Key West Weekly 25-0424

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The 129th Boston Marathon on April 21 saw 28,928 runners take off from the starting line. Among the runners were our very own Marathon Weekly Editor Alex Rickert and Keys Weekly contributor Erin Stover. Congratulations on one epic run! 28,928

through May

SUBPOENAED TEXTS DETAIL KEY WEST CORRUPTION PROBE

Messages reveal plot to oust city manager & protect a director

MANDY MILES mandy@keysweekly.com

Talk is cheap, but text messages could prove costly for at least three Key West city officials, who on Tuesday, April 15, were indicted and arrested for tampering with evidence — text messages they exchanged on city-issued cell phones — that authorities had subpoenaed as part of an ongoing investigation into official misconduct.

Key West City Attorney Ron Ramsingh; his brother Raj Ramsingh, who is the city’s chief building official; and Jim Young, the city’s code compliance director all face third-degree felony charges for tampering with evidence. Attorney Ron Ramsingh faces two additional charges for allegedly illegally intercepting electronic communication and allegedly disclosing that illegally-obtained information. Raj Ramsingh and Young are on paid administrative leave pending their April 24 arraignment. City commissioners met April 21 to fire attorney Ron Ramsingh, but are still working out the details of whether he’ll be fired with cause, without cause or permitted to negotiate a voluntary separation agreement. (See story on page 5.)

Additional evidence, charges and suspects may be forthcoming in the continuing investigation of official misconduct.

What prompted all this?

The ongoing investigation stems from the contentious firing of Childress in June 2024, within days of Childress taking disciplinary action against Raj Ramsingh.

A review of the city’s planning and building departments by outside consultants, known as the Corradino Report, revealed that Raj Ramsingh had made a practice of improperly issuing permits, variances and approvals for projects that were never seen or reviewed by the city’s planning department, which is responsible for such approvals.

The unquestioned issuance of approvals and permits would have earned Raj Ramsingh the support of several powerful developers and attorneys in the city who had received such approvals and were prepared to defend Raj Ramsingh over Childress, according to recovered text messages.

“Halpern is ready to rumble,” one text message states, referring to the late, influential Key West attorney Michael Halpern, who died Dec. 30, 2024.

In another text exchange, Raj and Ron Ramsingh discuss asking Halpern to meet with commissioner Mary Lou Hoover and seek her support in voting to fire Childress.

Hoover ultimately voted in support of Childress at a June 24 meeting, but four other commissioners — Jimmy Weekley, Lissette Cuervo, Clayton Lopez and Billy Wardlow — voted to fire him.

Following that vote, the Monroe County State Attorney’s Office received a complaint alleging that “certain members of the Key West City Commission, contrary to and in violation of Florida’s Sunshine Law, privately conspired to oust the current Key West City Manager Albert Childress,” court records state.

The state attorney’s initial review of text messages obtained through

A text exchange between city attorney Ron Ramsingh and his brother, Raj, the city’s building official, details efforts to oust thencity manager Al Childress by asking local attorneys to lobby commissioner Mary Lou Hoover, incoming mayor Dee Dee Henriquez and incoming commissioner Donie Lee. Hoover, Henriquez and Lee are not accused of any wrongdoing. CONTRIBUTED

public record requests “appeared to indicate city attorney Ronald Ramsingh was orchestrating an effort among commissioners Jimmy Weekley, Lissette Cuervo, Clayton Lopez and Billy Wardlow to either force Albert Childress to voluntarily resign from his position or call a special meeting of the Key West City Commission and vote to terminate his employment contract without cause by a majority vote,” state attorney investigator Tom Walker wrote in his application for a search warrant for cell phone records.

Red Barn Theatre’s ‘Short Attention Span Theater’ runs

3. The cast features Erin McKenna, Cassidy Timms, Nina Pilar, Mathias Maloff and Zach Franchini. ROBERTA DePIERO/Contributed

SUBPOENAED TEXTS DETAIL KEY WEST CORRUPTION PROBE

“This effort to oust Albert Childress was attributed to an outside, independent report he had commissioned which focused on issues within the Building Department of which Rajindar (Raj)

Ramsingh is the Chief Building Official and the brother of Ronald Ramsingh,” Walker writes.

“In totality, there is probable cause to believe the foundation of this effort was an attempt by Ronald Ramsingh to shield his brother Rajindhar Ramsingh, who is the City of Key West Chief Building Official, from being disciplined by Albert Childress and allow for him to continue in a long practice of improper acts as they pertain to the permitting process.”

What did the text messages say?

On Thursday, April 17, the Monroe County State Attorney’s Office released a trail of text messages that the Ramsinghs and Young had exchanged, but failed to provide to investigators when subpoenaed. Those missing texts were discovered by FBI forensic investigators after search warrants were issued for their phones and iCloud accounts.

The court records also include several text threads between Ron Ramsingh and individual commissioners, and between the Ramsingh brothers.

The following is a selection of text messages obtained by state attorney investigators, who state that the Ramsinghs’ initial responses to subpoenas for their cell phone records were incomplete. When investigators obtained a search warrant for those records and obtained the full record from the cell phone companies and Apple Inc., a comparison showed that Ron Ramsingh failed to turn over 293 text messages that he had received or sent between June 1 and June 28, 2024, which were the dates specified in the subpoenas and search warrants.

The exchanges here from June 5, 2024 pertain to the removal of the critical Corradino Report from the agenda prior to a city commission meeting, where the findings against Raj Ramsingh would have been made public. Text messages indicate that Childress was pressured to pull the report from the agenda by local attorneys and developers, who contacted him in support of Raj Ramsingh and in opposition to the Corradino report becoming public.

6/5/24 between Ron Ramsingh and former commissioner Billy Wardlow

Ron Ramsingh: Al (Childress) is taking the Corradino Report off. He just called to let me know.

Billy Wardlow: He should. Halpern called me and said he’d be ready to rumble. Should I let him know, or do you want to?”

Ron Ramsingh: Yeah. (Michael) Halpern has called me no less than 6 times in less than 2 weeks. He had Rocky music on. Halpern knows.”

Billy Wardlow: Al doesn’t want them to stand up.

Ron Ramsingh: A few letters came in from Lori and Richard McChesney, etc. and that probably rocked him (Al Childress) a little bit.

Billy Wardlow: I got them. They love your bro.

Ron Ramsingh: Yeah, but he needs to scale it back, though. He needs to listen to advice, too.

6/5/24 from Jim Young to Raj, Ron & an undisclosed recipient:

(H)e’s slowly going down. We have the snake in our hands time to dispatch his head. … The Raj magic works again.

6/5/24 from Raj to Ron and Jim: Not yet … because the direction is still for Todd to put a plan in place per the corradino report. All this does is keep it from the public eye. That’s why the stakeholders still need to voice their opinions.

6/5/24 from Ron to Raj and Jim: What I can tell you is that most likely more input will be sought, a plan put in place, signed by both and any deviation will result in immediate termination.

(A)ll i can say is the margin for error will be razor thin- so ‘govern yourselves accordingly,’ but as sure as shit there will be zero tolerance.

6/14/24 from Raj to Ron: Mike (Halpern) is going to speak with Clayton (Lopez) to make sure he sticks to his guns.

6/15/24: between Raj and Ron: I know you know what you’re doing, but be extra careful with this Teflon MF. Maybe you should talk to Halpern to work on Mary Lou. That extra vote would be very good. She should be aware that Dee Dee and Donie both want him out and it will be good for her to be on the side of the new mayor and another commissioner. Just a thought.

6/25/24 from Jim Young to Raj: “(W)e have to show them there’s a new sheriff in town who doesn’t hand out permits like candy on Halloween.”

CITY ATTORNEY’S EXIT IS IMMINENT; DETAILS UNDETERMINED

Officials to debate dismissal vs. departure, legal exposure & severance costs

Athree-hour meeting called to consider the firing of Key West’s city attorney ended this week with no decisions, but plenty of opinions, revelations and even more questions.

Key West officials were poised at the April 21 meeting to part ways with attorney Ron Ramsingh, who was indicted last week along with two other city employees, on three felony charges, including evidence tampering. But firing a lawyer can be fraught with legal liabilities, and some commissioners are eager to limit the city’s exposure to future lawsuits.

A motion to fire Ramsingh for cause, meaning he committed “substantial violations” of specific city policies, failed when it fell one vote short of the required four. Mayor Dee Dee Henriquez, and commissioners Sam Kaufman and Monica Haskell voted to fire Ramsingh for cause. Commissioners Lissette Carey, Mary Lou Hoover, Aaron Castillo and Donie Lee voted against firing him for cause.

If fired for cause, Ramsingh would not be entitled to any further compensation other than the value of his accrued leave, about $109,000.

The commission could also fire Ramsingh without cause. In that case, Ramsingh’s contract states he would be entitled to a payout of about $221,000.

Lee, the former police chief of Key West, told his colleagues and the public that he was prepared to fire Ramsingh, but was concerned about financial exposure for the city.

“When I was police chief, if an officer of mine would have been indicted on three felonies, I would have moved to terminate that officer,” Lee said. “The decision for me is not whether to terminate Mr. Ramsingh’s employment, but how we do it. What’s the legal exposure for the city whether we fire him with cause or without cause? I’m looking at this from a financial standpoint.”

Hoover, who acknowledged that

she had spoken with Ramsingh over the weekend and added they have been friends since before he became city attorney, said “I hope we come to a decision to do this for something other than with cause. I think that would be more difficult for us in the long run.”

Carey said, “I think the word ‘unlawful’ should be determined by a judge or jury. This is serious. We’re dealing with someone’s life and career here.” She initially suggested the commission consider the option of a suspension with pay for Ramsingh, but that didn’t garner support from other commissioners.

There were more financial revelations to come. For instance, it was revealed at the meeting that the city of Key West is paying Ramsingh’s legal defense bills, a provision that was included in his employment contract.

But the contract language, interim city attorney Cynthia Hall noted to commissioners, only agrees to cover Ramsingh’s defense “if any legal claims are brought against him as a result of his lawful actions” taken while performing his job duties. It’s not an unusual arrangement, considering that fired employees often turn around and sue, say, the mayor, city attorney and other leaders.

“But Mr. Ramsingh’s actions have not been determined to be lawful,” Hall said. “Also, he’s not asking to be reimbursed for his legal defense costs, which is how that usually works, but rather to have the city pay them as we go, and I cannot recommend that you take that on.”

Donald Barrett, Ramsingh’s defense attorney, told the commission at the meeting that his client is requesting those legal defense payments continue, even after Ramsingh leaves the city’s employ. In return, Ramsingh would release the city from all future lawsuits and liability, but at least three city lawmakers weren’t having it. Kaufman adamantly supported firing Ramsingh for cause immediately and not continuing to pay any of his legal fees. He pointed to specific parts of city policy that he said Ramsingh violated, which were sufficient to fire him with cause, Kaufman said.

MANDY MILES mandy@keysweekly.com

Key West city attorney Ron Ramsingh. CONTRIBUTED

MISS ISLAND QUEEN CONTESTANTS ARE ON A MISSION SIGNS OF THE TIMES

More than 300 demonstrators participate in an April 19 protest, part of a nationwide series of ‘Hands Off’ events meant to oppose the federal government’s actions under the Trump administration. LARRY BLACKBURN/ Keys Weekly

Key West’s 2nd Hands Off protest draws hundreds

MANDY MILES mandy@keysweekly.com

Key Westers on April 19 once again joined the nationwide series of Hands Off protests and packed the 1300 block of White Street to oppose actions by the Trump administration. Participants carried signs supporting democracy, the rule of law and due process for migrants deported to an El Salvador prison. They also opposed President Trump, tariffs and authoritarianism.

Amateur drag extravaganza has raised over $200K for Samuel’s House shelter

Six well-known local contestants are paired with six professional drag coaches as they create and embody an alter ego and compete for Miss Island Queen by raising money for Samuel’s House.

The nonprofit organization provides housing in a nurturing environment for homeless women, women and men with children, and intact families; and provides them with care coordination for their physical, mental, emotional and spiritual well-being.

This year’s teams include Oren Polak and Q Mitch; Mike Kenna and Sushi; JD McManus and reigning Queen Mother Puddin’ Taine; Hailey Freeman and Erin Mckenna AKA Hugh Janus; Paul Murphy and Beatrix Dixie; and Kevin Lawson and Sasha Cox.

“I continue to be blown away by this community and every single human that has competed, coached, donated, sponsored, attended and supported this event in any way,” said Kirby Myers, event creator and producer, who also

owns Kirby’s Closet boutique, 218 Whitehead St. “Thanks to them, we have raised over $200,000 for Samuel’s House in the past three years.

“Every year, each group takes their fundraising efforts to the next level,” said Myers. “The teams have put together raffles for incredible premium hotel stays, created specialty sunset sails, and are even drag skydiving. Every contestant and coach puts their heart and soul into this and it shows. It’s an incredible journey and an unforgettable show — all for an essential organization that makes every dollar count.”

Follow Miss Island Queen KW on Instagram and Facebook for updates and visit samuelshouse. org to find information and make a donation.

The main event will take place at the Key West Theater on Monday, May 19, when the reigning Miss Island Queen Nick Doll (and coach Sushi) passes the crown.

— Contributed

Six contestants are working with six drag coaches, competing for the title of Miss Island Queen 2025 by raising money for Samuel’s House. Follow Miss Island Queen KW on Facebook and Instagram to support the contestants’ fundraising efforts. MARK HEDDEN/Keys Weekly Scan the QR code to donate to Samuel’s House, which provides supportive housing to homeless women with and without children, and to men with children and intact families.

MESSAGE SHERIFF FROM THE

Please help me in warning others of a recent scam by thieves sending falsely claiming to be from prepaid road toll programs— E-Z pass or SunPass — in an attempt to steal money, personal, and financial information.

If you receive such a text, ignore it, and contact the organization at www.sunpass.com

You will receive a bill in the traditional mail for all legitimate toll collections. These texts are not unlike other scams involving thieves pretending to be government/law enforcement/utility/bank o cials to extort money.

If someone contacts you asking for money, claiming to be from a law enforcement agency, any government organization, utility company, a bank, or credit card company — contact the organization yourself.

A sure sign of a scam is anyone asking for payment for anything via gift cards or Bitcoin.

Thank you and help us spread the word!

Monroe County Sheriff, Rick Ramsay

CITY ATTORNEY’S EXIT IS IMMINENT; DETAILS UNDETERMINED

“Our job is to determine improper conduct and there’s certainly evidence of that,” Kaufman said.

He pushed back on several members of the public, who had spoken in support of Ramsingh and told the commissioners that Ramsingh is innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.

Several supporters told the commission any decision to fire Ramsingh was premature and unfair.

But Kaufman and Hall reminded the commissioners that their duty was not to determine guilt in a court of law.

“Your primary consideration is not whether Mr. Ramsingh committed a crime,” Hall said. “The only question you’re being asked is: Did he violate city policy?”

Henriquez said, “I sponsored this resolution for termination with cause and I feel policies No. 9 and 12 were violated, and I will be voting for termination with cause.”

Kaufman agreed, and pointed to those two policies — engaging in unlawful, improper or indecent conduct that reflects poorly on the city, and the deliberate falsification of personal or city records.

Termination becomes negotiation

Once the vote to fire Ramsingh with cause failed, the commission recessed to allow Hall to speak with Ramsingh’s attorney, Barrett, privately. Hall came back and said Ramsingh had “put an offer on the table.”

“He’d want it characterized as a voluntary separation agreement with no admission of liability,” Hall said. In return, Ramsingh would release the city from any future liability, but would still demand that his legal defense bills be paid.

“There is no limit to the amount the city could have to pay,” Hall said, strongly advising the commission against that agreement.

After multiple recesses and lengthy discussion, the commission decided to reconvene the meeting at 5 p.m. Thursday to decide how to part ways with Ramsingh.

The other two indicted city employees — code compliance director Jim Young and chief building official Raj Ramsingh, who is Ron Ramsingh’s brother — face felony charges of evidence tampering for altering, deleting or withholding text messages that were subpoenaed by the state attorney’s office as part of an ongoing corruption probe.

Young and Raj Ramsingh are on paid leave pending their arraignment on Thursday, April 24. Unlike the city attorney, the two department heads can be fired by the city manager. The attorney works directly for the city commissioners, who are the only ones who can fire him.

Speakers show support & opposition

More than a dozen community members spoke at the April 21 city commission meeting representing support for and opposition to attorney Ron Ramsingh’s firing.

Supporters of Ramsingh included local attorney and planning board member Michael Browning; local planner Owen Trepanier, personal friend Travis Doll and others.

Many of those supporters admonished the city commissioners, telling them that Ramsingh is innocent until proven guilty. They reminded the commission that a grand jury indictment does not include any defense of the person accused and assured the commission they trust Ramsingh as an attorney, a city employee and a decent person.

“I’ve known Ron since childhood and he’s always been kind, reliable and trustworthy,” said Amy Pierce. “He’s considerate and cautious and these charges against him are completely out of character.”

But an equal number of community members spoke against Ramsingh and in support of his firing as a matter of public trust in city government.

“I want to know there’s a level playing field in this community,” said Will Benson. “Public trust is the most important issue and it looks like that’s gone. You gain it by the teaspoon and lose it by the bucketload. You as commissioners have the trust of us, and we expect the rules to be fair for everyone with no insider dealing. You may hear good things about someone here today, but the job is public trust.”

Chris Massicotte also supported Ramsingh’s firing, saying, “We deserve to know everyone can be held accountable when they betray the public trust. And this matter reminds me of what I was told way back when text messaging first came about: Never send a text that you don’t want to see on the front page of the newspaper.”

Aaron Strebek told the commissioners, “It doesn’t matter what’s determined legally. What does matter for this body is his conduct regarding the city’s interests and policies and regarding all of us.”

WHO PAYS FOR RAISED ROADS?

County commission weighs $25,000 assessment for homeowners in improved areas

ALEX RICKERT alex@keysweekly.com

Discussion over how to “split the bill” for looming road adaptations in the Keys earned center stage at the Monroe County Board of County Commissioners’ meeting on April 16.

From 2021 to 2023, a Roads Vulnerability Sea Level Rise Adaptation Study completed by the county identified and ranked 97 road areas for improvement by the year 2045, at a projected cost of $1.6 billion, to mitigate flooding due to rising sea levels. Of those 97 areas, 49 were recommended for completion by 2025 at a projected cost of $888 million – before accounting for rising costs since the original 2020 estimate.

Prior discussion of how to raise the monumental sum – including a public bond, sales tax increases, grants and loans – continued in last Wednesday’s preliminary proposal for discussion: a uniform $25,000 assessment per “billing unit” in areas identified for improvement to defray a portion of capital costs, plus established localized taxing districts to fund 100% of the operations and maintenance of each area’s road project.

The assessments drew heavy criticism from public commenters, most of whom were residents in areas with improvement projects already underway. Several took issue with what they felt was a lack of communication from county officials as rising costs, layers of environmental regulations and shifting funding sources changed the financial landscape of each project. Others said potential assessments would hurt property values and raise rents, potentially driving more of the Keys’ workforce out of the island chain with the significant tax increases.

Steve Miller, executive director of the Lower Keys Chamber of Commerce, told the commission that such an assessment in the Sands subdivision on Big Pine Key could be a tipping point for the Keys’ workforce.

“They’re the ones that are just getting by, a lot of them,” he said. “This is just going to be one more thing that’s going to be landing on top of them (and) pushing them away. And we’re losing more of this workforce all the time.”

County Administrator Christine Hurley told the commission that existing projects in Conch Key and the Sands and Twin Lakes subdivisions have “pretty much tapped out” the

county’s capacity for funding available through its one cent infrastructure surtax. Hurley and multiple county commissioners reminded the audience that grant funding for projects requires a matching portion, and that recent deep cuts to state and federal grant funding could place future projects in even greater jeopardy without local financial backing. Chief Resilience Officer Rhonda Haag said that while grant funding is partially secured for a total of seven projects, there will still be a likely shortfall that Monroe County taxpayers will need to cover.

“What that means, and I want to be very clear about this … is unless we raise ad valorem taxes to pay for portions of these other projects, we cannot do the projects,” Hurley said. “None of us are happy about the discussions we’re having.”

“I’m afraid that we’re looking at changing issues in our country, with less willingness to provide money than there is willingness to take and cut funding,” said commissioner David Rice. “It’s okay to say we don’t want to have this $25,000 per building unit collected, but that money still has to be paid. We don’t have the money, and maybe you (taxpayers) don’t have the money either. That leaves us one option (to abandon roads), and I think we’re going to be facing that issue.”

“We’re now at that philosophical question: Who is going to pay for this?” said Mayor Pro Tem Michelle Lincoln, who pledged to host a town hall meeting for Sands subdivision residents to discuss the impacts of the improvement projects. “It’s coming out of ad valorem taxes; is it going to come from one specific neighborhood that’s receiving a benefit, or is the entire county going to pay for these projects that may only benefit a few?”

“I don’t know if we’re quite there on making a decision on how we move forward,” said commissioner Holly Raschein. “I do appreciate that we do need to have a community process and a consistent process.”

“Sea level rise is continuing,” said Mayor Jim Scholl. “We don’t want to be just rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic. Somewhere there’s got to be a balance of what the investment is going to be, what the return on the investment is going to be, and whether there are alternatives when we’re done with pilot projects.”

No formal action was taken on the proposal, with discussions set to continue at future commission meetings.

4 FINALISTS PICKED FOR SUPERINTENDENT

School board names 2 in-county, 2 out-of-county applicants

MANDY MILES mandy@keysweekly.com

And then there were four — finalists, that is, for the Florida Keys’ top education job.

School board members on April 22 narrowed the list of candidates from 11 semifinalists to four finalists — two Monroe County School District employees and two deputy superintendents from other Florida counties.

The four finalists, in alphabetical order, are:

Amber Archer Acevedo: current Monroe County School District deputy superintendent; former principal at Key West High School and Poinciana Elementary.

Darren Burkett: current deputy superintendent of Collier County public schools.

Laura Lietaert: current principal of Coral Shores High School; former teacher, assistant principal and principal at Key Largo School.

Edward Tierney: current deputy superintendent & chief of schools for Palm Beach County; former teacher of exception students; former high school principal; retired U.S. Marine Corps veteran.

In a ranking exercise at their April 22 meeting, all five school board members included Burkett and Tierney in their list of desired finalists. Acevedo and Lietaert each received support from three of the five board members.

Acevedo got the finalist nod from John Dick, Sue Woltanski and Yvette Mira-Talbott, but not Mindy Conn or Darren Horan.

Lietaert received support from Mira-Talbott, Horan and Conn, but not Dick or Woltanski.

All candidate applications are available at keysschools.com, under the “Superintendent Search” link at the top of the home page.

The school board members and district officials have been working with consultants from the Florida School Boards Association, who have guided the application and ongoing interview process, which continues next week with public interviews, one-on-one interviews with individual board members and public meet-and-greet receptions in each region of the county.

