06/13/2019 ISSUE 24

Prosecutor offers ‘johns’
more lenient deal. P12
New traffic light
now live in Shores. P7

Exodus of teachers from
local schools continuing. P4

MY VERO For breaking news visit

BY RAY MCNULTY Palm Garden on
list of troubled
School Board meeting nursing homes
subject of state probe

There are aspects of the BY MICHELLE GENZ
School Board’s April 16 special Staff Writer
meeting – the one called by
Vice Chairman Tiffany Justice A week of discoveries: Sunken Vero residents were warned
alone, in violation of Florida treasures and human remains yet again last week to beware
statutes – that still bother me, of Palm Garden of Vero Beach.
given that the purpose of the BY LISA ZAHNER of this week after their unex- River Shores Planning Zoning The nursing home, part of a
session was to discuss now- Staff Writer pected discovery of human and Variance Board in May large for-profit Florida chain,
departed superintendent Mark remains on June 5. and there’s an open-air sales has been named to a previous-
Rendell’s last-gasp attempt to The Treasure Coast holds office already in place on the ly secret list of more than 400
walk away with a sizable sever- many mysteries, and whether The community got site problem facilities in the coun-
ance check he didn’t deserve. you go looking for them or not, plan approval from the Indian CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 try, all of them with a docu-
the land and the sea some- mented pattern of poor care
Apparently, I’m not alone. times give up their secrets. for their vulnerable residents.
The Florida Department of
Education’s Inspector Gen- Two crews were toiling away These skilled nursing facili-
eral’s Office is investigating last week about 100 yards apart ties, deemed “persistently un-
multiple complaints filed by – one searching for sunken derperforming,” are candidates
anonymous district residents treasure and the other prepar- for the Special Focus Facility
who have questioned how that ing to build $20 million worth Initiative, a federally mandated
meeting was called, whether of luxury, oceanfront condo- watchdog program adminis-
sufficient public notice was miniums. Both crews found tered by the Centers for Medi-
given, and why our School something out of the ordinary. care and Medicaid Services, or
Board failed to approve and CMS.
publish the minutes in the Yane Zana, developer of Blue
time allotted by state law. at 8050 Ocean, said he’s hope- Another 90 problem nurs-
In fact, the DOE already has ful his crew will be back at ing homes are actual partici-
referred to our Sheriff’s Office work moving dirt by the end pants in the program, which
mandates double the number
CONTINUED ON PAGE 4
CONTINUED ON PAGE 7
Super Stop store on
Cardinal Drive sold; Work starts on north island sidewalk and seawall project
future plans unclear
BY GEORGE ANDREASSI
BY NICOLE RODRIGUEZ Staff Writer
Staff Writer
Northern barrier island motorists can an-
A longtime beachside con- ticipate delays on State Road A1A for about
venience store site has been a year during the construction of a new sea-
sold, but future plans for the wall and sidewalk along the Indian River La-
prime piece of island real es- goon. The work will repair damage done by
tate remain unclear.
CONTINUED ON PAGE 6
CONTINUED ON PAGE 6

June 13, 2019 Volume 12, Issue 24 Newsstand Price $1.00 Wine + Film Fest
kickoff is
News 1-12 Faith 60 Pets 61 TO ADVERTISE CALL well received. P14
Arts 25-28 Games 41-43 Real Estate 63-72 772-559-4187
Books 38-39 Health 45-49 St. Ed’s 40
Dining 54 Insight 29-44 Style 50-53 FOR CIRCULATION
Editorial 34 People 13-24 Wine 55 CALL 772-226-7925

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

2 Vero Beach 32963 / June 13, 2019 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

NEWS

A week of discoveries Shaw of the Indian River Shores Public can’t just go digging up remains,” Shaw “forensic age” – meaning 75 years old
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 Safety Department, who was on duty said. Two forensic specialists gently ex- or less and possibly related to an un-
at about 12:30 when the call came in. cavated the site. solved crime or missing person case –
4.7-acre parcel. At least five of the 21 or of “archaeological age.”
planned units have already been sold, The construction worker did ex- Zana said the bones were not bur-
according to a ground-breaking pric- actly what was required by Florida ied too deep, only 2 feet down. Shaw Shores Public Safety Chief Rich
ing sheet, and Zane is eager to get the Statute whenever human bones are said the remains were found about 50 Rosell said the crime scene crew’s ini-
condos built. unearthed. Work stopped and the yards or so from the shoreline. tial assessment was vague, but that
area was cordoned off and treated as the near-intact skeleton was “very old”
It was just after lunchtime when a crime scene while authorities inves- Shores officers laid out a tarp to care- and not of forensic age.
the backhoe operator fired up his ma- tigated. fully collect anything that was found.
chine. “They were digging footers for a They repurposed the wooden stakes The team spent five hours uncover-
site wall,” Zana said. The Shores responded to the 911 the construction crew had previously ing red-hued bones, large and small,
call and alerted the Medical Examiner. pounded into the ground for their own until the crime scene techs were sat-
“That backhoe driver came across Shaw called for backup in the form of a jobsite to stretch yellow crime scene isfied they’d gotten all there was to be
that skull and it startled him. He im- crime scene unit from the Indian River tape around the immediate area. found – a nearly intact, adult human
mediately called 911,” said Capt. Mark County Sheriff’s Office. “They have spe- skeleton.
cial hand tools to do this properly, you The first thing police had to deter-
mine was whether the remains are of “We did not find one shoe or one
button, nothing. Just some really worn
fibers than maybe could have been
leather, but they were tiny and really
degraded,” Shaw said, noting the fibers
could have been some sort of storm-
blown debris and not related to the re-
mains. The lack of artifacts next to the
skeleton only adds to the mystery.

Meanwhile, nearby, another crew
was working on the ocean floor just as
carefully as the officers on land, hop-

Dan Porter, managing member of MRR and

captain of the vessel that made the recovery.

ing for a lucky find, on the heels of a
small victory the previous day. “The
whole time we were out there work-
ing, there was a treasure salvage boat
maybe 100 yards away,” Shaw said.

It’s been four years since the last
major jackpot from the 1715 Spanish
Plate Fleet, a $4.5 million find. Trea-
sure hunters from Marine Research
and Recovery LLC operating in three
boats have found lots of musket balls,
some random jewelry, a few coins and
a silver fork this year, but nothing re-
ally special – until last Tuesday.

The day before the Blue at 8050
Ocean crew bumped up against a hu-
man skull, diver Kenton Dickinson
found a solid gold religious artifact,
which MRR described as possibly “a
reliquary or a vessel to carry the (com-
munion) Host.”

Treasure hunter Dan Porter’s Capi-
tana boat also found a large piece of
blue and white K’ang Hsi china which
dates to the late 17th century. Both
finds are thought to be from a flotilla of
Spanish merchant ships, 11 of which

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / June 13, 2019 3

NEWS

wrecked in a hurricane off Vero’s coast ion regarding the biological and cultural ton condominium, another development ister of Historic Places, its landmark
in 1715 as they sailed back home from characteristics of the remains.” that had a visitor from the past. Long-time being the McLarty Treasure Museum
Cuba to Spain, loaded with gold and Shores Public Safety officers remember north of Windsor.
other cargo from the New World. But Zana is hoping for an answer human remains being found at the Carl-
sooner than that. ton site when developer Mason Simpson Left without ships to take them back
Buoyed by the glint of 300-year-old was clearing the land in 1998. to Spain, the estimated 1,500 survivors
gold, and the excitement of break- “I was told it would only take five days of the hurricane had to camp out as
ing their long dry spell with the first to hear something back. If the informa- The Carlton and Blue at 8050 Ocean they struggled to survive, and some
major find of the 2019 season, the tion I was given is correct, then my site are about seven miles south of the decided to settle and explore wild
treasure-hunting crews were out on will be released shortly,” he said. 1715 Fleet Survivors’ and Salvagers’ Florida. Later, pirates and treasure
the water at Corrigan’s Wreck again, Camp, which is on the National Reg- hunters also used the camp. 
just offshore, as the forensics team Zana’s luxury condominium commu-
unearthed what is speculated to be a nity is being built just north of The Carl-
survivor of those Spanish shipwrecks.
Exclusively John’s Island
Back on land, the police officers
photographed the site, organized the Capturing spectacular South Course fairway and water views, this
bones on the white tarp, bagged up handsome 4,392± GSF, 4BR/5BA abode is sure to please. A generous
the remains and took them into cus- living room with tray ceiling, dining area, bar and fireplace is highlighted
tody at the Indian River Shores Public by French doors leading to the poolside terrace. Heightened beamed
Safety station. ceilings in the family room add elegance and the adjoining kitchen
hosts ample work space with a built-in desk. An enticing master wing
The following morning, they drove provides spacious quarters; while sunlit interiors, the shade of mature
them down to the Fort Pierce office of oaks and a convenient south gate local add to the lovely .55± acre home.
the Medical Examiner for the 19th Ju- 430 Sabal Palm Lane : $2,450,000
dicial Circuit.
three championship golf courses : 17 har-tru courts : beach club : squash
The next stop for the batch of old health & wellness center : pickleball : croquet : vertical equit y memberships
bones, Shaw and Rosell said, is a uni-
versity archaeology lab, most likely the 772.231.0900 : Vero Beach, FL : JohnsIslandRealEstate.com
University of Florida in Gainesville. If
so, that would be UF’s Laboratory of
Southeastern Archaeology, which in-
vestigates all the way back to hunter-
gatherer Florida residents 11,000 years
ago and specializes in the St. John’s
River Valley in Northern Florida.

Scientists use a variety of means to
determine the age of remains like those
found in the Shores, said Registered
Public Archaeology Coordinator Ra-
chael Kangas of Florida Atlantic Uni-
versity, including carbon dating, DNA
sampling and dental examinations.

“They will look to see if there is
any dental work and at the patterns
of tooth grinding. If there is a filling
they will determine what material was
used,” Kangas said. The filling mate-
rial, or techniques of dentistry em-
ployed, could help pinpoint the his-
torical era in which the deceased lived.

Carbon dating is a complex, 11-step
process that, according to the Smith-
sonian Institution, compares the lev-
els of two different types of carbon
in the bones. One type of carbon is
stable, while the other decays from
the moment of death. Archaeologists
know the levels of carbon in the typi-
cal human bone when it’s still alive.
So by comparing the levels of the two
types of carbon, they can estimate
how long ago the person died.

DNA can sometimes be used, Kan-
gas said, “but the viability of the DNA
would depend upon how preserved
the remains are. You’d need them to be
preserved enough to collect the DNA.”

What’s next for Blue at 8050 Ocean
and Zana’s tight construction schedule?

Chapter 872 of Florida Statutes says
“Within 15 days after the discovery of
human remains, the archaeologist con-
ducting the excavation shall report to
the State Archaeologist his or her opin-

4 Vero Beach 32963 / June 13, 2019 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

NEWS

My Vero board chairman or a majority of the terms and timing of his departure and meeting – when Rosario demanded an-
other board members. attempting to manufacture crisis sce- swers – there’s plenty to make us suspi-
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 narios to enhance his efforts. cious and more than enough to draw
So who called it? the DOE’s interest.
the complaints alleging the board did According to the special meeting’s How, then, did the meeting get sched-
not provide the public with the two agenda, the additional session was uled? For starters, there’s Rosario’s insinu-
days’ notice required for special meet- called by Justice and board members ation that Justice, when trying to enlist
ings under Florida’s Sunshine Law. Jackie Rosario and Teri Barenborg. Based on the board’s discussion of allies to join her in calling the special
As of Monday, however, only Justice the matter 2 ½ hours into that special
Sheriff’s Maj. Eric Flowers confirmed had publicly acknowledged she had
last week the complaints prompted an called the April 16 meeting, doing so Continuing teacher exodus is likely to
“active investigation being handled by coyly – she never actually uttered the cost school district $1 million this year
our detectives,” who need only watch words – and only after she was con-
the district’s video recording of the fronted late in the session by rookie BY FEDERICO MARTINEZ cite student behavioral issues, pres-
meeting, where School Board Chair- board member Jackie Rosario. sure to produce better standardized-
man Laura Zorc said notice of the spe- “I’d like to know who called this Staff Writer test scores and a general absence of
cial session first appeared in a local meeting,” Rosario said during the con- appreciation for the challenges they
newspaper on the day it was held. troversial and sometimes-contentious The exodus of teachers from In- face as reasons for low morale, Can-
session, at which she conceded she dian River schools continues with non said.
That’s a problem. had been unaware of the policy for more teachers leaving in May, bring-
Just as troubling is the School Board’s calling special meetings. ing the total for the year so to 86 who Rendell, who resigned in May af-
failure to meet its statutory obligation “I did not ask for it to be called. I was have submitted their resignations or ter the board voted not to renew
to approve and make public the special asked if I would attend,” she added. “I retired, according to the latest fig- his contract beyond June 30, 2020,
session’s minutes at its next regularly did not call the meeting.” ures provided by the district’s Hu- could not be reached for comment.
scheduled meeting, which was April 23. The board’s other first-year mem- man Resources office.
The board was scheduled to approve bers, Barenborg and Mara Schiff, also Michelle Olk, school district direc-
the minutes at this week’s meeting, said they did not call the meeting, only That number is expected to rise tor of employee labor relations, said
though Zorc said last weekend she first that they were asked by School Board as disgruntled teachers continue to the district can help improve relations
would ask that they be amended to in- secretary Nancy Esplen if they were seek jobs in other districts or leave between administrators and teach-
clude who called the special session. available and wanted to attend. the profession entirely – a trend that ers by providing principals with more
That’s where it gets problematic. As for Zorc, who possesses the le- is likely to cost the school district $1 training to improve their communica-
That’s where it’s possible, if not like- gal authority to single-handedly call million or more this year to recruit tion and personnel relations skills.
ly, the board’s April 16 special meeting a special meeting, she said she decid- and train replacements.
was illegal, because Florida law states ed against it because she had grown The district is working on teacher
such sessions may be called by only weary of Rendell trying to dictate the A hostile work environment, an retention and recruitment strate-
a district’s superintendent, school indifference to teacher concerns, gies but will need to get board ap-
sky-rocketing health insurance pre- proval before any plans are imple-
mium rates and low pay are some of mented, Olk told Cannon during a
the reasons more than 500 teachers recent negotiation session. Olk did
have left the school district during not know when those strategies
the past four years, said Liz Cannon, would be made public.
head of the local teacher’s union.
School Board Chairwoman Laura
“Unfortunately, this is normal for Zorc said she and other board mem-
us,” Cannon said. “We’ve been hem- bers are concerned about the high
orrhaging teachers for years. The number of teachers who continue
district has made it so unattractive to leave the district.
to be a teacher here, if you can get
out of here, why not?” “We’re still waiting for the district’s
human relations department,” Zorc
Cannon and other union repre- said. “They need to give us a plan to
sentatives are especially concerned deal with retention and recruitment.
that many of the 240 first-year pro-
bationary teachers who worked “We know it’s not just a salary is-
for the district during the 2018-19 sue. It’s about providing more train-
school year will begin to resign soon ing and making sure that our teach-
because the district has not yet in- ers are treated like professionals.”
dicated whether it will renew their
contracts for the upcoming school Losing a single teacher costs the dis-
year. The district annually employs trict thousands of dollars, Zorc said.
about 1,100 teachers.
“It costs between $8,000 to $10,000
“Usually, this has already been to recruit and train each new teacher
taken care of,” Cannon said of proba- we hire,” Zorc said.
tionary teacher notifications. “People
have to start making other plans if If the district loses 100 teachers
they’re not sure they still have a job.” this year, as it is on track to do, that
could mean a million dollars in tax-
During a recent negotiation session payer money will have to be spent
with the district, Cannon and other on recruitment and training.
teachers said former Superintendent
Mark Rendell fostered a draconian at- According to Florida Department
mosphere in the district that encour- of Education statistics, 523 teach-
aged principals to be openly hostile ers have left the Indian River School
and dismissive of teacher concerns. District during the past four years,
including 330 that chose to resign.
Teachers throughout the county The others either retired, were ter-
minated or didn’t have their con-

