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FROM THE EDITOR
Life & Style
It’s often been said that fashion is what you buy, but style is what you do with it. Fort Lauderdale Fashion Week is descending on the city this month, and our Style issue is chock-full of South Florida–friendly goods—from products to places, fashion to food, baubles to beverages—for you to incorporate into your personal style profile.
Fort Lauderdale’s own bathing suit savant Alexandra Grief founded Montce Swimwear out of her apartment (fitting friends for bespoke suits between bartending shifts). Today, her brand features Insta-worthy swim staples worn by some of the hottest celebs on the planet. Check out “The Flawless Fit” on page 50 for Alexandra’s story, and get her tips on how to find the swimsuit that best suits your beach body.
Fashion is a family affair for Silvia Tcherassi and Sofia Espinosa Tcherassi. The design duo’s aesthetic is palpable in the proud Latin American influences that inspire Silvia’s namesake brand. Fashion editor Katherine Lande caught up with this motherdaughter team in “Some Like it Haute.” Turn to page 44 to learn more about the chic women behind this bold brand.
Since March is earmarked as Women’s History Month, don’t miss The Edit on page 30 to shop our editors’ picks from stylish women-led businesses across South Florida.
A s a w o m a n o f s t y l e ( a n d a n a t i v e S o u t h F l o r i d i a n ) , I c o u l d n ’ t i m a g i n e a m o r e fi t t i n g i s s u e t o m a r k m y n e w r o l e a s F o r t L a u d e r d a l e I l l u s t r a t e d ’ s e d i t o r i n c h i e f . I l o o k f o r w a r d t o s h a r i n g t h e b e s t o f t h e a r e a w i t h y o u e a c h m o n t h . H e r e ’ s t o n e w b e g i n n i n g s !
Kristen Desmond LeFevre klefevre@fortlauderdaleillustrated.com
CAPEHART l
ON LOCATION
STEAL A PEEK BEHIND-THESCENES OF THIS MONTH’S 1950S-INSPIRED FASHION FEATURE, SHOT AT BROWARD COUNTY’S OWN GOODYEAR BLIMP BASE. SEE THE FULL STORY STARTING ON PAGE 60.
March Quick Picks
«BEACH BLISS
My fave from this month’s place-based beauty must-haves? Louis Vuitton’s new On the Beach fragrance. Page 33
ART INSPO «
I love artist Keith Haring’s vibrant and iconic works. So I was excited to learn more about one of the artists who inspired him in a new exhibit by NSU Art Museum Fort Lauderdale. Page 80.
Cleveland Clinic Donors Making a Difference
Pushing Boundaries in Cardiology
Jose Navia, MD, Director of the Heart and Vascular Center and Chair of Cardiothoracic Surgery at Cleveland Clinic Florida, is all about pushing boundaries. Before taking his talents to the Sunshine State, the pioneering heart surgeon spent two decades at Cleveland Clinic’s main campus, and was a Cleveland Clinic’s Innovator of the Year Award winner. Today, as the fi rst to hold the S. Donald Sussman Distinguished Chair in Heart and Vascular Research, created with a generous gift from fi nancier and philanthropist S. Donald Sussman, Dr. Navia is able to pursue minimally invasive procedures that will benefi t cardiovascular patients in South Florida and beyond. “We’re developing new technology for transcatheter heart valve repair and valve replacement that allows us to avoid high-risk surgeries,” he says. The doctor is also looking to keep hearts pumping with advances in mechanical assist devices: “The number of potential heart donors is fl at in the U.S. and around the world. These devices will circumvent the shortage and keep patients alive.” Supporting Dr. Navia’s work was a shrewd move, says Sussman. “In business and in philanthropy, my approach has always been the same: Find brilliant people and back them in ways that lead to the best outcomes.”