Individual school board members will conduct 90-minute interviews with each of the four finalists on Friday, May 2 starting at 9 a.m. in Marathon.

Community receptions to meet the finalists are scheduled:

• Upper Keys: Wednesday, April 30 from 6 to 7:30 p.m. at Murray Nelson Government Center.

• Middle Keys: Thursday, May 1 from 6 to 7:30 p.m.at Marathon High School.

• Key West: Friday, May 2 from 6 to 7:30 p.m. at Beachside Resort.

The final selection of the next superintendent is scheduled for the May 6 board meeting. Contract negotiations will follow. The job posting outlines a salary range of $175,000 to $225,000, plus benefits, “along with a relocation stipend and other negotiated incentives,” the job posting states. The current superintendent’s salary is $175,000.

The new schools chief will start work July 1, allowing a month-long overlap before the July 31 retirement of Theresa Axford.

All candidate applications are available at keysschools.com, under the “Superintendent Search” link at the top of the home page.

STUDENTS STAND OUT DURING STATE SCIENCE & ENGINEERING FAIR

Seven projects receive awards

Ten students represented Monroe County at the recent State Science and Engineering Fair in Lakeland. All seven projects won awards at the state level.

In the senior division, Violet Matthews of Coral Shores High School, won Outstanding Project. Teagan Eriksen of Coral Shores won the Regional Water Prize. Coral Shores students Gabby Thomas and Rachel Rusch won special recognition.

In the junior division, Taylor Thomason of Sugarloaf School won first in the state and the ThermoFisher nomination in the Earth and

Environmental Sciences category. Ainsley Golden and Mikaela Aguirre — the first team ever to compete from Ocean Studies Charter School — won third in the state in the Environmental Engineering category.

Collin Palomino of Sugarloaf won the Thomas Edison Award and Outstanding Project. Charlie Smith and Jacobo Gutierrez of Treasure Village Montessori won special recognition. Winners were joined by Monroe County School District STEM coordinator Donna Tedesco and Sugarloaf School teacher Alena Ellerbee.

Monroe County students don STEM T-shirts during the State Science and Engineering Fair in Lakeland. MONROE COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICT/Contributed

Local students show off their awards.

Amber Archer Acevedo Darren Burkett Laura Lietaert Edward Tierney

‘SHORT ATTENTION SPAN THEATER’ SHINES AT RED BARN

6 10-minute plays explore ‘Alternative Facts’

There’s an old saying in theater: “When you find a gem, let it shine.”

Key West’s Red Barn Theatre found such a gem over a decade ago, and has been letting it shine in most seasons since. It’s called “Short Attention Span Theatre,” one of the most popular shows the theater offers each year.

It’s a simple concept – pick a mixed slate of funny, powerful, poignant or off-the-wall short plays and populate them with some of the area’s top comedic talent, then string them together for an evening of fun. Each year, the Red Barn’s resident family – the McDonalds – find six or seven new plays and pull them together under a title that relates to them all. This year’s theme: “Alternative Facts,” which most will agree is relevant to the times.

“One of the things I love most about Short Attention Span Theatre,” said Mimi McDonald, the Red Barn’s managing director, “is that it gives us the opportunity to explore a number of different voices and new playwrights in one show. And it seems to many of us that the human condition is evolving right now, and these playwrights are noticing that and commenting on what’s happening in a very comedic way. And we have such great comedic actors all doing

a variety of very funny characters in this one.”

This year’s rendition stars Erin McKenna, Mathias Maloff, Cassidy Timms, Nina Pilar and Zach Franchini. They appear in various combinations during the evening of plays that focus on characters who are in conflict with larger forces – a catering job for an engagement party with a missing bride; a chance meeting on the Golden Gate Bridge, two audience members who insist on world premieres, a fiancé put to the test when she meets her possible in-laws, and two FBI agents who interrogate a newscaster when a newsroom is hijacked.

“It’s a fast, fun evening,” said McDonald, “but there’s a message or two in there as well.”

As they do every year, the entire McDonald family shepherds this show to the stage, directing, building sets, handling the tech and more. Along with Mimi are her husband Gary, and their adult children, Amber and Jack.

“We’ve been a theater family for more than 45 years,” Mimi said. “It’s in our blood, and we have such a great time working together on this show. It’s always a big hit.”

Tickets for “Short Attention Span Theatre: Alternative Facts” are available at KeysTix.com, redbarntheatre.com, or by calling the box office at 305-296-9911. All curtain times are 7:30 p.m.

Red Barn Theatre’s ‘Short Attention Span Theater’ runs through May 3 and features six 10-minute plays with the theme ‘Alternative Facts.’ ROBERTA DePIERO

HOUSE BILLS THREATEN TOURISM IN FLORIDA & THE KEYS

Proposals would divert dollars from tourist development to property tax relief

JIM McCARTHY

jim@keysweekly.com

Taxes paid by visitors to the Sunshine State, which are currently used for tourism marketing and facilities, could soon go to reduce county property taxes under a set of proposals in the Florida House.

Specifically, two pieces of legislation aim to eliminate the use of tourist development tax (TDT) revenues for promoting and attracting tourism — and instead using them to provide property owners with a bit of tax relief beginning in 2026. House bills 1221 and 7033 moved favorably out of the State Affairs and Budget committees on April 22.

Per an analysis of the bills, beginning in 2026, a credit against county property taxes must be applied to property tax bills that, in total, equals the prior year’s TDT collections less any revenue needed for debt service or to continue any contract in effect on July 1, 2025. The credit on bills may either be proportionate shares of the TDT collections for all county taxpayers, or can be allocated among certain categories of taxpayers according to an ordinance adopted by the board of county commissioners.

Not only would both bills divert TDT funds to property tax relief, but they also would dissolve tourist development councils across the state. Tourism promotion agencies would also cease to exist, unless approved by the county commission via resolution on or before Dec. 31, 2025. And just keeping any local tourism dollars would require a referendum every eight years.

The House Budget Committee chair, State Rep. Lawrence McClure, said Visit Florida would not be eliminated with county-level tourism councils. Visit Florida is the state’s official destination marketing organization.

Many in the tourism sector view the proposals as a direct attack on a booming industry in Florida — with visitor spending in the state reaching $124 billion last year. Figures show roughly 2 million Floridians are employed in the hospitality and tourism industries.

“Make no mistake: this is not a tax cut — it’s a job killer,” said Visit Florida Keys president and CEO Kara Franker. “This is an existential threat — not just to the tourism industry, but to the communities like ours that depend on it.”

In the Florida Keys, the proposal could deliver a devastating blow to a tourism industry that generated $61.4 million in tourist development taxes in 2023 and 2024. Visitors booking overnight lodging in the Florida Keys pay a 4% tourism development tax, in addition to a 7.5% sales tax and

1% tourist impact tax. TDT revenues fund brick and mortar improvements for tourist-related organizations, events up and down the island chain as well as advertising and promotion. The Monroe County TDC manages the local tourism marketing efforts to assure long-term economic stability resulting from visitor-related revenues.

“For a community that relies so heavily on tourism to drive its economy, it would be highly concerning to see any disruptions to the marketing efforts to the Florida Keys as a tourism destination,” said Robert Spottswood Jr., president for the Spottswood Companies.

Last year, the local TDC allocated $4.4 million to 140 events and festivities. A total of $11.1 million was allocated for capital projects among tourist-related businesses and organizations from Key Largo to Key West. The TDC funded municipalities’ improvements in public facilities, beach maintenance and restoration, park improvements, museum refurbishment projects and new public restroom facilities.

Nonprofit organizations throughout the Keys also received funding throughout the Florida Keys, including Key West Wildlife Center, National Marine Sanctuary Foundation, Dolphin Research Center, Reef Marine Conservation Center, Alligator Reef Light Station off Islamorada, History of Diving Museum, Key West Art and Historical Society, Florida Keys Land & Sea Trust and Jacobs Aquatic Center in Key Largo.

“It’s important we let legislators understand that TDT taxes have great benefits to taxpayers here and all throughout Florida,” said Dan Samess, Marathon Chamber of Commerce CEO. “It literally subsidizes our property taxes, allows local governments to maintain beaches and parks and provides funding for coral restoration projects, local nonprofits, the arts and much more.”

Samess added if the House bills related to

TDTs pass, the financial burden would fall solely on local governments, negating any property tax savings legislators suggest.

State Rep. Monique Miller, a Republican from Palm City, is sponsoring House Bill 1221. She told fellow representatives on the State Affairs Committee her bill gives local governments more control over these taxes and the power to use the revenue to make Florida more affordable for its residents.

“Between inflation, the cost of the insurance crisis, people are losing their homes,” Miller said. “This is a way to bring them immediate relief, and also give them the tools to regrow their community the way that they think is best.”

State Rep. Jim Mooney voted against House Bills 1221 and 7033. Mooney, who is vice chair on the State Affairs Committee and a Budget Committee member, said the state is built on tourism. And while he said he admired the thought of cutting property taxes, the actual savings wouldn’t be much.

“I believe you said (it would bring) $1.5 billion in savings. That’s $68.78 per every man, woman and child in the state. That is not going to be magnificently successful,” Mooney said to Miller during the State Affairs Committee.

Mooney said there are many unintended consequences with the bill that will be negative. He noted that Colorado tried a similar proposal in 1995 and 1997.

“The reality is they tried this and it was a miserable failure, they went from the No. 1 tourist destination in this country to dead last. And it took 15 years to recover. We can’t wait 15 years to recover,” he said.

Both bills will go before the full House on April 25. If approved, legislation would have to be approved in the Senate in order for it to reach the governor’s desk.

The Monroe County Tourist Development Council promotes the Florida Keys with a variety of advertising and marketing strategies, including print ads, such as these from 2020. MONROE COUNTY TDC/Contributed

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PEDIATRIC DENTISTRY

WITHOUT HOPE AND WITHOUT DESPAIR

T... is a photographer, writer, and semi-professional birdwatcher. He has lived in Key West for more than 25 years and may no longer be employable in the real world. He is also executive director of the Florida Keys Audubon Society.

he general theory of spring migration in the Florida Keys is that it lasts from about April 15 to May 15. But it’s only a general theory. Birds follow trends more than they follow rules. It’s not as if anyone is there waving a green flag, telling them to go. They have to wait until the quality and amount of light changes, the weather changes, and their endocrine systems gear up to start pumping the right volume of the right hormones to wave the metaphorical green flag. Except they don’t always take off just then. The stars need to be visible, the wind needs to be favorable, or at least favorable-ish. Coming from South America and the Caribbean, flying over all that water, they need to have built up their fat stores for the airborne ultramarathon ahead. And these are just the variables we know about. There are the tendencies of different species, but there are also the tendencies of individuals.

Males tend to migrate first, so they can claim territory and act all impressive when the females arrive.

There have been signs that migration was about to kick in for a couple weeks. The reappearance of common grackles, squawking it up around town, is a known precursor to the cavalcade of birds that will follow. The sight of the occasional swallow-tailed kite making landfall after crossing the Gulf of Mexico (yeah, I said it) before slow-looping its way north, is also always a harbinger of change. Also, barn swallows swirling around anywhere bugs are to be found is another sign.

The thing about migration, specifically what days you get to see migrant birds in the Keys, is, it’s not a steady, linear thing. It’s not even on a bell curve. It’s stochastic – some days you’re overwhelmed by how much you see, some days nothing much is going on, a lot of days are in between, and in the end it usually all averages out.

Isak Dinesen, a.k.a Karen Blixen, once said she tried to write a little bit every day, without hope, and without despair. I’ve always used that notion as sort of a mantra, sometimes about writing, sometimes about other things. If possible, just do the thing without letting your doubts and/or delusions dictate the terms. (I am not always, or arguably even mostly, successful at this.)

I was thinking about Dinesen’s line and trying to achieve that state of detached equilibrium, of being dispassionate about a passion, as I drove into Fort Zachary Taylor State Park the other morning, a week after migration officially began. Mark Whiteside had texted me on Saturday about seeing a Townsend’s warbler out at the Botanical Garden, and then there had been a report of one at Fort Zach on Sunday. So things were afoot.

A Townsend’s warbler is a West Coast bird, and doesn’t have a lot of business being here. But birds do wander, and we get one or two in the Keys every couple of years. I was not going to admit to myself that I hoped to see one, but I wasn’t going to be averse to it if I did.

Fort Zach is currently about half open, the rest blocked so they can replace the sand on the beach that periodically gets blown out by hurricanes and other storms. But despite the yellow tape everywhere, there was still a good bit of habitat worth birding.

Almost immediately I heard the least terns calling out their frenetic, high-pitched, toofast-to-parse Morse code to each other. I’d actually been listening for them over at the federal courthouse on Simonton Street, where they like to nest on the roof, but hadn’t heard them yet. No doubt they’re all just getting back and reacquainted, and will settle in to pair off and raise chicks in the next few weeks.

I spent a few minutes staring up at the sky, trying to catch sight of the least terns I was hearing, but it is easy to miss small white birds flying in front of big white clouds.

I headed into the low part of the hammock first, keeping my eyes on the leaf litter, thinking there was a high probability of seeing an ovenbird and a low probability of seeing the far more discreet Swainson’s warbler, but all I saw were curly-tailed lizards, which pushed

the emotional needle that I was ignoring a few points towards despair.

Warblers, which make up the bulk of the migrant species you see in the Keys, tend to move around in mixed flocks, and not seeing any in a half-acre of hammock doesn’t really mean anything. That, or I was wasting my morning. One of the two.

Somewhere beneath all the noise from the least terns I heard, relatively close, a blackwhiskered vireo, one of those species that breeds here but doesn’t get much north of central Florida. I hustled up the incline where I met a pair of birders from Virginia. The woman told me they were really hoping to see a blackwhiskered Vireo. I told her I just heard one. She said, no, that was her playing the call.

Sigh.

But right after that, a black-and-white warbler popped out on the branch of a gumbo limbo. Then there was a northern parula, then a Cape-May warbler, then the best bird of the morning, a golden-winged warbler.

There are a lot of reasons to like a goldenwing. For one, anything with golden in the name sounds classy. But also, the bird lives up to it, with a flashy bright yellow patch on each wing, and a similar bright yellow cape, plus some dramatic black and white facial markings. And they’re not common here, and only slightly more common in their breeding habitat, the high Appalachians.

There were another dozen species after that, making it pretty a mid-range day for migration birding in the Keys. But it definitely tilted the table away from despair, which, I’m pretty sure, is an assessment that even Isak Dinesen would allow in after-the-fact retrospection. As long as I wasn’t too hopeful about the next time I went out.

A golden-crowned warbler seen in Key West. MARK HEDDEN/Keys Weekly

MARK HEDDEN

IT’S THE JAZZ, MAN

KEY WEST BACK IN THE DAY

has lived in Key West for 40-plus years, witnessing and writing about the island’s renegade past, shipwreck salvage adventures and colorful presentday characters.

Sometimes in Key West’s beloved “bad old days,” also known as the late 1970s and early ’80s, you could feel a spine-tingling sense of electricity in the air. It wasn’t connected to the blackouts and brownouts that scrambled the power supply at irregular intervals. It wasn’t even connected to the lightning that occasionally split the sky, sparked by sudden fierce storms blowing through.

No, it was the jazz.

Many years ago, television’s “A-Team” (a mostly forgettable program), concisely explained the concept. The show’s Naive Girl Reporter asked the Macho Muscle Man why the Daring Ringleader regularly risked his life for no apparent reward. The Macho Muscle Man glinted his gold teeth at her and replied in a gravelly voice, “It’s the jazz, man. It’s the jazz.”

In Key West’s outlaw heyday, it was the jazz that got adrenaline pounding through your veins like a dog pack on overdrive. The jazz that brought your heart up into your throat and deposited it there, forcing your tonsils into temporary evacuation. The jazz that heightened your senses to a superhuman degree, making whites seem whiter and colors brighter (like laundry detergents are supposed to, but never quite succeed).

Back then, when pot smuggling was an acknowledged profession, the jazz was a common companion to most Key Westers. That’s because virtually everyone knew a smuggler (or fell in love with a smuggler, or WAS a smuggler).

While a few wannabe “importers” were as hapless as the Marx Brothers, the majority were fairly skilled at sailing cargoes of cannabis up from the islands to unload on hidden Keys shores. But all it took to start the jazz flowing was an on-the-water exchange with the Coast Guard when there were bales concealed on your boat.

Of course, the proliferation of smugglers meant the proliferation of another life form: attorneys attempting to keep them out of jail.

One in particular, who must remain nameless here, was a drug lawyer without equal. If you could afford him, even if you were caught on a boat carrying 10 tons, you had a good chance of dodging jail time.

Just walking into his Whitehead Street office was like inhaling a giant lungful of the jazz. Power emanated from him in waves, and high-rollers wandered in and out as if they owned the place.

The feds regarded him with unswerving hatred, but the Keys smugglers never failed to shake their heads and grin at the mention of his name.

“He’s crazy, that one,” they’d say admiringly. Then the grin would broaden. “I’ve got him on retainer just in case, you know?”

Another place where the jazz was prevalent was the Sugarloaf Leisure Club, the high-

rollers’ infamous hideaway. At this sprawling enclave 17 miles north of Key West, they escaped to indulge in clandestine affairs and illicit (often powdery) substances.

In a piece of unforgettable advertising irony, the turnoff to the Leisure Club was marked by a large Coca-Cola billboard that proclaimed, “Coke Adds Life to the Florida Keys.”

Most of the Leisure Club patrons agreed completely.

For some reason, despite the dangers of that long-ago existence, life seemed simpler then. We were young, sure of our own immortality, and prepared to ride the jazz to the limit. There was a sense of hyper-aliveness, an edgy thrill that was insidiously addictive.

These days, although the Keys’ resident renegades have grown up and gathered the tattered remnants of our common sense around our shoulders, we’ve never quite forgotten the heart-pounding exhilaration of the jazz … and we miss it.

CAROL SHAUGHNESSY

Key West renegades from ‘back in the day’ are captured in one of their favorite spots: the legendary Full Moon Saloon. WALT HYLA/Contributed

Bales of pot are unloaded from a vessel at the Coast Guard Station circa 1975. WRIGHT LANGLEY COLLECTION/ Florida Keys History Center

Art Show

DANIEL WEISBERGER AVOIDS PRISON IN BROTHER’S KILLING

Judge’s

sentence includes mental

health treatment plus 40 years of probation

JIM McCARTHY

jim@keysweekly.com

Asecond chance at life was given to Daniel Weisberger, the 22-year-old who was recently convicted of killing his younger brother Pascal.

Roughly an hour of deliberation on April 21 in a Key West courtroom led Judge Mark Jones to sentence Weisberger to a minimum two years in the mental health facility Passageway, plus 40 years probation.

Weisberger was facing the possibility of life in prison having been convicted in January of second-degree murder in the stabbing death of Pascal on May 7, 2020 inside their Executive Bay home. Weisberger, who was 17 at the time of attacks, was also found guilty of first-degree attempted murder in a stabbing attack on his dad, Ariel Poholek, shortly after killing Pascal.

Jones’ sentence included four years and 11 months in state prison. Weisberger won’t be spending any time at a prison facility because he’s getting credit for the time incarcerated since the attacks in May 2020.

As part of the sentencing, Weisberger will be required to wear an ankle monitor during probation. Weisberger received 40 years probation on the second-degree murder conviction and 25 years on the first-degree murder conviction, but Jones said they will run concurrently. He’s required to follow all recommendations from mental health counselors, and he also must take his anti-psychotic medicine and other medications.

In the courtroom, the defense asked the judge to consider a sentence committing Daniel to a mental health facility, not a lifetime prison sentence. Diane Ward, defense counsel for Weisberger, told the judge his mental capacity to understand the criminal nature of his conduct was diminished when he committed the attacks on his brother and father. Ward said Daniel began having mental issues at 4 years old. He’s dealt with post-traumatic stress disorder since 2016, and he’s currently receiving treatment for schizophrenia.

During testimony at trial, Poholek said his son exhibited bizarre behavior in the lead-up to the attacks at their Executive Bay residence. Poholek also called for mental counseling upon ob-

Ari Poholek, during trial. Poholek holds a picture of his sons, Pascal and Daniel, when they were little. CONTRIBUTED

Pascal Weisberger loved his family, friends and community. The 14-year-old died in the attack by his brother Daniel on May 7, 2020. His legacy lives on with Pascal’s Day of Service, held every year on his birthday on Feb. 2, and the Pascal Way 5k Walk/ Run. CONTRIBUTED

serving stab markings in the furniture and multiple knives hidden around the home.

Dr. Mark Mills testified during trial that he was of the opinion Daniel was in a psychotic state and suffered from schizophrenia on May 7, 2020. Mills’ opinion was supported by Dr. James Campbell, a psychologist who said during sentencing that Daniel had post-traumatic stress disorder from multiple complex traumas suffered at a young age, including his parents’ rough divorce.

The defense’s request was something Judge Jones heard from family and friends who took the stand during the sentencing hearing, which began April 16. Aidan Austin was a close friend of Pascal going back to their days in Boy Scouts. Appearing via Zoom during sentencing, Austin said he spoke to Daniel several times since the incident in an attempt to understand what happened — and why.

“The conversations were very hard, but Daniel is very clearly remorseful,” he said. “And it’s clear to me that he loves his brother. In some ways I see Pascal in him and it’s so strange.”

“I feel as though he’s owed a second chance at life,” Austin continued. “I feel as though I want him to not have his potential squandered because what I see is a troubled young man who could not fathom the pain and mental anguish he suffered, which has caused him to do things beyond the breadth of his control.”

Prosecutors from the Monroe County State Attorney’s Office recommended the court sentence Daniel to life in prison. They noted he wasn’t deemed legally insane by the court. They also stated that a letter he wrote after the attacks showed he knew what he was doing.

Jones ultimately agreed with the defense counsel’s request for a sentence that didn’t include life in prison.

“He was substantially impaired. To me it’s loud and clear,” Jones said. “This teenager was troubled, he was having serious problems. I know the state advocated somehow it came in after the fact; I don’t agree with that observation.”

“This indeed has been one of those most unique, tragic and complicated cases I have ever presided over in my 28-plus career as judge,” Jones said.

State attorney, dad react to sentence

Monroe County State Attorney Dennis Ward told Keys Weekly he disagrees with Jones’ sentence. Ward said he was in attendance for the two days of sentence hearings and saw Jones leaning in the direction of mental health treatment and no extended prison time.

“That’s his opinion,” Ward said. “My job, and his job, is to ensure the safety of the community.”

Ward noted the violent actions by Daniel on the morning of May 7, 2020 which left Pascal dead and his father fighting for his life.

“This guy is violent,” he said. “The crime he committed was horrible, it was almost a practical beheading of his little brother.”

Overall, Ward said he believes the obligation to protect the community didn’t come to fruition.