tracts renewed. 

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / June 13, 2019 5

NEWS

meeting, told Esplen to not divulge “I don’t know why it has to be a se- the obfuscation” of the process that name to not be attached to this in any
her identity. cret?” Rosario said, later telling Justice, produced it. way,” she said, later telling Rosario, “I’d
“If you called the meeting, let your like to state that I do not appreciate
Rosario said she asked Esplen, name be known.” For the record: Justice denied that you calling me a liar on the dais.”
“Who’s calling the meeting?” She said she asked Esplen to not tell the other
Esplen told her the board member Schiff said she, too, had concerns board members she was pushing for Clearly, though, someone is lying.
seeking the special session had in- about how the meeting was called and the special meeting. But who?
structed her not to say. that she was “equally distressed … at And why? 
“To be clear, I did not ask for my

6 Vero Beach 32963 / June 13, 2019 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

NEWS

Super Stop sold or drive-through) as an accessory use.” Patel, whose lease expires in July, North island sidewalk project
If the new property owner wants to said he originally was told by one of CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 Ryder’s lawyers that the new property
add outdoor seating, he would need to owner intended to allow him to con- Hurricane Matthew and shore up the
The half-acre Super Stop conve- obtain a code compliance permit from tinue operating on the property, but road to prevent future storm damage.
nience store property at 3106 Cardinal the city, Vero Beach Planning and De- since then has been informed he likely
Drive was sold May 21 for an estimat- velopment Director Jason Jeffries told won’t stay. Florida Department of Transporta-
ed $2.3 million to FT Uno LLC, a lim- Vero Beach 32963. tion was set to start construction last
ited liability company of Indian River According to Patel, the Super Stop is a week on the one-mile long sea wall
Shores resident Thomas O. Ryder, ac- Should Ryder want to transform the necessity in the neighborhood, especial- and finish next summer.
cording to county records. shop – built in 1969 as a convenience store ly for tourists who need a quick snack,
– into a restaurant, the process would re- cigarettes, water and beer or wine. The $5.4 million project includes
No plans for the property’s redevel- quire a change in land use designation. repairs to the pavement on the cru-
opment have been submitted to Vero “The neighborhood needs the store,” cial north-south artery, which leads
Beach. “If the property owner added seating Patel said. to all bridges connecting the island
to the inside, a change of use would be with the mainland.
Ryder’s attorney hinted in a letter to required,” Jeffries said. “If I get out, there won’t be a conve-
the city, however, that Ryder might be nience store for hotel guests and the It also features the installation of a new
considering selling food on the prem- “Depending on the parking calcula- neighborhood.” 8-foot-wide concrete sidewalk to replace
ises. tion and required additional parking the existing 6-foot-wide sidewalk.
spaces for a restaurant, a minor site Former owners Barbara Thompson
“The convenience store does not plan may be required.” and James Swainston put the .39-acre About 3,150 vehicles per day travel
currently prepare or sell food items property on the market in January on A1A south of Sebastian Inlet, FDOT
such as hamburgers, sandwiches, or Ryder could not be reached for 2018. records show. Several thousand visi-
pizza, by way of example,” Ryder’s at- comment. tors also use the road each weekend
torney Bruce Barkett wrote the city on The pair originally planned to build to get to public beaches and Sebastian
April 17. Two of his lawyers declined to com- a boutique hotel on the property – Inlet State Park.
ment on the future of the property. something the city endorsed – but
“Many convenience stores through- Meanwhile, the Super Shop operator’s Swainston suffered a heart attack and A1A was damaged along the narrow
out the city and county do offer such future remains in limbo. they abandoned the project. stretch of the barrier island near Am-
food service as an accessory use,” he bersand Beach in October 2016 dur-
wrote. Bob Patel, who has operated his busi- The prior owners of the property ing Hurricane Matthew. The road and
ness Super Stop at the location for nearly offered to sell the parcel to the city sidewalk had also been damaged by
“Please confirm that the current or 20 years, said, “I’d like to stay. for $2.4 million late last year so city earlier storms.
future owner could add preparation officials could build a parking garage
and sale of food items for consumption “I want a long-term lease. I’ve been as a solution to a beach business dis- The new seawall is designed to pro-
on or off premises (without a drive-in on a year-to-year lease, but I can’t add trict parking shortage, but the city tect the shoreline against storm surge
anything,” Patel said. “I want to build my
business, but I don’t know when they’re didn’t bite. 
going to kick me out.”

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / June 13, 2019 7

NEWS

and wave action in the lagoon during FDOT will place temporary traffic Docks on the lagoon between Am- Palm Garden
severe storms, FDOT officials said. signals at each end of the daily con- bersand Beach and McLarty’s Treasure
struction zone, instead of flag men, Museum traverse FDOT’s right of way, so CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1
Several residents who attended an to keep traffic flowing, said Kathleen sections will be removed to allow the con-
FDOT information session May 29 re- Dempsey, a community outreach con- struction of the seawall, Dempsey said. of inspections most nursing homes
garding the project said they believe tractor for FDOT. Lane closures will be get. That means on-site surveyors
the sea wall is needed to protect the between 7 a.m. and 5 p.m. Homeowners will be provided tem- drop in every six months, instead of
island’s lifeline. porary access to the docks until they every 12-15 months.
“We’re doing everything we can to can be permanently reconnected,
In addition to being the island’s minimize those impacts,” Dempsey said. But Palm Garden and the other
primary thoroughfare, the A1A right- Dempsey said.  435 candidate nursing homes are not
of-way contains water, sewer, electric getting that added scrutiny. That’s
and cable lines. SHORES’ NEW TRAFFIC LIGHT ON A1A because CMS says there isn’t enough
NEAR TOWN HALL NOW OPERATIONAL funding to get them into the Special
Some residents at the meeting at Focus program – even though bor-
Sebastian Inlet State Park’s Fishing BY LISA ZAHNER for a pedestrian crosswalk light and derline facilities such as Palm Garden
Museum also said they are looking Staff Writer had gotten nowhere. It was only are generally determined to be per-
forward to walking, running and/or when my wife Nancy took up the forming as poorly as nursing homes
bicycling on the new, wider sidewalk The fully activated pedestrian cause that this project got done,” subject to extra inspections.
overlooking the lagoon. crosswalk and traffic light at the Auwaerter said.
intersection of A1A and Fred Tuerk Despite these serious problems, the
“A1A is a busy street,” said Lianne Drive in Indian River Shores is now Nancy Auwaerter wrote to then- borderline status of the 400-plus nurs-
Cordner, an island homeowner. “So, for live, and drivers will get a ticket if Gov. Rick Scott about the matter ing homes that are candidates for addi-
that reason, it’s nice to have a place to they run the red light. and he lit a fire under the project. So tional oversight is not mentioned on the
walk and bike and run.” any pedestrian grateful to be able to CMS Nursing Home Compare website.
Shores Vice Mayor Bob Auwaerter stroll cross A1A by pushing a button
Todd Heckman was among the is- sent out a press release last week to rather than waiting for an opening Up until spring of this year, not
land residents who said they’re will- let the public know when traffic of- in traffic can thank her. even the 90 participants in the pro-
ing to put up with some short travel ficials flipped the switch on the new gram were identified on the CMS
delays for the sake of girding A1A and on-demand equipment. Any driver unhappy about en- website. Starting with the March rat-
the sidewalk against future storms. countering another red light on A1A ings update, CMS inserted an icon
“The Town for years had asked – a yellow triangle with an exclama-
“Obviously, we’re protecting an im- can blame Scott.  tion point – where a problem nursing
portant thoroughfare north to south – home’s star rating would be.
there’s only one way on and one way off,”
Heckman said. “You need to be able to CONTINUED ON PAGE 8
ensure that walkway as well as the high-
way are protected from Mother Nature.”

8 Vero Beach 32963 / June 13, 2019 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

NEWS

Palm Garden nia Sens. Bob Casey and Pat Toomey not yet said in what format. and review policies, procedures and a
released the secret list of borderline The state has its own rating system, sampling of medical records. The re-
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 7 nursing homes – only the facilities sults are then used to compare nurs-
themselves were informed of their run by the Agency for Healthcare Ad- ing homes to other facilities in the re-
To date, there is no icon for candi- problematic status. After the release, ministration, known as AHCA. It is gion – Palm Garden of Vero Beach is in
date facilities like Palm Garden. CMS announced it would begin post- AHCA inspectors who visit homes a region that runs from Indian River to
ing a candidates’ list too, though it has like Palm Garden unannounced to
Before last week – when Pennsylva- interview staff, residents and families CONTINUED ON PAGE 10

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10 Vero Beach 32963 / June 13, 2019 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

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Palm Garden own research, but that saddles families When it became clear her mom AHCA records show Palm Garden is
with tough decisions in an emotional would not be going home, the family currently operating under a condition-
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 8 time, often with only days to decide. moved her to the facility’s long-term al license, and has been since January,
care wing. That’s when problems be- when an inspection showed filthy con-
Palm Beach County. In the case of Jacqueline Kimball, gan, Kimball said. ditions in patient rooms; controlled
Palm Garden was awarded a dismal her mother was sent to Palm Garden substances not being adequately
after being discharged from Indian “Nobody takes responsibility for tracked; and patients generally not
one star out of a possible five on both River Medical Center – now Cleveland anything down there,” she said. “They receiving adequate and appropriate
state and federal websites. Clinic Indian River. “I don’t remem- lost her glasses. They’ve lost her teeth. health care or protective and support
ber any conferring,” she said of the It’s ongoing.” services. Palm Garden has been on the
Making the problem of undisclosed discharge process. “They just found a state watch list since late 2016.
watchlists worse for patients and their place for her to rehab at Palm Garden.” Kimball, a former home health
families, hospitals discharging pa- aide who lives in another state, visits Palm Garden’s executive director,
tients to skilled nursing facilities are Kimball said her mother’s care was her mom as often as she can and has Edwin Rojas, joined the facility in Oc-
not allowed to recommend one facil- good when she was in the rehab wing family in town who visit regularly. But tober. Though his most recent posts
ity over another, a measure aimed at at Palm Garden. “There were some problems seem to arise with each visit. have been in Port St. Lucie nursing
preventing referral kickbacks. people that were very good to her, and homes, Rojas ran Atlantic Healthcare
very good to us,” she recalled. Short staffing is a chronic problem, in Vero for more than 12 years, until
The law expects consumers to do their Kimball says. “Weekends are the worst. 2016. Atlantic is now Sea Breeze, and
They don’t even get them out of bed on it too is on the state watch list, though
SUMMER SPECIALS weekends. In the winter they turn up not the federal watch list just released.
the heat so they sleep all the time.”
15-20% OFF CLEANING & SEALING Rojas said “no comment” when
Florida nursing homes are licensed asked to reflect on the challenges he
annually by the state, and those with faces at Palm Garden. In early May,
enough problems are issued their li- though, he sent a letter to the families
cense “conditionally.” But rarely are
the licenses revoked.

