10/24/2019 ISSUE 43

Beachside parking fixes seen
costing $500,000. P11
Teachers get bonus
and a pay increase. P10

Customs facility at Vero airport
would entail no cost to taxpayers. P7

Virgin Rail seeks For breaking news visit
local support for
costly new bridge Luxury seaside
condos set for
Florida Tech site

BY GEORGE ANDREASSI BY NICOLE RODRIGUEZ
Staff Writer Staff Writer

Virgin Trains USA is ask- Michael David Jones in court on the day before his murder trial was to go to the jury. PHOTO BY KAILA JONES Vero Beach real estate de-
ing local officials in one of the veloper Coastmark Compa-
counties its high-speed trains Circumstantial evidence key to Jones verdict nies plans to build luxury
must pass through en route seaside condominiums on the
from West Palm Beach to Or- BY LISA ZAHNER The language is not in the Stanley Glenn asserted that abandoned Florida Institute
lando to help apply for tens of Staff Writer standard criminal jury instruc- those words should not be of Technology lab site adja-
millions of dollars in federal tions, so the matter was up for included in the instructions cent to the county’s Tracking
grants for an elevator bridge “The intent with which an act debate. Vaughn would give jurors on Station Park.
traversing the environmental- is done is an operation of the
ly sensitive St. Lucie River. mind and, therefore, is not al- Assistant Public Defender CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 Coastmark has the prime
ways capable of direct and posi- 4-acre, oceanfront parcel un-
The proposed new two-track tive proof. It may be established PHOTO OF A SNAIL KITE BY MAC STONE der contract and is “currently
bridge – featuring four 80-foot- by circumstantial evidence like conducting due diligence on
tall lift towers – would replace any other fact in a case.” the land,” according to com-
an 81-year-old drawbridge, pany vice president Yane Zana.
one of the few historic bridges That language, from the
Virgin Trains initially planned Florida Supreme Court guide- The news comes a week af-
to rehabilitate. lines for jury instructions, was ter the Vero Beach City Coun-
the last thing prosecutors and cil approved a request by FIT
Virgin Trains Vice President defense attorneys working the to have the property – a small
Rusty Roberts met privately first-degree murder case of swatch of unincorporated
with Martin County and Stu- accused killer Michael David Indian River County sand-
art City commissioners during Jones argued about Monday wiched between the town of
the past two weeks to pitch the afternoon before Judge Dan Indian River Shores to the
Vaughn recessed his court-
CONTINUED ON PAGE 4 room for the day. CONTINUED ON PAGE 6

Sebastian cop acquitted 8 local bird species
in death of K-9 partner are seen threatened
by climate change
BY GEORGE WHITE
Staff Writer BY SUE COCKING
Staff Writer
Sebastian police officer Eric
Antosia will always have to live A new report produced
with what happened on April by the National Audubon
28, 2017, to his K-9 partner Society says nearly two-
Diesel, but at least now he can thirds of North American
move on from legal actions
that were lodged against him. CONTINUED ON PAGE 8

CONTINUED ON PAGE 3

October 24, 2019 Volume 12, Issue 43 Newsstand Price $1.00 Touch a Truck:
Honk if you love
News 1-12 Faith 39 Pets 40 TO ADVERTISE CALL family fun. P14
Arts 23-28 Games 41-43 Real Estate 61-72 772-559-4187
Books 38 Health 45-49 St. Edward’s 50
Dining 54 Insight 29-44 Style 51-53 FOR CIRCULATION
Editorial 34 People 13-22 Wine 55 CALL 772-226-7925

© 2019 Vero Beach 32963 Media LLC. All rights reserved.

2 Vero Beach 32963 / October 24, 2019 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

NEWS

Jones murder trial Jones and Duve, their friends and the Those who had previously never as jurors returned each morning in
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 soap opera of their turbulent four- sat through a criminal trial were likely hopes of getting to the bottom of what
month relationship. amazed – perhaps even appalled – at happened to the young nurse who was
Tuesday when sending them out to the level of detail, down to petty minu- never seen alive again after leaving
deliberate Jones’ guilt or innocence. Video evidence, witness testimony and tiae, that attorneys ask about and wit- What-A-Tavern with Jones.
a credit card receipt from the wee hours nesses talk about on the stand.
But Chief Assistant State Attorney of June 20, 2014, told jurors what Duve Fast-forward a chapter and jurors
Tom Bakkedahl urged Vaughn to in- In this tragic novella of a case, there heard even more witness testimony –
struct the jury “that circumstantial NEWS ANALYSIS was a nauseating amount of detail and saw volumes of evidence – about
evidence is good evidence,” in Bakke- – from the recipe for the shots of li- what Jones did, where he went, whom
dahl’s words, because the State of and Jones did, who they were out drink- quor the couple drank, to the fact they he called and sent text messages to
Florida’s case relied heavily on jurors ing with, and that they left a Vero Beach played the jukebox just hours before after Duve was the subject of a frantic
filling in the gaps when it came to the bar together after two hours of what ap- police say Jones brutally murdered missing persons case opened by the
death of 26-year-old Diana Duve. peared to be the rekindling of a tumultu- Duve, to the reading of text messages Vero Beach Police Department.
ous on-again, off-again romance. about Jones and his buddy playing
By the conclusion of the six-day video games and discussing sports. That investigation over the next few
trial, jurors knew an awful lot about days, conducted by law enforcement
It was easy to get lost in the story, agencies in three counties, involved
numerous search warrants, interviews,
cell phone location “pings” and old-
fashioned shoe-leather police work.

By the end of the trial, it was safe to say
the prosecution had proven that Jones
lied – a lot. It was also safe to say they
proved he destroyed evidence, obstruct-
ed justice, transported Duve’s body and
holed up in a Hampton Inn in Fort Pierce
to avoid being found by police or Duve’s
increasingly worried and desperate par-
ents, grandparents and friends.

But he was not charged with those
things, so he couldn’t be found guilty
of them.

Presenting evidence of Jones’ acts,
conflicting statements and deceptions
as part of the case went to establishing
premeditation – that invisible intent
that is an “operation of the mind.”

After retiring briefly to his chambers
Monday to conduct some legal research
and consider the request, and the de-
fense’s objection, Vaughn ruled that the
jury would, as Bakkedahl requested,
hear the language on circumstantial
evidence and intent, because he said it
was “a correct statement of the law.”

It was the jury’s job to take all the
substantial evidence presented about
what happened before Jones and
Duve left the bar at 1:13 a.m. on June
20, 2014, and analyze that in conjunc-
tion with what happened after Jones
surfaced later that day and allegedly
began to cover his tracks.

The chapter in between – the one in-
volving Duve taking her last breath, and
Jones allegedly driving away in Duve’s
car with her near-naked body in the
trunk – was where jurors needed to rely
squarely upon circumstantial evidence.

How did she die? When did she die?
Where exactly did she die? Was she
held against her will? How much did
she suffer? How long did she struggle
and fight back against her assailant?

Forensic evidence presented by a
crime scene specialist, a lab techni-
cian and no less than three medical
examiners attempted to answer most
of these questions. The problem was
that the medical experts disagreed on
some important points.

Three experts with more than a cen-
tury of combined experience came to

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / October 24, 2019 3

NEWS

different conclusions looking at the dian River County or Brevard County. idence which was being used in place table until the courtroom had nearly
same physical evidence. Deemed a tragic accident without of direct testimony and evidence on emptied. An experienced and accom-
many key elements in the case. One plished dog handler, Antosia remains
The defense’s medical expert a crime, there would be no reason for example was the testimony of a veteri- off the K-9 unit by choice as he still
opined that Duve died from repeated criminal charges which held a fine of narian who examined Diesel, but was grieves the loss of Diesel, said Eisen-
blows to the head, which rendered her up to $5,000, according to the success- limited in what she could be asked menger.
unconscious. Then, he thought, she ful strategy employed from the start because the judge ruled she did not
was placed in the trunk of her Nissan by defense attorney Gregory Eisen- qualify as an expert witness. Antosia will continue to work as a
Altima very much alive, but died be- menger. road patrol officer as he has since June
cause her body was positioned in such Antosia, overcome with emotion, 22, 2018, after the conclusion of the
a way that she could not breathe if she Eisenmenger also argued that the remained in his seat at the defense
did regain consciousness. state was relying on circumstantial ev- CONTINUED ON PAGE 4

The state’s two medical examiners
from the 18th Circuit in Brevard plus the
19th Circuit, which includes Indian River
County, both said Duve died of manual
strangulation. All three gave convincing
testimony to support their findings.

Anyone who has tried to decide on
a course of medical treatment based
upon conflicting doctors’ diagnoses
and recommendations could relate to
what the Jones jury faced this week.

This confusing morass, delineated
by roughly 200 pieces of evidence and
dozens of hours of witness testimony,
was what 12 jurors were tasked with
sorting out.

A jury of Jones’ peers, most without
any particular relevant medical, legal
or technical expertise, had to reach a
consensus on the three elements of
the charged crime of first-degree mur-
der – that Duve died, that Jones killed
her and that he meant to do it, with
intent and forethought.

Anything less would not be pre-
meditated, first-degree murder. Con-
viction for any lesser crime, such as
second-degree murder, would save
Jones from Florida’s death row and an

eventual end by lethal injection. 

Cop acquitted in K-9 death
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

Diesel, a black German Shepherd
dog, died after being left several hours
in a police SUV on a day when tempera-
tures rose to 88 degrees. Honored as a
hero, Diesel’s photo and story are listed
alongside other fallen law enforcement
personnel on the Officer Down Me-
morial Page.

But tears of relief and cheers marked
last week’s acquittal of Antosia, who
had faced a first-degree misdemeanor
animal cruelty charge.

The surprise dismissal by Brevard
County Circuit Judge Kelly Ingram oc-
curred before the three-man, three-
woman jury got a chance to hear final
arguments.

The three-day trial ended when In-
gram ruled that Assistant State Attor-
ney Michael Hill had not proved the
cause of death of the animal, when
and why the death occurred, if others
had access to the vehicle, and the lo-
cation of the vehicle at time of death,
which could have been either in In-

4 Vero Beach 32963 / October 24, 2019 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

NEWS

Cop acquitted in K-9 death on the company’s efforts to establish a lift bridge, said City Attorney Mi- An average of 455 boats passed
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 3 passenger rail service up the Treasure chael Mortell. through the bridge on Sundays and
and Space coasts to Orlando by sum- 351 on Saturdays in 2015, a Martin
Internal Affairs investigation into the mer 2022. “I don’t know how the commission- County report shows. The average dai-
death, according to Sebastian Police ers are going to vote,” Mortell said Fri- ly boat count ranged from 110 and 176
Lt. Timothy Wood. “The type of bridge we are exploring day. “I know people in Martin County on weekdays.
the feasibility of is called a ‘lift bridge,’” don’t like change and two giant eleva-
“After extensive criminal and ad- Roberts said. “It works like an elevator, tor shafts sticking 65 feet in the air will The St. Lucie River is part of the
ministrative investigations, all evi- but it is called a lift bridge.” Four col- definitely constitute change.” Okeechobee Waterway, a federal trans-
dence indicates that this was an un- umns would lift the bridge deck about portation facility linking the Atlantic
fortunate tragic incident that was 80 feet above the river so sailboats, But cooperating with Virgin Trains Ocean to Lake Okeechobee and ulti-
unintentional,” said Sebastian Police large yachts and barges could go un- on the proposed lift bridge could help mately the Gulf of Mexico.
Chief Michelle Morris. “We have ex- der, Roberts said. city officials convince the company to
amined every aspect of our procedures develop a train station in downtown Several Martin and Indian Riv-
and equipment to prevent a similar When closed, the bridge deck would Stuart, Mortell said. er county officials criticized Virgin
situation from occurring again. sit 18 feet above the river, so all but the Trains’ efforts to obtain more govern-
largest vessels could pass beneath with And building the lift bridge would ment money for a project originally
“While nothing is guaranteed, I am no need to raise the span, Roberts said. resolve the boat traffic issues in the St. billed as privately funded.
confident that we have addressed this Lucie River, Mortell said.
The lift bridge would alleviate long- “I recognize the bridge has to be
best as is humanly possible.”  standing concerns of Martin County “In my mind, it offers a lot of benefits improved, but that’s not taxpayers’
boaters and the Marine Industries As- and the alternative seems like it won’t responsibility,” said Martin County
Virgin Rail seeks local support sociation of the Treasure Coast, Rob- work,” Mortell said. “If we just have a sin- Commissioner Sarah Heard. “That’s
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 erts said. Mariners worried the addi- gle-track bridge with a 5-foot clearance Virgin Trains’ responsibility.”
tion of 34 passenger trains per day to (above the river), I think it’ll end up be-
lift bridge concept and ask their assis- 20 daily freight trains would cause the ing closed so much for trains and so few “I don’t want to go on the hook any
tance. “In order to undertake a proj- old St. Lucie River Railroad Bridge to boats will be able to go through, it will re- more for Virgin Trains,” Heard said Fri-
ect of this kind of scope, it’s important be locked down for long stretches and ally impede the maritime (traffic).” day. “I think we’ve been generous – too
to have local support,” Roberts said. create boat traffic backups. generous. I think it’s time for the taxpay-
“They could even serve as co-appli- Virgin Trains had previously in- ers to stop building their infrastructure.”
cants for the grant.” Virgin Trains hopes the Martin dicated the St. Lucie River Railroad
County and Stuart city commissioners Bridge would be the only section of Indian River County Attorney Dylan
Roberts was scheduled to update pitch in to obtain federal money for the Orlando-to-Miami route with a Reingold expressed similar sentiments
South Florida and Treasure Coast of- the proposed lift bridge, Roberts said. single track. about the possibility of federal fund-
ficials on Friday in West Palm Beach ing for St. Lucie River Railroad Bridge.
Stuart commissioners could vote “I assume what’s really happened is
as soon as November on a resolution they’ve determined the single track is “Why wasn’t Brightline and Virgin
endorsing the idea of pursuing a Fed- just not going to work out, so they’re Trains proposing to do that from the
eral Railway Administration grant for trying to fix it to be double-tracked,” beginning?” Reingold said Friday. “It
Mortell said. seems like their proposal was: ‘No,

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / October 24, 2019 5

NEWS

that’s too expensive. We’re just going ing Indian River and Brevard coun- ports state Sen. Debbie Mayfield’s it’s important to his constituents in
to later get the federal government to ties. Indian River County officials said passenger rail safety legislation and southern Brevard County to ensure
pay for it.’” Virgin Trains has not yet told them the intends to sponsor a companion bill the Virgin Trains passenger service is
details of the plans to for the bridge in the House during the session start- as safe as possible.
Virgin Trains USA earlier decided to construction. ing Jan. 14.
replace the 93-year-old St. Sebastian “Sen. Mayfield and I want to make
River Railroad Bridge with a modern Meanwhile, state Rep. Tyler Sirois Sirois, who generally supports pas- sure FDOT is paying attention to this
1,600-foot-long concrete bridge link- (R-Melbourne) said Friday he sup- senger rail expansion in Florida, said
CONTINUED ON PAGE 6

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6 Vero Beach 32963 / October 24, 2019 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