“I hope this kid does not harm

anybody in the community, that would be the best bet,” he said. I hope Judge Jones is right.”

Poholek, Daniel’s father, said he was relieved and appreciative of Jones’ judgment. Despite being the victim of an attack by his son, Poholek was a strong advocate for Daniel receiving the necessary mental health treatment and support as opposed to life behind bars.

“I’ve said from the beginning of this tragic situation that, as terrible as losing Pascal has been, given the overall circumstances of this case and particularly Daniel’s age, mental illness, history of being abused as well as community support which has existed for him, a unique approach was needed,” he said.

Poholek added Jones laid out the rationale he put into his compassionate decision.

“It’s clear that he’s someone who takes his role and responsibilities very seriously but is also willing to think outside the box when justice in its truest form calls for it,” Poholek said.

Daniel pens letter to judge

Before the sentencing, Daniel wrote a letter to Judge Jones regarding his mental health struggles, the tragedy he caused and his love for his brother Pascal.

“I once was a cautious young boy who later became lost while trying to find my way to becoming a man due to my struggles with the adversity of trauma and mental illness,” he said. In his letter, Daniel said he wants to pursue a more positive life while being realistic and managing his priorities. He said he’d like to finish his high school education by getting his GED, and one day find a job.

“I would also like to get vocational training as a peer counselor to help other people who need guidance, which I could either do as a job or as a form of volunteer work,” he said. “These experiences gave me an appreciation for the importance of dedicating time to giving back to other people, animals and the environment.”

Pascal’s memory lives

With the case drawing to a close almost five years from the incident, not lost is the legacy of Pascal, who cared for his family, friends and community. He overcame his own struggle with autism. He fought hard for the environment and helped animals at the local rescue.

The annual Pascal’s Way 5k Run/ Walk will be held in May with proceeds supporting seniors at Coral Shores High School and science programs at Upper Keys schools. The exact date of the race is still being determined.

In this picture taken by defense counsel Diane Ward, Daniel Weisberger is pictured with his dad,

Tarec K. Elajami, MD Cardiology

Raymond Rodriguez, MD Medical Director, Mount Sinai Cardiology of the Keys

CHRIS McNULTY

is an astrologer, wanderer, bartender and advocate for queer justice. He is a loquacious Gemini with a cozy Cancer rising. Find him at hearthandheraldastrology.com

It is officially Taurus season, which means the fresh newness that spring has sprung is wearing off, and we can settle into the calm beauty of the season. Stop and smell the flowers. Enjoy the cozy teas. Appreciate the things you have. Take the long, meandering walks along the shore. Taurus is about acknowledging and appreciating what is right in front of you. This week, we have the planet of love, Venus, conjoining the planet of order, Saturn. Under this transit, we are encouraged to set boundaries in our relationships, edit or pare down our artistic endeavors, find love in the smaller moments, or solidify love everlasting. This transit is about getting serious in the way that we relate to the people and things around us that make our hearts go pitter-patter. Almost simultaneously, Mars, the planet of action and courage, is forming a 180-degree opposition to Pluto, the planet of power and the unconscious. We can expect some major power struggles, eruptions of long-held tensions, Davidand-Goliath battles, and matches tossed into powder kegs. This is a week for maturing our relationships and exploding old bombs, so tread lightly and ensure that you’re confident in your choices and prepared for the fallout.

Here are your horoscopes for Venus conjunct Saturn and Mars opposite Pluto. Read for your rising and sun signs.

TAURUS

April 20 - May 20

Happy birthday season you sweet ol’ Bull! This week you will certainly feel the love from the friends and support networks in your life, but, in all the action, you will need to decide who needs to be cut out. Not all support is helpful to where you are trying to go. Lean into those that lift your goals. Prepare for a battle be-

tween the needs of work and home, as both are pressuring you to act.

GEMINI

May 21 - June 20

Your career is progressing forward with cautious optimism. Trust the forward movement, but proceed with a loving patience. Time will reveal the opportunities and financial possibilities that are available to you. There is a powerful tension between the new and the familiar places in your life. Gotta go but want to stay? This week, that tension comes to a head and your decision will be made.

CANCER

June 21 - July 22

You are seeing things more clearly now, especially when it comes to who is walking beside you and who is just hanging in the background. A realization about your beliefs or your path might rise to the surface and change the way you move forward. At the same time, something practical is asking for your attention. You may feel caught between nurturing your vision and keeping up with daily pressures. Do not be afraid to make choices that honor what you value most.

LEO

July 23 - Aug. 22

A conversation, a connection or even a conflict may ask you to step into your truth this week. Something in your closest bonds is being tested and it is time to let go of old agreements that no longer work. You are also being asked to take your own healing seriously. You have been holding things quietly for too long. Let someone in who has earned your trust. Let the armor fall where it no longer serves you.

VIRGO

Aug. 23 - Sept. 22

An old pattern might come calling again, especially one that shows up when no one is looking. You are in a season of undoing and rebuilding, and this week might ask you to get honest about what you have been avoiding. In your relationships, there is a longing for something

deeper and more meaningful. Let love grow slowly, and give yourself permission to ask for what you need without shrinking.

LIBRA

Sept. 23 - Oct. 23

This week pulls you in different directions. You may be juggling more than usual and feeling like there is not enough time for what brings you joy. There is a creative spark trying to break through, but it may be getting lost in the shuffle of obligations. You do not need to be everything for everyone. Reconnect with what makes you feel alive. A little solitude might be the thing that brings it all back into focus.

SCORPIO

Oct. 23 - Nov. 21

Something deep within is shifting. You are being called to look at what makes you feel safe and what no longer fits in the life you are building. Old stories around home, family or belonging might come to the surface this week. It is okay to grieve what could have been while still making space for what is. Lean into whatever reminds you that joy is possible, even in the middle of change.

SAGITTARIUS

Nov. 22 - Dec. 21

This week could bring a powerful decision or a sharp realization about where you are headed. Something in your daily rhythm or mindset is asking to be released so that something better can take its place. There may be a conversation you have been avoiding or a truth you are finally ready to say out loud. You are not being asked to solve everything, just to take one step closer to what matters most.

CAPRICORN

Dec. 22 - Jan. 19

You may be feeling stretched between what you give and what you receive. This week could bring a moment where you realize you have been giving too much without enough return. It is a good time

LOVE AND BOMBS

to reassess your commitments and consider what actually feeds your energy. Speak clearly, especially when it comes to boundaries around time and money. There is no need to explain yourself.

AQUARIUS

Jan. 20 - Feb. 18

There is a change happening in how you see yourself. It may come through a conflict, a surprising realization, or a need to assert your independence in a close relationship. You are not the same person you were even a few months ago and that is beginning to show. Let yourself take up space without apology. You are also being nudged to care for your body and spirit in a new way. Choose what steadies you.

PISCES

Feb. 19 - March 20

Your energy is shifting inward. You may feel a little more tired than usual or more sensitive to the world around you. That is not a weakness. It is a signal. This week asks you to release what is not yours to carry and give your inner world the care it deserves. Rest is not something you have to earn. Let the noise quiet down. The answers you are looking for will rise up in the stillness.

ARIES

March 21 - April 19

You are feeling pulled between the drive to build something big and the reality that not everyone in your circle understands your vision. A challenge or power struggle might surface this week that forces you to say the thing you have been holding back. Trust your instincts, but do not let pride lead the way. The people who truly see you will not need convincing. Make room for the kind of support that helps you grow.

WHAT’S COOKING, KEY WEST?

It’s a conch thing

CAROL SHAUGHNESSY www.keysweekly.com

Despite being a relatively small creature, the sea snail called conch (pronounced konk) has had a super-sized impact on Key West and the Florida Keys — both from a culinary and a cultural standpoint. The mighty mollusk has even lent its name to generations of island natives, and to a symbolic “nation” known around the world as the Keys’ lighthearted alter ego: the Conch Republic.

Key West’s conch connection began in the early 1800s, shortly after the island’s initial settlement, when Bahamian residents who had fled postRevolution America then fled British colonial taxation for the new American outpost. According to longstanding lore, their rallying cry was, “We’d rather eat conchs than pay taxes!”

Early Key Westers were reputedly skeptical that the ugly little mollusks could be edible, even when pried out of their pink-lined shells. However, the Bahamian settlers — thriving as fishermen and wreckers who salvaged vessels that foundered on the Keys’ reef — convinced them, demonstrating how to pound the tough conch meat to tenderize it and fold it into recipes that quickly became local favorites.

Tomato-based conch chowder, golden deep-fried conch fritters and refreshing, citrus-kissed conch salad remain Florida Keys staples today, highlighting many restaurant menus.

Those eager to prepare conchbased dishes for themselves can learn techniques and tips at the Key West Cooking School, located upstairs at 291 Front St., during interactive demonstration-style classes that feature delectable four-course meals.

The local conch connection, however, goes far beyond culinary uses — and the school’s chef-storytellers spin entertaining tales about it, and other elements of island history, as they impart cooking secrets to class participants.

As well as harvesting and eating conch, early Keys inhabitants identified so strongly with the mollusk’s tough, hardy nature that they took its name for themselves.

The moniker caught on, and native-born residents proudly call themselves “Conchs” even today. Their traditionally-built Key West homes,

Fans of heritage cuisine can learn to prepare conch fritters, among the Florida Keys’ most iconic dishes, at the Key West Cooking School. KEY WEST COOKING SCHOOL/ Contributed

represented at the cooking school’s entrance by a white-painted replica façade, are referred to as “Conch cottages.”

Perhaps the best known use of the word “conch” dates back to April 23, 1982, when the Florida Keys symbolically seceded from the United States to become the independent Conch Republic.

The action was sparked by the installation of a U.S. Border Patrol checkpoint at the head of the island chain, virtually stopping traffic on the only road from the mainland and crippling Keys tourism. Unable to get the checkpoint removed, local officials protested by staging the secession.

The story of the gutsy little “republic” drew international attention, the blockade disappeared and the Keys have been called the Conch Republic ever since. The secession’s anniversary is commemorated with a festival each April — a perfect time to

Since the Florida Keys proclaimed themselves the independent Conch Republic in 1982, the royal blue flag of the republic with a conch shell in the center has been proudly displayed around the island chain. CONCH REPUBLIC INDEPENDENCE CELEBRATION/ Contributed

learn to prepare dishes that celebrate the Keys’ conch heritage.

LAST BITES

Dish of the Week: Conch Fritters. Conch fritters remain a tangible taste of Keys culture, though conch meat is no longer harvested locally. Along with the primary ingredient, these deep-fried favorites include flour, herbs and spices, and a zesty sauce for dipping.

Helpful Kitchen Hack: Pounding conch meat with a mallet isn’t the only way to tenderize it. Instead, boil it in salted water for 60 to 90 minutes, resulting in tender conch meat that retains the essence of the ocean.

Hungry for more? Visit keywestcookingschool.com, or call 305-294COOK to book a class.

CUBAN MIX — ALL THE WAY

Sandwich showdown set for April 26 at Green Parrot

I’ll be grabbing lunch at the Green Parrot Bar on Saturday, April 26.

No, not a liquid lunch — well, not entirely, although adult beverages will be involved. This is a work thing. Sort of.

This Saturday from noon to 3 p.m. is the fourth annual Cuban Sandwich Throwdown, a delicious competition among a dozen or so restaurants, caterers and food trucks to crown the best Cuban sandwich.

I’m one of the judges. (Hey, I didn’t say it was hard work.) This year, the judges include Mayor Dee Dee Henriquez; the world’s friendliest philanthropist, George Fernandez; Key West Cooking School executive chef Keith St. Peter; rum distiller Paul Menta; and a few others.

We’ll be tasked with eating and evaluating several of the best sandwiches on the island, and tallying our scores to determine first, second and third place. The People’s Choice Award is where everyone else comes in.

A $20 donation gets you a sky-high pile of sandwiches, each wrapped in nondescript foil and marked only with a number, and a ballot to vote for your favorites in two categories — traditional and non-traditional.

The throwdown raises money for the Learning Center of Key West. Marcia Weaver, owner of Frita’s Cuban Burger Cafe, created the contest to support the center and emphasize the importance of affordable child care, said Weaver, thanking Green Parrot manager extraordinaire Jim Fossum for hosting the event.

For tickets, visit Frita’s Cuban Burger Cafe, 425 Southard St., call 305-509-7075 or get them at the door the day of the event.

Chef-storyteller Karl Stahl shares insights into recipe preparation and island traditions with class participants at the Key West Cooking School. KEY WEST COOKING SCHOOL/Contributed

MANDY MILES mandy@keysweekly.com

SPEAKEASY SOIREE RECALLS ROARING 1920s

Themed

party raises money

for CFK Academy charter high school

MANDY MILES

mandy@keysweekly.com

The Roaring ’20s was a decade of jazz music and gin joints, pinstriped suits and Prohibition. Rebellious young women, known as flappers, defied norms, ditched their corsets and danced the Charleston. They smoked, drank, drove — and (gasp!) voted. Booze was illegal but accessible, and secret bars, known as speakeasies, required whispered passwords for entry.

High school students at CFK Academy recreated the intrigue and optimism of the era on April 18, hosting for the second year, a Roarin’ Good Times Speakeasy fundraiser for the school at Tennessee Williams Theatre. Students decorated the venue, dressed for the decade, performed live piano music, served food and assembled an impressive silent auction.

Several guests also dressed the part. Men sported spats, hats and suspenders while women wore fringed dresses and feathered headbands.

CFK Academy is a free charter high school located on the campus of the College of the Florida Keys. It offers a rigorous STEM ( science, technology, engineering, math) curriculum. Students have the option of graduating with both a high school diploma and an associate’s degree. The school opened in August 2023. More information is at cfk.edu/cfkacademy.

1. College of the Florida Keys President Jonathan Gueverra and his wife, Josephine, at the Roarin’ Good Time Speakeasy on April 18, a fundraiser for CFK Academy charter high school. STEPHANIE MITCHELL/ Keys Weekly

2. Dr. Hector and Rebecca Guzman support CFK Academy at the Roaring ‘20s-themed fundraiser on April 18.

3. Students provide the entertainment at CFK Academy’s Roarin’ Good Time Speakeasy fundraiser.

4. High school students from CFK Academy staff the silent auction table at a 1920sthemed fundraiser for the free charter high school on the campus of the College of the Florida Keys.

CHER IMPERSONATOR PERFORMS FOR PRIDE

Cher impersonator Michael Dean will perform at Aquaplex Key West on Tuesday, June 3 as a fundraiser for Key West Pride. CONTRIBUTED special fundraiser at Aquaplex Key West and we invite our island community and visitors to come and be part of the celebration.”

Michael Dean performs June 3 at Aquaplex

Cher impersonator Michael Dean will make his Key West debut during a one-nightonly Key West Pride fundraiser at 8 p.m. on Tuesday, June 3 at the Birdcage Cabaret at Aquaplex Key West.

The event will benefit Key West Pride, which takes place June 22-29 and offers a series of events including a street fair and parade that all carry the theme of “Still Rising.” The celebration will honor the history of the LGBTQ+ community, highlighting the resilience of the LGBTQ+ movement while promoting the island’s inclusive ethos of “One Human Family.”

“Pride Month brings a lot of opportunities for us to come together, and stand united as a community,” said Rob Doughtery, executive director of the Key West Business Guild.

“We’re excited for a series of month-long activities like this

Dean has gained a reputation for impersonating the legendary singer/actor and has appeared at venues including Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Hollywood, Lips Fort Lauderdale/Atlanta/Chicago and Oscar’s Cabaret in Palm Springs.

“Aquaplex Key West is committed to the community and takes pride in serving as the perfect backdrop for many events that support local causes,” said Michael Barrett, owner of Aquaplex Key West and Fort Lauderdale. “We’re excited to have Michael Dean as Cher make his Key West debut appearance and to be able to support this local organization that does year-round work to bring people together.”

Tickets are $40 per person, and reservations are required. Seating is limited. Tickets are available at aquakeywest.com. — Contributed

THE GREAT FLORIDA KEYS ROAD TRIP: TAVERNIER

Outside Key West, the small town is home to the most historic structures

Tavernier is a small community found on the southern tip of Key Largo. It was not the first to develop along this neck of the island. Decades earlier, a farming community called Planter occupied the Atlantic edge. Pineapples, tomatoes and melons were among the commercial crops they farmed.

Hurricanes and the arrival of the Key West Extension of Henry Flagler’s East Coast Railway hastened the demise of Planter. Life in the Keys changed when the train started huffing and puffing up and down the tracks twice daily. No longer reliant on ships having to navigate the shipping channels successfully, the railroad offered a more reliable mode of transportation.

While the train did not arrive at Key West until 1912, daily service between the mainland and what would become the Seven Mile Bridge was operational in 1908. Communities began to move away from the edges of the islands and closer to the conveniences offered at the railroad right of way. Tavernier became one of the railroad towns that sprang up after Henry Flagler decided to push his train down the island chain to Key West.

One of the old tales about the origin of the Tavernier name suggests a thirsty sailor came ashore and asked the first person he saw, “Is there a tavern near?” It is a colorful story – nonsense, but a good story. Others have pondered if the name was French, as tavernier is the French word for innkeeper. The truth is that the community is named after the 31-acre Tavernier Key, located just off the Atlantic shoreline.

The name is based on the Spanish word for a biting fly. Some of its earliest names include Caio di Tabanos (1639) and Cayo Tabanos (1742). Roughly translated from Spanish to English, the island was called Horsefly Key. What is important to remember about the word tabano is that the “b” is pronounced with a “v” sound in Spanish. This would explain why William Roberts’ work, “First Discovery and Natural History of Florida” (1763), identified the island as Cayo de Tivanos.

In 1775, the island was identified by its Spanish and English names, Cayo Tabano and Key Tavernier. Since, the name island hopped to Key Largo and currently identifies a stretch of Key Largo between MM 94 and Tavernier Creek, and then, technically, a little more. The

name hit the railroad history books when the Tavernier train station was established around 1907.

The Tavernier name was cemented into government records after the Planter Post Office closed and the first Tavernier Post Office opened in 1911.

It is an interesting little town and home to the largest group of historic structures outside of Key West. The buildings do not date back to the 19th century like those still standing on Key West, though some are approaching 100 years old. Also, Tavernier is not just about old buildings. The subject of birds and a sanctuary needs to be addressed, too.

Laura Quinn was a local hero who did everything she could for injured birds. Between the fishing hooks, monofilament dangling from mangrove branches like tangled traps, cats and windows, it can be risky being a bird. Quinn acquired a 5.5-acre property on Key Largo for the Wild Bird Center, a nonprofit incorporated in 1988. The doors opened in 1991. Though she passed in 2010, her mission carries on.

The Florida Keys Wild Bird and Rehabilitation Center remains dedicated to rescuing, rehabilitating and releasing native and migratory wild birds that have been harmed or displaced. The facility also provides or locates humane shelters for those that cannot be released. I’d call the Laura Quinn Wild Bird Sanctuary at MM 93.6 a roadside attraction, but that wouldn’t be a fair representation of the work they do.

The sanctuary provides a stroll along a wooden boardwalk, past aviaries and through some authentic island scenery. The cages are filled with two kinds of birds: those that were healed but are not fit for release and those that are rehabbing until they can be released. It is not a free stop, but one of the more worthy you’ll come across. Donations are requested.

As the facility has grown, it has expanded from its original setting to incorporate a separate hospital facility and educational center found closer to downtown Tavernier where more than 70 historic structures still stand. We are going to concentrate on a colorful collec-

tion of buildings at MM 92.

Starting at the corner of the highway and Atlantic Circle Drive is a white building that houses Krust Pizza. The building dates back to the 1920s when it was home to the Tavern Store, advertising sodas, sundries and ice cream. In the 1930s, it was a movie house called the Key Theater. Since then, it has been a series of restaurants.

FLORIDA KEYS

WITH BRAD BERTELLI

Next door is a small yellow building that predates the first by a couple of years. Originally, it was a Standard Oil gas station. On the other side of that historic structure is a pink, two-story building that was under construction when the 1935 Labor Day Hurricane devastated the Upper Keys. Immediately after the storm, it served as a Red Cross first aid station. When completed, it was the new and improved Key Theater. By 1939, it was converted to the Tavernier Hotel, which is how locals remember it.

The squat turquoise building beside it dates back to the mid-1920s. During Prohibition, it was the Tavernier Tea Room and served beverages that were stronger than the law allowed. Also, allegedly, it offered games of chance. Later, it became the Tavernier Café, better known as Harry’s Place. A little farther down, on the left, is a white building that stands out because of its classic historic design. Today, it is home to Café Moka – housed in an old Methodist church with roots that date back to 1886 Planter.

After passing the Winn-Dixie shopping center, rounding a slight curve, and approaching the Tavernier Creek Bridge, the reason the southbound lanes are so much higher than the northbound lanes is that they were built atop the right-of-way of Henry Flagler’s old rail line. Next up is Plantation Key.

JERRY WILKINSON COLLECTION/Contributed

Brad is a local historian, author, speaker and Honorary Conch who loves sharing the history of the Florida Keys.

HISTORY

A DIFFERENT TYPE OF DRAG RACE

Duval Street hosts high-heeled hijinks

High-heeled hilarity took center stage in Key West on April 19 as female impersonators, decked out in wigs, dresses and sky-high heels, competed in the annual Conch Republic Drag Race. Hundreds of spectators lined Duval Street to watch female impersonators complete a timed obstacle course. The crowd went wild as drag queens stepped gracefully through tires, tested their balance on a beam and rode in a shopping cart that weaved through traffic cones, all while wearing high heels.

This quirky competition qualifies as one of those “only-in-Key-West” events, where crashes, stumbles and lost wigs are all part of the fun. These high-performance “divas” do their best to outdo each other.

The event was part of the 43rd annual Conch Republic Independence Days celebration that salutes the Florida Keys’ symbolic 1982 “secession” from the United States to form the Conch Republic.

The mock secession was prompted by the real-life installation of a U.S. Border Patrol checkpoint at the top of the island chain on the Florida Keys Overseas Highway. The federal government’s attempt to curb drug smuggling caused hours-long traffic delays and threatened the Florida Keys’ tourism economy. Following the “secession,” the island chain immedi-

ately surrendered to the United States, but the Conch Republic remained, complete with its own flag, mock military – and motto: “We seceded where others failed.”

The 2025 Conch Republic Independence Days celebration runs through Sunday, April 27, with upcoming events including a lighthearted “sea battle,” featuring tall ships battling the U.S. Coast Guard with water cannons, and a Conch Republic parade billed as the “world’s longest,” because it stretches from the Gulf to the Atlantic Ocean — a distance of 1.25 miles down Duval Street. Visit conchrepublic.com for a full schedule of events.