CENTRAL BEACH TOWNHOME RESIDENTS
CAUGHT BETWEEN CITY AND LANDLORD

(772) 567-2005 BY FEDERICO MARTINEZ several days. When city officials did
not return phone calls seeking assis-
665 4TH STREET, VERO BEACH, FL 32962 Staff Writer tance, she and her daughter pried the
garage door open and slowly removed
Discounts on in-stock new & used material. Residents at a Central Beach town- the car, careful not to disturb the
Patios  Driveways  Pool Decks  Walkways house complex are angry that the city caved-in garage roof, she said.
of Vero Beach has not yet repaired two
Fire Pits  Walls  Water & Light Features garages that were severely damaged Because she cannot use her garage,
by a garbage truck eight months ago the resident must park her vehicle on
SERVING VERO BEACH AND THE TREASURE COAST! and appear near collapse. the grass in front of her front door. She
also must place full garbage contain-
The smashed garages, located be- ers in front of her porch, which is an
hind townhouses at 2732 and 2734 eyesore and can stink when it’s hot
Cardinal Dr., are leaning precariously and humid, she said.
toward the parking lot’s only exit, cre-
ating significant safety issues, several Pearson said since the incident in
residents said. October, city garbage trucks no longer
drive behind the townhouses to pick
“All it would take is a hurricane or fire up garbage.
to knock those garages over and it would
block everyone from leaving or enter- So she, at age 95, and other residents
ing,” said resident Mary Pearson, who wheel their large garbage containers
lives in the 2730 townhouse apartment. around to the front of the townhouse
“It’s a death-trap waiting to happen.” every week – no small chore for a
woman of her age.
City Manager Monte Falls said the
city is trying to address the problem “I’m more than a little concerned
but has not had much cooperation right now,” Pearson said.
from the property owner, Raymond
Nadeau of Fort Pierce. “I’m worried that kids could try to
go inside the garages and get killed.
“The city has an insurance carrier If they can’t fix it, they need to just re-
and has been trying to meet with the move it.”
owner to reach an amicable agree-
ment,” Falls said. “So far that hasn’t The garage roof at 2732 is partially
happened, but we’re working on it.” caved in and a portion nearly touches
the ground.
Nadeau, who was reached by phone,
refused to discuss the issue. Falls said he will direct his staff to
visit the property this week to make
According to another resident, who sure the structures are secure and
lives at 2734 Cardinal – one in a line of don’t pose a danger. If the property is
townhomes on a quiet block south of not safe, the allegedly uncooperative
Gayfeather Lane – a city garbage truck owner could be issued a citation.
struck the garages on October 4.
“We understand residents are con-
The resident, who didn’t want her cerned and we want to make sure this
name published, said her daughter’s is resolved as quickly as possible,” he
car was stuck inside their garage for
said. 

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / June 13, 2019 11

NEWS

and friends of residents that stated: allows us to provide senior manage- den four times since February and ous issues with insufficient staffing,
“We have been reviewing the overall ment of the facility from 7 a.m. to 7 found no deficiencies. In fact, AHCA lapses in recording and reconciling
p.m. Monday through Friday.” He said shows there were six inspections, five controlled drugs, and lapses in sanita-
operation of the center and have made supervisors’ shifts were being rotated of them involving complaints. Those tion, safety and infection control.
some changes to provide greater ser- to give better coverage on weekends. followed a searing report in early Jan-
vice and assistance seven days a week. uary, available to the public on the The inspector noted multiple in-
We have added a second assistant In the letter to families, Rojas said AHCA website, that detailed numer- stances of prior deficiencies not hav-
executive director to our team. This that AHCA had inspected Palm Gar-
ing been addressed. 

12 Vero Beach 32963 / June 13, 2019 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

NEWS

Prosecutor offers prostitution sting ‘johns’ more lenient deal

BY RAY MCNULTY prosecutors and defense lawyers, the the conditions of the deal are met. pervision part of the diversion pro-
Staff Writer accused men would have to sign a con- If the men successfully complete gram after 90 days if they have met
tract that requires them to pay more all program’s conditions. He expects
Most of the 160-plus men arrested in than $700 in fees, complete an online the diversion program, the charges of many of his clients to opt for diversion.
Indian River County during a prostitu- course on prostitution and human soliciting prostitution will be dropped.
tion sting earlier this year could have trafficking awareness, and undergo six However, if the men fail to satisfy any “Now they have a chance, 90 days
the charges against them dropped if months of probation-like supervision. of the terms, prosecutors may use the from the time they enter the program,
they agree to enter a diversion pro- pleas to convict them. to put all this behind them and either
gram now being offered by the State Though defendants are not re- start over or move on with their lives,”
Attorney’s Office. quired to admit guilt, they must en- Vero Beach attorney Andy Metcalf, Metcalf said last week, when word of
ter a “no contest” plea that prosecu- who represents more than two dozen the State Attorney’s Office’s latest offer
Under the terms negotiated between tors will hold in abeyance until all of the men, said the defendants can was leaked to Vero Beach 32963.
apply for early termination of the su-
“These guys have families,” he added.
“They have lives that have been shat-
tered by this, and all over a misdemean-
or. They need to heal, and this gives
them a chance to start the healing pro-
cess. I just wish some of these guys had
been offered diversion from the outset.”

Last month, county judges in Indian
River and Martin counties ruled that
secret surveillance videos recorded by
local law-enforcement agencies could
not be used as evidence against the ac-
cused men in the sex-for-pay cases be-
cause detectives failed to minimize the
invasion of privacy.

Those decisions severely damaged
the state’s cases and prompted an im-
mediate response from prosecutors,
who are appealing the rulings of Indian
River County Judges David Morgan and
Nicole Menz, as well as that of Martin
County Judge Kathleen Roberts, to a
panel of three circuit court judges.

Assistant State Attorney Steve Wil-
son said the appeal is still being pre-
pared and a ruling isn’t expected until
later this summer. It was Wilson, the
lead prosecutor in the solicitation of
prostitution cases, who confirmed last
week that State Attorney Bruce Colton
had agreed to modify the initial strict-
er plea offers after the three judges
tossed the videos – and at the request
of local defense lawyers.

“Frankly, the positioning of the cases
has changed,” Wilson said. “The judges
have ruled that we can’t use the videos,
so, right now, some of the evidence
we have isn’t available to us. We’re ap-
pealing the rulings, but, in the mean-
time, we’re offering these individuals
a chance to enter a diversion program
and move toward closure.

“There are 171 defendants here, and
not all of them are going to do the same
thing, but I believe a large number of
them would’ve taken diversion from
Day 1,” Metcalf said. “Most of these
men have never been in trouble, never
been arrested. I’m sure a lot of them
will want to put this behind them.

But Metcalf said some of his clients
are determined to fight the charges
in court, where the judges’ rulings on
the videos last month improved their

chances of being acquitted. 

Robby Cleary, Deb Daly,
and Stevie Cappelen

WINE + FILM FEST KICKOFF
WELL-RECEIVED ALL OVER TOWN

14 Vero Beach 32963 / June 13, 2019 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

PEOPLE

Wine + Film Fest kickoff well-received all over town

Cobalt Executive Chef Winston Guerrero. PHOTOS: DENISE RITCHIE Jonathan Libman and Susan Keller Horn. PHOTOS & STORY CONTINUED ON PAGE 16
Chefs Janet and Norman Van Aken.

BY STEPHANIE LaBAFF & MARY SCHENKEL Devour! talk to each other. If we don’t start the Lovely Sun In,” about German-
Vero Beach talking about it, if we don’t create born Vero resident, Gerda Smith’s
Staff Writers Chefs & a space for people to share them- escape from Russian occupiers af-
Shorts selves with each other unasham- ter WWII.
“We’re all here at the fourth edly, we are dooming ourselves as
annual Vero Beach Wine and Recalling the massacre of 17 peo- a species.” “We love Kenneth George,” said
Film Festival to see some good ple at Marjorie Stoneman Douglas Stewart. “He is our director of digi-
movies,” said an enthusiastic High School, Engle said, “That re- Festival Filmmaker Awards were tal media and education, so he’s
Jerusha Stewart, standing in a ally struck me.” She added that this also presented, including to Docu- helped us grow our student film fes-
shining ball gown on the River- year’s theme of A Wide Lens on Life mentary Feature winner Bo Lan- tival program to what it is.”
side Theatre Stark Stage Friday is “about looking out there and it’s din, whose film “Toxic Puzzle,”
night at the start of the Cin- about talking about it.” about research on algae blooms, Every seat was taken for the free
ema Uncorked Awards, Screen- hits close to home. event, which featured nine films
ing and Opening Night Bash. “I Additionally, Jeffrey Woolnough by local filmmakers Amanda Cox,
started the film festival four years presented an inaugural VBWFF “This is the first film festival Dee Fairbanks Simpson, Xaque Gr-
ago as a board member for Suncoast 2019 Visionary Honoree award to in Florida that dared to show this uber, Dale Metz, Chloe Cappelen,
Mental Health Center, wanting to Casey Zilbert, whose film “Hang film,” said Landin. He said they Ethan James, Bob Belinoff, Kenneth
have a way to bring awareness to Time” was shown that evening. filmed around the world and saw George and Dan McGee.
positive mental health. Having you the same issues in the Baltic Sea
all here tonight shows me that this “Making this film saved my life. I and Lake Erie as in China. “It’s going to be really great to-
is a cause that’s near and dear to am one of the many New Zealand- night because everything you are
many of us here in our community.” ers with mental health issues,” said “It’s the same fight the same about to see – all these short films
Zilbert. Despite its impression as a struggle. The problem can be – are about Vero Beach,” said Mayor
“The theme for our festival every beautiful paradise, Zilbert said New solved, but it needs political pres- Val Zudans. “The directors, the pro-
year is A Life Worth Living,” add- Zealand has the highest suicide rate sure, and it needs you to put that ducers and the storylines fit in with
ed Anthony Aruffo, VBWFF board in the western world and globally, political pressure on people to stop Vero Beach.”
chair. “We like to think that every- the highest per capita incarceration the fertilizer.”
thing that we do is a celebration of rate. Thursday evening also featured
humanity, is a joyful celebration of Hermann Weiskopf, whose film two sold-out special event dinners
everyone, and of everyone getting “We are in trouble, and we don’t “Otto Neururer – Hope through attended by lucky gourmands.
to know that their life matters.” know how to talk about it,” said Zil- Darkness,” won for Narrative Fea-
bert, saying the film had given her a ture, had just presented it at the Chef Michael Howell brought a
Suncoast Mental Health was hon- reason to live. “I am so glad I didn’t Vatican. taste of his world-famous Nova Sco-
ored as the festival beneficiary, with kill myself when I thought I was tia-based Devour! The Food Film
Stewart presenting a $10,000 check going to, because I would not have Weiskopf said that the day after, Fest, to town, debuting the Devour!
to Debra Engle, Suncoast CEO. Sun- known that my life could have been “I had the opportunity at the gen- Vero Beach Chefs & Shorts Gala
coast provides mental health care this.” eral audience to be in the first row Dinner at the Kimpton Vero Beach
to limited-income children and and to talk to the Pope. I had tears Hotel & Spa, pairing short films
families on the Treasure Coast and Hoping to touch the lives of oth- in my eyes and could hardly speak with courses prepared by Howell
Okeechobee. ers, she “made a comedy to get the to him. It was such a strong sensa- and several top Florida chefs.
men in my world in my country to tion. Film is a dream factory. I’ve
“One in five Americans suffers worked in this industry for decades, Chef Norman Van Aken, of Mi-
from mental health issues at some but dreams can show up and come ami’s Ad Lib, paired his creamy
time in their life. It’s really impor- true.” cracked conch chowder with “Char-
tant when you look around a room lie Trotter: After Love There is Only
like this; it’s here,” said Engle, grate- Earlier in the weekend, the first Cuisine.”
ful for the exposure afforded by the Film Festival award was presented
festival. “The good news is that there Thursday night at the Majestic 11 “When they asked me what I
are things that we can do about it.” Theatre, a first-time venue. The would like to make I chose some-
Vero Visions Award was presented thing that I knew Charlie would
to Kenneth George, director of “Let love,” said Van Aken. Trotter is con-
sidered “the best chef in the world”



