Vol. 9, Issue 8, August 2021
Your community. Your magazine. ™
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The Premier “Shop Local” Community Magazine Directly Mailed To 15,000 Homes In Carrollwood, Lake Magdalene & Avila
Same Day Teeth®: The New Way to Bring Back Your Beautiful Natural Smile “Thanks to Dr. Pikos and Dr. Hedger I now have a beautiful smile,” recalls Gail Portervint. Gail suffered from periodontitis which caused tooth and bone loss. She came to Coastal Jaw Surgery looking for help with her failing teeth and to restore her self-confidence. The doctors at Coastal Jaw Surgery have been caring for patients in the Greater Tampa Bay Area for over 38 years. Dr. Michael A. Pikos opened the Palm Harbor office with the goal to treat patients like family while ensuring their oral surgical needs are cared for. As the practice grew, he expanded to five locations in Palm Harbor, Spring Hill, New Port Richey, Trinity, and Tampa. Our dynamic, surgical based multispecialty team consists of Dr. Michael A, Pikos, Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeon, Dr.
Kenneth L. Anderson III, Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeon, Dr. Jason B. Blundell, Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeon, Dr. Nicole Hernandez, Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeon, Dr. Lindsey Pikos Rosati, Periodontist, Dr. Anthony M. Pikos, Periodontist, and Dr. Philip J. Hedger, Prosthodontist, who are committed to the practice’s mission to provide exceptional dental care under one roof while creating a safe, welcoming environment to make all patients feel like family. The practice specializes in dental implants with an emphasis on the Same Day Teeth® procedure created by Dr. Michael A. Pikos. Same Day Teeth® is an innovative surgical procedure that bypasses the traditional dental implant’s time-consuming process and allows for the placement of
INSIDE THIS ISSUE From the Editor................................................5 SAT and ACT Improvement..............................10 Tech Talk with Bob..........................................12 Emerge180 and the Employee Retention Credit Program..........................................16-17
See “Coastal Jaw” on page 8
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Visiting Our Florida Beaches? Please Read! In preparation for Labor Day weekend in early September, I wanted to give you a quick update on the conditions of our beautiful beaches with the current red tide situation. Red tide it’s not a new occurrence in Florida, but water pollution, climate change, and the recent Tropical Storm Elsa may have worsened the proliferation of this naturally occurring phenomenon. During red tide, a collection of harmful algae and other microscopic marine organisms called “Karenia Brevis” grows and accumulates in toxic and harmful “blooms,” which are highly deadly to fish and unpleasant for humans. High concentrations of red tide “blooms” have been reported throughout several counties, including Hillsborough, Pinellas, Pasco, Manatee, and Sarasota. Tons of dead fish carcasses have been washed ashore in Florida’s Gulf Coast beaches and waterfront parks due to the harmful effects of red tide on marine life. The Tampa Bay Beaches Chamber of Commerce (TBBCoC) released an update stating that on Wednesday, July 21, “the water along the beaches from St. Pete Beach to Belleair Shores is very discolored, and the aerosols were extremely strong. The beaches from Madeira north to Indian Rocks are heavily impacted. Each municipality has been actively working to remove the dead fish, and contractor resources were deployed as needed to assist.” That characteristic “gross dead fish smell” is definitely more overpowering in certain areas, and respiratory irritation has been reported by several residents of Pinellas County and Hillsborough county. If you or any family member experience respiratory discomfort and irritation, please wear a mask. Make sure to cover your nose and mouth to filter
out marine aerosol particles containing red tide toxins. If you’re asthmatic or have chronic lung disease, be vigilant about taking your prescribed meds daily. The state health department recommends that people with such diseases try their best to avoid beaches currently affected by the red tide. Always seek medical care if your symptoms worsen. Bathing and swimming are okay for most people. However, red tide can cause skin irritation and burning eyes. Use common sense— if you are particularly susceptible to irritation from plant products, avoid red tidewater. If you experience irritation, get out and thoroughly wash off. Avoid swimming among dead fish because they are associated with harmful bacteria. Ongoing cleanup efforts are slowly but effectively improving the beaches’ condition, but you must proceed cautiously. I would personally like to take this opportunity to thank our Governor, city officials, city workers, shrimping boat captains, local fishermen, and every member and volunteer involved in the cleaning efforts of our beaches. For the latest Red Tide status report (available by phone), call 866-300-9399 at any time. I encourage anyone planning a fun beach weekend to check out https// visitbeaches.org for the most updated information on beach conditions. P.S. Happy National Dog Month to all Dog Owners!!! Just make sure your pup stays away from the dead fish if you’re strolling down our beaches! August celebrates our lovable canine pals, so make sure you do something special for your four-legged best friend during these dog days of summer. Until next time,
Carla M. Dubis Tedeschi.
