Gulfshore LIfe August 2019

T H E B E S T O F P A R A D I S E T H E B E S T O F P A R A D I S E

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M E E T T H E S I X E N V I R O N M E N TA L HEROES WHO ARE PROTECTING OUR GORGEOUS COAST

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+ G L ’s F i r s t P h o t o C o n t e s t / B r a i n y B e a c h R e a d s A Guide to Bayshore District

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WIDE WATER VIEWS 330 NEPTUNES BIGHT $5,995,000

PARK SHORE

LAKE & FAIRWAY VIEWS 9976 BRASSIE BEND $4,490,000

BAY COLONY GOLF CLUB

NEW CONSTRUCTION 3530 FORT CHARLES DRIVE $10,950,000

PORT ROYAL

DISCOVER COASTAL LUX URY LIVING AT MICHAE L L AWL ER.COM

FOL LOW US ON FACE B OOK & I N STAGR A M

@MichaelLawlerRealEstate

@Michael.Lawler

Sotheby’s International Realty® and the Sotheby’s International Realty logo are registered service marks used with permission. Each office is independently owned and operated. Equal Housing Opportunity.

Property information herein is derived from various sources including, but not limited to, county records and multiple listing services, and may include approximations. All information is deemed accurate.

Michael G. Lawler, P.A. | 800 Harbour Dr. | Naples, FL 34103 | 239.261.3939

BAY COLONY SHORES

NEW CONSTRUCTION 339 CROMWELL COURT $8,995,000

D I S C O V E R

L U X U R Y

Lakefront living has never been better at Vista WildBlue, Lennar’s newest community.

Have your own waterfront getaway complete with unparalleled resort-style amenities.

Conveniently located off Corkscrew Road in one of Southwest Florida’s most desirable locations.

AMENITIES

COMING

SOON

Sports Club

• Basketball

• Lap & Aerobic Pool

• Playground

• Pickleball

• Yoga Lawn

• Boat Launch

• Tennis Center

• Sports Center

• Kayak Launch

• Tennis Pro Shop

• Aerobic Classroom

• Bocce & Horseshoes

• Fitness Equipment/Exercise

• Social Deck

• Spa & Pedi-Manicure

• Resort Pool

• Event Lawn

• Beach & Cabanas • Pool Café & Bar • Social Center • Member’s Pub • Dining Room • Private Dining Room

877-45-LENNAR | LennarSWFL.com

Existing and proposed amenities for the community are subject to changes, substitutions and/or deletions without notice. Lennar makes no representation or guarantee that the community or any amenities will be built out as currently planned. Photographs and images depict the community as of the dates taken. Photographs and images are solely for illustrative purposes and sh or may be incomplete or inaccurate. The present, future of proposed roads, easements, land uses, conditions, plat maps, lot sizes or layouts, zoning, drainage, land conditions, or development of any type may or may not change in the future. It is not uncommon that any of the foregoing can change without notice to you. You should never rely on the accuracy of photographs or v information, disclosures and disclaimers related to the home and its features. Please see your New Home Consultant and home purchase agreement for actual features designated as an Everything’s Included feature, additional information, disclosures, and disclaimers relating to your home and its features. Plans are artist’s renderings and may contain options which are not standard of the square footage size of any home is a shorthand description of the manner in which the square footage was estimated and should not be construed to indicate certainty. Garage sizes may vary from home to home and may not accommodate all vehicles. Models/lifestyle photos do not reflect racial or ethnic preference. All maps are not to scale, and are for relative location pu Wi-Fi Alliance’s website at www.wi-fi.org for additional information regarding the Wi-Fi Certified Home Design program. The Wi-Fi Alliance also certifies home designs after review of a home floor plan which may occur after your closing. Wireless performance in homes will vary due to design changes, construction changes, placement of furnishings and appliances, usage, and loca all homeowner needs. Homeowners are also responsible for configuring all security features. Lennar does not warrant or represent that any network or network device is secure or can prevent all privacy intrusions, malware, or cyber-attacks, even when correctly configured. Certain products or services are provided by Amazon, and not Lennar. Amazon is responsible for all suc details and important legal disclaimers. This is not an offer in states where prior registration is required. Void where prohibited by law. Copyright © 2019 Lennar Corporation, Lennar, the Lennar logo, WCI, the WCI logo, Everything’s Included and the Everything’s Included logo are U.S. registered service marks or service marks of Lennar Corporation and/or its subsidiaries. LENNAR HO

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hould never be relied upon. The past, present, future of proposed roads, easements, land uses, conditions, plat maps, lot sizes or layouts, zoning, utilities, drainage, land conditions, or development of any type whatsoever, whether reflected in the photographs/video, or whether outside the boundaries of the photographs/video, may not be shown videos in making any decisions relative to purchasing any property. We reserve the right to make changes at any time without notice. Elevations of a home may vary and we reserve the right to substitute and /or modify design and materials, in our sole opinion and without notice. Please see your actual home purchase agreement for additional d on all models. Lennar reserves the right to make changes to plans and elevations without prior notice. Stated dimensions and square footage are approximate and should not be used as representation of the home’s precise or actual size. Any statement, verbal or written, regarding “under air� or “finished area� or any other description or modifier urposes only. Features, amenities, floor plans, elevations, square footage and designs vary per plan and community and are subject to changes or substitution without notice. Price subject to change without notice. Lennar’s automated homes are built according to the Wi-Fi Alliance’s program guidelines for Wi-Fi Certified Home Designs. See the al conditions. Network performance will be affected by network configuration, the number of users and the type of use. Homeowners are responsible for providing their own Internet connection and determining their own bandwidth needs, which may vary. Lennar does not guarantee that networks, equipment or services will meet ch services and products, and Lennar does not guarantee any equipment or services provided by Amazon. Additional disclosures and disclaimers relating to The Connected Home program will apply. See your purchase agreement and related disclosures for details. Visit Lennar.com or see a Lennar New Home Consultant for further OMES LLC CBC038894 and CGC1523282. LENNAR REALTY INC (CQ1013633) 6/19.

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1620 Dolphin Court | JUST SOLD | List Price $5,750,000

711 Bobwhite Lane // $4,200,000

810 Bentwood Drive | JUST SOLD | List Price $5,295,000

838 10th Street South #102 // $895,000

DonWinklerNaples.com NAVIGATING YOUR REAL ESTATE TRANSACTION WITH EASE Contact me today to schedule your complimentary consultation.

Don.Winkler@PremierSIR.com // 239.961.2166

Sotheby’s International Realty® and the Sotheby’s International Realty logo are registered service marks used with permission. Each office is independently owned and operated. Equal Housing Opportunity.

Property information herein is derived from various sources including, but not limited to, county records and multiple listing services, and may include approximations. All information is deemed accurate.

CON T EN TS

|

FE AT U R E S

08.2019

ON THE COVER Photographer Brian Tietz Stylist Matthew Kritis Model Marlaina Pate, CGM Models HMUA Bryin, Agency Gerard, using Stare Cosmetics and Sexy Hair products; all skincare by Dermalogica. Photo Assistants Kevin Bires, Toni Palumbo, Ava Tietz All clothing & scarf: Brunello Cucinelli Earrings: Sylva & Cie., Marissa Collections Necklace: Sevan Bicakci, Marissa Collections Boots: Stylist’s own Hat: Stylist’s own Location: Imperial Marsh Preserve, Estero

66 DEFENDERS OF THE GULF

BRIAN TIETZ

Six nature-loving Southwest Floridians are doing their part to protect our watersheds, trails and wildlife­—and inspiring others to do the same.

By Jennifer Reed 8 | GULFSHORE LIFE

gulfshorelife.com

INTERIOR DESIGN | FINE FURNITURE | ART | ACCESSORIES

326 13th Avenue South, Naples, FL 34102

239.649.0906

www.baydesignstore.com

CON T EN TS

|

FE AT U R E S

60

74

GL 2019 PHOTO CONTEST

COMEDY: IT'S LIKE GOING INTO A BULLFIGHT. NAKED.

A picture's worth a thousand words. For our first photo contest, we asked readers to share what they love about the Gulf in one image.

FROM LEFT: BRIAN TIETZ; BLAINE JOHNATHAN

08.2019

For Fort Myers-based comedian Mariannette Torres, bearing her soul is a part of the gig.

By Artis Henderson

10 | GULFSHORE LIFE

gulfshorelife.com

OPHTHALMOLOGY

YOU CAN

TRUST

PA-C

77 8TH STREET SOUTH, SUITE B • NAPLES, FL 34102 • 239.325.2015 • GINSBERGEYE.COM

CON T EN TS D E PA R T M E N T S

08.2019

47

RIGHT NOW 29

29 SOUNDBITE

The Woodwork, a Naples quartet, draws from nature and the singer's Latin heritage to create modern jazzy tunes.

32

People to know and things to do in Southwest Florida's arts scene.

34 FOOD REVIEW

Ginger Bistro—which recently opened its second location in Lee County—delivers on authentic dim sum and Cantonese barbecue.

Philanthropist JANET

COHEN plays it from the

36 RAISE A GLASS

Hard cider is having a moment as the ultimate gluten-free, low-alcohol summer sipper.

38 GOING PLACES

Take a mini road trip to Fort Lauderdale to tap into the city's growing art, spa and food offerings.

42 WEEKEND PLAN

Once seedy, Bayshore District, in Naples, is now vibrant with a solid roster of restaurants and cultural attractions.

12 | GULFSHORE LIFE

52 PLAYERS

heart when it comes to her giving.

44 STYLE POINTS

Animal prints are still fierce and now come in fresh shapes and styles.

46 SHOP LOCAL

Furniture designer TOMMIE MULLANEY, of Mullaney Woodworks, makes sleek pieces with a mid-century modern feel.

56 GULFSHORE EXPLORER

Columnist MICHAEL KORB discovers the many wonders—from abundant wildlife to Spam-themed parties—of Marco Island.

50 BOOKS

Add these titles—all with Florida ties—to your summer reading list.

gulfshorelife.com

FROM LEFT: BRIAN TIETZ; POOL REFLECTIONS BY EMILY JAMES; COURTESY OF THE WOODWORK

32 ARTS WORLD

William Figlesthaler, MD

• • • • •

E. Richard Grieco, MD

Harold Tsai, MD

Paulos Yohannes, MD

Same day appointments for acute or urgent problems On staff at both NCH and Physician’s Regional hospitals Both men and women treated Confidential second opinions welcome Medicare and most insurances accepted

3 CONVENIENT LOCATIONS:

11181 Health Park Blvd., Suite 1115, Naples, FL 34110 8340 Collier Blvd., Suite 207, Naples, FL 34114 1839 San Marco Rd., Marco Island, FL 34145

www.encoreurology.com • info@encoreurology.com • (239) 597-4440

CON T EN TS D E PA R T M E N T S

08.2019

125

HOME 109 STYLISH LIVING

In Sanibel, one family perfects the contemporary coastal look.

26

119 HEALTHY LIFE

Five things you can do on a stand-up paddleboard and other events to keep you fit in August.

IN EVERY ISSUE 22 FROM THE EDITOR

125 DINING GUIDE

26 GULFSHORE TREASURES

GL food editor, DOROTHEA HUNTER SÖNNE, recommends 150 great restaurants in Lee and Collier counties.

The best of paradise, captured in a photo.

144 PARTING SHOT

Looking back at one of GL's earliest covers.

119

Volume 49/Number 8, August 2019, Gulfshore Life (ISSN 0745-0079) is published monthly, 12 times a year, by Gulfshore Life LLC, 1421 Pine Ridge Road, Suite 100, Naples, FL 34109. Subscription price is $19.95 per year. For customer service inquiries, subscription inquiries or to change your address by providing both the old and new addresses, contact: Subscription Department, Gulfshore Life, PO Box 16147, North Hollywood, CA 91615-6147. Telephone (818) 286-3160 or email subscriptions@gulfshorelife.com.

Periodicals postage paid at Naples, Fla., and at additional mailing offices. Copyright 2019 by Gulfshore Life Media, LLC, Library of Congress Card No. 8538973. No part of this publication may be reproduced without written permission from the publisher.

Unsolicited manuscripts without return postage will not be returned. DISCLAIMER: Advertisements in the publication do not constitute an offer for sale in states where prohibited or restricted by law.

P O S T M A S T E R : Please send address changes to Gulfshore Life, P.O. Box 16147, North Hollywood, CA 91615-6147.

14 | GULFSHORE LIFE

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FROM LEFT: CARONCHI PHOTOGRAPHY; BRIAN TIETZ; GETTY

A note from our editor.

APPETITE

THROUGH TIRELESS EFFORT AND PERSONAL

DEDICATION ,

FINEMARK HAS PROVIDED US WITH OUR PATHWAY TO FINANCIAL SECURITY. DEANA & JEFF HENN, MD Board Certified Neurosurgeon

Fort Myers • Bonita Springs • Charleston • Estero • Naples • Palm Beach • Scottsdale www.finemarkbank.com • 239-461-5900 • Member FDIC • Equal Housing Lender

Trust and investment services are not FDIC insured, are not guaranteed by the bank and may lose value.

CON T R I BU TOR S 08.2019

MEET THE JUDGES OF OUR PHOTO CONTEST P. 60

See his work on pp.

26, 47, 52, 66 + 74

ARTIS HENDERSON After spending most of her adult life in places like New York, Paris and Dakar, the writer returned home to Florida. Her first book, Unremarried Widow, was published in 2014.

LANE NIESET The Florida-born journalist lives part-time in Paris and covers luxury lifestyle and travel for pubs such as T Magazine, Bloomberg Pursuits and National Geographic.

Read her on pp. 30,

38 + 47

DIANE RICE Currently the Director of Photography at Newsweek, Rice has also been a judge and portfolio reviewer for PhotoPlus Expo, Society of Publication Designers and NYPA, among others.

SEAN JOHNSTON Working as Group Creative Director for Bonnier Corporation, Johnston oversees the creative direction for iconic brands, like Field & Stream, Popular Science, Saveur and Outdoor Life.

TODD M. DETWILER The creative professional is a brand ambassador and produces content for industry leaders such as The New York Times, Apple, Disney, Nike, ESPN, Wired and The Wall Street Journal.

KRISTEN HILL The Photo Editor for Gulfshore Life and Luxury magazines, Hill is an ASME winning media professional who has also collaborated with National Geographic Adventure, Outside and Saveur.

Read her on pp. 34,

52 + 74

16 | GULFSHORE LIFE

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FROM LEFT: BRIAN TIETZ; PIERRE TURTAUT; COURTESY OF ARTIS HENDERSON

BRIAN TIETZ A regular contributor to Gulfshore Life, Tietz is a versatile commercial and editorial photographer that specializes in portraits and lifestyle images.

DR. MICHAEL HELTON IS ACCEPTING NEW PATIENTS. Michael Helton, M.D., board-certified internal medicine physician, has joined Physicians Regional Medical Group. Dr. Helton is committed to helping his patients live healthier lives, and provides comprehensive care for patients ages 18 and older. His care includes treatment for diabetes, arthritis, COPD, hypertension and gastrointestinal issues, among other conditions.

And great news! Same-day appointments are often available.

Schedule your appointment online at DrHeltonPCP.com, or call 239-237-3256.

MEET YOUR NEW

PARTNER IN HEALTHY LIVING. Michael Helton, M.D. Board-Certified Internal Medicine Physician

8340 Collier Blvd., Naples, FL 34114 Member of the Medical Staff of Physicians Regional Healthcare System.

Interim Editor-In-Chief

Stephanie Granada

EVENTS & CATERING ➢Authentic Traditional French Crêpes ➢Savory And Sweet ➢Batters And Fillings Homemade ➢Vegetarian And Gluten Free Options ➢Catering Available

Creative Director Jerry Pomales EDITOR IAL Managing Editor Cayla Childs Senior Writer Jennifer Reed Food and Wine Editor Dorothea Hunter Sönne Contributing Writers Stephanie Davis, Artis Henderson, Michael Korb, Janine Zeitlin DIG ITAL Digital Media Manager Justin Paprocki CUS TOM PUB LISHING Managing Editor of Custom Publications Michael Oricchio Staff Writer of Custom Publications Tess Raines AR T Associate Art Director Felipe Echeverria Photo Editor Kristen McClarty Hill Contributing Art Director Dave Weaver

Follow Us On Facebook!

ADVER TISING Associate Publisher Kimberley Evans Marketing Consultants Elizabeth Goodman Wendy Tooley Mindy Roosa Amy Gihuly Michelle Meltesen

MaPetiteCreperie@yahoo.com

239-319-9865

NATIONAL ADVER TISING SALE Free Agent Media Jeffrey Greif , Thom Meintel (212) 213-1155 MARK ETING Marketing and Events Manager Rachel Galante Digital and Marketing Intern Claudia Witczak CIRCUL ATION Director of Audience Development Kerri Nolan PRODUC TION Production Manager Martha Leavitt Production Services Manager Ankita Joshi ADM INIS TR ATION Controller Marcia Jaquith Advertising Services Manager/Reprint Sales Kathleen Hill

Gulfshore Life adheres to American Society of Magazine Editors guidelines, which require a clear distinction between editorial content and paid advertising or marketing messages. ©Gulfshore Life Media LLC. All rights reserved. 1421 Pine Ridge Road, Suite 100​, Naples, FL 34109

M AT T D E V I T T M E T E O R O LO G I ST

Gul​fshore Life and Gulfshore Life Media LLC retain exclusive rights to all editorial and photographic materials used, which cannot be reproduced in any manner without written consent.

18 | GULFSHORE LIFE

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COMMUNITY ADVISORY BOARD

Denise Cobb

CHAIR, COMMUNITY ADVISORY BOARD TRUSTEE, NAPLES CHILDREN & EDUCATION FOUNDATION 2000 WOMAN OF THE YEAR

Lydia Black

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, ALLIANCE FOR THE ARTS 2016 WOMAN OF THE YEAR

Scott Burgess

PRESIDENT AND CEO, DAVID LAWRENCE CENTER 2018 MAN OF THE YEAR

Mary Susan Clinton

TRUSTEE, NAPLES CHILDREN & EDUCATION FOUNDATION FOUNDER, GALLIEN GLOBAL VISION INC. 2002 WOMAN OF THE YEAR

Todd E. Gates

CHAIRMAN, GATES 2003 MAN OF THE YEAR

Gail Markham

FOUNDING PARTNER, MARKHAM NORTON MOSTELLER WRIGHT & COMPANY 2011 WOMAN OF THE YEAR

Jacke McCurdy

VICE PRESIDENT, JOSEPH E. SEAGRAM & SON INC. (RET.) 2006 WOMAN OF THE YEAR

Sarah Owen

CEO, SOUTHWEST FLORIDA COMMUNITY FOUNDATION 2012 WOMAN OF THE YEAR

Elliott H. Singer

MANAGING DIRECTOR AND FOUNDER, FAIRVIEW ADVISORS TRUSTEE, NAPLES CHILDREN & EDUCATION FOUNDATION MEMBER-AT-LARGE

Adria Starkey

PRESIDENT, COLLIER, FINEMARK NATIONAL BANK & TRUST, TRUSTEE, NAPLES CHILDREN & EDUCATION FOUNDATION 2000 WOMAN OF THE YEAR

Shelly Stayer

PRESIDENT/CO-OWNER, JOHNSONVILLE FOODS INC. 2013 WOMAN OF THE YEAR

Sandra Stilwell Youngquist

OWNER AND CEO, STILWELL ENTERPRISES 2006 WOMAN OF THE YEAR

Honorary Member: Frank Haskell FOUNDER, BARBARA’S FRIENDS 2004 MAN OF THE YEAR

Honorary Member: Garrett Richter PRESIDENT AND CEO, FIRST FLORIDA INTEGRITY BANK 1999 MAN OF THE YEAR

GULFSHORE LIFE | 19

R E A DE R SE RV IC E S OFFICE ADDRESS:

1421 Pine Ridge Road, Suite 100 Naples, FL 34109 Phone: (239) 449-4111 Website: gulfshorelife.com Email: info@gulfshorelife.com SUBSCRIPTIONS:

Your subscription includes 12 issues of Gulfshore Life a year plus the Southwest Florida Guide to the Arts in November.

If you have a question about your subscription, call us at (818) 286-3110; write to Subscription Services, Gulfshore Life, PO Box 16147, North Hollywood, CA 91615-6147; email subscriptions@gulfshorelife.com; or visit gulfshorelife.com.

GIFT SUBSCRIPTIONS:

Use the postage-paid bind-in card in every issue, call (818) 286-3110 or order online at gulfshorelife.com. We will send a gift announcement card to the recipient.

2 - F O R -1 A R T S CO U P O N S :

As part of November’s Southwest Florida Guide to the Arts, subscribers receive dozens of 2-for1 coupons to cultural events and performances at venues throughout Charlotte, Collier, Lee, Manatee and Sarasota counties.

CHANGE OF ADDRESS:

Send the old and new addresses and a mailing label, if possible, to Gulfshore Life, PO Box 16147, North Hollywood, CA 91615-6147. You may also visit gulfshorelife.com or call (818) 286-3110.