— Contributed

1. Spencer Nickle is all smiles as he crosses the finish line in record time at the annual Drag Races on April 19. The event is part of Key West’s annual Conch Republic Independence Celebration. MARK HEDDEN/Florida Keys News Bureau

2. This trio navigates the obstacle course in high heels during Key West’s Drag Races as screaming spectators cheer them on.

3. A fiercely festive drag clown, left, competes in a heat with Francis Cappello as they work their way across the balance beam.

4. Key West’s annual Drag Races are decidedly different. The annual obstacle course competition is part of the island’s Conch Republic Independence Celebration.

27th ANNUAL EARTH DAY 5K DRAWS 285 RUNNERS

Race raises money for local environmental cleanups

The annual Earth Day 5K Run, now in its 27th year, raises money for a local environmental group that focuses on hands-on cleanup projects. Organized by resident Marci Rose, this year’s race on April 19 drew 285 runners and benefited the Conch Republic Marine Army, which removes trash from nearshore waters. Runners circled Truman Waterfront Park three times. Summer Sprague, 16, from Tuckahoe, New Jersey, was the top female finisher. Ryan Pommering, 49, from Wilmington, Delaware (not pictured) finished first overall. CONTRIBUTED

HELP KEEP KEY WEST CLEAN

JOIN A 1- HOUR CLEANUP FRIDAY MORNINGS

The April 18 cleanup took place around Indigenous Park on White Street with host the Conch Republic Green Ops kicking off Conch Republic Days. In one hour, 67 volunteers collected 274 pounds of trash, 18 pounds of recycling and 3 gallons of cigarette butts.

The Earth Day cleanup on April 22 included the bird sanctuary, Nature Beach and Higgs Beach, all at the foot of White Street, where Keep Key West Beautiful set up its educational village. Sixty-one volunteers collected 405 pounds of trash, 48 pounds of recycling and 2 gallons of cigarette butts.

Participants included Keep Key West Beautiful, Plogging the Keys, Sarah Tiffany from H&R Block, Coca-Cola Florida, First Horizon Bank’s Levi Pattinson, Waste Management, Margarete Lara, Monroe County Recycling coordinator Melody Tuschel, Conch Republic Marine Army, Last Stand, Key Fillery, Key West Aquarium, City of Key West Utilities department and recycling coordinator Keely Kessler. We thank all these participants for setting up, educating the community and handing out free giveaways. Special thanks to breakfast host Sue Puskedra from Susie’s Estate Sales. ALLY BUNDY/Contributed

One hour a week makes a huge difference, and volunteers are welcome every Friday and some Saturday mornings, from 8 to 9 a.m., when the Key West Ploggers clean up a designated area of the island.

Gloves, pickers, buckets, vests, hand sanitizer and a parking pass are provided to all volunteers.

A troubling number of cigarette butts and plastic bags have been included in recent hauls. Please remember your reusable bags when shopping so we can keep the plastic off the streets, parking lots and, most importantly, out of the water. And dispose of cigarette butts in any receptacle rather than the street or sidewalk, as from there, they easily end up in the ocean.

The city of Key West and its residents ask everyone to do their part to help keep Key West beautiful. With simple steps like making sure you bag your trash before putting it in your Waste Management trash cans or Dumpsters, and making sure the lids on Dumpsters are closed, will keep a lot of trash from blowing into the streets. Call Waste Management at 305-296-8297 for any furniture items

TAKE ME HOME?

FIND A FRIEND AT THE FLORIDA KEYS SPCA

The Keys Weekly family loves animals as much as our friends at the Florida Keys SPCA do, and we’re honored each week to showcase some “furever” friends that are ready, waiting and available for adoption at the organization’s Key West campus.

From cats and dogs to Guinea pigs, hamsters, rabbits, reptiles and birds, the perfect addition to your family is waiting for you. The SPCA’s knowledgeable staff will help with advice and care tips while working to ensure a good fit between each pet and its people.

The SPCA’s Golden Paw program also provides special assistance with vet bills and medications for special-needs and older animals that require a little extra TLC. Check these pages each week for just a few of the animals waiting for a home and see them all at fkspca.org.

Dr. McDreamy. This 3-year-old grey and white heartthrob has a Ph.D. in cuteness and a master’s degree in comedy. He’s a total people-cat who will follow you around like he’s got rounds to do, making sure everyone gets their daily dose of purrs and personality.

left on the city right of way.

Please pick up around your home or apartment complex. Every piece of trash picked up is one less that may end up in the ocean that surrounds and sustains our island community. It is not just the large items you can see easily when you are walking, but the smaller items such as bottle caps and cigarette butts that are collected by the volunteers that make the biggest difference.

It takes committed community involvement to keep Key West beautiful and we are making progress with every cleanup event and every spot that’s adopted. Call Dorian Patton at 305-809-3782 to find out how your business, nonprofit or club can help.

— Contributed

Join a one-hour Friday morning cleanup. All events are 8 to 9 a.m. unless otherwise noted.

April 25: Mallory Square. Meet in the parking lot near Ocean Key Resort. Hosted by Ocean Key Resort & Marina

Blue. This

is

and walks like a pro on leash. He’s great with other dogs and always ready to make new friends. Blue has a curious streak and might try a clever escape or two, so a secure yard is a must. He’s equal parts goofball and loyal companion.

is

Joel. This 3-month-old

kitten is as cute as can be, with wide eyes and a heart full of potential. He’s still figuring out the world, so things can seem a little scary. But give him a cozy home and some patience, and he’ll blossom into the confident little guy he’s meant to be.

and

Meet

5½ -year-old husky

friendly, well-socialized

Paging

Myrtle

a 1-year-old calico cutie with the looks of a supermodel and the heart of a marshmallow. She’s friendly

affectionate, though she might play hard-to-get at first. Once she warms up, Myrtle is all purrs and head bumps.

Say hi to Noodles. This handsome American rabbit is the definition of classic bunny charm. He’s litter-box trained, tidy and has all the hops and nose wiggles you could ask for. If you’re looking for a low-key, adorable companion, Noodles might be your perfect match.

Meet

tabby

Now Hiring FINANCE MANAGER

The Keys Weekly Newspapers and Overseas Media Group are seeking an organized, detail-oriented and responsible professional to manage the organizations’ financial tasks including intercompany accounting while supporting an active sales team.

Qualified candidates are proficient with Quickbooks, possess great communication skills, are able to track income and expenses across multiple revenue streams along with the ability to create budgets and establish efficient processes.

Carrying multiple exclusive retail lines. Plus a selection of unique & carefully curated pre-loved items.

BOUTIQUE HOURS

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Private shopping parties and styling services available kirbyscloset.com @kirbysclosetkw

This is a full time, salaried, administrative position with health benefits, IRA contributions and more.

Send your confidential resume and credentials to jobs@keysweekly.com.

Keely and Amelia are both wearing pants from our retail line America & Beyond

THE CLEAN SWEEP

CLEAR THE CLUTTER AND WELCOME SPRING WITH THREE BOOKS THAT TRULY SPARK JOY

EVERY TOM, DICK & HARRY

By Elinor Lipman

Emma Lewis feels like a kid coming home again. After earning multiple degrees in college, she is back in Harrow, Massachusetts and needs a job. As her parents prepare to retire, she reluctantly moves into their home and is handed Finders Keepers, their successful estate-sale business. As Emma takes on quirky customers with a modern twist, she stumbles upon the sale of the century and signs up the largest home in town. Upon her initial inspection, Emma discovers that this humongous home was not quite the bed and breakfast everyone imagined. It was secretly (or not so secretly) a brothel, servicing some of the most prominent community members. With hidden filing cabinets, mysterious rooms and a trove of bizarre valuables to sell, Emma puts her personal opinions aside and prepares to make a windfall. At the same time, she is falling for the new police chief whom she knew in high school. This lanky, shy boy has grown into the most eligible bachelor in town. After laughing my way through, I’m now oddly inspired to host a yard sale — or at least tackle the infamous garage abyss.

I had the pleasure of buddy-reading “Every Tom, Dick & Harry” with Sara Matthis, our beloved former Keys Weekly editor who runs a local estate-sale business, Sara’s Estate Sales. She’s the go-to expert for helping people declutter, sell and prepare for moves. Her craziest find? A handicappedrated port-a-potty. And yes, it was clean — because even the oddest treasures deserve a little dignity. Sara’s love for books rivals her passion for estate sales, and she’s always on the hunt for a good read in between curating oddities for her clients.

TIDY UP YOUR LIFE

By Tyler Moore

Tyler Moore and his wife live in a twobedroom/one-bath apartment in New York with their three little girls. This may sound impossible to families in the suburbs – imagine no garage, basement or attic. Hence, the Moore family has nowhere to hide their stuff. It is fascinating as Tyler explains the challenges of assessing what you actually “need” and how to keep any space clean and organized. As a school teacher and administrator, Tyler was good at accomplishing his to-do list with little ones underfoot. To everyone’s surprise, he discovered that he actually enjoyed cleaning and began to create methods to keep his home tidy and happy. As he morphed into his life as “tidy dad” through social media (some of his videos went viral) Tyler realized that with a little time and a budget, anyone can create the life and space they desire. This light, entertaining read is filled with fabulous tips and motivating ideas for everyone. If you are ready to take the spring cleaning challenge, check it out. It took 30 years for my hubby to start doing the dishes, but it was worth it.

THE CLEANERS

By Ken Liu

KAREN NEWFIELD

Gui has a special cleaning shop called A Fresh Start. But it is not what you may think. Gui is different from the others. Since he cannot access memories or emotions when he touches objects, he becomes a professional “cleaner.” Cleaners are necessary in this sci-fi world. They remove memories so people are not forced to relive pain over and over again. Gui “cleans” experiences from people’s items and from their homes. He is known as memory-insensitive, a rare condition. Not only is Gui able to do his job and help others, but he is never affected by feelings of history. When two sisters enter his shop one day, Gui must help them decide how to live with certain memories and accept what life would be without them – whether they are good or bad. This standalone short story is part of the “Faraway” series on Amazon Original Stories. This futuristic reimagining of “The Princess and the Pea” is free to download if you are a Prime member.

First and foremost a reader, she has reviewed hundreds of books on her blog www. readingandeating. com. And, more recently, this new Keys resident has also begun writing.

The Lone Star State

Founded by Betty Debnam

EPRESIDENTIAL TEXAS

Texas has been home to four U.S. presidents.

• Dwight D. Eisenhower, our 34th president, was born in Denison, Texas. He was a general in the U.S. Army before entering the race for president.

verything’s bigger in Texas! That’s just one slogan about this huge state — the second largest by area, after Alaska. Texas became our 28th state in 1845. Its capital is Austin, but the largest city is Houston. More than 31 million people live in the state.

TEXAS HISTORY

Indigenous peoples lived in what is now Texas for more than 10,000 years. They included the Pueblo people, the Mound Builders of the Mississippian culture and other communities centered in southern and western Texas.

Spanish explorers arrived in the region in the early 1500s. After the Mexican War of Independence in 1821, Texas was part of Mexico. Texans declared independence from Mexico in 1836 and formed the Republic of Texas.

Texas joined the Confederate States of America in 1861, seceding from the U.S. Nine years later, it was returned to statehood.

NATURAL TEXAS

The state’s southern border with Mexico is the Rio Grande, a 1,900-mile-long river that starts in Colorado. Texas comprises 10 climatic regions, or areas of different temperature and average rainfall. Forests, rolling hills, prairies, deserts, col-

TRY ’N’ FIND

AUSTIN, BIG, BUSH, CATTLE, CLIMATIC, COTTON, EISENHOWER, ENERGY, HOUSTON, JOHNSON, LONGHORN, MEXICO, OIL, PUEBLO, REPUBLIC, RIVER, SPANISH, TEXAS, WAR, WILDFLOWERS.

orful wildflowers, vast ranchland and mountains are all found in Texas.

MAKING A LIVING

Beef is the biggest agricultural product in Texas, and it leads the nation in raising beef cattle. Texas is also first in producing cotton, horses, sheep, goats, wool, mohair and hay.

Texas is also known for oil production and wind energy production.

TEXAS FUN

Sports fans will find many teams to support: two NFL teams, two MLB teams, three NBA teams and one NHL team, along with WNBA and Major League Soccer action. In addition, college sports are popular, with fans cheering for the University of Texas, Baylor University and Texas A&M University, among many others.

Many Texans also follow rodeo and NASCAR races.

• Lyndon B. Johnson was our 36th president, from 1963 to 1969. He was the vice president when John F. Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas in 1963. Johnson was born in Stonewall, Texas. Before running for the U.S. House of Representatives, he was a teacher.

• Our 41st president, George H.W. Bush, was born in Connecticut but lived much of his adult life in West Texas. He served in the U.S. Navy Reserve in World War II and as vice president with Ronald Reagan.

• George W. Bush, the eldest son of our 41st president, became our 43rd president in 2001. He, too, was born in Connecticut but was raised in Texas. Before becoming president, Bush 43 served as governor of Texas.

RESOURCES

On the Web:

• bit.ly/MPTexas

At the library:

• “The Alamo and the Birth of Texas” by JSB Morse

• “Animals of Texas!” by Hope Aicher

ECO NOTE

Words that remind us of Texas are hidden in this puzzle. Some words are hidden backward or diagonally, and some letters are used twice. See if you can find:

Black squirrels, a color variation of the eastern gray squirrel, may be thriving in urban areas because they are more visible to drivers and less likely to be hit by cars, according to a new study. Researchers surveyed roadkill in Syracuse, New York, and found that black squirrels were 30% underrepresented among squirrels killed by motorists, suggesting natural selection may be favoring them in cities. Previous research shows that people detect black squirrels faster than gray ones, giving drivers more time to react and avoid collisions.

photo by Diann Bayes

photo courtesy National Park Service

photo by Kumar Appaiah

photo by Carol M. Highsmith

Big Bend National Park

The Texas state capitol

Longhorn cattle are a common symbol of Texas and the mascot for the University of Texas.

Mini Fact: An oil well among rows of cotton in West Texas helps lift oil out of the ground.

Eisenhower

Johnson

Bush 41 Bush 43

Those in the Keys know how to take advantage of its beauty. You bike, hike, swim, picnic, and stroll— so joint and muscle pain can really cramp your lifestyle. That’s why Lower Keys Medical Center has invested in expanding orthopedic services right here in Key West, recently adding two experienced orthopedic surgeons to Keys Medical Group.

That means you can access highquality orthopedic care close to home, with easier access to appointments and follow-ups; coordinated care with physical therapy; quicker care if concerns arise; and support from friends and family. We’re always working to Keep Care in the Keys

KEY WEST THEATER

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 30, 8 PM

BOBBY PINSON, BOB DIPIERO CHUCK CANNON, TOMMY SIMS

LA MER & DEWEY HOUSE

FRIDAY, MAY 2, 3 PM

COFFEE & CONVERSATION WITH JEFFREY STEELE

KEY WEST THEATER BLOODY MARY BASH

SATURDAY, MAY 3, 10 AM

DAVID LEE, TRENT TOMLINSON, KYLIE FREY, CHUCK CANNON

WILLIAMS HALL

SUNDAY, MAY 4, 12:30 PM

REBECCA LYNN HOWARD, ELISHA HOFFMAN, TOMMY SIMS, CHUCK CANNON, ROBERT RANDOLPH AND MORE

KEY WEST THEATER

THURSDAY, MAY 1, 4 PM

JORDAN WALKER, HEATH WARREN, LINDSAY RIMES, DOUG JOHNSON, CRAIG WISEMAN, ROCKY BLOCK, GRADY BLOCK, JORDAN DOZZI

KEY WEST THEATER

FRIDAY, MAY 2, 4 PM

THOMAS EDWARDS, JOEL CROUSE, JACKSON NANCE, LEE THOMAS MILLER, TAYLOR PHILLIPS

FURY SUNSET SAIL

SATURDAY, MAY 3, 6 PM

THE YOUNG FABLES

KEY WEST THEATER

ALL STAR ENCORE!

SUNDAY, MAY 4, 8 PM

ADAM CRAIG, JET HARVEY, PAUL JENKINS, RONNIE BOWMAN, JAY KNOWLES, JIM MCCORMICK

FURY SUNSET SAIL

THURSDAY, MAY 1, 6 PM

BRIAN FULLER, GABLE BRADLEY

LA TE DA

FRIDAY, MAY 2, 8 PM

SHEENA BROOK, DANIELLE BLAKEY, MEG LINVILLE, SHANE STEVENS, BRE KENNEDY, DANNY MYRICK

KEY WEST AMPHITHEATER

THURSDAY, MAY 1, 8 PM

NATE SMITH, CHASE MATTHEW

KEY WEST THEATER

SATURDAY, MAY 3, 8 PM

SHARESE, DYLAN ALTMAN, NICK NORMAN, ADAM WOOD, RONNIE BOWMAN, JIM MCCORMICK, TAYLOR PHILLIPS, JEFFREY STEELE

KEY WEST THEATER PRESENTED BY TXHSA

FRIDAY, MAY 2, 8 PM

MATT CASTILLO, MORGAN LEE POWERS, PALMER ANTHONY, ABBEY CABLER, BOBBY PINSON, DAVID LEE, LIZ ROSE

SAN CARLOS INSTITUTE

SATURDAY, MAY 3, 8 PM

JAMES SLATER, MARTI FREDERIKSEN, RAUL MALO, REBECCA LYNN HOWARD, ELISHA HOFFMAN, TOMMY SIMS

PLATINUM PASS

SKIP THE ON SALE AND SECURE TICKETS TO EVERY SHOW WITH A PLATINUM FESTIVAL PASS!

TRIPLE CROWN

Key West, Marathon & Coral Shores all win district baseball titles | P.6

THE SCOREBOARD

Coral Shores Softball South Homestead 4/15 L, 27-25

Coral Shores Baseball Keys Gate 4/16 W, 12-6

Key West Baseball Belen 4/16 W, 1-0

Coral

ATHLETE OF THE WEEK

4/24

4/28

4/29

5/1

THIS WEEK IN KEYS SPORTS ON THE COVER

APRIL

Vinny did an outstanding job on the mound to capture the district championship. He stayed composed and attacked hitters throughout the lineup; we look forward to his next start in the regionals.”

– Ralph Henriquez, Conchs head coach

next start in the

With the district championship on the line, the Conchs put their faith in right-handed pitcher Vinny Moline to do what Key West does best: win titles. Moline did not disappoint, not just shutting down the Wolverines, but completely shutting them out. The senior has been steady on the mound all season, earning six wins and pitching two complete games, including the district championship. Moline fanned eight, walked one and gave up a stingy two hits in the win, adding to his impressive and still-growing stats this season.

“Vinny has shown that he can take over games and has been throwing lights-out towards the end of the season for us,” said Conchs athletic director Andrew Freeman. “He is a fearless leader when he is on the mound and our team follows his suit.”

For showing up and dialing in when it counted the most, Key West’s Vinny Moline is the Keys Weekly Athlete of the Week.

Vinny

Senior, Key West Baseball

Photo by: MAICEY MALGRAT/Keys

fled to the Keys from the frozen mountains of Pennsylvania hours after graduating from college and never looked back. She is a second-generation coach and educator, and has taught in the public school system for over 25 years. She and her husband met at a beginning teacher meeting in 1997 and have three children born and raised in Monroe County. In her free time, McDonald loves flea markets, historical fiction and long runs in the heat.

grew up in Miami and moved to the Keys in 1997. He has spent the last 25 years teaching physical education and coaching virtually every sport for Florida Keys kids ages 4 to 18. If you are reading this and live or lived in the Florida Keys, he has probably taught, coached, or coached against someone you know.

Marathon - Alex Rickert alex@keysweekly.com

Upper Keys - Jim McCarthy jim@keysweekly.com

Key West - Mandy Miles mandy@keysweekly.com

The Keys Weekly Sports Wrap is proud to be the only locally-owned publication providing prep sports coverage from Key Largo to Key West. Together with our writers and photographers, we are committed to providing a comprehensive overview of the world of Keys sports with photography that allows our readers to immerse themselves in game action.

Publisher / Jason Koler jason@keysweekly.com

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Se habla español THE MARATHON WEEKLY (ISSN 1944-0812) IS PUBLISHED WEEKLY FOR $125 PER YEAR BY WEEKLY NEWSPAPERS, INC., 9709 OVERSEAS HIGHWAY, MARATHON FL 33050. APPLICATION TO MAIL AT PERIODICALS POSTAGE RATES IS PENDING AT FORT LAUDERDALE FL AND ADDITIONAL MAILING OFFICES.

All stories, photos, and graphics are copyrighted materials.

Left, Kaya Hughes-Struyf and Skye Sterling, right.

Far right: The Lady Hurricanes defeat the Gators of Everglades City on April 17 to finish their season at 5-6, a marked improvement from the year before.

Photos by Barry Gaukel, Jackson Garcia and Maicey Malgrat.

9709 Overseas Hwy. Marathon, FL 33050

Office: 305.743.0844 www.keysweekly.com

GIRLS GUNNING FOR A TITLE

Conchs & Fins await district matchups in playoff action; ’Canes hang up their bats

tracy mcdonald

sean mcdonald

The Lady Conchs softball squad finished their regular season 12-7 after a loss to Schoolhouse Prep on April 18. The Wolfpack pulled out to an early lead and never looked back, defeating Key West 9-0. Key West’s bats were unusually quiet Friday night. Vera Rodger tripled, while Shylo Sanchez, Tavyn Gage and Alexa Condella each singled for a total of just four Conch hits. Brianna Brenner struck out six, walked two and surrendered 10 hits against the Wolfpack.

But the Conchs can now focus on FHSAA’s 4A District 16 bracket, where they most likely will draw a bye for the quarterfinals, given their power ranking, boosted by the team’s strength of schedule and record.

MARATHON

Marathon played one game last week, taking on Miami Country Day on the road on April 14. Sara Robinson and Madelyn Thornton had two hits apiece. Robinson had the hot bat with a double and an inside-the-park homer, driving in three runs. Thornton pitched six innings, striking out 10 in the 15-5 loss.

The 8-5 Fins played one more regular-season game April 23 against Somerset South Homestead (results not available at press time) before turning to the postseason. Marathon will receive the first test in its new Rural District 8 classification in the district semifinals. The Fins’ most likely opponent is Fort Meade, and matchups had not been announced at press time.

CORAL SHORES

The Lady ’Canes piled up 26 hits on April 15 in a shootout against Somerset South Homestead, but the other Hurricanes managed to outscore Coral Shores by two, 27-25. Mira Jones stacked up five hits, including a triple and a pair of doubles, scoring half a dozen times for Coral Shores. Addison Grady had four hits, while Melanie Estevez, Chloie Stanley and Abby Vogt had three each. Presley Bagwell struck out eight batters, walked 13 and surrendered 13 hits.

The Hurricanes went on to defeat the Gators of Everglades City on April 17 to finish their season 5-6, a marked improvement from a winless 2024 campaign. Coach Lesa Bonee said her team is young and talented.

“We’re getting better every day,” she said.