NEWS

Virgin Rail seeks local support Luxury seaside condos ing, specific plans or a construction nouncing that it would hire additional
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 5 CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 timeframe for the project. He said the faculty and build a new 20,000-square-
development could include a com- foot, $10 million lab building that
issue and providing proper oversight north and the city of Vero Beach to the mercial component. would include an area where the pub-
to make sure this is safe for residents south – annexed into the city. lic could observe marine creatures
and commuters,” Sirois said Friday. “It is not something that is going to and research projects.
“We’re discussing this issue with more Under the county codes that pre- be breaking ground for a while,” Zana
urgency. I expect that to continue over vailed before annexation, develop- said of the project. “I do expect it to However, the failure of a fundraising
the next few months.” ment was limited to three units per be primarily multifamily and it will campaign undertaken in Vero Beach
acre. But the Vero council approved be similar to what I’ve offered – luxu- to support the project and the death
Public attention on the contro- land-use and zoning changes that will ry oceanfront living. I’m very excited of longtime lab supervisor Professor
versial Virgin Trains project has in- permit both multifamily residential about the property.” Junda Lin caused those plans to falter
tensified recently as new track con- and commercial development, and al- and the lab closed in 2016.
struction gains momentum and the low up to 15 residential units per acre. If all goes as planned, Florida Tech
passenger rail service kills more peo- plans to finalize the sale to Coastmark In 2017, the county tried to buy the
ple in South Florida. Coastmark, which has a stellar track in mid-January, said Patrick Healy, land for $1.5 million to expand park-
record of developing single-family general counsel for the university. ing at the neighboring Tracking Sta-
VirginTrains killed 22 people through and multifamily luxury waterfront tion Park but the deal did not fly and
Sept. 30, federal records show. properties, is in no rush to develop the Healy declined to reveal the sale the dilapidated facility has been emp-
parcel, according to Zana. price. The property is assessed at just ty for several years.
The deaths have served as a rally- under $2.6 million, according to gov-
ing point for officials calling for stricter The company just completed one ernment records. “We don’t have the research grants
safety regulations and greater Florida luxury condominium project a little to make productive use of the proper-
Department of Transportation over- over a mile to the south on Conn Florida Tech purchased the prop- ty as a marine research facility,” Healy
sight for passenger rail service state- Beach, and is building three ocean- erty in 1980 to develop a marine re- said.
wide. front estate homes further north on search laboratory. For the next 37
the island. It also has work underway years, the multi-building site was “We have marine resources capabil-
Indian River County officials fear on Blue at 8050, an ultra-luxury con- used for research on seahorse life cy- ities in Melbourne, so we want to sell
passenger trains traveling up to do development on a 4.7-acre ocean- cles and improved aquaculture tech- the property as one of our assets and
110 mph pose a greater threat than front tract in Indian River Shores. niques. Private aquaculture compa- put the proceeds to good use in Mel-
freight trains traveling 60 mph for pe- nies also operated on the site, working bourne.”
destrians who walk across the tracks Zana estimates permitting for the in collaboration with university re-
and motorists who get caught on the Florida Tech property will take at searchers. The university plans to use the sale
tracks after the safety gates come least six months and said it is too proceeds to help pay for an $18 mil-
early in the process to provide pric- As recently as 2013, FIT planned a lion marine biomedical studies facility
down.  major expansion at the small cam- at its main campus, with construction
pus located behind the 7-Eleven, an-
slated to start early next year. 

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / October 24, 2019 7

NEWS

U.S. Customs facility at Vero airport will come at no cost to city taxpayers

BY NICOLE RODRIGUEZ enough to handle a Boeing business fic that clears customs in Fort Pierce operations, told Vero Beach 32963.
Staff Writer jet and a 4,200-square-foot private goes on to Vero Beach, local officials Non-U.S. citizens would be re-
terminal. have said.
Corporate Air Inc. plans to construct quired to provide passports, visas or
a multimillion-dollar U.S. Customs The company estimates the facil- An average of 50 to 60 foreign other documents proving their iden-
facility at the Vero Beach Regional ity could cost upwards of $2 million flights a month to Corporate Air in tities and showing that they have no
Airport – pending the federal govern- and would be available for all flyers Vero must clear customs at another legal issues barring them from enter-
ment’s approval – and the state-of- to use. Corporate Air would cover the airport before flying here, Corpo- ing the U.S.
the-art facility will come at no cost to operating costs, including the salary rate Air representatives said, adding
city taxpayers. of a customs worker. a customs facility could increase air The approval process for a customs
traffic by 30 percent and attract more facility in Vero Beach could be com-
The City Council last week solidi- “The city is going to wind up travelers to the area who will fuel up, plete in months or take years, Con-
fied its support for the facility – which spending no money on this,” Michael dine out and vacation more often in nors said.
could become an economic boon for Calvit, an attorney representing Cor- Vero Beach.
the area by attracting more air traffic porate Air, told the council at its Oct. “It all goes through the U.S. Cus-
from foreign destinations – by voting 15 meeting. Local officials in August rolled out toms and Border Protection vetting
unanimously to allow the company the red carpet for U.S. Customs and process and our safety and security
to move forward with its plan and ne- Currently, travelers bound for Vero Border Protection agents at the air- designs,” Connors said.
gotiate a deal that would indemnify Beach flying in from abroad have to port in an effort to convince the fed-
the city of costs and liability. land at Treasure Coast International eral government to approve the cus- Local officials, including Council-
Airport and Business Park in Fort toms facility. man Harry Howle and Indian River
“I think it’s a big benefit to the Pierce – the closest airport with a cus- County Commissioner Tim Zorc –
community, to our businesses, to our toms post – and then take off again to If constructed, the facility would who in recent years pushed for the
city,” Mayor Val Zudans said. “And it Vero, a procedure that adds time and process American citizens return- facility and received support from
doesn’t cost the city a penny.” expense to each trip. ing from foreign counties to confirm former Gov. Rick Scott – believe the
their identities, charge duties on cer- facility could also attract more com-
Corporate Air, an aircraft fueling, Vero Beach is the lone regional air- tain merchandise and look for ag- mercial air service.
maintenance and storage company port in the area to lack a customs facil- ricultural and narcotic contraband,
founded at the airport in 1987, caters ity. Stuart, Fort Pierce and Melbourne Jennifer Connors, a CBP official from The airport currently is served
to private flights with a ramp large all have customs facilities. the West Palm Beach office of field by one airline – Elite Airways – with
scheduled flights to three domestic
An estimated 25 percent of air traf-
destinations. 

8 Vero Beach 32963 / October 24, 2019 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

NEWS

Bird species threatened birds that will be affected. It's going to study in 2014. That report, which used Pelican Island Audubon has launched
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 affect everything." data only from the U.S. and Canada, "Trees for Life" – a drive to plant
found about half of bird species (314 out 100,000 native trees in Indian River
bird species are at severe risk of extinc- The report says if warming can be of 588) were vulnerable to extinction. County over the next decade. Right
tion due to climate change – a "bird held to no more than 1.5 degrees C now, Baker says, the organization has
emergency," according to a prominent higher than pre-Industrial Age levels, The good news, if any, from the 1,700 live oaks to give away.
local bird expert. 76 percent of vulnerable bird species Audubon research is that people still
will be better off and nearly 150 spe- have time to act to save the birds – "Trees are very important to us and
The report, entitled "Survival by De- cies will no longer be vulnerable to and themselves – from the effects of a the birds," Baker said. "Live oaks are
grees: 389 Bird Species on the Brink," extinction from climate change. But, it warming planet. It suggests stabilizing special to birds because they produce
says about 64 percent of 604 species warns that a two-degree C rise by 2050 carbon emissions by using fewer fossil more insects than any other plant and
found in the U.S., Canada, and Mexi- or three-degree rise by 2080 threaten fuels and planting more trees, which birds are insect eaters."
co will shift the ranges where they fly, to drive most to extinction. produce oxygen, absorb carbon diox-
feed, and reproduce in response to ide from the atmosphere, and provide To learn more about Trees for Life,
warming of just over 1.5 degrees Cel- According to the Audubon ZIP code food and habitat for birds. visit trees4lifeirc.org/ or call 772-567-
sius, and they may not survive. tool, eight bird species in 32963 are
highly vulnerable to being driven out 3520. 
"The unprecedented pace and mag- of their range by climate change: the
nitude of climate change make it an boat-tailed grackle; brown thrasher; MY Laws were broken, but Sheriff’s Office says
existential threat to birds, people, and eastern towhee; fish crow; gray king- VERO
the natural systems we depend on," bird; red-headed woodpecker; snail
the report says. kite; and yellow-throated warbler. no crime in School Board’s calling of special meeting

Audubon compiled decades of Primary threats would come from BY RAY MCNULTY After twice viewing the three-hour
observations collected from birders urbanization, drought, sea level rise, video, reading the meeting’s minutes
overlaid on the most recent mod- heat and heavy rains. Eight other spe- Staff Writer and interviewing everyone involved
els developed by climate scientists cies are projected to be moderately – School Board members, the board’s
to project how each species' range vulnerable while 14 have low vulner- A two-month Sheriff’s Office inves- attorney and district staffers – King
would change as the climate warms ability and 70 are stable. tigation of the School Board’s April 16 said he found nothing unlawful.
and human impacts increase. It also special meeting – a hurriedly called
produced a ZIP code-based climate The model shows the fewest threats session to discuss a severance offer for He said his investigation revealed no
tool to show impacts on local areas – occurring north of theWabasso Cause- then-Superintendent Mark Rendell, willful attempt to circumvent state law
including 32963. way, but increasing in more intensive- who resigned the following week – in the way the board called the meet-
ly-developed areas of Vero Beach to found no evidence that any crime had ing or how it notified the public. To the
"It really means our future," said the south. been committed. contrary, he said that Vice Chairman
Pelican Island Audubon Society presi- Tiffany Justice sought and followed
dent Dr. Richard Baker. "It's not just The new Audubon report paints a That finding doesn’t mean laws the guidance of School Board Attorney
much more dire picture of the prospects weren’t broken, however. Suzanne D’Agresta in initiating and
of birds than its previous climate change scheduling the special session.
In fact, the School Board failed to ad-
here to Florida statutes governing both As for the altered minutes, the de-
the calling of special meetings and the tective said they didn’t become an “of-
public notice required for such meet- ficial record” until they were approved
ings. by the board.

The board also failed to approve “The Sheriff’s Office doesn’t conduct
and publicly post the meeting’s min- oversight of School Board operations,”
utes within the statutorily mandated King said. “My charge in this case was
time period, then falsified them in a to investigate complaints that a crime
feeble attempt to cover up the illegal was committed, and that was the scope
manner in which the special session of my work. Based on my investigation,
was called. no crime occurred.”

We know this because board mem- Bolstering King’s view is the fact the
bers during that meeting – which was School Board took no significant ac-
recorded on video – openly questioned tion at the April 16 meeting – Justice’s
how the special session was called predictable motion to accept Rendell’s
and whether the notice given was suf- exit terms garnered no support – so no
ficient. They then voiced concerns tangible damage was done.
about the minutes’ contents at subse-
quent, similarly recorded meetings. The only real harm was to the public
image of a board that refuses to admit
The evidence is there for all to see. the meeting never should’ve been held
Also available for public viewing are – yet felt it necessary to adopt a new
the meeting’s minutes, though what policy in the aftermath that provides
you’ll now find on the district’s website specific wording clarifying the proce-
is a doctored version that dishonestly re- dure for calling special meetings.
ports the special session was called by a
“majority” of the board and convenient- Still, there’s one line at the end of
ly omits the names of the three mem- King’s report that’s troubling from a rule
bers initially credited with calling it. of law perspective: “I find no evidence
Despite all that, however, Sheriff’s of any actions pertaining to these com-
Lt. Kyle King, a longtime detective plaints that could be construed as con-
who investigated the circumstances tradictory to Florida statutes.”
surrounding the April 16 meeting after
the Florida Department of Education There, he’s wrong.
received multiple complaints from According to the statutes, school
community members, somehow saw board special meetings may be called
something entirely different. by only the superintendent, chairman

CONTINUED ON PAGE 12



10 Vero Beach 32963 / October 24, 2019 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

NEWS

TEACHERS GET PAY INCREASE AND
BONUS, BUT AGREEMENT FALLS SHORT

OF WHAT UNION WAS SEEKING

BY FEDERICO MARTINEZ Moxley told the Board. “I know this is
difficult but living within our means
Staff Writer is a very real challenge. We cannot
allow our fund balance to continue
Local teachers got some good news to go down.”
last week when the School Board
voted to settle a contract impasse State law requires school districts
between the school district and the to maintain a minimum fund bal-
teachers union, but the final agree- ance of 3 percent to make sure they
ment fell short of what the union was have enough money to cover unex-
seeking. pected expenses. But most districts
try to maintain a higher reserve,
Teachers will receive a $200 in- and the Indian River County School
crease in performance pay and will Board’s policy requires that a 5 per-
not have to pay more for their health cent balance be maintained.
insurance, but the union had sought
a $400 increase in performance pay. If the board had approved the
union’s proposal, the district’s general
Teachers also were disappoint- fund reserves would have slipped to
ed that the district will not have to about 4.2 percent, Fagan said.
pay $1.56 million into the teachers'
health insurance fund, as was prom- Liz Cannon, president of the Indi-
ised several years ago. Instead, teach- an River County Education Associa-
ers and other district employees will tion, argued that the general fund re-
receive a one-time $653 bonus. serve would still be above the state’s
recommendation if the union's pro-
The School Board made its deci- posal was approved.
sion on Oct. 14 at a contract impasse
hearing at which district officials and Cannon and other union leaders
representatives of the Indian River supported the district’s decision to
County Education Association ar- cover a 5 percent increase in health
gued their cases. insurance premiums, so that teach-
ers would not have to pay more, but
The School Board, which voted were unhappy about the district not
unanimously in favor of the school putting $1.56 million into the health
district’s proposals, indicated its de- insurance fund.
cision was based on the need to be
fiscally responsible. The School Board had promised
to put the money into the fund four
“My heart goes out to the teachers years ago because the fund was near-
and all employees,” Board Chairman ly depleted.
Laura Zorc said prior to casting her
vote. “But I’m concerned that our gen- Union officials and several board
eral funds keep shrinking. We need to members said the low fund balance
do what’s fiscally responsible.” was caused by Rendell who was “bor-
rowing” dollars from the insurance
Chief Financial Officer Ronald Fa- fund to cover other, non-related ex-
gan pointed out that the school dis- penses. He halted the practice earlier
trict’s general fund reserve has de- this year after the union filed a griev-
creased more than $3 million during ance.
the past three years, dropping from
$17.7 million to $14.6 million. Negotiations for the 2018-2019 con-
tract had been at an impasse for more
That decline was due to former Su- than 15 months.
perintendent Mark Rendell’s ongo-
ing decision to spend more money, School representatives and the
even though revenues were decreas- union argued their cases in front
ing, Fagan and Interim Superinten- of Ninth Circuit Court Judge Tom
dent Susan Moxley said. Young, who sided with the union on
the insurance and pay performance
Board Chairwoman Laura Zorc issues.
said Rendell frequently transferred
restricted capital fund dollars to An agreement between the district
the general fund, to make it appear and union allows either side to chal-
on paper that the district’s finances lenge any of the magistrate’s recom-
were healthier than they really were. mendations, in which case the un-
The problem is, he eventually had resolved issues go before the School
to return those dollars to the capital Board for a final decision.
fund.
A disappointed Cannon had little
His strategy was leading the dis- to say after the School Board’s deci-
trict down a dangerous path, Moxley sion.
said.
“What can I say, we lost,” Cannon
“A declining balance is worrisome,”
said. 