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“Coastal Jaw”
- continued from page 1 implants and new teeth to occur on the very same day. Same Day Teeth® protocol begins with a 3D cone beam computed tomography (CBCT) scan, which will provide us with 3D images of your bone, nerve pathways, soft tissues, and teeth, which allows us to determine the optimal placement of your implants using the best digital assessment software and related state-of-the-art technology to ensure that your treatment is truly customized. Most service providers, especially corporate-based, treat everyone the same way with the one-size-fitsall mentality. You are as unique as your fingerprint and as a result, we draw from a variety of digital-based, precision solutions to give
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you a customized beautiful natural smile and restore your ability to eat and chew foods that you love. Our unique approach not only includes a comprehensive treatment plan for each of our patients, but also a thorough explanation. “The best around not only in Florida but I am convinced the best in the nation”, states Nicholas Louis. Nicholas
received traditional dental implants for his Same Day Teeth® procedure. Dental implants are artificial tooth roots surgically placed in your jaw to support replacement teeth. These replacement teeth are designed to look and feel like your natural teeth, restore the aesthetic appearance of your smile, provide optimal functionality,
and reduce your risk of developing other oral health issues. Coastal Jaw Surgery offers several dental implant options to ensure your smile is natural and custom to you. Same Day Teeth® offers patients a beautiful, natural smile completed on the same day with the use of dental implants, zygomatic implants, or subperiosteal
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From left to right Dr. Philip J. Hedger, Dr. Jason B. Blundell, Dr. Nicole Hernandez, Dr. Michael A. Pikos, Dr. Lindsey Pikos Rosati, Dr. Kenneth L. Anderson III, and Dr. Anthony M. Pikos implants. Patients who are missing all of the teeth in their upper jaw or whose teeth have broken down due to advanced periodontal disease may be good candidates for zygomatic dental implants. These implants are longer and anchored in the upper jawbone near the zygoma bone. Patients who are experiencing significant bone loss in the lower jaw may be good candidates for subperiosteal implants. This type of implant must
be custom-made to fit the contours of a patient’s bone. Whether it is traditional dental implants, zygomatic implants, or subperiosteal implants, we have a solution to your missing teeth or loose dentures. If you have been told you can’t have dental implants due to bone loss, Coastal Jaw Surgery is the answer for you. Our doctors have the opportunity to help you with missing teeth or ill-fitted dentures now with Same Day Teeth®’s solutions to
traditional dental implants. We encourage second opinions. We want to make sure that the best treatment possible is presented to you so the end result gives you back your smile and self-confidence. Our Coastal Jaw Surgery team of oral and maxillofacial surgeons, periodontists, and prosthodontist have nearly 80 combined years of experience within the realm of implant dentistry, oral surgery, periodontics, and prosthodontics. There is no
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better place to go for your comprehensive implant care. If you are missing teeth or wear dentures that aren’t fitting right - call Coastal Jaw Surgery to make a Same Day Teeth® appointment today. Transform your smile. Change your life with Same Day Teeth® at Coastal Jaw Surgery! Call 800-NEW-LOOK or visit www.CoastalJaw.com to book your appointment today!
