we are having a situation where a developer can say ‘I get the line moved on a promise it will be commercial, then come back in two or three years [when no one is looking] and have it changed to residential, which is what I [the developer] wanted in the first place.’” Only two people spoke before the commission, both in objection to the use expansion. Clear Water Action’s Cara Capp called the commissioner’s action “a bait and switch.” How true. It was easy to expand the UDB if the use is limited to commercial development. Once the UDB is extended, it is much easier to expand the use to include residential use. Most, I included, didn’t even know a vote was pending on the commercial-to-residential change. Sound insignificant? You don’t live anywhere near N. Kendall Drive and 167th Avenue? Why care? I will tell you why. It’s not just the financial burden it will place on the taxpayers of Miami-Dade, all of Miami-
Dade. They are messing with the source of drinking water, which we extract from the land west of the developed community. One last thought. You can bet that the developers will be back before the same county commissioners asking for additional expansion of the UDB to permit the construction of shopping centers, etc, to accommodate the needs of the 546 new homeowners. Will they then need more residential construction west of the new shopping center to accommodate the storeowners’ need for customers? You figure. P.S. The Miami Herald’s DAILY Q, 05/20/2012: Miami-Dade commissioners have agreed to lift the no-housing restriction outside the Urban Development Boundary. Is this a good idea? Response: Yes, 35 percent; no, 65 percent. Interesting? We appreciate your opinions on this column whether in agreement or disagreement. Please send your comments to (fax number) 305-662-6980 or email to <letters@communitynewspapers.com>. The opinions expressed in this column are not necessarily those of this newspaper, its editors or publisher.
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COMMUNITYNEWSPAPERS.COM
May 29 - June 11, 2012
Like with most men, I am a wuss when it comes to pain BY ERNIE SOCHIN
Vice Mayor No, I am not pregnant! Good thing too because I, like most men, am a wuss when it comes to pain. You see, I recently had surgery to release my carpal tunnel pressure. It is basically a simple procedure requiring outpatient surgery and you go home the same day. Of course you are given “pain pills’ in case you are uncomfortable. I was given a prescription for Oxycontin. Why drug users love that stuff is beyond me. It damn near drove me nuts. I would wake up in the middle of the night thinking that I might stop breathing if I closed my eyes. Talk about anxiety! Of course like most men I expected to get a lot of sympathy from my friends and family. Instead, as I whined about how uncomfortable I was, people asked, “How is your wife dealing with it?” My wife? I was the one who had the surgery for cryin’ out loud! That held
no sway with these folks. They kind of knew that my home nurse/wife would be the most inconvenienced. Now I have had many surgeries: Hip replacement, meniscal tear in my knee, rotator cuff, plus the usual number of colonoscopies. I thought that I was being pretty brave through all these, but I guess not to hear others tell it. Then the issue of pregnancy came up. I am told that “I ain’t felt nothing yet” until I deliver a baby. Well I have had two children and so far have felt no pain. Of course I patiently waited in the visitor’s room until the doctor came and told me it was safe to go in there. What is the big deal? Of course seeing the actual baby and having an idea of where it came out of is something that I would rather not contemplate. Of course modern science has come up with many remedies for pain. I have used Vicodin, like Dr. House uses on TV, and it was quite pleasurable! Of course if you read all the possible side effects — i.e. instant death, stroke, heart attack, loss of sexual desire etc., etc. — you would take absolutely nothing, ever again. Example, I was recently told to add a blood thinner to my huge assortment of pills. I
It’s a good thing men don’t get pregnant.
was given Predaxa, which you see advertised on TV all the time. It is usually followed by a commercial for a law firm advising you that they have had hundreds of claims by people dying from use of this drug. Great! I changed to another blood thinner that now requires frequent testing that can only be done in the doctor’s office. My doctor friends tell me that if you read the warnings on just about anything, including aspirin, you would probably stop taking it. Look at this! (I had to cut most of it just to fit into my column.) Important safety information about Pradaxa: Pradaxa can cause bleeding which can be seri-
ous and sometimes lead to death. Don’t take Pradaxa if you currently have abnormal bleeding or if you have ever had an allergic reaction to it. Your risk of bleeding with Pradaxa may be higher if you: • are 75 years old or older; • have kidney problems; • have stomach or intestine bleeding that is recent or keeps coming back or you have a stomach ulcer; • take other medicines that increase your risk of bleeding, like aspirin products, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) and blood thinners,and • have kidney problems and take dronedarone (Multaq) or ketoconazole tablets (Nizoral) Call your doctor or seek immediate medical care if you have any of the following signs or symptoms of bleeding: The rest had to be cut to save space. This is what usually follows the Pradaxa add on TV “According to recent disclosures by Boehringer, the maker of Pradaxa, several hundred patients already have died due to internal bleeding side effects while taking Pradaxa. Side effects include: cerebral hemorrhaging, internal bleeding and ulcers. Call (fill in law firm) for help.” I hope you all feel better now! I don’t.
May 29 - June 11, 2012
COMMUNITYNEWSPAPERS.COM
Three Keys Gate Charter teachers earn teaching excellence awards BY COLLEEN REYNOLDS
Executives from the Clarion Council and the Florida Charter School Alliance announced recently the winners of the New American Hero initiative, a teacher recognition program designed to highlight the success of high performing charter schools and reward those teachers who have made a significant investment in their students’ lives. The winners are teachers from participating charter schools in Florida, Georgia and Louisiana who have been nominated by fellow teachers, administrators and parents within the school. Specific examples of unique teaching styles and/or student-centered accomplishments of each nominee were considered and evaluated by a team of administrators. Each of the 28 winners earned $1,000 and will be eligible to win the annual New American Hero of the Year $5,000 grand prize. Keys Gate Charter School first grade teacher Carey Smith, and grade 3-7 teacher Kathleen Ebersole have been selected as 2012 New American Hero Award recipients. Keys Gate Charter High School social studies teacher Diana Bivona has been selected as its 2012 New American Hero Award recipient. “Carey, Kathleen, and Diana are compassionate, respectful educators who take their students on an adventure each time they enter the classroom,” said David McKnight, principal of Keys Gate Charter School and Keys Gate Charter High School. “We are proud to recognize each of them for their professionalism
and we congratulate them on winning this award.” Charter schools are tuition-free public schools that offer a choice for communities, parents, students and professionals that foster educational excellence in America. Parents of nearly two million students nationwide choose to send their children to charter schools every day and that number continues to grow rapidly because of charter schools’ customerfocused approach to public education that ensures tailored programs meet each child’s needs. The success of charter schools is driven by the wave of highly ambitious and talented professionals who choose to dedicate their careers to providing instruction in an innovative environment that is free from the constraints that bind traditional public educators. “I commend all teachers who are committed to going the extra mile and act as role models by putting students first,” said David Alba, executive director of the Clarion Council. “The goal of New American Hero is to encourage a performance-driven culture and provide excellent and innovative educational experiences for all students.” The New American Hero program is in its first year of implementation and currently is in 30 charter schools in three states. It is supported in its entirety by gifts from individuals, businesses and foundations. To learn more about the New American Hero program, how you can participate or to see a complete list of winners visit online at <www.newamericanhero.org>.
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COMMUNITYNEWSPAPERS.COM
May 29 - June 11, 2012
Celebrate Father’s Day with a cruise on Biscayne Bay BY ROBERT HAMILTON
Celebrate Father’s Day on an afternoon Bay Cruise departing from the Deering Estate at Cutler on Sunday, June 17, from 2 to 4 p.m. Guests are asked to arrive at 1:30 p.m. Discover South Florida’s nature and history aboard the Pelican Island Skipper Pontoon Boat, a 45-foot Corinthian Catamaran. A Deering Estate Education and Interpretive staff member will talk about birds, sea mammals, Native Americans, and early pioneers. The boat will pass Chicken Key, a seven-acre mangrove island and restored bird rookery. The cost is $35 per person. The vessel complies with Coast Guard Regulations and is ADA accessible. Weather and water conditions are closely monitored prior to departure. Trips
may be cancelled and rescheduled due to weather and water conditions. For more information, visit online at <www.deeringestate.org>. To purchase tickets, contact the Deering Estate Ticket Office at 305-235-1668, ext. 233. The Deering Estate at Cutler, a Miami-Dade County Park, is located at 16701 SW 72 Ave. This 444-acre natural and archeological preserve and historic site is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and serves as a center for education, culture and recreation. Historic house tours are offered daily (10:30 a.m. and 3 p.m.) with admission to the estate. EcoAdventure Tours also are offered throughout the year for an additional fee. For more information on the Deering Estate’s educational and cultural programs, visit <www.deeringestate.org>.
May 29 - June 11, 2012
COMMUNITYNEWSPAPERS.COM
Page 11
French students spend 10 days LATIN AMERICAN with Palmer Trinity counterparts Enjoy a variety of coffees and everything from paninis to pastelitos, as well as a selection of wines to complement your meal.