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / October 24, 2019 11

NEWS

Beachside parking fixes seen costing $500,000. Where’s the funding?

BY NICOLE RODRIGUEZ PHOTO BY KAILA JONES where,” Falls said. “These improve- ested in several proposed long-term
Staff Writer ments benefit a geographical area and parking shortage solutions, including
private businesses partnering to share we need to talk about if we want that paid parking, employee off-site park-
The Vero Beach City Council wants lot space, exploring the option of center geographical area to bear the cost of ing – a scheme that was tried without
to try a bunch of things to reduce the street parking on Cardinal Drive to cre- that or do we want the general tax- success several years ago – and the
long-running beachside parking short- ate more spaces, and using a $75,000 payer to bear the cost of that. That’s a construction of a parking garage on
age but is now plagued by another di- license-plate reader to catch motorists policy decision that is a tough one.” the Humiston Plaza public lot or the
lemma: how to pay for the pricey fixes. – mostly hotel and shop workers – who Ocean Grill private lot.
game the system by moving their cars Mayor Val Zudans disagreed with a
Preliminary short-term solutions from space to space throughout the day special taxing district to cover the cost, Kimley-Horn, which was hired by
for the next two years recommended to avoid receiving a fine. suggesting the improvements should the city at a cost of roughly $71,000,
last week by consultant Kimley-Horn be paid for by the capital improve- has held public workshops for input
for which City Council members ex- “It may cost a half a million dollars, ment fund, which is used for costly in- and analyzed more than 3,000 beach-
pressed support cost roughly $500,000 but we need to find a way to do it,” frastructure fixes. side parking spaces to see whom the
– but there is no dedicated funding Councilman Robert Brackett said. spaces belong to and how they are be-
source for the projects. Falls said there already are about $3 ing used.
City Manager Monte Falls referred million in unfunded capital projects
One fix is the creation of an addi- to the hefty price tag as the “elephant in the city’s five-year plan, but that The firm found a majority of the
tional 79 parking spaces by permitting in the room” during the meeting. he could work the beachside parking 3,108 beachside parking spaces are
parking in front of multi-family hous- fixes into the plan. privately owned, with only about 750
ing or commercial buildings on east- “There is no budget to do this. We’re public spaces. During peak demand,
west streets near the problem area. talking about . . . half a million dollars The City Council seemed less inter- on Thursday, March 14 at 2 p.m., all
in these short-term improvements off-street public parking was taken
This alternative – which could cost that have to be funded from some- and 89 percent of on-street public
around $400,000 for curbing, gutters and spaces were occupied, the firm found.
pavement – is significantly less expen- Meanwhile there was a surplus of 655
sive than building a parking garage near private parking spaces.
the beachside business district. The ga-
rage option, which would cost between Kimley-Horn expects to make more
$3 million and $4.8 million, would add in-depth draft recommendations and
about the same number of spaces. then formal recommendations to the

The council also expressed interest in council before the end of the year. 

12 Vero Beach 32963 / October 24, 2019 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

NEWS

My Vero special session – Jackie Rosario and Teri How did King miss all that when however, Rosario took the meeting in
Barenborg – denied during the meeting saying no statutes were violated? a different direction, demanding to
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 8 that they had done so; the board’s no- know who called the special session.
tice was published the morning of the King said he drew no distinction Her question sparked a discussion
or a majority of the board’s members; meeting, not two days before; and the between calling for the meeting and in which she, Barenborg and board
school boards must provide the public board unanimously approved the min- agreeing to hold one, attending one member Mara Schiff each stated pub-
with at least two days’ advance notice utes from its April 16 special session, and actively participating in one. licly that they did not call the meeting
in a newspaper of general circulation despite knowing they were amended to and merely agreed to attend.
in the county when scheduling special falsely report that a majority of its five “The consent to hold the meeting
meetings; and it is a first-degree mis- members called the meeting. is inferred by the unanimous, un-co- “Clearly, they wanted everybody to
demeanor to knowingly falsify public erced presence and participation by know they weren’t the ones who ini-
records, including the minutes from The statutes also require that the each member,” he wrote in his report, tiated the meeting, but that was irrel-
school board meetings. minutes from special meetings be ap- adding, “The meeting proceeded for evant to me,” King said. “As far as I’m
proved at the board’s next regularly about 2 ½ hours without any objec- concerned: By showing up and sitting
But in this case, the two board mem- scheduled business meeting, but our tions or expressions of concern re- in their chairs, they agreed to have the
bers who allegedly joined Justice to School Board didn’t approve the April garding the legal foundation upon meeting.”
create a majority entitled to call the 16 minutes until June 25. which the meeting was based.”
During those final 30 minutes, it
At the 2-hour, 32-minute mark, also became obvious that Justice –
Rendell’s staunchest ally on the board
– initiated the call for the special ses-
sion, but she never admitted doing so
during the meeting.

King’s report states that Justice told
him she initiated the special session
because Rendell’s offer expired April
17 and she wanted the board to ad-
dress the matter. He said his investi-
gation did not delve into her motives,
though we later learned Rendell had
already accepted a principal’s job in
Cocoa Beach when the meeting was
held.

King said he believes the controver-
sy over how the meeting was initiated
stemmed from “confusion” over the
wording of the statute.

“When Ms. Esplen polled the other
board members and they agreed to
attend, they were saying they wanted
to have a meeting,” King said. “There’s
nothing in the statute that specifies
the exact language that must be used,
so how Ms. Esplen asked the question
doesn’t matter.”

King’s report also absolved the
School Board of any wrongdoing in
providing public notice of the special
meeting, stating that – in addition
to advertising in a local newspaper –
staffers made a “good-faith effort” to
alert the community by posting no-
tices on the district website, calendar
and newsletter, as well as via email
blasts to subscribers on April 12.

“Furthermore,” he wrote, “this cir-
cumstance does not render the meet-
ing illegal.”

Pressed to explain his indifference
to the changes in the minutes, King
said he was convinced a majority of
the board’s members wanted to have
the meeting, so the minutes weren’t
falsified.

“People can argue about whether
the minutes are accurate,” King said,
“but anyone who wants to know what
happened at the meeting can go to
the district’s website and watch the
video.”

If you do, maybe nothing will jump
out as an obvious crime, but laws were
broken.

See for yourself. 

McKenna Roan.

TOUCH A TRUCK: HONK IF YOU
LOVE FAMILY-FRIENDLY FUN!

14 Vero Beach 32963 / October 24, 2019 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

PEOPLE

Touch a Truck: Honk if you love family-friendly fun!

Marsha Powers, Jessica Staudt and Pat Houston. Det. Bob Sunkel, Det. Luis Avila, Sgt. Fletcher McClellan, Dep. Cliff Labbe and Dep. Jessica Ognoski. PHOTOS: DENISE RITCHIE

Ashley, Mason and Jay Dawid. Jack and Logan Canteenwalla. Harper, Lindsay and Cabe Zehr. Cabe Zehr.

BY STEPHANIE LaBAFF PHOTOS CONTINUED ON PAGE 16 ough rinse throughout the day. But
Staff Writer there were plenty of games, activities
Tobias Hilberts. and food vendors to keep families en-
Boys and girls of all ages had a gaged.
chance to toot their own horns last Sat- in the community that offer really The first hour of the event was honk-
urday during Touch a Truck, hosted by wonderful services.” free for those sensitive to sound, but af- At the PNC Mobile Learning Adven-
the Early Learning Coalition of Indian ter that all bets were off as horns tooted ture, children selected costumes for a
River, Martin and Okeechobee coun- “I think I’m gonna love this!” ex- and sirens blared, celebrating literally photoshoot based on their answer to
ties at the Indian River County Fair- claimed one young truck enthusiast tons and tons of fun. More than 40 ve- the question, ‘Who do you want to be
grounds. as he passed through the gates and hicles were on hand, everything from when you grow up?’ And at the Home
took his first look at the assemblage of dump trucks and fire engines to trac- Depot Children’s Build Workshop, lit-
The Early Learning Coalition took heavy-duty vehicles. tors and even a Coast Guard cutter. tle ones hammered away on blocks of
over hosting the annual event this year wood to construct their own trucks.
as a way to keep on truckin’ with their At times, it was a toss-up as to Attendees and participants took the
mission to ensure that quality early whether children or adults were more weather in stride as on-and-off bands Other community partners set up
learning experiences are available to enthusiastic about being given an op- of rain from Tropical Storm Nestor shop under the pavilion to showcase a
all children. The coalition assists par- portunity to sit in or kick the tires of the gave everyone and everything a thor- variety of programs and services avail-
ents, preschools and communities by massive machines. able to families with young children.
providing effective building blocks so
that young children can achieve edu- Proceeds from Touch a Truck will
cational success. help fund special projects through-
out the year meant to improve quality
“This is such a great family event,” early learning opportunities, primar-
said Marsha Powers, Early Learning ily for children from birth to age 5. The
Coalition CEO. “It brings people to- Early Learning Coalition specializes
gether, but it also gives parents the op- in school readiness and volunteer pre-
portunity to learn about a lot of other kindergarten programming.
organizations we are associated with
For more information, visit elcir-
mo.org. 



16 Vero Beach 32963 / October 24, 2019 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

PEOPLE

PHOTOS CONTINUED FROM PAGE 14 Eoin and James Callaghan. Rylee and Caitlin Clements.
Emma and Bella Barsano.

Jeremy, Sawyer, Merissa and Summit Szpaichler. Elijah, Elliannah, Lydiah and Emmett Matthews. Jovany Landrua. Sullivan Sweeney.

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / October 24, 2019 17

PEOPLE

Blessing of the Fleet: ‘Yachts’ to be thankful for

Yacht Club hosts the annual event as area waterways. After the boats
a way of reminding everyone of the were safely moored, captains and
profound impact boating has had their first mates gathered at the Vero
on the history and culture of Vero Beach Yacht Club for a barbecue.
Beach.
The Yacht Club, a private club es-
Adding an extra dose of divine tablished in 1926, has been a long-
sanction, several dolphins made an standing favorite gathering place
appearance just before the close of for local boaters to socialize both on
the celebration. It was a fitting re- and off the water.
minder to all that we are not the
only ones who enjoy playing in our For more information, visit vero-
beachyachtclub.com. 

Madesta Stevens, Pam Young, Glendora Morris and Kathy Kinasewitz. PHOTOS: DENISE RITCHIE

PHOTO: LEE ORRE

BY STEPHANIE LaBAFF
Staff Writer

The Vero Beach Yacht Club part- Bob Jones and Toby Jarman.
nered with the City of Vero Beach
to host a Centennial version of their ticipated.
annual Blessing of the Fleet recently “Generally, it’s just powerboats,
from the docks of the Vero Beach
Municipal Marina. but we wanted to include them all –
motorized and non-motorized,” ex-
As a crowd of boat enthusiasts, lo- plained Toby Jarman, VBYC Blessing
cal dignitaries, Yacht Club officers of the Fleet chairman.
and members looked on, more than
50 motorized and non-motorized The Vero Beach Police Department
vessels floated down the Intracoast- led the armada with all the pomp
al Waterway to the marina. and circumstance due the flotilla,
as Indian River County Sheriff’s Of-
There, local clergy blessed each fice and Florida Fish & Wildlife boats
boat as they slowly made their way maintained safety on the lagoon.
along in a nautical procession; wish-
ing ships and crews safe travels along “We want to thank our law en-
the waterways. Crew members, in forcement friends who help make
turn, threw flowers in thanks for the boating a safe experience for all of
blessing. us,” said Jarman. He noted that the

The Yacht Club had launched
the City of Vero Beach’s Centennial
Celebration last year with the 2018
Blessing of the Fleet and wanted to
anchor the closing events as well,
by opening it up to include boaters
from other yacht clubs and water-
based groups. Yachts and sailboats,
kayaks and even a paddle-boarder
with a pair of canine first mates par-

18 Vero Beach 32963 / October 24, 2019 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

PEOPLE

United Way honorees follow living legend Loy’s lead

Antoine Jennings and Kim Lorimer. Meredith Egan, Alma Lee Loy and Maj. Eric Flowers. PHOTOS: DENISE RITCHIE Ross Cotherman and John Moore.

BY MARY SCHENKEL Leaders Breakfast last Thursday for the greater good of Indian River “It’s going to be up to the younger
Staff Writer morning, where business, commu- County,” said Michael Kint, UWIRC generation to carry that on; it’s now
nity and nonprofit leaders packed CEO in his welcome address. “Imag- their responsibility,” said Loy, add-
Vero’s illustrious ‘First Lady’ Alma the Quail Valley River Club. ine the impact when all of us, all the ing, “I have a lot of faith in them.”
Lee Loy has a lifetime of Vero Beach leaders in this room, support one
memories and was asked to share “During this year’s campaign, we another. That is what the mission of “You certainly are a living legend
a few of them at the United Way of want you to imagine with us the United Way is.” and an inspiration to us all,” said Jeff
Indian River County Community amazing things that we can all ac- Schlitt, UWIRC Campaign co-chair,
complish when we work together Over the last year, Kint said the who with board member Amber
United Way has invested $4.2 mil- Batchelor presided over the awards
lion back into the community, in presentations.
three focus areas: education, finan-
cial stability and health. Chad Morrison of Florida Floor
Fashions was honored with UWIRC’s
Meredith Egan, COO, led the dis- most prestigious recognition, the
cussion with Loy, a founding mem- Ralph T. King Award, for his extraor-
ber and former president of the dinary commitment to the United
UWIRC. Loy has dedicated her life Way. A loyal contributor and de Toc-
to the enrichment of the town where queville member, Schlitt said Mor-
she was born, earning tributes for a rison has served in almost every
lifetime of achievements, including volunteer capacity the United Way
the remarkable ability to remember has, including as board chair and
the names of each and every person as a highly successful campaign co-
she meets. chair.

When asked to share some of her “I’ve had more fun than you can
earliest memories of Vero Beach, Loy imagine and have made some of the
said with her trademark wit, “I’d be most incredible and important rela-
happy to; I still have some.” tionships of my career,” said Morri-
son. “Thanks for the opportunity.”
Loy expounded on the history
of the local United Way, founded The Richardson Spirit of Indian
in 1961, noting that the first cam- River County Awards in the small,
paign received $44,000 and provided medium and large business catego-
grants to four organizations. ries were presented to Northern Trust
Bank, Rehmann and the Indian River
“We must have done something County Sheriff’s Office, respectively.
right, as we’re still going strong some
48 years later,” said Loy. She added Schlitt presented the Agency Ex-
she wished there was a way to tabu- cellence Award and a check for $2,500
late the numerous hours given by to Crossover Mission, for making a
all the dedicated volunteers, before “significant impact on some of the
thanking everyone for their past and hardest to reach youth in our com-
present contributions to United Way. munity.”