Coral Shores is an independent in softball and does not participate in an FHSAA district, putting an end to its season with last week’s loss to South Homestead.

TRIPLE CROWN

Conchs, Fins and ’Canes win district titles in record-breaking baseball season

For the first time in history, all three Keys baseball teams captured district championships in the same season.

Key West, seeded first in FHSAA’s 4A Region 4 District 16, secured its 34th district championship by defeating the second seed, Belen Jesuit. Marathon picked up its third district title, the first since 1979, by toppling the top-seeded Fort Meade in the 1A Rural District 8 championship game, and Coral Shores, which drew the top seed in 2A District 16, beat Keys Gate to win the first district championship in the school’s history. Now the teams each face a three-game series in hopes of moving on to their respective state tournaments.

The Conchs enjoyed the home-field advantage, playing longtime rival Belen Jesuit on April 16 in front of a packed crowd. Freshman Kade Maltz singled with one out in the first inning, then progressively made his way home on a hit batter and a pair of walks. The Conchs then held on for dear life, fueled by a dialed-in Vinnie Moline and backed by an error-free Key West defense.

Moline went the distance on the mound, striking out eight, walking one and surrendering just two hits to blank the Wolverines and capture the Conchs’ 34th district championship. Auggie Davila and Sam Holland had one hit each to make it three for Key West, enough to secure the hardware and stay alive for their elusive 12th state championship.

The team’s next step came on April 21, when they faced District 13’s runner up Satellite Scorpions in game one of a three-game series, falling 8-2. The Conchs and Scorpions also faced off the following night (results not available at press time) and will once again on April 24, should a third game be required to determine the regional quarterfinal champion. Key West earned the home-field series via power rankings.

CORAL SHORES

Also playing for a district title on April 16 was Coral Shores. The Hurricanes avenged an earlier 8-7 loss against Keys Gate by defeating the Knights for a far better prize than a regular-season win. The ’Canes earned their first-ever district championship in a 12-6 victory. Donovan Thiery carried the load for Coral Shores, on the mound and at the plate. The Hurricanes’ ace fanned a dozen batters, walked one and surrendered seven hits for the win over five and two-thirds innings; Campbell Lavoie collected the save.

Thiery drove in four runs off two home runs and a single. The junior’s performance last week boosted his slugging percentage to a whopping .848, and Thiery leads the team in that category as well as in RBIs with 37. Lavoie and Riley O’Berry added two hits each to the team total of 13.

Now 19-3-1, the Hurricanes face a formidable opponent in FHSAA’s 2A Region 4 quarterfinals.

Despite winning their district, the ’Canes received the No. 8 seed in the region, pitting them against top-ranked

Cardinal Newman. The Hurricanes played the Crusaders in West Palm in the first two of a three-game series on April 21 to determine who moves on and who goes home, dropping their first game in a 20-0 shutout. They faced off again on April 22 (results not available at press time). Should the series require a third game, the Hurricanes would host.

The Crusaders, ranked third in Florida’s 2A classification and 13th overall, boast some of the highest-caliber talent in South Florida, but don’t count the ’Canes out just yet. The team’s spirited season has proven their grit and tenacity, enabling them to do what no other Coral Shores baseball team has done, and under the helm of first-year head coach Joe Szymanski, the Hurricanes have exceeded expectations. Szymanski did not hesitate to put a finger on just what is driving the team’s success this season.

“The leadership of our upperclassmen and the group of assistant coaches we have,” he said. “They are amazing.”

MARATHON

Marathon fans had to wait an extra day to see how their first-ever foray into the FHSAA Rural classification would be. On April 17, Marathon made the long trip to Fort Meade to take on the Miners. Marathon, seeded second behind Fort Meade, pulled off a fantastic upset, scoring two runs in the first frame and holding on for the final six, giving up a single run in inning three to secure the district title.

Mason Thornton lasted six and two-thirds innings on the mound, leaving the game only when his pitch count expired. The 6’5” senior struck out four, walked seven and gave up just two hits against the Miners. With the possibility of their first district championship since the Carter administration on the line, Dylan Williams took the ball from Thornton with two outs and two runners on base. Despite the Miners doing their best to rattle the sophomore hurler with creative baserunning, Williams proved his nerve, and with a catch by center fielder Jason Stubblefield, a flyout ended the game and sealed the championship. The Dolphins managed just three hits, but it was enough. Gabe Leal had two while Williams had one.

Marathon is now in the hunt for a state title with just 15 other teams. The smaller Rural classification playoff brackets place the Fins directly into the regional semifinals on Monday and Tuesday, April 28 and 29 with a rubber match on May 1 if needed. Marathon will enjoy the home-field advantage in the first two of the three-game series. The teams will face one another again to determine who gets a shot at the winner of a Trenton-versus-Chiefland matchup in the regional finals the first week of May.

Left: The Key West Conchs pose with their district championship trophy.

Top: Coral Shores celebrates their first district championship win against Keys Gate April 16.

Above: The Marathon Dolphins capture the school’s first baseball district championship in 46 years.

Photos by Maicey Malgrat, Justice Lee and contributed image.

2025 ALL-KEYS GIRLS WEIGHTLIFTING

Big gains on the winter weight racks

Monroe County teams had a noteworthy season in girls weightlifting this year. Collectively, Keys teams earned two team district championships, 22 individual district championship medals, three individual regional titles, and one individual state title. A total of 10 athletes made the cut for the state meet, making a significant showing for the Keys in the highest level of competition.

Marathon’s Justice Lee is a three-time state gold medalist, following up her incredible state championships last season with an additional gold this year in traditional lifts. She earned silver in the Olympic event and the powerful junior gets stronger by the day. Lee never misses a workout or an opportunity to improve, seeking extra coaching and gym time whenever she can. In addition to holding every single record in Marathon’s girls weightlifting books and multiple state medals, Lee brought home a pair of firsts in districts and regionals this season.

Bench: 185

Snatch: 170

Clean & Jerk: 205

Part of Marathon’s extremely talented junior class, Ayme Maradiaga placed first at districts in the traditional event and third in Olympic lifts. At regionals, she was second in traditional and fifth in Olympic, earning a trip to states with her efforts. Maradiaga won bronze at states in the traditional category and was 13th in Olympic, setting the stage for a prosperous 2026 season.

Eleanor “Ella” Dunn capped off her senior season in style, winning a district title in Olympic lifts and the runner-up medal in traditional. At regionals, Dunn captured a pair of bronze medals and qualified for the state meet. Her performance at states earned Dunn a pair of fifthplace medals to add to her extensive collection.

Marathon’s Ella Evans won dual district titles this season, then finished with a pair of silvers at regionals. The hardworking junior’s efforts at regionals earned her a bid to states, where she came home with a fourth place in traditional and sixth in Olympic. Evans also earned the status of Top Lifter at the FHSAA 1A District 16 Championships in the traditional category, making for a very exciting senior campaign next year.

TOP LIFTS

Ava Merryman

JUNIOR MARATHON | 139

Marathon’s Ava Merryman was the district champion in traditional lifts, the only event she competes in. Merryman automatically qualified for regionals where she placed fifth, ranking her among the top 33 lifters in the state.

Aaliyah McLeod

Alexa Condella

Jennille Arias

Key West’s Aaiyah McLeod made waves in her division as a freshman, bringing home dual district championships in her weight class. McLeod’s district golds qualified her for regionals in her first season of competitive weightlifting, making for an exciting future for her in the sport.

Brizni Vargas

SENIOR

MARATHON | 154

Brizni Vargas made the most of her senior season, claiming a district championship in traditional lifts and a runner-up medal in Olympic. At regionals, she was fifth in traditional, qualifying for the state meet with her exceptional totals. There, Vargas ended her high school career ranked number 15 in Florida.

Kali Gomer FRESHMAN KEY WEST | 199

After a substantial season with the Conchs, Alexa Condella finished off her career in high-school weightlifting with a bronze at districts in the Olympic event. Condella qualified for regionals, but opted to attend a leadership conference at Texas A&M, which she plans to attend next year.

Sydney Eysenbach

SENIOR

CORAL SHORE | UNL

Sydney Eysenbach claimed a pair of district titles this season, then followed up with a pair of silver medals at regionals. Eysenbach qualified for states with her regional lifts and medaled there, as well. She won fourth place in Olympic lifts and sixth in traditional, finishing her time with the ’Canes as one of the most decorated weightlifters in school history.

SENIOR

Rachel Rusch SENIOR KEY WEST | 154

SENIOR

CORAL SHORES | 129

In her senior campaign, Kali Gomer won a pair of silver medals at districts, automatically qualifying for the regional event. At regionals, Gomer was fourth in Olympic lifts and sixth in traditional. With impressive weights lifted in the Olympic events, Gomer finished her final season with the Hurricanes as a 2025 state qualifier.

CORAL SHORES | 169

Coral Shores’ Jennille Arias beat out her district competition with ease, bringing home a pair of first-place medals and automatically qualifying for regionals. At regionals, Arias won first place in traditional and second in Olympic lifts, qualifying for states in both events. Arias completed her stellar career with the ’Canes as state runner-up in traditional lifts and with a third-place finish in Olympic.

SENIOR

SHORES | 110

Coral Shores’ Rachel Rusch was the district champion in the traditional event, moving on to regionals where she secured the bronze. With a solid regional performance, Rusch was a state qualifier, capping off a fantastic high school campaign.

NOTICE OF SHERIFF'S SALE IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE SIXTEENTH JUDICIAL CIRCUIT OF THE STATE OF FLORIDA IN AND FOR MONROE COUNTY

CASE NO: 24-CA-000594-K

Darreth Dellagnese Plaintiff, Vs William H. Foster

Defendant, NOTICE OF SHERIFF’S SALE NOTICE IS HEREBY given that pursuant to a Writ of Execution issued in the Circuit Court, of Monroe County, Florida, on the 16th day of July, 2024, in the cause wherein Darreth Dellagnese is Plaintiff and William H. Foster was defendant, being Case No. 24-CA-000594-K in said court, I, Richard A. Ramsay, Sheriff of Monroe County, Florida have levied upon all right, title, and interest of the defendant, in and to the following described real property to wit:

SPECIFIC DESCRIPTION OF PROPERTY:

From the warranty deed that states the following described land, situate, lying and being in Monroe County, Florida towit (With certain exceptions):

Legal Description(s) –

The southerly 15 feet of Lot 30, WHISPERING PINES PLAT NO. 3, according to the map or plat thereof as recorded in Plat Book 4, Page 59 of the Public Records of Monroe County, Florida.

PARCEL B – “LESS AND EXCEPT” – (AUTHORED BY THE UNDERSIGNED PLAINTIFF ATTORNEY TONY ANDRE)

A portion of Lot 30, WHISPERING PINES PLAT NO. 3, according to the map or plat thereof as recorded in Plat Book 4, Page 59 of the Public Records of Monroe County, Florida, and being more particularly described as follows: Commencing at the Southeasterly corner of the said Lot 30 and run thence S89°53'00"W along the Southerly boundary line of the said Lot 30 for a distance of 99.00 feet to the Easterly face of an existing pool coping, said point also being the Point of Beginning of the parcel of land hereinafter described; thence N0°01'48"E along the said Easterly face of an existing pool coping for a distance of 0.78 feet to the Northeasterly corner of the said existing pool coping; thence N89°58'12"W along the Northerly face the said existing pool coping for a distance of 21.77 feet to the Northwesterly corner of the said existing pool coping; thence S0°01'48"W along the Westerly face of the said existing pool coping for a distance of 0.83 feet to a point on the said Southerly boundary line of the said Lot 30; thence N89°53'00"E along the said Southerly boundary line of the said Lot 30 for a distance of 21.77 feet back to the Point of Beginning. (Containing 45.15 Sq. Ft +/-) Copy of Exhibit A available upon request from the Sheriff’s Office and on the date of sale.

SPECIFIC LOCATION OF REAL PROPERTY:

Vacant Sands Road, Big Pine Key, FL 33040 All bidders must have a valid Driver’s License with them and must register with clerk at location of sale prior to start time of sale.

I shall offer this property for sale, at Monroe County Court House located at 500 Whitehead Street Key West, Florida 33040 in the County of Monroe, State of Florida, on the 29th day of May, 2025, at the hour of 10:00

A.M. or as soon thereafter as possible. I will offer for sale all of the said defendant’s right, title, and interest in the aforesaid real property at public auction and will sell the same subject to all taxes,

prior liens, encumbrances and judgments, if any, to the highest and best bidder for CASH IN HAND. The proceeds to be applied as far as may be to the payment of costs and the satisfaction of the above described execution.

Dated at Key West, Monroe County, Florida this 10th day of April, 2025. Richard A. Ramsay Sheriff of Monroe County, By: Donald Stullken Deputy Sheriff In accordance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, persons with disabilities needing a special accommodation to participate in this proceeding should contact the Civil Division no later than seven says prior to the proceeding at (305)8093041.

Publish: April 17 & 24 and May 1 & 8, 2025

The Weekly Newspapers

NOTICE OF PUBLIC SALE

U-HAUL COMPANY OF MIAMI

Notice is hereby given that on May 5th, 2025, Leonard Richford Jr. Storage Auctioneer, Executive Administrator for U-Haul Company of Miami, Will be offering for sale under the Judicial Lien Process, By Public Auction, the following storage units. The Terms of the sale will be cash only. U-Haul Company does reserve the right to refuse any bids. The sales will Begin at 8:00 a.m. and continue day by day until all units are sold. The names of whose units will be sold are as follows: 103530 Overseas Highway, Key Largo, FL 33037 Yetman, John 1200 Lopez, Elis 1610 Gonzalez, Juan 1007 Allen, David 1407 Chamberlain, Sheila 1167

Publish: April 17 & 24, 2025

The Weekly Newspapers

NOTICE OF PUBLIC SALE

Notice of Seizure that in accordance with Florida Statutes 83.805 / 83.506, Whaler’s Plaza, 13333 Overseas Highway, Marathon, Florida 33050, will sell or otherwise dispose of the personal contents of the following units to satisfy the delinquent storage lien. All Contents in: Unit # C-3

Angela McCllanahan

Contents: Household Goods Unit # BW1 & Shuttle Van Lighting Star INC Contents: Office Supplies and Shuttle Van

Sale of all goods will be on May 2nd, 2025, at 10am at 13333 Overseas Highway, Marathon, FL 33050. The terms of the sale will be cash only. Whaler’s Plaza does reserve the right to refuse any bids. The sales will continue day by day until all units are sold.

Publish: April 17 & 24, 2025

The Weekly Newspapers

PUBLIC MEETING NOTICE

Public Meeting

Announcement – Monroe County Human Services Advisory Board (HSAB)/ Monroe County Board of County Commissioners

The Human Services Advisory Board (HSAB) will meet on Wednesday, May 7, 2025 at 10:00 AM in the Marathon Government Center, BOCC Meeting Room, on the 2nd floor, 2798 Overseas Highway, Marathon, FL 33050. The Board will make recommendations on the County Fiscal Year 2026 funding for human services. The meeting will be a hybrid format with the HSAB meeting live at the Marathon Government Center. The public will be able

to participate in-person or via Communication Media Technology (“CMT”) using a Zoom Webinar platform. The HSAB meeting will begin at 10:00 A.M. on Wednesday, May 7, 2025. The webinar will begin at 9:30 A.M., a ½ hour before the meeting, to allow time for people to join and test connections. Below are the various options available to the public to view the live meeting and/or to make public comments on certain agenda items during the public portion of the meeting. Please click the link below to join the webinar: https://mcbocc.zoom. us/j/85788794963 Or iPhone one-tap : US: +16465189805,, 85788794963# or +16699006833,, 85788794963# Or Telephone: Dial(for higher quality, dial a number based on your current location): US: +1 646 518 9805 or +1 669 900 6833 Webinar ID: 857 8879 4963 International numbers available: https://mcbocc. zoom.us/u/kpAo2XFNM

For a copy of the agenda or other information, contact Andrew Roltsch, Financial Analyst, in writing at 1100 Simonton St., Room 2-213, Key West, FL 33040; or by email at Andrew-Roltsch@ MonroeCounty-FL.Gov. If members of the public wish to submit written documentation, the documentation must be submitted to Andrew Roltsch prior to the meeting and no later than April 30, 2025, by 5:00 P.M.

The public is advised that some or all the members of the Monroe County Board of Commissioners may attend the meeting and discuss items that may come before the Commission.

If a person decides to appeal any decision made by the board with respect to any matter considered at such meeting or hearing, he or she will need a record of the proceedings, and that, for such purpose, he or she may need to ensure that a verbatim record of the proceedings is made, which record includes the testimony and evidence upon which the appeal is to be based.

ADA ASSISTANCE: If you are a person with a disability who needs special accommodations in order to participate in this proceeding, please contact the County Administrator's Office, by phoning (305) 292-4441, between the hours of 8:30 a.m. - 5:00 p.m., prior to the scheduled meeting; if you are hearing or voice impaired, call "711".Live Closed Captioning is available via our web portal @ http://monroecountyfl. iqm2.com/Citizens/Default. aspx for meetings of the Monroe County Board of County Publish:Commissioners.

April 24, 2025

The Weekly Newspapers

NOTICE OF PUBLIC MEETING

MONROE COUNTY CONTRACTORS EXAMINING BOARD

MONROE COUNTY, FLORIDA

Notice is Hereby Given To Whom it may concern, that on Tuesday, May 13, 2025 the Monroe County Contractors Examining Board (CEB) will hold a scheduled meeting at the Marathon Government Center, 2798 Overseas Highway, Second Floor, BOCC Room, Marathon, Florida scheduled to commence at 9:30 A.M. This meeting is to hear the following: any person(s) to come before the board; any reports from Monroe County Assistant Attorney; any reports from Monroe County Building Official; any reports from Staff. The Monroe County Contractors Examining

Board (“CEB”) will review Certificate of Competency Trade applications and the Industry Input Section. All public participation in this meeting may be conducted via Communication Media Technology (“CMT”) using Zoom Webinar platform, during the scheduled meeting.

Meeting Agenda and Zoom Webinar information is available 7 days prior to meeting date on the Monroe County Web Calendar and the Contractors Examining Board webpage: www. monroecounty-fl.gov

PURSUANT TO FLORIDA

STATUTE SECTION 286.0105, be advised that, if a person decides to appeal the decision made by the Contractors’ Examining Board with respect to any matter considered at today’s hearing, that person will need a record of the proceedings, and that, for such purpose, he or she may need to ensure that a verbatim record of the proceedings is made, which record includes the testimony and evidence upon which the appeal is to be based.

ADA ASSISTANCE: If you are a person with a disability who needs special recommendations in order to participate in this proceeding, please contact the County Administrator's Office, by phoning (305) 292-4441, between the hours of 8:30 a.m. - 5:00 p.m., no later than five (5) calendar days prior to the scheduled meeting; if you are hearing or voice impaired, call “711”.

NOTICE:  It shall be the responsibility of each Respondent or other person addressing the Board to have an interpreter if the party is not able to understand or speak the English language. Rick Griffin, Building Official/ Board Secretary Jamie Gross, Senior Contractor Licensing Coordinator – CEB Board Monroe County Building Department Publish: April 24, 2025 The Weekly Newspapers

NOTICE OF REQUEST FOR COMPETITIVE SOLICITATIONS NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that on Thursday, June 5, 2025, at 3:00 P.M., the Monroe County Purchasing Office will receive and open sealed responses for the following: Professional Support Services for Plan Review, Inspection Services, and Planning/Zoning Development Review Monroe County, Florida Pursuant to F.S. § 50.0211(3) (a), all published competitive solicitation notices can be viewed at: www. floridapublicnotices.com, a searchable Statewide repository for all published legal notices. Requirements for submission and the selection criteria may be requested from the County’s electronic bidding platform at bonfirehub.comhttps://monroecounty-fl. OR www. monroecounty-fl.gov/ BonfireBids. The Public Record is available upon request.

Monroe County Purchasing Department receives bids via the Bonfire electronic bidding platform. Please do not email, mail or attempt to deliver in person any sealed bids. Emailed/mailed/physically delivered bids/proposals/ responses WILL NOT be accepted.

The Monroe County Purchasing Department hereby directs that bids be submitted via the Bonfire electronic bidding platform at bonfirehub.com,https://monroecounty-fl. no later than 3:00 P.M. on Thursday, June 5, 2025. There is no cost to the bidder to use the Bonfire platform. Please do not submit your confidential financial

information as part of your proposal. There are separate uploads for each set of documents, including confidential financial information. All proposals will be made public on the platform after an intended decision or 30 days, whichever is earlier, unless the bids/ proposals are rejected in accordance with F.S. 119.071. If your proposal document includes financial information, that information will not be considered confidential and will be available and viewable to the public in accordance with public records law. In the event of a discrepancy between the bid amount on the Proposal Form and the bid amount entered in Bonfire, the bid amount listed in the “Proposal Form” provided by Monroe County in the RFP is the amount that will be utilized by the County when considering the bid proposal. The County reserves the right to waive any proposal/bid irregularity.

The bid opening for this solicitation will be held virtually, via the internet, at 3:00 P.M., on Thursday, June 5, 2025. You may call in by phone or internet using the following: Join Zoom Meeting https://mcbocc.zoom. us/j/4509326156

Meeting ID: 4509326156

One tap mobile:

+16465189805,,4509326156# US (New York) +16699006833,,4509326156# US (San Jose)

Dial by your location: +1 646 518 9805 US (New York) +1 669 900 6833 US (San Jose)

Publish: April 24, 2025

The Weekly Newspapers

IN THE CIRCUIT COURT FOR MONROE COUNTY, FLORIDA

PROBATE DIVISION FILE NO.: 25-CP-000151-P IN RE: ESTATE OF BRUCE W. CHIARELLO Deceased.

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

The administration of the estate of Bruce W. Chiarello, deceased, whose date of death was January 25, 2025, is pending in the Circuit Court for Monroe County, Florida, Probate Division, the address of which is 88770 Overseas Highway, Suite 2, Plantation Key, FL 33070.

The name and address of the personal representative and the personal representative’s attorney are set forth below. All creditors of the decedent and other persons having claims or demands against decedent's estate on whom a copy of this notice is required to be served must file their claims with this court ON OR BEFORE THE LATER OF 3 MONTHS AFTER THE TIME OF THE FIRST PUBLICATION OF THIS NOTICE OR 30 DAYS AFTER THE DATE OF SERVICE OF A COPY OF THIS NOTICE ON THEM.