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Order online at gulfshorelife.com, purchase by mail for $8.90 post paid or at our office for $4.95 each plus tax, or call (239) 449-4129.

VEHICLE FORTRESS

REPRINTS:

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LET TERS:

Send letters to Gulfshore Life, 1421 Pine Ridge Road, Suite 100, Naples, FL 34109; or visit gulfshorelife.com. Include full name, address and phone number. Letters will be edited for length and clarity. © Copyright Gulfshore Life is published by Gulfshore Life Media, LLC. The entire document of Gulfshore Life is © 2019 by Gulfshore Life Media, LLC. No portion may be reproduced in whole or in part by any means, including electronic retrieval systems without the express written permission of the publisher. Along the Gulfshore, Best of the Gulfshore, Design Yearbook, Discover Southwest Florida, Gulfshore Dining, Gulfshore Galleries, Gulfshore Shopping, Men and Women of the Year and The White Party are copyrighted service marks and are the property of Gulfshore Life, all rights reserved. Editorial content does not necessarily reflect the opinions of the publisher of this magazine. Editorial or advertising does not constitute advice but it is considered informative.

Gulfshore Life is locally operated. Occasionally we make our subscriber list available to carefully screened companies that offer products and services that we believe would interest our readers. If you do not want to receive these offers, please advise us at Gulfshore Life, PO Box 16147, North Hollywood, CA 91615-6147. Please include your name and address as it appears on the mailing label of your most recent issue.

20 | GULFSHORE LIFE

WHERE

Beautiful Homes

BEGIN

AWARD-WINNING INTERIOR DESIGN SERVICES | FINE FURNITURE | UNIQUE ACCESSORIES NORRISFURNITURE.COM | FORT MYERS • NAPLES • SARASOTA • SANIBEL

F ROM THE E DI TOR 08.2019

COAST TO COAST

GUTTER CREDIT

Growing up on Florida’s east coast, my family and I would often make the drive across Alligator Alley. We’d come for annual family reunions that would stretch out for days on Marco Island. We’d drive over on a whim for the afternoon when my mom wanted to go to a pretty beach. Not that Fort Lauderdale and Miami don’t have pretty beaches, mind you.

They just don’t quite compare to the Gulf’s sugar sand swaths. In college, I’d come down from UF to meet the family on weekend fishing trips. I’d join them for one morning on the water, and the rest of the time I’d break away to window shop in downtown Naples. Every time, I was charmed by the locals’ hospitality and the easy elegance of the man-made and natural surroundings.

When we try to distinguish what it is that makes this place a paradise, we find it goes beyond the sabal palm-lined boardwalks and golden marshes (though the scenery sure doesn’t hurt). The region’s beauty lies in everything from the 24-year-old furniture designer with the skill of a seasoned builder to the 93-year-old philanthropist who gives wholeheartedly and without much fanfare. It’s in the up-and-coming neighborhoods like Bayshore District, an area where few would venture a decade ago but is now buzzing with new restaurants and art initiatives. Go to a neighbor’s home, and you’ll find paradise there, too—especially if your neighbor happens to live in the seaside stunner featured in our “Sanibel Select” story (p. 109). The truth is, down here, paradise is everywhere. Just look at the results of our photo contest (p. 60), which turned up such inspired images as a gator creeping up through the surface near one of the boardwalks at Corkscrew Swamp and a scarlet-tinged sunset view of the iconic Naples Pier. It makes sense that the six people in our “Defenders of the Gulf” feature (p. 66) are fighting so darn hard to protect the area’s wild spaces and green future.

Since arriving earlier this summer, I’ve been able to appreciate Southwest Florida through fresh eyes. I’ve gone out for lobster rolls at Celebration Park, spent a day beach hopping in Sanibel and Captiva, made new friends sitting at the bar at The Continental and caught an impromptu jazz set on a downtown Fort Myers sidewalk. Once again, I’ve been humbled by your welcoming spirit and enamored by the sights. All of this and more is what we aim to capture in this and future issues of Gulfshore Life. It doesn’t take much to realize the grass is greener along the Gulf.

STEPHANIE GR ANADA INTERIM EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

22 | GULFSHORE LIFE

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SCAD

CONNECTIONS

CATAPULT YOU TO THE TOP

OF RÉSUMÉ PILES.” Kat Reynolds

Community relations specialist Mercedes-Benz USA M.A., arts administration, 2011

GU LFSHOR E TR EASU R ES 0 8. 2 019

26027’05.2”N - 81037’27.3”W

PHOTO BY Brian Tietz

LOCATION Imperial Marsh Preserve, Estero

ON THE HUNT Photographer Brian Tietz caught this rare shot of a coyote with its prey—a marsh rabbit—while driving down Corkscrew Road one morning on his way to photograph Brenda Brooks of CREW Land & Water Trust for our "Defenders of the Gulf" feature.

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R I G H T SW ING TO THE BE AT With a mix of jazz and folk influences, Naples band The Woodwork sounds like a modern-day swing band.

p. 30

COURTESY THE WOODWORK

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GULFSHORE LIFE | 29

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Spanish lyrics, outdoor sounds and jazz chords play into the music of this emerging band.

By Lane Nieset

When Christina Ortega practices her scales, her voice warbles and trembles in a trilling tone. “Her brother made fun of her growing up, saying she sounded like a ghost,” laughs bandmate and boyfriend Taylor Freydberg. “Her voice really grabs you.”

The couple started The Woodwork, a Naples-based band, four years ago with upright bassist Julio Pintos, Freydberg’s stepfather, and percussionist Mayo Coates. When the bandmates are busy with their full-time jobs, Freydberg and Ortega play as a duo. Otherwise, the quartet performs at places like Naples Botanical Garden and RipTide Brewing Company, one of a handful of breweries that is championing the local music scene. “Naples has a diverse and talented scene, but in the past, the city lacked places to showcase it,” Freydberg says. “That’s starting to change.”

When the two first met, they ran in similar circles in Naples’ growing music scene. At the time, he played folk and bluegrass in another band. Ortega’s jazzy voice captivated him, and the two started composing music together.

Freydberg taught himself Latin bass guitar to back Ortega’s Spanish singing—a nod to her mother’s Cuban heritage. “I enjoy the challenge of being presented with lyrics, with an idea, and creating music around it,” he says.

Many of the songs are heavy on folk and swing. But Pintos, who was born in Uruguay and grew up playing in punk bands, also contributes to the process, penning poems in Spanish for Ortega to sing.

Last July, the band spent five days recording their first full-length album in a treehouse in Live Oak, which has become a popular basecamp for musicians that play festi-

30 | GULFSHORE LIFE

vals at Spirit of the Suwannee Music Park, a campground on the banks of the Suwannee River in North Florida.

The treehouse is more Victorian-like than rustic, but it was the interior that really sold them: wood panels offer a natural reverb and add subtle layers to the recordings from the pitter-patter of rain or crickets echoing in the middle of the night.

They’re toying with the idea of calling the album Suwannee River Sessions, since the water is a theme throughout. In the song “Waters,” the drummer even plays in the river, tapping the water like a percussion instrument. “A lot of our ideas come from that location,” Freydberg says. He and Ortega return to Suwannee every summer to write. “Growing up in Naples and on the Gulf, the water is such an inspiration, but there’s something about the Suwannee River that’s different, that resonates with us.”

Like many locals, the couple heads north once temperatures hits the nineties. They take off for two months to give themselves time to write. She works on lyrics and he does the music. Once Freydberg hears Ortega sing a verse, he’ll compose the chords to match. Both draw from their love for wild spaces, like Yosemite National Park, where they went hiking this summer.

“Christina and I crave being in places like that,” he says, adding that Ortega once spent nine months living in Hawaii. “That’s where we feel most free, and those [feelings] lend well to music.”

The band will release their album this fall. In the meantime, Ortega continues to train and test her voice, getting into character with techniques similar to method acting. “She’s always trying new voices,” Freydberg says.

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COURTESY OF THE WOODWORK (2)

NATURE'S CALL

“NAPLES HAS A DIVERSE AND TALENTED MUSIC SCENE, BUT IN THE PAST, THE CITY LACKED PLACES TO SHOWCASE IT. THAT'S STARTING TO CHANGE.”

As far as the name goes, it comes from the idiom “coming out of the woodwork.” Freydberg likes the mystery of the saying: “It's the idea of appearing out of thin air, much like the creative process. It also ties literally into our wooden instrumentation and where most of our music comes from.”

As The Woodwork evolves, nature is playing a stronger role, too. There’s the obvious use of the natural world (the sound of water, pieces of wood), but the music also weaves in messages

of conservation. In the music video for “Mother Earth,” one of nine songs on the new album, Ortega morphs from a nymph, dancing barefoot in the woods, to a green-faced witch in a scarlet gown who is fighting loggers chopping down trees.

“You can see she’s in combat mode,” Freydberg says. “She’s casting spells, which is her way of using nature against ecoterrorists—the undertones say there will be repercussions for our actions."

GULFSHORE LIFE | 31

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THE ATRE TIME

I N S I G H T

FLORIDA STATE OF MIND Pool Reflections, oil on canvas, 4 by 5 feet, by Emily James

Painter Emily James, who has a gallery on Fifth Avenue in Naples, is all about showcasing the Sunshine State’s natural assets. “Having been born in Florida, I am amazed and inspired by the natural beauty here,” says the Pensacola-born artist. She believes visual arts play a unique role in this era when images are snapped and captured with the ease of a cell phone click. “We all see the world differently,” she says.

“With paintings, you’re interpreting it through an artist’s eye. It’s not so literal.” She used to work off photographs, but now paints mostly from memory.

When she starts a new painting, James thinks of a quote by Post-Impressionist painter Paul Cézanne: “A work of art which did not begin in emotion is not art.” This inspired observation shows through in every brush stroke. The piece shown here is part of a series she conceived one winter when it was too cold for her typical swims in the ocean. “I got out of the pool and saw the reflections of the palms,” she says. “It reminded me why I feel so fortunate to call this place home.” —Melanie Pefinis

32 | GULFSHORE LIFE

Broadway hits the Gulf with three productions this month. First, let’s give it up for the next generation of talent as two of area's most respected theater companies showcase young and emerging actors at these summer shows: Naples’ Gulfshore Playhouse takes us back to the a war-torn, 19th century France with its Teen Conservancy’s rendition of Les Miserables (August 1-10).

Then, we’ll be heading over to the Historic Arcade Theatre, in Fort Myers, to watch as Florida Rep Summer Conservatory singers and actors, aged 17-20, perform in Spring Awakening, the coming-of-age rock opera (August 8-11). To top off this musical-filled month, show tune lovers should book seats for “Give My Regards to Broadway.” The Gulf Coast Symphony backs Mark Sanders and Carolann Sanita— world-renowned performers, who now call SWFL home—while they sing fan-favorites, during the August 17 concert.

gulfshorelife.com

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REAL DEAL CHINESE Now with two locations, Lee County’s Ginger Bistro serves authentic Asian fare, complete with dim sum and Cantonese barbecue.

By Artis Henderson

Variations of Chinese food are found all over Florida’s coast, but tracking down traditional, less mainstream cooking can be a tougher feat in this stretch of the state.

That changed when Ginger Bistro opened its first location in Fort Myers three years ago. The restaurant gained such a dedicated following, it grew to a second locale last fall in Cape Coral’s Surfside neighborhood.

The menu beautifully delivers on the takeout favorites we’re used to seeing (beef with broccoli, Kung Pao shrimp), along with options that are less expected, like Thai tom yum soup and jellyfish salad. But what sets this place apart is its focus on siu mei (Cantonese barbecue) and its extensive menu of dim sum—steamed, fried or baked bite-size pieces of sweet-or-savory goodness enjoyed across China as a latemorning, family-style meal.

I had the chance to sample Ginger Bistro when my in-laws were visiting from Germany earlier this year. Both outposts are inconspicuously tucked into strip malls, but inside, the design is upscale and minimalist with glossy hard-top tables and modern art on the walls. Rows of hanging Peking duck serve as a clear reminder that the owners honor authenticity.

When we arrived around 1 p.m. on a Thursday, the restaurant was nearing the end of its lunchtime rush. A few groups

34 | GULFSHORE LIFE

gulfshorelife.com

WHAT IS DIM SUM? We can thank weary trekkers along the Silk Road for this Cantonese brunch tradition, largely believed to have originated in teahouses in the port city of Guangzhou in the 19th century.

ERIK KELLAR (3)

Back then, traders stopped to rest and refuel with tea and dim sum, originally a verb that meant “to eat a little something.” Although there are no official rules for how to consume, pros suggest you nibble, not scarf down, the piping hot morsels to allow them time to cool between bites.

Order a mix of dumplings, rolls and buns; and don’t shy away from more adventurous offerings like the chicken feet.

Clockwise, from left: Classic dim sum spread of dumplings, sticky rice with chicken and crispy taro turnovers; Pecking duck.

lingered, with office workers on their lunch break and retired couples enjoying their last sips of tea. We made our way to a table in the corner, watching as small bamboo baskets stuffed with tiny rice rolls and pork dumplings m­­­ade their way to diners. The dim sum selection—offered from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. daily— is vast, with an array of options like ground pork dumplings ($4.50) wrapped in thin sheets of wheat dough topped with a spoonful of crab roe, and cheung fun (rice-flour rolls stuffed with roast pork).

While other Chinese restaurants allow diners to order off rolling carts that whiz around the room, here we ordered from a 43-item à la carte menu.

Portions are small, so we opted for eight items, in addition to two plates from the main menu: the Hong Kong-style barbecue crispy pork belly ($12) and the Peking roast duck ($37).

In 10 minutes, a tower of baskets arrived with pan-fried vegetable buns ($3.50), vegan Buddhist dumplings ($4.50), chive shrimp dumplings ($4.50), steamed ginger soup buns ($4.50), leaf-wrapped sticky rice with chicken ($4.50) and crispy taro turnovers ($4). The dishes were exceptional—the fillings perfectly seasoned, the buns soft, the dumplings tender. I especially loved the heartier, pan-fried vegetable buns.

The barbecued pork arrived next. We’re used to barbecue being cooked on grills, but Chinese ’cue is prepared on a spit over an open fire or roasted rotisserie-style in an oven. The sauce is the star: a glossy, Bing cherry-colored glaze with a sweet-and-spicy blend of Chinese powders, honey and sherry.

Served in two long pieces cut into one-inch cubes, the pork belly was expertly crisped and had just the right amount of sweet and heat.

The Peking roast duck was also a hit. Thin slices were plated in two neat lines and paired alongside a plate of cucumber and chives. We crafted our own bao buns, stuffing them with the duck and drizzling on the hoisin, a Chinese alternative to American barbecue sauce.

We rounded out the savory dishes with two dim sum desserts: coconut pudding ($3), served in two quivering rounds, and the jian dui ($3.50), red bean-sesame balls traditionally served during the Lunar New Year. Despite being fried, these golf ball-sized pastries filled with smooth, fudge-like red bean paste, melt in your mouth like beignets. You’ll be tempted to take some to go, but know that preparation and serving are all part of a precise science. Your order will never taste quite as good as when it first comes out of the kitchen. Instead, arrive close to 11 a.m. and give yourself permission to linger.

GINGER BISTRO 4650 S. Cleveland Ave., Fort Myers, (239) 6893113, gingerbistrousa.com. Open daily from 11 a.m. to 9:30 p.m., with dim sum served 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Wheelchair-accessible.

Reservations recommended.

GULFSHORE LIFE | 35

Here’s where to find it in Southwest Florida

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CIDER UP More like wine than fruit juice, craft hard cider is about to become your new favorite summer sipper.

By Michaela Trimble

First enjoyed by the Greeks and Romans as early as 55 B.C. and later mastered with fermenting and distilling techniques by producers in southern England, France and Spain, hard cider has been enjoyed by the masses for centuries. Though stateside production was nearly devastated during the Prohibition Era, cider is now making a comeback as the fastest-growing beverage in the industry.

But, forget the steamy, sugary sippers of yesteryear. Today, cider makers deliver complex options that range from sweet to dry and are served chilled—whether bottled, canned or on-tap. Though it's often made in breweries and tends to be low in alcohol like beer, good cider is fermented like wine with special attention paid to the fruit. Some of the country’s most interesting blends are made in Florida, from Cigar City Cider & Mead in Tampa to 3 Daughters Brewing in St. Petersburg. What you get: the perfect bubbly summer beverage to beat the Florida heat. Need another reason to convert?

Cider is naturally gluten-free and refreshingly lighter than its craft beer counterparts.

36 | GULFSHORE LIFE

Buy It Canned or Bottled: At No. 3 Craft Brews & Beer Bar in Cape Coral—a convivial bar and bottle shop with tabletop games— shop a range of 15 to 30 canned and bottled ciders, like the golden ACE Honey made with Sonoma wildflower honey and Seattle-based Schilling’s tangy Grapefruit and Chill. In Naples, at Bone Hook Brewing Co., the largest brewpub in the area, find bottles of Pacific Pear by Crispin and canned cider with Plant City strawberries by Two Henrys Brewing Company.

Enjoy It On-Tap: At Fort Myers Brewing Company, the first brewery in the city, choose from a classic cider

by Tampa’s Cigar City Cider & Mead or the zesty Zombie Killer by B. Nektar, made with sweet thistle honey and Michigan tart cherry juice.

Further south at RipTide Brewing Company, in Naples, you'll love the uniquely Floridian semi-sweet Key Lime Cider by 3 Daughters Brewing.

ERIK KELLAR

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A FRESH SIDE OF FORT LAUDERDALE A crop of new eateries, art galleries and stylish seaside spas is revitalizing Fort Lauderdale’s downtown scene.

By Lane Nieset

Las Olas Boulevard isn’t your average Main Street. Sure, there’s a fudge shop and an old-school pharmacy, but that's about where the similarities stop. Growing up in a suburb further west, Las Olas was our version of Palm Beach’s Worth Avenue or South Beach’s Lincoln Road—though on a much smaller scale. My friends and I would stroll the palm-lined street at sunset, window shopping the handful of commercial art galleries that then catered more to cruise passengers than serious collectors. But over the past few years, Fort Lauderdale’s main thoroughfare has emerged as a legit dining and arts destination.

The same meteoric rise is happening throughout downtown. Every time I come home, it seems a handful of new skyscrapers have sprouted. Smart entrepreneurs are capitalizing on the prime real estate, too, filling the edges of the city's romantic canals and brick-lined boardwalk with upscale restaurants and shops. Meanwhile, the spring break friendly bars are getting phased out.

38 | GULFSHORE LIFE

In short, the city has come into its own. This is true when you think about the blossoming food scene, the sleek architectural projects reshaping the skyline, the topnotch annual festivals— and especially the arts. Aficionados now know they can scope emerging and established artists in Flagler Village, where old warehouses have been dressed up with murals and filled with sleek and funky galleries, coffee shops and restaurants. I’ve seen Flager's ArtWalk grow from a neighborhood block party to a full-fledged monthly festival along the railroad tracks.

But rest assured, the city isn’t losing its laid-back soul. Talking with gallery owners and restaurateurs, they all agree this won’t become a replica of Miami.

Things here happen a lot slower, they say. There’s more space, more time to build and grow.

Fort Lauderdale is not a very showy area, either. There might be hundreds of superyachts, but the only time you really see them flaunted is during the international boat show in the fall. Celebrities and senators who own mansions lining Millionaires’ Row, the series of canals earning the city the nickname “Venice of America,” still manage to remain incognito.

Scrape off the latest coat of paint and you’ll see this area is still a no-frills beach town at heart. Sandals and Sperry Top-Siders are more popular than skyhigh heels, and chefs don’t have to hold celebrity status to attract—and keep—a steady stream of diners passing through their doors.

At the end of the day, downtown is the kind of place where afternoons are best spent anchoring your boat across from the bar, digging into a bowl of sea-fresh stone crab claws and washing it all down with a local brew.

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WHERE TO EAT

cocktail bar Death & Co.). Start or end the night sipping boozy punches and other perfectly balanced drinks on the al fresco patio bar.

THE WILDER

WHERE TO STAY Crack open a book and watch the waves roll in from a rocking chair on the veranda of the recently renovated Pelican Grand Beach Resort, set along a private stretch of sand on North Ocean Boulevard. Further south, the new Conrad Fort Lauderdale Beach stretches 24 stories high from the center of the boardwalk, but the poolside rooms along the Skydeck are a relaxing refuge from the buzzy beach bars below.

Drive 10 minutes from the shore and you’ll find a cabana-clad saltwater pool at The Dalmar. Here, the mid-century modern design extends from the hotel’s oceanview suites to the rooftop bar, Sparrow (manned by NYC pioneeering

40 | GULFSHORE LIFE

WHERE TO DRINK Wake up and smell the coffee on the plantcovered patio at Wilton Manors's The Alchemist, where beans turn to coffee within 72 hours of being roasted in-house. A little further north, Tarpon River Brewing has lawn games, a taproom and a full-fledged restaurant in a 1920s warehouse. Indulge in the beerinspired menu with items like cheese fries with IPA sauce, while sampling a flight of house favorites.

(Try the Prickly Pear Zinger sour brew.)