Asked by Egan what advice she A second Agency Excellence Award
had for the next generation, Loy re- was given to 211 of Palm Beach and
plied, “I’m not a great one to give the Treasure Coast for providing 24/7
advice,” but said they should respect telephone support through its com-
the decisions their forefathers put munity and crisis hotlines.
into place, as those are what have
made this community so unique. For more information, visit united-
wayirc.org. 

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / October 24, 2019 19

PEOPLE

Jeff Schlitt, Susan Chenault and Michael Kint. Freddie Woolfork and Tammy Bursick. Lenora RItchie, Andrea Berry and Elisabeth Bublitz.

Susan Moxley and Barbara Hammond. Randy Riley and Bill Penney. Sue Tompkins, Carol Kanarek and Ford Fegert.

Lisa and Chad Morrison. Rebecca Emmons and Jeff Pickering.

Mike McGee, Barbara Pearce, Sabrina Sampson and Francisco Chevere.

20 Vero Beach 32963 / October 24, 2019 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

PEOPLE

Add fun into the mix at ent-icing ‘Cupcake Challenge’

Best Overall Judges’ Choice:
Heather Stapleton

Best Decoration:
Junior Bakers Ella Kilman

and Kylah Flynt

Best Taste: Ana Ciechanowski

People’s Choice Best Cupcake:
Junior Bakers Molly Rummel,
Grace Griffin and Sommer Solman

PHOTOS: DENISE RITCHIE PHOTOS CONTINUED ON PAGE 22 Home Baker Winners:
Chef Michael Glatz with Traci Simonton and Wilson Holloway. Best Decor: Jennifer Lahman
Janie Graves Hoover, Jeane Graves Bartlett and Judy Graves. Best Taste and Overall Home Baker:

BY KERRY FIRTH was the most popular, so we decided Wilson Holloway, Chef Michael Glatz Heather Stapleton
Correspondent to continue it on a grander scale.” and Traci Simonton – had the diffi-
cult job of determining which cup- Professional Baker Winner:
There was an air of sweet success “Our mother was always rein- cakes would receive their awards, Best Taste and Overall ProBaker:
last Sunday afternoon at the Heri- venting herself and she actually assessing taste and decorations in
tage Center, where local bakers had went to culinary school to become a submissions by Home, Professional Crystal Romero
whipped up their favorite cupcake chef at age 60,” added Bartlett. “And and Junior Baker categories.
recipes to compete in the 10th an- she loved contests and was always Junior Baker Winners Ages 8 to 10:
nual Jeane Graves Charity Cupcake encouraging us to enter contests In the end it was Heather Staple- Best Taste: Peter Gold
Challenge and raise money for the as children. So, we combined two ton, executive director of Vero Heri-
Michael J. Fox Foundation. of her passions into one event and tage Inc., which operates the Heri- Best Overall: Soraya Casares
came up with the cupcake chal- tage Center and the adjacent Indian
Sisters Janie Graves Hoover, Jeane lenge. Last year we opened it up to River Citrus Museum, who won the Junior Baker Winners Ages 11 to 13
Graves Bartlett and Judy Graves or- junior bakers and we love seeing the judges over with her dark chocolate Best Taste: Ana Ciechanowski
ganized the event in honor of their young people competing while giv- cupcake with a calamondin butter Best Decoration: Ella Kilman
mother, who passed away from Par- ing to charity.” cream frosting and candied cala- and Kylah Flynt
kinson’s disease a decade ago. mondin topper. Stapleton earned Best Overall: Molly Rummel,
Attendees roamed the room to the highest honors as Best Overall
“This event is very personal to sample the tasty treats before vot- Home Baker and Best Overall. Grace Griffin and Sommer Solman
us,” explained Hoover. “When she ing on who they thought should re-
passed we vowed to make a com- ceive the People’s Choice Award. “I grow the calamondins, which
mitment to the Michael J. Fox Foun- is hybrid of kumquat and tanger-
dation to raise money for research “I think I ate 10 of them,” said ine, in pots right outside the door of
for finding a cure for the debilitat- Elizabeth Bowler with a laugh. the museum,” said Stapleton. “It’s
ing disease through a series of small “They are all so good and so differ- definitely a Florida-inspired and
fundraisers. The cupcake challenge ent than store bought.” -themed cupcake.” 

Meanwhile, a panel of judges –



22 Vero Beach 32963 / October 24, 2019 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

PEOPLE

PHOTOS CONTINUED FROM PAGE 20 Mollie Pratt with Bernie Snarski and Andrea Mignano. Tor and Jennifer Jones with Simon Atwill.
Brenda Bullock, Chris Sexton, Peter Gold and Michael ‘Marty McFly’ Gold.

Jennifer Durst and Kaleigh Patteson. Molly Rummel, Grace Griffin and Sommer Soleman. Soraya Casares.

Established 18 Years in Indian River County

(772) 562-2288 | www.kitchensvero.com
3920 US Hwy 1, Vero Beach FL 32960

FESTIVAL OF TREES: CHRISTMAS SPIRIT
INSPIRES GIFTED ARTISTS

24 Vero Beach 32963 / October 24, 2019 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

ARTS & THEATRE

Festival of Trees: Christmas spirit inspires gifted artists

BY KERRY FIRTH Jean Clark.
Correspondent
PHOTOS BY KAILIA JONES
Local elves are working feverishly
on their one-of-a-kind Christmas Ruth Ann Holt.
trees, wreaths, gingerbread houses
and Santa Clauses to be displayed
and auctioned off at the 22nd annual
Festival of Trees on the campus of
Riverside Theatre Nov. 22-24.

Themed ‘Winter Wonderland’ this
year, FOT is the major fundraiser
for the Riverside Theatre Scholar-
ship program and has become the
community’s premier holiday event,
offering twinkling holiday lights, a
Christmas Shoppe, Winter Gardens,
Santa’s Village and even an ice-skat-
ing rink.

The highlight is strolling through
a forest of nearly 100 trees in the
Children’s Theatre, as well as deco-
rative wreaths, gingerbread houses
and Santa Clause figures, all created
by local artists who are as unique as
their designs.

A resident of Vero Beach for near-
ly 45 years, Jean Clark has designed
trees and wreaths for the past seven

years. The effervescent 90-year- ally differentiates one tree from an-
old begins planning her designs in other.”
March.
This year Clark will donate two
“Once I decide on the theme, I trees – one with a Nativity theme and
start hand-crafting and painting the another with an Irish lilt.
ornaments,” she explains. “Noth-
ing on my trees is store bought. I’ve “Research is the first step in the
been a judge in the past and I looked creative process for me. I want my
for originality. To me that is what re- paintings and be as real and accu-
rate as possible,” says Clark. Previous

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / October 24, 2019 25

ARTS & THEATRE

trees have featured seascapes, mer- Shannon Estes. gram. That experience can help them
maids, angels and local wildlife. find themselves and give them direc-
tion for the rest of their life. Any little
“I’ll get up in the middle of the contribution toward that goal is so re-
night and paint for 12 to 14 hours warding for me.”
straight,” says Clark. “The creative
process is one that starts in my brain, The Riverside Theatre Festival of
goes into my hand and comes out of Trees begins with the Preview Gala the
the paintbrush.” evening of Friday, Nov. 22, and contin-
ues with a full line-up of activities Sat-
Clark retired nearly 20 years ago urday and Sunday, Nov. 23-24.
from a successful interior decorat-
ing firm she ran for decades on Royal It is not too late to become a FOT
Palm Pointe, and says she had always designer; if you’re interested, contact
enjoyed painting murals, especially Annamarie LaBella at 772-410-0470.
in children’s rooms. For more information about Festival
of Trees, visit riversidetheatre.com. 
“Exposure to art helps develop
young minds. Just imagine the differ- She also enjoys painting vintage HOT GLASS
ence between a baby lying in a crib scenes from the early 1900s in acryl-
looking a blank wall, verses a baby ics on thin wood, explaining, “I love The Treasure Coast’s largest collection of
who can look up and see a rainforest or to recreate a simpler time in history, contemporary glass and one of America’s
seascape. The baby exposed to art will and since I get lost in the project, I for- Coolest Stores, right here in Vero Beach.
be happier and more curious for sure.” get about the stresses of life today.”
2910 CARDINAL DRIVE, VERO BEACH • 772-234-6711 • THELAUGHINGDOGGALLERY.COM
Clark says she enjoys donating her She claims to have come by her
talent to local charities, confiding with artistry naturally; her mother and
an aside, “I’m kind of a selfish giver. I grandmother were both artists.
think I get more out of it than the re-
cipient does. Painting is therapy to “It’s a God-given talent, and giving
me, and even though I don’t get paid back to the community is something
for the charity work I do, I get a deep I can do. I’m not in a position write a
satisfaction. I call it my psychological big fat check, but I can create some-
paycheck.” thing that will inspire someone else
to write that check.”
Creating life-like Santas and Fa-
ther Christmases is Ruth Ann Holt’s One of the youngest FOT elves is
specialty; something she has done for 35-year-old Shannon Estes. A ginger-
the festival for 22 years. Her realistic bread house designer for the past 12
sculptures range from 18-inches tall years, the Texas-born Estes has resided
to life-sized, and are meticulously in Vero since she was 16, and learned
crafted with fur trimmed velvet coats the craft from her mother-in-law, Faye
sporting antique buttons, lamb’s wool Estes, an 18-year festival designer.
beards and hair, and eyes that shine
with Swarovski crystals. “I fell in love with the idea and the
process,” says Shannon Estes. “Every
“I start by making an armature year I’d go and see Faye’s houses and
from PVC pipe and cover it with bat- she lovingly taught me how to make
ting,” Holt explains. “The skull is them. Now I’m teaching my sons how
hand-sculpted or made with a soft to do it, so it’s really a family affair.”
material and covered with a thick,
flesh-colored felt. I hand-sculpt the Estes begins baking in October,
face and make the eyes out of round about six weeks prior to the festival.
wooden balls with an indentation Everything is made from scratch us-
cradling a Swarovski crystal for that ing a special humidity-proof recipe
special Santa glimmer.” that mixes honey, spices, cinnamon,
nutmeg, flour and sugar with massive
She finds old fur coats in thrift amounts of love and attention. The re-
stores or receives them as donations sults are spectacular to say the least.
from people she knows. “I’ve had peo-
ple say I can have their coat if I send The gingerbread houses range in
them a photo of the finished piece.” size from 12 inches to 20 inches and
can be as architecturally elaborate
Holt, 72, moved to Vero Beach 27 as the baker desires, with everything
years ago from Annapolis and works from barns and churches to colonial
out of her home studio, Wild Irish houses. Estes cautions that while it
Grove Art and Design. With Christ- may be tempting to nibble on a gum
mas her favorite time of year, she pre- drop shingle or candy cane column,
viously made a living decorating peo- it’s best to just look and not eat as
ple’s homes and trees for the holidays. they are glazed to harden so they last
the whole season.
“I decided that it was time to retire,
so I quit climbing ladders. But artists “I love this town and it warms my
never ever retire. We just morph into heart to be able to give back,” says Es-
another phase of artistry which usu- tes. “I think that the Riverside Theatre
ally involves giving.” children’s program gives children a
voice and instills confidence. Even
In addition to Riverside Theatre, if they can’t afford to attend classes,
Holt has donated her considerable they can get a 100 percent scholarship
talents to the Mental Health Associa- through Riverside’s education pro-
tion’s Turtle Trax campaign and to
the Hibiscus Children’s Center.

26 Vero Beach 32963 / October 24, 2019 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

ARTS & THEATRE

Harmony of praise for Brevard’s ‘perfect’ maestro

BY PAM HARBAUGH gone by in a flash. It’s always been fun Christopher Confessore.
Correspondent and enjoyable.”

Christopher Confessore has been Confessore graduated from Florida
making beautiful music with the Bre- State University where he studied
vard Symphony Orchestra for 25 years, the bassoon. He received a master’s
an occasion which was celebrated in a degree in instrumental conducting
most unusual way and one aptly suited from the University of Southern Cali-
to the playful and good-natured con- fornia. He was working in the educa-
ductor: a murder mystery whodunit tion department of the Sarasota Or-
dinner “Maestro & Mystery.” chestra when he heard that Kypros
Markou, the former BSO conductor,
The event, held recently at Crowne was leaving.
Plaza Melbourne-Oceanfront, brought
celebrants and supporters together to So Confessore became one of
not only hear praise of Confessore’s 20 who applied and one
steady guidance as conductor and mu- of five who were seri-
sic director of the 66-year-old orches- ously considered for the
tra, but to also have fun. position. To help make
the right choice, the
“He’s down to earth and perfect search committee asked
for our community,” said Dr. Rich the five applicants to
Weber, who led the search commit- each conduct a concert
tee that hired Confessore. “I think for the season.
the years have shown that he was the
perfect choice. His musicality is un- Confessore’s musi-
surpassed, and his professionalism is cianship, communica-
exemplary.” tion skills and warm,
engaging personality
The love is felt by Confessore as well. lifted him to the top
“It’s been a great adventure,” Confes- of the ranks.
sore said. “I think in most respects it’s
“I was the first

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / October 24, 2019 27

ARTS & THEATRE

supporter of the BSO and member were made Sunday have an expected
of the search committee that found effect on Confessore – discomfort.
Confessore 25 years ago, said the Rather than being singled out, he’d
maestro is a “breath of fresh air” and rather see all the praise heaped upon
someone with whom the entire com- the musicians and the music they
munity can relate. perform.

“He is not a prima donna,” she said. Moreover, he laughed, a celebration
Weber agrees with Jones Francey. of 25 years might sound to some that
“I think the world of the man,” said he’s saying goodbye.
Weber, who, along with his family,
sponsored Sunday’s celebration. “I love “I’m not,” he said. “This has always
the way he deals with the community, been perfect for me. I’ve loved the
relates to the musicians and works with people, both on stage and behind the
the BSO. That’s very important for our scenes and the people out in the audi-
community.” ence and the community.
Praise like this and speeches that
“I didn’t expect the recognition, but I
of course appreciate it.” 