The personal representative has no duty to discover whether any property held at the time of the decedent's death by the decedent or the decedent's surviving spouse is property to which the Florida Uniform Disposition of Community Property Rights at Death Act as described in ss. 732.216-732.228, Florida Statutes, applies, or may apply, unless a written demand is made by a creditor as specified under s. 732.2211, Florida Statutes. All other creditors of the decedent and other persons having claims or demands against the decedent's estate must file their claims with this court WITHIN 3 MONTHS AFTER THE DATE OF THE FIRST PUBLICATION OF THIS NOTICE. ALL CLAIMS NOT FILED WITHIN THE TIME PERIODS

SET FORTH IN FLORIDA STATUTES SECTION 733.702 WILL BE FOREVER BARRED. NOTWITHSTANDING THE TIME PERIODS SET FORTH ABOVE, ANY CLAIM FILED TWO (2) YEARS OR MORE AFTER THE DECEDENT’S DATE OF DEATH IS BARRED.

The date of the first publication of this notice is April 24, 2025.

Personal Representative: B. Jason Chiarello 3 Charles Way Lawrenceville, NJ 08648

Attorney for Personal Representative: William M. Bromley, Esq. Florida Bar Number: 123502 FOX ROTHSCHILD LLP 777 S. Flagler Dr., Suite 1700 West Tower West Palm Beach, FL 33401

Telephone: (561) 835-9600

E-Mail: wbromley@ foxrothschild.com

Secondary E-Mail: bjosaphouitch@foxrothschild. com

Publish: April 24 and May 1, 2025

The Weekly Newspapers

IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE SIXTEENTH JUDICIAL CIRCUIT IN AND FOR MONROE COUNTY, FLORIDA PROBATE DIVISION CASE NO.: 2022-CP-358-K IN RE: ESTATE OF JOHN L. CLAYTON, JR., Decedent.

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

The administration of the estate of JOHN L. CLAYTON, JR., deceased, whose date of death was May 26, 2022, is pending in the Circuit Court for Monroe County, Florida, Probate Division, the address of which is 500 Whitehead Street, Key West, Florida 33040

The names and addresses of the personal representative and the personal representative’s attorney are set forth below.

All creditors of the decedent and other persons having claims or demands against decedent’s estate on whom a copy of this notice is required to be served must file their claims with this court ON OR BEFORE THE LATER OF 3 MONTHS AFTER THE TIME OF THE FIRST PUBLICATION OF THIS NOTICE OR 30 DAYS AFTER THE DATE OF SERVICE OF A COPY OF THIS NOTICE ON THEM.

All other creditors of the decedent and other persons having claims or demands against decedent’s estate must file their claims with this court WITHIN 3 MONTHS AFTER THE DATE OF THE FIRST PUBLICATION OF THIS NOTICE. ALL CLAIMS NOT FILED WITHIN THE TIME PERIODS SET FORTH IN FLORIDA STATUTES SECTION 733.702 WILL BE FOREVER BARRED. NOTWITHSTANDING THE TIME PERIODS SET FORTH ABOVE, ANY CLAIM FILED TWO (2) YEARS OR MORE AFTER THE DECEDENT’S DATE OF DEATH IS BARRED.

The date of first publication of this notice is: April 24, 2025.

Personal Representative: Dara Marie Clayton 701 Spanish Main Drive Unit 467

Cudjoe Key, Florida 33042

Attorney for Personal Representative: Nicholas E. Christin, Esq. Florida Bar Number: 179561 Wicker, Smith, O'Hara. McCoy & Ford, P.A. 2800 Ponce De Leon Boulevard Suite 800 Coral Gables, Florida 33134

Telephone: (305) 448-3939

Fax: (305) 441-1748

E-Mail: miacrtpleadings@ wickermsith.com

Publish:

April 24 & May 1, 2025

The Weekly Newspapers

IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE 16TH JUDICIAL CIRCUIT IN AND FOR MONROE COUNTY, FLORIDA, PROBATE DIVISION FILE # 25-CP-146-P IN RE: THE ESTATE OF BRENT ALAN SPERRY Deceased.

NOTICE TO CREDITORS

The administration of the estate of, BRENT ALAN SPERRY, deceased, whose date of death was 15 March 2025, is pending in the Circuit Court for Monroe County, Florida, Probate Division, the address of which is 88770 Overseas Highway, Tavernier, Florida 33070.

The names and addresses of the Personal Representative and the Personal Representative's attorney are set forth below. All creditors of the decedent and other persons having claims or demands against decedent's estate on whom a copy of this notice is required to be served must file their claims with this court ON OR BEFORE THE LATER OF 3 MONTHS AFTER THE TIME OF THE FIRST PUBLICATION OF THIS NOTICE OR 30 DAYS AFTER THE DATE OF SERVICE OF A COPY OF THIS NOTICE ON THEM.

All other creditors of the decedent and other persons having claims or demands against decedent's estate must file their claims with this court WITHIN 3 MONTHS AFTER THE DATE OF THE FIRST PUBLICATION OF THIS NOTICE. ALL CLAIMS NOT FILED WITHIN THE TIME PERIODS SET FORTH IN FLORIDA STATUTES SECTION 733.702 WILL BE FOREVER BARRED. NOTWITHSTANDING THE TIME PERIODS SET FORTH ABOVE, ANY CLAIM FILED TWO (2) YEARS OR MORE AFTER THE DECEDENT'S DATE OF DEATH IS BARRED. The date of first publication of this notice is 17 April, 2025. Personal Representative Shannon Sperry PO Box 1423 Angel Fire, NM 87710 Attorney for Personal Representative Tom Woods, Esq. Florida Bar No.: 0525197 116 Porto Salvo Drive Islamorada, Florida 33036 Phone 305.664.2200 Fax 2205

Primary Email: tom@ tomwoodslaw.com Secondary Email: eserve@ tomwoodslaw.com Publish: April 17 & 24, 2025 The Weekly Newspapers

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF FLORIDA KEY WEST DIVISION “IN ADMIRALTY” CASE NUMBER: 4:25-cv-10021JEM IN THE MATTER OF THE COMPLAINT OF: WILLIAM MILNER & PAULA MILNER, as owners of the S/V Sara Lou, a 1992 34’ Pacific Seacraft Monohull Sail, bearing Hull Identification No.: PCS34227G192, its Engines, Tackle, Appurtenances, Equipment, Etc., In a cause for Exoneration from or Limitation of Liability. Petitioner. ___________________/ NOTICE TO ALL POTENTIAL CLAIMANTS OF COMPLAINT FOR EXONERATION FROM OR LIMITATION OF LIABILITY

As the owner of the S/V Sara Lou, a 1992 34’ Pacific Seacraft Monohull Sail bearing Hull Identification No.: PCS34227G192, (the “Vessel”)—and pursuant to 46 U.S.C § 30501, et seq., and Supplemental Rule F of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure—William Milner and Paula Milner filed a Complaint on March 4, 2025,

• CLASSIFIEDS, PUBLIC & LEGAL NOTICES •

LEGAL NOTICES

in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida seeking exoneration from, or limitation of, any liability concerning any and all personal injury, property damage, destruction, or other losses arising out of or related to an incident on or about December 27, 2024, on the navigable waters of the United States in Buttonwood Sound, Key Largo, in Monroe County, Florida, as more fully described in the complaint. The Court has accepted a letter of undertaking as interim security for all claims against Petitioners and the Vessel. Pursuant to 46 U.S.C. § 30511(c), “all claims and proceedings against the owner related to the matter in question shall cease.”

By June 9, 2025, all persons or entities claiming damage for any and all loss, destruction, injuries, and/or death allegedly as a result of the occurrences and happenings recited in the complaint must file their respective claims with the clerk of this court and serve copies thereof on Petitioners’ counsel. By the same date, all persons or entities presenting claims and desiring to contest the allegations of the complaint must file an answer to the complaint in this court and must serve copies thereof on Petitioners’ counsel or be defaulted. Service on Petitioners’ counsel may be made by delivery or mail to Richard J. McAlpin, or Lourdes M. Cardelle of MCALPIN FLOREZ MARCOTTE, P.A., 80 SW 8th Street, Suite 2805, Miami, Florida 33130, telephone number (305) 810-5400.

Dated: March 13, 2025. Angela E. Noble United States District Court Southern District Court of Florida By: Nadhege Augustin Deputy Clerk Publish: April 10, 17, 24 and May 1, 2025 The Weekly Newspapers

IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE 16TH JUDICIAL CIRCUIT, IN AND FOR MONROE COUNTY, FLORIDA CASE NO.: 25-DR-410-K JOSE PAULINO SANTOS MEJIA, Petitioner, and ESTELA JUDITH DIONISION GOMEZ, Respondent.

NOTICE OF ACTION FOR DISSOLUTION OF MARRIAGE (NO CHILD OR FINANCIAL SUPPORT) TO: ESTELA JUDITH DIONISION GOMEZ RESPONDENT’S LAST KNOWN ADDRESS: UNKNOWN YOU ARE NOTIFIED that an action for Dissolution of Marriage has been filed against you and that you are required to serve a copy of your written defenses, if any, to it on JOSE PAULINO SANTOS MEJIA, whose address is 2828 FOGARTY AVE., KEY WEST, FL 33040 on or before May 19, 2025, and file the original with the clerk of this Court at 500 Whitehead Street, Key West, FL 33040, before service on Petitioner or immediately thereafter. If you fail to do so, a default may be entered against you for the relief demanded in the petition.

The action is asking the court to decide how the following real or personal property should be divided: NONE Copies of all court documents in this case, including orders, are available at the Clerk of the Circuit Court’s office. You may review these documents upon request.

You must keep the Clerk of the Circuit Court’s office notified of your current address. (You may file Designation of

Current Mailing and E-Mail Address, Florida Supreme Court Approved Family Law Form 12.915.) Future papers in this lawsuit will be mailed or e-mailed to the address(es) on record at the clerk’s office. WARNING: Rule 12.285, Florida Family Law Rules of Procedure, requires certain automatic disclosure of documents and information. Failure to comply can result in sanctions, including dismissal or striking of pleadings. Dated: April 14, 2025 Kevin Madok, CPA Clerk of the Circuit Court Monroe County, Florida By: Sheryl LaTorre Deputy Clerk Publish: April 17 & 24 and May 1 & 8, 2025 The Weekly Newspapers

IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE SIXTEENTH JUDICIAL CIRCUIT, IN AND FOR MONROE COUNTY, FLORIDA CASE NO.: 25-DR-414-K PAOLA MELISSA ZEPEDA LAZO, Petitioner, and HECTOR MANUEL CABAN GONZALEZ, Respondent. NOTICE OF ACTION FOR DISSOLUTION OF MARRIAGE (NO CHILD OR FINANCIAL SUPPORT) TO: HECTOR MANUEL CABAN GONZALEZ RESPONDENT’S LAST KNOWN ADDRESS: 1213 14TH STREET, LOT W, KEY WEST, FL 33040 YOU ARE NOTIFIED that an action for Dissolution of Marriage has been filed against you and that you are required to serve a copy of your written defenses, if any, to it on PAOLA MELISSA ZEPEDA LAZO, whose address is 3328 EAGLE AVENUE, KEY WEST, FLORIDA 33040 on or before May 17, 2025, and file the original with the clerk of this Court at 302 Fleming Street, Key West, FL 33040, before service on Petitioner or immediately thereafter. If you fail to do so, a default may be entered against you for the relief demanded in the petition.

The action is asking the court to decide how the following real or personal property should be divided: NONE Copies of all court documents in this case, including orders, are available at the Clerk of the Circuit Court’s office. You may review these documents upon request. You must keep the Clerk of the Circuit Court’s office notified of your current address.

(You may file Designation of Current Mailing and E-Mail Address, Florida Supreme Court Approved Family Law Form 12.915.) Future papers in this lawsuit will be mailed or e-mailed to the address(es) on record at the clerk’s office. WARNING: Rule 12.285, Florida Family Law Rules of Procedure, requires certain automatic disclosure of documents and information. Failure to comply can result in sanctions, including dismissal or striking of pleadings.

Dated: April 11, 2025 Kevin Madok, CPA Clerk of the Circuit Court Monroe County, Florida By: Destiny Johnson Deputy Clerk Publish: April 17 & 24 and May 1 & 8, 2025 The Weekly Newspapers

IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE 16TH JUDICIAL CIRCUIT, IN AND FOR MONROE COUNTY, FLORIDA CASE NO.: 25-DR-349-K DEON ROBINSON, Petitioner, and ANTTWON JEWSOME,

Respondent. NOTICE OF ACTION FOR DISSOLUTION OF MARRIAGE (NO CHILD OR FINANCIAL SUPPORT)

TO: ANTTWON JEWSOME RESPONDENT’S LAST KNOWN ADDRESS: 1213 14TH STREET, LOT 184, KEY WEST, FL 33040 YOU ARE NOTIFIED that an action for Dissolution of Marriage has been filed against you and that you are required to serve a copy of your written defenses, if any, to it on Deon Robinson, whose address is 1213 14th Street, Lot 184, Key West, FL 33040 on or before May 31, 2025, and file the original with the clerk of this Court at 500 Whitehead Street, Key West, FL 33040, before service on Petitioner or immediately thereafter. If you fail to do so, a default may be entered against you for the relief demanded in the petition. The action is asking the court to decide how the following real or personal property should be divided: N/A Copies of all court documents in this case, including orders, are available at the Clerk of the Circuit Court’s office. You may review these documents upon request.

You must keep the Clerk of the Circuit Court’s office notified of your current address.

(You may file Designation of Current Mailing and E-Mail Address, Florida Supreme Court Approved Family Law Form 12.915.) Future papers in this lawsuit will be mailed or e-mailed to the address(es) on record at the clerk’s office. WARNING: Rule 12.285, Florida Family Law Rules of Procedure, requires certain automatic disclosure of documents and information. Failure to comply can result in sanctions, including dismissal or striking of pleadings.

Dated: March 26, 2025

Kevin Madok, CPA Clerk of the Circuit Court Monroe County, Florida By: Destiny Johnson Deputy Clerk Publish: April 3, 10, 17 & 24, 2025

The Weekly Newspapers

IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE SIXTEENTH JUDICIAL CIRCUIT, IN AND FOR MONROE COUNTY, FLORIDA NOTICE OF FORECLOSURE

SALE BY THE CLERK OF THE CIRCUIT COURT Notice is hereby given that the undersigned, Kevin Madok, Clerk of the Circuit Court of Monroe County, Florida, will, on the 6th day of May 2025 at 11 o’clock a.m., at 500 Whitehead Street, Monroe County, in the City of Key West, Florida, offer for sale and sell at public outcry to the highest and best bidder for CASH the Following described property situated in Monroe County, Florida, to wit: Property Description: BK 9 NW ½ LOT 20 STRATTONS SUBD PB2-38 UPPER MATECUMBE G24-94 G45-384 OR755-540 G1-450/51 OR 834-325 OR 1007-2476 OR 1660-945 OR 1660-946/AFF OR 1660-947/ AFF OR 2012-2378 OR 2347255 OR 2686-1408 OR 2984962 OR 3110-0874 OF THE PUBLIC RECORDS OF MONROE COUNTY, FLORIDA, PARCEL ID # 00400600-000000, ALTERNATE KEY # 1492892. COMMONLY KNOWN AS: 81975 OLD HIGHWAY, ISLAMORADA, FLORIDA 33036

Pursuant to FINAL JUDGMENT OF FORECLOSURE entered in a case pending in said Court, the 3rd day of March 2025 Style of which is: KENNETH STEVENS AND CLIFFORD BROWN Plaintiff VS. WOLF CAPITAL FUNDING, LLC, et. al Defendant

And the Docket Number of which is Number 2023-CA320-P WITNESS my hand and the Official Seal of Said Court, this 13TH day of March 2025

KEVIN MADOK Clerk of the Circuit Court Monroe County, Florida By: Shonta McLeod Deputy Clerk Florida Statute 45.031: Any person claiming as interest in the surplus from the sale, if any, other than the property owner as of the date of the Lis Pendens must file a claim within 60 days after the sale. Publish: April 17 & 24, 2025

The Weekly Newspapers

NOTICE OF PUBLIC AUCTION/ SALE FOR NON-JUDICIAL TIMESHARE FORECLOSURE

MARATHON KEY BEACH CLUB II ASSOCIATION, INC.

MONROE County, Florida

NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that, pursuant to an action for non-judicial foreclosure of timeshare units on the Claim of Lien, which is dated November 23, 2024 and was recorded December 5, 2024, in the Official Records of Monroe County, Florida in Official Records Book 3302, Page 1635 as Instrument Number 2482638, I will sell, to the highest and best bidder for cash, at MARATHON KEY BEACH CLUB CONDOMINIUM II RESORT Manager’s Office, 4560 Overseas Highway, Marathon, FL 33050 on the 6th day of MAY, 2025, at 10:00 a.m., the following described real property located in MONROE County, Florida, to-wit:

Annual Timeshare Periods as set forth below in MARATHON KEY BEACH CLUB CONDOMINIUM II, according to the Declaration of Condominium thereof, recorded in Official Records Book 859, at Page 786, as amended in Official Records Book 874, at Page 2169, all of the Public Records of Monroe County, Florida and all subsequent amendments and exhibits thereto. Unit Number: Use Period: Unit Number: Use Period:

A 101 03, 23, 48 A 102

27

A 201 30, 35, 36 A 202 21

B 101 05, 06

B 102 02, 25, 36, 50 B 201 03, 04, 47

B 202

Amount due:

Dale A Bradley and Catherine E Bradley 7781 Union Street Mentor, OH 44060

A101/48

$2,958.75 with a per diem amount of $1.46 from September 1, 2024

Charles L Burke and Esther M Damian-Burke 21 Broad Hill Road Leverett, MA 01054

A201/35

$4,176.91 with a per diem amount of $2.06 from September 1, 2024

A201/36

$4,176.92 with a per diem amount of $2.06 from September 1, 2024

Skyler Clabough 7300 Charlott Drive Knoxville, TN 37924

B202/39

$1,517.30 with a per diem amount of $0.75 from September 1, 2024

John W Cummings 109 Poland Hill Place Lafayette, IN 47909

B201/03

$6,443.14 with a per diem amount of $3.18 from September 1, 2024

B201/04

$6,443.14 with a per diem amount of $3.18 from September 1, 2024

B201/47

$6,443.14 with a per diem amount of $3.18 from September 1, 2024

A202/21

$6,443.14 with a per diem amount of $3.18 from September 1, 2024

David B Denholtz and Rhonda J Denholtz 13231 Shetland Lane Ft Myers, FL 33912

D202/31

$2,951.14 with a per diem amount of $1.46 from September 1, 2024

D202/32

$2,951.14 with a per diem amount of $1.46 from September 1, 2024

James A Fregien and Loretta Fregien 2763 Pepperidge Court San Jose, CA 95148

A201/30

$1,517.30 with a per diem amount of $0.75 from September 1, 2024

Troy Gonyea and Michelle Gonyea 16 Silver Street Meriden, CT 06450

E102/20

$1,514.85 with a per diem amount of $0.75 from September 1, 2024

Jennifer L Hill 931 Cordova Avenue Ormond Beach, FL 32174

C101/21

$5,402.08 with a per diem amount of $2.67 from September 1, 2024

Ralph W Hoffman 21225 Railroad Avenue High Springs, FL 32643

B102/25

$1,517.30 with a per diem amount of $0.75 from September 1, 2024

Anita Holt 12 N 269 Factly Road West Sycamore, IL 60178

B102/50

$4,047.55 with a per diem amount of $2.00 from September 1, 2024 Terrell W Jones and Tina F Jones 5095 Datil Pepper Road St Augustine, FL 32086

C102/36

$1,517.30 with a per diem amount of $1.46 from September 1, 2024

Lorraine Khoury 7545 Oso Blanca Road Las Vegas, NV 89149

B101/05

$4,712.06 with a per diem amount of $1.46 from September 1, 2024

B101/06

$4,712.06 with a per diem amount of $1.46 from September 1, 2024

Jeffrey A Kuhfeld 504 N Topsail Drive Rockledge, FL 32955

B202/27

$1,517.97 with a per diem amount of $1.46 from September 1, 2024

Isadoro Perez and Miladys Perez 13460 SW 66th Street Southwest Ranches, FL 33330

A101/27

$2,960.14 with a per diem amount of $1.46 from September 1, 2024

Porter, LeVay & Rose, Inc

7 Pennsylvania Plaza #10 New York, NY 10001

E101/12

$4,048.94 with a per diem amount of $1.46 from September 1, 2024

Anne E Richardson 5000 S Centinela Ave #213 Los Angeles, CA 90066

B102/36

$2,960.14 with a per diem amount of $1.46 from September 1, 2024

Kennella L Rowzie 604 Deen Road

Bunnell, FL 32110

C102/01

$1,516.58 with a per diem amount of $1.46 from September 1, 2024

James Bryan Stevens and Christine Stevens 111 Old Dundee Road Barrington, IL 60010

B102/02

$6,071.38 with a per diem amount of $1.46 from September 1, 2024

A101/03

$6,071.38 with a per diem amount of $1.46 from September 1, 2024

Joseph A Viani and Mary Viani 7263 Halleck Street Viera, FL 32940

C201/40

$1,517.30 with a per diem amount of $1.46 from September 1, 2024

Louis J Wilder 405 Southwind Drive, Apt 1 North Palm Beach, FL 33408

A101/23

$1,514.85 with a per diem amount of $1.46 from September 1, 2024

The assessment lien created by the Claim of Lien was properly created and authorized pursuant to the timeshare instrument and applicable law, and the amounts secured by said lien are as set above.

You may cure the default at any time prior to the public auction by paying the amount due, as set forth in this notice, to the undersigned Trustee at the address set forth below. THIS NOTICE OF PUBLIC AUCTION/SALE is dated this _2nd_ day of _APRIL__, 2025.

THOMAS L AVRUTIS

THOMAS L. AVRUTIS, AS TRUSTEE FOR MARATHON KEY BEACH CLUB II ASSOCIATION, INC

201 Fletcher Avenue, 2nd Floor Sarasota, FL 34237

Telephone (941) 955-7300

Facsimile (941) 953-7625

Publish: April 17 & 24, 2025

The Weekly Newspapers

NOTICE OF APPLICATION FOR TAX DEED 2025-02

Notice is hereby given that, ASSEMBLY TAX 36, LLC ASSEMBLY TAX 36, LLC FBO SEC PTY, holder of the following Certificate(s) has filed said Tax Certificate(s) for a Tax Deed to be issued thereon. The Certificate Number and year of issuance, the description of property, and Name in which it is assessed are as follows:

Certificate No: 2022/117

Date of Issuance: June 01, 2022

Account Number: 1036145

Parcel ID: 00035290-000000

Description of Property: KW MOFFATS SUB PB1-12 ALL LOT 6 AND PT LOT 8 SQR 3 TR 14 OR106-113/114 OR395891/92 OR1292-464D/C OR1294-1030/33 OR12981250/51L/E OR1303-1725D/C OR1318-711/14 OR1323-450 OR2966-45NAME/CHG OR2991-2420

Names in which assessed: VINSON CYNTHIA JEAN REV TRUST 09/14/2019

All of said property being in the County of Monroe, State of Florida. Unless such certificate or certificates shall be redeemed according to law the property described in such certificate or certificates will be sold to the highest bidder on www.monroe.realtaxdeed. com Sale Date: May 28, 2025 Sale

Time: 10:00am.