16 Vero Beach 32963 / June 13, 2019 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

PEOPLE

PHOTOS & STORY CONTINUED ON PAGE 14 Lia Rinaldo and Marco Fanelli. Beth Mendelson and Beth Binkley.
Chefs Steve Townsend and Michael Howell.
among his contemporaries. Mistretta. “It’s celebrating creative
Ashley Novander with Patti and Paul Lyons and Heather Stapleton. Chefs gave detailed descriptions personalities and valuing that. We
need more of that.”
of their dishes and the vintners
of the accompanying wine, with “The film premiered in Santa Bar-
courses served after each associated bara, but Vero Beach is rad,” said Nic
film, fully immersing the epicures Davis, whose star-studded docu-
in film and food. mentary “Enormous: The Gorge Sto-
ry” is about a musical venue in the
“These are really seasoned chefs. middle of nowhere in Washington
We collaborated well and it’s great state. “For a town as small as Vero
to be able to create in this environ- Beach to have the caliber of a festi-
ment,” said Cobalt Chef Winston val that you do is a tribute to Jerusha
Guerrero. “It’s inspiring.” Stewart. It’s an incredibly well-done
festival. The community here is fan-
It was a return engagement with a tastic.”
twist at the Vintner Dinner at Costa
d’Este Resort. The Craft Brews + Fine “This is a very interesting festival.
Wines: The New Tastemakers event The town is small, and people are so
featured wines from the cellars of welcoming,” said Gai Corley. An ex-
guest vintner Ali Nemo, considered perienced fester who has attended
one of the leading female winemak- Palm Springs, Sedona and Montreal
ers in the United States, and local festivals, Corley traveled from Mis-
award-winning craft brews. sissippi for the festival with her Dal-
las-based daughter.
The liquid libations were paired
with a tantalizing four-course din- Film fans later packed the WOW
ner prepared by The Wave’s Execu- Tent for the Opening Night Bash,
tive Chef Armando Galeas. From where they sampled wines and craft
the chilled melon gazpacho to the brews, nibbled on a feast created by
mango white chocolate cheesecake, Chef Ashley Allison, and debated
the evening was an adventurous ex- their favorite films.
plosion for the taste buds.
Beth Mendelson, who debuted last
Among the intriguing Sip! See! year with “Boko Haram” and this
Savor experiences offered through- year brought “After Parkland,” was
out the festival in the WOW (World thrilled to return. She was drawn as
of Wine) Tasting Pavilion, one on much by the people of Vero Beach as
Friday afternoon caused ‘tempo- the festival itself.
rary blindness.’ A full contingent
of oenophiles at the Triple-Blind, “I was honored to be selected last
Wine Tasting Sniff n’ Sip hosted by year and I’m equally happy to come
VBWFF wine director Bob Stanley back this year. It’s a great festival.
used their sniffers and sippers in an It’s got the makings of a really great
attempt to name that wine. To con- festival,” said Mendelson. “Five
found attendees, wines were served years from now, this is going to be
in blacked-out glasses, and the wine built up.”
colors were also changed – think
blue Pinot Grigio. “To have something like this in
Vero Beach is amazing as far as
A select group of invitees gathered broadening our horizons in what’s
Friday afternoon at the JM Stringer usually a conservative town,” said
Gallery for the VSP (Very Special Margot Kornick.
Person) Welcome Party, which was
abuzz with excited chatter, the ca- Stewart announced the addition
maraderie palpable. of a second festival – the Vero Beach
Wine and Film Festival West – to be
“Film is art. The film festival is held Feb. 1-2 at Vero Beach Outlets.
a wonderful thing for Vero Beach For more information, visit VBWFF.
and it’s part of the arts,” said John
Stringer, event host with Caesar Saturday and Sunday VBWFF fes-
tivities will be featured in our June 20

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / June 13, 2019 17

PEOPLE

Dr. Alexis Riley and Brittany Beatty. Andy DuVigneaud and Ali Nemo. Phyllis and Ray Adams.

FILJUMDMGAEK’SECRHFOEISCTEISV:AL
AWARD WINNERS:

Animated Shorts:
Don’t Lose Heart, Christine Arnold

Documentary Feature:
Toxic Puzzle, Bo Landin

Documentary Short:
Warbonnet: An Odyssey of Honor,

John Harrington

Dramatic Short Film:
The Musician, Mark Schimmel

Comedy Short Film:
Sorry Not Sorry, Monique Sorgen

Narrative Feature:
Otto Neururer – Hope through
Darkness, Hermann Weiskopf

Quentin Walter and Bob Stanley. Chef Malka Espinel. Gary and Linda Mastro.

Devour!
Vero Beach
Chefs &
Shorts

18 Vero Beach 32963 / June 13, 2019 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

PEOPLE

Vero
Visions
Awards

PHOTO: KAILA JONES

Jerusha Stewart, Mayor Val Zudans, Kenneth George and Nathan Shalom.

Ari Rutenberg and Gordon Nordstrom.

Rob and Michele Wayne, Walter Ruiz, Mary Rose and Greg Denaro. Adam Margolis, Patricia Miles, Janis Nordstrom and Barry Shapiro.

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Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / June 13, 2019 19

PEOPLE

Christine and Derek Gerry. Sara and Paul Schiller with Angela Morgan.
Norman Wells and Dr. Deborah Brown.
Diego Henriquez and Rusty Cappelen.

Craft Brews
& Fine Wines
Vintner
Dinner

Doug and Beth Hager with Helen and Michael Wood.

Elinor Allen, Gai Corley and Sharon Bastide.

20 Vero Beach 32963 / June 13, 2019 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

Double PEOPLE
Blind
Wine
Tasting

PHOTO: KAILA JONES

Jerusha Stewart and Chef Ashley Allison.

Jordan Lulich and Steven Lulich. Mei Fa Tan and Ali Nemo. PHOTOS: DENISE RITCHIE Tim Williams and Chris Springer.

VSP
Welcome
Party



22 Vero Beach 32963 / June 13, 2019 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

PEOPLE

PHOTOS CONTINUED FROM PAGE 20 Denise Stewart and Erica Mims. Jim and Donna Mitchell.
Toby and Gwen Turner. Kathy Sullivan and Ryan Ozminkowski. Rosie Grace and Mitz Pfeiffer.

VSP
Welcome
Party

UGLY ROOF?
WE CAN HELP!

PHOTOS CONTINUED ON PAGE 24
Chuck Barr, Steve Barr, Casey Zilbert, Akki Ramakri and Trenton Colbert.

METAL • TILE • SHINGLE • FLAT Cinema
• NEW ROOFS Uncorked

• ROOF REPAIRS

772-453-7219

MYFLROOFINGCONTRACTOR.COM

Harmony Rivas and Alexis Archer.

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / June 13, 2019 23

PEOPLE

Spotlight on self-esteem at Joey Travolta’s ‘Inclusions’ camp

BY MARY SCHENKEL will finalize the film and give each stu-
Staff Writer dent their own DVD.

An extraordinary opportunity for Tina Hurzik, Joey Travolta and Heather Dales. PHOTOS: KAILA JONES “The hope is to have Joey come back
young adults with developmental dis- in a few months and then we’ll do a
abilities was recently presented to learn interview skills, problem-solv- red-carpet event for the community
them by filmmaker Joey Travolta at a ing, teamwork and decision making. and the parents and the kids,” said
two-week Inclusions Short Film Camp, Hurzik.
which ran from May 28 through June 7 “Another key component is they’re
at The Arc of Indian River County. learning self-esteem,” said Dales. “It’s She said the last day was bittersweet;
been a fabulous experience. It gives students happy for the experience, but
For a group often excluded from them a lot of opportunities they would sad to be leaving. “They just feel so
activities, just the name was enough not typically have.” happy here and accepted and they feel
to garner excitement among the 50 like they’re leaving here as actors and
students, ages 14 to 21, thrilled at the Once back in California, Travolta actresses.”
chance to take part.
“It’s been a gift for him to be able to
Bringing it here was a collaborative do this,” said Jennifer Truxell, whose
effort of the Florida Division of Vo- 17-year-old son Brendan attended the
cational Rehabilitation (VR), Servic- camp. Truxell said Brendan is a high
eSource, Options for All and The Arc functioning autistic who loves enter-
tainment; even before he could con-
verse, he would quote things from car-
toons.

“From a mother’s point of view, it’s
sometimes hard finding people who
understand him, or any child with
disabilities,” said Truxell. “But here
it’s been open arms. They see the
beauty in them that not many people
may see.” 

of IRC, each of which strives to provide years, just trying to figure out how to CARPET ONE Creative Floors & Home has more for your
special needs individuals with the bring it here; this is the first camp he’s CREATIVE FLOORS entire home from the floor up! With Flooring,
skills needed to attain employment done in Florida (with VR students),” Tile, Cabinets and even vacuum cleaners!
and a degree of independence. said Heather Dales, CEO of The Arc & HOME
IRC. “The students who are here are all 772.569.0240
Prior to becoming an actor, direc- levels of unique abilities. It’s been quite
tor and filmmaker, Joey Travolta (John the experience.” 1137 Old Dixie Hwy • Vero Beach
Travolta’s elder brother) earned a de- creativefloorscarpet1verobeach.com
gree in special education. Hurzik and Travolta first met three
years ago at a symposium at Florida
“I was always for the underdog, even Atlantic University.
growing up,” said Travolta. “My father
was the one who instilled that in me. “She stalked me,” said Travolta with
He was the kindest, most inclusive per- a laugh. “I was going to the parking lot
son, and that was the gift he gave me.” and this woman’s running after me –
‘Hey, we need to get the camp here in
In 2007 he founded Inclusion Films, Florida.’ So that’s how it all started.”
teaching filmmaking to the develop-
mentally disabled in seven production He explained that everything that
studios in California. Additionally, he goes into filmmaking goes into every-
takes short film camps to organiza- day life. More than just acting and di-
tions throughout the United States. recting, students learn skills such as
camera work, post-production, sound
Travolta said he has five editors on mixing, effects and editing.
the autism spectrum working for him
in California, where programs run “There are so many job opportuni-
year-round, and three former campers ties. Especially with editing, where the
now work for him. He brought a staff of work takes concentration and it’s kind
13 to Florida; four are California stu- of tedious, but they like that repetitive-
dents, who got to apply what they’ve ness,” said Travolta.
learned.
“They may not necessarily go into
“Tina (Hurzik, vice president at Ser- filmmaking, but they’re gaining work
viceSource) and I have been talking skills. They learned a little bit of every-
about it for the better part of two-plus thing,” said Hurzik, adding they also

24 Vero Beach 32963 / June 13, 2019 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

PEOPLE

PHOTOS CONTINUED FROM PAGE 22 Zoraida Mercado and Cynthia Arrieta.
Christine Luethje-Fleck, Jeff Woolnough, and Dr. Stacie Walton. Janis Nordstrom and Marie Healy.
Rosanne Susi and Erica Susi.

Shamus Samerdyke and Jim Keenan.

Cinema
Uncorked



26 Vero Beach 32963 / June 13, 2019 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

ARTS & THEATRE

Role ’em! Hopefuls step it up
at holiday ballet auditions

BY ANNA GRENEVICKI “It’s more about discipline,” added
Artem Yachmennikov, the other half of
Correspondent the husband-and-wife duo who co-di-
rects the show. This show follows their
The Christmas holidays may be half widely acclaimed 2018 production of
a year away, but excitement is already “Sleeping Beauty.”
mounting, as two nearby dance com-
panies prepare to delight audiences Palpable nervous energy buzzed
with elaborate productions of “Swan throughout the studio, as dozens of
Lake” and “The Nutcracker,” both in auditioners continued their warm-ups
December at the Maxwell C. King Cen- while waiting their turn.
ter for the Performing Arts.
“I stretched at home, then when I
An intricate ballet comes together
like a complex recipe, with a talented Instructor Artem Yachmennikov
and graceful cast needed as a key ingre- conducted auditions for Swan
dient. Finding that a perfectly blended Lake in Melbourne.
cast requires an arduous yet exhila-
rating audition process, one that took
place recently as dynamic young danc-
ers from across the region danced their
hearts out in open auditions, hoping
for a coveted role.

An elegant, sumptuous classic that
virtually every ballerina dreams to star in
one day, “Swan Lake” is being presented
by the Melbourne City Ballet Theatre in
collaboration with the National Ballet
Theatre of Odessa. The Satellite Sym-
phonic Orchestra will be providing live
accompaniment from the pit.

“The Nutcracker,” a perennial
crowd-pleaser that remains a magnifi-
cent annual holiday tradition, is being
performed by members of the Space
Coast Ballet Company, accompanied
by the Brevard Symphony Orchestra.

Auditions for the two productions
were held within the last month – “The
Nutcracker” on May 19 and “Swan
Lake” the afternoon of June 2. Hopefuls
were slotted into times by age group,
with seasoned dancers and beginners
competing alongside their peers.

Ninety-four dancers, ages 3 and
up and hailing from all over Central
Florida, arrived at the Melbourne City
Dance Center for the “Swan Lake” au-
ditions, primed and ready to go; their
hair in perfect buns and wearing col-
orful leotards, tights and skirts, with
ballet or pointe shoes.

Available roles ranged in complexity
– from parts created for tiny tots and
teenaged pointe dancers to those for
seasoned adults. Some dancers were
cast in minor or cameo parts, while
others got roles that will provide them
with a great deal of time in the spot-
light. Role selections all come down to
their demonstrating the qualities that
the artistic directors are seeking.

“We test their coordination, listening
to the words [of the music], and [how
well they listen] to the teacher as well,”
said Ekaterina Vaganova-Yachmennikov.

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / June 13, 2019 27

ARTS & THEATRE

got here I stretched again. Then I made roles in “Swan Lake,” with everyone Three weeks prior, the Space Coast auditions for certain roles will be
sure that my shoes were nice and bro- who tried their very best earning a Ballet Company will present the holi- held in August for anyone who was
ken in,” said Elizabeth Wallace, 17, as role, large or small. day classic “The Nutcracker” on the unable to try out earlier.
if ticking off a pre-flight checklist. “I King Center stage for the 17th time.
made sure my hair was all out of my A production such as “Swan Lake” This ballet, under the direction of ar- “Ninety-eight percent [of local
face, which is sometimes really hard requires hundreds of hours of dedi- tistic directors Ekaterina Shchelkanova dancers] will be cast in roles that are
when you have long hair.” cated rehearsal time. Even during the and Anton Boytsov, will have its perfor- suitable for them. We are also the only
school break for summer, dancers mances at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. on Dec. 7, company on the Space Coast that is
As part of the audition, dancers will meet twice a week, Wednesdays with tickets on sale Aug. 17. not associated with a particular stu-
were shown a combination of dance and Saturdays, with different groups dio,” said Loretta Grella, vice chair-
steps which they had to learn on the rotating in and out for a full eight More than 100 dancers, ranging in man of the Space Coast Ballet Com-
spot. After committing the pieces of hours each day. age from 3 to 78, traveled from Sebas- pany board.
the dance to memory, they performed tian to Titusville in May to audition
the steps for the artistic directors’ ex- “This is a really professional ballet, so for “The Nutcracker,” with 98 cast in With parts cast, the hard work begins
perienced, discerning eyes. we need to see quality. That is why we the production. Those dancers ex- for the two must-see holiday treats.
need so many rehearsals and hours,” pect to rehearse more than 200 hours
“It’s kind of scary, but it’s also fun explained Artem Yachmennikov. before the performance. Additional For performance details and ticket
knowing that you could possibly be in information, visit kingcenter.com or
this show. It’s more fun for me,” said “Swan Lake” performances will be call 321-242-2219. 
13-year-old Claire King. held at 7 p.m. Dec. 27 and at 2 p.m. Dec.
28 at the King Center on the Melbourne
All 94 dancers were chosen for campus of Eastern Florida State College.