PHOTO BY RYAN CLAPPER

one to go in October,” Confessore the Dream of America.” That work
said. “Kypros had set up the program brought up some of Brevard’s most re-
for everyone. I felt one of the pieces on spected actors to interpret essays with
my program was awfully challenging themes echoed in the music. There
– the Rachmaninoff 2nd Symphony. have also been concerts with famed
So I asked the BSO to consider the violinist Joshua Bell and celebrated
Tschaikovsky 4th Symphony. At the vocalist Art Garfunkle.
end of my 10th season, we finally did
our Rachmaninoff 2nd.” Under Confessore’s leadership, the
BSO has performed with the Space
In addition to serving as conductor Coast Ballet, greatly expanded its Fifth
and music director for the BSO for 25 Grade Concert Series, commissioned
years (a rarity in the field of symphon- work and expanded into Vero Beach.
ic orchestras), Confessore is a resident
conductor and principal POPS con- “We look forward to continuing to
ductor for the Alabama Symphony perform at our home base,” he said.
Orchestra. He frequently conducts for “But I think we’re excited about con-
the Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra tinuing to find offsite venues both for
and at Walt Disney World. the full orchestra and smaller groups
as a way to connect more and more
He’s also been a guest conductor for with the community.”
numerous organizations including
the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, the It’s this personal connection with
Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra and the community that makes Confes-
the Detroit Symphony Orchestra. His sore an unusual maestro. He’s not
international debut was in 2004 when shy about donning a Darth Vader cos-
he conducted the Sibiu Philharmonic tume and brandishing a light sabre,
Orchestra in Romania. nor is his wife, Bethany. Moreover,
Confessore is not above allowing oth-
Some of his favorite concerts with ers tease him.
the BSO over the years include the 50th
anniversary season when virtuoso vio- That was the idea behind “Maestro
linist Itzhak Perlman performed. & Mystery.” Since fun is something
Confessore takes very seriously, orga-
“It was a big deal,” Confessore said. nizers came up with the idea of mak-
“How cool it was to get to work with one ing sure there would plenty of that at
of the finest and most respected musi- Sunday’s celebration. So in addition
cians on the planet. And it was such a to the speeches and sumptuous meal,
big moment in our orchestra’s history.” a lively whodunit was also presented
… for the fun of it.
Another favorite was the perfor-
mance of Peter Boyer’s “Ellis Island, Darcia Jones Francey, a longtime

28 Vero Beach 32963 / October 24, 2019 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

ARTS & THEATRE

COMING UP! Riverside’s ‘Beehive’ brings ’60s jukebox joy

BY SAMANTHA ROHLFING BAITA the bobby pin and hairspray indus- Kenya’s beaches and supports the
Staff Writer tries in the black, as well as mini- country’s conservation efforts. Non-
skirts, transistor radios and Flower trivial trivia: more than 80 percent
1 Expect no stings in this bee- Power, also produced such timeless of land waste ends up in the oceans,
hive, just heaps of hair and a lot pop classics as “My Boyfriend’s Back,” negatively impacting human and
“Be My Baby,” “Son of a Preacher marine life. Do make time to visit
of great tunes. What Broadwayrose. Man” and “Me and Bobby McGee,” McKee for this delightful, impactful
among many, many others, by such exhibition, and bring your children.
org calls “the ultimate celebration of stellar vocalists as Leslie Gore, Janis Hours: Tuesday through Saturday,
Joplin, the Shirelles, the Supremes, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Sunday, noon to 5
1960s female empowerment,” the ex- Aretha Franklin and Tina Turner. p.m. Garden admission: adults, $12;
Don’t miss this musical nostalgia trip seniors, $11; 3-12, $8; members and
uberant ’60s jukebox musical revue back to those crazy, fabulous days, as under 3, free; school group, $5/child.
the talented divas of “Beehive” show- 772-794-0601.
case, says the show promo, “more 2 “Ocean Sole” at Mckee
than 40 classic chart-toppers that Botanical Garden Nov. 1. 3 Can’t get enough opera? Here’s
will have (you) dancing in the aisles, a grand thought. In addition
reliving one of music’s greatest de- McKee Botanical Garden. Opening
cades.” Showtimes: Tuesdays, Oct. 29 this coming Friday, Nov. 1, is an espe- to Vero Beach Opera’s 2020 sea-
and Nov. 12, 7:30 p.m.; Wednesdays, 2 cially enchanting exhibition called
p.m. and 7:30 p.m.; Thursdays, 2 p.m. “Ocean Sole.” (Yes, it’s spelled prop- son (which starts in January), and
and 7:30 p.m. (Nov. 14, 7:30 p.m. only); erly.) Because “Ocean Sole,” explains
Fridays, 8 p.m.; Saturdays, 2 p.m. and McKee’s promo, features “40 colorful the occasional trip up to the Met if
7:30 p.m.; Sundays, 2 p.m. Tickets: and whimsical, hand-crafted ma-
start at $35. 772-231-6990. rine species sculptures” made from you’re lucky, you can enjoy Met op-
(this is the cool part) “recycled flip-
flops created by Kenyan artisans.” eras at “a movie theater near you,”
The project’s motto is “Protecting
Our Planet One Flip-flop at a Time.” via the Live at the Met season se-
Focusing on “conservation entre-
preneurship,” Ocean Sole positively ries, which screens at the Majestic
impacts more than 1,000 Kenyans
through “the collection of flip-flops II Theatre in Vero. Coming up this
and direct employment.” Each of the
“Beehive” opens this coming Tues- bright creations – turtles, dolphins, very weekend, Saturday, Oct. 26,
day, Oct. 29, on Riverside Theatre’s crabs, a great white shark, seahorses,
Stark Stage. The era that brought us 2 You never know what whimsi- an octopus, reef fish, starfish, sting- it’s a quintessentially French work,
the iconic sky-high hairdo that kept cal, magical surprises await you rays, a manatee and a dragonfly –
began their new life as humble flip- “Manon.” As described by metop-
flops on someone’s feet. After being
along the paths, ponds and rills of worn out they are thrown away and era.org, Jules Massenet’s “Manon,”
“ultimately end up in our earth’s
waterways, landfills and oceans.” which premiered at the Opera
Though the project, however, these
throwaways are gathered, cleaned, Comique in Paris in 1884, is set in
compressed and, ultimately, trans-
formed into wonderful art pieces. and around the City of Light, and
Some of the larger pieces, explains
the promo, also contain Styrofoam tells the tale of a beautiful young
and wire, both also recycled. Money
raised from selling the art helps clean woman completely incapable of

forsaking either love or luxury.

Manon, says the Met, is “one of the

truly unforgettable, irresistible and

archetypal female characters in

opera.” Says metopera.org, soprano

Lisette Oropesa plays “the irresist-

ible title character, the tragic beau-

ty who yearns for the finer things

in life.” Tenor Michael Fabiano is

the besotted Chevalier des Grieux,

“whose desperate love for Manon

proves their undoing.” Times: 12:55

p.m. and 4 p.m. Tickets: $26.75. 772-

770-0773. 

FESTIVE FALL ACCENTS

3201 Cardinal Drive  Call for Info 772 213 8069  trimmingsvb.com

JAMIE PORTELL, BRIDGE COORDINATOR AND CO-MANAGER
AND MARTHA GLASSMEYER, CO-MANAGER

30 Vero Beach 32963 / October 24, 2019 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

MARILYN CANCE, BOBBI MAFFEI, HEIDI ROONEY AND RALPH MAFFEI INSIGHT COVER STORY

JEAN OGLETHORPE

BY PIETER VANBENNEKOM well as several morning games many Many leaders of the bridge club insurance for the rest of your life.”
SPECIAL TO VERO BEACH 32963 days of the week for less-experienced over the years must have done some- If you play, you’ll never be without
players who enjoy a more social and thing right in guiding the fortunes of friends, partners or something to do,
As Vero Beach celebrates its centen- slightly less competitive atmosphere. the organization, but it is an undeni- and you can do it for as long as your
nial, not many local institutions can able fact that success builds success. mind stays sharp. Even if you need
boast they’ve been around for 60 of But theVero Beach Community Cen- a wheelchair, a walker or an oxygen
those 100 years. But the Vero Beach ter also stages two well-attended open As the fame of the Vero bridge club tank to get to the game, they’ll accom-
Duplicate Bridge Club, which marks its games a week, and there are other has spread far and wide, bridge play- modate you.
60th anniversary Saturday with a gala games in Sebastian and at Indian River ers contemplating retirement up
that includes food, drink and a casino Shores, although that game is staged north and seeking to live in a milder Some studies have shown that
night, has been an important part of under the auspices of the main bridge climate often come here rather than people who play bridge to keep their
our community for most of its life. club. Then there are more than a half- go elsewhere. The fact that Vero Beach minds sharp are more successful at
dozen “invitational” duplicate games has such an active bridge club in ad- staving off the onset of dementia than
A little known fact is that tiny Vero at the private clubs and gated commu- dition to its beaches, wonderful res- those who don’t play. So not surpris-
Beach boasts the fourth-largest bridge nities such as John’s Island, The Moor- taurants and rich cultural life is often ingly, the ACBL and all its affiliated
club in the country, after Honors on ings, Orchid, Sea Oaks, Quail Valley. at least a tiebreaker in their decision- clubs have adopted the Alzheimer’s
New York City’s Upper East Side, the making on where to settle. Association as their charity of choice.
golf cart community of The Villages Bridge may be struggling nationally,
to our north and the privately-owned and to some extent worldwide, be- The club has a significant number Every June, many Vero players show
Jourdan’s club in Delray Beach stra- cause of its apparent inability to attract of snowbirds who spend their winters up at the club in purple, the official
tegically located between the Palm younger people to the game. The av- here – and usually wind up eventually color of the Alzheimer’s Association,
Beaches, Fort Lauderdale, and Miami. erage age of the ACBL membership is moving here full-time – and the table and make a donation for alzheimer’s
about 71 and it goes up every year. The count at the bridge club in season is at research in addition to paying the
Vero Beach is by far the smallest average age of the Vero Beach club’s least double what it is the rest of the normal card fees to play.
community among the top 20 bridge membership is believed to be even year.
clubs in North America ranked by the higher but the local club is still grow- Because the Vero Beach Bridge Club
number of tables played, according to ing – albeit slowly. “Bridge,” said Jay Baum, a former is so big and recruits so many new
the American Contract Bridge League President of the ACBL who first retired members through its continuous ed-
(ACBL), with which the Vero Beach What has made the Vero Beach to Vero Beach before he and his wife ucation program, the ACBL rewards
Bridge Club is affiliated. Bridge Club so successful and allowed moved again to be closer to their chil-
it to buck the national trend, making dren and grandchildren, “is like social
Even more remarkable is the fact our town a bridge-playing community
the Vero Beach Duplicate Bridge Club par excellence?
isn’t even the only game in town. The
club hosts daily “open” games (mean-
ing open to all comers) at 1 p.m., as

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / October 24, 2019 31

SUSAN SWOPE INSIGHT COVER STORY

LULU MCANDREWS

JACK WILSON DIRECTS A SESSION
AT THE BRIDGE CLUB

it with several special games where in 2011, the club bought back the re- annual Sectional tournaments, and but it wasn’t always that way. In 1987,
extra MasterPoints can be earned. maining amount of the loan with the female players from all around the the membership voted by secret ballot,
Point awards for winners tend to be help of bonds provided by some of its state say one of the advantages of 50-49 against buying its first computer.
bigger at the Vero Beach club anyway members. playing in Vero is there are never lines
because of the size and the strength outside the women’s bathrooms dur- Bridge is a card game for smart peo-
of the field. The net result is that you Owning its own building has been ing the brief tournament breaks. ple and the bridge club counts many
might be lucky to earn just one Mas- a mixed blessing. The “joys of owner- retired people with advanced degrees
terPoint if you and your partner come ship” have included worrying about The club does its best to stay out of among its members, including attor-
in first at a smaller club, but that first hurricanes (the 2004 storms forced the politics, local as well as national, but neys, physicians, architects, profes-
place at Vero Beach can earn you three club to close for several days; spending in 2013, then President Merle Hauser sors, finance and IT pros and business
or four times as many points – some- more than $300,000 (almost as much took some flack for urging members to leaders. The bridge club relies on its
times even more. as the original purchase price) on a vote “yes” on a referendum paving the 1,100 members volunteering where
new roof; having an air conditioning way for sale of Vero electric. It was an- possible to help run the club, and the
For the first 30-plus years of its life, the unit stolen off the roof; and becoming other six years before the sale was con- expertise these people bring from their
Vero Beach Bridge Club was a nomad, the victim of two unsolved burglaries, cluded and the bridge club was able to previous lives often comes in handy.
playing at various locations around the one of which resulted in the theft of take advantage of FPL’s lower rates.
city such as the Elks Club, the Wom- the club’s safe and its entire contents, Dick Bottelli, a retired architect who
en’s Club and the Senior Center. But not all of which was covered by insur- The Vero Beach club has had to em- designed one of the buildings in the
in 1995, the club bought the building ance. A burglar alarm system was in- brace technology to make results and immediate vicinity of the World Trade
of the defunct Diamond Lanes bowl- stalled after that incident. winners with MasterPoint awards in-
ing alley at its present location, 1520 stantly available after every game, both CONTINUED ON PAGE 32
14th Avenue, across the street from the But on the plus side, as a former at the club and on its active website,
Crestlawn cemetery, for $380,000. bowling alley, the club has ample re-
stroom facilities. The club hosts three
At first the purchase, was financed
by a traditional bank mortgage. But

32 Vero Beach 32963 / October 24, 2019 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 31 INSIGHT COVER STORY

Center that had to be demolished after CANDACE GRIFFEY experienced players can stay in a “pro-
the 9/11 attacks, chaired the buildings tected” environment a little longer
and grounds committee for years. PHOTOS BY KAILA JONES and are less likely to have the game di-
rector called on them for minor rules
A retired orthodontist, Paul l’Homme, move up from beginner games to the infractions they weren’t even aware of.
had a private practice in Saudi Arabia “open” contests where they find them-
and at one point advised the then Saudi selves competing against grizzled vet- However, the club has aggressively
King on overcoming a speech impedi- erans with thousands of MasterPoints tried to foster a pleasant atmosphere
ment. However, when he first joined the – some of whom have a reputation, of- where everyone can have a good time
bridge club, he volunteered to help fill ten undeservedly so, as “sharks” who and won’t have to be afraid of being
potholes in the parking lot. feed on the less experienced players. intimated. It has enthusiastically em-
braced the national bridge organiza-
Gary B. Smith is a talking head on As a result, the club has had to move tion’s “zero-tolerance” policy against
FoxNews and FoxBusiness and sits the goal posts several times, creating a bad behavior, and recently decided to
on the finance committee. And Tom series of “limited” games in which the post the decisions of its ethics and con-
Coulter is the former head of a Navy MasterPoint limits are 20, 50, 100, 300, duct committee on its bulletin board.
Seal team that carried out cloak-and- 500, 750, 1,000 or even 1,500 so the less
dagger missions all over the world At the top of the game, bridge has
that he can’t talk about. The club put been rocked in recent years by several
him on its board of directors, but cheating scandals. A couple of Ger-
hasn’t quite figured out how to use his man doctors were caught giving each
unique talents. other illegal secret signals through a
number of coughs – they at first de-
The bridge club also has a distinct fended themselves saying they were
international flavor and counts among asthmatic. An Italian team was caught
its members players who originally hail “playing footsie” under the table to
from India, Japan, Zimbabwe, Egypt, pass secret signals.
European countries like Romania,
Germany, Holland, France and the UK, The traveling professionals who
and several South American nations. make the rounds of national and
And of course, there are the numerous world championships have signifi-
Canadians, most of whom are snow- cant monetary incentives as well. The
birds and can spend only six months of people who hire them, mostly for ego
the year here because of tax laws. reasons, have them under contracts
that promise big bonuses for winning
Success brings its own problems, national and world titles and specified
and one problem the club faces is that numbers of MasterPoints.
newer players are often reluctant to

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / October 24, 2019 33

INSIGHT COVER STORY

Although the Vero Beach Bridge club games and the club has largely the opponents – but issues going be- who told an off-color joke in mixed
Club does have a very small num- been able to avoid cheating scandals. yond that rarely arise. company.
ber of active, retired, semi-retired or
would-be bridge professionals among Sometimes, one of the game direc- Among the most recent tempo- If those are the biggest issues the
its members who sometimes earn tors has to “educate” a couple of play- rary suspensions was a sanction for a Vero Beach Duplicate Bridge Club
a couple of hundred bucks a game, ers on practicing active ethics – mean- 97-year-old woman who cussed at her has to face, prospects seem good that
there isn’t such a lot at stake at daily ing that all non-standard bidding partner for playing the wrong card, it will get to celebrate its own centen-
agreements have to be disclosed to and a penalty for an elderly widower nial in 2059. 