Dated this April 4th 2025

KEVIN MADOK, CPA CLERK OF THE CIRCUIT COURT & COMPTROLLER OF MONROE COUNTY, FLORIDA By: Aneta Jodkowska, Deputy Clerk

Publish: April 17 & 24 and May 1 & 8, 2025

The Weekly Newspapers

NOTICE OF APPLICATION FOR TAX DEED 2025-03

Notice is hereby given that, ASSEMBLY TAX 36, LLC

ASSEMBLY TAX 36, LLC FBO SEC PTY, holder of the following Certificate(s) has filed said Tax Certificate(s) for a Tax Deed to be issued thereon. The Certificate Number and year of issuance, the description of property, and Name in which it is assessed are as follows:

Certificate No: 2022/764

Date of Issuance: June 01, 2022

Account Number: 1376221

Parcel ID: 00304180-000000

Description of Property: BK 32 LTS 1-2 SANDS SUB 1-65 BIG PINE KEY OR622-272 OR742-430C/T OR12801827D/C OR1495-2321AFF OR1495-2322 OR21761063/64 OR2691-575C/T OR2726-40C/T OR27502109/10 OR2750-2111 OR2791-796/802 OR29081900/01 OR2952-2223 ALONG WITH MOBILE HOME: TITLE NUMBER: 4754739 VEHICLE ID NR:FT168FL2250 YEAR:1971 MAKE: IN-HOUSE PKWA BODY:HS

Names in which assessed: FIGUEROA LUIS

All of said property being in the County of Monroe, State of Florida. Unless such certificate or certificates shall be redeemed according to law the property described in such certificate or certificates will be sold to the highest bidder on www.monroe.realtaxdeed. com

Sale Date: May 28, 2025 Sale Time: 10:00am. Dated this April 4th 2025 KEVIN MADOK, CPA CLERK OF THE CIRCUIT COURT & COMPTROLLER OF MONROE COUNTY, FLORIDA

By: Aneta Jodkowska, Deputy Clerk

Publish: April 17 & 24 and May 1 & 8, 2025

The Weekly Newspapers

NOTICE OF APPLICATION FOR TAX DEED 2025-04

Notice is hereby given that, ASSEMBLY TAX 36, LLC ASSEMBLY TAX 36, LLC FBO SEC PTY, holder of the following Certificate(s) has filed said Tax Certificate(s) for a Tax Deed to be issued thereon. The Certificate Number and year of issuance, the description of property, and Name in which it is assessed are as follows: Certificate No: 2022/887

Date of Issuance: June 01, 2022

Account Number: 1410012

Parcel ID: 00333641-003100

Description of Property: LT 31 STIRRUP KEY SUBDIVISION PB7-4 STIRRUP KEY OR754-470 OR925-253AFF OR925-254D/C OR925-255 OR1018-1545/48 OR1882-103 OR2668-1885/86 OR2687-413/14

Names in which assessed: BROWN GARY D

All of said property being in the County of Monroe, State of Florida.

Unless such certificate or certificates shall be redeemed according to law the property described in such certificate or certificates will be sold to the highest bidder on www.monroe.realtaxdeed. com

Sale Date: May 28, 2025 Sale Time: 10:00am.

• CLASSIFIEDS, PUBLIC & LEGAL NOTICES •

Dated this April 4th 2025

KEVIN MADOK, CPA

CLERK OF THE CIRCUIT COURT & COMPTROLLER OF MONROE COUNTY, FLORIDA

By:

Aneta Jodkowska, Deputy

Clerk

Publish:

April 17 & 24 and May 1 & 8, 2025

The Weekly Newspapers

NOTICE OF APPLICATION FOR TAX DEED

2025-05

Notice is hereby given that, ASSEMBLY TAX 36, LLC

ASSEMBLY TAX 36, LLC FBO

SEC PTY,

holder of the following

Certificate(s) has filed said Tax Certificate(s) for a Tax Deed to be issued thereon. The Certificate Number and year of issuance, the description of property, and Name in which it is assessed are as follows:

Certificate No: 2022/151

Date of Issuance: June 01, 2022

Account Number: 1056456

Parcel ID: 00055910-000000

Description of Property:

BK 2 LT 3 KW PB5-19 PEARLMAN ESTATES SECOND ADDITION OR300-332/33 OR503-201 OR1487-626/27 OR2750-742LET/ADM OR2762-196ORD OR27861389/90

Names in which assessed: NESIUS THEODORE II

All of said property being in the County of Monroe, State of Florida. Unless such certificate or certificates shall be redeemed according to law the property described in such certificate or certificates will be sold to the highest bidder on www.monroe.realtaxdeed.

com Sale Date: May 28, 2025 Sale Time: 10:00am.

Dated this April 4th 2025

KEVIN MADOK, CPA CLERK OF THE CIRCUIT COURT & COMPTROLLER OF MONROE COUNTY, FLORIDA

By: Aneta Jodkowska, Deputy

Clerk

Publish: April 17 & 24 and May 1 & 8, 2025

The Weekly Newspapers

NOTICE OF APPLICATION FOR TAX DEED 2025-06

Notice is hereby given that, ASSEMBLY TAX 36, LLC ASSEMBLY TAX 36, LLC FBO SEC PTY, holder of the following Certificate(s) has filed said Tax Certificate(s) for a Tax Deed to be issued thereon. The Certificate Number and year of issuance, the description of property, and Name in which it is assessed are as follows:

Certificate No: 2022/992

Date of Issuance: June 01, 2022

Account Number: 9085848

Parcel ID: 00355430-000149

Description of Property: UNIT B-38 SOMBRERO MARINA A CONDOMINIUM

OR3120-1942

Names in which assessed:

BROWN GARY

All of said property being in the County of Monroe, State of Florida.

Unless such certificate or certificates shall be redeemed according to law the property described in such certificate or certificates will be sold to the highest bidder on www.monroe.realtaxdeed.

com

Sale Date: May 28, 2025 Sale Time: 10:00am.

Dated this April 4th 2025

KEVIN MADOK, CPA

CLERK OF THE CIRCUIT COURT & COMPTROLLER OF MONROE COUNTY, FLORIDA

By: Aneta Jodkowska, Deputy Clerk

Publish: April 17 & 24 and May 1 & 8, 2025

The Weekly Newspapers

NOTICE OF APPLICATION FOR TAX DEED

2025-07

Notice is hereby given that, ASSEMBLY TAX 36, LLC

ASSEMBLY TAX 36, LLC FBO SEC PTY, holder of the following Certificate(s) has filed said Tax Certificate(s) for a Tax Deed to be issued thereon. The Certificate Number and year of issuance, the description of property, and Name in which it is assessed are as follows:

Certificate No: 2022/531

Date of Issuance: June 01, 2022

Account Number: 9090619

Parcel ID: 00104180-002310

Description of Property: BOAT DOCK SPACE SW 31 INDIGO REEF MARINA HOMES

OR2180-626/684DEC OR23151697 OR2687-915AMD OR2736-1492C/T OR32630841

Names in which assessed: MFRA TRUST 2014-2 C/O FAY SERVICING LLC

All of said property being in the County of Monroe, State of Florida. Unless such certificate or certificates shall be redeemed according to law the property described in such certificate or certificates will be sold to the highest bidder on www.monroe.realtaxdeed. com

Sale Date: May 28, 2025 Sale Time: 10:00am.

Dated this April 4th 2025

KEVIN MADOK, CPA CLERK OF THE CIRCUIT COURT & COMPTROLLER OF MONROE COUNTY, FLORIDA

By: Aneta Jodkowska, Deputy Clerk

Publish: April 17 & 24 and May 1 & 8, 2025

The Weekly Newspapers

NOTICE OF APPLICATION FOR TAX DEED 2025-08

Notice is hereby given that, MARCIO AUGUSTO DE LA CRUZ GOMEZ, holder of the following Certificate(s) has filed said Tax Certificate(s) for a Tax Deed to be issued thereon. The Certificate Number and year of issuance, the description of property, and Name in which it is assessed are as follows: Certificate No: 2020/1327 Date of Issuance: June 01, 2020

Account Number: 1451681

Parcel ID: 00368500-000000

Description of Property: NW'LY 4 FT LOT 1 BLK 19 CRAINS SUBD OF GRASSY KEY PB 1-51 OR39-216-217 Names in which assessed: DOROTHY LEE JARO, JARO JACK

All of said property being in the County of Monroe, State of Florida.

Unless such certificate or certificates shall be redeemed according to law the property described in such certificate or certificates will be sold to the highest bidder on www.monroe.realtaxdeed. com

Sale Date: May 28, 2025 Sale Time: 10:00am.

Dated this April 4th 2025

KEVIN MADOK, CPA CLERK OF THE CIRCUIT COURT & COMPTROLLER OF MONROE COUNTY, FLORIDA

By: Aneta Jodkowska, Deputy Clerk

Publish: April 17 & 24 and May 1 & 8, 2025

The Weekly Newspapers

NOTICE OF APPLICATION FOR TAX DEED 2025-09

Notice is hereby given that, KEYS FUNDING LLC - 7022, holder of the following Certificate(s) has filed said Tax Certificate(s) for a Tax Deed to be issued thereon. The Certificate Number and year of issuance, the description of property, and Name in which

it is assessed are as follows:

Certificate No: 2022/124

Date of Issuance: June 01, 2022

Account Number: 1041513

Parcel ID: 00040830-000000

Description of Property:

KW TROPICAL BLDG AND INVESTMENT CO SUB LOT 17 AND PT LOTS 10 AND 18 SQR 2 TR 19 PB1-34 G49-309/10

J2-121 OR122-236/37 OR491599 OR491-600 OR491602(PROB-81-357-CP-12)

OR845-2195/2197-WILL

OR1051-2301/02 OR1464-723

OR1607-1970/71 OR178258/59 OR1782-60 OR22401359 OR2279-1491/92T/C

OR2421-2421/29F/J OR26461539/40C/T OR2701-2199/201

Names in which assessed:

DGK KEY WEST LLC

All of said property being in the County of Monroe, State of Florida.

Unless such certificate or certificates shall be redeemed according to law the property described in such certificate or certificates will be sold to the highest bidder on www.monroe.realtaxdeed. com

Sale Date: May 28, 2025 Sale Time: 10:00am.

Dated this April 4th 2025

KEVIN MADOK, CPA

CLERK OF THE CIRCUIT COURT & COMPTROLLER OF MONROE COUNTY, FLORIDA

By: Aneta Jodkowska, Deputy Clerk

Publish:

April 17 & 24 and May 1 & 8, 2025

The Weekly Newspapers

NOTICE OF APPLICATION FOR TAX DEED

2025-10

Notice is hereby given that, KEYS FUNDING LLC - 7022, holder of the following Certificate(s) has filed said Tax Certificate(s) for a Tax Deed to be issued thereon. The Certificate Number and year of issuance, the description of property, and Name in which it is assessed are as follows: Certificate No: 2022/542

Date of Issuance: June 01, 2022

Account Number: 1210064

Parcel ID: 00164560-000000

Description of Property:

LT 64 SUGARLOAF SHORES

SEC D SUGARLOAF KEY PB488 OR414-663 OR446-605/06 OR937-183 OR937-184D/C OR1207-584 OR2692-1570/72

Names in which assessed: HOME ON KINGFISHER LLC

All of said property being in the County of Monroe, State of Florida.

Unless such certificate or certificates shall be redeemed according to law the property described in such certificate or certificates will be sold to the highest bidder on www.monroe.realtaxdeed. com

Sale Date: May 28, 2025 Sale Time: 10:00am.

Dated this April 4th 2025

KEVIN MADOK, CPA CLERK OF THE CIRCUIT COURT & COMPTROLLER OF MONROE COUNTY, FLORIDA

By: Aneta Jodkowska, Deputy Clerk

Publish:

April 17 & 24 and May 1 & 8, 2025 The Weekly Newspapers

NOTICE OF APPLICATION FOR TAX DEED 2025-11

Notice is hereby given that, MIKON FINANCIAL SERVICES, INC. AND OCEAN BANK, holder of the following Certificate(s) has filed said Tax Certificate(s) for a Tax Deed to be issued thereon. The Certificate Number and year of issuance, the description of property, and Name in which it is assessed are as follows: Certificate No: 2022/315 Date of Issuance: June 01, 2022 Account Number: 910454 Parcel ID: 00097680-000100

Description of Property:

20 64 36 LOWER MATECUMBE KEY PT GOVT LOT 2 OR30401431

Names in which assessed: KEYS STEVEN L All of said property being in the County of Monroe, State of Florida.

Unless such certificate or certificates shall be redeemed according to law the property described in such certificate or certificates will be sold to the highest bidder on www.monroe.realtaxdeed. com

Sale Date: May 28, 2025 Sale Time: 10:00am.

Dated this April 4th 2025 KEVIN MADOK, CPA CLERK OF THE CIRCUIT COURT & COMPTROLLER OF MONROE COUNTY, FLORIDA

By: Aneta Jodkowska, Deputy Clerk

Publish:

April 17 & 24 and May 1 & 8, 2025

The Weekly Newspapers

NOTICE OF APPLICATION FOR TAX DEED

2025-12

Notice is hereby given that, MIKON FINANCIAL SERVICES, INC. AND OCEAN BANK, holder of the following Certificate(s) has filed said Tax Certificate(s) for a Tax Deed to be issued thereon. The Certificate Number and year of issuance, the description of property, and Name in which it is assessed are as follows: Certificate No: 2022/711

Date of Issuance: June 01, 2022

Account Number: 1337960

Parcel ID: 00266320-000000

Description of Property: BK 6 LT 9 EDEN PINES COLONY PB4-158 BIG PINE KEY OR404157E OR460-781 OR1167998DC

Names in which assessed: HELLIESEN FRANCYS M

All of said property being in the County of Monroe, State of Florida.

Unless such certificate or certificates shall be redeemed according to law the property described in such certificate or certificates will be sold to the highest bidder on www.monroe.realtaxdeed. com

Sale Date: May 28, 2025 Sale Time: 10:00am. Dated this April 4th 2025

KEVIN MADOK, CPA CLERK OF THE CIRCUIT COURT & COMPTROLLER OF MONROE COUNTY, FLORIDA

By: Aneta Jodkowska, Deputy

Clerk

Publish:

April 17 & 24 and May 1 & 8, 2025

The Weekly Newspapers

NOTICE OF APPLICATION FOR TAX DEED

2025-13

Notice is hereby given that, MIKON FINANCIAL SERVICES, INC. AND OCEAN BANK, holder of the following Certificate(s) has filed said Tax Certificate(s) for a Tax Deed to be issued thereon. The Certificate Number and year of issuance, the description of property, and Name in which it is assessed are as follows: Certificate No: 2022/864 Date of Issuance: June 01, 2022

Account Number: 1402974

Parcel ID: 00328740-00000

Description of Property:

BK B LT 8 PART A OF MASTER PLAT OF N MARATHON

SHORES PB3-8 KEY VACCAS

OR453-665-666 OR624-371 OR686-867 OR1571-945

OR1823-886/87 OR1832-393

Names in which assessed: ANTHONY D'AIUTO, JOSEPH D'AIUTO All of said property being in the County of Monroe, State of Florida.

Unless such certificate or certificates shall be redeemed according to law the property described in such

LEGAL NOTICES

certificate or certificates will be sold to the highest bidder on www.monroe.realtaxdeed.

com

Sale Date: May 28, 2025 Sale Time: 10:00am. Dated this April 4th 2025

KEVIN MADOK, CPA CLERK OF THE CIRCUIT COURT & COMPTROLLER OF MONROE COUNTY, FLORIDA

By: Aneta Jodkowska, Deputy

Clerk

Publish:

April 17 & 24 and May 1 & 8, 2025

The Weekly Newspapers

NOTICE OF APPLICATION FOR TAX DEED 2025-14

Notice is hereby given that, MIKON FINANCIAL SERVICES, INC. AND OCEAN BANK, holder of the following Certificate(s) has filed said Tax Certificate(s) for a Tax Deed to be issued thereon. The Certificate Number and year of issuance, the description of property, and Name in which it is assessed are as follows:

Certificate No: 2022/334

Date of Issuance: June 01, 2022

Account Number: 9088412

Parcel ID: 00100371-018700

Description of Property: UNIT 55C BOAT HOUSE CONDOMINIUM OR2738-1752 OR2822-2314/15

Names in which assessed: SHELLFISH ENTERPRISES LLC

All of said property being in the County of Monroe, State of Florida. Unless such certificate or certificates shall be redeemed according to law the property described in such certificate or certificates will be sold to the highest bidder on www.monroe.realtaxdeed. com

Sale Date: May 28, 2025 Sale Time: 10:00am. Dated this April 4th 2025 KEVIN MADOK, CPA CLERK OF THE CIRCUIT COURT & COMPTROLLER OF MONROE COUNTY, FLORIDA

By: Aneta Jodkowska, Deputy Clerk

Publish: April 17 & 24 and May 1 & 8, 2025

The Weekly Newspapers

NOTICE OF APPLICATION FOR TAX DEED 2025-15

Notice is hereby given that, DAY INVESTMENT AND CONSULTING LLC, holder of the following Certificate(s) has filed said Tax Certificate(s) for a Tax Deed to be issued thereon. The Certificate Number and year of issuance, the description of property, and Name in which it is assessed are as follows:

Certificate No: 2021/1161

Date of Issuance: June 01, 2021

Account Number: 1451690

Parcel ID: 00368510-000000

Description of Property: BK 19 LT 2 CRAINS SUBD OF GRASSY KEY PB 1-51 PT SECS 24-25-26 TWP 65S R 33E OR39-218/219 CASE #86-47CP-23 OR972-1185/1190WILL OR996-1715/1716P/R OR1006-38/42 OR1011-500 OR1018-205Q/C OR2094408/09

Names in which assessed: ARLENE KAISER, ROBERT KAISER

All of said property being in the County of Monroe, State of Florida. Unless such certificate or certificates shall be redeemed according to law the property described in such certificate or certificates will be sold to the highest bidder on www.monroe.realtaxdeed. com

Sale Date: May 28, 2025 Sale Time: 10:00am. Dated this April 4th 2025

KEVIN MADOK, CPA CLERK OF THE CIRCUIT COURT & COMPTROLLER OF MONROE COUNTY, FLORIDA

By: Aneta Jodkowska, Deputy Clerk

Publish: April 17 & 24 and May 1 & 8, 2025

The Weekly Newspapers

NOTICE OF APPLICATION FOR TAX DEED 2025-16

Notice is hereby given that, CHARLES WEITZEL, holder of the following Certificate(s) has filed said Tax Certificate(s) for a Tax Deed to be issued thereon. The Certificate Number and year of issuance, the description of property, and Name in which it is assessed are as follows:

Certificate No: 2019/924

Date of Issuance: June 01, 2019

Account Number: 1406414

Parcel ID: 00331061-011301

Description of Property:

SEA-AIR ESTATES KEY VACA PB6-91 W1/2 LOT 17 BLK 5 & ADJ PT OF ANA COURT OR1550-2356-62RES

Names in which assessed: SEA-AIR ESTATES INC C/O GOSS RICHARD

All of said property being in the County of Monroe, State of Florida. Unless such certificate or certificates shall be redeemed according to law the property described in such certificate or certificates will be sold to the highest bidder on www.monroe.realtaxdeed. com

Sale Date: May 28, 2025 Sale Time: 10:00am.

Dated this April 7th 2025

KEVIN MADOK, CPA CLERK OF THE CIRCUIT COURT & COMPTROLLER OF MONROE COUNTY, FLORIDA

By: Aneta Jodkowska, Deputy Clerk

Publish: April 17 & 24 and May 1 & 8, 2025 The Weekly Newspapers

NOTICE OF APPLICATION FOR TAX DEED 2025-17

Notice is hereby given that, ASSEMBLY TAX 36, LLC

ASSEMBLY TAX 36, LLC FBO SEC PTY, holder of the following Certificate(s) has filed said Tax Certificate(s) for a Tax Deed to be issued thereon. The Certificate Number and year of issuance, the description of property, and Name in which it is assessed are as follows:

Certificate No: 2022/1561

Date of Issuance: June 01, 2022

Account Number: 1670022

Parcel ID: 00546530-000000

Description of Property: BK 3 LT 8 AMD PLAT OF WINSTON WATERWAYS PB4144 OR297-77 OR725-787/88

OR858-221/22 OR1063-1340 OR1874-999 OR2366-681/82 OR2797-1106/07

Names in which assessed: LEGNA INVESTMENTS LLC

All of said property being in the County of Monroe, State of Florida.

Unless such certificate or certificates shall be redeemed according to law the property described in such certificate or certificates will be sold to the highest bidder on www.monroe.realtaxdeed. com

Sale Date: May 28, 2025 Sale Time: 10:00am.