On the other side of the spectrum, The Wilder is one of the darlings of the city’s craft drink scene. The sultry bar scene is reminiscent of Hollywood's Chateau Marmont, and the drinks harken a bygone era of elegance. Sip the bourbon-based Boulevardier, a 1920s creation dreamed up by an American expat writer in Paris. Wine lovers musn't miss the chance to expand their collection at Wine Watch. More than 30,000 bottles (some of which soar up to $35,000) are stored in the 6,000-square-foot, barely marked warehouse, complete with a plush tasting room.

At the institutional Shooters Waterfront, along the Intracoastal, you’ll find classic beach-bar fare, like crispy calamari and crunchy coconut shrimp, served alongside more elevated plates like the 36-hour marinated rosemary lemon chicken. In summer, a concert series serenades diners along the dock. One newcomer that heralds modern American seafood is Even Keel Fish & Oyster, the brainchild of wellknown chef Dean

James Max, who split his childhood between a farm in Virginia and the beaches of Stuart.

Order Florida stone crab claws from the raw bar before moving on to the wood oven-roasted lobster with broccoli cheddar gratin. For something more casual and healthy, the city’s first coldpressed juicery, Myapapaya, serves superfood smoothies and grain bowls. It’s so popular, the line rarely dwindles come lunchtime.

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FROM LEFT: PHOTOGRAPHY BY MARINA POUPART; COURTESY OF EVEN KEEL FISH & OYSTER; COURTESY OF MAC ART GALLERIES (NEXT PAGE)

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WHERE TO SEE ART Mary Ann Cohen was one of the first to move into the MASS District, one of three artsy hubs in Flagler Village, when she relocated her museum-worthy contemporary art gallery from Miami’s famed Wynwood area. Browse her 12,000-square-foot MAC Fine Art, which features more than 100 contemporary artists, including some better-known names like Midwestern painter René Romero Schuler. Then, make your way to nearby NSU Art Museum to see the impressive collection of Latin American and Cuban works.

WHERE TO CHILL OUT Skip the crowds clamoring for a strip of sand on Fort Lauderdale Beach. Instead, lie in your own bed of crystal at The Spa at Auberge Beach, which opened in December. Inspired by the quartz tables used across Europe to relieve rheumatoid arthritis, the “Restore and Balance” massage has you lie on a bed of small silica crystals contoured to your body, while you get massaged with healing Himalayan-salt stones. After visiting the spa, sip on a glass of Napa Valley vino on the oceanfront terrace of in-house restaurant DUNE. Feeling like a casual afternoon? Belly up to the bar at the beachside bistro and brewery Park & Ocean. Located at Birch State Park, the locale doubles as an outfitter with rentals for everything from pedal boats to beach chairs. Ask about the full moon and sunset guided kayak trips.

GULFSHORE LIFE | 41

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Bayshore Drive has come a long way from its outlaw days when it was known as Kelly Road. Two decades later, the neighborhood is quickly evolving with an influx of cultural developments. Some of the grit is still present, but now there's also funky street art, a world-class botanical garden and some of the best food in town. Make a day of exploring Southwest Florida's coolest new district.

By Jonathan Fuerster • Celebration Park

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contemporary space— has

of a mermaid swimming in

from a former marina.

more than delivered with

diamonds on the side of the

Breakfast and lunch

its steady rotation of bands,

building.

are the mainstays, but

food trucks and innovative

Thursday through Sunday,

beers. The secret ingredient

•

the guys behind Dilly's

is the reverse osmosis

Naples Botanical Garden

Seafood Shack take over

process used to purify the

After nearly 20 years of

the dining room to offer

water prior to brewing. The

planning, the 170-acre

boat-to-table dinners. Pro

spacious patio doesn't hurt,

garden opened 10 years ago.

tip: Three60 might just

either.

Now it's home to more than

also be Naples' best bet

•

36,000 species of plants, a

for high-end and value

Taqueria San Julian

Florida Gulf Coast University

wines—featured bottles

The undisputed champion

research center and the

retail for only $3.60 over

of authentic street tacos

National Plumeria Collection.

cost.

in Southwest Florida, San

Stop by to see rare orchids,

Julian doesn’t mess with a

learn about native blooms

The Real Macaw

good thing—the owners

and take a stroll through the

Known for its French-

keep the food simple.

butterfly garden.

42 | GULFSHORE LIFE

•

ZACH STOVAL (3); SECOND FROM THE TOP, COURTESY OF NAPLES BOTANICAL GARDEN

goes fast.

•

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ST Y LE POINTS T H E

L O O K

08.2019

SPOT ON

By Matthew Kritis As fall nears, we're all about embracing the updated take on classic feline prints. The key is to pick slim, modern silouhettes and stick to neutral shades. From there, feel free to play. Mix print sizes, shapes, textures—and, heck—print styles, too. Cat-cow isn't just a yoga stretch anymore.

Photography by Craig Hildebrand

44 | GULFSHORE LIFE

gulfshorelife.com

1. FLARE SKIRT by Zimmerman, $480; Rouze, shoprouze. com. Kitten heel booties by Laurence Dacade, $1,095; Saks Fifth Avenue at Waterside Shops, watersideshops. com. Drawstring shoulder bag by Moschino, $825; Saks Fifth Avenue at Waterside Shops.

2. LINEN BLAZER by Joie, $298; Anthropologie at Waterside Shops.

Strappy sandals by Aquazzura, $695; Marissa Collections, marissacollections. com. Sunglasses by Stella McCartney, $290; Saks Fifth Avenue at Waterside Shops. Pony hair shoulder bag by No.21, $2,335; Marissa Collections.

GULFSHORE LIFE | 45

RIGHT NOW S H O P

L O C A L

08.2019

Furniture maker Tommie Mullaney, of Mullaney Woodworks, stands in his workshop with Sarasotasourced planks for an upcoming project.

TOOLS OF THE TRADE A Naples-based carpenter pulls inspiration from the swanky homes he works on to create custom furniture whittled from Florida’s finest wood.

When Tommie Mullaney gets home from work, he turns on the Zac Brown Band and brews a cup of black tea muddled with milk. “That’s the English in me,” he jokes, a slight burr of his British accent still peeking through despite his move from southeast England to Naples nearly 17 years ago. He’ll take a moment to decompress before heading into his makeshift workshop, where pale maple lumber is piled on Pinot-tinged pieces of cherrywood, towering up to the roof of the one-car garage, like a Jenga set. He twists open the lime green handle of a plastic tool box scrawled with the words “DO NOT TOUCH” in big block letters along the lid and pulls out a track saw.

46 | GULFSHORE LIFE

gulfshorelife.com

BRIAN TIETZ

By Lane Nieset

RIGHT NOW S H O P

L O C A L

Mullaney is mostly self-taught but has perfected his craft working with carpenters and other craftsmen in the area.

48 | GULFSHORE LIFE

Today, Mullaney is milling down the knots and voids in a 10-foot-long, 2.5-inch-thick slab of black walnut he’s crafting into a countertop. This is the latest creation in his year-old custom furniture line, Mullaney Woodworks, which he sells to the owners of homes he’s working on in places like Port Royal. Smaller pieces, like curly maple inlay cutting boards, sell on Etsy.

By day, the 24-year-old works as a finish carpenter.

He’s the guy who adds the decorative touches to a new home. Working on crown molding and floating shelves fuels his creativity: “You can’t let the materials in the house be smarter than you—you have to work around the dimensions you’re given.”

When Mullaney was 9 and classmates were skipping town for summer camp, he stayed behind tinkering in his father’s electrical workshop on Marco Island. He’d play with tools scrolled on his Christmas wish list: hammers, chisels, screw guns. “I didn’t have a goal of what I wanted to build, I just wanted to see what I could do,” he says.

After high school, Mullaney spent a year working with a general contractor that gave him “a taste of the different trades,” before his mother, a banker, introduced him to one of her clients, a woodworker whom Mullaney has worked under for the past five years.

“When someone first put me on a job site, I knew I was destined to be a woodworker,” he says. “I don’t believe I was meant to go to college—I’m better off working with my hands.”

He was 19 when he started flirting with the idea of building furniture. A friend gave him a few pieces of black walnut, and he spent 50 hours over the course of a week milling and molding the planks, flattening the surfaces and smoothing the corners into 90-degree angles. Using long rulers and French curves, he drew out a template on a smooth piece of fiberboard the same way a couturier sketches out dress designs. “I call the templates for new projects ‘the mother,’” he says.

Each one serves as a reference to duplicate the piece.

The end result of that first project was a three-legged side table that vaguely resembled the mid-century modern “Bailey” design by one of his icons, California-based woodworker Jory Brigham. But, instead of using a circular flat top, like Brigham does, Mullaney

gulfshorelife.com

BRIAN TIETZ

08.2019

• BORG Black walnut end or side table with coved drawer

• JASMINE Mahogany wood bench based on one of the designer's early sketches

• HANK Cherrywood chair inspired by mid-century modern design

built a rectangular-shaped drawer. He then cut coves, a technique popular when making ceiling moldings, to create ripples instead of handles.

Now, he can complete the same project in half the time and makes two to four custom pieces per month. Mullaney sources his maple, cherry and oak from a Sarasota lumber mill. Sometimes he spends nearly three hours analyzing the 8-foot slabs and their knots or tiger stripe-like grains, to envision different designs he can create once he sands and finishes them. “Even when I’m going to bed, still thinking about how I can improve the piece I’m working on,” he says.

That’s why he focuses only on one project at a time, inspecting and perfecting, until each piece is smoothed and sculpted down to just the right thickness, just the right shape. “Working in high-end homes, the finish has to be perfect,” he says. “Furniture is an extension of this concept, except you only have one piece in front of you versus the entire house.”

GULFSHORE LIFE | 49

R IGHT NOW B O O K S

08.2019

BEACH READS FOR BRAINY PEOPLE If you like your summer books to come with a cast of complex characters and twisty plots, dig into these three Florida-spun titles.

By Annie B. Jones

Gulf Adventure CJ Hauser’s first novel, The From-Aways, debuted in 2014 to warm reviews, but Family of Origin is the book she was born to write. It’s dark, witty and delightfully bizarre.

At the heart of the novel lie Elsa and Nolan Grey, half-siblings and reluctant millennials seeking some palatable explanation for the death of their once larger-than-life

50 | GULFSHORE LIFE

biologist father, who betrayed modern science when he became obsessed with the earth’s degeneration and set out to prove evolution is regressing to make each generation weaker. In search of answers, the Grey siblings make their way to their father’s field station on Leap’s Island, a wild and otherworldly place off the Gulf Coast. It’s there they discover The Reversalists, the scientific tribe among whom their father found his new calling before his unexpected death.

Readers confused by the novel’s seemingly perplexing plot needn’t worry: Hauser’s ability to ground this story and make readers at home on Leap’s Island is a feat made possible by her talent for writing. The prose is sparse and accessible—don’t let the lack of quotation marks fool you into thinking otherwise—and although ecology and environmentalism are practically their own characters in the novel, even the descriptive settings never overshadow Elsa and Nolan’s tenuous and tricky connection.

The Greys’ story unspools at just the right pace, offering timely, often funny and bittersweet truths about grief, love and our modern world. Hauser has somehow created a setting in which Mars exploration, evolution and major league baseball reside comfortably side by side. In other words, Hauser’s novel provides a realistic view of our world, filled with twists and turns and complications that are not always what they seem. Out in hardcover on July 16.

Fort Walton native Joshilyn Jackson enters Gone Girl territory with her breathless new suspense novel, Never Have I Ever.

In it, a mysterious stranger interrupts Amy’s neighborhood book club, threatening to upend the group’s carefully crafted images of domestic bliss. It’s a slight genre departure for Jackson, but her notorious eye for the Southern gothic is still on display. Out in hardcover July 30.

From Our Backyard In Florida, Lauren Groff has finally given Floridians what they’ve long desired: a book that reflects the state’s unique history and ecology without dipping into farcical stereotypes.

Her diverse collection of stories run the gamut in terms of characters, locales and decades, but Florida in all its complicated glory remains solidly at its center. Out in paperback now.

gulfshorelife.com

FROM LEFT: COURTESY OF PENGUIN RANDOM HOUSE CANADA; COURTESY OF HARPERCOLLINS PUBLISHERS; COURTESY OF RIVERHEAD BOOKS

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R IGHT NOW P L AY E R S

0 8. 2 019

GIVING WITH GUSTO Philanthropist Janet Cohen talks about her life, great losses and the people who inspire her to give.

Janet Cohen is sitting in a booth at the back of Seasons 52, making friends with the wait staff. Jim Nathan, retired CEO of Lee Health, sits across from her, chatting. Cohen’s Mercedes is parallel parked out front. When I ask if she parked it herself, she looks at me from beneath raised brows and says, “I love when people ask, ‘You still drive?’”

At 93 years old, Cohen is one of the most important philanthropists in Southwest Florida. And, yes, she parallel parks her own damn car. “It’s one of my better talents,” she says. Her other talents? A wicked sense of humor, a knack for engaging people and the vision to make the kind of charitable donations that alter our community in big ways.

Cohen has helped build North Collier Hospital, funded the student union at Florida Gulf Coast University and contributed toward a healing garden at the Golisano Children's Hospital of Southwest Florida. Most recently, the Naples Holocaust Museum and Cohen Education Center—which she gifted with $1 million for its new building—scheduled its grand opening for November 10. Aunt Janet’s House, which offers bereavement services to children, opened at Avow, the Collier County hospice center, on June 18. We sat down with Cohen to get to know the woman behind the generosity.

GL: Why did you feel it was important to contribute to the Holocaust Museum?

JC: It’s important to keep such a major catastrophe alive in people’s minds so what took place is not forgotten or overlooked. So

52 | GULFSHORE LIFE

From top: The philanthropist in her Naples home earlier this year; Cohen holds an old photo of her with her husband.

that it doesn’t happen again. Kids are growing up with no knowledge of [the Holocaust].

GL: Tell us a little about Aunt Janet’s House. What was the inspiration behind the name?

JC: When I was growing up in Cincinnati, I had an Aunt Hazel who was married to my great uncle. She was just wonderful. They had no children, so when I was 7 or 8 I would go to her house. She made a big impression on me. I thought if we did this house I wanted it to be like Aunt Hazel’s house.

GL: What is the house like?

JC: It’s the cutest place. It’s painted yellow and blue. I worked with a decorator, and I gave her some pictures from my own house.

I wanted it to be warm. I helped create Aunt Janet’s House because of my concern with helping children who have been through tragedy or loss. It’s a place where they come and play. It has music and art therapy, and counseling.

GL: Your husband died unexpectedly eight years ago. His death came just 10 months after the loss of your only daughter, Frances, following a long battle with breast cancer. What was that time like?

JC: It was like being in a coma. I was in a semi-stupor. I’d think about something, and I’d have no recollection of it happening. My life with my husband was great. He was honest and decent, and we really loved each other, believe it or not. Not that we got along all the time, I don’t want you to think that, but it was a total love affair.

gulfshorelife.com

BRIAN TIETZ

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R IGHT NOW P L AY E R S

0 8. 2 019

Fran, my daughter, was a mixture of Harv and me. She had a good personality, but she didn’t act crazy like her mother. She was bright and artistic and good with people.

GL: How did you cope with the losses?

JC: By picking up the pieces and helping others.

GSL: How did you and your husband get together?

JC: I was engaged to somebody else, but he was in the Army in Washington. He was supposed to bring me a ring in September. I saw Harv in May, and we dated the whole summer. The man in the Army came down for Labor Day and I told him I wasn’t in love with him anymore. The next day, he left. Harv and I got married in October.

Speedy Gonzalez over here. We eloped, but we had no money. We had somewhere around $500. Harv had just passed the bar exam. He had a job in a lawyer’s office—but you don’t make very much—and I was working in a department store.

GL: Throughout your marriage, philanthropy was important to both of you. Why? JC: I just think that if you’re fortunate enough to have a sufficient amount of money, you should use it for important things, maybe not buying a new car every year. The people who have a lot of money and do nothing but spend it on themselves and ruin their children—well, they can do what they want, but helping others is what’s important.

GL: Your friend Jim Nathan says that what’s special about your philanthropy is that it’s more than just writing a check. There’s a relationship that emerges out of your giving, like when you paid for the garden at Golisano Children’s Hospital and were very involved.

54 | GULFSHORE LIFE

JC: I guess you play it from your heart with things that you contribute to. There’s a balance between what you want to do and what is available for you to contribute to and what is needed.

GL: You include your roofer, your pool guy, the security guard at your gated community and the woman who cleans your house among your best friends.

JC: I like real people. When you get older and you have sufficient means—and maybe not nearly what people think, which is none of their business anyhow—you wonder why someone is your friend, especially when you’re alone, because you’re very vulnerable.

GL: You’re known around town for your quick wit. What’s your favorite recent funny moment?

JC: I was at the doctor’s office, and they gave me this new doctor I’d never seen before. She asked me, “Janet, do you know who the president is?” And I said, “Isn’t his name Wilson?” She wrote that down in her chart then she asked, “Do you know his first name?” I said, “Herbert?” I don’t know where I got the name Herbert, but it just fit the occasion. This woman put it in my record so that if I go crazy later—God forbid—they’ll say, “Look, this is where it started.”

GL: Have you always liked to have fun with people?

JC: When I was young, I was nothing like this. I was very refined...I think I’m still refined. I like people and I like to have fun, but I’ve gone half-crazy and I just say what I think at this point.

GL: “Crazy” doesn’t feel like the right word.

JC: Maybe “gutsy” is a better word for it. Crazy doesn’t know what it’s doing. I know what I’m doing.

gulfshorelife.com

BRIAN TIETZ

Cohen lost her husband and daughter within 10 months of each other. She says helping others helped her pick up the pieces and start to heal.

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R IGHT NOW G U L F S H O R E

E X P L O R E R

08.2019 “THE ISLAND IS A CONUNDRUM WRAPPED IN A BE ACH TOWEL SURROUNDED BY THE ALLURING ( TO SOME) SCREECH OF OSPREYS AND BEAUTIFUL TEAL WAT E R S .”

M I S SION M A RC O I SL A N D As one of the 10,000 Islands, Marco might seem far-flung, but our intrepid writer discovers the payoff—wildlife galore, boat life and Spam parties—is more than worth the trek.

Ahh, island life. I’m not sure what that term technically means (other than you need to take a bridge or boat to get there), but it’s different from regular mainland life, that’s for sure. Just ask the property appraisers. And if you’d like to experience it, you don’t have to go too far, as we’ve been blessed with some of the world’s best islands, from Sanibel and Captiva to Boca Grande and Keewaydin.

But there’s one island that always gets short shrift, falling down the area’s coolness scale to the luxury of Naples, the tropical charm of Sanibel and the big-city attractions of Fort Myers—give me a minute, I’ll tell you what those are... That’s right I’m talking about Marco Island.

First inhabited by the Calusa Indians back in 500 A.D. (so the guidebooks claim), the island was named by Spanish sailors who called it “La Isla de San Marco,” which means “the island of Saint Mark.” Over the years, it got whittled down to “San Marco Island,” and, eventually, because we’re lazy, just “Marco Island.”

Anyone who lives in (or has visited) Southwest Florida has likely heard of Marco. Perhaps, you’ve even visited.

But, to me, it’s always remained a bit elusive. This place is a gem, to be sure, but not particularly convenient to get to. It’s at least an hour from just about anywhere, and when you arrive, you don't really know what to do with yourself.

Despite being a vacation destination, Marco is predominantly private residences, save for its leading edge, which is dominated by high-rise hotels and condominiums. In short, the island is a conundrum wrapped in a beach towel surrounded by the alluring (to some) screech of ospreys and beautiful teal waters.

56 | GULFSHORE LIFE

gulfshorelife.com

ADAM LARKUM

By Michael Korb

P E O P L E , P L A C E S A N D PA R T I E S

1

3

2

4

1. OPENING OF AVOW KIDS’ BEREAVEMENT SERVICES Jaysen Roa, Janet Cohen, Annalise Smith 2. GUADALUPE CENTER’S TUTOR CORPS CELEBRATION DINNER (Front row) Gabriel Ramirez, Aaron Torres, Kathy Orozco, Maliah Casarez, Evelyn Franco; (Back row) Jesus Galvin, Sheila Oxx, Jamie Rossi, Deanna Peterson, Jorge Perez, Daniel Martinez, Marycruz Mendoza 3. ROYAL PALM COAST REALTOR ® ASSOCIATION’S SWINGIN’ SHINDIG Holly Marth, Josh Burdine, Susan Voelkel, Susan Beatty, Deb Giacalone 4. PACE CENTER FOR GIRLS LEE COUNTY FUNKY FASHION SHOW AT THE CAPE CORAL YACHT CLUB Sarah Stauffer, Olivia Orth, Katie Damminger, Rachel Toomey

GULFSHORE LIFE | 57

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When I vacationed there many years ago, I stayed at the charming Charter Club of Marco Beach. Great views. Right on the water.