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890 SW 57th Ave., Miami, FL 33144
Ten students and a chaperone from Aix-en-Provence recently returned to France after completing a 10day Short Term Linguistic and Cultural Immersion Program at Palmer Trinity School in May. Throughout their visit, the students stayed with PTS families, attended classes with their hosts and visited tourist destinations around the city. In spring 2013, Palmer Trinity School will return the favor by taking a group of students to France. In this photo visiting students gather with their PTS hosts before departing to the airport to return to France.
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COMMUNITYNEWSPAPERS.COM
May 29 - June 11, 2012
WK resident Chris Abin earns Graduate Research Fellowship BY RICHARD YAGER
While an unbroken string of all-A grades could point a bright student in any direction, Christopher Abin seemed destined for a career in science. Early in May, Abin was announced as one of 2,000 nationwide recipients of the 2012 National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship awards. “Maybe it was from reading those science fiction books by Michael Crichton,” he said while being interviewed from a graduate laboratory at the University of Georgia campus in Athens, GA. “At least by the end of high school, I knew I wanted to pursue a career in the life sciences.” If so, Crichton’s Jurassic Park and The Andromeda Strain were only part of the inspiration leading to such a major merit award for the West Kendall student, an honors graduate of Florida International University only a year ago. Perhaps the most prestigious pre-doctoral fellowship in the U.S., the total award of $126,000 will allow Albin to continue an intriguing project in microbiology, investigating how microbes from an ancient salt lake in California “make a living” by consuming highly toxic compounds containing antimony.
Chris Abin is pictured at work in a University of Georgia laboratory
“The discovery of microbes that can transform toxic compounds through their metabolism will not only have substantial implications for the bio-remediation of antimonycontaminated sites worldwide, but may also provide insight into life on other planets,” he explained.
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To further his exploration into the microcosmos, he now looks forward to a July trip to the Sierra Nevada Mountains in eastern California where he’ll spend a week at Mono Lake, one of the oldest lakes in North America formed roughly one million years ago. There, he will sample the lake’s depths for microbes thriving in the unusual ecosystem, two and a half times saltier than the ocean, perhaps leading to additional discoveries of how life forms can survive in extreme environments. Abin said he soon became interested in scientific research after enrolling at FIU in 2006 following graduation from G. Holmes Braddock Senior High School. “It was during my undergraduate years that I began to learn more and more about the inner workings of the natural and physical worlds, and it opened my eyes to the central role that research plays in answering some of our most basic questions,” Albin said. During his biology courses in the
School of Integrated Science and Humanities, he was exposed to research applications in varied scientific disciplines and then attended a summer 2010 research program in microbiology at the University of Oregon before becoming a PhD student in the Department of Microbiology at the University of Georgia in August 2011. Upon enrollment, he was awarded a graduate school assistantship at UGA along with a $21,000 scholarship from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. His significant academic achievements began during his first year at FIU when he was named “Student of the Year” in general chemistry by the American Chemical Society, later leading to a graduation with FIU’s prestigious “Outstanding Academic Achievement Award” and induction into Phi Beta Kappa. Even before Albin graduated from FIU summa cum laude in 2011 with a BS in Biological Sciences, Professor DeEtta K. Mills said she could “see in him the combination of intelligence and tenacity that makes a true research scientist.” Abin today credits Dr. Mills as “the person who inspired my study of microbiology and taught me how think critically as a scientist.” A native Miamian, Abin is the son of Juan Carlos and Yospa Abin, residents of the Lakes of the Meadow who fled Cuba to raise a family in the US. Her son’s academics were encouraged by Yospa Abin’s, 27 years as an elementary school teacher in the Miami-Dade Public Schools system, including the last 17 at Tropical Elementary in Westchester. “Naturally, we’re all very proud of Chris,” she said. “And we have another reason for celebration.” That will occur when Chris’ brother, Kevin, graduates from John A. Ferguson Senior High School in June after posting a similar outstanding scholastic record that may lead to even more academic laurels for the Abin family.
May 29 - June 11, 2012
COMMUNITYNEWSPAPERS.COM
Eagle Scout project enhances Calusa Elementary’s landscape Eagle Scout Carlos Lopez landscaped sections of Calusa Elementary School for his Eagle project.
BY LINDA RODRIGUEZ BERNFELD
Coral Reef High sophomore Carlos Lopez now is an Eagle Scout. Lopez is a member of Troop 811, which meets at Calusa Elementary School in West Kendall. Lopez, 15, who attended Calusa, decided to honor the school by doing his Eagle project there. The landscaping project was completed in December 2011. Scouts must complete their project by the time they are 18. In order to become an Eagle, Scouts must have achieved the rank of Life Scout; they must earn 21 badges, 12 of them Eagle required, and they must plan and complete a community service project. He met with the school principal, Carmen Fuentes, and they agreed to landscape outside the media center. “I did a landscaping project in two areas,” Lopez said. “We moved old plants around and put in new plants, including bromeliads. One area was north of the media center and another was west of the media center. The project was to beautify the school. “When she [the principal] showed us the area, a lot of plants grew out of the area and the grass was pretty high. She wanted the area to be maintained.” Lopez and his volunteers started the day weeding the area. Then they put in the stone borders, similar to what the school already had in place. “We put it around the garden area,” he said. “After that we started putting in new plants and started putting mulch around the plants.” It took approximately five hours to complete the job. In order to complete the project, Lopez
needed to raise the funds for the plans, so two weeks in advance, he held a car wash. “I raised a lot of money to buy the plants and the stone borders,” Lopez said. “Home Depot donated a $50 gift card toward some of the materials and one of the parents donated $100.” He bought plants, stone borders and mulch to beautify the area. He had mulch left over that he will use to maintain the project. It took a few months for the planning and preparation. He contacted the principal in August, met in September and worked through November planning the landscaping. “I considered different venues to hold the project. I was considering Larry and Penny Thompson Park,” he said. “But I spent more time at Calusa even after I graduated from elementary school. I went to Scout meetings there.” After completing the project, Lopez underwent his Board of Review, which bestowed the rank on him. His Court of Honor, where the badge is officially bestowed on him, took place on May 20. At Coral Reef, Lopez is a member of the cross-country team and the track and field team. This year he is running the 800-meter and 1,600-meter events. Last year he ran the mile and the two-mile events. He also runs the four-by-800 relay. Lopez is in the Visual and Performing Arts Academy with a concentration on painting and photography. His work is shown in art shows, sometimes through the school and sometimes as an individual. One of the recent shows was at Pinecrest Gardens in January. He also had art in the Celebrate Youth Art Festival in Palmetto Bay.
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COMMUNITYNEWSPAPERS.COM
May 29 - June 11, 2012
Leslee Gross, RN, promoted to assistant vice president of Ops BY BARBARA MOORE
Leslee Gross, RN, has been promoted to assistant vice president of operations for Baptist Health South Florida. She will be responsible for overseeing the eICU operations and related telemedicine applications. In addition, she will continue to direct the Transfer Center, and oversee credentialing and verification services for the organization. Gross began her career as a staff nurse at Baptist Hospital in 1982, and held several nursing positions, including assistant nurse manager in the Emergency Department. Her most recent role was director of the Transfer Center, which she developed and centralized for six hospitals and 12 urgent care centers. Gross received her bachelor’s degree in nursing from Florida State University, and a master’s degree in healthcare administration from the University of Saint Francis. She is a board-certified emergency nurse and certified healthcare manager. She is a
Leslee Gross, RN –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––
member of the Emergency Nurses Association and the American Nursing Association. A resident of Palmetto Bay, Gross is married and has three children.
May 29 - June 11, 2012
COMMUNITYNEWSPAPERS.COM
Trauma patients reunite with nurses and physicians at MCH
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THE HERITAGE SCHOOL FOUNDED IN 1971 13300 SW 120 Street • Miami, FL 33186 • Ph: 305-232-2222
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2012-2013 School Year
Pictured (l-r) are Alfredo Castellanos, MD; Janice Serrano, RN; Karla Lopez, mother of patient, and Daniel Lopez, trauma patient. ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– BY JENNIFER CAMINAS
Miami Children’s Hospital celebrated with patients and families during the annual Trauma Reunion event on Saturday, May 12. Patients who have been treated at the Trauma Center were reunited with the physicians and nurses at this celebratory event. Miami Children’s Hospital is the regions only free-standing pediatric trauma center.
Disney provided entertainment and firefighters from Miami-Dade Fire Rescue came out to show their support. Daniel Lopez, 17, was among the patients who attended the reunion. Daniel was in a serious car accident exactly one year ago and wanted to express his gratitude toward the doctors and nurses who treated him. The event also was an important one for Daniel, who was celebrating his birthday.