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SAT AND ACT IMPROVEMENT: FALL IS HERE! By Dr. Wayne Adams FALL EXAM DATES: SAT: August 28, October 2, December 4; ACT: September 11, October 23, December 11. Summer vacation went by too fast! Now that school has restarted (or is about to), everyone gets to refocus and get ready for the fall. Happily, most Covid 19 concerns are behind us, college campuses are reopening, and life is moving on. For Seniors, it’s a combination of doing well academically, activities, and preparing the best college applications. From my prior articles, you know that more and more and more colleges are admitting up to half their classes or more with early admissions and the chances of admissions are about three times higher than with applying at the normal time. Check out these dates and requirements on the college websites, or call the admissions office. If your SAT and/or ACT scores are not where you want for admissions and/or Bright Futures, give me a call. For Juniors, it’s the middledistance lap in high school balancing academics and activities with doing well on the PSAT in October and building a resume for college applications. If you are aiming high, for a “top 25 school”, know that the best way to really “stand out” is to build a distinctive strength, to become outstanding in some field that you enjoy. There is a myth around that colleges are looking for “well rounded” students. Top colleges want “lopsided” students, those who have something outstanding (other than grades and SAT/ACT scores) and can change the world. They equate “well-rounded” with mediocre! For Sophomores, it’s the next lap in a longer-distance run with academics, activities, and longer term planning for college applications. On occasion,
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schools will give an SAT or an ACT exam for “placement”, which means determining which academic level courses that student can take. If you are aiming high for colleges it is not too early to start preparing for the SAT and/or ACT exams. I continue to innovate with new approaches to all areas of exam prep. For example, Reverse Engineering and interactively taking the Writing and Language section of the SAT and English section of the ACT produce major improvements; “6 strategies” on the ‘yellow brick road” is a smash hit for Reading on the SAT, and “Reading for what you need” on the ACT do the same on the ACT Reading giving most students an additional 4-5 minutes to find the answers on this exam; special preparation for “Curve Balls” in math jump a student’s score while greatly improving self-confidence on both exams; and “Bottomup Reading” and “Five key strategies” are making a great difference on the Science part of the ACT. My guide Achieve and Maintain Your Peak Mental Performance Zone On The SAT, ACT, And In Life has proven to be very helpful to all students in handling “test anxiety”, maintaining focus, and reestablishing control during these exams. A surprising finding about the staggering level of student debt at $1.7 trillion (with a “T”) recently exploded with a Wall Street Journel expose article about how elite and other universities are heavily marketing master’s degrees that they know will never pay back enough to justify the education. For example, a Master’s in Fine Arts from Columbia in NYC puts many students $300k in debt for jobs that maybe pay $50k a year. Another article showed that an MBA from Harvard Business School produced a 1.8 multiple
from the average debt to the average first year compensation including hiring bonus. UF ranked second on this relationship with almost a 6:1 multiple. Plus, UF grads usually work in lower cost areas, so their money goes farther. The point is that, when considering an undergraduate major, take a close look at options for a masters degree in that field including costs, possible debt, and starting salaries. Never forget that universities are a business, and many make a 70% cash flow profit on their masters degrees, get paid up front, and saddle many students with debt for the rest of their lives without blinking an eye. See https://www.wsj.com/articles/ financially-hobbled-for-life-theelite-masters-degrees-that-dontpay-off-11625752773. You can find many more articles about this on-line. As you know, my goal for my students and their families is that they have their best possible futures – which includes doing their best on the SAT and/or ACT Exams. This is part of the college admissions counseling and planning we also do during our course. If You Would Like To Talk More With Dr. Adams About Your Student … Please contact him at 727-253-0639 or send an email to wwa0811@mykolab.com. Dr. Wayne Adams is one of the leading SAT and ACT tutors
in the country. His students normally improve 200 – 300 points on the Writing, Reading, and Math, and 4 – 7 points on the ACT composite. They have been admitted to 5 OF THE “Topo 5”, 9 of the “Top 10”, and 18 of the “Top 25” universities, and many more schools in Florida and around the country. These schools include Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Columbia, Stanford, U Chicago, Duke, U Penn, Johns Hopkins, Cornell, Notre Dame, Emory, UC Berkley, UCLA, USC, UNC (Chapel Hill), University of Virginia, NYU, Northeastern (Boston), Boston College, Georgia Tech, Air Force - Naval, a- Merchant Marine Service Academies, Penn State, Purdue, Ohio State, LSU, Auburn, UF, U Miami, FSU, USF, UCF, Florida Atlantic, Florida Gulf Coast, FIU, New College of Florida, Stetson, and Julliard – Manhattan - New England - and Berkley Conservatories of Music. Many have received academic, athletic, or music scholarships. He has also tutored three juniors who became national merit finalists with their scores on the PSAT. He is a former Dean of a Graduate School of Business and Full Professor, and began college teaching at the University of Maryland in 1968. He has degrees and advanced studies at Harvard, Yale, Vanderbilt, Columbia International, and Luther Rice.