PHOTOS BY BEN THACKER AND KEVIN ROBERTS

28 Vero Beach 32963 / June 13, 2019 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

ARTS & THEATRE

COMING UP! McKee’s Waterlily Celebration–it’s ‘Wow’ time!

BY SAMANTHA ROHLFING BAITA the celebration is the hands-on repot- fold their petals, arrive at 8:30 a.m. plishments are astounding. For nearly
Staff Writer ting demonstration, led by one of the Time: 8:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Admission: 80 years, Walt Disney has produced
Garden’s experts, standing in a pond, adults – $10, seniors – $9, ages 3-12 – some of the greatest songs in cinema
1 A not-to-be-missed botanical ankle-deep in a waterlily favorite – $5, McKee members and children un- history. When all is said and done,
treat returns this Saturday. It’s muck. “Waterlilies love muck.” Join der 3 – free. 772-794-0601. you gotta love the mouse.” Word. To
the crowd that always gathers on the nourish the love of music as soon as
the annual McKee Botanical Gar- bank, listening intently as the water possible, the SCSO has cleverly cre-
gardener hoists a dripping lily, its legs ated the nationally recognized 18 and
den’s centerpiece event, the Waterlily dangling soggily. Here, invariably, as 2 One of Historic Downton Vero’s Under Club, wherein students 18 and
excellent galleries, Flametree younger or with a college student ID
Celebration, a gorgeous, joyful day to visitors stroll around the ponds and can attend the concerts for free. The
along the paths, they slow their pace, lobby tickets desks have these tickets,
share with family and pals, or an en- speak softly to one another, pause of- Clay Art Gallery, presents its June ex- pre-concert. Just show ID and ask.
ten, smile a lot. A tip: both day- and Time: 3 p.m. Tickets: $25 in advance,
riching solitary experience. The Gar- night-blooming lily varieties will be hibit “Made in Vero,” a diverse collec- $30 at the door. 855-252-7276.
on display so, to be sure you see the
den, brimming with beauty all year night-blooming residents before they tion of works by its resident and ex-

long, outdoes itself on this day, when hibiting artists. I’m a longtime fan of

80 waterlily varieties and more than clay art in most all its forms: My most

300 potted and 100 free-range plants recent piece, a totally charming, ob-

go Petals Forward to put on a daz- viously irresistible armadillo, was

zling show, proving once again that acquired there a few years back. You

Mother Nature’s artistry is unparal- can easily spend a few pleasant hours

leled. Scattered throughout the gar- visiting the downtown galleries, grab

den will be plein air artists, capturing a bit of lunch and a cold beverage at

the beauty on canvas, in a variety of one of the nearby restaurants and

styles. Peek over their shoulders and pubs. It’s becoming an art-centric

see how they do it. In the Hall of Gi- destination. Flametree resident art-

ants, you’ll find the blooms interpret- ists include: Rae Marie Crisel, Keko

ed in another medium: all entries in Ekonomou and Heidi Hill, joined by

the Water Lily Photography competi- exhibiting artists John Aruffo, Jim

tion will be on display. Water lilies are Cohoe, Mary Goetz, Judi Nickelson,

right up there with pelicans in Florida Judy Nye, Ginny Piech Street (love

photography popularity, and you can the name); and jewelry artists, Myr-

be sure there’ll be some gorgeous, na Renkert and Leah Cody. “Made in

creative shots. A popular feature of Vero runs through June 30. Gallery 4 Beauty is in the eye of the ogre.
Kids, parents, grands, neighbors
hours: Tuesday through Thursday,

THROUGH THE E Y E OF THE CAMERA 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.; Friday, 11 a.m. to 6 – everybody will enjoy this one. Guar-

p.m.; Saturday 1 p.m. to 6 p.m. Closed anteed. It’s Riverside Theatre for Kids

Sunday and Monday. 772-202-2801. summer camp students’ presentation

of “Shrek The Musical JR.” this com-

ing Friday and Saturday, June 21 and

22. If you have never seen one of this

group’s performances, you’re in for

a major treat. As Vero Beach 32963’s

theater writer aptly puts it, the na-

tionally recognized, award-winning

Riverside Theatre for Kids “is not your

grandfather’s children’s theatre.” The

professional staff at Riverside makes

sure of that. The summer shows are

way more than a cut above the norm.

They’re polished performances, with

Annual Juried Photography Exhibition “grander scenery, flashier lighting,
Now Through June 21, 2019
3 Disney and Broadway – a sure- better acoustics and costumes, all de-
fire combo. Taking a line from
signed by Riverside’s professionals.”

Disney’s musical “Beauty and the And, as director Kevin Quillinan says,

Beast,” the terrific Space Coast Sym- “we hold a high bar which the kids al-

phony brings it again, this Sunday, ways meet.” “Shrek The Musical JR.”

June 16, at Community Church in is the irreverent, romantic, twisted

Vero Beach, inviting you to “be our fairy tale of a very large, very green,

guest,” with its 2019-2020 season very disgruntled ogre and his acci-

DON’T opener “Disney and Broadway.” If the dental pal, a wisecracking donkey.
M ISS
FINAL exhIBItIoN SPoNSoRed BY: Disney tunes don’t get you humming When Shrek finds his swamp invaded
DAYS!!
along, the Broadway numbers will: by fairytale misfits, banished by the

Disney’s “Beauty and the Beast,” “The Lord Farquaad, “a tiny terror with big

Little Mermaid,” “Mary Poppins,” “ ambitions,” the unlikely pair sets out

Aladdin,” “The Lion King” and “Poca- to confront Farquaad and, in typical

hontas,” and from Broadway musicals fairy tale fashion, rescue the beauti-

a.e. BacKUS “Great Egret Mating Display,” “Funny Girl,” “Evita,” “Grease!,” “Chi- ful Princess Fiona, who has one or

MUSeUM & GaLLeRY Dawn Currie - BEST OF SHOW 2019 cago,” “Showboat,” “Fiddler on the two secrets of her own. Time: June 21,

500 N. INdIaN RIveR dRIve • FoRt PIeRce, FL • 34950 • 772.465.0630 Roof” and “Mamma Mia.” See what I 11 a.m., 2 p.m. and 7 p.m.; June 22, 2

mean? Maestro Aaron Collins says it p.m. and 7 p.m. Tickets: $10. 772-231-

succinctly: “Disney’s musical accom- 6990. 



30 Vero Beach 32963 / June 13, 2019 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

INSIGHT COVER STORY

Omarion Jordan spent almost all of for a third time, at which point they fined to an isolation room with spe- therapy that just might cure Omarion
his first year of life in hospital isola- got more attention. A battery of tests cial air filters. outright.
tion rooms. The nightmare began with revealed a rare genetic disorder called
what looked at first like diaper rash, a severe combined immunodeficiency Left untreated, SCID kills most “It was kind of like a leap of faith,” she
string of red marks that quickly spread syndrome (SCID), better known as the children before they turn 2. Simpson says.
across his body when he was just shy “bubble boy” disease, which makes 40 spent five months waiting for a bone
of 3 months old. Creams and oint- to 100 American newborns each year marrow transplant for her son, the It worked. In April, Omarion was
ments failed, as did the eczema sham- extremely vulnerable to infections. only conventional treatment and one released from the St. Jude Children’s
poo treatment an emergency room that the doctors told her carried se- Research Hospital in Memphis, where
doctor prescribed. Omarion, transferred to an Ohio rious risks. Then they told her about a team of researchers had taken stem
hospital three hours away, was con- an alternative: an experimental gene cells from his bone marrow, bathed
Last July, hours after Omarion’s pe- them in trillions of viral particles engi-
diatrician injected his three-month neered to carry the gene missing from
vaccines into his thighs, the boy’s scalp SCID patients, and reimplanted them
began weeping a green pus that hard- in the boy to begin replicating, repair-
ened and peeled off, taking his wispy ing the errors encoded in his cells.
brown curls with it. His head kept
crusting over, cracking, and bleeding, A preservative in the cell treatment
and his mom, Kristin Simpson, started left him smelling like creamed corn for
to panic. “His cries sounded terrible,” days afterward, Simpson says, but his
she recalls. “I thought I was going to immune system has begun working
lose him.” normally, his white blood cell count
rising like those of the other nine kids
She took her son back to the ER two in his study. Recently, Simpson and
nights in a row, only to have the doc- Omarion ventured for the first time
tors send them home each time to outside of their St. Jude housing facil-
their apartment in Kendallville, Ind. ity to play. Inside what’s known as the
“They thought I was some antivacci- Target House, they’d spent months in
nation person,” she says. a filtered, isolated apartment for chil-
dren with compromised immune sys-
The next day, however, the boy’s tems. “He’s just a healthy baby now,”
pediatrician diagnosed pneumonia Simpson says in the house’s Amy
and sent them back to the hospital Grant Music Room, sponsored by and

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / June 13, 2019 31

INSIGHT COVER STORY

A St. Jude staff member places
a cell factory back on the shelf.

lined with photos of the Christian pop Kristin Simpson with her son, Omarion Jordan, whose gene concerns about returns on investment
singer. “It’s definitely a miracle.” therapy treatment has allowed him to leave hospital isolation. that tend to come with pricey research
and development projects.
This is the tantalizing promise of The other problem is cost: These Hospital of Chicago, “but there are still a
gene therapies, the potential cures treatments are expected to run several lot of considerations.” “While this proposition carries tre-
for dozens of once-incurable illness- million dollars a pop. Zolgensma is the mendous value for patients and society,
es. The U.S. Food and Drug Admin- most expensive drug ever approved in Safety, efficacy, fairness, and long- it could represent a challenge for ge-
istration issued its first approval of the U.S., with a price tag of $2.1 mil- term follow-up care top her list. “Even if nome medicine developers looking for
a systemic gene therapy, a Novartis lion for a one-time infusion. someone undergoes gene therapy and sustained cash flow,” Goldman Sachs
AG treatment for spinal muscular at- is cured of a disease, we need to ensure analyst Salveen Richter wrote last year
rophy, on May 24 and says it expects “The cures are coming,” says Alexis that they have access to a health-care in a note to clients titled “Is Curing Pa-
to approve 10 to 20 therapies a year Thompson, a gene therapy pioneer who system that will allow us to follow them tients a Sustainable Business Model?”
starting in 2025. heads the hematology department at for conceivably 10 to 15 years,” she
the Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s says. Then there are the more ghoulish Every human has about 20,000 genes,
There are more than 800 trials un- half each from Mom and Dad, that make
der way, targeting diseases including proteins to break down food, maintain
rare metabolic disorders, sickle cell cell health, provide energy, pass signals
anemia, hemophilia, and Parkinson’s. to the brain, and so on. A defect in a
As the list grows, such treatments have single gene can cause any one of about
the potential to fundamentally remake 7,000 potentially devastating or life-
the health-care system at every level. threatening diseases.

There are two big caveats. First, most Viruses have been thought to offer a
studies haven’t run longer than a few solution since the 1980s, when an MIT
years, so it’s impossible to know yet researcher first modified one to deliv-
whether the therapies will remain ef- er a healthy gene into a human cell. In
fective for life, help everyone the same, 1990 the National Institutes of Health
or yield side effects decades in the fu- used such a treatment to save 4-year-
ture. Only about 150 children have re- old Ashanthi DeSilva from an immune
ceived the Novartis muscle treatment, disorder that would otherwise have
Zolgensma, and at least two have died, killed her in a matter of years.
though the therapy doesn’t appear to
have been to blame. A handful of early disasters tempo-

CONTINUED ON PAGE 32

32 Vero Beach 32963 / June 13, 2019 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 31 INSIGHT COVER STORY

rarily halted progress on gene therapies. Still, sci- Manufacturing facilities like the one at St. Jude can spend al for a gene therapy in development from Spark and
entific work continued, and as researchers created Pfizer, and most of his symptoms disappeared, as
better technology, they started delivering remark- months growing, purifying and testing gene therapies. did his routine drug costs. “It’s life-altering,” he says.
able results. “I haven’t had to stick a needle in my arm for a year.”
is sight worth for a young child or an adult,” says
In 2007 patients with a genetic form of blindness Spark Chief Executive Officer Jeff Marrazzo, “as well Sullivan, like Omarion, didn’t have to pay for his
saw their vision improve. Blood cancer patients given as what we needed to charge to be able to reinvest.” experimental treatment. Once the dozens of coming
only weeks to live in 2012 went into remission after gene therapies are approved and on the market, they
their immune systems were reprogrammed to attack For some patients, gene therapy would be cheaper may well be unavailable to most Americans, even
malignant cells. Hemophiliacs started producing than current lifelong treatments. Take Tim Sullivan, a those with insurance, says Steven Pearson, founder
clotting proteins. 63-year-old computer programmer born with hemo- and president of the nonprofit Institute for Clinical
philia. Sullivan’s earliest memories involve lying in a and Economic Review, which assesses the value of
The past five years have been revolutionary, says hospital bed, looking up at a bottle of blood slowly medicine.
Lindsey George, a hematologist who leads gene thera- dripping essential clotting proteins into his veins.
py trials at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. “This is In countries with centralized health coverage, such
a transformative time,” she says.“It isn’t just a hope and Since birth, Sullivan’s care has cost millions of dol- as the U.K., drugmakers don’t sell their products un-
a whim. It’s supported by data and significantly so.” lars. He estimates that the drug he used from Pfizer less the government agrees to cover them. In the U.S.,
Inc., BeneFix, and a longer-lasting version called Alp- drug companies sometimes step in to help struggling
George cautions that it’s tough to identify rare side rolix from Sanofi SA, cost an average of about $300,000 patients, giving them medications for free or reduced
effects with samples as small as most of the studies annually. The year he underwent a knee replacement, prices, but it’s unclear whether this will be the case
so far have used. Part of the problem is the supply which required substantially higher doses of the drugs, for all gene therapies. “As we start getting into diseas-
of the therapies themselves, which require months the bills soared to more than $1 million. es with more people, like hemophilia and beta thal-
of growing, purifying and testing at manufacturing assemia, access to care is going to be an issue,” says
facilities such as the one at St. Jude. Then, a year ago, Sullivan enrolled in a clinical tri- Harvard medicine professor Jonathan Hoggatt.