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May 29 - June 11, 2012
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May 29 - June 11, 2012
Navarro Discount Pharmacy marks grand re-opening of Gables store
The Navarro Discount Pharmacy in Coral Gables now has a new self-serve designer fragrance counter. –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– BY JEANNE A. BECKER
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Navarro Discount Pharmacy, the largest Hispanic-owned pharmacy chain in the U.S., celebrated the grand re-opening of its Coral Gables store at 93 Miracle Mile on Thursday, Apr. 19. Navarro invested $125,000 in the store remodeling, which includes a new selfserve designer fragrance counter, enhanced wood displays at all checkout counters and the pharmacy, wider aisles, and signage in both English and Spanish. The first 100 customers received free shopping bags with products. Storewide activities included breakfast and coffee, music, raffle, prizes and free vendor product samplings. Attending the grand re-opening were executives from Navarro including CEO,
Juan Ortiz. Also attending were Gables Mayor Jim Cason; Vice Mayor Bill Kerdyk; Commissioners Ralph Cabrera and Frank Quesada; Mark Trowbridge, Coral Gables Chamber president/CEO, and Drew Kern, chamber chair, who delivered a proclamation, and Mari Gallet, executive director of the Business Improvement District of Coral Gables. Now celebrating 50 years in Miami, Navarro Discount Pharmacy has 31 stores in South Florida and approximately 1,300 employees. The stores differentiate themselves by offering many products and services that are not found in traditional drugstores such as wireless phones, designer fragrances and in-store healthcare clinics. For more information, visit online at <www.navarro.com>.
May 29 - June 11, 2012
COMMUNITYNEWSPAPERS.COM
Page 19
Baptist Hospital names Unit Nurses of the Year BY BARBARA MOORE
Unit Nurses of the Year were named at Baptist Hospital at a special presentation held during the recent National Nurses Week celebration. Each Unit Nurse of the Year was chosen by his/her peers for holding high ethical standards, honoring the caring spirit of the nursing practice and holding the nursing process in high regard. These nursing practices have gained Baptist Hospital Magnet status for excellence in nursing. The recognition is the nursing profession’s highest honor, and is awarded by the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC), the nation’s largest and foremost nursing accrediting and credentialing organization. The nurses honored were: Marilyn Alvarez, RN; Vera Bryant, RN; Diane Callas, RN; Maria Cobo, RN; Elizabeth Conover, RN; Diane Deaza, RN; Melissa Dobol, RN; Connie Drutman, MD; Ava Duke, RN; Delores Eachus, RN; Erika Encalada, RN; Shiela Escobar, RN; Cassandre FernandezAndrew, RN; Rosario Flynn, RN; Courtney Fry, RN; Melissa Garcia, RN; Hannah Gauran, RN; Wil Gil, RN; Jasmin Guzman, RN; Miriam Hernandez, RN; Paula Hernandez, RN; Claudia Hodgson, RN; Michelle Houellemont, RN; Ellen Denise Houston, RN; Grace Kittelle-Cintas, RN; Jill Knight, RN; Delphena Magloire, RN; Maria Marcial, RN; Simla Mathew, RN; Patti Miller, RN; Jenny Navarro, RN; Eugene Obando, RN; Leyzer Ramirez, RN; Maria B. Serrano, RN; Janice Sodemann, RN, and Elizabeth Zike, RN.
Baptist Hospital Unit Nurses of the Year gather for group photo. ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––
Baptist Hospital is affiliated with Baptist Health South Florida, the largest faith-based, not-for-profit healthcare organization in the region. It also includes Baptist Children’s Hospital, South Miami Hospital, Doctors Hospital, Homestead Hospital, Mariners Hospital, West Kendall Baptist Hospital, Baptist Cardiac & Vascular Institute and Baptist Outpatient Services. Baptist Health Foundation, the organization’s fundraising arm, supports services at all hospitals and facilities affiliated with Baptist Health. For more information, visit online at <www.BaptistHealth.net>.
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May 29 - June 11, 2012
Community Association Beat
Local author publishes new Associations improve cash flow by renting out units book on Bay of Pigs invasion BY MITCH DRIMMER, CAM Community Association Manager
Has it been too long since you’ve last seen a payment for a particular unit or, in many cases, a group of units in your condo or HOA? These units should not be classified simply as “delinquent” but, more importantly, as “non-performing.” This inventory should be producing revenue for your association, and the only way that can be done is for the association to foreclose and rent them to qualified tenants. This is a hard business decision to make but because so many banks are not taking back foreclosures, the association shouldn’t allow these units to “ lay fallow.” After all, the rental market is hot right now and if foreclosed units are handled properly by real estate professionals, they can be the ticket to stabilizing your association’s cash flow. The first step: have your collection procedure (collection agency or attorney) move forward as fast as possible to foreclose and take intervening title to all delinquent units in your association. This gives your association the right to lease these units, regardless of rental restrictions for individual owners that may be in the governing documents. (Most lawyers agree that once an association forecloses and takes intervening title on a foreclosed unit, it is not obligated by rental restrictions impeding individual unit owners). The second step: engage a professional real estate company to prepare a unit for marketing, screening tenants, maintaining the unit, collecting the rent and act as the landlord on behalf of the association.
BY RON BEASLEY
“Necessity is the mother of invention” and many real estate companies have developed programs especially designed to fill these needs. They’re out there, eager to manage this business. So if your board of directors is dreading the idea of acting as a landlord, plenty of property management companies will do this for a percentage of the rent. Some community association management companies already have rental programs to serve their client associations. Many fear that by leasing foreclosed units, the association will lose control with undesirable renters who have little or no regard for the community itself. The fact is that your real estate property manager can screen renters and your board has a right to refuse any application. In fact, your community association has more control over renters than over those who purchase vacant units. Like it or not, converting foreclosures to leased units is the smart way to improve cash flow and keep community maintenance fees down. If foreclosed units remain unproductive financially, good-paying owners must necessarily make up the shortfall from delinquent units. And that’s when communities begin to lose value. Inadequate cash flow will cause either reduced services or increased maintenance fees. The message is clear to association boards: now is the time to take positive action and get those foreclosed units rented out and the money coming in. Mitch Drimmer, a licensed CAM and FCAP instructor,, is Vice President of Association Financial Services, an accredited collection agency, specializing in finance, business process outsourcing for community associations. For more information, visit www.associationfinancial.com tel: 305677-0022, ext. 804.
Miami resident and Brigade 2506 historian Felipe Villaraus Gallo has published a comprehensive book on the ill-fated 1961 Bay of Pigs invasion titled Invasion, Bahia de Cochinos, 50 Años Después. Villaraus is curator of the Cuba and the Cold War Study Institute at the new Military Museum and Memorial of South Florida, 12450 SW 152 St. His latest offering, Invasion, follows his first book Huellas y Caminos published in 2007. Villaraus said his Spanish-language Invasion is a historic book “with a good description and analysis of the events of Apr. 17, 1961, and the reason for the disaster.” The book has chapters dealing with the three days of combat in Girón Felipe Villaraus Gallo Playa Larga, ––––––––––––––––
Palpite and San Blas, and includes a chapter dedicated to the Bay of Pigs soldiers who did not return from the battle.
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May 29 - June 11, 201212
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Page 21
The Posse Foundation selects record three NWSA scholars BY MARIA M. FLORES
will be attending the University of Pennsylvania along with her posse. Described by her guidance counselor Pamela New World School of the Arts high school is now home to a total of five distinguished Posse Cabarcos as “helpful, determined, and hardworking,” the vocal music student, who works Foundation Scholars. Seniors Kandyse Samuel, Alexis Holliday part-time to contribute to her family income and Emily Rivera have become 2012 Posse while managing to be among the top 7 percent Foundation Scholars and starting this fall, the of her class, also is highly involved in extracuryoung ladies will be attending their dream ricular activities. Samuel has held office in varschool on scholarships offered by the Posse ious NWSA organizations since her freshman year, including secretary and vice president of Foundation. This is the third year that the Posse Foundation the Future Business Leaders of America and draws students from the Miami-Dade Public treasurer of the Math Honor Society. Alexis Holliday, also from the music proSchools system, thanks to a personal appeal made in 2009 by Miami-Dade County Public gram, has chosen to attend Mount Holyoke College in Massachusetts to major in Health Schools superintendent Alberto M. Carvalho. With plans to follow a college pre-med track Science while continuing to train her voice. “This scholarship means the world to me,” and foreign language studies, Kandyse Samuel said Holliday, who would have attended a local Florida university otherwise. In the top 13 percent of her senior class, Alexis holds a 5.4 weighted GPA and is involved in numerous extracurricular programs, both in the school and in the community. She is communications chair of the NWSA High School Choir, and a member of the National Math Honor Society, Voices of Inspiration Club, and National Spanish Honor Society, among others. Holliday also has volunteered at the Salvation Army where she has lead the Angel Tree Project for the past seven years. Choosing Hamilton College in Clinton, NY, Emily Rivera, a dancer at NWSA, aims to earn a degree in English to then continue to pursue a career in law. Humbled by the scholarship, Rivera confessed, “The Posse Scholarship is the best thing that has ever happened to me. To this day, I am still in absolute shock that out of 1,000 nomiAlexis Holliday named a Posse Foundation Scholar. nees in Miami-Dade County, I
Emily Rivera named a Posse Foundation Scholar.
was chosen for a Posse!” Rivera is in the top 13 percent of her class and, like her Posse peers, she is a highly motivated and driven student. With more than 600 community service hours, she is the senior class vice president, French Club vice president, and an active member of the
National Honor Society for Dance Arts. During her junior year, she was the president of the National Honor Society and the junior class treasurer. For information about New World School of the Arts, call at 305-237-3135 or visit nwsa.mdc.edu.