34 Vero Beach 32963 / October 24, 2019 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

INSIGHT OPINION

BY DAVID IGNATIUS | WASHINGTON POST that needs to reassert U.S. interests in the Middle say. And it’s the largest aid donor for the estimated
East: Double down on Lebanon, a country where the 1.3 million Syrian war refugees here. The United
BEIRUT – The aftershocks of President Trump’s United States already provides significant economic States should encourage Saudi Arabia, the United
abandonment of the Kurds in Syria are rumbling and military support. Arab Emirates and other regional powers that op-
through the region, and a string of Lebanese of- pose Iran to put more money into Lebanon, too. But
ficials told me last week that they fear they’re the Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who says he the United States needs to convince the Gulf states
next to be discarded by the United States. wants a stronger Lebanon, should condition this that their money won’t just disappear down the
additional aid on specific economic reforms that drain of Lebanese corruption.
Lebanese politicians and security officials, in a se- can stem the corruption that’s almost as serious a
ries of off-the-record conversations, expressed con- threat as Hezbollah. What would a stronger Lebanese state look like?
cern about Trump’s acquiescence to Turkey’s inva- First, it would be better able to assert its sovereignty,
sion of Syria, and the seeming eclipse of U.S. power. Some administration officials argue that Beirut starting with borders. To that end, the United States
“I feel sorry for America,” one prominent member is already a lost cause: Hezbollah is the dominant should push to resume back-channel negotiations
of parliament told me. “We feel pity,” said a senior political force here, so let Iran worry about a col- to define a land and maritime border between Leb-
security official. “This America is not the America lapsing Lebanon, they contend. But that argument anon and Israel. The talks began this year, under a
we used to know.” is wrong, especially now. The last thing the Middle U.N. umbrella, but then foundered. And down the
East needs is another failed state, especially one road, the United States should help Lebanon estab-
Several officials said the withdrawal of U.S. sup- on Israel’s border. A stronger Lebanese state would lish a real, smuggler-proof border with Syria.
port for its allies in Syria all but guarantees an even- hurt Hezbollah rather than help it.
tual victory there for the alliance that includes Iran, In return for deepening its support, the United
Russia and the Syrian regime of President Bashar al- The United States is already providing about $200 States should demand some urgent reforms. Leba-
Assad – perhaps working in combination with Turkey. million annually in equipment and training for the non needs a modern telecommunications regula-
Lebanese military and security forces, U.S. officials tory authority, as a first step toward privatization of
“The Iran-Syria-Russia axis has won,” said a top the largely state-owned telecommunications sector
Lebanese politician. “Syria will be united again” as that could raise $6 billion. It needs to privatize its in-
the regime makes a deal with the weakened Kurdish ept state-run electricity company, too, which could
militia there, the senior security official said. He ex- save up to $2 billion.
plained that, for Iran, this Syria denouement is ideal:
“Who could offer them a situation better than that?” Lebanon’s sectarian political system now divvies
up the spoils in these two key sectors, along with
Lebanese anxiety about U.S. reversals in Syria is about 100 other small state-owned enterprises. He-
largely a matter of self-interest. Lebanon survives by zbollah probably gets the largest share, but all the
maintaining a balance between East and West, Iran other sects and factions take their cuts. It’s a rotten
and Saudi Arabia, Sunnis and Shiites, Christians system, and it’s long past time for change.
and Muslims. What has helped keep this precarious
structure alive for decades was the belief that the The chief enemy of a strong, sovereign Lebanon is
United States, in the end, wouldn’t let the country be Hezbollah, which profits from chaos. It follows that
dominated entirely by enemies of the West. a stronger Lebanon will, over time, weaken the Shi-
ite militia. Bankrupting Lebanon to pressure Iran, as
But any remaining faith in U.S. power was jolted some U.S. officials suggest, would be one more act
last week. Hasan Nasrallah, the leader of Hezbollah, of folly at a time when the U.S. has made too many
gloated the day after the Turkish invasion: “Ameri- mistakes in the Middle East already. 
cans can’t be trusted at all since they break promise
with anyone who depends on them.” Other Leba- The column by David Ignatius first appeared in
nese found it hard to disagree. The Washington Post. It does not necessarily reflect
the views of Vero Beach 32963.
Here’s a suggestion for a Trump administration

Consider this your midterm exam in orthopedics. 5. Which test below is NOT a tool/test used to 10. Today, replacement surgery can be performed © 2019 VERO BEACH 32963 MEDIA, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
See how much you’ve learned so far about the help diagnose osteoporosis? (Pick one) for hips, knees, shoulders, elbows, ankles,
field in general and specifically about osteoporo-  A Bone density scan spine, wrists and finger joints.
sis and arthritis of the knee. Answers are at the  B Fracture Risk Assessment Tool (FRAX)  True  False
bottom.  C Blood test to measure calcium level
1. Bone is not a hard and lifeless material; it is  D Thyroid function blood test ANSWERS
living, growing tissue.  E Testosterone hormone level in men 1. True.
 True  False  F Glucose (sugar) blood test 2. C.
2. Which item is NOT true? (Pick one) 6. Which item is NOT true? (Pick one) 3. True.
Orthopedics is the branch of medicine and Treatment options for osteoporosis include: 4. C.
surgery concerned with conditions involving  A Medications 5. F.
the musculoskeletal system, which includes:  B Calcium and vitamin D 6. C. Red meat is not recommended.
 C Foods including dairy products, green 7. True.
 A Bones leafy vegetables, red meat, fish and 8. A. Osteoarthritis is the “wear and tear” type
 B Muscles nuts of arthritis; rheumatoid arthritis is an autoim-
 C Uvula  D Weight bearing exercise such as walking mune disease and if you have RA in one knee, it’s
 D Cartilage and dancing probably in the other knee too; post-traumatic
 E Joints  E Discontinuing/limiting smoking, arthritis forms as a result of an injury.
 F Connective tissue alcohol and antacids 9. B. The medial compartment is located near
3. Osteoporosis is a medical condition in which the middle of the knee on the inner side; the lat-
the bones become brittle and fragile from loss 7. To help prevent osteoporosis, reduce soda eral compartment is located on the outer side of
of tissue, typically as a result of hormonal drinks and sodium, consume potassium-rich the knee; and the patellofemoral compartment
changes or deficiency of calcium or vitamin D. foods, and ask your doctor if you should take is formed by the kneecap and front part of the
 True  False B12 if you’re over 50 years old. thighbone.
4. Usually the first symptom of osteoporosis is:  True  False 10. True.
 A Achiness 8. The most common type of arthritis of the
 B Bruising knee is: (Pick one) SCORING
 C A broken bone  A Osteoarthritis A+ (10 correct) Golden!
 D Loss of balance  B Rheumatoid arthritis A (9 correct) Wow
 C Post-traumatic arthritis B (8 correct) Impressive
9. How many compartments are there in the knee? C (5-7 correct) Good job
 A None, it’s a trick question D (3-4 correct) Keep learning
 B Three Under 3 correct Persevere 
 C Four
Your comments and suggestions for fu-
ture topics are always welcome. Email us at
[email protected].

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Bob Gibb, Broker : Judy Bramson : Jeannette Mahaney : Ba Stone : Michael Merrill : Kristen Yoshitani : Susie Perticone
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All information herein has been supplied by third parties, and is believed to be accurate but is not guaranteed. We cannot represent that it is accurate or complete. Buyer is advised to verify information to their satisfaction. This offering is subject to errors,
omissions, change in price or withdrawal without notice. Rendering and floor plans are for marketing purposes only and are approximate. All rights reserved, duplication in whole or in part is strictly prohibited. © 2019 John’s Island Real Estate Company.

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38 Vero Beach 32963 / October 24, 2019 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

INSIGHT BOOKS

Toward the end of Bill Bryson’s hugely enlightening No, because, as sign. The brain, holding its “200
and entertaining “A Short History of Nearly Everything” Bryson makes clear, exabytes of information, roughly
(2003), an early model of modern man emerges from we don’t own our equal to ‘the entire digital con-
Africa a little over 100,000 years ago with primitive bodies. Evolution tent of today’s world.’” The heart,
stone axes. Smaller-brained and more fragile than their owns our bodies. We beating some 3.5 billion times in
stout, adaptable Neanderthal competitors, modern hu- occupy them – al- a lifetime. The bones, “stronger
mans, improbably, prevail. though the more you than reinforced concrete, yet light
read, the less clear it
Later, we name ourselves Homo sapiens because is how to define these enough to allow us to sprint.” The
we think we’re smart. What do we do with our wits? roving, rickety, skin- lungs, processing 4,000 gallons of
Mostly, kill off other species and destroy their habitat slathered bone towers air a day.
and our own. And that predilection long predates our of electric impulses,
more recent zeal for torturing ourselves and our fellow chemical cocktails and “You are pretty seriously per-
life-forms by recklessly raising the global thermostat micro-organismic colo- forated,” Bryson writes, with
because Hummers are cool and we don’t like drinking nies as “we.” And, as “two to five million hair follicles
out of faucets. you know, we take piti- and perhaps twice that number
ful care of these fleshly of sweat glands.” And you are
Still, among this generally arrogant species, some, loaners, filling them with “exquisitely fine-tuned,” with
like Bryson, have always appreciated the glorious com- crud, parking them in nerve receptors able to detect
plexity and privilege of our unlikely existence. chairs and laying them
out on sofas to the point movement of 0.00001 millime-
Having described the physical nature of our world of reversing the mortal- ters.
and beyond, from the atomic to the intergalactic, in ity gains modern science
“The Body” he now turns inward to explain – in his lu- has enabled. Then again, You grow 25 feet of hair in a
cid, amusing style – what we’re made of. Along the way, there are exceptions, such lifetime. You host 40,000 spe-
as he has before, he weaves in stories of the astonishing as Jeanne Louise Calment, cies of microbes, and when you
characters who have been figuring humans out. who ate two pounds of chocolate a week, smoked until kiss you transfer some 1 bil-
she was 117 and died at 122. (Bryson doesn’t mention lion bacteria to your beloved.
Consider John H. Gibbon’s quest, in the early 1930s, it, but she also enjoyed red meat, cheap wine and hunt- While that statistic might not
to oxygenate blood to make open-heart surgery pos- ing.) enhance the mood, the special sharing is thought
sible: “To test the capacity of blood vessels deep within to be helpful in sampling the partner’s histocompatibil-
the body to dilate or constrict, Gibbon stuck a ther- Shorter than “Nearly Everything” and with more ity genes involved in immune response. Oh, baby!
mometer up his rectum, swallowed a stomach tube, snack-size chapter lengths, “The Body” nonetheless Bryson dispels some long-held biological myths.
and then had icy water poured down it to determine its draws on dozens of experts and a couple hundred That “taste map” on your tongue you learned about in
effect on his internal body temperature.” books to carry the reader from outside to inside, from middle school – sweet on the tip, sour on the sides, bit-
up to down and from miraculous operational efficien- ter on the back? Not true. What is true is that we have
You’re committed to your job? Really? cies to malignant mayhem when things go awry. In taste receptors not just in the mouth, throat and gut,
Bryson also chronicles myriad examples of medicine some cases, that biological ingenuity and chaos are two but in the heart, lungs and testicles too, perhaps so that
gone wrong. Founding Father and esteemed surgeon sides of the same coin. they can send signals to the pancreas to adjust insulin
Benjamin Rush, during a yellow-fever epidemic, “bled output.
hundreds of victims and was convinced that he had Cancer, for instance, as one expert puts it, “is the And no, men don’t think about sex every seven sec-
saved a great many when in fact all he did was fail to price we pay for evolution. If our cells couldn’t mutate, onds. They think about it 19 times a day, about the
kill them all.” we would never get cancer, but we also couldn’t evolve.” same rate they think about food. 
“Part of the problem,” Bryson explains, “was that he There are more than 200 cancers, and age is usually a
believed that the human body contains about twice as major factor, with an 80-year-old 1,000 times as likely The Body
much blood as it actually does and that one can remove as a teenager to get it.
up to 80 percent of that notional amount without ill ef- A GUIDE FOR OCCUPANTS
fect.” Despite the body’s harrowing malfunctions, you will
Why didn’t Bryson subtitle “The Body: A Guide for marvel at the brilliance and vast weirdness of your de- BY BILL BRYSON | DOUBLEDAY. 464 PP. $30
Occupants” as “An Owner’s Manual” instead? Wouldn’t REVIEW BY ALEXANDER C. KAFKA, THE WASHINGTON POST
that have been terribly clever?

COMING ATTRACTIONS! RECOMMENDED CHILDREN’S BOOKS AND VERO BEACH BEST SELLERS

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presents presents
THREE DAYS AT THE BRINK LIFE AS A PRAYER
FDR's Daring Gamble to Win
Poetry
World War II
Wed., October 30th at 6 pm
Autograph line vouchers issued with book
purchases from the Vero Beach Book Center.

Fri., October 25th at 1 pm

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / October 24, 2019 39

ON FAITH

Rock on: Face life’s challenges with determination

BY REV. DRS. CASEY AND BOB BAGGOTT
Columnists

An ancient story from the Desert Fa- The next day he was back at it. And the bot’s plan had never been to change the and our steady effort will accomplish
thers of the early church tells of a time day after that he returned to the boulder position of the rock, but to change him. something after all. It may change us,
long ago and a place far from here to try again. Every day he pushed a little make us stronger, surer, more capable
where a large monastery was home to longer. The days became weeks, and the As each days brings us its challeng- for the next challenge, and the next.
many monks. One of the monks was weeks turned to months, as the young es, some may feel to us like hopeless
a weak and sickly young man whose monk faithfully pushed against the rock. causes, like immoveable boulders that Do you see a boulder or two in your
physical wellbeing seemed to be slowly will never respond to our efforts to dis- path? Don’t succumb to despair, just
deteriorating, though he was very at- But after months of pushing, the rock lodge them and move them out of our keep pushing! You may be surprised at
tentive to his health and tried remedy had not budged one inch. Deeply dis- way. But perhaps our determination the result. 
after remedy. couraged, and fearing that no one could
help him if even the abbot’s advice had
Finally, unable to determine the cause proven worthless, the young monk went
of his poor condition, and feeling de- to the chapel and wept in frustration.
spondent about his future, the young When the abbot entered the chapel he
monk paid a visit to the abbot. The abbot asked the young man why he was so sad.
listened thoughtfully to the young monk “Because, father, you know how sick and
as he nervously explained his situation, weak I am. You told me to push the big
and then the abbot responded. He rose boulder in the field, and that gave me
and walked to his window, motioning hope. But after months of effort, that old
the young monk to follow. The abbot rock is right where it was when I started.”
pointed out the window and said to the
young monk, “Do you see the large boul- “Ah,” the abbot replied, “but I never
der, there at the edge of the field?” “Yes, told you to move the rock – I simply told
father,” the young man replied. “Good,” you to push against it. Go look at your-
said the abbot, “here is what I want you self in the mirror.” The young monk
to do. Go push that rock as hard as you stepped in front of the mirror and he was
can and let’s see what happens.” amazed. He saw a fitter and more mus-
cular image than he had ever seen in the
The next day, the sickly young man mirror. Suddenly he understood the ab-
got up early and did just what the abbot
had told him to do. He pushed on the
rock as hard as he could. He took a break
about mid-day, had some lunch and
then went back to pushing the boulder.