Everything you need right there. I never left the resort. I drove in, found the hotel and drove out the way I came. There was one particularly memorable night, when hundreds of sea turtle hatchlings emerged from their nests and I was asked to help carry them back to sea. We didn’t want them to get confused by the lights and begin their lives in a hotel bar with a gin and tonic and Barry Manilow covers—not a terrible way to begin a life, but not ideal from a conservation point of view.

Beyond a quality tan and the memorable rescue mission, the island didn’t leave much of a mark. But then again, I didn’t give it a fair shot, and I was told Marco deserves to be properly explored.

So, I called my good friend Graham Nickless, a well-known sportswriter from Great Britain, for reinforcement, as I set out to tap into the wonder of Marco. All the locals were busy working, and I knew Graham would be up for the challenge.

The island is Graham and his wife, Lesley’s, happy place. Back

in 2012, the couple was visiting for the first time when out of the blue Graham’s brain began to bleed. Had they been home in the U.K., nearly two hours from any major hospital, he’d likely be dead.

But Physicians Regional in Naples had just installed an innovative neurovascular surgical suite. The paint was barely dry on the walls, when the doctors there saved his life. Since then, the couple feel a special connection to Marco. They were more than game to show me around back in April.

Of course, islands are best explored by sea. One day I got inflatable stand-up paddleboards and forced poor Graham to head out into the wide canals of Marco. After paddling past the waterside homes (seemingly about 95 percent of the island’s real estate), we made our way to the famed Snook Inn, where we ate, drank and watched the boats come and go. That’s a big part of life on Marco: observing the watercrafts and wildlife.

The abundance of nature one experiences on the island is astonishing. Expect to spot a surplus of osprey, manatees, dolphins, and various shorebirds and fish. Graham was thrilled when an Uber

driver alerted him to a new nest of burrowing owls. It turns out these little eyeballs with legs are protected by the State of Florida and are likely a giant headache to anyone who is looking to build on any occupied lots. But we’d be wise to respect these little guys because I suspect nature is planning to kill us in our sleep, what with all the alligators, pythons, panthers and bears stalking our backyards.

Good people-watching may also be part of the agenda. Marco Island’s notable residents, past and present, include former Speaker of the House John Boehner, astronaut Michael Collins, World War II flying ace William Cullerton, actress Leighton Meester (of Gossip Girl fame) and the Key Marco Cat. The feline statuette, one of the finest examples of Pre-Columbian Native American art was discovered on Marco in 1896. After being gone for more than a century, the cat came home earlier this year and now stands proudly at the Marco Island Historical Museum.

However, one of my favorite Marco residents is photographer Mila Bridger. I first came to know her work when I spotted her images of Cape Romano (no relation to Ray Romano). Located about five

miles south of Marco, the famous vanishing dome house is one of the most Instagram-worthy spots in the region. (See our photo contest on p. 63.)

Quirk is part of the Marco factor, too. Mila shared with me that one of her favorite local traditions is Spammy Jammy at the Little Bar, in nearby Goodland. At the end of season, everyone shows up in their pajamas for a Spam-sculpting contest. People make flamingoes, cartoon characters and other offbeat sculptures out of their leftover stash of canned meat rations. The idea is that a pre-hurricane party will ward off the real thing. It probably makes perfect sense when you’re inebriated.

Whenever Graham and Lesley visit, they tend to spend a few hours glued to the real estate guides. And, now—after experiencing the convenience of biking around on the wide array of ample sidewalks and paths, catching the sunset nightly from nearly every street, and knowing I can hermit in a hammock or walk the beach endlessly without a care in the world—I’m thinking about grabbing one of those guides myself.

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MI C HA E L W. MA L A R N EY YAC H TZO O NA P LE S | 2 39 30 2 83 68 | MI C HA E L @YAC HT-ZO O.COM U SA | U NITE D K IN G D OM | JA PA N | MO N T E N EG R O & C R OAT I A | N EW ZE ALAN D

F

O

There’s no shortage of

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LIFE RE

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photographic fodder along

this slice of Florida. For our first photo

contest, we asked pro and amateur photographers to submit

images that celebrate “the best of paradise.” More than 1,300

entries rolled in, and through a judging process that involved our

editors, a crack team of experts and you (our readers, who voted

online), we identified the top submissions. Here, the winner and

four runners-up share the stories behind their winning shots.

60 | GULFSHORE LIFE | AUGUST 2019

PHOTO BY Doug Poe LOCATION Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary TITTLE Survivor, April 2018 WINNER “After hearing about a giant nest of birds at Corkscrew’s Lettuce Lake, a dozen photographers and I were out photographing wood storks, roseate spoonbills and egrets when this 10-foot alligator appeared. It started toward me and landed under the boardwalk exactly where I was standing, as if I had whistled for it to come over. I did what any opportunistic photographer would do: I leaned over and started shooting. I visit Corkscrew often and wonder if I’ll catch ‘my gator’ again, but I know the chances are slim that I'll have the right conditions to get another capture like this one.”

AUGUST 2019 | GULFSHORE LIFE | 61

PHOTO BY Violet Walton LOCATION Ave Maria Catholic Parish Church TITTLE Saints' Shrine, January 2016

FINALIST “I was at a festival in Ave Maria with my friend, when I spotted this church with its dramatic steeple. It was empty, so I wandered inside and found a big open space with crisscross beams that formed a beautiful pattern. The cross itself seemed to be floating above the stage. It only took two or three shots to get this one. The architecture and light shining through were nothing short of heavenly.”

62 | GULFSHORE LIFE | AUGUST 2019

FINALIST “One week before Hurricane Irma slammed into Cape Romano, I was out on a boat on a mostly sunny day when storm clouds started rolling in.

I was nervous but felt an urge to stick around. I wouldn’t say that I was destined to capture the domes before the architectural site was forever changed (two of them were toppled after the storm), but I did get a sense of impending doom as the sky and structures took on an ominous tone.”

TITTLE Before the Storm, September 2017

LOCATION Cape Romano Dome House, off Marco Island

PHOTO BY Geoffrey Britt

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PHOTO BY Blaine Johnathan LOCATION Naples Pier TITLE Stress Free, July 2014 64 | GULFSHORE LIFE | AUGUST 2019

READERS' CHOICE “This is one of my favorite images I’ve ever captured. I

love the low tide and painterly sky. I stood on the 13th Avenue South access point facing northwest toward the iconic Naples Pier. As I composed the image, the sun set behind the lower cloud layer. I wasn’t sure if any color would appear, then a brief, stunning display of red and orange tones coated the sky and water.”

FINALIST “I was amazed to see that this beloved bird would be raising her whitemorph fledgling near the busy Sanibel fishing pier. But the crowd didn’t seem to notice. For me, it was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to capture the reddish egret, a favorite with photographers and birders for its beauty, rarity and the dance it often perform when it's fishing.”

TITLE Birds in Paradise, July 2017

LOCATION Sanibel Island

PHOTO BY Robert Kimbrell

AUGUST 2019 | GULFSHORE LIFE | 65

DEFENDERS OF THE GULF

These conservation crusaders are working to sustain and extend the precious spaces and resources that make our home a paradise.

By Jennifer Reed

PHO TO GRA PHY B Y Brian Tietz

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We can’t remember the last time we heard good news about our environment—what with melting glaciers, rising seas, freakish storms, altered ecosystems, it’s enough to make you want to hide from any and all climate-related reports.

But it’s not all bad news, especially when you consider there’s a growing crop of people hellbent on doing something about it. Meet six Southwest Floridians who work to protect nature and inspire others to do the same. The takeaway is clear: Each of us in our own small way can make a difference.

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LOCATION San Carlos Bay, along the Sanibel Causeway DANIEL ANDREWS Executive Director, Captains for Clean Water

Three years ago, fishing guide Capt. Daniel Andrews watched the water turn brown, the fish flee and the tourists cancel their trips. It was an uncharacteristically wet winter, and the Gulf was suffering a freshwater assault from rainwater and, more critically, from Lake Okeechobee overflow gushing down the Caloosahatchee River. It was the last straw for him. “The oyster bars and grass flats I grew up fishing as a kid

in the mouth of the Caloosahatchee River are gone. It’s mud now. Lifeless.”

He and a fellow guide, Chris Whitman, decided to speak out against the water management practices hurting the Gulf—and all those who rely on it for their livelihoods. “We were pretty naive at the time thinking we could write a couple of letters and someone would fix it.”

That’s not how politics work, and Andrews quickly realized

68 | GULFSHORE LIFE | AUGUST 2019

it. He and Whitman formed Captains for Clean Water, an advocacy group that in its three short years has become a leading voice for Everglades restoration and water management reforms, counting some 140,000 social media followers, 4,000 donors and tens of thousands of people who respond to its calls for action. “It seems like there’s a never-ending list of people who want to get more involved,” Andrews says.

people and the land. Industrial farming threatens those ties and takes the adventure out of eating:­­“You get three kinds of lettuce choices in the store, but there are 200 varieties you can grow.”

She knows not everyone can garden, but anyone can visit a farmers' market. It’s those small, individual actions that collectively make a difference.

“The one thing I can do is try to give back more than what my life on the planet is taking.”

LOCATION Shangri-La Springs, Bonita Springs

these different critters—I know that I’m doing something right,” she says. “It’s not necessarily that they need us, they just need us to stop messing with them.”

Bell, who works as an organic gardening consultant, promotes local produce grown from seeds tailored to Southwest Florida’s climate. She believes food production offers a powerful argument for land conservation and that gardening promotes connections between growers and consumers and between

MILLISA BELL Organic grower, design consultant and garden coach

Sure, Millisa Bell might like to save the world, but she’s practical enough not to chase windmills. Instead, she nudges people toward sustainability and environmental stewardship through example. Bell, also known as the “The Unruly Gardner,” grows plants and saves seeds from her Pine Island home, which serves as a model of how nature thrives without chemical-laden interventions. “When I see frogs, dragonflies, bees, wasps—all

LOCATION CREW Cypress Dome Trail, Immokalee BRENDA BROOKS Executive director, CREW Land & Water Trust

Life is funny in how it twists and turns.

Brenda Brooks grew up a city girl, became a hairdresser, but longed to go to college. She found her way to campus at age 37 and flung herself into a longheld interest: science.

“I did not grow up connected to the environment,” she confesses. “I think the closest thing to nature I had when I was a kid would have been a squirrel in a city park, but I was just drawn to science—and to the outdoors.

That’s my happy place.”

CREW, which she has led since 2008, is Southwest Florida’s largest intact watershed, with 60,000 acres straddling Lee and Collier counties.

Under her leadership, CREW and its partners focus on opening up the land to the public through an expanding network of trails. The most recent, at Flint Pen Strand in Bonita, was completed last November.

70 | GULFSHORE LIFE | AUGUST 2019

“In order to really understand (a watershed) you have to become a part of it. It’s not something you can pull up on your computer screen; it’s not something you can look at on TV. It’s something you have to immerse yourself in,” she says.

“In order to appreciate and value these natural resources, we have to first make that connection. Public access is key to making that happen.”

MEGAN KISSINGER Artist

Megan Kissinger was raised in the Perdido Bay area along the original Bartram Trail, named for famed 18th-century naturalist William Bartram—a rather cosmic coincidence that produced a kid who loved the outdoors and chronicling nature through art.

Today, Kissinger’s acrylic paintings feature the flora and fauna of Florida and the Southeast. She says her pieces are somewhere between a landscape and a portrait of

LOCATION Tower Gallery, Sanibel

animals: “What I really want to do is put those two together and say, ‘Why is this landscape important to this animal? Why is this animal a part of that landscape?’”

The Fort Myers resident is a member of Artists for Conservation, an international group that uses art to promote environmental causes. Through them, she pledges a percentage of her art sales to conservation groups and is among the AFC members contributing to

Silent Skies, a mural depicting the world’s 678 endangered bird species—a sobering thing to stand before and reflect on.

She hopes her artwork spurs viewers to think about the connectedness of life—and what’s at stake. “It seems like, ‘Oh, that’s a problem we can solve later,’ but eventually those problems will be on our doorstep,” she says. “I try to just show people beauty so they know what it is they should be fighting for.”

AUGUST 2019 | GULFSHORE LIFE | 71

LOCATION Rinaldi's backyard, Naples HANNAH RINALDI Founder, Naples Compost

There’s something about the composting fad that strikes Hannah Rinaldi as odd.

“It seems like composting is a buzz word, the hot thing. You go to all these restaurants and they have compostable cups and compostable straws. Everybody wants to do it but nobody was actually picking up compost.”

On Earth Day 2018, she and her husband, Tom, launched Naples Compost, a company focused on picking up and recy-

72 | GULFSHORE LIFE | AUGUST 2019

cling household food waste and educating the public about the whys and hows of turning food scraps into dirt.

It’s easier—and less stinky— than you think, she promises.

“If you’re composting correctly, it should just smell like the earth,” she says. That’s because air is circulating through it, unlike food waste in plastic bags. And trapped food contributes to a bigger problem.

“Right now everybody is

talking about carbon emissions and what can we do to reduce our carbon emissions.

We seem to forget about all the other greenhouse gases,” she says, explaining that methane is more potent than carbon dioxide and much of it comes from landfills.

“It just seems silly that we’re putting something into a plastic bag just to create a gas when it can be recycled fairly easily in somebody’s backyard.”

When he’s not on air, writing, or researching, you can find him on the Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary boardwalk, leading twice weekly tours and pointing out all the things an untrained eye will miss. “Most people who go to Corkscrew are out there to see alligators or to see the swamp. They don’t look at the details right in front of them—the little purple flower, the red-shouldered hawk, the barred owl.”

LOCATION Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary, Naples

teach them about the gee-whiz things in nature, to teach them how to recognize the plants and animals around them.”

He started a TV segment, Southern Outdoors, which ran from 1998 through 2001, in Mississippi to do just that.

Now, here in Florida, he is the familiar host of WGCU public radio’s With the Wild Things, which plays every weekday morning. He’ll celebrate his 20th anniversary next year.

DR. JERRY JACKSON Ornithologist, author, Florida Gulf Coast University professor emeritus, With the Wild Things host

Years ago, as a professor at Mississippi State University, Dr. Jerry Jackson was frequently called upon to testify in environmental lawsuits. “I learned very quickly that doing these environmental cases was not winning friends for the environment. And not winning period. At the very best, it was stalling the inevitable,” he says. “I decided long ago that it’s better to reach the public with a positive message, to

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How do you succeed in comedy? Local stand-up star M a r i a n n e t t e To r r e s b e l i e v e s i t ' s a l l a b o u t b e i n g v u l n e r a b l e .

BY ARTIS HENDERSON / PHOTOGRAPHY BY BRIAN TIETZ

74 | GULFSHORE LIFE | MAY 2019

S a a u c t a b u s , q u a a t , n o s , P. G r a t i c i a m o r u s . S e n d i u r n u m c o n d u c t o i a S e n t e m u s a d h u c t u s t e rd i c i e m m a n u m a u d e s t e a t u r.

By First Last / Photography By First Last

MAY 2019 | GULFSHORE LIFE | 75

The Fort Myers-based comedian performs around the country on her own and with an all-female troupe called The Comediannettes.

The day before

her sold-out, all-female lineup show at Pelican Preserve's Town Center—held inside a theater within the Fort Myers community—comic Mariannette Torres sits on her back porch directing the circus in her head.

She’s smoking an American Spirit cigarette, and there’s a glass ashtray on the table in front of her with a few butts already stubbed out. Her cellphone sits on the table, too, with a pair of earbuds plugged in and George Winston queued up. Next to it, two notebooks, a pen, a bottle of water and a couple of cheap plastic lighters.

“Everywhere I move, I have to have a porch,” Torres says. “This is where I live. I can’t write inside or I’m a caged bird. I have this table where I go to town on stuff, everything is poured out on the table. The hull of the ship is here. From my vantage point, I can take care of my kids, I can take care of my home, I can take care of the comedy.” She laughs and admits: “I can barely take care of myself.”

Torres picks up one of the notebooks. Every day, she writes—on her tablet, her phone, her computer. It’s a constant frenzy. “I’m the ringmaster having to whip everything,” she says. “The monkeys, the clowns, the freaks—and that’s just my family.”

Torres, 48, is the matriarch of a small, white house with aqua shutters in a rough block of central Fort Myers between U.S. 41 and Fowler Street. She's also a stand-up comic who is pushing to promote ever-underrepresented female comedians, broadening public understanding of mental health conditions like the ones she's experienced and connecting with audiences through performances that are raw, real and personal.

She's got a whip-smart repertoire that's landed her gigs with national acts like Paul Rodriguez and Dom Irrera.

Much of it centers on her identity, as a Puerto Rican— although she does a funny bit on stage about recently discovering that she’s half Dominican.

“Puerto Ricans and Dominicans can’t stand each other,” she says to me, when we're back inside her little white house, that cigarette stuck between two fingers and her hands moving as she talks. “I tell people, ‘Be careful who you hate.’”

Born in New York, Torres moved to Philadelphia with her family when she was a kid. Her mother and

Torres says it can take years to perfect a solid comedy set, and the best jokes are often based on life's hardships.

78 | GULFSHORE LIFE

stepfather were always at each other's throats. The family was on food stamps. She hung with a tough crowd.

“I’d go across the street and buy a bag of penny candy, and that was breakfast, lunch and dinner,” she says. “I’ve seen people in Philly kick first and ask questions later.

I was that fighter.”

Torres went to college at the Penn State campus in Erie where she discovered theater. “It was like the doors opened and the angels sang to me. Even the smell—most theaters have it, a mix of sawdust and mold. I was like, ‘What is this place?’ I took to it like a duck to water.”

She excelled in the university’s acting program, which didn’t go over well with her family. When Torres told her mother she was going to be an actress, sitting at a table in Dunkin' Donuts, her mother just stared at her.

“She was pissed,” Torres says.

After that, they didn't speak for two years.

Torres moved to New York City after college but only lasted three months. When a virus knocked her flat, she went home to Philly then to Florida—bouncing between Orlando and Fort Myers—to be with her large extended family. She’s been here for the last 25 years.

Torres has known her share of struggle. Still today, she has to fight to make it in an industry where women are at a disadvantage and Latina women, in particular, have the deck stacked against them. She battles the mental health demons that plague many artists—anxiety, depression, shifting between grandiosity and low self-worth—and she’s admitted to being in a “dark place” more times than she can count. She’s suffered several nervous breakdowns throughout her life and sought the help of professional therapists.

“This comedy business attracts a lot of sad people,” she says. “People don’t want to know I bought a new Caddy. They want to know I’m driving around in my busted-out van. That’s what connects us. It’s human.”

Comics have to be vulnerable even when it means exposing what hurts. “Stand-up is like going into a bullfight. Naked,” Torres says.

Since Robin Williams’ suicide in 2014, more and more comedians have been coming out about their mental health struggles. But this isn't a new thing. Back in the

day, Freud said comedians told jokes as an outlet for their anxieties. The research is still unclear on whether comedians are more prone to depression or if they just understand people's pain better than others. Though Malcolm Gladwell famously said he does not believe comedians are master psychologists in an interview last year with psychologist Adam Grant, Grant made a good case for it. He said comedians have to understand not only what will make people laugh but also what is right on the edge of making people uncomfortable. That requires a lot of insight, he added.

Torres has insight in spades. She also has an impressive work ethic. By her estimates, it takes years of work to create a good set, between writing the jokes and fine-tuning them. Unlike film or theatre, there are no on-stage rehearsals in stand-up. Jokes are tested in front of the audience. Sometimes, Torres tries out material on her family, but it always falls flat: “My kids don’t think I’m funny.”

A good stand-up show is like a theater performance.

No matter how authentic and real Torres may seem onstage, she’s always in character. She has some

GULFSHORE LIFE | 79

From right: The many faces of the comedian as she goes from writing to performing; her trademark red shoes, a nod to the Wizard of Oz.

80 | GULFSHORE LIFE

genuine moments onstage, but very few.

People think the secret of great comedy is to get up there and riff, but good comics know it’s really about knowing their lines. The trick is to make it seem like riffing. “When it looks natural, that’s when it’s the most unnatural,” Torres says. Her humor is rarely off-the-cuff. She doesn’t sit around trying to make people laugh. “I’m a writer and a performer,” she says. “Most of it is experiencing something funny and then killing it on paper and then going onstage and giving it CPR to revive that same feeling of authenticity. That’s the magic of the funny.”

The Pelican Preserve show, an all-female act, which Torres organized, features her Comediannettes, a group of women she considers to be the strongest talent in the area. The group performs locally and nationally as a touring troupe. One of the night's acts, Nancy Francis, lives in Pelican Preserve, hence the invitation to perform there.

The night of the show, Torres paces the sidewalk behind the theater dressed in a long-sleeve black jumpsuit and her signature red glittery sneakers, a nod to Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz and a reminder to follow her own Yellow Brick Road. She’s smoking a cigarette and drinking a bottle of water. Though drugs and alcohol are rampant in the comedy community, Torres keeps herself clean and sober.

When it’s finally time, she does one last shake-off and then enters the building through a glass door that leads to the backstage area. She climbs a short flight of stairs and steps onto the lit stage.

“Good evening,” she says brightly. “Hola, hola, hola. Hello.