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COMMUNITYNEWSPAPERS.COM
Miami Palmetto Senior High A Tradition of Achievement 2011-2012 Miami Palmetto Senior High Silver Knight Nominees
Elizabeth Brown Art Washington U
Ellora Sarkar General Scholarship
Honorable Mention
Kaley Jaslow Athletics UF Honors
Kristen Coke Journalism Princeton
Evan Hacker Business Education
Dartmouth
Brian Dubow Mathematics UF Honors
Courtney Welbon Drama UCLA
Hannah Cai Music U Penn
Caltech
Monica Dyches Science
Honorable Mention
Gulliver Prep student sponsors daycare facility in Nicaragua
Lucia Ruan English & Literature
Pomona College
Andrea Perez is pictured with two children at the daycare center in Nicaragua.
Jenna Denight New Media
Honorable Mention USC
Alyssa Rosenfeld Social Science U of Miami
Lee Seifer Speech UF Honors
Bettina Schumacher Vocational Technical U of Miami
May 29 - June 11, 2012
Tatiana Schaefer World Language Boston College
U Penn
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BY LINDA RODRIGUEZ BERNFELD
Imagine being stopped by a crying mom who tells you she has to tie up her toddler and tape his mouth so he can’t yell — just so you can go to work. What would you do? When it happened to Andrea Perez, she took action. Perez was visiting Nicaragua at the time, helping her brother Alejandro with his pet project, a school for poor teens in a rural area of the country. After being confronted by the woman, Perez decided to start a day care so women like that could have a safe place to leave their children while they worked “She would tie him to the chair, and leave the door locked with tape over his mouth,” Perez said. “It wasn’t because she wanted to mistreat the child, but she needed to go to work. It was the only option that she had.” The daycare was named after her grandmother, Anita Holmann, and is located in her grandmother’s house. When her grandmother passed away, Perez asked her grandfather if they could use the house and he said yes. It’s hard enough to start a business as an adult, but Perez is still a teen. She will be a senior at Gulliver Prep next year. However, after helping her brother in his community work, she already has learned how to marshal resources to accomplish things. “I started noticing the women had trouble with their kids,” Perez said. “The ones that weren’t old enough to go to school and they didn’t have a place to leave them. It took a little while to get her dream daycare up and running. First, she needed to raise money and she needed to find a place to house the daycare. She started an errand service to raise the money.
“I made up a business card with my name on it. I handed it out the card around the street and the school,” Perez said. “It started to make a good amount of money and I thought maybe the daycare can actually happen,” she said. Once she secured the house, she was able to open the center with help of friends and family. “I had the money and I had the house. I got donors,” she said. “I have a lot of family and friends. They match every dollar I make and with that, I have enough money.” The daycare was established in July 2011 and has 60-65 children. They are allowed to have up to 100. The school has two teachers and plans call for hiring a third. Perez and her friends earn $600 or so a month with the errand service. Coupled with income from funds from donors who match her earnings, the free daycare became a reality. If there are shortfalls, her grandfather steps in to help. Opening the daycare is just the first project. “I’m planning, but right now I’m too young to start it, an orphanage,” Perez said. The orphanage concept came about when two children were dropped off and then the parents disappeared without leaving contact information. One of the teachers is taking care of the children but can’t afford the additional costs without help. Perez said she needs more time to figure out what to do about the situation. Because of her commitment to the children, Perez has been honored with a plaque from the Ministry of Family in Nicaragua. For more information, check out the Anita Holmann Day Care Center in Nicaragua page on Facebook.
May 29 - June 11, 201212
COMMUNITYNEWSPAPERS.COM
Gates Millennium Scholarship awarded to NWSA student Javier Aranzales
(Photo courtesy of NWSA)
BY MARIA M. FLORES
Javier Aranzales, a senior in the New World School of the Arts high school dance program, was among 1,000 students nationwide to receive the 2011 Gates Millennium Scholarship Award (GMS). The award will provide him a full scholarship to undergraduate and graduate school, as well as doctoral-level studies. Aranzales will be attending Harvard University to pursue a career in pre-med and neurobiology. “Being a Gates Millennium Scholar means that financial burdens will not get in the way of following my heart,” Aranzales said. “It also means being part of a community of dreamers, leaders and achievers — rising above our status of minorities.” Aranzales also was admitted to other universities such as Amherst, Swarthmore, Dartmouth and the University of Florida, receiving numerous scholarships including the Ford Salute to Education. “Javier is a remarkable young person, and we are so proud that his talents, intellect, and spirit have been recognized by this distinguished award,” said Mary Lisa Burns, dean of dance at NWSA. “We look forward to hearing of his accomplishments in the years to come, and know that the world will be a better place because of the opportunities which he has been given.” A first generation college-bound student who came to the U.S. at the age of 5, Aranzales is one of those students who, when he puts his mind to it, succeeds in everything he does. Not a dancer until the age of 14, he was admitted into New World School of the Arts High School just seven months after he began formal training in dance. “Dance is my form of mental and physical rejuvenation — my way of stepping out of the world,” Aranzales said. “New World
School of the Arts has kindled a passion for the arts within me. My live goal is to support and save the arts, allowing everyone — specially the youth — to experience its beauty and therapeutic effect.” Aranzales was born in Bogota, Colombia, and is the oldest of four siblings, three boys and a girl. He credits his siblings with the inspiration to pursue a career in the medical field, saying he was “struck by the complexity and the beauty of the brain, passionate about human personality, development and relationships, and inspired by my baby siblings, I am pursuing a career in Pediatric Neurology.” With a perfect 4.0 GPA and an impressive 6.07 weighted GPA, Aranzales also is active in a number of extracurricular activities at NWSA and outside the school. He is president of the French Honor Society, vice-president of the Math Honor Society, member of the National Honor Society, member of the Gay-Straight Alliance, and a volunteer at Miami Children’s Hospital. At Harvard University, Javier plans to “be a big part of the Latino and LGBT communities,” and is quick to offer two of his favorite quotes that inspire him to continue his involvement as he continues in his career path: “Be the change you wish to see in the world” — by Mahatma Gandhi, and “There are no red lights in life — just go” — by Hanna Montana. The nation’s largest minority scholarship program, UNCF’s GMS offers its scholars academic support, mentoring and leadership training, helping them graduate from higher education at a rate of almost 80 percent in five years. In 2009-10 Aurelia Javier, visual arts students from New World School of the Arts, was awarded the Gates Millennium Award. For information about New World School of the Arts, call at 305-237-3135 or visit nwsa.mdc.edu.
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Rochelle Weinstein’s novel finds success thanks to book clubs BY LINDA RODRIGUEZ BERNFELD
When the company she worked for was bought and moved to New York, Rochelle Weinstein was at loose ends. She was offered the chance to relocate, but she wanted to continue to live near family. So she stayed home with her twins and wrote a novel called What We Leave Behind. “It’s for any woman who has ever loved and lost and wondered what could have been,” Weinstein said. “The story of Jessica Parker starts when she’s 15 and follows her into her 30s. For some women it will be a quick, relatable read. For other women, it’s a much richer reading experience because there are a lot of themes.” Those themes include the young passionate youthful love versus the love of a solid man in a secure consistent mature relationship. “I saw a theme of many women in my life of confusing longing for love,” Weinstein said. In the book, Parker loses her father at four. Her longing for her him influences her future relationships. “In the novel, she gets to go back and revisit her young love,” Weinstein said. “How many of us go back and revisit young love?” Weinstein wrote the book more than 10 years ago. She tried going the traditional publishing route but was unsuccessful, even with good contacts in the business from her days in advertising. “Nobody wanted to take on a first time author,” she said. “I put it under the bed for a couple of years.” But recently, she met with a woman, a former principal, who knew about the book and wanted her book club to read it. When she went to speak to the book club, she was surprised to find the book club had decorated the room with the theme. One of the first questions she was asked was: “Why isn’t this book published.” Weinstein had been in the music industry when the industry changed and she said the publishing industry is now going through the same seismic change. She already had her book professionally edited so she decided to try the self-publishing route. “It came to me, this is what I was meant to do,” she said. “I have control of my book; I have control of the price. It was just the most cathartic feeling; I had a place where I was really comfortable.” Weinstein said authors should have a defined goal in order to make the decision on how they want to publish. “It’s knowing your goals, why you write,
FOOTNOTES
why you self-publish.” She said, if you want to be on the New York Times bestsellers list, then traditional is the way to go. But for her, the satisfaction of writing and the ability to sell copies to friends, families and book clubs led her to make that decision. “These [book club] women love to talk about the first love,” Weinstein said. “It’s a wonderful discussion, the choices you make in your life.” And her sales have been good, 750 books in just a couple of months before she even started doing publicity. “If you have a good product, it’s going to sell,” she said. Her books are available on Amazon, on BarnesandNoble.com, and on Kindle, Sony and I-books. Weinstein said she was able to place her book at Turnberry and the Fontainebleau. She will do a book signing on June 7, 8 p.m., at Books and Books, 250 Aragon Ave. in Coral Gables. Her next book, The Mourning After, should come out in Feb. 2013.