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Tech Talk with Bob: Did you keep the box?
Do you act like a kid when you get a new tech toy? I know I do. It’s fine to be excited when you open the box. I would suggest however, you open it in a manner that does not destroy the integrity of the box and not damage or obscure any labels attached to its exterior. Be gentle because even after the device is removed, the box can still offer valuable protection. Most stores offer return policies if your new device doesn’t work. Become familiar with the return policy of any store before you spend your money. Some stores give cash refunds. Others only offer exchanges. Rarely you may find a store that has no return policy, and you must deal directly with the device’s manufacturer warranty. Know your options should your new device come out of the box defective.
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Keep the box in nice condition until you know your new device is functioning properly. Most stores will not accept returns without the device’s original packaging. If you purchased online, you need the box to safely ship it back to the seller. How long should you keep the box? At minimum, at least as long as the store’s return policy. Unfortunately, I have seen people get stuck with a lemon because they threw the box away too soon. Hey if you bought a new laptop computer and it works, that’s wonderful! That’s what you expect. However, if you throw the box away the day after you buy the laptop, and then it fails a week later, you may have a difficult time convincing the store to take it back. Then your only recourse will be dealing with the manufacturer. And that could take weeks or even months. Whereas if you had the packaging, you could take it right back to the store for an immediate refund or exchange. When the time finally comes to discard the box be sure to do this first. Either scan or take a picture of the labels on the box exterior that give the details of your device. I have included an example. This is a great way to identify and document your laptop’s particulars, especially if it is lost or stolen. The brand, model, series, part number,
serial number and other details are on these labels. Did you write down the serial number of your laptop? Taking a couple of pictures can avoid not having this information and avoids mistakes or illegible handwriting. In the world of computers, there is a big difference between the number zero and the letter O; the number one or the letter I. What’s the saying? A picture is worth a thousand words. Just remember to save the picture somewhere other than on the laptop itself and always print a hard copy for your paper file. Never forget, cyber criminals will exploit the easy victims and unprotected systems. Whether you are a business or non-profit who keeps records about clients, customers, prospects, employees, vendors, sales, budgets, inventories… you get the idea. It is your responsibility to protect your personal network, your computer’s operation, and your data. Even a home user who may keep records about club members, kids sports leagues, volunteer work, or just filing your income taxes on your home computer, is a target. How safe is your computer? My staff and I are here to keep your computer safer and stay running. You don’t have to go it alone my Friend. We have the best solutions already in place and we’re
here to help. If you question your computer’s safety or performance, call us now at 727-534-4000. We’ve been helping folks restore their peace of mind, and sanity, with their technology for decades. We Keep You Safer In Your Digital World!