Thank you, Pelican Preserve. Thank you again for coming out. You keep the Ha Ha alive. You keep us at work. And that’s fantastico.” She pauses. “Some of you are looking at me like—” She makes a huh? face. “But I’m not up here entertaining you so my family members can break into your cars.” The audience laughs. Torres waits a beat. “We did that last night.”

“My sister’s Puerto Rican, and I’m Domino-Rican. Do we have any Latinos in the house tonight?”

The audience members look around. No hands go up.

They laugh as Torres pretends to put the microphone down and sneak off stage.

“It’s OK,” she says. “They never want to come anyway.

They always think it’s an immigration trap.”

The theater explodes with laughter.

“Down south, this is where you can find the real thugs. It’s the bugs. Like, in Florida, they call the roach the ‘palmetto bug.’ They should call it the ‘protector’ because you could put a leash on one, take it for a walk and nobody’s going to approach you.”

“Oh, yeah,” one man calls out.

Torres hears him and nods knowingly. She keeps going.

“Right now, I’m single, bilingual and ready to mingle. …

Single down here is hard. … I do stand-up comedy, and that’s why I’m still single. Nobody approaches me. They think I’m going to make fun of their pee-pee. Which I do.”

The audience roars. They haven't stopped laughing through her whole set. The people in the theater are rapt, watching her, elbowing their neighbors, slapping their knees. One woman dabs at her eyes with a tissue, laughing so hard she’s crying. Torres reaches the end of her set.

“That’s my time,” she says. She raises her arm to the audience in a wave and takes a small bow. “You’ve been so good.”

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Tate Salon salontate.com Salon TATE is a Fort Myers Hair Salon with the finest trained stylists and colorists in the area, using crafted cut and color techniques and products to create and evolve the effortlessly sophisticated looks that clients love. We work with hair in its natural state, treating it as organic material, applying precision technique with consideration to what will suit the individual and creating genuine hair design based on ultimate suitability. By creating beauty sustainably, we encourage people to take care of themselves, of the environment in which they live and work and of the things they love.

– Davines

Tyson Eye Modern Technology with OldFashioned Concern Tyson Eye is proud to announce our new cornea and glaucoma specialist, Dr. Stephens. Tyson Eye offers the latest technology in (bladeless laser cataract) surgery at our surgical centers in both Lee and Collier counties. Our premium cataract package (premium intraocular lens and Femtosecond laser) is designed to greatly reduce or eliminate a patient’s dependence on eye glasses. If you’ve been diagnosed with cataracts or feel your vision could be improved, please contact us for a consultation with Dr. Tyson or Dr. Stephens at (239) 9476000.

AUGUST 2019 | GULFSHORE LIFE | 85

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T H E B E S T Y O U

Certified Marijuana Doctors History: From 1850 to 1937, cannabis was used as the prime medicine for more than 100 separate illnesses or diseases in the U.S. pharmacopoeia. Marijuana is mentioned seven times in the bible as “Kaneh Bosm.” Some researchers believe it was used in the holy anointing oil. Egyptians used it as medicine. Native Americans referred to it as the “miracle plant.”

Discovery: After discovering the series of receptors influenced both by the endocannabinoids our bodies produce and the phytocannabinoids produced in marijuana, research expanded. The U.S. blocked studies where positive outcomes were expected. This series of receptors is known as the endocannabinoid system, which is the primary homeostatic regulatory system of our body. Appetite, memory, sleep, mood, pain sensation and the immune system are all influenced by the endocannabinoid system. Even breast milk contains cannabinoids! Medical schools have failed to include the endocannabinoid system in their training. Freshly harvested marijuana provides CBDA and THCA, which do not result in the “high” but are potent anti-inflammatories and antioxidants.

Juicing provides powerful medicine without the high. Patients juice fresh from garden marijuana in states where they have the right to grow their own supply for personal use. This is why so many patients advocate for this right.

CBD and THC: We often hear patients who purchased CBD over the counter say, “It doesn’t really work.” But studies have proven that THC and

86 | GULFSHORE LIFE | AUGUST 2019

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CBD, “the power couple of cannabis compounds,” work best together. CBD products are not as effective when purchased over the counter, as there is no THC or very little THC, and quite often all the other compounds have been stripped, including the terpenes and terpenoids. Scientific studies have established that CBD and THC interact synergistically to enhance each other’s therapeutic effects.

British researchers have shown that CBD potentiates THC’s anti-inflammatory properties in an animal model of colitis.

Scientists at the California Pacific Medical Center in San Francisco determined that a combination of CBD and THC has a more potent anti-tumoral effect than either compound alone when tested on brain cancer and breast cancer cell lines.

And, extensive clinical research has demonstrated that CBD combined with THC is more beneficial for neuropathic pain than either compound as a single molecule.

Intake methods: Dry Bud, oil, tincture, capsule, edible, vape, smoke, transdermal patch, topical cream, suppository

CBD is derived from hemp, which is an excellent soil cleaner.

Heavy metals have been found in some over-the-counter, untested products. One product test revealed 10 times the level of lead that is allowed in drinking water. Licensed dispensaries are required to test each batch before releasing for sale.

Intake Methods: Intake methods include smoke, vaporize, capsule, cream, transdermal patch, suppository and edible. Cannabis flower or “bud” gives patients the most control of the strain, source, cannabinoid content and intake method than any other method. Flower or bud can be smoked, vaporized, infused in oil or alcohol for capsules, tinctures or edibles.

We have offices in 17 Locations Statewide to certify patients for their Medical Marijuana Card

Author: Julie Anderson - CMMDR.com - Founder / Researcher Cannabis Nation News - Researcher / Producer / Co-host Denver’s Mile High Medical Cannabis Dispensary - Prior Co-owner

Certified Marijuana Doctors

(844) 420-7277 | certifiedmarijuanadoctors.com 1450 Airport Pulling Rd N, Suite A, Naples, Fl 34104 | (239) 317-3300

All our staff is trained in Medical Marijuana including our Office Associates.

Staff consists of Medical Marijuana Doctors, RN and Physicians Assistant.

2816 Del Prado Blvd S #3 Cape Coral, Fl 33904 | (239) 236-5311

AUGUST 2019 | GULFSHORE LIFE | 87

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Associates in Endodontics T H E B E S T Y O U

Originally a native of Alabama, Dr. Vincent C. Lovetto graduated from the University of Alabama School of Dentistry in 1979 and received his postgraduate certificate in Endodontics from the University of Alabama in 1981. Dr. Lovetto then entered the Air Force. He headed the department of endodontics at Maxwell and Homestead Air Force bases from 1981-1984.

Dr. Lovetto established his specialty practice here in 1984, where he provides outstanding professional and ethical care for his patients. He is an active member of the American Association of Endodontists, Florida Association of Endodontists, American Dental Association, Florida Dental Association, West Coast Dental Association, Collier County Dental Association and the Southern Endodontic Study Club.

Dr. Lovetto demands excellence in his patient care. He strives to always be on the forefront, utilizing the latest technological advancements for long term treatment success. These advancements include digital radiography, surgical microscopes, cone beam computer tomography and the latest advancement the Gentle Wave Multisonic Cleaning System which preserves needed tooth structure. Visit our website for further information.

Associates in Endodontics (239) 261-3017 | aie-naples.com 3641-A 10th St. N. Naples, Florida 34103

We are excited to be the first office in Southwest Florida to be certified by Sonendo for the GentleWave procedure.

The GentleWaveÂŽ System represents an innovative new way of cleaning your root canal.

With breakthrough Multisonic Ultracleaning™ technology, a powerful vortex of treatment fluids, plus multiple waves of broad spectrum acoustic energy enable treatment fluids to reach every surface. Tissue, debris and bacteria are virtually eliminated, even in the microscopic tubules that traditional methods cannot reach providing unprecedented disinfection and a clean that has never been achieved before.

AUGUST 2019 | GULFSHORE LIFE | 89

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BayView Dental Arts T H E B E S T Y O U

TESTIMONIALS BEFORE

Robert C. Hedgepath D.M.D.

AFTER

“Honestly it has been the best decision of my life. I was always extremely selfconscious about my smile and how my teeth look. I now have the most beautiful smile.

I love my Veneers!” –Vanessa BEFORE

Patrick J. Carrigan D.M.D

Edward A. Scherder D.M.D, J.D.

A healthy and appealing smile can boost your confidence and improve your enjoyment of everyday life. Cosmetic dentistry focuses on both the health and the appearance of your teeth and gums. BayView Dental Arts is pleased to welcome you to our beautiful practice in Old Naples. We offer a variety of general and cosmetic dental services to our patients, including CEREC veneers, CEREC crowns, Invisalign, ZOOM whitening and an array of other options depending on your individual needs. If you are dissatisfied with the look of your smile, we can help you change it!

When Drs. Scherder, Hedgepath and Carrigan aid in a patient’s smile transformation, it is not just the person’s appearance that is changed but also his or her poise and confidence. It is truly rewarding for them to be a part of making someone’s life better. A radiant smile has the ability to open new doors for a better job, better personal relationships and greater overall health!

Let one of our specialists help you assess your smile and determine the best treatment options available to create the look you have always dreamed of. Please contact us to schedule your personalized consultation today! Your Smile. Our Specialty.

AFTER

“I’m thrilled with my new smile and could not be happier with the results. I look in the mirror now and cannot believe how great my teeth look.” –Stephanie 90 | GULFSHORE LIFE | AUGUST 2019

239-434-5545 | bayviewdentalarts.com 1001 10th Avenue South, Suite 218 | Naples, FL 34102

Complimentary Valet Parking available

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Living the Beautifulife

by Kay Casperson When Kay followed her passion and began her career as a makeup artist and stylist many years ago, she dreamed of inspiring positive change in the lives of people everywhere. She quickly developed a dedicated following, but when her clients asked her for skincare suggestions, she could never recommend a complete collection she wholeheartedly believed in. This ultimately inspired Casperson to create her own comprehensive collection of nourishing, hypoallergenic products that are much more than just skincare.

Today her brand "Kay Casperson - BeautifuLife" has evolved into all-inclusive signature Spa/Salon and Boutique locations and a busy online community, housing her exclusive skincare, makeup, wellness, and lifestyle collections.

The sole purpose of Kay's products is, has been, and always will be to help all people find balance, look and feel gorgeous, and live the beautifuLife they deserve.

T H E B E S T Y O U

"Come let us help you live your most balanced and BeautifuLife."

"My philosophy is simple - when we're balanced from the inside out, we're beautiful from the inside out," Casperson says.

kaycasperson.com

Captiva Chadwick's Square 14830 Captiva Drive | 239-579-1470 captivaspa@kaycasperson.com

Sanibel Sundial Resort 1451 Middle Gulf Drive | 239-395-6002 sundialspa@kaycasperson.com AUGUST 2019 | GULFSHORE LIFE | 91

1250 Pine Ridge Rd, Suite 101A Naples, Florida 34108 239-261-9990 | www.drbnaples.com

Diane Brzezinski, D.O., FACOI A specialist in internal medicine for over 18 years, Dr. Brzezinski has the experience to solve whatever problems a patient brings, no matter how rare, simple, or complicated.

Dr. Brzezinski treats the whole patient, not just the condition, helping patients take ownership of their health through education and healthy lifestyle.

Dr. B offers treatments to help patients look and feel like their younger, more vibrant selves: diVa ™ Laser Vaginal Therapy BioTE ® Hormone Replacement Therapy The O-Shot ® Orgasm Enhancement Treatment Cosmetic Injectables & Fillers Silhouette InstaLift ® Facial Rejuvenation Treatment Physician Supervised Weight Loss Programs

Restore your Feminine Confidence

Age Healthier, Live Happier

Dr. Brzezinski performs diVa™, a breakthrough laser

Dr. Brzezinski offers BioTE® hormone pellets, which

procedure designed to address a woman’s most

patients have found to be very effective at alleviating

intimate challenges such as vaginal dryness, painful

many age-related problems by increasing energy,

intercourse, and bladder leakage.

muscle strength, mental clarity, and libido.

Mention this ad to receive a special discount when you call 239-261-9990 Ask for Camille, extension 102

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BEFORE

T H E B E S T Y O U

AFTER BEFORE

AFTER

Dana and Mitchell Zeitler are licensed medical providers dedicated to ensuring that their patients receive private, personalized and unique treatments by customizing each procedure to their particular needs and expectations.

BEFORE

D -Lux Medspa Dana Zeitler PA-C

Dana is a certified physician assistant with specialized training, certification and experience in facial sculpting with soft tissue fillers, neurotoxins and multiple laser rejuvenation treatments. Dana graduated from the George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences PA program more than 26 years ago. She has been practicing exclusively in aesthetic medicine since 2009 and has trained with some of the country’s most renowned plastic surgeons. Dana is passionate about aesthetics and achieving natural-looking, beautiful results.

AFTER BEFORE

Mitchell Zeitler MD

Dr. Zeitler has been a board- certified physician for more than 30 years. He attended medical school at George Washington University and completed his internship at Lenox Hill Hospital (New York) and hia residency at George Washington University Hospital (Washington, D.C.).

He practiced in the Maryland/Washington, D.C. area for 13 years before moving to Naples with his family in 1999. Dr. Zeitler serves as co-owner and medical director of D-Lux Medspa.

In 2017, Dana and Mitchell Zeitler started D-Lux Medspa, an aesthetics beauty boutique specialized in the art of injectables and healthy skin for life.

D-Lux Medspa

AFTER

239-776-4956 | dluxmedspa.com | 9010 Strada Stell Ct #208 Naples, Fl 34109 AUGUST 2019 | GULFSHORE LIFE | 93

Welcome to Our Dental Family.

Offering Complete General and Cosmetic Dentistry in Fort Myers, Florida

Signature SMILES

BY DR. JARED FORD

BEFORE

BEFORE

BEFORE

AFTER

AFTER

AFTER

7630 Cambridge Manor Place, Fort Myers, Florida 33907 (239) 936-5252 • www.smilesbydocford.com

94 | GULFSHORE LIFE

Follow us on Instagram

@SmilesbyDocFord

Love

WHAT MATTERS

For membership information contact Kitsi Estrem Director of Membership | 239.262.5550 | kestrem@greyoakscc.com www.greyoakscc.com

INSPIRATION M E E T S O R G A N I Z AT I O N .

Inspired days start in Inspired Closets. Each customized space is designed around you, providing easy access to everything you need to confidently take on the day. Wherever it may take you. Get inspired at InspiredClosets.com

Visit Our Showrooms (239) 948-0022 InspiredClosetsSWFL.com NAPLES: 4535 Domestic Ave. BONITA SPRINGS: 28400 Old 41 Rd., Suite 7

20% OFF

*Not valid with other promotions. Offer expires August 31,2019. See store for details.

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Joint Implant Surgeons of Florida

T H E B E S T Y O U TESTIMONIAL

“Dive trip to Indonesia eight weeks after my hip replacement.

Many thanks to Dr. Humbert for doing such a great job on me.”

—Caroline

Dr. Humbert is one of the country’s most experienced joint replacement surgeons. He specializes in knee and hip replacement, and is board-certified through the AOBOS. He has been ranked as the No. 1 volume surgeon in Florida for hip and knee replacement (Data, AHCA*), performing more than 1,000 replacements per year. Increased surgical volume has been proven to improve patient outcomes and reduce complication rates in total joint replacement. He has dedicated his practice to providing safe, top-quality hip and knee replacements. He instructs at orthopedic learning centers and specializes in the latest minimally invasive techniques, custom joint replacement, partial knee replacement, and complex revision surgery of the hip and knee. Dr. Humbert obtained a degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Florida and a master’s in biomedical engineering from the University of Akron. After medical school and orthopedic residency at Ohio University, he completed a fellowship in total joint replacement.

“Back to enjoying my motorcycle four weeks after my surgery.”

—Jerry

When it comes to hip and knee replacement, Dr. Humbert truly is “The Best Surgeon in the Joint.”

Joint Implant Surgeons of Florida

(239) 337-2003 | jointimplant.com 7331 College Parkway, Suite 300, Fort Myers, FL 33907 1020 Crosspointe Drive, Suite 110, Naples, FL 34110

“Enjoying tai chi after joint replacement. Thanks Dr. Humbert!”

—Helen AUGUST 2019 | GULFSHORE LIFE | 97

Let your beauty blossom...again Turn back time at the Center for Cosmetic Surgery. Facial procedures are our specialty, renewing your beauty and refining those bestowed by nature. Open yourself to a new world of confidence ... and let your youthful essence blossom once again.

Call NOW to schedule your personalized consultation or to reserve your spot for the next COMPLIMENTARY FACIAL REJUVENATION SEMINAR 7 PM Thursday, October 24, 2019 7 PM Thursday, January 30, 2020 7 PM Thursday, March 19, 2020

239-498-4YOU (4968) • 1-800-481-FACE (3223) www.facialdoctor.com THE CENTER FOR COSMETIC SURGERY

ROBERT D. KLAUSNER MD, FACS Listed in Consumer’s Research Council of America’s Guide to America’s Top Physicians & A Castle Connolly “Top Doctor”

Fellowship and Ivy League Trained Board Certified – American Board of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery American Board of Otolaryngology – Head & Neck Surgery

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Family Foot & Leg Center T H E B E S T Y O U

T ESTIMONIAL Dr. Kevin Lam is known for his minimally invasive one-stitch bunionectomy that is currently being taught all over the world. Dr. Lam has been included among America’s Top Podiatrists for many consecutive years. He uses innovative treatments including neuroma relief without surgery (even for patients who have had surgery). The procedure helps to deaden the nerve with a heating wand using radiofrequency ablation. If you have been told you have neuromas, don’t have surgery—there is a 50 percent complication rate associated with surgery. Dr. Lam also offers quick, nonsurgical options for heel pain using shockwave therapy. We also offer stem cell therapy for painful joints in the lower extremity to get you back on the golf course. We also offer both amniotic and an individual’s own bone marrow stem cell treatments, which can be a viable option before joint surgeries. Family Foot & Leg Center offers quick, same-day appointments most of the time. Our doctors and staff are the most efficient in the field. For relief from simple ingrown toenails to dislocated ankle fractures—we handle it all. We also handle pediatric foot and ankle pains.

Family Foot & Leg Center

(239) 430-3668 (FOOT) naplespodiatrist.com Dr. Kevin Lam & Dr. Glenn Woodley - 730 Goodlette-Frank Road, Suite 102, Naples, FL 34102 Dr. W. Drew Chapman - 12250 Tamiami Trail E., Suite 101, Naples, FL 34113 Dr. Rikhil Patel - 840 111th Ave. N., Suite 3, Naples, FL 34108 Dr. Sean Dunleavy - 9510 Corkscrew Palms Circle #3, Estero, FL 33928 Dr. Jake R. Powers, DPM & Dr. Mark Weaver, DPM - 1645 Colonial Blvd, Ft. Myers, Fl 33907 Dr. Sean Dunleavy, DPM - 6846 International Center Blvd, Suite B, Ft. Myers, Fl 33912 Dr. Patrick Bartholomew, DPM - 530 SE 16th Place, Suite A, Cape Coral, Fl 33990

I have all kinds of problems with my feet, so when I moved to Naples three years ago, a good podiatrist was a must. The first I tried, recommended by my doctor, was a disaster. So I did some Web searching on my own and found Dr. Lam. I am so grateful I did, because he has helped me walk without pain for the first time in many years.

Healthy feet are gifts-let Dr. Lam or his associates give them to you. ~J. Ginsburg Naples, FL

AUGUST 2019 | GULFSHORE LIFE | 99

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T H E B E S T Y O U

The Future of Fitness Did you know muscle mass is linked to healthy longevity? After age 40, you lose on average one percent of muscle mass per year, a rate that accelerates as we age.

You have a unique “muscle age" and may be surprised if it’s older than you.

Healthy longevity is the goal for clients of Naples’ Longevity Performance Center. Founded by CEO Dr. William Kapp, the stateof-the-art fitness facility is medically directed by an onsite physician supported by a nutritionist, nurse and trainers. The Center features smart machines that use sophisticated algorithms to measure and enhance fitness.

Strength training is the goal, as muscle mass has a direct impact on healthy longevity.

Convenient monthly plans begin with use of the smart machines and advance to include comprehensive, physician-directed fitness and nutrition programs utilizing DNA, blood biomarkers, body composition, and other data unique to each individual.

Learn your “muscle age” on your first visit to Longevity Performance Center. Our smart machines use sophisticated algorithms to measure and enhance your fitness as you exercise.

There’s no guesswork about weights and reps. The machines know when to step it up, and they adjust as you continue to create the “muscle confusion” that trainers say is essential for strengthening.

Each machine has a screen that charts your weights and reps with Pac-Man-like animation.

It even scores you at the end. You focus on the animation, hit your targets and get a full body workout in just 30 minutes without the risk of injury.

You discover mindful fitness in a spa-like setting. With a medical director, nutritionist, nurse and trainers on staff, we take a deep dive into your uniqueness. We analyze your DNA and blood, measure your body composition, and develop a customized fitness and nutritional approach you can live with. Every six workouts, we re-measure your “muscle age” and fitness indicators.