St. Jude spent millions of dollars to develop a bank of Gene therapy developers including Novartis,
cells so it can treat new patients in a little more than a Spark, and Bluebird Bio Inc. are starting to pitch
week at a cost of tens of thousands of dollars per case. novel and controversial payment plans. These in-
For less practiced facilities, the manufacturing process clude annuity models that allow insurers to pay off
for each treatment can cost $500,000 or more. the treatments over time. So far, the programs aren’t
broadly covered by Medicare or Medicaid; develop-
Researchers and doctors want to cure diseases ers must negotiate them individually with insurers.
that affect the most people, and the industry is fo-
cused on developing those treatments to sell. No- “The way the payment system is set up in the Unit-
vartis says Zolgensma doses are worth more than ed States, we pay by episode of care, and we happen
double the $2.1 million the company is charging. to be delivering a one-time therapy,” says Spark’s
Spark Therapeutics Inc. has set the price for Luxtur- Marrazzo. “Ultimately, I think we should get paid a
na, its treatment for an inherited form of blindness, smaller amount, over time, as long as it’s working.
at $425,000 an eye. “We really tried to focus on what

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / June 13, 2019 33

INSIGHT COVER STORY

We should be standing behind these products.” diseases, many of which generally prove fatal, there ment costs of a treatment for Maxwell, her 2-year-
Critics argue that longer-term payment plans may not be time to resolve all the questions of sup- old son, who suffers from a rare, newly discovered
ply and demand. Some academics are willing to genetic disease. She’s $600,000 short, and he has a
could just as easily lead to price escalation and build gene therapies to order, but that means pa- year, maybe two, before the worst of the symptoms,
abuse. “If we just turn every single treatment into a tients need to raise the money themselves. severe seizures, may cause permanent damage. “His
home mortgage, all we do is kick the can down the birthday was so bittersweet,” Freed says. “Time is
road,” Pearson says. Amber Freed, a former equity analyst in Colorado, not on his side.” 
is trying to raise $1 million to cover the develop-
For patients suffering from these kinds of rare

34 Vero Beach 32963 / June 13, 2019 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

INSIGHT OPINION

Commemorating the 75th Anniversary of D-Day at Normandy

BY MILTON R. BENJAMIN “Our only exits from the beach were for our landing craft to run into. They Among them were a rapidly dimin-
several swales or valleys, each about also had huge logs buried in the sand, ishing number of D-Day survivors –
NORMANDY BEACHHEAD – “Now one hundred yards wide. The Germans pointing upward and outward, their boys then in their teens and early 20s
that it is over it seems to me a pure mir- made the most of these funnel-like tops just below the water. Attached to who are now men in their 90s – wor-
acle that we ever took the beach at all.” traps, sowing them with buried mines. these logs were mines. ried that what they achieved on the
They contained, also, barbed-wire en- beaches below will be less and less re-
Thus wrote Ernie Pyle, America’s tanglements with mines attached, hid- “In addition to these obstacles they membered each year.
most famous and beloved war corre- den ditches, and machine guns firing had floating mines offshore, land
spondent, 75 years ago as he walked from the slopes. mines buried in the sand of the beach, Indeed, there is now talk that the
the beaches of Normandy in the days and more mines in checkerboard rows 80th D-Day Anniversary observance
immediately after the D-Day invasion. “This is what was on the shore.” in the tall grass beyond the sand.” here five years from now may well be
Many of the more than 4,000 Ameri- the last major commemoration.
Last week, three quarters of a cen- can boys killed in the D-Day invasion Standing there, conjuring up this
tury later, I fulfilled a longtime goal never even made it to that shore. horrific scene, it was hard to image how But the battles here were so horrific
of walking Omaha and Utah beaches, “Underwater obstacles were ter- the American boys managed to prevail. – the scene so powerful – and the tri-
trying to imagine the chaotic morn- rific,” Pile wrote. “The Germans had umph of good over evil so important,
ing of June 6, 1944 when tens of thou- whole fields of evil devices under the Up above Omaha Beach, at the that these commemorative observanc-
sands of brave young American men water to catch our boats. American Cemetery, hundreds of peo- es must continue. Our young people
battled their way ashore in the largest “The Germans had masses of those ple – civilians and military alike, peo- cannot be allowed to forget what oc-
seaborn invasion in history. great six-pronged spiders, made of rail- ple of every nationality, many of them curred here, and what it means.
road iron and standing shoulder-high, in uniform – gathered to remember
It’s a trip I would commend to every just beneath the surface of the water the troops who helped turn the tide of While walking amid the ghosts of
American. the war, liberate France, and give birth the American Cemetery, we heard in
to a new Europe. the distance a band playing the Battle
From a now tranquil beach – not un- Hymn of the Republic.
like our empty beaches at dawn in Vero
– looking up toward a grass-covered It turned out to be the North Bum-
hillside that largely hid the remnants of combe High School band fromWeaver-
what had been German bunkers, I again ville, North Carolina, which had raised
recalled Pyle’s description of the scene: money to fly here and honor young
men of a different generation. Previ-
“The advantages were all theirs, the ously, this band had played at a Pearl
disadvantages all ours. The Germans Harbor anniversary commemoration.
were dug into positions that they had
been working on for months. . . . A “The Blackhawks often engage with
one-hundred-foot bluff a couple of history, to help students gain a deeper
hundred yards back from the beach appreciation of our nation’s roots and
had great concrete gun emplacements sacrifices,” a North Carolina journalist
built right into the hilltop said.

“Then they had hidden machine- What a wonderful thought. Might
gun nests on the forward slopes, with this be an example for Vero? Some-
crossfire taking in every inch of the how, helping keep history alive
beach. These nests were connected by through participation in commemo-
networks of trenches, so that the Ger- rations like these strikes us as a more
man gunners could move about with- important idea than marching in New
out exposing themselves. Year’s parades. 

SKIN CANCER, PART XIII

TOOLS TO DETECT MELANOMA (CONTINUED)

Dermatologists have various tools to help diagnose mela- employs a handheld device or stationary unit using © 2019 VERO BEACH 32963 MEDIA, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
noma. Last time we discussed total body photography and infrared light that helps doctors visualize deeper layers
mole mapping. Today we’ll learn about dermoscopy, con- of the skin than is possible with dermoscopy. This
focal microscopy and the “smoking G.U.N.” approach to non-invasive technique allows examination of the skin
detection. with cellular resolution, similar to the detail a pathologist
can see under a microscope – in real time. Not all
MICROSCOPIC TOOLS/COMPUTERIZED RECORDS medical centers offer RCM. Expense is a consideration,
it is a timely procedure and special training and exper-
 TOTAL BODY PHOTOGRAPHY (TBP) tise of the dermatologist is paramount. Therefore RCM
AND MOLE MAPPING is usually only available through highly specialized
(See previous column.) TBP and mole mapping use dermatologists for people who have been referred
digital imaging to take baseline photographs of a with a lesion that is suspicious for skin cancer. Used
patient’s skin surface to help physicians identify in conjunction with clinical or dermoscopic suspicion
changes in worrisome lesions and make informed of malignancy, or both, RCM may reduce unnecessary
evaluations. Photos are kept for future comparisons. excisions without missing melanoma cases. The evi-
 DERMOSCOPY dence suggests that RCM may be more sensitive and
Dermoscopy, also known as dermatoscopy or epilu- specific in assessing lesions that are difficult to diagnose
minescence microscopy, is the study of skin lesions compared to dermoscopy. Both techniques are pain-
with a dermoscope, a handheld microscope. The doc- less procedures.
tor uses the dermoscope to inspect suspicious skin
lesions during a skin examination. Modern dermo-
scopes use polarized and non-polarized light, which SMOKING G.U.N.
allow the clinician to observe and analyze subsurface
and surface features, respectively. This helps distin- In review, the most efficient method for melanoma de-
guish benign from malignant tumors such as melanoma tection is to begin with a complete head-to-toe exami-
and other cancerous lesions. Dermoscopic images can nation by a board- certified dermatologist. If a lesion is
also be taken and stored. During subsequent visits, the different from that patient’s average mole pattern, the
doctor compares the images to see if there are changes. doctor evaluates the lesion with dermoscopy and then
If so, those lesions may need to be excised. Another compares it to previously acquired digital total body pho-
advantage dermoscopy offers is that it may help identify tographs to see if there has been any change. To visual-
the edge of a skin cancer for surgical margins. In addition ize deeper layers of the skin at the cellular level, confocal
to providing greater pattern detail, dermoscopy gives microscopy can be used to assess lesions that are difficult
doctors a more in-depth look at specific areas, helping to diagnose. If a melanocytic lesion is “growing,” “unusu-
them see subtle features not visible to the eye. al” and especially if it is “non-uniform,” it’s considered a
 CONFOCAL MICROSCOPY “smoking G.U.N.,” and should be excised. 
Confocal microscopy, also known as reflective confocal Your comments and suggestions for future topics are
microscopy (RCM), is a microscopic technique that always welcome. Email us at [email protected].

84 Properties Sold/Under Contract Since January 2019

John’s Island

It’s your lifetime. Spend it wisely.

John’s Island is the place where everyone wants to be. A private, luxurious seaside community full of people who–like you–have a
zest for the good life. Indulge in 1,650± tropical acres along miles of pristine beaches along the Atlantic Ocean. From sunrise to sunset,
enjoy the active and legendary social lifestyle and world-class amenities including three championship golf courses, 17 Har-tru tennis
courts, pickleball, professional squash, croquet, an abundance of water activities, and a health & wellness center. A picturesque
seaside landscape and near perfect climate complement the outstanding calendar of social and recreational activities for all
ages. Savor our fresh, seasonal dishes available at any of the three renovated clubhouses, including the spectacular Beach Club
overlooking miles of sparkling shores. We invite you to discover life at John’s Island.

Bob Gibb, Broker : Judy Bramson : Jeannette Mahaney : Ba Stone : Michael Merrill : Kristen Yoshitani : Susie Perticone
Open 7 days a week : 1 John’s Island Drive : Vero Beach, Florida 32963

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.

Exclusively John’s Island

CONSTRUCTION COMPLETED

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38 Vero Beach 32963 / June 13, 2019 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

INSIGHT BOOKS

For anyone whose opinion of Florida and its resi- skinning a raccoon, offers little defense against pain- and sister “like a divider we couldn’t quite pull down.”
dents largely depends on social media and those ful memories. “Images from the past layered over each They never hear from her again, but as Jessa-Lynn
mean-spirited “Florida Man” headlines, Kristen Ar- other,” she describes, “two films running at the same notes, “She still dictated how we saw each other. How
nett’s “Mostly Dead Things” may come as a disap- time: him young and bearded, smiling, hacking into we saw other women.”
pointment. The central characters in this sad and deer meat, and then the way I’d last seen him, splayed
funny book are recognizable not as easily boxed, fe- out and graying. Lifeless. What had he thought in Hope arrives for Jessa-Lynn in the form of Lucinda
lonious stereotypes but as complex, flesh-and-blood those final moments? That the letter was explanation Rex, a gallery owner eager to introduce the world to
human beings. That their family business involves co- enough? Did he think I’d consider him another piece Libby’s wild, erotic art, which provides the book’s most
pious amounts of flesh and blood is only as weird as a to stuff, something I could mount and set around the comic moments. Although the reader realizes that Lu-
reader wants it to be. house?” cinda Rex, “her name already bigger than life,” will
usher Jessa-Lynn back into the light of the living long
Set in Central Florida, where, Arnett writes, “theme Jessa-Lynn’s grief over her father’s death is com- before the narrator does, it’s of little consequence in
parks and chain restaurants were built over homes pounded by the loss of Brynn Wiley, her childhood Arnett’s smart and empathic novel.
and libraries” and “no one ever seemed to remember best friend, lover and sister-in-law who skipped town
what came before,” “Mostly Dead Things” is narrated years earlier “for someplace even hotter than Florida “We spent so much time looking for pieces of our-
by Jessa-Lynn Morton, who assumed operation of the with a stranger she’d met at the dry cleaner.” Brynn, selves in other people that we never realized they were
family taxidermy shop after her father shot himself. who maintained a romantic relationship with Jessa- busy searching for the same things in us,” Jessa-Lynn
Jessa-Lynn discovered the body, which, she recalls, Lynn even after marrying Milo and having a child with concludes near the close of “Mostly Dead Things,” her
had slumped “onto the metal table where we’d cured him, appears throughout the novel in flashbacks, and – and the book’s – authenticity evident to the end. 
our first hide.” Six months later, when the story be- Arnett excels at depicting the thrilling promise and
gins, she is trying to work through her grief while also hormonal rush of young love, as well as the abject fear MOSTLY DEAD THINGS
attempting to rescue her sinking business and family, of its departure. Jessa-Lynn and Milo are no match for
which includes a younger brother, Milo, whose ambi- Brynn’s steady confidence and natural cool, and long BY KRISTEN ARNETT | TIN HOUSE. 354 PP. $24.95
tion extends no farther than his next beer, and a moth- after she’s gone, Brynn remains stuck between brother REVIEW BY JAKE CLINE, THE WASHINGTON POST
er, Libby, who has taken to creating pornographic art
from the shop’s inventory of animal parts.