May 29 - June 11, 2012
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May 29 - June 11, 2012
Dr. Eric Schroeder offers patients cutting-edge cardiovascular care BY NANCY EAGLETON
Heart disease is the leading cause of death in the United States. To avoid potentially life-threatening conditions, Eric Schroeder, MD, cardiologist at South Miami Cardiology, said that early detection and proper diagnosis of heart disease are key. “Many patients who have a heart attack are surprised to learn that they had an elevated, modifiable risk factor, such as high cholesterol,” Dr. Schroeder said. “It’s important to know your numbers and find out if you’re at risk for heart or cardiovascular disease.” A biometric screening performed by Dr. Schroeder will provide important information about cholesterol, blood pressure, body mass and blood sugar. “High cholesterol, at any age, is a silent killer,” Dr. Schroeder said. “Men age 50 and over, women age 60 and over, those who are overweight and those who have diabetes also face increased risk for heart disease.” Dr. Schroeder is one of four board-certified cardiologists at South Miami Cardiology, located adjacent to South Miami Hospital. South Miami Cardiology is a member of Florida Heart Care, an association of cardiologists serving South Miami Hospital, Doctors Hospital and Baptist Hospital. Dr. Schroeder joins Drs. Romeo Majano, Matthew Snow and Joshua Harris in caring for patients in all areas of cardiology, including screening, diagnosis, treatment and prevention of cardiovascular diseases. Dr. Schroeder is board certified in internal medicine, cardiology, nuclear cardiology and interventional cardiology. He has expertise in cardiac interventions, peripheral vascular disease, and structural and congenital heart disease. His extensive training and experience enable him to take a comprehensive approach to treating patients. Dr. Schroeder received his medical degree from the University of New Mexico School of Medicine. He completed a residency in internal medicine and two fellowships — in cardiology and interventional cardiology — at the University of Miami. During his fellowships, Dr. Schroeder participated in various clinical trials. As an investigator in the CoreValve U.S. Pivotal Trial, he studied a treatment for patients with severe aortic stenosis. During this trial, he trained closely with
Board-certified cardiologist Eric Schroeder, MD, recently joined South Miami Cardiology. ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––
William O’Neill, MD, executive dean for Clinical Affairs at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, and an international leader in interventional cardiology. Dr. Schroeder specializes in radial artery access for cardiac catheterization, a diagnostic test that checks the heart’s arteries and valves to find any blockages in blood flow. During a transradial cardiac catheterization, he threads the catheter through his patient’s wrist instead of the groin. Many cardiologists do not specialize in this recently developed procedure. Only 5 percent of cardiac catheterization procedures in the U.S. are performed through the radial artery, yet Dr. Schroeder uses this method with 90 percent of his patients. “There is a decreased risk of bleeding, fewer complications, improved patient safety and quicker recovery time with this method and in some studies there may be a lower mortality rate with some groups of people, such as those with acute heart attacks,” Dr. Schroeder said. His strong clinical background is complemented by a personalized approach to providing high-quality, compassionate care. “Developing a long-term doctor-patient relationship is important to my patients — and to me,” Dr. Schroeder said. “I’ve really come to like Miami. I hope that as my practice grows, I can be a valuable part of the community.” To schedule an appointment with Dr. Schroeder, call South Miami Cardiology, 7330 SW 62 Place, Suite 310, at 305-6631001. For more information, visit <www.southmiamicardiology.com>.
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Miami’s Royal Poinciana Fiesta to celebrate 75th Anniversary BY LEE STEPHENS
The Tropical Flowering Tree Society (TFTS), dedicated to the promotion, propagation, and preservation of tropical flowering trees, presents the 75th annual Royal Poinciana Fiesta, June 1-4. The Royal Poinciana Fiesta, Miami’s oldest festival, has added new events to this year’s four-day festival to help commemorate its 75th anniversary. The festival begins with a luncheon, art show and Musicale on Friday, June 1, 11:30 a.m., at the Coral Gables Museum, 285 Aragon Ave. Tickets are $25 per person and are available by calling Lynda at 305-4418589. This new event is sponsored by Coral Gables Garden Club, Coral Gables Music Club, and the Tropical Flowering Tree Society. A tree planting with TREEmendous Miami is scheduled for, Saturday June 2, 8:30 a.m., with participants meeting at the Coconut Grove Metrorail Station, SW 27th Avenue and US1. All volunteers, 18 years of age and older, are welcome to help plant flowering trees along US1 to beautify the city. For more information about the tree planting call Steve Pearson at 305-2333619. On Sunday, June 3, join the Trolley Tour to see the spectacular blooming Poinciana trees in Coral Gables and Coconut Grove. Trolley Tour departs at 1 p.m. from The Kampong, 4013 Douglas Rd. in Coconut Grove. Gates open at 11:30 a.m. The South Florida Woodturners are providing a handcrafted, turned bowl made from Poinciana wood for a silent auction. Bring your own brown bag lunch and take self-guided tour of the Kampong. Cost is $25 per person; $8 for Kampong only. Reservations are required, Call Carol at 305-258-1086. The four-day celebration wraps up on Monday, June 4, with the Fiesta at 7 p.m. at Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden, 10901 Old Cutler Rd. in Coral Gables, with hors
d’oeuvres and cocktails, and jazz by Joe Donato. The 2012 Royal Poinciana Fiesta poster artist, Lisa Remeny, as well as artists Pauline Goldsmith, Linda Apriletti, Debra Cortese, and others will be showing and selling their Poinciana-inspired art. The Fiesta will conclude with the presentations of college scholarship awards to the Royal Poinciana Queen and her Court, and the Larry Schokman Book Award. College scholarships to the Royal Poinciana Queen and two princesses are based on an application, essay, personal interview and school recommendations. Guests are invited to join a tram tour of Fairchild. TFTS members are free; $5 per person for non-members. No reservations are required. The History of the Royal Poinciana Fiesta in South Florida The Royal Poinciana Fiesta began in 1937 as a celebration of the blooming of the magnificent Royal Poinciana trees, introduced to Miami by Dr. David Fairchild, founder of the Office of Seed and Plant
Introduction of the U.S. Department of Agriculture in Washington, DC. One of oldest of these trees is planted at The Kampong, where he and his wife, Marian Bell Fairchild, youngest daughter of Alexander Graham Bell, built a home and garden. The Kampong now is one of four gardens of the National Tropical Botanic Garden. Although the Royal Poinciana trees (Delonix regia) are native to Madagascar, they are endangered in their native land as they continue to be chopped down for firewood and the land is cleared for agriculture. Here in South Florida, we plant them and celebrate their beauty with the Royal Poinciana Fiesta, sponsored by the Tropical Flowering Tree Society in cooperation with The Kampong of the National Tropical Botanic Garden. The Royal Poincianas reach their peak of bloom during the month of June in South Florida. The colors of their blossoms range from the well-known crimson to shades of orange, yellow, gold and even white. No one is sure when the first Royal
Poincianas, also known as the flamboyant, the flame tree and the peacock tree, were planted here in South Florida. According to Larry Schokman, director emeritus of The Kampong, there are more Royal Poincianas here than in Madagascar. They were a favorite of the early settlers. David Fairchild planted Royal Poincianas along Brickell Avenue in 1922. They made great shade trees for cooling the air below their branches, at a time when air conditioning was unknown. July 20, 1937 was declared to be “Royal Poinciana Day” by Miami Mayor Robert Williams. The first official “Poinciana Festival” took place the following year, 1938. In later years, motorcades were organized, speeches given and bands played. In 1940 the first “Royal Poinciana Queen” was chosen. She was Virginia Allen from the University of Miami. During the 1940s seedlings of Royal Poinciana trees were distributed to the public. For some years there was an organization that sponsored the festival, and then the Committee on Beautification and the Environment took over the sponsorship and changed the name to “Fiesta.” The Tropical Flowering Tree Society now sponsors the Fiesta and the Scholarships given to the Queen of the Poinciana Fiesta and two princesses to help local students with their college expenses. Today, the Fiesta activities educate the public about the Royal Poinciana as well as other flowering trees. The Tropical Flowering Tree Society (TFTS) was founded in Miami, in 1988, by a group of flowering tree aficionados. The non-profit group, with members from around the world, is dedicated to the promotion and preservation of tropical flowering trees. Membership is open to like-minded individuals interested in collecting, developing and spreading the word about tropical flowering trees.