Clients look better, have more energy, and look forward to healthier longevity.

1000 Immokalee Road Naples, FL 34110 (239) 238-1650 | longevitypc.com Connect with us on Facebook

100 | GULFSHORE LIFE | AUGUST 2019

TAKE YOUR REGULAR FITNESS ROUTINE TO THE NEXT LEVEL. Mes Amies Medical Spa, LLC is committed to helping you look and feel your personal best by providing the highest level of medical grade cosmetic procedures. Each of our services is carefully designed to fit your unique needs, and our highly experienced staff is ready to support you every step of the way.

Reach out today to learn more.

MES AMIES MEDICAL SPA IS THE ONLY PROVIDER IN FORT MYERS TO OFFER EMSCULPT® .

EMSCULPT® is the only procedure to help both women and men build muscle and sculpt their body without needles and anesthesia.

Each service is equivalent to 20,000 lunges or 20,000 crunches.

LIMITED TIME OFFER. CALL US TODAY TO SCHEDULE YOUR FREE EMSCULPT® CONSULTATION. COMBINING BEAUTY, SCIENCE AND UNPARALLELED CUSTOMER SERVICE.

9140 WEST COLLEGE POINTE DR, • SUITE 5, FORT MYERS, FL 33919 • 239.791.7867 • WWW.MESAMIESMEDSPA.COM MONDAY - FRIDAY 9:00AM - 5:00PM • SATURDAY BY APPOINTMENT ONLY

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T H E B E S T Y O U

GROW HEALTHIER, NOT OLDER. We all know the feeling of pain. The aches that consume our body, or the pain we feel when we can't help our loved ones who are suffering.

TESTIMONIAL “Before I met Dr. King, I struggled with insomnia, acid reflux, IBS and arthritis. As a 71-year-old woman, I considered myself healthy. I did not know what that really meant until I started Dr. King’s program.

Currently, I sleep through the night, my joint pain and digestive problems are gone. My body has healed itself. I have excess energy, and I now know what good health really feels like. The education I received will carry me through the rest of my life, giving me control over my health. Thank you to Dr. King and his wonderful team.”

—Sharon Lewis

Linell King, M.D., a Johns Hopkinstrained physician, also experienced pain when he lost his loving father to pancreatic cancer. Shortly thereafter,

Linell King, M.D.

his mother's health took a downward spiral initiated by the stress of losing her husband. This motivated Dr. King to make a change in his approach to health, so that people would not have to continue to suffer. That change is Naples Vitality.

Our bright and beautiful office is located in downtown Naples; our remarkable team embodies integrity, passion, and perseverance. Our goal is to help you enhance your life without pain, suffering, or despair. While incorporating nutrition, education, hormone balance, and mentorship, we strive to help you regain your health by identifying the true underlying cause of your health challenges.

Join us in one of our exciting seminars to learn how we can help you grow healthier, not older.

Please call (239) 244-8447 to reserve your spot at our next event.

UPCOMING SEMINAR SCHEDULE:

Naples Vitality Changing healthcare so that people do not have to continue to suffer.

Date August 14, 2019

Venue Name K Prime Steakhouse

Topic Inflammation

August 28, 2019

Seasons 52

Menopause and Metabolism

September 04, 2019

K Prime Steakhouse

Diabetes

September 11, 2019

Seasons 52

Autoimmune

239-244-8447 | naplesvitality.com | 201 8th St South #307 Naples, Fl 34102 102 | GULFSHORE LIFE | AUGUST 2019

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Tyson Eye T H E B E S T Y O U

At Tyson Eye, patients are not a number, but an extension of our family. We are committed to patient care and have five convenient state-of-the-art locations in Southwest Florida.

Each location is filled with the most highly trained and skilled staff in the country. We are proud of our nationally recognized staff training program. Each of our ophthalmic technicians are certified, an accomplishment only a few practices can match.

Under the leadership of Dr. Farrell C. Tyson, we are dedicated to providing our patients top quality eye care with the most innovative clinical advancements available. Here at Tyson Eye we strive to have the best physicians in the country.

Farrell C. Tyson, MD, FACS Cataracts & Glaucoma Specialist

Tyson Eye is pleased to welcome ophthalmologist J. David Stephens, MD to our practice.

Dr. Stephens obtained his Doctor of Medicine at the University of Oklahoma College of Medicine, his residency at Wills Eye Hospital in Philadelphia, and his fellowship at Vance Thompson Vision in Sioux Falls. Dr. Stephens has immense experience in eye care and specializes in cornea and glaucoma procedures and treatments. This exciting addition to the team will further Tyson Eye's mission of putting patient care and treatment above all.

Tyson Eye

(239) 947-6000 | TysonEye.com Naples • Bonita Springs • Fort Myers

J. David Stephens, MD Cornea & Glaucoma Specialist

Cape Coral • North Fort Myers AUGUST 2019 | GULFSHORE LIFE | 105

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T H E B E S T Y O U

Refined Image Naples Refined Image is owned and operated locally by boardcertified physician Andrea Bickerton, M.D. Dr. Bickerton and staff offer the latest, safest and most innovative treatments available to enhance your natural beauty and slow, or even reverse, the signs of aging. Refined Image believes in treating everyone as an individual by recognizing there are no “cookie-cutter” treatments.

Refined Image is the first area medical spa to focus on offering their premium services in a private event setting; bridal parties, birthdays, charity events or even just a girls’ night in. Our team will evaluate your needs and goals and develop a premium skin care plan to achieve the results you desire. We are dedicated to educating our clients on prevention and maintenance within aesthetics. Give us a call to schedule your complimentary consultation! $1,000 OFF A "GOTTA HAVE IT" COOLSCULPTING PACKAGE Exclusions may apply

239.302.3540 • refinedimagenaples.com 8855 Immokalee Rd Suite 11 | Naples, FL 34120

106 | GULFSHORE LIFE | AUGUST 2019

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Nadia Kazim, M.D., FACS Dr. Nadia Kazim is a dedicated, fellowship trained eyelid and facial plastic surgeon who established her own practice in Bonita Springs, Florida in 2010. After completing medical school, Dr. Kazim graduated in the top 5% of her class and was inducted into the nationally recognized Alpha Omega Alpha (AΩA) Medical Honor Society. She then completed her ophthalmology residency at the prestigious

Kresge Eye Institute at Wayne State University in Detroit, Michigan. Following her residency, Dr. Kazim undertook a two-year fellowship specializing in ophthalmic plastic and reconstructive surgery at one of the busiest and most respected facial plastic surgery practices, affiliated with Beaumont Hospital in Royal Oak, Michigan. She then became a member of the esteemed American Society of Ophthalmic Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery. Dr. Kazim has performed more than 10,000 surgical and non-surgical procedures. She specializes in blepharoplasty surgery, which is the removal of excess eyelid skin that may impair a person’s vision. She also performs surgical procedures to correct drooping upper or lower lids. Additionally, she is an expert in the field of removal of eyelid skin cancer and facial cosmetic procedures such as brow lifts, Botox®, fillers and skin rejuvenation. She is a published author in her field with numerous contributions to various ophthalmic plastic surgery textbooks and journals.

Dr. Kazim prides herself in providing her patients with compassionate personal attention.

T H E B E S T Y O U

(239) 494-4900 • kazimeyelidsurgery.com 3501 Health Center Blvd., Suite 2170 Bonita Springs, FL 34135

SOLA SALON STUDIOS HELP BEAUTY PROFESSIONALS ACHIEVE THEIR DREAMS At Sola, we take pride in being the largest, fastestgrowing salon studio business in the country. At our core, we believe in the beauty professional and have one goal in mind: to help set them up for success!

CLIENTS BOOK YOUR APPOINTMENT TODAY SOLASALONS.COM

Sola Salon Studios 239.331-9958 • solasalons.com Coconut Point Mall | Gulf Coast Town Center

We offer the beauty professional FREEDOM to be their own boss, OWNERSHIP of their private studio without all the risks and expense related to traditional salons, ability to INCREASE EARNINGS by retaining 100% of their revenue, and a better client experience by providing PRIVATE CUSTOMER ATTENTION. Customers love the one-on-one attention they receive in a private salon suite.

We look forward to answering any questions you may have, as well as scheduling a tour so you can experience Sola firsthand!

AUGUST 2019 | GULFSHORE LIFE | 107

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T H E B E S T Y O U

GELIE-CURE™ SYSTEM

Experience excellence at Gloss Salon Naples. Treat yourself toadayofrelaxationandrejuvenationwiththefinestinluxury salon services, including haircolor and design, keratin smoothing, European spa facials, rejuvenation peels, dermaplaning renewal, Dermapen collagen induction therapy, waxing services, manicures and pedicures. We are conveniently located in the charming Third Street South shopping district in downtown Naples.

Gloss Salon Naples

(239) 263-8050 • glosssalonnaples.com 315 14th Ave. S. Naples, FL 34102

Be su re to reach So u th west Florida's health - con scious consumers.

Re se rve y our sp ace now in th e Winter/S prin g issu e of HEALTHY LIFE. Co n tact K i mb erl ey E van s, A ssociate Publish e r, at (249) 449-4157 or k ev an s @ gu lfs h ore life.com.

gulfshorelife.com

Exclusively offered by

INTERIORS | TRENDS | REAL ESTATE

HOM E GLITZ ON THE GULF

Sleek architecture mixed with coastal shades and sparkly accents make this beachfront renovation both warm and glam.

CRAIG HILDEBRAND PHOTOGRAPHY

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Interior designer Dwayne Bergmann brought sophistication to the project with porcelain floors and other large-scale glossy tiles, mixed-size chandeliers and a metallic staircase.

SA N I BEL SEL ECT This coastal home blends contemporary cool with the grounding shades of nature.

P H OTO G R A P H Y B Y C R A I G H I L D E B R A N D P H OTO G R A P H Y

By Michael Korb

With breathtaking views and the white-sand beaches of the Gulf of Mexico just steps away, this 3,885-square-foot, tri-level house of four bedrooms (plus media room) and 41/2 bathrooms is perched on a 1.06-acre lot along Sanibel’s West Gulf Drive.

Homeowners Mary and Nick Avgoulas purchased the property and immediately decided to renovate. When they hired architect Annette Nilles, they quickly realized they’d be better off tearing down a majority of the building, except for the cap and pilings, and starting over. That move allowed for the creation of an open concept space that takes full advantage of the surroundings and leaves the occupants with jaw-dropping views of the ocean.

“We expanded the footprint a little bit and

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added a four-car garage out front,” Nick says. “We kept the tri-level nature of it because there was some advantage from a permitting situation." The pool was pretty nice, so they just refinished it, and the couple added a hot tub and sundeck area. “We (applied travertine to) the whole pool area and under the house and changed the front entrance to make it more grand,” he adds.

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From left: The kitchen has two islands and a sea-inspired backsplash; every room was designed to show off the ocean; the wallpaper behind the staircase sparkles with shiny mica flakes.

HOME S T Y L I S H

L I V I N G

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A tri-level design makes for a loftier space, but requires a unique staircase design that is functional and stylish, like this one that resembles a piece of metallic art.

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HOME S T Y L I S H

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08.2019

But the centerpiece of the house is the great room, and the way it opens up with sliding pocket doors that disappear to create the perfect indoor-outdoor space. A post was originally planned for the middle of the room, but the design was updated to accommodate structural steel beams down the center and across the back. This created a more interesting roofline and kept the vistas clutter-free.

The sliders are 10 feet tall and open a full 32 feet.

The driving force behind everything was to play up the Gulf views. “From the master suite to the orientation of the kitchen, dining and family rooms, we took every effort possible to maintain that,� says interior designer Dwayne Bergmann.

While the vistas make this home a dream, the details make it exceptional. One of those elements is the use of polished and matte 24-inch-by-48-inch porcelain floor

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"Saurus Cranes" Tones of champagne and aqua are complementary and soothing, while keeping the focus on the Gulf views.

ORIGINAL PAINTINGS by

tile, which is laid out in a way that the ambient light plays off them, tricking the eye into seeing a rippling effect that mimics the water outside.

The owners wanted a soft, contemporary look—nothing harsh, or overly Miami or East Coast—that incorporated some of the coastal color palette, but that didn't overdo the beach theme. “We focused more on the interior architectural components,” Bergmann explains. “The polished and honed flooring, the kitchen with a double island­, and (we) gave them touches of the color palette. We used a Cambria quartz product called ‘Montgomery’ with a light, aquamarine hue that is filtered through the slab. But that was it. We kept everything soft.”

In the great room, the combination media-fireplace is simple, with an organic finish, while nearby the home’s open stairs dazzle with cable railings and mixed-size satellite chandeliers.

“We went with a bent bar railing,” Nick says. “It is like a piece of metallic art.” The wallpaper behind the stairs has a shimmery pattern with its mica flakes, which add a bit of glamour to the entryway.

From front to back, the home is the perfect representation of how Sanibel is recreating the concept of “island life” in the 21st century.

DEBBIE W NELSON

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H E A LT H | F I T N E S S | B E A U T Y

H E A LT H Y LIFE

PA DDLE AWAY

Stand-up paddleboarding may be the most Gulf-friendly (and versatile) activity to try this month.

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5 T H I NGS YOU C A N DO ON A PA DDL E BOA R D

By Cary Barbor

Ziajka, a certified yoga and stand-up paddleboard instructor. And, if you do fall off, the water provides a soft, cool landing. Start with a group class.

Ziajka holds lessons every Sunday at 9:30 a.m. at Delnor-Wiggins Pass State Park in Naples. Boards are provided—just call ahead to reserve your spot. (239) 450-6094

Intensify Your Yoga Practice Yoga is difficult enough for most people on dry land, but a paddleboard makes you work double-time thanks to its unstable surface that forces you to engage every little muscle to retain balance. The core—the group of muscles that hold you upright­—benefits the most. It’s not all grim effort, though. “We laugh a lot,” says Jodi

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Paddle with Manatees Boards provide the best opportunity to get up close to these gentle giants.

The relatively small, quiet vessels register as another harmless animal.

John Paeno of CGT Kayaks in Bonita Springs says manatees come right up to his groups when they paddle on Bonita's Imperial River and other spots around the area. “During the birthing season, mothers will bring the babies for us to check out,” he says.

Go Fishin’ Fishing from a paddleboard is effective for a lot of the same reasons as manatee spotting: You can be stealthy.

Plus, you can get into shallow water and wedge your way next to mangroves and other growth that would get tangled in a larger craft. “You’re interacting with the environment,” says Paeno. “It’s a whole different

point of view than when you’re in a motorboat.” He likes to sit on a cushion atop a cooler full of cold drinks and snacks and throw out his line.

Try Meditation If you’re not up for doing downward dog in the middle of the ocean, try meditation instead. Because the board is wide, most people can sit on it crosslegged. The calming rocking of the water can then help soothe you into a zen state. “If you tend to get seasick, simply open your eyes,” she says.

Ziajka recommends tying a canvas bag filled with sand to the ankle leash as an anchor, so you won't float away.

An actual SUP anchor works, too.

Bring Your Pup Yes, dogs can paddle too, but training is required. Alexis Foreman, owner of Sit Means Sit Dog Training in Bonita Springs, advises you keep these main points in mind. Make sure your dog can swim and use a life vest for pets under 40 pounds. Master the “place” command, in which hounds learn to keep their four paws within a boundary. Lastly, get them used to the noise and motion you’ll encounter on the water so they don’t get spooked.

Other tips: bring a pet first aid kit and clip your dog's toenails before boarding to improve their grip.

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One of the most popular activities to hit the waters in recent years, stand-up paddleboarding is credited as starting in Hawaii, but the Gulf played a big role in fueling the SUP lifestyle when YOLO Board opened in Rosemary Beach in 2007.

It’s no wonder—our placid waters provide the ideal setting to cruise around on a longboard. Doubling as both challenging and low-impact, the sport appeals to people from all walks of life, and now folks are getting increasingly creative with their paddling pursuits. We talked to local experts who shared the myriad ways you can extend the fun on a board.

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BEAUTY

C BD M E ETS COSM ET IC S CBD oil has been said to reduce inflammation, relieve pain and elevate moods. Little scientific evidence currently supports these claims, but that's not stopping the beauty industry from capitalizing on the cannabinoid oil.

The trendy ingredient can now be found in everything from lotions to lip balm by brands like Cannuka and Saint Jane, which are sold by mainstream retailers like Sephora and Ulta.

Don't worry—you won't break the law or get a buzz from CBD-infused face cream, but it might soothe and level out your skin. At least that's what the beauty gurus are betting on.

MIND

W ISH THEM W ELL Stressed out? Wish good things for those around you. Participants of a recent paper published by Journal of Happiness Studies reported feeling reduced anxiety and heightened happiness after spending 12 minutes silently wishing well to people as they passed. The practice can help you feel more empathetic and connected to society rather than apart from it, the study's lead author suggests. It's a simple shift in mindset you can practice every day.

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Multiple Dates "Strength, Balance and Flexibility" classes focus on all major muscle groups and combine various balance exercises to promote form and flexibility. Held at Pelican Bay Community Center. pelicanbay.org Aug. 10 "Adaptive Fitness Challenge," now in its third year, has adaptive athletes test their physical abilities in a friendly competitive setting at Around the Clock Fitness in Fort Myers. eventbrite.com Aug. 14 "ELCP Deep Water Aerobics" takes place over one hour at Eagle Lakes Community Park, with activities like water walking and running, core exercises and more. (239) 252-3527 Aug. 14-18 The 2019 Beach Yoga Retreat with Jacquie & Missy features daily yoga, workshops and group activities spread over four days at The Ritz-Carlton, Naples. eventbrite.com Aug. 24 The North Collier Regional Rampage 5K is the last of three events in the Elite Events Summer 5K Series, held at North Collier Regional Park. runeliteevents.com 122 | GULFSHORE LIFE

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LOCAL EVENTS THAT KEEP YOU FIT

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LET'S GO OUT TO E AT! Our food editor knows all the best spots to eat, drink and be merry.

Pictured here: The charred octopus at the sultry Bar Tulia.

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DINING GUIDE

A select listing of Collier and Lee County restaurants, arranged by location.

AVERAGE DINNER ENTRÉE PRICE

$ $10 and less | $$ $11-15 | $$$ $16-24 | $$$$ $25 and more

The Dining Guide is crafted each month based on editorial discretion and inclusion of restaurants that advertise regularly (denoted by an asterisk). All phone numbers are area code (239) unless specified. Call or check the web for summer hours, as many places take a seasonal hiatus. Please email dsonne@ gulfshorelife.com to report changes in a restaurant’s location, prices or menu.

NAPLES

HobNob Kitchen & Bar 720 Fifth Ave. S., Suite 101, 580-0070. hobnobnaples.com.

Updated takes on classic cuisine in a cool, contemporary setting on Fifth Avenue South. $$$$ MODERN AMERICAN

THIRD STREET SOUTH Barbatella 1290 Third St. S., 263-1955. barbatellanaples.com.

Casual Italian cuisine from the people behind Sea Salt. Sample woodfired pizzas and gelato in the trendy wine bar or relaxed patio. $$$

Ocean Prime 699 Fifth Ave. S., 430-0404. ocean-prime.com. This swanky concept from national restaurateur Cameron Mitchell features a from-scratch kitchen mixing surf and turf, a beautiful dining room and attentive service. $$$$ MODERN

ITALIAN

The Bevy 360 12th Ave. S., 228-4220. naplesbevy.com.

Premium craft cocktails and varied influences shine through at this bar and eatery in the Third Street South area.

The open-air set-up with retractable roof is nothing short of impressive, too. $$$ MODERN

AMERICAN

Osteria Tulia / Bar Tulia 466 Fifth Ave. S., 213-2073. tulianaples. com. Innovative Sicilian-inspired dishes, arguably some of the best in Naples, in a rustic-chic farmhouse setting or the Bar Tulia gastropub, which has unbeatable craft cocktails. $$$ ITALIAN

Campiello Ristorante & Bar 1177 Third St. S., 435-1166. campiello. damico.com. Italian with a contemporary interpretation in a beautiful courtyard right on Third Street South. $$$$ ITALIAN The Continental 1205 Third St. S., 659-0007. continentalnaples.com.

Top-quality cuts of steak from around the globe are enhanced by modern décor, private cabanas and a “cocktail lab.” $$$$ STEAK Jane’s on 3rd Garden Cafe 1209 Third St. S., 261-2253. janesgardencafe.com. Folks come for the lobster benedict and stuffed French toast, but they stay to

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Naples' Bleu Provence, owned by a French family, consistently tops the list of local favorites for its chic decor and stunning wine list.

sit around the lovely koi fountain in a sunny patio. $$ CASUAL Ridgway Bar & Grill 1300 Third St. S., 262-5500. ridgwaybarandgrill.com. A quintessential Old Naples restaurant with creative American fare. $$$ MODERN AMERICAN Sea Salt 1186 Third St. S., 434-7258. seasaltnaples.com. Organic produce and naturally

raised ingredients. Dedicated to seafood and its accompaniments. $$$$

twists to vegetables, lamb, chicken, beef and more. $$$$ MIDDLE

MODERN AMERICAN

EASTERN

FIFTH AVENUE SOUTH

Bistro 821 821 Fifth Ave. S., 261-5821. bistro821.com. Kitchen open for the eyes of the customers and a menu filled with originality. $$$ MODERN AMERICAN

Bha! Bha! Persian Bistro* 865 Fifth Ave. S., 594-5557. bhabhapersianbistro. com. Exquisite Persian cuisine in a jewel box of a dining room, offering a wide variety of authentic fare plus unique

Chops City Grill 837 Fifth Ave. S., 262-4677. chopscitygrill.com.