Dated this April 7th 2025

KEVIN MADOK, CPA CLERK OF THE CIRCUIT COURT & COMPTROLLER OF MONROE COUNTY, FLORIDA By: Aneta Jodkowska, Deputy Clerk Publish: April 17 & 24 and May 1 & 8, 2025 The Weekly Newspapers

NOTICE OF APPLICATION FOR TAX DEED 2025-18

Notice is hereby given that, ASSEMBLY TAX 36, LLC

ASSEMBLY TAX 36, LLC FBO

SEC PTY, holder of the following Certificate(s) has filed said Tax Certificate(s) for a Tax Deed to be issued thereon. The Certificate Number and year of issuance, the description of property, and Name in which it is assessed are as follows: Certificate No: 2022/1560 Date of Issuance: June 01, 2022

Account Number: 1669911

Parcel ID: 00546420-000000

Description of Property: BK 2 LT 5 AMD PLAT OF WINSTON WATERWAYS PB4-144 OR575-383 OR978936 OR999-35 OR999-34 OR1793-1400 OR1793-1401 OR1793-1402 OR1793-1403 OR2068-2148/49 OR30241180 OR3030-1245 OR31192376

Names in which assessed: KARIM-URROZA DAVID, LARYSA KULISH SMITH

All of said property being in the County of Monroe, State of Florida. Unless such certificate or certificates shall be redeemed according to law the property described in such certificate or certificates will be sold to the highest bidder on www.monroe.realtaxdeed. com

Sale Date: May 28, 2025 Sale Time: 10:00am. Dated this April 7th 2025 KEVIN MADOK, CPA CLERK OF THE CIRCUIT COURT & COMPTROLLER OF MONROE COUNTY, FLORIDA By: Aneta Jodkowska, Deputy Clerk

Publish:

April 17 & 24 and May 1 & 8, 2025

The Weekly Newspapers

NOTICE OF APPLICATION FOR TAX DEED 2025-19

Notice is hereby given that, TLOA OF FLORIDA, LLC FOR SECURED PARTY, holder of the following Certificate(s) has filed said Tax Certificate(s) for a Tax Deed to be issued thereon. The Certificate Number and year of issuance, the description of property, and Name in which it is assessed are as follows: Certificate No: 2022/1191 Date of Issuance: June 01, 2022 Account Number: 1512907 Parcel ID: 00416730-000000

Description of Property: BK 8 S 1/2 LT 13 KEY HEIGHTS SECTION 2 PB3-159 PLANTATION KEY OR392266/67 OR824-2483 OR908908 OR1362-392 OR1362393/94PR OR1433-1787/88 OR1433-1789/93 OR1478555/56EST/ORD OR1479-1738 OR1479-1739DC OR14791740DC

Names in which assessed: NEZBED MELBA E JR All of said property being in the County of Monroe, State of Florida. Unless such certificate or certificates shall be redeemed according to law the property described in such certificate or certificates will be sold to the highest bidder on www.monroe.realtaxdeed. com

Sale Date: May 28, 2025 Sale Time: 10:00am. Dated this April 7th 2025 KEVIN MADOK, CPA CLERK OF THE CIRCUIT COURT & COMPTROLLER OF MONROE COUNTY, FLORIDA By: Aneta Jodkowska, Deputy Clerk

Publish: April 17 & 24 and May 1 & 8, 2025

The Weekly Newspapers

NOTICE OF APPLICATION FOR TAX DEED 2025-20

Notice is hereby given that, TLOA OF FLORIDA, LLC FOR SECURED PARTY, holder of the following Certificate(s) has filed said Tax

Certificate(s) for a Tax Deed

to be issued thereon. The Certificate Number and year of issuance, the description of property, and Name in which it is assessed are as follows:

Certificate No: 2022/1260

Date of Issuance: June 01, 2022

Account Number: 1551864 1512907

Parcel ID: 00452230-000000

00416730-000000

Description of Property:

LT 92 PORT LARGO PB5-3 KEY LARGO OR647-575 OR696-121 OR3062-1391

Names in which assessed:

DERRIEN JEANNINE

All of said property being in the County of Monroe, State of Florida.

Unless such certificate or certificates shall be redeemed according to law the property described in such certificate or certificates will be sold to the highest bidder on www.monroe.realtaxdeed.

com Sale Date: May 28, 2025 Sale Time: 10:00am.

Dated this April 7th 2025

KEVIN MADOK, CPA CLERK OF THE CIRCUIT COURT & COMPTROLLER OF MONROE COUNTY, FLORIDA

By: Aneta Jodkowska, Deputy Clerk

Publish: April 17 & 24 and May 1 & 8,

2025

The Weekly Newspapers

NOTICE OF APPLICATION FOR TAX DEED 2025-22

Notice is hereby given that, MIKON FINANCIAL SERVICES, INC. AND OCEAN BANK, holder of the following Certificate(s) has filed said Tax Certificate(s) for a Tax Deed to be issued thereon. The Certificate Number and year of issuance, the description of property, and Name in which it is assessed are as follows:

Certificate No: 2022/1473

Date of Issuance: June 01, 2022

Account Number: 9104464

Parcel ID: 00513300-001600

Description of Property:

BK 3 LOT 16 PARADISE POINT

PB3-16 KEY LARGO G72302/03 OR187-483/84 OR269553/554 OR274-113/114 OR369-350 OR414-363/64

OR460-485/492Q/C OR502923 OR506-756 OR609-430 OR722-687 D/C OR744734/737 OR869-650/55

OR890-1650/51PR OR8921002 OR950-563P/R OR11081408/1409 OR1216-2072/73 OR1341-2326 OR1341 2330 OR1531-135/36 OR1552-1557 OR1971-2251/52 OR259238/39 OR2975-982 OR2977997C

Names in which assessed: COBIA LLC

All of said property being in the County of Monroe, State of Florida. Unless such certificate or certificates shall be redeemed according to law the property described in such certificate or certificates will be sold to the highest bidder on www.monroe.realtaxdeed. com Sale Date: May 28, 2025 Sale Time: 10:00am.

Dated this April 7th 2025

KEVIN MADOK, CPA CLERK OF THE CIRCUIT COURT & COMPTROLLER OF MONROE COUNTY, FLORIDA

By: Aneta Jodkowska, Deputy Clerk

Publish: April 17 & 24 and May 1 & 8, 2025 The Weekly Newspapers

NOTICE OF APPLICATION FOR TAX DEED 2025-23

Notice is hereby given that, MIKON FINANCIAL SERVICES, INC. AND OCEAN BANK, holder of the following Certificate(s) has filed said Tax Certificate(s) for a Tax Deed to be issued thereon. The

Certificate Number and year of issuance, the description of property, and Name in which it is assessed are as follows:

Certificate No: 2022/1499

Date of Issuance: June 01, 2022

Account Number: 1642843

Parcel ID: 00523590-000000

Description of Property:

BK 2 LT 5 AMD PLAT OF PB3-62

KEY LARGO PARK KEY LARGO OR381-151 OR1249-144 OR1240-1459/62 OR1786-7 OR2177-1751C OR2196-1574 OR3109-2275

Names in which assessed: ARIAS CARLOS LUIS

All of said property being in the County of Monroe, State of Florida.

Unless such certificate or certificates shall be redeemed according to law the property described in such certificate or certificates will be sold to the highest bidder on www.monroe.realtaxdeed.

com

Sale Date: May 28, 2025 Sale Time: 10:00am.

Dated this April 7th 2025

KEVIN MADOK, CPA CLERK OF THE CIRCUIT COURT & COMPTROLLER OF MONROE COUNTY, FLORIDA

By: Aneta Jodkowska, Deputy Clerk

Publish:

April 17 & 24 and May 1 & 8, 2025

The Weekly Newspapers

NOTICE OF APPLICATION FOR TAX DEED

2025-24

Notice is hereby given that, JPL INVESTMENTS CORP, holder of the following Certificate(s) has filed said Tax Certificate(s) for a Tax Deed to be issued thereon. The Certificate Number and year of issuance, the description of property, and Name in which it is assessed are as follows: Certificate No: 2022/1059

Date of Issuance: June 01, 2022

Account Number: 1457043

Parcel ID: 00373970-000000

Description of Property: CRAINS SUBD OF GRASSY

KEY PB 1-51 PT SECS 24-25-26

TWP 65S R 33E LOT 6 SQR 54

G30-189-190 OR900-2496 OR1331-184 OR2426-295 OR2836-1631 OR3110-0230

Names in which assessed: TORRES WILGENS SR All of said property being in the County of Monroe, State of Florida. Unless such certificate or certificates shall be redeemed according to law the property described in such certificate or certificates will be sold to the highest bidder on www.monroe.realtaxdeed. com

Sale Date: May 28, 2025 Sale Time: 10:00am.

Dated this April 7th 2025

KEVIN MADOK, CPA CLERK OF THE CIRCUIT COURT & COMPTROLLER OF MONROE COUNTY, FLORIDA

By: Aneta Jodkowska, Deputy Clerk

Publish: April 17 & 24 and May 1 & 8, 2025

The Weekly Newspapers

NOTICE OF APPLICATION FOR TAX DEED 2025-25

Notice is hereby given that, TLGFY, LLC CAPITAL ONE, N.A., AS COLLATERAL ASSIGNEE OF TLGFY, LLC, holder of the following Certificate(s) has filed said Tax Certificate(s) for a Tax Deed to be issued thereon. The Certificate Number and year of issuance, the description of property, and Name in which it is assessed are as follows: Certificate No: 2022/1070

Date of Issuance: June 01, 2022

Account Number: 8918194

Parcel ID: 00378381-000101

Description of Property: UNIT B-001A & B-001A EXPANSION VILLAGE AT

HAWK'S CAY DUCK KEY OR1488-190/265DEC OR14882199/02 OR1910-1972/1973A OR1967-1550/52 OR27972198/200 OR3044-165

OR3127-0667

Names in which assessed: PATRICIA D PYTLESKI, PYTLESKI VICTOR D

All of said property being in the County of Monroe, State of Florida. Unless such certificate or certificates shall be redeemed according to law the property described in such certificate or certificates will be sold to the highest bidder on www.monroe.realtaxdeed.

com

Sale Date: May 28, 2025 Sale Time: 10:00am. Dated this April 14th 2025

KEVIN MADOK, CPA CLERK OF THE CIRCUIT COURT & COMPTROLLER OF MONROE COUNTY, FLORIDA

By: Aneta Jodkowska, Deputy Clerk

Publish: April 17 & 24 and May 1 & 8, 2025 The Weekly Newspapers

AUTOS WANTED

AUTOS ALL YEARS! Junk or Used Cars, Vans, Trucks. Runs or Not.$CASH 305-332-0483

AUTOS FOR SALE

PLACE YOUR AUTO FOR SALE AD HERE. $25/week for up to 5 lines of copy! Pease call 305-4170871 or email Anneke@ KeysWeekly.com

BOAT SLIP FOR RENT

19’x40’ slip in Marathon, could handle somewhat larger boat with approval from dockmaster. Desirable location in marina, easy in, easy out. Electricity, available, free water, pump out, WiFi. Available 1 May 25 thru Oct 25, possibly long term lease. Please contact Vern Rozier, 904 626 5279, or 904 626 8224 and leave call back info. Or email vrrozier@yahoo.com.

EMPLOYMENT

ALL KEYS GUTTER HIRING INSTALLERS

$25/$35hr - Major Holidays Off - BenefitsTavernier. Apply: call or text Jay 305-587-1581

Night Monitor –FREE Private Room in exchange for overnight availability at our Assisted Living Facility. 5 nights on, 5 nights off 10pm-8am plus weekly stipend, Drug & background screen required. www.westcare. com/join-our-team/

HELP WANTED: Two Conchs in Marathon is now hiring a Full Time Retail Sales Person in our Tackle Shop/ Marina. Competitive wages. Contact George 305-289-0199

The Housing Authority of the City of Key West now hiring for the following positions: Resident Care Supervisor with min. 3 yrs. experience of an LPN, Housing ManagerFT-Marathon, Maintenance Mechanic (Maintenance Worker. To apply, please contact Human Resources at: wrightk@kwha.org or 305-296-5621 ext. 224. Applications are available at the Administrative Office located at 1400 Kennedy Dr., Key West, FL 33040 or online at www.kwha. org - EOE & Drug Free Work Place. This opportunity is covered under Section 3 of the HUD Act of 1968.

Part Time Supervisor/ Housekeeper Position Available Immediately in Key Colony Beach. Hours may vary depending on need including weekends. Responsibilities include oversee housekeeping staff, inspecting rooms prior to guest occupancy, making up laundry bags, cleaning rooms, etc. Physical demands: ability to lift and carry laundry bags ~ 35 lb. **Must have reliable transportation** Please call/text or email to discuss pay and to request application. Vivian -952-208-2850 Cheryl -305-505-8747

Marathon Yacht Club is hiring a parttime bookkeeper. QuickBooks experience required. Must provide photo ID, social security card or passport, and checking account. Email office@ marathonyachtclub. com to schedule an interview.

PLACE YOUR EMPLOYMENT AD HERE. $25/week for up to 5 lines of copy! Pease call 305-4170871 or email Anneke@ KeysWeekly.com

Marathon Yacht Club is hiring a part-time line cook. Private club, friendly atmosphere. Flexible lunch/dinner shifts available Tuesday – Saturday, some Sundays. English proficiency required. Must provide photo ID, social security card or passport, and checking account. Email office@ marathonyachtclub. com to schedule an interview.

Serve/Bartend

on the ocean! The Cabana Club, an ocean front private swim club is seeking a customer service-oriented Server/Bartender. Serve on pool deck, beach and/or bar lounge. Open year round, 9:30am-7pm daily. Full time/Part time. Small friendly staff. Above average hourly wage plus tips. Apply in person at 425 E. Ocean Dr. Key Colony Beach or call 404-2193359 and ask for Dave.

Full time office position with strong computer skills, KCB Condominium, $78K per yr., apply by e-mail to HardingThomasL@ aol.com, text or call 734-476-0531. HIRED IN LESS THAN TWO WEEKS!!!

HOBBIES/COLLECT.

PRIVATE COLLECTOR

WANTS Rolex, Dive Watches and Pilot Watches. Old Model Military Clocks & Watches. Call 305-743-4578

HOUSING FOR RENT

Studio rental in Marathon, long-term, fully furnished, price includes water, electric, internet, gas, pest, and lawn @ $2200 all in. Call or text 3054330515.

Rental in Marathon: 4/2 pool waterfront tiki bar home with dock for up to 50 ft. Steps to Sombrero Beach, ocean in under 10 mins. Seasonal or annual. Furnished. Thania Moses, MBA & Realtor 954.683.2150

Downstairs apartment of a duplex to rent to 1 person (no pets). Large living room/bedroom and separate kitchen. Large screened porch with its own washer/dryer and driveway. Utilities include wifi/tv. 150 ft to the ocean. MM 96 Key Largo $1600/month. F/L/S 305-853-3779 RENTED IN LESS THAN SIX WEEKS!

Available Now, Stock Island near CVS. Traveling nurses/ Working professionals only. No pets, smokers or drugs. Gated, safe, quiet, has parking and a pool. Fully furnished room w/ private bath, smart TV, washer/dryer. House and kitchen privileges always, w/fridge and cabinet space. Monthly rent REDUCED to $1,400.00 All Included. First and Last due at move in time. Call 305-797-5600 RENTED IN THREE WEEKS!

1BR/1BA fully furnished Apt. for rent in Marathon. Ideally one person. On canal w/boat lift, W/D, Wifi. $1,950/ mo. 850-376-7137 RENTED IN THREE WEEKS!

VACATION RENTAL

Key West House For Rent - 28 day minimum. Recently renovated. 2 Units: 3BR/3BA or 2BR/2.5BA. 1 block to Schooner Wharf @ Historic Seaport. Starting $214/night. Sweet CarolineSeaport.com

YARD SALES

Sat. April 26 8A-Noon. Fishing poles, boat items, household items, washing machine, hot water heater, etc. 112 Saguaro Lane, Flamingo Island, Marathon

SARA’S ESTATE SALE:

We’re emptying the cutest little Duck Key cottage! Fri, April 25 and Sat, April 26 from 9a to 1p, both days, 417 Harbour Drive, Duck Key. Small white sectional, white 3-piece entertainment center and 13-pieces of sturdy, functional wicker patio seating. Tons of quaint details – vintage lamps and prints, and a fully stocked kitchen, wicker bedroom furniture. Plus garden art, a few tools, costume jewelry and camera equipment. Follow the signs (mine and construction detour signs!) and park with consideration. Photos at estatesales.net.

PLACE YOUR YARD SALE AD HERE. $25/week for up to 5 lines of copy! Pease call 305-4170871 or email Anneke@ KeysWeekly.com

NOW HIRING!

e Turtle Hospital in Marathon wants you to join their team!

EDUCATIONAL PROGRAM GUIDES/GIFT SHOP SALES

Full and part-time. Public speaking and & retail sales experience helpful. $19/hour to start. Send resume to: turtlehospital@turtlehospital.org

NOW HIRING

HVAC TECH WANTED

Upper Keys position, reporting in Tavernier.

Full time job with benefits, vacation time, and holidays.

Apply at keysschools.com or call 305-293-1400 ext. 53398

NOW

TECHNICIAN MARINE REPAIR

HIRING WE ARE HIRING!

Specializing in Yamaha outboard engines.

RETAIL PARTS/COUNTER HELP Marine outboard knowledge and QuickBooks experience a plus.

Hours M-F 8a-5p for both positions. Apply in person at: All Keys Yamaha 2001 Overseas Highway, Marathon. 305-743-3530

the

and

and veterans, receive preference and priority in employment, and are encouraged to apply for positions being filled. Keys Energy Services, in Key West, Florida, is accepting applications for the following position in its Engineering Department:

of

CLIENT MEDICAL SERVICES ASSISTANT, CNA (FT)

Assisting our clients with dental, medical and transportation appts. Act as liaison between clients, families and support staff. Requires some on-call responsibility. Min. requirement - Florida certification as a Certified Nursing Assistant.*

SUPPORTED LIVING COACH (FT)

Responsibilities include management of developmentally disabled clients in independent living environments, management of office and in-home support staff. Must be available for some evenings and weekends. Bachelor’s degree in related field or experience working with developmentally disabled clients in lieu of degree. Must have a valid FL driver’s license. Salary commensurate with experience.*

DIRECT CARE

STAFF

–

NIGHTS/WEEKENDS – GROUP HOMES 24/7 (FT)

These positions are available at our Windsor and Von Phister Group Homes. Providing direct-care services and support to our clients in their home. Must be willing to work flexible shifts including overnights. This position requires a minimum of high school completion or GED and 1 year of experience with care giving or 30 hours of college coursework.*

*ALSO REQUIRED FOR ALL POSITIONS: Fluent in English language, speaking and writing, proficiency is a must. Level 2 background screening and valid Florida driver’s license. EOE

hr@marchouse.org Phone: 305-294-9526 *32

DUI FRONT DESK CLERK & EVALUATOR/INSTRUCTOR

The Advocate Program DUI school is hiring for part time positions. Front desk: 3 days a week, high school diploma required.

DUI instructors and evaluators: 2 days a week, Bachelors or Masters degree in substance abuse eld required. Of ce located in Marathon. Contact Marcia at 305-704-0117.

ARE CENTER, Inc. IS HIRING!

JOIN A HIGHLY EFFECTIVE NONPROFIT HELPING PEOPLE COPE AND CHANGE FOR 52 YEARS!

We provide Mental Health and Substance Use Disorder Treatment Programs to the Florida Keys community while valuing and rewarding our employees.

KEY LARGO Advocate (FT)

Behavioral Health Counselor (Children)

Behavioral Health Therapist (Children)

KEY WEST

Case Manager (Children, Adult, Forensic)

Behavioral Health Therapist (Children) Prevention Specialist Front Desk Specialist Advocate

MARATHON

Care Coordinator (PT)

Driver (CDL not required) (PT)

RN/Licensed Practical Nurse (FT,PT)

Behavioral Health Therapist (Adult)

Maintenance Specialist

*Behavioral Health Technicians – 3 shifts (FT,PT)

*Support Worker (Assisted Living) (FT,PT)

*Night Monitor (Assisted Living - Free Housing)

*No experience required for this position. Will train. A caring heart & helpful hands necessary.

Background and drug screen req. EEOC/DFWP

Apply at guidancecarecenter.org

Search Employment/Portal/Location/zip

OPENINGS AVAILABLE

PHYSICIAN PRACTICE OPENINGS

- Advanced Practice Provider (APRN-PA-C)Surgical, Ortho, Tavernier

- Advanced Practice Provider (APRN-PA-C), BHMG Multispecialty - Marathon, $5k Bonus

- Medical Assistant, Primary Care Marathon, $5k Bonus

MIAMI CANCER INSTITUTE KEY WEST

- Radiation Therapist, $12k Bonus

- Registered Nurse, Chemotherapy Infusion, $15k Bonus

- Advanced Practice Provider (APRN/PA-C), Medical Oncology, $5k Bonus

TAVERNIER

MARINERS HOSPITAL

- Cook, Dietary

- Radiology Technologist 1, Imaging-MRI, $40k Bonus

- Multi-Modality Imaging Tech 1, (Mammo & X Ray), Radiology, $50k Bonus

- Registered Nurse, Emergency Department, $25k Bonus

- Patient Scheduler, Radiology

- ED Team Coordinator 1, Emergency Department

- Environmental Tech 1, $5k Bonus

- MC Multi-Modality Imaging Tech 1, Ultrasound/Vascular with Echo, $50k Bonus

MARATHON FISHERMEN’S COMMUNITY HOSPITAL

- Multi-Modality Imaging Tech 1, (CT & X Ray) Radiology, $50k Bonus

- Radiology Technologist 1, $40k Bonus

- Multi-Modality Imaging Tech 1, (Mammo & X Ray) Radiology, $50k Bonus

- Registered Nurse, Multispecialty Care, $25k Bonus

- Social Work Case Manager, Case Management, $10k Bonus

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability or protected veteran status.

*Sign-on bonuses are available only for select full-time positions based on candidate experience.

THEME: VACATION DESTINATIONS

ACROSS

1. Aladdin’s find

5. Reggae precursor

8. “Lights out” signal

12. Not good

13. Flock’s echo

14. ____ diet, a.k.a. caveman diet

15. Kind of jerk

16. *Southern and Southwestern U.S. region: Sun ____

17. Financial backer

18. *Switzerland’s skiing destination (2 words)

20. Ivan the Terrible, e.g.

21. Clint Eastwood’s “Play ____ for Me”

22. One in a pod

23. Wear out

26. Masculine

30. *Princess’ turf

31. Makes a sum (2 words)

34. “He’s Just Not That ____ You”

35. Dionysus’ pipe-playing companion

37. Choose

38. Provide food

39. Answer from a tunnel

40. Virtual you

42. ____ Scare

43. Prickly plant

45. *Second “National Lampoon’s Vacation” destination

47. Biblical Adam’s partner

48. Cause and effect cycle?

50. Goals

52. *Jamaica and Cayman Islands location

56. Bert’s sidekick

57. Poet Pound

58. Hay bundle

59. “The Great Gatsby” author

60. Billiards relative

61. Theories

62. ____-deaf

63. Boar’s mate

64. Reason to cram

DOWN

1. Not more

2. Swear, not curse

3. Between mini and maxi

4. Bodily fluid

5. Small silvery fish

6. ____ G. of “SpongeBob SquarePants”

7. Aardvark’s repast

8. *Serengeti National Park location

9. Aquatic plant

10. Pressure inducer

11. *Costa del ____, Spain

13. Humiliated

14. Eucharistic plate

19. Fretted instrument

22. OB-GYN test

23. Balance sheet item

24. *Coastal destination

25. Policeman’s club in India

26. Cockapoo or Puggle, e.g.

27. Foreword

28. Make tea

29. Vast multitude

32. Peace symbol

33. *Rest and relaxation destination

36. *El Capitan and Half Dome location

38. Pigeon food?

40. Brewery order

41. Acrobatic move

44. Living room centerpiece?

46. Velveteen creature

48. Type of membranophone

49. Cupid’s ammo

50. Gas station brand

51. Aware of a secret (2 words)

52. Porcinos

53. “At ____, soldier”

54. Charitable contribution

55. Hawk’s aerie, e.g. 56. Time in NYC

Proudly serving Key West to Islamorada as the ONLY locally owned and operated concrete company in the Florida Keys.

Whether you’re building a large commercial building, FDOT bridge, or a customdesigned home, we have concrete mix designs for every project. Thanks to decades of experience, our team can create custom mixes with high-quality additives for specific project needs. We offer the largest variety of materials and operate the only FDOT-certified ready-mix plants in the Florida Keys. Call us for all ready-mix concrete, block, aggregate, rebar and bagged good needs.