40 Vero Beach 32963 / October 24, 2019 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

PETS

Bonz says this dog’s life is one Cholula-palooza

Hi Dog Buddies! an island far, far, away. A whole There was a pink-an-black balle-
rina outfit; a flowery dress; a Super
This week I yapped with a Chi-Shi troupe of Shih Tzus stood guard Cool Kibbles Wonder Woman outfit
(Chihuahua/Shih Tzu) – Cholula Hall, with a CAPE; an a spiffy purple-an-
who’s really got it Goin’ ON. Cholula’s in Watch Cages in a big circle gold Orlando City Soccer Supporter
Sweet, Sassy an Serious, all at the same scarf. “I wear THIS when we go to
time: she’s a Grrly-Grrl who loves to dress around the CAS-ull an, when Coasters Biergarten. It’s a pooch-fren-
up; she’s (pretty much) a Diva, named for ly pub.”
that hot sauce humans like; AN she’s a bad guys got too close, they’d
no-nonsense, fuh-ROW-shuss-sounding Her Daddy helped her into a red
guard dog. All inna very cute, black-an- bark an warn the humans. I’m dress with sparkly snowflakes. “See?
white 12-pound package. THIS is for Speshull Occasions!” She
proud to carry on the tradition. did a coupla twirls.
The major barkin’ that started soon as
we knocked sounded like a Much Bigger Real lmportant Stuff.” “You look a-MAY-zing!” I blurted.
Dog, but, when the door opened, there “I KNOW!” she replied happily.
stood this liddle dainty lookin’ pooch, “Woof, I’ll say,” I replied. “Any special pooch pals?”
anna man. The liddle pooch didn’t “Well, my Super Special BFF is Os-
SOUND dainty AT ALL, though. I was “Anyway, a whole buncha car.” She whispered behind her paw
impressed. After the man assured the (“He’s my boyfriend”). Then there’s Ed-
little Bark Machine that we were OK, she Daddy’s frens helped him in die. Our Mommies are BFFs. Then Foxy
shushed. Brown, Vinnie Bag of Donuts an Baby
his Dog Search. Then frens of a Cakes.”
“Good morning, Miss Cholula,” I said. Which reminded me to ask, “Any fa-
“That is Some Bark you have there.” fren said they hadda litter (the Cholula.PHOTO: LEAH DUBOIS vrite foodstuffs?”
one I was in) which were part “Totally! BACON! My three favrite
“I take my job as Watchdog VERRY Se- Chihuahua an part Shih Tzu. things are: The Beach! My Boyfriend! An
riously,” she replied sweetly, trotting up – BACON!
for the Wag-an-Sniff. “So, you’re Bonzo So Daddy came to visit us. We “My most un-favrite thing is bein’
the Columnist. DO come in. I’m so ex- WET. UGGH! I love lookin’ beautiful, but
cited I’m gonna be in the PAYper. This is were just 5 weeks old an we I don’t like BATHS. But I put up with ’em,
my Daddy, Jesse. He works from here. My cuz I wanna be well-groomed, AN sleep
Mommy, Aggi, works elsewhere.” looked like furry softballs. Well, one look heard comin’ from a Human, an then with Mommy an Daddy.”
The time had totally zoomed by. Head-
We got settled in an I opened my note- an Daddy was TOAST. I did my liddle Cholula started whining, an mini-howl- in’ home, I was thinkin’ about Sweet,
book. “Just tell me about yourself, Miss Sassy an Serious Cholula, a pooch of
Cholula. How you found your famly, puppy yelp to say ‘Hello,’ an I guess I was ing, makin’ some noises I never heard co- many parts. An, I admit, bacon.
what you life’s like, your favrite things,
like that.” irresisti-bubble cuz he picked me. min’ from a pooch. They did that back an Till next time,

“Okey-dokey. Well, Daddy was lookin’ “I know I don’t seem like it when I’m forth for a while. I was uh-STOUNDED! The Bonz
for a Chihuahua. He wanted a liddle, por-
table pooch he could take everywhere, On Watch Dog Duty, but I’m ackshully “Cool Dog Biscuits, right?” she said. Don’t Be Shy
small enough to fit in a teacup. (I think
that’s one of those Human Things, cuz pretty cuddly, Mr. Bonzo.” She smiled a “Woof! For sure!” I managed. We are always looking for pets
Daddy’s never put me inna teacup. I’ve with interesting stories.
never even SEEN a teacup. I can almost very big smile. Her ears flopped over a “I also love goin’ on Sniff Walks,” she
fit in my water dish, though.) He also To set up an interview, email
wanted a Good Watch Dog. He Read Up liddle at the top an she had brown eye- blithely continued. “Daddy says I’m the [email protected].
and found out that, even though they’re
liddle, Shih Tzus worked as watch dogs brows an cheeks, an this cute prance. An most hound-y non-hound dog EVER, cuz
a real long time ago in Juh-PAN, which is
her black an white coat design made her I’m always catchin’ new smells. I also en-

look sorta like a Double-Stuff Oreo. (But joy Tug-of-War an Squirrel Chasin’ in the

I digress.) park. An I LOVE the BEACH. But only the

“I loved my new home an my Mommy sand part. I dig, an sunbath, an chase the

an Daddy right away,” she continued. waves away. But they keep comin’ back.

“The hardest thing to learn was The “Oooo, an I’m great at fetchin.’ Watch!”

Stairs. Mommy an Daddy were gonna Her Daddy tossed a stuffed hippo an

wait till I was bigger to teach me, but I Cholula skidded after it, toenails clickety-

didn’t wanna be left when they went up clicking on the tile floor. The hippo was

’em or down ’em, so I sorta taught my- as big as her, but she grabbed it, dragged

self. Going UP was the hardest. Took me it back, an triumphantly body-slammed

forever. Going down was scary. But I got it at our feet. Same with her Squeaky

brave enough, finally. At first it was a Cupcake an her Penguin.

sorta flop-an-roll. Later it was more of a “I ALSO love DRESSIN’ UP. Here,

bump-an-tummyslide. NOW I can fly up lemme show you my outfits!”

’em AN down ’em no problem. Her Daddy disappeared an returned

“An guess what? Me an Daddy have with a big bag.

conver-SA-shuns. I think he ackshully “Lookee,” Cholula said, excited. “This

knows some Dog, even though his ac- is my Santa suit. An my Ugly Christmas

cent’s funny. Listen!” Sweater. An my pretend fur coat for when

Her Daddy made some noises I never it’s cold.”

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / October 24, 2019 41

INSIGHT BRIDGE

FROM A SPUTNIK TO A NEGATIVE WEST NORTH EAST
Q J 10 8 7 AK5 92
By Phillip Alder - Bridge Columnist AQ 8754 632
652 AQ 8743
The negative double was devised in 1957 by Al Roth and Tobias Stone. They called it a A J 10 7632 9854
Sputnik double because the Russians had just launched their satellite. The Roth-Stone
version was very loosely defined, but was quickly modified and renamed to show an unbid SOUTH
major. (Why negative? I assume in contrast to a positive double for penalty.) 643
K J 10 9
Look at the North hand in the diagram. After partner opens one diamond and West overcalls K J 10 9
one spade, what would you do? KQ

Without a negative double, presumably North would respond three no-trump, but that Dealer: South; Vulnerable: East-West
contract would have no chance. Instead, North makes a negative double to show four hearts
(or five, if he has insufficient values for a two-heart response). South rebids two hearts, and The Bidding:
North jumps to four hearts, despite the weakness of his trumps.
SOUTH WEST NORTH EAST OPENING
What happens after West leads the spade queen? ??
1 Diamonds 1 Spades LEAD:
South has four possible losers: one spade (on the third round), two hearts and one club. He Q Spades
can afford to play one round of trumps, but when West takes the trick and returns another
spade, declarer must win on the board, cash the diamond ace, overtake the diamond queen
with his king and play the diamond jack, discarding the spade five from the dummy. Then
South leads another trump. Shortly, he will claim, having lost only two hearts and one club.

Did you notice a defensive point? Assuming declarer starts with a heart to his jack, if West
wins smoothly with his ace and leads a second spade, he might lull declarer into a false
sense of security. If South immediately repeats the heart finesse, he goes down.

42 Vero Beach 32963 / October 24, 2019 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™
SOLUTIONS TO PREVIOUS ISSUE (OCTOBER 17) ON PAGE 60
INSIGHT GAMES

ACROSS DOWN
1 Placed in container (8) 1 Board (5)
7 Blackguards (5) 2 Member of orchestra (7)
8 In unhurried manner (2,7) 3 Bitter (4)
9 Tree (3) 4 Fairness (6)
10 Link together (4) 5 Portable chair (5)
11 Soviet leader (6) 6 Road-building material (7)
13 Fruit type (6) 7 Extremely unpleasant (7)
14 Agreement (6) 12 Meet requirements (7)
17 Type of song (6) 13 Crooked (7)
18 Lash (4) 15 Rank (7)
20 Regret (3) 16 ____ and stick (6)
22 Prophesies (9) 17 Pulpy fruit (5)
23 Celebration (5) 19 Pallid (5)
24 Lawyer (8) 21 German name (4)

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Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / October 24, 2019 43

INSIGHT GAMES

ACROSS author 48 Instance The Washington Post
98 Songstress Washington 49 Actor Beatty
1 Like a photo finish 99 German or 52 ___ Saud SUBLIMINAL ADVERTISING By Merl Reagle
7 Erie Canal city Sherman item 55 Do loom work
12 It sits on your coccyx 101 Trimming tool 56 Org. that gives NC-17s THE Art & Science
18 Johnny’s girl 104 Off-the-wall 57 Gets overcharged
19 Asimov subject 106 Kingdom 59 Removes from a post of Cosmetic Surgery
20 Urge strongly 107 Popular 61 Noisy flyer
21 Attorneys, at times (and redundant) description 63 Highest of the Pyrenees, SPECIALTIES INCLUDE:
23 Sigourney sequel Pico de ___ • Minimal Incision Lift for the
24 Avignon article of a certain departure 65 Painter Andrea
25 Mrs. Bighorn 112 Canteen grp. Face, Body, Neck & Brow
26 Not surprisingly 114 ___ degree ___ Sarto • Breast Augmentations
28 Ability or agility, e.g. 115 ___’s Basilica, 66 Melodic
30 Viola or violin: abbr. in Venice 67 Where chicks hang out & Reductions
32 Flavor enhancer 118 Objects (to), as this 69 Sardine container • Post Cancer Reconstructions
33 School-assisting dept. 70 Disney’s Dwarfs, e.g. • Chemical Peels • Botox
37 Cake toppers puzzle? 71 Brought to light • Laser Surgery • Tummy Tucks
38 Some used cars 121 “But will it play 74 Grape-leaf dish • Obagi Products • Liposculpture
42 As interpreted by in ___?” 77 First-shot site • Skin Cancer Treatments
44 Annam or Assam add-on 122 The same 79 See 64 Across
45 Very long 123 Hearing range 80 Art follower
46 Private eye’s provision 124 Black ___ (Doberman colors) 81 Car-go areas?: abbr.
50 Squishy lowland 125 Mrs. Peel’s co-Avenger 83 The Far or the Middle
51 Baker and Bryant 126 Linger longer 84 Hydroplanes
53 Wheedles 85 It means “outer”
54 “___ the cup and DOWN 87 “... baked in ___”
the lip” 1 Caricature, maybe 90 From a cold state
56 Driving stat 2 Vegas opening? 91 Ending for cell or lev
58 Caesar betrayer 3 Commencements 93 Ungainly one
60 Role model, often 4 Distort 94 “That is the worst!”
61 Unthinking followers 5 Boxcars 98 Old word for edema
62 Heathen 6 Response to a bill 100 “Attention, ___ shoppers ...”
64 Robt. E., for one 7 Literary Leon 102 Greek letters
65 Pessimistic 8 Sound on the phone 103 Glorify
66 “To everything there 9 Wild goat 105 Slangy piece of money
is ___” 10 Marine ___ 108 Soprano’s song
68 Have ___ (long) 11 While sailing 109 Haggard, proudly
69 Karpov or Kasparov, e.g. 12 Setting of Frasier 110 Astronaut Slayton
72 Billy Budd captain 13 Bar between radials 111 Pre-owned
73 ___ a beet 14 Reprove 113 Blood-sample parts
75 Lurking zapper 15 ___ deer 115 Exercise establishment
76 Maris’s home-rvn nvmber 16 Mantle piece? 116 Pin total
77 School buys 17 The Catskills, 117 Like a ’60s squad
78 Use for dinner, e.g.: abbr. 119 Theme of this puzzle, upside-
as plates 18 Old soft drink
79 Santa has a famous one 21 Insurance action down
80 Topple, as a king 22 Some horses 120 Howe’er
82 S.F. time 27 It’s often dismissed
83 Praise highly 29 IRELAND minus LAD = ?
84 Sofa for two 31 Money manager, perhaps
86 Of bones 34 Makes no sense
88 Philippine tribesman 35 What NAFTA affects,
89 Lies, in a way
92 An island port at partly
half off? 36 Copper collectible
95 Standing invitation? 39 Chest muscles
96 Jenny in Love Story 40 Losing tic-tac-toe line
97 A Confederacy of Dunces 41 Spike of tiny flowers
43 ___ crow flies
46 Item with a paper tray: abbr.
47 Guffaws

The Telegraph Proudly caring for patients over 27 years.

3790 7th Terrace, Suite 101, Vero Beach, Florida

772.562.5859

www.rosatoplasticsurgery.com

Ralph M. Rosato
MD, FACS

44 Vero Beach 32963 / October 24, 2019 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

INSIGHT BACK PAGE

Honey, we need to talk. I’m seeing another TV show

BY CAROLYN HAX fering family philosophies about holidays and gifts.
Washington Post
We always have a Christmas blowout with piles of

presents and overflowing stockings. We love it – the

Dear Carolyn: My spouse and I atmosphere of festive excess as well as the gifts. The

have a long list of TV shows scat- family of our daughter’s fiancee is more frugal and

tered through our streaming queues, less festive. I know our extravagance at the holidays

but there are some I really want to will make our daughter’s fiancee uncomfortable.

watch, which she says she wants to I see two imperfect solutions to our first joint

watch with me, but she never actu- Christmas: We dial back the presents, disappointing

ally wants to watch when I suggest them. We’re talking me, my husband and my daughter – who’s far from

stuff that’s been on the DVR for three years in some cases. greedy but loves the spirit of the day — or we shower

I have tried to explain how frustrating this is, and it the new wife with gifts that make her feel awkward.

never seems to land. Do you have any better suggestions?