A refreshed menu of

steaks, chops and more has spiced up this Fifth Avenue South stalwart. $$$$ STEAK The French Brasserie Rustique 365 Fifth Ave. S., 315-4019. thefrenchnaples.com.

This is celebrated local chef Vincenzo Betulia’s newest eatery; expect exquisite escargots and steak tartare in a buzzworthy atmosphere. $$$ FRENCH

Pazzo! Cucina Italiana 853 Fifth Ave. S., 434-8494. pazzoitaliancafe.com. Beautiful presentations and sophisticated twists on Italian favorites. An extensive renovation debuted before the end of 2018. $$$$ ITALIAN Sails Restaurant 301 Fifth Ave. S., 537-7227. sailsrestaurants.com.

This upscale eatery and raw bar that opened last season has been impressing seafood lovers; at the far western end of Fifth Avenue South, expect unusual crudos and a large selection

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of international fish. $$$$ SEAFOOD Sushi Thai Multiple locations throughout Collier and Lee counties. sushithaitoo. com. Large selection of sushi and Thai dishes. $$$ ASIAN Truluck’s 698 Fourth Ave. S., 530-3131. trulucks.com. Known for stone crabs brought in from its local boats, the fine dining locale also touts seafood from the Gulf and beyond. $$$$ SEAFOOD Veranda E 290 Fifth Ave. S., 659-3466. hotelescalante.com.

Courtyard setting and menu with both Asian and French influences in the Hotel Escalante. $$$$ MODERN AMERICAN DOWNTOWN NAPLES 7th Avenue Social 849 Seventh Ave. S., 231-2318. 7thavenuesocial.com. Florida-inspired, inventive menu with craft cocktails in a lounge-like setting off Fifth Ave. $$$ MODERN AMERICAN

The Claw Bar 221 Ninth St. S., 231-3912. theclawbar.com. The newest restaurant from the team behind The Bay House, it’s close to downtown Naples in the Bellasera hotel, and acclaimed chef Andy Hunter is in the kitchen. Expect oysters (cold and hot), exquisite seafood masterpieces, cocktails with flair and genteel Southern charm in spades. $$$$ SEAFOOD

La Colmar Bakery & Bistro 80 Tamiami Trail N., 315-4303. lacolmar.com. This bake shop imports pristine

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non-GMO Gallic flour for all of its bread and croissants. The café resembling a French village also has a full menu for breakfast, lunch and dinner. $$ FRENCH

Maria D’anna Café 300 Tamiami Trail N., 263-6892. mariadannacafe.com. Flawless, from-scratch Polish dishes and baked goods in a charming, sunny space. $$$ EASTERN EUROPEAN

Pinchers* Multiple locations throughout Collier and Lee counties. pinchersusa.com.

Seafood from local fishermen in a super-casual and family-friendly setting. $$$ SEAFOOD The Rooster Food + Drink 600 Goodlette-Frank Road N., 228-5973. theroosternaples.com. Two fine dining chefs teamed up to open this simple breakfast and lunch spot serving not-atall-simple dishes, like braised short ribs over grits with salsa verde— and they serve dinner Tuesdays and Fridays. $$ CASUAL BAYFRONT K-Prime Steakhouse 403 Bayfront Place, 435-9353. kprimesteakhouse.com. At Bayfront near Fifth Avenue South sits this stately dining room with plush chairs, prime cuts and great herb-crusted prime rib. $$$$ STEAK CRAYTON COVE Bleu Provence 1234 Eighth St. S., 261-8239. bleuprovencenaples. com. Take a tour of southern France in the heart of Old Naples.

With amazing food and

a stunning wine list, it’s consistently one of the Gulfshore’s best restaurants. $$$$ FRENCH Chez Boet 755 12th Ave. S., 643-6177. chezboetnaples.com.

French staples with a personal touch from the husband-wife owners, plus a full bar. $$$$ FRENCH The Dock at Crayton Cove 845 12th Ave. S., 263-9940. dockcraytoncove.com. A laidback spot for Florida seafood on Naples Bay. $$$ SEAFOOD

EAST NAPLES 21 Spices by Chef Asif 4270 Tamiami Trail E., 919-8830.

21spicesdining.com.

This isn’t your average curry house (although you can get great chicken tikka masala and garlic naan)—expect soaring ceilings, sleek décor and a full bar. $$$ INDIAN First Watch* Multiple locations throughout Lee and Collier counties. firstwatch.com. A dependable and quick option for breakfast and lunch. $$ CASUAL Kareem’s Lebanese Kitchen 4270 Tamiami Trail E., 315-4167. kareemskitchen.com.

Middle Easterners rave about the authenticity here, from seven types of hummus and other meze to composed entrées like roasted chicken with za’atarspiced potatoes and kibbeh with yogurt and pomegranate seeds. $$$ MIDDLE EASTERN LowBrow Pizza & Beer 3148 Tamiami Trail E., 529-6919. lowbrowpizzaandbeer. com. Gourmet pies with

artisanal cheeses and unique toppings made from scratch are fired in a wood-burning oven and served with craft brews in a frat-like setting (the snarky joke-strewn menu is a hoot). $$ ITALIAN Rumba Cuban Café 1265 Airport-Pulling Road S., 659-2996. rumbacubancafe.com.

Classic Cuban cuisine with a few fun twists and very attentive service. $$$ SPANISH/ LATIN AMERICAN

Texas Tony's* 4519 Tamiami Trail E., 7328392. texastonys.com.

Ribs, brisket and more are complemented by a large selection of beer at this eatery from the folks behind Pinchers. $$ BARBECUE MIDTOWN Andre’s Steakhouse 2800 Tamiami Trail N., 263-5851. If you’re a fan of Peter Luger, opt for this tiny joint founded by one of its former chefs. $$$$ STEAK

Cibao Grille 814 Neapolitan Way, 4346653. cibaogrille.com.

Caribbean dishes from the owners’ roots in the Dominican Republic mix with American classics. $$$ MODERN AMERICAN

D’Amico & Sons 4691 Ninth St. N., 430-0955. damicoandsons.com.

Known for wood-fired pizzas and parmigianas—and the $8.99 “endless wine” to go with them. $$$ ITALIAN Dorona 2110 Tamiami Trail N., 529-2819. doronanaples.com.

In this upscale-casual eatery from the same owners as Sea Salt and

Barbatella, the Italian flair is felt throughout, with rosemary roasted potatoes accompanying every steak. $$$$ STEAK

Escargot 41 4339 Tamiami Trail N., 7935000. escargot41.com.

Traditional French restaurant with a large wine list. $$$ FRENCH Fernández the Bull 3375 Pine Ridge Road, 653-9097; 1201 Piper Blvd., 254-9855. fernandezthebull. com. Serving authentic Cuban dishes, such as roasted pork and black beans, since 1985. $$ SPANISH/LATIN AMERICAN

First Watch* Multiple locations throughout Lee and Collier counties. firstwatch.com. A dependable and quick option for breakfast and lunch. $$ CASUAL Food & Thought 2132 Tamiami Trail N., 213-2222. foodandthought.com. The organic grocery store and counter-service café with a tree-shaded courtyard is not strictly vegetarian but has a full menu of entrées and raw and vegan options. $ VEGETARIAN Fujiyama 2555 Tamiami Trail N., 261-4332. naplesfujiyama.com.

Japanese master chefs prepare and serve dinners with flair at your hibachi table; there is also a great sushi selection. $$$ ASIAN FUSE Global Cuisine / FUSE BBQ 2500 U.S. 41 N., 455-4585. fusenaples.com.

Chef Greg Scarlatos blends cuisines from around the world into a cohesive menu at the fine-dining Fuse.

In 2018, he expanded

his reach, adding an insanely good casual barbecue eatery next door. $$$ MODERN AMERICAN

Harold’s Place 2555 Tamiami Trail N., 263-7254. naplesharoldsplace.com. This chickee bar in a lush tropical setting also serves an award-winning charbroiled burger. $ CASUAL Jimmy P’s Charred 1833 Tamiami Trail N., Naples, 643-2427; 25301 U.S. 41 S., Bonita Springs, 390-0301. jimmypscharred.com. This is the intimate, casually elegant steakhouse specializing in wagyu beef under the same direction and roof as Naples’ favorite butcher. Now, for 2019, there is a second location in Bonita Springs. $$$$ STEAK

Lamoraga 3936 U.S. 41 N., 331-3669, lamoragarestaurant.com.

Contemporary upscale twists on Spanish favorites plus other small plates. $$$$ SPANISH The Local 5323 Airport-Pulling Road, 5963276. thelocalnaples. com. Fresh, healthy cuisine locally sourced from farm and sea. $$$ MODERN AMERICAN

Martin Fierro 13040 Livingston Road, 3004777. martinfierrorestaurant.com. Authentic Argentinian and Uruguyan parrillada with tons of grilled grass-fed beef and tango music. $$$ LATIN AMERICAN Moura Bistro 3369 Pine Ridge Road, 7388883. mourabistro.com.

A tiny storefront is delivering a limited yet flavorful selection of Lebanese fare, includ-

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ing falafel, hummus, tabouleh, shawarma and shish kebabs. $$$ MIDDLE EASTERN

O’mei* 6434 Naples Blvd., Suite 406, 6315633. omeinaples.com.

O’mei’s Peking duck and other Chinese fare are among Naples’ best, made with the freshest ingredients. $$$ ASIAN Shula’s 5111 U.S. 41 N., 430-4999. donshula. com. Classic steakhouse fare from Hall of Fame Coach Don Shula. $$$$ STEAK Swan River Seafood and Fish Market 3741 Tamiami Trail N., 403-7000. swanriverseafood.com. The restaurant serves Cape Cod-style seafood, and the market stocks a variety of fresh catches plus Angus beef, wine and more. $$$ SEAFOOD

USS Nemo 3745 Tamiami Trail N., 261-6366. ussnemorestaurant.com. Masterful creations using fresh seafood, many with Asian accents, from a classically trained chef who is among the best in Southwest Florida. $$$ SEAFOOD THE VILLAGE SHOPS ON VENETIAN BAY Bayside Seafood Grill & Bar 4270 Gulf Shore Blvd. N., 649-5552. baysideseafoodgrillandbar.com. More than 200 feet of waterfront dining, inside or out.

The upper deck bar has live music. $$$$ SEAFOOD

M Waterfront Grille

4300 Gulf Shore Blvd. N., 263-4421. mwaterfrontgrille.com.

Organic meat, seafood

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and produce; main dining room with bay views, plus a full bar and front terrace. $$$$

are also served daily) at the LaPlaya resort. $$$$ MODERN AMERICAN

MODERN AMERICAN

The Bay House / The Claw Bar at Tierney’s Tavern 799 Walkerbilt Road, 591-3837. bayhousenaples.com.

It’s almost as if it’s two restaurants under one roof that happen to share the same delectable Southern-influenced menu—there’s an elegant formal dining room with panoramic views of a scenic mangrove-lined waterway, and conjoined to it is a rustic tavern and bar with live music every night (the food is equally good at both). $$$$ SEAFOOD

MiraMare Ristorante 4236 Gulf Shore Blvd. N., 430-6273. miramarenaples.com.

Come for the gorgeous corner waterfront patio on Venetian Bay; stay for large portions of calamari and chicken francese. $$$ ITALIAN T-Michael’s Steak and Lobster House 4050 Gulf Shore Blvd. N., 261-0622. t-michaels. com. Steakhouse dining on the waterfront at The Village on Venetian Bay, featuring USDA prime meats and Maine lobster. $$$$ STEAK WATERSIDE SHOPS True Food Kitchen 5375 Tamiami Trail, 431-4580. truefoodkitchen.com. The majority of the menu at this upscale chain caters to vegetarians, but it’s a perfect place for flexitarian food lovers who are looking for a healthy and satisfying meal while at Waterside Shops. $$$ VEGETARIAN NORTH NAPLES Agave Bar & Grill 2380 Vanderbilt Beach Road, 598-3473. agavenaples.com. A recent menu overhaul hallmarked a return to its Mexican roots and brought back tableside guacamole. $$$ MEXICAN

Baleen 9891 Gulf Shore Drive, 598-5707. laplayaresort.com. A beautiful beachfront wraparound terrace sets the stage for a night of creative cuisine (breakfast and lunch

Black Forest Mill 2366 Immokalee Road, 592-4784. Classic German and Austrian dishes in an intimate setting in the Green Tree Plaza. $$$ EASTERN EUROPEAN

Bone Hook Brewing Co. 1514 Immokalee Road, 631-8522. bonehookbrewing.com.

Newly renovated and expanded, this well-respected North Naples microbrewery now has a taproom with a full kitchen, table service and pub grub to match. $$ BAR BITES Café Gourmand 9853 Tamiami Trail N., 2607109. cafegourmand. net. The best selection of crêpes in Naples comes from the French family that owns this quaint daytime spot; on weekends, white table cloths come out at night for formal (yet reasonably priced) dinner service. $$ FRENCH Cote d’ Azur 11224 Tamiami Trail N., 597-8867. cotedazurres-

taurant.com. Delectable French cuisine offering everything from filet mignon to quail in a cozy Provençal setting. $$$$ FRENCH The Crust 8004 Trail Blvd., 244-8488. thecrustpizza.net. With a huge bar and games on TV, it’s one of Naples’ most popular pizza joints, specializing in thin-crust shareable pies cut into bite-size squares. The only other menu items are salads and subs. $$ ITALIAN DaRuMa Japanese Steakhouse and Sushi Lounge* 241 Center St. N., 591-1200. darumarestaurant.com.

Traditional service or Teppan-style tableside cooking. Teriyaki steak, filet mignon, chicken, seafood, tempura, sushi and more. $$$$ ASIAN Deep Lagoon Seafood & Fish Market* 10395 Tamiami Trail N., Naples, 631-6266. deeplagoon.com. At this fresh concept from the family behind Pinchers, seating is casual and there's an extensive seafood market. $$$ SEAFOOD

Dusk 280 Vanderbilt Beach Road, 598-6644. ritzcarlton.com. Known for some of the freshest and most intriguing sushi options around, this lounge in The Ritz-Carlton, Naples is full of dark corners and couches—or you can opt to sit on the patio overlooking the Gulf. $$$$ ASIAN First Watch* Multiple locations throughout Lee and Collier counties. firstwatch.com. A dependable and quick option for breakfast and lunch. $$ CASUAL

Grain De Café 8803 Tamiami Trail N., 5948081.Slogging through the often-long cashier line is worth it for the freshest pain au chocolat, almond croissants, quiches and crêpes for breakfast, lunch and take-out. $$ FRENCH The Grill 280 Vanderbilt Beach Road, 598-6644. ritz-carlton. com. Located in The Ritz-Carlton, Naples, this steakhouse evokes the ambience of a modern, elegant private club. $$$$ STEAK Komoon Thai Sushi & Ceviche 1575 Pine Ridge Road, 596-9991; 1514 Immokalee Road, 234-2442; 3300 Bonita Beach Road, Bonita Springs, 948-4663. komoonthai.com. A fun mix of Thai, Japanese and Peruvian (ceviche plus a few hot entrées) in an inviting setting. $$ ASIAN Namba 8847 Tamiami Trail N., 592-4992. nambanaples.com. This tiny eatery is home to some of the Gulfshore’s most inspired Japanese fare; the menu is limited to a small yet remarkable selection of ramen, sushi and small plates. $$$ ASIAN Parmesan Pete’s 7935 Airport-Pulling Road, 992-3663. parmesanpetes.com. A small but always dependable red sauce joint serving huge portions of Parmesans, meatballs and manicotti. $$$ ITALIAN The Turtle Club 9225 Gulfshore Drive, 5926557. windwardhospitality.com. Upscale casual beachfront restaurant offering coastal cuisine. $$$$ SEAFOOD

Zen Asian BBQ 10823 Tamiami Trail N., 260-7037. eatatzen. com. Try this trendy pan-Asian fusion joint with an extensive sushi selection for a little taste of everything, from bulgogi ramen “nachos” to pho and rolls with seared wagyu. $$$ ASIAN MERCATO Blue Martini* 9114 Strada Place, 591-2583. bluemartinilounge.com.

At this lounge with live music most nights and its namesake super-size martinis, it’s good there is plenty of food, from lollipop lamb chops to rich chocolate cake. $$$ BAR BITES

The Hampton Social 9114 Strada Place, 202-2038. thehamptonsocial.com. Mercato’s latest large-scale eatery is a beautifully designed export from Chicago with a chic rosé-all-day bar scene is complemented by reasonably priced seafood. $$$ SEAFOOD Rocco’s Tacos 9123 Strada Place, 500-8226. roccostacos.com/ naples. It’s a perpetual party at this lively joint where the food is just as good as the libations (there are more than 400 tequilas)—and the kitchen is open late. $$$ MEXICAN THE PAVILION Inca’s Kitchen 8955 Tamiami Trail N., 631-5954. incaskitchens.com. Top-quality authentic Peruvian cuisine in a spacious and sleek dining room. $$$ LATIN AMERICAN KC American Bistro 885 Vanderbilt Beach

gulfshorelife.com

Road, 566-2371. kcamericanbistro. com. Fresh, seasonal, regional American cuisine in a casually elegant setting. In 2019, a second location will open in Estero. $$$$ MODERN AMERICAN

Tacos & Tequila Cantina 8971 Tamiami Trail N., 254-8226; 4834 Davis Blvd., 732-8226; 10952 Eagle Village Drive, Fort Myers, 330-8226. tacosandtequilanaples. com. Killer tacos with lots of clever spins, plus margaritas aplenty, at this cute, festive spot. $$ MEXICAN

GALLERIA SHOPPES AT VANDERBILT Alpine Restaurant 2355 Vanderbilt Beach Road, 325-9499. alpineofnaples.com. Here, you'll find the best of German, Slovak, Czech, Polish and Hungarian cuisines in one place. $$$ EASTERN EUROPEAN The Cave Bistro & Wine Bar 2343 Vanderbilt Beach Road, 513-0095. napleswinecollection. com. This ode to underground wine cellars of Burgundy, complete with a curved

ceiling and stonework, has a full liquor license and Continental small plates. $$$ BAR BITES Mister O1 Extraordinary Pizza 2355 Vanderbilt Beach Road, 631-6844. facebook. com/misterO1naples.

"Extraordinary" isn’t hyperbole: Even though there isn’t much aside from various ultrathin-crust pies, those are enough to make this a regular stop for foodies. $$ ITALIAN

BONITA SPRINGS Angelina’s Ristorante 24041 Tamiami Trail S., 390-3187. angelinasofbonitasprings.com.

Fine dining in plush banquettes with an award-winning wine list makes this one of the area’s top restaurants. $$$$ ITALIAN C Level Bistro & Wine Bar 4450 Bonita Beach Road, 221-7046. c-levelbar.com. Quiet and effortlessly refined, this intimate eatery is dependable for Continental fare like steak au poivre and raspberry

duck. $$$$

MODERN

AMERICAN

pastas, cheeses, baked goods and more. $$$ ITALIAN

Coconut Jack’s 5370 Bonita Beach Road, 676-7777. coconutjacks.com. Beautiful water views in a casual setting off Bonita Beach Road. Perfect for a quick bite around sunset. $$$ SEAFOOD

Figs Grille 25987 S. Tamiami Trail, 390-1700. figsgrille. com. Refreshing fusion of Spanish, Turkish, Moroccan, Lebanese and French cuisines. $$$ MEDITERRANEAN

DeRomo’s Gourmet Market & Restaurant 26811 South Bay Drive, 325-3583. deromos. com. This chic sit-down restaurant with a big-city vibe and pretty patio is part and parcel of a gargantuan Italian market featuring fresh

The Other Side Bistro 24630 S. Tamiami Trail, 992-7433. bonitaspringsbistro. com. Chef Brian McCarley has been serving consistently comforting dishes with a modern flair for years at this understated space in

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Divieto Ristorante* 23161 Village Shops Way, 390-2977. divietoristorante.com.

Located in Coconut Point, it is known for fettucine Alfredo prepared in a hollowed-out Parmesan wheel. $$$

Petar’s Restaurant 3300 Bonita Beach Road, Unit 120, 4941343. petarsrestaurant. com. The talented young chef Petar Al Kurdi has developed a strong following for his deftly and cleverly prepared continental cuisine. $$$ MODERN AMERICAN

You’ll Come Back Again & Again for our

Succulent Seafood Voted #1 Island Dining & Best Keylime Pie Wine Spectator Award 12 Years in a Row!