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Summer Concert Series marks its 27th season BY ROBERT HAMILTON
This summer, June 7 through Aug. 16, within the Coral Gables Congregational United Church of Christ’s intimate, historic Spanish-revival style setting, concert goers will have the unique opportunity to be awed and entertained by the music industry’s most-talented and revered classical and jazz figures. These artists will perform and delight audiences on the Community Arts Program 2012 Summer Concert Series. The Community Arts Program Summer Concert Series has entertained more than 62,000 people since it began in 1985. The series has grown into a valued tradition and, more recently, part of a Community Arts Program that also provides music education to children within its Conservatory for the Arts. “The Community Arts Program (CAP) Summer Concert Series is a rare opportunity to hear world-renowned artists in the intimate and beautiful Coral Gables Congregational United Church of Christ,” said Shelton G. Berg, dean of the University of Miami’s Phillip and Patricia Frost School of Music. “The CAP Conservatory for the Arts provides high-quality music education to children, many of whom would otherwise be denied access to the wonder of music and the beauty of the artistic spirit,” he added. “We are very excited to again present a diverse and world-class lineup of artists,” says Mark Hart, executive and artistic director of the Community Arts Program. “It’s an honor to welcome concert goers from across the state and as far away as Europe, and rewarding to see the growth of our music education program for kids. In all, we’ve come to provide exceptional cultural and educationally enriching experiences for more than 3,000 children and adults each year.” The series begins on June 7 with the Preservation Hall jazz Band. By popular
Preservation Hall Jazz Band opens the Summer Concert Series on June 7. ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––
demand, Preservation Hall Jazz Band returns to the Summer Concert Series for another incredible opening, as the band celebrates its golden anniversary. The band derives its name from Preservation Hall, the venerable music venue located in the heart of New Orleans’ French Quarter. Preservation Hall Jazz Band has traveled worldwide spreading its mission to nurture and perpetuate the art form of New Orleans Jazz. Whether performing at Carnegie Hall or Lincoln Center, for British Royalty or the King of Thailand, the Preservation Hall Jazz Band embodies a joyful, timeless spirit. Once again, there is no better way to begin the Summer Concert Series than with toes a tapping and spirits a soaring. Other performances include June 21, Andrew York, classical guitarist; July 5, the world famous Glenn Miller Orchestra; July 19, Ahn Trio; Aug. 2, Roseanna Vitro,
jazz vocalist, and Aug. 16, Christian McBride Trio. Indivisual general admission tickets are $30 in advance and $35 at the door (based
on availability). Individual patron tickets are $45 in advance; $50 at the door (based on availability). Individual patron tickets include reserved general seating within the first 5-8 rows and catered pre-concert receptions. Patron Series is $240. (Save $30 and receive prime seating to all concerts. Patron Series includes opening night gala reception, reserved general seating within the first 5-8 rows, and catered preconcert gatherings). Mini-Patron Series is $170. (Save $ 10 and receive prime seating to four concerts. Choose four concerts. Mini-Patron Series includes opening night gala reception, reserved general seating within the first 5-8 rows, and catered preconcert gatherings.) Order tickets by calling 305-448-7421, ext. 153. VISA and MasterCard are accepted. For instant processing and confirmation anytime; order tickets quickly, safely, and conveniently on line at <www.CommunityArtsProgram.org>. All concerts are on Thursdays at 8 p.m. Free and convenient parking is available. Coral Gables Congregational United Church of Christ is located at 3010 De Soto Blvd. (directly across from the Biltmore Hotel in Coral Gables).
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‘SummerJazz on the Gulf’ series back at Naples Beach Hotel BY KAREN LAMONICA
A Southwest Florida tradition continues as the Naples Beach Hotel and Golf Club again will host its popular “SummerJazz on the Gulf” concert series. This will mark the 27th consecutive year of the fun, free concert series, combining a diverse selection of jazz entertainers with gorgeous views of the Gulf, exquisite sunsets, refreshing breezes, and a relaxing atmosphere. Each concert takes place on the resort’s scenic Watkins Lawn overlooking the Gulf of Mexico. “SummerJazz on the Gulf” will take place one Saturday evening per month, JuneSeptember, and each concert will be from 7 to 10 p.m. This year’s concerts will be on June 16, July 21, Aug. 25 and Sept. 22. According to Jim Anderson, food & beverage director for the Naples Beach Hotel and Golf Club and organizer of the annual concert series, the 2012 “SummerJazz on the Gulf” lineup is: • Legendary J.C.’s, June 16; • Late Night Brass, July 21; • New Groove City featuring Gumbi Ortiz, Aug. 25, and • Eight To The Bar, Sept. 22.
Legendary J.C.’s will perform on June 16. –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––
“This year we’re featuring two groups who have played SummerJazz previously, Late Night Brass and Gumbi Ortiz, now known as New Groove City featuring Gumbi Ortiz, plus two new groups that we think will put on great shows,” Anderson said. “It promises to be an excellent concert series.” Those interested in staying at the resort during “SummerJazz on the Gulf” weekends can contact the resort’s reservations department for best available rates and packages by calling 1-800-237-7600 or 1239-261-2222, or visiting online at <www.NaplesBeachHotel.com>. For those not staying at the resort there will be parking just north of the hotel at
Lowdermilk Park, with free parking provided to those with a Naples beach sticker, and free trolley service to the resort and back. Guests may bring lawn chairs or blankets for seating, however coolers are not permitted. Call 1-239-261-2222 for more information and directions. Guests attending “SummerJazz on the Gulf” should consider dining at the resort’s H.B.’s on the Gulf, the city of Naples’ only beachfront restaurant, which serves fresh Florida seafood and traditional American favorites. Patrons also can enjoy a specialty drink at the newly renovated and expanded Sunset Beach Bar & Grill, named Naples’ “Best Beach Bar” by the Travel Channel. All concerts feature full bar service in several locations and a food concession with a selection of snack items and freshly grilled burgers, hot dogs, and grilled chicken sandwiches. The Naples Beach Hotel and Golf Club, owned and operated by the Watkins family for more than 65 years, is Naples’ only beachfront resort offering on-site championship golf, a world-class spa, and an award-winning tennis center. Continually enhancing its alreadyimpressive offerings, the 317-room resort completed a $22 million renovation in 2010. The multi-phase project included the renovation of guest rooms and suites, and the addition of a $5 million all-new beachfront pool complex. On-site amenities include a fitness center, the professionally supervised Beach Kids Club child activity program, an Orchid House, multiple restaurants and bars, 34,000 square feet of indoor meeting and event space, and many beautiful outdoor venues. The resort is located at 851 Gulf Shore Blvd. North in Naples. Contact the resort at 1-800-237-7600 or 1-239-261-2222, and visit <www.NaplesBeachHotel.com>.
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Planning ahead could translate into big savings on your travel BY ALEJANDRA CASTRO NUÑEZ
If you haven’t planned a summer vacation, then now is the time to start. Planning ahead could translate into big savings. As we all know, last minute travel can be very expensive. Following are a few tips to plan your perfect trip without stretching out your wallet. Do your homework: Search for travel deals on the Internet. There are several search engines that are great resources for discounted flights, hotels, and tours. Sign up with them to receive alerts and begin receiving great travel offers. In addition, check out travel books at your local library where you can find a wealth of information for free. Statewide travel: If staying in Florida, check discounts available to Florida residents. Several amusement parks in the state offer discounted rates. If you are member of AAA, inquire about special rates. Lodging: Another way to save money on hotel stays for your vacation is by staying farther out from a city center or in a suburb near the town you’re visiting. You also can look into getting a suite with rollaway beds instead of multiple rooms for the whole family to save you big money on your hotel stay. Meals: Dining costs can go way up when you are on vacation because you are eating out for every meal. When you vacation on a budget, never leave food as something you will figure out as you walk around. You almost always end up exceeding your budget. Book a hotel room that includes breakfast and has a refrigerator. Find a local grocery store and purchase water, sodas, snacks, cold cuts, bread and bag your
lunch. You will save lots of money and instead of eating three meals out during the day, opt for just one. Entertainment and activities: Once you have your travel, hotel, and food arranged all that is left is to plan what you’re going to do on those vacation days. Again, start putting a plan in place ahead of time. Make sure to check prices, plan activities that don’t cost you an arm and a leg. Indulge in free options like visiting parks or beaches, or just take a walk through the town. Also check the local papers to see if there are any free events like art shows, festivals, and even concerts. Library Museum Pass Program: If your purse strings don’t allow for travel on planes or trains, there are plenty of free activities here in Miami-Dade County. The Miami-Dade Public Library System offers patrons free admission for a family of four to the Deering Estate at Cutler, Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden, Fruit and Spice Park, HistoryMiami, Miami Art Museum, Miami Children’s Museum, Miami Science Museum, and Vizcaya Museum and Gardens. Just visit your nearest branch library, see staff for availability and use your library card to check out a museum pass. If you are ready for a summer vacation, then there is no time like the present to plan ahead. Whatever destination you decide on, just remember one very important thing, be safe. For more consumer tips, or to check the complaint history of a company, file a complaint or ask consumer-related questions, visit the Business Affairs and Consumer Protection website at <www.miamidade.gov/csd> or call 305375-3677.