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Emerge180 Gets Businesses Money through the IRS Employee Retention Credit Program By Deborah Bostock-Kelley Imagine after your business struggled to stay afloat through the pandemic, you are slowly recovering. It hasn’t been easy, but you’ve done everything possible to keep your doors open. On this particular day, you go out to the mailbox, and an envelope from the IRS is waiting for you. With bated breath and a silent plea, you tear open the envelope to reveal a check and the answer to your prayers. If something sounds too good to be true, it usually is correct to trust your instincts. If someone said your business could get money back from the IRS because of the pandemic, you might shake your head or roll your eyes. However, this is no fallacy, just a little-known Employee Retention Credit Program, and Emerge180 is leading the charge in getting their clients real money - not future credits against taxes - but actual checks from the IRS. Your business could qualify if you suffered a gross revenue drop or faced limited ability to operate due to a government order and opened before December 31, 2020. You must have under 500 full-time employees that receive W2 wages; 1099 independent contractors are ineligible. If you responded yes to these requirements, you might be eligible to participate in the government’s bestkept secret, the Employee Retention Credit Program, even if you took advantage of the PPP loan program. If you were forced to choose between paying businesses taxes or keeping your employees on payroll and your doors open in 2020, this program could even be used to wipe out tax debt. Jonathan Field, president of Emerge180, stressed that this program is open to any type of business and industry. From yoga studios, salons, daycare, restaurants, auto repair, churches, private schools
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to medical and dental practices and law firms, chiropractors, and many in the hospitality field, your business simply needs to meet the eligibility criteria to apply. “I literally had a client so excited call me up because he got a check for 1.86 million dollars through this program. It was the difference between being able to continue on or not being able to make it.” And there’s no up-front cost. Payment is received only after you have your IRS check in hand. “You need to be licensed tax professionals, which we are, to understand this. We have a team of dedicated professionals working on this program every day,” he said. “We’ve had clients receive over two and half million dollars, and there’s more coming every single day. This is money that they can use for their business to keep it going, to reimburse themselves or their employees from throughout this pandemic. I can’t stress how important this program is, and no one is talking about it, or when they do, there’s a lot of misinformation and misunderstanding about the program.” Emerge 180 accepts walk-in appointments, has a dedicated phone line set up for specifically ERC program inquiries, an online calendar for appointment bookings, and a resource center that provides webinars about the Employee Retention Credit Program. If you answered yes to the three qualifiers, you could receive a refund of $5000 per employee in 2020 and
Jonathan Field, president of Emerge180 $28,000 per employee in 2021. Jonathan said, “We’re with our clients throughout the process. Each company goes through a specific eligibility review with a tax attorney. They will know not only what they are eligible for but the timeframe. It’s that level of knowledge and expertise that goes into every single client. Because we are dealing with the IRS and payroll data, we’ve also built one of the most ultra-secure integrated platforms for our client’s information. We’re very conscientious of that as well. We’ve been doing this for several months now, leading on this program locally and nationally. We’ve learned all the nuances that are
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necessary for a business to take advantage of them. Not only are we ensuring that the client is accurate on their eligibility, but we’re also able to complete all of the IRS forms and all of the supporting documentation.” Because of their vast historical tax experience, Emerge 180 has an excellent follow-up process in place with the IRS. “We’re checking on the status, so we know whether
or not it’s been assigned to a specific individual for processing,” he said. “We are with you from start to finish. From the day you sign up with us to the day you get all that money, and afterward if the IRS has additional questions. We have the team and the builtin knowledge to do that.” The timeframe averages two to three weeks from sitting down with an Emerge 180 professional
and signing up to your application submission to the IRS. The IRS portion of the process ranges from six months, and at the longest wait time, nine months. “I get so excited talking about this program because it is in such alignment with the core values of Emerge 180. With everything that has happened to small businesses over the past 16 months, we look at it as our
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mission to do everything possible to impact the small business community in a positive way.” To learn more about Emerge180 and the Employee Retention Credit Program, visit emerge180. com and schedule your consultation or call 813803-5300. Emerge 180 is located at 13902 N. Dale Mabry Hwy, Suite 225.
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