Pinchers* Multiple locations throughout Collier and Lee counties. pinchersusa. com. Seafood from local fishermen in a super-casual and family-friendly setting. $$$ SEAFOOD Roy’s Restaurant 26831 South Bay Drive, 498-7697. roysrestaurant.com. Celebrity chef Roy Yamaguchi’s Hawaiian and Pacific fusion fine-dining outpost is great for an elegant evening at the Promenade. $$$$ ASIAN

Live Entertainment Daily Sunday Jazz Brunch Late Night Lounge Outdoor Seating Walking Distance to the Beach RESERVATIONS ACCEPTED FOR PARTIES OF 5 OR MORE Open Daily 8AM – 10PM 11509 Andy Rosse Ln. Captiva Island, FL

239-395-4000 KeylimeBistroCaptiva.com

A Table Apart 4295 Bonita Beach Road, 2218540. atableapart.com.

One of Bonita’s best restaurants fuses influences from throughout the Pacific Rim. $$$ MODERN AMERICAN

Tarpon Bay 5001 Coconut Road, 390-4295.

Elegant waterfront dining with a focus on fish and shellfish at the Hyatt Regency Coconut Point. $$$$ SEAFOOD Wylds Café 4271 Bonita Beach Road, 947-0408. wyldscafe. com. Three chefs join forces for a modern American fine-dining experience at a reasonable price. $$$$ MODERN AMERICAN

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First Watch* Multiple locations throughout Lee and Collier counties. firstwatch.com. A dependable and quick option for breakfast and lunch. $$ CASUAL

FORT MYERS BEACH Fresh Catch Bistro 3040 Estero Blvd., 4632600. freshcatchbistro. com. A notch above the more casual fare on the beach without feeling stuffy. $$$ SEAFOOD Pinchers* Multiple locations throughout Collier and Lee counties. pinchersusa. com. Seafood from local fishermen in a super-casual and family-friendly setting. $$$ SEAFOOD

FORT MYERS SOUTH FORT MYERS Artisan Eatery 8951 Daniels Parkway, 8874844. artisaneatery. com. Don’t be fooled by the counter service, soda machine and postage stamp size of this café—the outstanding egg Benedicts, sandwiches, flatbreads and daily chef’s specials are delights. $$ CASUAL Ember Korean Steakhouse 7091 College Parkway, 771-8818. This con-

temporary restaurant features a wide variety of quality eats, from tabletop barbecue to well-executed fusion dishes and sushi. $$$ ASIAN

Fancy’s Southern Café 8890 Salrose Lane, 561-2988. fancyssoutherncafe.com.

Classic Southern favorites from fried okra to shrimp and grits served in a casually elegant atmosphere. $$ MODERN AMERICAN

First Watch* Multiple locations throughout Lee and Collier counties. firstwatch.com. A dependable and quick option for breakfast and lunch. $$ CASUAL Harold’s 15250 S. Tamiami Trail, 8490622. haroldscuisine. com. A cozy bistro with farm-to-table cuisine from innovative chef Harold Balink. $$$ MODERN AMERICAN

La Trattoria Café Napoli Villas Plaza, 12377 S. Cleveland Ave., 931-0050. latrattoriacafenapoli.com.

Known for chef-owner Gloria’s paella, this Spanish restaurant also features a variety of tapas, pasta, meat and seafood dishes. $$$ MEDITERRANEAN

Mad Fresh Bistro 12995 Cleveland Ave., 362-2363. madfreshbistro.com. A tiny eatery delivering outsized flavor in tartines, salads and burgers. $$ FRENCH Osteria Celli 15880 Summerlin Road, 267-1310. osteriacelli. com. Authentic, freshly made pastas are a highlight of this upscale casual eatery. $$$ ITALIAN

Pinchers* Multiple locations throughout Collier and Lee counties. pinchersusa. com. Seafood from local fishermen in a super-casual and family-friendly setting. $$$ SEAFOOD The Saucy Meatball 12401 Commerce Lakes Drive, 800-7172. saucymeatball.com. A younger sister in the Gateway neighborhood to the long popular 2 Meatballs in the Kitchen, this industrial-chic pizzeria also has craveworthy pasta dishes, salads, entrées and complimentary garlic knots. $$ ITALIAN Silk Road 8646 Gladiolus Drive, 6894845. Specializing in Central Asian cuisine, this restaurant takes diners on a rewarding epicurean journey with Uzbek delicacies and traditional food and wine offerings from throughout the region. $$ ASIAN Viet Village 16571 S. Tamiami Trail, 208-8368. vietvillagefl. com. After an extensive renovation, this lovely Vietnamese restaurant opened in 2018 to critical acclaim; don’t miss the rare-beef pho and the special rice cooked in a clay pot. $$ ASIAN BELL TOWER SHOPS DaRuMa Japanese Steakhouse and Sushi Lounge* 13499 S. Cleveland Ave., Fort Myers, 344-0037. darumarestaurant.com.

Traditional service or Teppan-style tableside cooking. Teriyaki steak, filet mignon, chicken, seafood, tem-

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FishTaleGrill.com FishTaleGrill.com

Fresh FishTaleGrill.com Fabulous Seafood Fresh Fabulous Seafood Fresh Fabulous Seafood G R I L L

FISH FISH FISH

pura, sushi and more. $$$$ ASIAN Society 13499 Bell Tower Drive, 334-0900. societyfortmyers.com.

The hot spot features contemporary cuisine and killer cocktails (plus, a nightclub after-hours). Don’t skip the “treehouse” rooftop bar. $$$$ MODERN AMERICAN

CENTRAL FORT MYERS Blu Agave 4805 S. Cleveland Ave., 362-1102; 1404 Cape Coral Parkway E., Cape Coral, 471-2075. bluagavemexicanrestaurant.com. From tacos and enchiladas to margaritas and flan, this winsome place is tastefully decorated in shades of azul. $$ MEXICAN

Chef Brooke’s Natural Café 1850 Boy Scout Drive, 332-2433. chefbrookeonline.com.

Organic, gluten-free and vegan-friendly cuisine. Open until 5 p.m. $$ VEGETARIAN El Gaucho Inca 4391 Colonial Blvd., 275-7504. elgauchoinca.com. Traditional Argentinian (including the Italian specialties popular there) and Peruvian food prepared to perfection. The warm service, with a personal touch, is also a delight. $$ LATIN AMERICAN Ginger Bistro 4650 Cleveland Ave., 6893113; 2366 Surfside Blvd., Cape Coral, 558-8865. gingerbistrousa.com. Authentic Chinese fare, including dim sum and traditional Cantonese barbecue. $$ ASIAN KJ’s Steakhouse 10950 S. Cleveland

Ave., 275-4745. kjsfreshgrill.com. The creators behind this contemporary upscale-casual chophouse and burger heaven pride themselves on aging and a 900-degree searing technique, plus a fully stocked bar. $$$ MODERN AMERICAN Sasse’s Restaurant 3651 Evans Ave., 2785544. sassesfortmyers. com. Northern Italian and European cuisine cooked in a wood-burning oven to critical and popular acclaim. $$$$ ITALIAN

MCGREGOR CORRIDOR Azure 15301 McGregor Blvd., 288-4296. azurefortmyers.com.

At this casual fine-dining boîte, chef Joe Pittman, formerly of Mereday’s Fine Dining, excels at modernized classics. $$$ FRENCH Blanc 13451 McGregor Blvd., 887-3139. blancentertainment. com. This contemporary restaurant mixes trends like sous vide and robata grilling with a strong French influence. $$ FRENCH

Cibo 12901 McGregor Blvd., 454-3700. Italian restaurant featuring seafood, steak and pasta. Many wine selections. $$$ ITALIAN Crave Restaurant 12901 McGregor Blvd., 466-4663. cravemenu. com. The chef and owner of Crave makes all of his killer comfort food from scratch down to the deli meat for daily breakfasts and lunches (and dinners select nights of the week). $$$ MODERN AMERICAN

Deep Lagoon Seafood & Oyster House* 14040 McGregor Blvd., 689-5474. deeplagoon.com. This waterfront spot distinguishes itself with a raw bar, modern décor and scenic marina views. $$$ SEAFOOD First Watch* Multiple locations throughout Lee and Collier counties. firstwatch.com. A dependable and quick option for breakfast and lunch. $$ CASUAL Roadhouse Café 15660 San Carlos Blvd., 415-4375. roadhousecafefl.com. Live jazz is a big draw, and there’s something for everyone, with steaks among a wide range of dishes. $$$$ MODERN AMERICAN

DOWNTOWN FORT MYERS Bullig Coffee & Bites 1815 Fowler St., 703-2629. facebook. com/staytrueandbeme.

Thoroughly modern with a whimsical touch, Bullig has bespoke lattes that are works of art, and savory and sweet waffles (and more) that are a great way to fuel your day. (Not open past 3 p.m.) $ CASUAL First Watch* Multiple locations throughout Lee and Collier counties. firstwatch.com. A dependable and quick option for breakfast and lunch. $$ CASUAL Izzy’s Fish & Oyster 2282 First St., Fort Myers, 337-4999. izzysftmyers.com. A formerly Miami-based chef relocated his chic raw bar and New England-style seafood spot to the River District. $$$ SEAFOOD

Pinchers* Multiple locations throughout Collier and Lee counties. pinchersusa. com. Seafood from local fishermen in a super-casual and family-friendly setting. $$$ SEAFOOD The Standard 1520 Broadway, 219-6463. thestandardftmyers. com. An independent eatery in the River District boasting fresh and from-scratch eats in a convivial atmosphere for lunch, dinner and weekend brunch. $$$ MODERN AMERICAN

Twisted Vine Bistro 2214 Bay St., 226-1687. twistedvinebistro.com.

An eclectic menu featuring twists on classic grill and seafood favorites. There is a large wine list, and The Barrel Room, its sister bar next door, features rare whiskies and live blues. $$$$ MODERN AMERICAN

The Veranda 2122 Second St., Fort Myers, 332-2065. verandarestaurant.com. Fort Myers’ Grande Dame, it’s where to dine on filet mignon and veal surrounded by lush foliage. $$$$ MODERN

TALE TALE TALE

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SEAFOOD FABULOUS SEAFOOD

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NORTH FORT MYERS Rosy Tomorrows Heritage Farm 8250 Nalle Grande Road, 567-6000. rosy-tomorrows.com. Breakfast and lunch Thursday through Sunday is a unique treat—a renowned chef heads the kitchen, and as you graze you can see the humanely raised longhorn cattle, hogs, chickens and more doing the same right in front of you. $$ MODERN AMERICAN

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1229 1229 SE SE 47th 47th Terrace, Terrace, Cape Cape Coral Coral 1229 SE 47th Terrace, Cape Coral

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Bleu Rendez-Vous French Bistro 2430 Periwinkle Way, 5651608. bleurendezvous. com. Chef Christian Vivet’s intimate French bistro serving authentic cuisine. $$$$ FRENCH Doc Ford’s Rum Bar & Grille* Multiple locations throughout Lee County. docfordsfortmyersbeach.com. docfordssanibel.com.

Seafood, mojitos and its namesake rum bar. $$$ SEAFOOD Il Cielo 1244 Periwinkle Way, 472-5555. ilcielosanibel.com. The modern American fare (with a subtle Italian influence) is all made in-house down to the desserts, and this is one of the most elegant dining rooms in Lee County, with top-notch service to match. $$$$ MODERN AMERICAN

W

e pride ourselves on bringing you the finest shopping experience you’ll find anywhere. We are honored to be your neighborhood supermarket and always give you the extra personal service and attention we’re famous for!

The Mad Hatter 6467 Sanibel Captiva Road, 472-0033. madhatterrestaurant.com.

Whimsical fine dining from amuse bouche to sweet ending. Arrive early for a glass of wine on the sand (no outdoor seats). $$$$ MODERN AMERICAN

Sweet Melissa’s Café 1625 Periwinkle Way, 472-1956. sweetmelissascafe.com. Chef Melissa DonahueTalmage’s creative cuisine, such as crawfish ravioli with farro, is not to be missed—she became Southwest Florida’s first semifinalist for a James Beard Award in 2019. $$$ MODERN AMERICAN

Food Purveyors in Naples since 1938.

141 Tamiami Trail North • Naples, Florida 34102 239.261.7157 • Fax: 239.261.3986 wynns@wynnsonline.com

T2 2340 Periwinkle Way, 558-8919.

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t2traders.com. The younger, more intimate sibling of Traders, an island institution, this retro-chic dining room and bar are home to bonafide scrumptious cocktails and dishes like white gazpacho, tacos with roasted corn salsa, shortrib flatbreads, curried snapper and house-made bread pudding. $$$ MODERN AMERICAN

CAPTIVA ISLAND Keylime Bistro at Captiva Island Inn* 11509 Andy Rosse Lane, 395-4000. keylimebistrocaptiva.com. Colorful, with an island feel, and serving breakfast, lunch and dinner with a full bar. $$$ MODERN AMERICAN

The Mucky Duck 11546 Andy Rosse Lane, 472-3434. muckyduck. com. British pub atmosphere with seafood platters; beers and live music on the beach. $$$ CASUAL

RC Otter’s Island Eats* 11506 Andy Rosse Lane, 395-1142. captivaislandinn.com.

This family-friendly restaurant serves breakfast, lunch and dinner to the tune of daily live music in a colorful space just steps from the beach. $$ CASUAL

Sunshine Seafood Café and Wine Bar* 11508 Andy Rosse Lane, 472-6200. sunshineseafoodcafe.com. This restaurant that has long stood a step above the rest of the island’s beachy cafés with selections like paella and rack of lamb has a modern-yet-charming new home post-Hurricane Irma. $$$$ SEAFOOD

CAPE CORAL Cork Soakers Deck & Wine Bar 837 SE 47th Terrace, 5426622. corksoakers.net.

Delightfully irreverent tone shows in décor (cheeky photographs and minimal indoor seating) and menu (“The Hangover” sandwich and curry-brined wings). $$ MODERN AMERICAN

Fathoms Restaurant & Bar 5785 Cape Harbour Drive, 542-0123. fathomsrestaurant.com.

A modern Cape Harbour restaurant serving cuisine with international influences and authentic flavors. $$$$ MODERN AMERICAN

Fish Tale Grill By Merrick Seafood* 1229 SE 47th Terrace, 542-8080.

Starting with fresh fish from the adjacent market, many popular items here—like coconut shrimp, seared ahi and blackened mahi mahi— earn descriptions like “the best I ever ate” from diners who voyage to this understated spot on the Cape. $$$$ SEAFOOD

Gather 5971 Silver King Blvd., 673-9939. gathercape.com. Open for breakfast, lunch and dinner in season, this eclectic spot at Tarpon Point Marina is from two of the Cape’s most celebrated chefs, and it is excelling at one-of-a-kind cocktails and global fare. $$$ MODERN AMERICAN

Marker 92 Waterfront Bar & Bistro / Nauti Mermaid 5961 Silver King Blvd., 541-5600. marker92.com. Sit outside for serene views of an open bay and tasty sandwiches and entrées.

(Ignore the fact it’s in a hotel; the grounds are

open to the public.) $$$ SEAFOOD

Nevermind 927 E. Cape Coral Parkway. nevermindanimalhouse.com. If you can take the gritty exposed piping, you’re in for seriously good comfort food and stiff cocktails into the wee hours. $$ MODERN AMERICAN

Pinchers* Multiple locations throughout Collier and Lee counties. pinchersusa.com.

Seafood from local fishermen in a super-casual and family-friendly setting. $$$ SEAFOOD Point 57 Kitchen & Cocktails 3522 Del Prado Blvd., 471-7785. point-57.com. A Southern influence pervades the limited yet critically acclaimed menu at this upscale-casual eatery that has emerged as one of Lee County’s best— don’t miss the artfully crafted cocktails, either. $$$ MODERN AMERICAN

NAPLES . FT. MYERS . SARASOTA

241 Center Street N, Naples, Florida 34108 239-591-1200 13499 South Cleveland Ave, Ft Myers, Florida 33907 239-344-0037 5459 Fruitville Rd, Sarasota, Florida 34232 941-342-6600 4910 S Tamiami Trail, Sarasota, Florida 34231 941-552-9465

www.DaRuMaRestaurant.com

Rumrunners 5848 Cape Harbour Drive, 542-0200. rumrunnersrestaurant.com.

On a picturesque mangrove-lined canal, this laidback indooroutdoor spot offers dependable fare. $$$ MODERN AMERICAN

Slate’s 4820 Candia St., 540-6800. slatescapecoral.com. A trip to New Orleans on a plate, the Crescent City is evoked in all dishes from the traditional to the inventive. It also added a jazz lounge this year. $$$ MODERN AMERICAN

Texas Tony's* 738 SW Pine Island Road, 3477033. texastonys.com.

Ribs, brisket and more are complemented by a large selection of beer at this eatery from the folks behind Pinchers. $$ BARBECUE

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Summer Promotion Menu

Offering 3 course prix fix menu for $36 (Served from 5 - 6 pm daily) Starting April 29th

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Keeping cool with Doves stunning Amazonite and Diamond earrings in 18kt yellow gold available at Lily & Company Jewelry Gallery in Sanibel Island 472-2888, lily jewelers. com

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Cool down with a swim and dry off with this oversized Flamingo beach towel found at Beach Daisy Boutique. Available with all the complimentary grab and go accessories for your day on the beach!

Find this and other fun designs at Beach Daisy Boutique in Sanibel Island. 472-2224

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Block those harmful sun rays and enjoy the beach with Eminence organic Sunscreen that is barrier reef friendly. Also enjoy this organic 5 star recovery oil for burns and past sun damage. Complimentary shipping found at Mes Amies Medical Spa. 791-7867, mesamiesmedspa.com

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Fun and flirty, the perfect little dress to go from day-to-night. Short flutter sleeve, floral printed wrap dress with flounce ruffle hem and self-tie closure at waist. Available at Jennifer’s. www.jennifersfortmyers.com (239) 481-8582

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RJ WILEY

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S A N I B E L & C A P T I VA |

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J.N. “DING” DARLING NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE

The beauty of a visit to J.N. “Ding” Darling National Wildlife Refuge on Sanibel Island lies in the element of surprise and unpredictability. Here, you enter the home of hundreds of wildlife species. You may be welcomed by a sleek river otter crossing your path. In the winter months, white pelicans grace the wetlands. In summer, manatees bob in Tarpon Bay alongside kayakers.

Ding” Darling also offers a number of facilities, activities, tours and programs that greatly diversify your experience, both outdoors and indoors. Every first visit to “Ding” Darling should begin inside the admission-free Visitor & Education Center. And before you enter, veer right to visit the award-winning 2018 Nations’ Best Restroom. Here you will find one of the Refuge’s newest, most engaging exhibits, which makes this a true “nature call” with realistic, 3-D marine wildlife murals. You will also find the “Ding” Darling Nature Store for souvenirs, nature toys, birding books and wildlife-inspired jewelry. Mention this article and receive a 10% discount.

DING DARLING

NATIONAL W ILDLIFE REFUGE The beauty of a visit to J.N. “Ding” Darling National Wildlife Refuge on Sanibel Island lies in the element of surprise and unpredictability.

JASON BOECKMAN BALDWIN JAGERof wildlife species. You may beTERRY MINTZCertain times Here, you enter the home of KENT hundreds welcomed by a sleek river otter crossing DAVID your path.

of the year, white pelicans grace the wetlands. In summer, manatees bob in Tarpon Bay alongside kayakers.

Every day is a new Adventure at the Refuge.

Ding” Darling also offers a number of facilities, activities, tours and programs that greatly diversify your experience, both outdoors and indoors. Every first visit to “Ding” Darling should begin inside the admission-free Visitor & Education Center. And before you, veer right to visit the award-winning 2018 Nations’ Best Restroom. Here you will find one of the Refuge’s newest, most engaging exhibits, which makes this a true “nature call” with realistic, 3-D marine wildlife murals. You will also find the “Ding” Darling Nature Store for souvenirs, nature toys, birding books and wildlife-inspired jewelry. Mention this article and receive a 10% discount.

PATTY MACINNIS

One Wildlife Drive, Sanibel Island, Florida | 239.472.1100 | www.dingdarlingsociety.org

S A N I B E L & C A P T I VA |

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Roosevelt Channel

Wulfert Channel

Sanibel & Captiva ISLANDS

Wulfert Flats

Pine Island Sound

Refuge lands Refuge lands closed areas Access on designated trails only

One-way for vehicles and bicycles

J.N. “Ding� Darling Wilderness Area

Tarpon Bay Recreation Area Cross Dike Pavillion

No Motor Zone - pole/paddle only Wulfert Flat Pole/Troll Zone

Canoe/kayak launch site

- Seagrass protection area.

No combustion engine zone - pole/troll only

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Fishing access

Motor Boat use allowed except in no motor zone.

Visitor/Education Center Observation tower

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Scale in Miles 0

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Refuge water boundary Canoe/kayak trail Foot/bicycle trails - Walk bikes on all boardwalks Wildlife Drive - Closed to all access on Fridays.

Gulf of Mexico

Tarpon Bay

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LEGEND

San Carlos Bay

J.N. “Ding� Darling National Wildlife Refuge

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STORY "Secrets of a Successful Fisherman"

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