Is there a point at which I get to just watch some of – Festive

these shows while she’s out? Is TV-cheating OK? I know

this is a small thing, but it is driving me nuts. Festive: Welcome to Lucky-to-Have-Such-Prob-
lems Day.
– Nuts
Warm, conscientious people trying to get the de-
Nuts: I’m sure it is but, I have to say, I love this small etiquette: Either the show’s good enough to with- tails right so others feel loved and respected. I’m
thing. stand a second viewing, or it’s not and you’d be just going to sit with this for a bit.
better off dropping it in favor of another one from
I feel like we kind of need your problem right now. the backlog. There’s just too much TV for wasted I think it would be a thoughtful gesture to say to
“TV-cheating.” I am a laugh-cry emoji. TV. your by-then daughter-in-law: “At Christmas, we
lose our minds a little. A lot. I want to make you feel
Not to make too much of it or anything. Let us know if you come across anything great. welcome and not scare you off. Would you prefer
Anyway. Yes, TV cheating is OK, because there’s a I’m at least three years behind. the full treatment, or would that just feel like pres-
way to do it out in the open that cushions hard feel- sure? This is about your feeling welcome, so it really
ings: Start the show, tell your spouse you started the Dear Carolyn: My daughter is about to marry a is safe for you to say what you want versus what you
show, and say if she wants to watch it with you then lovely woman whom we already adore. I’m lucky to think I want to hear.” Running this by your daugh-
you’ll gladly rewatch the episode(s) with her till she have such a problem, but I’m concerned about dif- ter first will not only serve as a judicious look before
catches up. It’s an au courant bit of bluff-calling. leaping, but also show your daughter you’re invest-
Not to mention, a low-stakes one, even within ed in getting this right. Yay, Mom. 
the already barely stakeworthy realm of TV-banking

GET ‘SMART’: MOBILE DEVICES
SOON INTEGRAL TO CARDIO CARE

46 Vero Beach 32963 / October 24, 2019 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

HEALTH

Get ‘Smart’: Mobile devices soon integral to cardio care

BY TOM LLOYD – and regularly use – the requisite hard-
Staff Writer ware needed for that to happen.

According to invasive cardiologist It’s your smartwatch or smartphone.
Dr. Arley Peter, vice-chair of cardiol- The National Institutes of Health
ogy at Cleveland Clinic Indian River agrees with Peter’s assessment: “The
Hospital, the way many heart diseas- ever-increasing penetration of smart-
es and conditions are diagnosed and phones [and smartwatches] coupled
treated is about to take a dramatic with embedded sensors and modern
turn for the better. communication technologies, make
them an attractive technology for en-
Better still, you probably already own abling continuous and remote monitor-

Dr. Arley Peter.

PHOTOS BY DENISE RITCHIE

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / October 24, 2019 47

HEALTH

ing of an individual’s health and well- Among other things it records your Medicine agrees. “Integration of am- nity started to embrace the reality that
being with negligible additional costs.” heart activity for 30 seconds and then bulatory ECG technology with smart- most ‘health’ takes place outside the
displays the tracing, which patients phone and watch technology is an hospital and clinic, namely the daily ac-
Indeed, says NIH, the sensors in can then transmit to their doctor. Other exciting new wearable option for ar- tivities and clinical events that occur in
smart devices “can be used to measure popular phone or watch cardio apps in- rhythmia detection. The patient-cen- the other 362 days per year when people
several health parameters such as heart clude Cardiogram, HeartWatch, Heart tered and controlled nature of these are not being seen by a clinician.”
rate and heart rate variability, turning Analyzer and Talking Heart Rate. devices have the potential to help
these communication devices into a patients with palpitations or other Smartphones, smartwatches and ev-
continuous and long-term health moni- Peter says, “With the watch technol- symptoms determine if their cardiac er-evolving new apps appear poised to
toring system.” ogy and smartphone technology the pa- rhythms are normal.” fill in that monitoring void.
tient is empowered. They can monitor
A series of articles in the Journal of the themselves for a longer period of time. Dr. Michael McConnell, clinical pro- Dr. Arley Peter is an Invasive Cardiolo-
American College of Cardiology goes So the longer the time, the greater the fessor of cardiovascular medicine at gy specialist and Vice-Chief of Cardiology
even further. “The future of cardiovas- likelihood of detecting their cardiac ar- Stanford University, sums up the op- at Cleveland Clinic Indian River Hospital.
cular care,” these articles concur, “will rhythmias.” portunity these devices offer by saying, His office is at 787 37th Street, Suite E260.
be transformed by advances in digital “Only recently has the medical commu- The phone number is 772-999-3996. 
health technology and mobile devices Cleveland Clinic’s own Journal of
as a means to prevent and treat heart
disease.”

MedicalXPress.com goes further still,
saying smartphone and smartwatch
heart monitoring “could be up to five
times more effective at diagnosing heart
problems than standard tests.”

The key words there, for the present
anyway, are “could be.”

This is a rapidly evolving but still na-
scent field.

For instance, detecting the underly-
ing cause of a heart rhythm problem
after it is detected by a smart device is
often difficult because by the time the
patient makes it to the hospital or doc-
tor’s office, they may have recovered
and a new electrocardiogram (ECG) of
their heart may appear normal.

Nevertheless, Peter interjects that
he knows from firsthand experience
that some of the existing hardware and
software (or “apps”) have proven them-
selves when it comes to detecting ar-
rhythmias.

“Last week, a lady came to my office
and her Apple watch was telling her,
‘You are having a cardiac arrhythmia,’”
Peter says.

However, the woman didn’t have any
history of arrhythmias.

“So, I first say to myself this woman
has given me wrong information,” Peter
recalls, “but then I run a test in the of-
fice and my test confirms that she was,
indeed, having it.”

Of course, smartphones and smart-
watches depend on their software or
apps, and as Harvard Medical points
out, “health-related smartphone and
smartwatch apps are a dime a dozen,”
but it also says some apps have already
proved they can help consumers “make
faster and better-informed treatment
decisions.”

As the hardware and software con-
tinues to evolve, these devices will likely
play an increasing role in saving lives.

For now, the best advice is probably
to talk with your primary care physician
or cardiologist about which device or
devices and which apps are best suited
to monitoring your particular medical
condition.

The KardiaMobile app, for instance,
gets high marks from Peter.

48 Vero Beach 32963 / October 24, 2019 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

HEALTH

Your hip or knee problems
acting up? Better get Mako

Dr. Ron Robinson

Peter Wernicki, M.D. and Marcus Malone, M.D. are
pleased to welcome Ron Robinson, M.D. to their practice.

Dr. Robinson is a Board Certified orthopaedic surgeon
with 25 years of experience. He graduated from

UCLA Medical School and completed his orthopaedic
residency at Stanford University Medical Center.

Dr. Robinson specializes in Total Joint Replacements
Sports Medicine • General Orthopaedics

prosports Dr. Jason Stack

PHOTOS BY DENISE RITCHIE

New Patients Welcome. Same Day Appointments. BY TOM LLOYD platform for joint replacements.
To Make an Appointment with Dr. Robinson Call Staff Writer Just ask Vero Orthopaedics’ Dr. Ja-
Pro Sports and Elite Rehab at 772-978-7808
1355 37th Street, Suite 301 Vero Beach, FL 32960 If you or a loved one are considering son Stack, a newly arrived fellowship-
a hip or knee replacement procedure, trained joint replacement expert.
www.prosportsandeliterehab.com. you might want to look into one that
uses a Mako. He is clearly a fan of this medical
Mako.
This particular Mako is not one of
the swift-swimming, short-finned And so is the Tufts University Medical
sharks that thrive here in Florida’s School.
tropical waters, or the popular auto
paint and repair franchise with a simi- It says “the Mako technology pro-
lar name. Instead, it is a component of vides patient-specific 3-D models to
medical device manufacturer Stryk- pre-plan hip and knee replacements.
er’s robotic-arm-assisted technology During surgery, surgeons guide the
Stryker robotic-arm based on your
patient-specific plan. This helps the
surgeon to focus on removal of dis-

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / October 24, 2019 49

HEALTHY SENIOR

eased bone, helping preserve healthy Certainly, the National Institutes of
bone and assists in properly position- Health is onboard with these robot-
ing the replacement joint based on ic-assisted procedures. It says “with
[the patient’s individual] anatomy.” surgery increasingly using technol-
ogy and instruments adapted from
Stryker’s Mako starts with a CT scan mechanical industry, it is logical to
of joint to be replaced. A 3-D virtual expand the role of robots to surgery.”
model of the patient’s unique anat-
omy is generated from the results of Moreover, says NIH, “the presence
the scan and loaded into the system’s of nerves, blood vessels and other soft
software to create a personalized pre- tissue structures in the vicinity [of the
operative plan. surgery], along with natural anatomi-
cal variations necessitates in many
During the actual joint replacement instances the desire for human guid-
procedure, the surgeon guides the ro- ance and robots to help to make the
botic arm while positioning the pros- surgery both accurate and safe.”
thetic implant based on that patient’s
pre-operative plan. And then there’s cutting precision.
According to Stack, the Mako 3.0 al-
The Mako system also allows Stack lows him to make very exact bone cuts
and other surgeons to make adjust- that help with “your ligament balanc-
ments to that plan during surgery if ing and the implant positioning.”
needed.
Clearly enthused he adds, “I think
In other words, the robot isn’t doing this is definitely an exciting time for
the surgery. Stack is. someone who needs a joint replace-
ment due to the technology that’s now
“It’s not an autonomous robot,” available.”
Stack explains. “It’s what we call a
haptic robot that locks into the plane And, quite frankly, that’s a huge uni-
that you want to cut at due to the pre- verse of patients that soon will be even
operative plan. And then it creates larger.
boundaries so you stay within those
boundaries and you don’t risk cut- Just five years ago, approximately
ting the important structures around 680,000 Americans had knee replace-
the knee like the ligaments and other ments while another 370,000 had total
vital structures,” but it’s the surgeon hip replacements annually, but those
and not the robot who makes the de- numbers are about to skyrocket.
cisions.
In the coming decade, NIH projects
When Stack prepares the damaged the demand for knee replacements will
bone for the implant, the Mako system hit 3.4 million a year while hip replace-
helps provide more accurate place- ments will soar to 570,000 annually.
ment and alignment of the prosthetic
implant and, he says, that results in A conversation with Stack might help
better outcomes for patients. you decide if there should be a Mako in
your future.
“A well-balanced knee [or hip] really
increases the longevity of any joint Dr. Jason Stack is an orthopedic sur-
replacement,” says Stack, “and a less geon with Vero Orthopaedics & Neu-
than ideal placement of components rology at 1155 35th Lane, Suite 100 in
in joint replacement can lead to pain Vero Beach. The phone number is 772-
and instability” for the patient. 569-2330. 

50 Vero Beach 32963 / October 24, 2019 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

ST. EDWARD’S

Spike in wins for St. Ed’s volleyball under new coach

BY RON HOLUB
Correspondent

St. Ed’s volleyball season ended last Catalina Pratt. Molly McGee. Zion Atwater.
week in the District 8-2A postseason
tournament after what turned out to be PHOTOS BY KAILA JONES approached that responsibility. challenge if I could not give 100 percent
perhaps the most productive campaign “One of the biggest mistakes in my life to all facets of my daily life. I also was a
on and off the court since 2015. ties happening,” she recalled. “We lost tad concerned how I would be received
our first two and started out in a hole. was made in a moment of self-doubt. by the team, although I had previously
The Pirates opened the playoffs by When we went to Merritt Island and Feeling that I was not one of the better coached four of them in middle school.
dispatching crosstown rival Master’s beat them in an unbelievable five-set players, I quit (the team at Boston Col- I would become their third varsity coach
Academy in straight sets. That set up match, it sparked everyone into real- lege). I constantly refer to that not only in three years and I didn’t know if they
a semifinal encounter with Covenant izing that we really could be a great as a coach, but as a teacher for 19 years. would buy into my process.
Christian School. The teams split a pair team. I would like to add that the team Don’t ever give up on yourself.
of regular season matches that were that beat us in the semifinals, Covenant “I approach teaching and coaching
evenly contested throughout. St. Ed’s Christian, went on to beat Merritt Island “I emphasize rebounding from bad from the perspective of the whole per-
won a four-setter on the road before vis- and win districts.” losses, bad days or anything else, in or- son. I am there to instruct and lead and
iting Covenant returned the favor by tak- der to remain strong and unified. Most support, but not just in volleyball. I am
ing a hotly contested five-setter. The main statistical contributors for importantly, I want the girls to know committed to make young female ath-
2019 included seniors Molly McGee, they could come to me no matter what, letes feel safe, supported, confident and
The Pirates hosted the tourney semi- with an astounding 345 assists, and in bad moments and good. to build their self-esteem if needed.
final and quickly dropped two sets, 13- Zion Atwater, with 22 blocks. Sopho-
25 and 20-25, before rallying to take the more Alexa Soderman was plastered “When first approached by Mr. (Ath- “I could not be any happier how
third, 25-16. The deciding fourth went to all over the stat sheet. She was one or letic Director Jeff) Lamscha to coach it turned out. The team players and
Covenant 21-25. two in every category with 94 aces, 12 varsity volleyball this year, my initial parents all not only accepted me, but
blocks, 123 digs, 27 assists and 278 kills. response was a mixture of excitement were amazingly supportive of who I
First-year varsity head coach An- Sophomore Meredith Burgoon led and concern. I am a bit of a perfectionist am and what I do.
gelique Soderman guided this team to with 173 digs and was runner-up with and I was unsure how to juggle working
9-9 finish. It was a nice step forward for 43 aces. Sophomore Alice Grace Lock- at Oslo Middle School, coaching varsity “I am very sad our season has come to
a program that didn’t post more than six wood chipped in with 86 kills. volleyball at Saint Edward’s, and main- an end. I am so committed to the pro-
victories or finish above .500 in any of taining the demands of being a mother cess and to the team that when it was
the past three seasons. As we have all come to realize, coach- of two girls, Sommer 12 and Alexa 15. suddenly done, I felt a little like my kids
es can have a dramatic and long-lasting have left home.” 
This team experienced ups and downs impact on the lives of young people, for “I knew I did not want to take on the
from the very beginning. The coach said better or worse. This is how Soderman
everyone was unexpectedly “dishev-
eled” when one of her players couldn’t
remove a cartilage piercing before the
opener. Then, “the hurricane happened
and we didn’t know what was happening
and what went where.”

Probably drawing from her own
background as a player at Key West
High School, a walk-on at Boston Col-
lege, club and school volleyball coach
with a prior stint at St. Ed’s middle
school, as well as a parent of two
daughters, the new varsity coach was
able to steady the ship and witness
the team come maddeningly close to
claiming a district title.

“We definitely had some weird oddi-