Research Takes Aim at Women’s Heart Health
Heart disease and stroke claim the lives of more women than all forms of cancer combined, yet many women are unaware of the threat that cardiovascular disease poses to their health. Cleveland Clinic, the top-rated heart program in the United States, has inspired the longtime support of Kathryn and Leo Vecellio, Florida residents and long-standing advocates for Cleveland Clinic Weston. After Kathryn Vecellio’s father had double bypass surgery and she had three aortic valve replacements at Cleveland Clinic, the couple made a generous gift to the Sydell and Arnold Miller Family Heart & Vascular Institute in 2008. With another gift in 2017, they established the Kathryn C. and Leo A. Vecellio Women’s Cardiology Research Fund, which supports the work of Leslie Cho, MD, Director of Cleveland Clinic’s Women’s Cardiovascular Center. “Their gift allows me to do further research on women and valve disease, specifi cally mitral valve disease,” says Dr. Cho, who holds the Karos Family Term Chair in Women’s Cardiovascular Research. “The Vecellios’ gift is helping us better defi ne and understand valve disease and its treatment in men and women.”
Covering the Cost of Lifesaving Tests
Last year, nearly 1,000 patients at Cleveland Clinic Martin Health benefi ted from life-saving lung cancer screenings, thanks to the Caryl Plunkett Hope Fund, which helps patients who can’t afford to pay high deductibles and co-payments. Caryl Plunkett lost her life to lung cancer in 2015. Her family created the fund in her memory to raise awareness about the prevalence and the impact of lung cancer, which has a 90 percent survival rate if caught early. The fund has helped thousands of patients like Lana, who canceled her screening appointment because she couldn’t afford the co-pay. After a nurse encouraged her to apply for assistance through the Plunkett fund, she qualifi ed to receive two screenings that resulted in a diagnosis of Stage 1A lung cancer. The cancer was caught early and successfully treated, and today she is cancer-free.
Outsmarting the Next Viruses
In 2020, celebrated virologist Michaela Gack, PhD, moved her lab from Chicago to Port St. Lucie to lead a team of daring virus hunters as the Scientifi c Director of Cleveland Clinic’s Florida Research and Innovation Center (FRIC). Supported by the Arthur and Marylin Levitt Endowed Chair, Dr. Gack and FRIC scientists are on a mission to outsmart viruses such as mosquito-transmitted Zika and West Nile, wickedly clever pathogens that have learned to trick the body’s immune response, delaying it or escaping detection like a burglar who sneaks into the house after disabling the alarm system. The FRIC’s newest area of research has the potential to be even more game-changing. While broad-spectrum antibiotics such as amoxicillin and tetracycline can be deployed against a wide range of disease-causing bacteria, there are no broad-spectrum antivirals to treat a host of viral invaders, from coronaviruses to the Powassan virus delivered by a bite from a tick. “They don’t exist,” says Dr. Gack. Trying to develop a specifi c antiviral treatment for each new virus that emerges is an impossible contest of whack-a-mole on a global scale—we can’t hope to keep up. Dr. Gack has a better idea: With the help of more bold philanthropists, she aims to create “readyto-use” antiviral drugs that target multiple viruses, not just one, before the next deadly pandemic strikes.
Compassionate Care Provided for Each Other
As part of the $48M campaign that built and equipped the Scully-Welsh Cancer Center at Cleveland Clinic Indian River, the Pay It Forward Fund was launched by a lead gift from the Bernard Egan Foundation to support patients needing assistance paying for their care. Embraced by donors across the community, Pay It Forward especially resonated with Indian River caregivers, who raised more than $150K to surpass a matching challenge by the Bernard Egan Foundation, inspiring the foundation to more than match the caregivers’ total. Support for the fund now exceeds $2.2M, largely thanks to the ongoing generosity of the Bernard Egan Foundation. On average, more than 80 Indian River County patients benefi t each year from Pay It Forward. Additionally, the fund supports screenings for nearly 400 individuals who are at high risk for cancer.
WORLD CLASS CARE IS CLOSER THAN YOU THINK
From Weston to Vero Beach, we’re always nearby. Find care near you: Visit ClevelandClinic.org/ orida
VERO BEACH
PORT ST. LUCIE
STUART (NORTH)
STUART (SOUTH)
WEST PALM BEACH
CORAL SPRINGS WESTON