Arnett, who is based in Orlando and the author of
the 2017 collection “Felt in the Jaw,” gets many things
right in this first novel: the feeling of being trapped
and vulnerable within one’s own family; the frustra-
tion of trying to look to the future when the past has
“its teeth dug into you like a rabid animal”; how “love
makes you an open wound, susceptible to infection”;
and the manifold risks of swimming in a warm Florida
lake, where if an alligator doesn’t get you, a brain-eat-
ing amoeba might.

Most of all, Arnett skillfully and humanely captures
the agony and confusion of surviving a loved one’s
suicide. Jessa-Lynn oscillates between honoring her
father’s memory and railing against it, between trying
to fill the emptiness created by his final act and be-
ing swallowed by it. She throws herself into her work
and drinks until she blacks out, one night getting “so
drunk I couldn’t unbutton my pants in the bathroom.”
Peace and acceptance are fleeting, anger and depres-
sion relentless.

Humor, which comes as easily to Jessa-Lynn as

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Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / June 13, 2019 39

INSIGHT BOOKS

My first apartment after college, when I was an ear- three dozen or so trips to both venues, to consider Yan- public place.” A baseball park is itself a simulacrum of a
nest young publishing drone, was a bare three blocks kee Stadium a cheerless, oppressive disaster, whereas I
from Fenway Park – close enough to hear the cheers find the Mets’ ballpark kitschy but essentially appeal- city, he writes, and thus “does not need to be inside an-
drifting in through the open window on sweltering ing. As for Nationals Park, Goldberger’s verdict is re-
summer nights. It was 1991 and I was, in writer Paul soundingly lukewarm: The Nats’ home “looks a lot like other simulacrum.” This latter universe has no place for
Goldberger’s formulation, unwittingly part of Fenway’s the banal office buildings with which the District of Co-
“tightly woven connection to its city’s urban fabric.” lumbia is filled” but is thus at least impoverished editorial assistants. They can come once,
“an apt reflection
“Ballpark: Baseball in the American City” is both a of Washington as it if they can afford it, or not at all.
beautifully illustrated history of North
American baseball stadiums and a de- is now.” Wrigley Field in Chicago is what Gold-
fense of the simple but enduring idea of
a ballpark that fits neatly into the hum TEN INNINGS AT WRIGLEY berger calls one of “the im-
and hive of a grid of city streets, acces-
sible primarily by public transit. THE WILDEST BALLGAME EVER, WITH BASEBALL ON THE BRINK mortal ballparks,” a “cher-
BY KEVIN COOK | HOLT. 253 PP. $28
A Pulitzer Prize-winning architec- ished icon” with “abundant
ture critic, Goldberger has an easy REVIEW BY MICHAEL LINDGREN, THE WASHINGTON POST
way with his descriptions, and his charm” that inspires “deep
analyses of various ballparks are More important than these specifics, though, is the
done with clarity and wit. The elegant way Goldberger’s narrative echoes the chang- affection.” Its small dimen-
book is studded with insightful ing tides of the American city. He identifies four distinct
observations, such as that early phases in ballpark history: the original city-bound ven- sions and proximity to
ballparks would have been im- ues like Wrigley and Fenway, the unpalatable suburban
possible without the advent of doughnuts mentioned above, and the retro-styled ball- Lake Michigan, of course,
streetcars; public transit and parks kicked off by the construction of Oriole Park at
baseball essentially grew up Camden Yards in 1992. make it the ultimate hit-
together. “Without trains,” he
states flatly, “baseball would The last and perhaps most ominous phase is the re- ters’ park when the wind
not have become a national cent trend toward sterile, corporate campuses like Sun-
game.” Trust Park in Atlanta. These abominations, which use is blowing out toward the
“the baseball park as the keystone of a larger real estate
Likewise, everyone knows development that re-envisions the city as a privately ivy-covered outfield fenc-
that the turn in the 1960s controlled series of spaces,” end up having “as many of
to now-maligned circular, the qualities of a theme park as of a traditional city.” es – as it was on May 17,

BALLPARK Goldberger’s excoriation of this last rises to the pitch 1979.
of the impassioned and serves as an eloquent expres-
BASEBALL IN THE AMERICAN CITY sion of “the urban idea … that a moderate amount of The events of that
BY PAUL GOLDBERGER | KNOPF. 364 PP. $35 disorder is a fair trade-off for the virtue of having a truly
REVIEW BY MICHAEL LINDGREN, THE WASHINGTON POST fateful day – an improb-

multisport stadiums like Veterans Stadium, in Phila- able 23-22 Philadelphia
delphia – Goldberger calls them “concrete doughnuts”
– was driven by the rise in the popularity of professional win that featured 50 hits,
football. It had never occurred to me, though, that the
core of this dynamic was football fans’ affection for pre- including 11 home runs
game tailgate parties, which are, of course, impossible
without a parking lot. – are engagingly related

Goldberger has philosophical, even poetic, criteria in Kevin Cook’s hugely
for what makes a good shrine to the horsehide. “The
most important thing,” he writes, “was that the space enjoyable “Ten Innings
of the ballpark itself was … so open as to allude, at least
symbolically, to the notion that the outfield extends at Wrigley: The Wildest
into infinity.” His evaluations – he likes the Pittsburgh
Pirates’ new stadium but dislikes Chase Field, in Phoe- Ballgame Ever, With
nix – seem to me to be accurate and well-judged, with
one conspicuous exception. Baseball on the Brink.”

Goldberger considers the current homes of the Yan- A natural racon-
kees and the Mets, both dating from 2009, as moderate
successes, and here I must disagree. I have come, over teur with a jaunty

press-box style, Cook

divides his tale into

three parts. The first

is a witty and compact history of the Phillies and Cubs

franchises up to the date of the game; the term “star-

crossed” might well have been invented for both clubs,

which had exactly zero World Series wins between

them dating back to 1908.

Part two of “Ten Innings at Wrigley” is given over to

an inning-by-inning recap of the fearsome cannonad-

ing, which Cook deftly intertwines with sketches of the

competing players and snippets of play-by-play taken

from a recording of the Philadelphia radio broadcast.

And the third is a five-part meditation on “legacies” that

includes colorful accounts of the Phillies’ 1980 champi-

onship and the tribulations of surly Cubs slugger Dave

“Kong” Kingman.

Cook’s title describes “Baseball on the Brink,” but he

wisely does not oversell the symbolic ramifications of

this one game, deeply wacky as it was. He does provide

a skillful description of the notorious split-fingered

fastball, for which a pitcher “released the ball with a

hard downward flap of the wrist, as if he were swatting

a fly” – a novelty that would soon spread like kudzu over

pitching staffs in both leagues. And he winningly cap-

tures the atmosphere of a looser, shaggier Wrigley, with

off-duty waitresses and college students smoking pot

in the bleachers and jawing at Phillies outfielders.

Most striking, Cook attempts the risky but success-

ful, I think, ploy of adopting the perspective of trou-

bled Cubs pitcher Donnie Moore as a central narra-

tive thread. Some of us will pick up this book already

knowing that Moore, unstrung by a spiraling career

and drinking problems, would commit suicide after

attempting to kill his wife on July 18, 1989. It lends a

poignant element of foreshadowing – a glimpse of the

darkness ahead – to what is otherwise a raffish, free-

wheeling book. A day game at Wrigley played at the tail

end of the 1970s offers plenty of sunshine, but the sun

always sets in the end. 

40 Vero Beach 32963 / June 13, 2019 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

ST. EDWARD’S

St. Ed’s boys lacrosse has 2020 vision of supreme success

BY RON HOLUB
Correspondent

St. Ed’s varsity lacrosse teams are “We were not inside the top 10 to play lacrosse that looked like la- PHOTO: KAILA JONES
moving ever closer to a status remi- this year and I think that has a lot crosse. You would only be able to ap-
niscent of two decades ago when the do with not having a lot of seniors. preciate that if you played, coached ing back and we have some great
girls and boys were collecting a to- Physical maturity and more of a vet- or been around teams that really kids coming up,” Bailey said, refer-
tal of five state championships. That eran presence on the field will help focused on learning the game and encing the 13-0-1 record of the mid-
was back when lacrosse was first be- us get to that level. I wasn’t necessar- playing smart. We are getting there dle school team. “To be able to hang
ing introduced to high school sports ily expecting to attain that this year – we were not always there this year in there with great competition we
in Florida. Today it is fully estab- because we had a lot of ninth- and – but we are getting there.” want to develop the patience, disci-
lished in the mainstream and more 10th-graders. pline and fundamentals during the
popular than ever in schools and Measured by those standards, regular season that are required for
clubs. “My team will tell you that I did there is not all that far to go. The success in the playoff hunt.”
not settle for not being there this 2019 Pirates were 14-5 overall. They
We chronicled recently the re- year, but next year I am certainly ex- were 5-0 in regular-season district If the blueprint remains intact, and
birth of the girls program under Rick pecting to be there. We had a lot of play before tacking on two more in the players stay healthy, the Pirates
Cassara, and this past season the nice juniors and all of them contrib- the postseason tourney to claim the can crack that top 10 ceiling in short
boys kept pace by capturing a third uted in some way, but not all of them championship. The five defeats were order. Bailey is anxious to check that
straight district championship in were ready to be the huge physical all by teams in the top 15. St. Ed’s box, but he has another, more far-
Doug Bailey’s fourth year as head presence we needed on the field. climbed to No. 13 in the final state- reaching challenge in mind.
coach. wide poll by MaxPreps.
“I was pleased that we were able “One of my goals was to design a
“In particular we had a lot of dif- Hence the bright outlook for next program in which kids wanted to go
ferent people step up on a more con- year with as many as 20 players com- on and play in college. If they have
sistent basis,” Bailey explained. “The ing off a season of varsity experience. the ability, and the opportunity, we
players have raised their lacrosse IQ. want to help them get there. The
They are not only playing hard, they The attack was led by Ryan Bird next thing is that once they get there,
are playing smart. That made for a (42 goals), Oscar Lindenthal (41 how to be successful. They will have
pleasurable season in that people goals) and Joshua Pusser (23 goals). the knowledge base, but what hap-
from other schools watching our Midfielders Luke Jayne (team leader pens from there will be based on
games noticed that visibly. We were in points with 35 goals and 30 as- their desire.
multifaceted and a tough team to sists), Reid Bartosch (27 goals) and
plan for.” Drew Sternberg (16 goals) provided “The first priority is the classroom.
additional firepower. St. Edward’s helps in that regard, but
In all likelihood that will be the I also believe that a multi-sport ath-
case again next year when everyone Goalie Liam Murphy had a 55 lete is best equipped for success, and
is eligible to return with the excep- percent save rate behind a defense there are a lot of good coaches here.
tion of one lone graduate, Will Stern- anchored by Sam Cardosi, Sam The athlete is able to experience the
berg. That very tough loss should be Toomey, Drew Eidemueller, Brennan richness of learning from coaches
partially offset by realistic optimism Wolfe and Ian Horvit. Opponents with different approaches, systems
for the Pirates’ chances to get to the were limited to single-digit scoring and expectations.
“next tier” in 2020. 14 times.
“That is exactly what you need
“Getting to the next tier of lacrosse “We have the bulk of our kids com- when you get to the practice field in
in Florida is really a matter of our college.” 
players continuing to grow physical-
ly and developing a little more men-
tally,” Bailey said. “The next tier is to
consistently be a top ten team in the
state rankings.

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / June 13, 2019 41

INSIGHT BRIDGE

THE RECOMMENDED LINE WORKS ALSO WEST NORTH EAST
76 AK3 984
By Phillip Alder - Bridge Columnist J852 Q K 10 6 3
AK98 QJ7643 52
Abba Eban, an Israeli politician who was raised and educated in England, said, “History 10 7 4 QJ5 K982
teaches us that men and nations behave wisely once they have exhausted all other
alternatives.” SOUTH
Q J 10 5 2
This is the same deal as last week. The original scribe claimed that after the trump lead, A974
South could not make four spades if he ruffed two hearts in the dummy. As demonstrated 10
last week, that would have worked. However, what was the alternative line that the author A63
recommended?
Dealer: South; Vulnerable: East-West
South was right to open one spade despite having only 11 high-card points. He had the
majors, two aces and an easy rebid. He had a seven-loser hand (two spades, two hearts, The Bidding:
one diamond and two clubs) should partner have a fit for one of the majors. North described
a game-force with three-card spade support. South signed off in four spades with his SOUTH WEST NORTH EAST OPENING
minimum. (In two-over-one game-forcing, North would have rebid two spades, and South 1 Spades Pass 2 Diamonds Pass
would have jumped to game.) 2 Hearts Pass 3 Spades Pass LEAD:
4 Spades Pass Pass Pass 7 Spades
The author proposed establishing dummy’s diamond suit. Take the first trick in hand and play
the diamond 10. Suppose West wins and leads his second trump. Now comes a play that I
mentioned last week: a ruffing finesse. Declarer runs dummy’s diamond queen and discards
a heart from his hand (not a low club, but interestingly the club ace is OK!).

West wins and shifts to a heart. South takes the trick with his ace and leads a low club to
dummy’s jack. East wins with the king and returns a heart, but declarer trumps in the dummy,
ruffs a diamond, draws West’s last trump, crosses to the club queen and runs the diamonds.