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Summer camp offers a chance for kids to learn about fishing BY ALEJANDRA CASTRO NUÑEZ
The Kids Let’s Go Fishing! program is back for this summer with the newest summer camp in Miami. The Fishing and Conservation Trust, in partnership with the Miami-Dade Cooperative Extension Sea Grant program and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission are offering three five-day fishing camps at Bayside Marketplace, Slip 24, 401 Biscayne Blvd. in downtown Miami. Dates are June 1115, July 9-13 and Aug. 6-10. Hours are 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Each camp will include mornings of educational activities and afternoons of fishing aboard the 56-foot Coast Guard approved Reward Won. Fishing styles will include: anchoring, drifting, trolling,
live-bait catching and use, and use of artificial lures. Educational activities will teach campers about ethical angling skills, boat safety, basic fishing skills for all types of fishing, fish identification and anatomy, and resource awareness. Enrollment is open for children ages 813. Each five-day session is limited to 20 attendees. The cost is $500 per session and a portion of the proceeds will go to the Fishing And Conservation Trust, a 501(c)3 Florida Not for Profit Corporation to fund fishing events for the underserved communities of Dade County. To register, call the Fishing and Conservation Trust at 305-372-9470. You can find more information on the Kids Let’s Go Fishing! Summer camp program online at <www.kidsletsgofishing.com> or by calling 305- 372-9470.
www.communitynewspapers.com
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‘Bark in the Park’ afternoon to benefit Humane Society BY ALICE FISHER
If you haven’t been to the new Marlins Park yet, here is a chance to bring your entire family — both two and four-legged members — to the ballpark, and help a worthy cause at the same time. “Bark at the Park,” which takes place on Sunday, June 10, at 1:10 p.m., invites families to watch the Miami Marlins play the Tampa Bay Rays. People tickets, including children over age 3, are $15, and doggy tickets are $10. All proceeds from the purchase of the doggy tickets go to the Humane Society of Greater Miami. To make this day even more fun, the Humane Society of Greater Miami asks guests to submit a photo of their dogs in the best Marlins’ attire and win the photo contest. Go to <www.marlins.com/bark> to submit the photo. The person with the winning photo will have his or her photo displayed on Marlins Vision, as well as receive four tickets to a future Marlins game and an autographed baseball. Tickets no longer can be purchased on the day of the game. Visit <www.marlins.com/bark> so you won’t be left out. Seats are assigned and availability is limited, so if you want to attend with friends make sure to purchase the tickets
together. To purchase an on-site garage parking pass, go to <www.marlins.com/parking> and passes are $15 per car. Also, Marlins starting pitcher Mark Buehrle and his wife, Jamie, have developed a new program called Buehrle’s Buddies, and they are asking fans to donate any new or gently used dog toys, blankets and beds at the collection bin which will be located outside of the First Base Entrance, upon entering the ballpark. All donated items at Bark at the Park on June 10 will be given to the Humane Society of Greater Miami. Marlins Park is located at 501 Marlins Way in Miami, on the site of the former Orange Bowl. Guests must enter the ballpark through the First Base Entrance (located on the corner of NW Fourth Street and 14th Avenue). Guests needing ADA accessibility should enter through the First Base Dugout Club and take the elevator to the Vista Level. Dog owners must carry their dog’s rabies certificate on them. Visit the website <www.humanesocietymiami.org> for additional information. You also can contact Laurie Hoffman by email at <laurie@humanesocietymiami.org> or calling 305-749-1815.
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Finding summer camp easier with Summer Programs Guide BY SANDRA CAMACHO
The Children’s Trust 2012 Summer Programs Guide — offering parents and caregivers free information they need to locate a fun, enriching summer camp for their child — is available online at <www.thechildrentrust.org> and in all Miami-Dade Winn-Dixie stores. Look for them, while supplies last, in specially identified racks near the front of your local store or near the customer service desk. The same information also can be accessed by calling 2-1-1, The Children’s Trust Helpline. The trilingual guide provides a comprehensive overview of available programs, whether or not they are funded by The Children’s Trust. Parents should remember that just because kids break from school, it doesn’t mean they should break from learning. Summer is a time when children often fall behind in their academics, losing as much as two months of math and reading skills. But this “summer slide” can be avoided. By enrolling kids in summer camps that appeal to their interests — such as sports, music, dance, art, theater, marine life, technology or a host of other areas — they will continue to thrive in the summer months. The key is to select a program that stimulates a child’s brain as well as their body. A reading component is required in all summer programs funded by The Children’s Trust helping to ensure that learning continues year round. Organized by geographic regions and zip codes, the guide’s list of programs includes addresses, contact information, fees, the ages of children served, and brief descriptions of hundreds of locations. The Children’s Trust-funded sites are clearly
identified. Programs are operated by mostly non-profit and faith-based organizations, as well as city and county parks and recreation departments. Trust support allows many programs to serve families for free or low cost, but once those scholarships are utilized, regular fees may apply. The Children’s Trust is the largest funder of summer, after-school, and youth development programs in Miami-Dade County, serving more than 50,000 children annually, including programs that serve children with disabilities. The Children’s Trust is a dedicated source of revenue established by voter referendum to improve the lives of children and families in Miami-Dade County.
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May 29 - June 11, 2012
Venus to make its rare transit across the Sun BY BARB YAGER
Exceptional Images for Lasting Memories Event video production and photography for all occasions www.adamsci.com Weddings / Bar and Bat Mitzvahs / Celebrations
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Venus will make its rare transit across the Sun, viewable from Earth — weather permitting — on Tuesday, June 5. In a direct lineup of Earth, Venus and the Sun, the special event will occur locally from 6:05 p.m. to 8:10 EDT (sunset) — the last time this century. First contact (ingress) when Venus arrives at the solar rim begins at 6:05 p.m. Lucky folks in the western U.S. time zones will see the entire six-hour transit. The previous Venus transit across the Sun occurred June 2004. The next Venus Transit will occur 2117. Southern Cross Astronomical Society (SCAS) will focus professional filtered high tech equipment at two free locations:
• Large western parking lot at ZooMiami, 12400 SW 152 St. • FIU rooftop parking garage west side of SW 109th Avenue and Eighth Street. Never look directly at the Sun without correct eye protection. A retina burn could result in permanent blindness. For solar eclipses use #14 welders glass or solar glasses. Sunglasses do not provide safe eye protection. Never look at the Sun through unfiltered binoculars or telescopes. SCAS provides professional filtered solarscopes for special events and Saturdays, 10 a.m.-noon, all year at the waterfall entrance to ZooMiami. For more information, call 305-6611375 or visit online at <www.scas.org>.
www.communitynewspapers.com
Warriors Baseball Camp Formally
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June 25-29 • July 16-20 • July 30-Aug 3 Time: 9:00 am-12:00 pm (Full Day is available thru Camp Westminster) Ages 5-13 CAMP DIRECTORS:
Jorge Fabregas 9 year major league career,World Series Champion University of Miami Baseball Hall of Famer
Emil Castellanos - Head Coach Westminster Christian High School
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Westminster Christian School is located in Palmetto Bay 6855 SW 152 St.
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S. Fla. Folklife Center presents Artist-in-Residence James Kelly
Irish fiddler James Kelly
BY VICTORIA CERVANTES
HistoryMiami’s South Florida Folklife Center recently announced that James Kelly, a world-renowned Irish fiddler, will be featured as part of the Heritage Spotlight Series. The series is an artist-in-residence program that showcases local traditional artists and cultural expressions. “James Kelly is a hidden gem in South Florida’s cultural landscape,” said Michael Knoll, HistoryMiami folklorist. “We are honored to be showcasing James, his incredible talent, and the traditional culture of Ireland.” Kelly’s residency continues until June and will include a special presentation on the history of Irish music from the mid-1600s to the 1960s on June 2. Visit HistoryMiami’s website at <www.historymiami.org> for a complete schedule of performances. A native of Ireland, Kelly is a renowned Irish fiddler. He learned the fiddling tradition from his father, a respected musician from
County Clare. James has since toured three continents and, in 2006, was named “Irish Musician of the Year” by Ireland’s Irish-language television station, TG4. He also has been a recipient of the Florida Folk Heritage Award (2001) and the Florida Individual Artist Fellowship. He moved from Dublin to Miami in 1984. The Heritage Spotlight Series has been funded by grants from the Knight Foundation, National Endowment for the Arts, State of Florida, Department of State, Division of Cultural Affairs and Florida Council on Arts and Culture, and Florida Humanities Council. HistoryMiami is the premier cultural institution celebrating Miami’s history as the unique crossroads of the Americas. This is accomplished through exhibitions, city tours, education, research, collections and publications. Visit <www.historymiami.org> to learn more. For general inquiries, call 305-375-1492 or send email to <e.info@historymiami.org>.
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May 29 - June 11, 2012
Zoofari summer camp offers fun, education at Zoo Miami BY CINDY CASTELBLANCO
Children ages 4-13 can enjoy a funfilled, educational Zoofari summer camp at Zoo Miami, 12400 SW 152 St., designed to immerse them into the world of wildlife through animal encounters, interactions with zookeepers, exciting games, and the creation of special treats for zoo animals. Weekly themed interactive presentations involve animal biofacts, such as skulls, teeth and skins and Banfield Pet Hospital FutureVets program presentations. Monorail trips, carousel rides, arts and crafts, playtime in the playgrounds are also included in the fun.
Camp dates are June 18-Aug. 10, Monday through Friday, 9 a.m.-4 p.m., with 8:30 a.m. drop off. Extended care is available until 5:30 p.m. for $35 per week Pre-registration is required and space is limited. Morning and afternoon snacks provided. Campers must bring their own lunches with drinks from home. Cost is $190 per week per child and $170 per week per child for Zoological Society members. To register or for more information on discounts, camp scholarships and weekly themes, visit <www.zoomiami.org> or call the Zoological Society of Floridaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Education Department at 305-255-5551. Emails can be sent to <zoocamp@zsf.org>.
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Dodge unveils new Dart compact to South Florida automotive media
Dodge design head Joe Dehner tells members of the Southern Automotive Media Association about the finer points (Photo by Emerito Pujol) of the new Dodge Dart. –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––
BY RON BEASLEY
Dodge executives brought the all-new and much-anticipated 2013 Dart to Miami recently and previewed it for the South Florida automotive media during a luncheon in the trendy Wynwood Art district of Miami. Dodge is expecting great sales performance from the compact Dart. It’s the first product off the production line in the partnership between Chrysler and Fiat, and the Dart label recalls a legendary Dodge nameplate from decades past. A four-member team of top-level Dodge executives was dispatched to Miami to unveil the beautiful new Dart for members of the Southern Automotive Media Association (SAMA), including Joe Dehner, chief of Dodge and Ram exterior design. Dehner told the group that the new Dart is built on a modified Alpha Romeo Giulietta platform. “The Dodge Dart was a dream to design,” Dehner said. “The Alfa Romeo-
based architecture allowed us to design an exterior with great proportions that say ‘fun-to-drive’ when you look at it. Add in the Charger-inspired ‘racetrack’ tail lamps, a new, sleek crosshair grille and piano black accents, and it all adds up to a performance-inspired design with just the right amount of attitude.” The new Dart will be offered in 12 exterior colors and 14 interior colors, and available in five trim levels — SE, SXT, Rallye, Limited and R/T. There are three state-of-the art, fuel-efficient engine options — a new 160 hp Tigershark 2.0liter engine, a 160 hp 1.4-liter turbo engine, and a new 184 hp 2.4-liter fourcylinder engine. The engines will be mated to one of three transmission choices — a six-speed manual, six-speed automatic or six-speed dual dry clutch (DDCT) gearbox. The new Dart will be built at Chrysler’s assembly plant in Belvidere, IL and begin to hit U.S. showrooms in early June with a base price of $15,995.
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United Way of Miami-Dade will honor five community leaders and one outstanding young person whose works have had real and lasting impact in the community during its Annual Meeting and Volunteer Awards Program on Wednesday, June 13, noon, at Jungle Island Treetop Ballroom, 1111 Parrot Jungle Trail on Watson Island. For the first time a new award will be presented, the United Way Icon of Philanthropy Award, to Adrienne Arsht. Also, a new slate of officers, directors and trustees will be selected. In addition to Arsht, honorees include: Sheldon Anderson, a Miami-Dade native and business leader who exemplifies volunteerism and commitment to bringing hope, promise and opportunity into the lives of others;
Guarione M. Diaz, an established author and activist who has dedicated his life’s work to building bridges for minorities in this country; D r. Robert D. Nolan, a leading authority and advocate for children’s mental health services who is devoted to improving the lives of children, and Ted Granger, a community leader who tirelessly advocates at the state level to improve services for children, families and older adults. The Outstanding Youth Award, which recognizes an individual 18 years of age or younger for leadership, commitment and character through service and volunteerism, will be announced during the ceremony. Individual tickets are $50 each and a table of 10 is $500. RSVP by Monday, June 4, with Chantell King at <kingc@unitedwaymiami.org> or 305646-7021.
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Girls to find empowerment at ‘GEM’ Summer Arts Camp BY LAURA PHILLIPS
The Miami-Dade Parks, Recreation and Open Spaces Department invites girls ages 11-16 to register for its “GEM” (Girls Empowerment and Mentoring) Summer Arts Camp, conducted at the Women’s Park, 10251 Flagler St. in Miami, June 18Aug. 17, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., MondayFriday. The curriculum for this popular, innovative summer arts camp incorporates the Women’s Park vision of preserving and promoting the contributions of women to the Miami-Dade community and the arts. Classes and workshops for the 2012 GEM Summer Arts Camp include: Dance (modern jazz, lyrical, ballroom, and AfroCuban); Theater (improvisation, public speaking and acting); Music (instrumental and chorus); Visual Arts (painting, arts and crafts, fashion design, and textile arts); Literary Arts and Women’s Studies. Participants will receive professional mentoring and learn leadership skills to help them achieve their personal best. Field
trips to local museums, cultural events and arts festivals are included. “The transition from being a young girl to becoming a young woman in today’s world can be very challenging,” said Vivian Greer-Digon, GEM coordinator and manager. “Miami-Dade Parks’ GEM draws upon the arts as a tool for developing creativity and self-expression, encouraging girls to realize their potential and take steps toward achieving their dreams.” During the nine-week summer program campers will receive guidance and access to resources, as well as social and emotional support from GEM partnering mentors, which include professional women representatives from the Miami-Dade County School Board; Miami-Dade College InterAmerican Campus; Barry University, and the Museum of Contemporary Art. The cost for the camp is $75 per week, plus a one-time annual registration fee of $12 (includes early drop-off at 7:30 a.m. and late pickup until 6 p.m.) Class space is limited. To register for this program, call 305-480-1717.
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May 29 - June 11, 2012
2013 CX-5 is Mazda’s ‘wave of the future’ for autos
Ron Beasley LET’S TALK CARS There’s a new addition to the Mazda family — the all-new 2013 CX-5 compact crossover SUV. It’s the first vehicle to fully incorporate all of Mazda’s new wave-ofthe-future SKYACTIV technologies. Mazda claims the CX-5 delivers the best highway fuel economy of any SUV sold in North America at 35 mpg on the highway. The CX-5 replaces the Mazda Tribute as the smallest vehicle in the Mazda crossover lineup, which also includes the CX-7 and CX-9. The CX-5 is based on a new platform and includes new suspension, brakes and interior, and shares a new engine and transmission with the 2012 Mazda 3. SKYACTIV Technology is the new Mazda philosophy aimed at draining more power, torque and miles per gallon from a vehicle without sacrificing economy, design or safety. The CX-5 is the first Mazda global vehicle to receive all of the
SKYACTIV Technology components. Weighing just 3,208 pounds, the CX-5 is one of the lightest vehicles in the segment. The CX-5 wheelbase measures 106.3 inches, making it longer than the 2012 Honda CR-V and the 2013 Ford Escape. On the inside, it’s roomy and comfortable, and rear seating can accommodate three six-foot passengers. Cargo space is ample, especially with the triple-section split fold-flat rear seat in the down position. The instrument panel is stylish and functional and the gauges easy to read. The CX-5 is nicely finished, functionally laid out and offers such options as Bluetooth, a Bose sound system with HD radio, backup camera, adaptive bi-xenon headlights and blind-spot warning system. Under the hood, the CX-5 has Mazda’s newest powerplant, a high-compression 2liter four-cylinder engine that makes 155 hp and 150 pounds-feet of torque at 4,000 rpm. Later this year, a 2.2-liter turbodiesel engine will be available as an option. A six-speed manual transmission on front-drive versions yields EPA estimates of 26/33 mpg, while the six-speed automatic delivers 26/32 mpg. All-wheel drive is available only with the automatic and rates
Mazda’s CX-5 has new fivepoint “signature wing” front grille that dominates the front fascia and wraparound eagle-eyed headlights.
25/30 mpg. The towing capacity is rated at 2,000 pounds. The CX-5 has a new five-point “signature wing” front grille that commands the front fascia and wraparound eagle-eyed headlights extend outward to give it something of an angry look. Dark plastic along the entire lower section adds to the machismo of the vehicle. Standard safety offerings include six airbags (front, side and full side-curtain), four wheel disk brakes, anti-lock brakes (ABS), daytime running lights (DRL), Dynamic Stability Control (DSC), a Traction Control System
(TCS) and a tire pressure monitoring system (TPMS). Also available are a Blind Spot Monitoring (BSM) system, Adaptive Front-lighting System (AFS) with auto-leveling bi-xenon headlamps and a rear view camera with distance guidelines. Base pricing on the 2013 Mazda CX-5 ranges from $22,095 to $28,295. Ron Beasley is the automotive editor for Miami’s Community Newspapers. He may be contacted by calling 305-662-2277, ext. 261, or by addressing email correspondence to <LetsTalkCars@aol.com>.
May 29 - June 11, 2012
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CORPORATE APPROVED
A Personal Touch Fitness Sensitive Personal Training
• NCSF Certified Sibyl Adams • Reiki Master • Post Rehab Training • Functional Training for Older Adults All ages and fitness levels welcome Fitness blogger for seniority matters.com
sibyladams@comcast.net
Phone: 786.395.1588
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