42 Vero Beach 32963 / June 13, 2019 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

INSIGHT GAMES SOLUTIONS TO PREVIOUS ISSUE (JUNE 6) ON PAGE 62

ACROSS DOWN
1 Landscape (5) 2 Group of stars (13)
4 Explore (5) 3 Well-known (5)
10 Group of nine (5) 5 Italian wine variety (7)
11 Confidential (7) 6 Alone (13)
12 Fortress (7) 7 Engraving (11)
13 Mother-of-pearl (5) 8 Orchard fruit (5)
14 Bays or coves (6) 9 Festivity (11)
16 Boil gently (6) 15 Conversing (7)
18 Rural footpath (5) 17 Stadium (5)
19 Luminous (7) 20 Furnishings (5)
21 Point of view (7)
22 Cloth for trousers (5)
23 Cosy rooms (5)
24 Rank (5)

The Telegraph

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Fill in the grid so the
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Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / June 13, 2019 43

INSIGHT GAMES

ACROSS 102 Orch. section 61 Den The Washington Post
104 W.C. Fields exclamation 63 Damsel frightener
1 Nut 107 Wine cooler 64 Baseball Hall of Famer THE THREE RS By Merl Reagle
7 Geronimo, for one 108 Seth’s mother
13 Sunshade 110 Embodiment Aparicio
20 CEO’s office location 114 Suffix meaning “like” 66 Pot entree
21 Place of worship 67 TV host-actress
22 Queued up 115 Three R’s 68 Monarch, e.g.
23 Three R’s 121 Withdrawal 69 Earache
26 Cool Charles 122 AA offshoot 70 Dine at home
27 Clique’s attitude 123 Pianist Rudolf 71 French summer
28 Tight ___ drum 124 Liquid for plastics 72 Lead pencil pioneer ___
29 Jamaican “mister” 125 José Carreras and others
30 Introduction to Romeo 126 Secret meetings Faber
32 Carnival guess 77 Saragossa mister
33 Goldberg Variations DOWN 78 Margin settings
1 Ghana’s capital 80 Teller’s word
composer 2 Golf’s ___ Ryder Open 81 Sierra Madre strike
36 Like Buster Keaton’s face 83 Hotshot
3 Three R’s 84 Each
38 Russian range or river 4 Home away from home 87 Peggy ___ Got Married
40 Good, to Gomez 5 Epoch ending 89 Drink avec dinner
42 Goshawk’s grabber 6 Sung syllables 91 Exclamation from Walter
44 Three R’s
51 Actress Rene of In the 7 Have ___ (nosh) Brennan
8 It means “foot” 93 Fish eggs
Line of Fire 9 Mech. money dispensers 94 The “good” lipoprotein
52 Bay window 95 Most heartfelt
53 Become sweet and juicy 10 Three R’s 99 Unbelievable people?
54 Voice of Betty Boop, 11 Unnamed woman 100 Mendelssohn’s “___ in E Flat
12 B.P.O.E. member
___ Questel 13 Stoogean missiles for Strings”
55 Rap sheet abbr. 14 Deborah in 101 Austrian article
56 Second version of a 102 British guns
The King and I 103 Rugged peak
recording 15 Paul Scott’s “___ Quartet” 105 In ___ (peeved)
58 Gray’s subj. 16 To Kill A Mockingbird 106 Science fair entrants, usually
60 Source of the Good 108 Author Abba
state: abbr. 109 Take a poll position?
Samaritan parable 17 Three R’s 111 Dir. listing
62 “Long time” follower 18 Edible ring
64 Climbing vine 19 Comic Bruce in 112 First name of The
65 “Put ___ on it!” The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel Firebird’s composer
24 False locks
66 Three R’s 25 Scrooge’s word 113 Salon guru Jose
73 Abbr. on a phone 31 War god 116 Make a mistake
74 City on the Mohawk 34 Actress ___ Alicia 117 Born
75 Video-game name 35 Hartford daily
76 Columbo collar 36 Make subjective 118 Word on a Cheerios box
79 Eyeball irritant, 37 AAA rescue 119 A “little” suffix
39 Start of the Mister Ed theme 120 Ending for direct or access
at times 40 Bingo call or vitamin
80 Marginalia 41 Colorado Indian
42 Kitchen shortening?
82 Diastema 43 Lime quaffs
85 Airline to Copenhagen, 44 Grille protector
45 Diving bird of northern seas
familiarly 46 Some apples
86 Drawing support 47 Ceratops starter
88 “The First Time ___ Saw 48 Indian instrument
49 Actor Jack of 1930s and ’40s
Your Face”
90 Wish for the world comedies
50 Indigent
92 Three R’s 57 All eternity, poetically
96 Major pain in the neck 59 Guadalajara
97 Evidence of who you goose-egg

are, for short
98 Riyadh resident
99 Relaxed runner
101 The Voice host Carson

The Telegraph

44 Vero Beach 32963 / June 13, 2019 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

INSIGHT BACK PAGE

Oh brother, does he have elder care issues with siblings

BY CAROLYN HAX care. Please schedule visits to come help me.”
Washington Post Don’t hedge. Caregiver burnout is real and ter-

Dear Carolyn: I am the young- Desperate Son/Brother: Anyone reading your rible and bad for the health of both parties.
est of five brothers and have letter – probably even your siblings, if they don’t And don’t stop there, either: Propose a plan
cared for my mother for 12 years. realize it’s about them – will understand that
I live with mom and my siblings “Mom would love to see you” really means “Help, where each sibling stays with you and your mom
live out of state. somebody, come visit.” … let’s say once a year, spread out so it’s one sib
per quarter, for one week each to give you a break.
At 88, mom needs care that is Do you know what it says, though, to people And for them to spend precious time with Mom.
overwhelming for me. I juggle work, home and avoiding the hard work and even harder emo-
mom, with no time for anything else. I am very tions of an infirm parent clearly near the end of Unless there’s backstory here, they have no
thankful and blessed to have mom with me, but it her life? It says just, “Mom would love to see you.” moral standing to say no. They may say no to you
is very emotionally draining. anyway. They probably will say no to you. And
So you need to say out loud to each sibling: you can’t stop them.
My older siblings call sporadically and make “After 12 years of this, the caregiver badly needs
even less time to visit – some only twice in 12 years. But it’s still important for you to stop making
I’m so frustrated and frankly sad they can’t make it it so easy for them to opt out. Start making them
a priority to visit more often, or even talk to me to say yes or no. Be strong.
talk frankly about Mom.
Do it not just for your own well-being, though
I believe they all love her, but just take her for that is justification enough. Do it also as a kind-
granted. ness to them, in case even one of them is just pas-
sively avoiding the whole Mom issue and there-
I have told them she and I would love to see them fore will feel guilty after she’s gone.
but there are always excuses. They go on living,
traveling and everything else, all the while I feel It’s unlikely you’ll get all the help you ask for
trapped. – though I sincerely hope you do – and even a
week per quarter still wouldn’t be enough if all
I have found myself drained, overwhelmed, de- siblings came to your aid. You need respite care;
pressed and simply angry with the current situ- you need a plan for when your mother’s care be-
ation. I need them to understand the urgency of comes more than you are (or any one person is)
calling longer than three minutes. And visiting able to provide; you need financial help toward
more often than every couple of years. Help. this care; you need people to talk to. Start with
your local council on aging to find a geriatric care
–Desperate Son/Brother manager or social worker. We’re not meant to do
these things alone. 

HYPERBARIC OXYGEN
THERAPY CAN SPEED
WOUND HEALING PROCESS

46 Vero Beach 32963 / June 13, 2019 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

HEALTH

Hyperbaric oxygen therapy can speed wound healing process

BY TOM LLOYD
Staff Writer

Is HBO right for everyone with a
diabetic foot wound?

If the HBO in question is hyper-
baric oxygen therapy, that’s a trickier
question than you might think.

According to the Mayo Clinic, “hy-
perbaric oxygen therapy involves
breathing pure oxygen in a pres-
surized room or tube. Hyperbaric
oxygen therapy is a well-established
treatment for decompression sick-
ness, a hazard of scuba diving.”

Other conditions treated with HBO
therapy “include serious infections,
bubbles of air in your blood vessels
and wounds that won’t heal as a re-
sult of diabetes or radiation injury.”

Dr. Michele Maholtz at the Cleve-
land Clinic Indian River Hospital
wound healing and hyperbaric medi-
cine center agrees with Mayo Clinic:
“It speeds healing. I think, from a
clinical perspective, we definitely see
people heal faster.”

In addition to diabetic wounds,
Maholtz says, “we have people who’ve

Dr. Michele Maholtz. P HOTO BY DENISE RITCHIE

had, say, breast cancer. They’ve been However, the U.S. National Library
radiated and they’ve had surgery. of Medicine at the National Institutes
They have a wound that won’t heal be- of Health is not convinced that oxy-
cause that area was radiated, [which] gen is effective for the treatment dia-
damaged the blood flow to the area.” betic wounds.

She contends HBO helps those It says “the evidence makes it dif-
patients and adds, “we’ve treated a ficult to draw any definitive conclu-
couple of men who’ve had radiation sions on the clinical and cost effec-
for bladder cancer and then they get tiveness of standard wound care plus
hematuria (blood in the urine) and HBO versus standard wound care
we have them in the [HBO] chamber alone for the treatment of diabetic
for those kinds of things.” foot ulcers.”

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / June 13, 2019 47

Likewise, the American Diabetes HEALTH
Association refuses to endorse HBO
for diabetic foot wounds. port that they were satisfied with how
their ulcers healed and that this im-
It says there is “not enough sup- proved their quality of life.”
porting data on the efficacy of this
treatment to recommend its use.” As long as patients in the U.S. re-
main satisfied and Medicare contin-
Nevertheless, many doctors believe ues to help foot the bill, HBO will like-
in the treatment and serious compli- ly remain in use as an essential tool in
cations from the therapy are relative- the diabetic wound care toolbox.
ly rare. For those reasons, HBO is a
moneymaker for hospitals and treat- Dr. Michele Maholtz is board certi-
ment centers. fied in pulmonary medicine, critical
care and sleep disorders. She is at the
As the Washington Post reports, Cleveland Clinic Indian River Hospi-
“hyperbaric treatment, increasingly tal’s ambulatory care office one-half
given to diabetics – many of them el- day a week. She also has offices at 3725
derly and with persistent wounds – in- 12th Court, Suite A in Vero Beach. That
volves breathing pure oxygen inside phone number there is 772-567-0081. 
a pressurized air chamber. Sessions
typically last two hours each week-
day, often for more than a month, and
20 outpatient visits can bring a hospi-
tal $9,000 in revenue.”

Using the Post’s numbers, the 1,200
patients treated annually with HBO
at the Cleveland Clinic Indian River
Hospital’s wound center could gener-
ate more than $10 million in revenue,
though it’s unlikely all 1,200 would
rack up 20 two-hour visits.

“Enticed by healthy Medicare pay-
ments – about $450 for a two-hour
session – some 1,300 U.S. hospitals
have now installed hyperbaric facili-
ties,” according to the Post.

The actual mechanics of hyperbar-
ic oxygen therapy are relatively easy
to grasp.

With the patient inside, the cham-
bers create between two to two-and-
a-half times the normal atmospheric
pressure using 100 percent oxygen.

The air we breathe at home, in the
car or out on the golf course is only
about 21 percent oxygen. Nitrogen
makes up a whopping 78 percent of
the rest along with minuscule por-
tions of argon, methane and carbon
dioxide.

In other words, patients breathing
inside a hyperbaric oxygen chamber
can get many times the amount of ox-
ygen into their lungs and bloodstream
than would be possible outside of one
and since it has been clinically shown
that, as Johns Hopkins says, “wounds
need oxygen to heal properly,” the
current prevailing assumption is that
HBO does help to heal a wide variety
of wounds and burns.

The most ringing endorsement of
HBO actually comes from Canada.

An Ontario Health technology as-
sessment based on seven random-
ized trials and one nonrandomized
controlled trial, found “mixed re-
sults” as far as amputation rates for
diabetic patients undergoing HBO
but it also claims the treatments re-
sulted in “better outcomes than stan-
dard wound care alone,” and perhaps
more importantly, “patients feel that
HBO is an effective treatment and re-

48 Vero Beach 32963 / June 13, 2019 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

HEALTH

You bet some seniors are prone to compulsive gambling

BY FRED CICETTI addiction. The statistics on senior sive Gambling has created a program 3. Did gambling affect your reputation?
Columnist gambling indicate that compulsive to educate seniors about gambling 4. Have you ever felt remorse after
gambling is a greater problem among addiction. According to the council, gambling?
Q. I see lots of seniors in casinos. older adults than adults in general. about 5 percent of the seniors who 5. Did you ever gamble to get money
They come in by the busload. I was gamble appear to have a problem. with which to pay debts or otherwise
wondering whether older people have One study found that 10 percent of The Council should know about this solve financial difficulties?
more problems with gambling than seniors were “at risk” gamblers. The
younger people? study said a gambler was at risk when
wagering more than $100 in a single
About 1 percent of all adults in the bet, or betting beyond what was af-
United States have a serious gambling fordable.

New Jersey’s Council on Compul-

subject; Atlantic City is in New Jersey. 6. Did gambling cause a decrease in
A study by the state of Florida found your ambition or efficiency?

that retirees make up 34 percent of ca- 7. After losing did you feel you must
sino regulars – gamblers who brought return as soon as possible and win
their money four or more times a back your losses?
year. The casinos help out by sending
buses to senior centers to pick up po- 8. After a win did you have a strong
tential bettors. urge to return and win more?

The American Psychiatric Associa- 9. Did you often gamble until your
tion classifies compulsive gambling last dollar was gone?
as an impulse-control disorder. Im-
balances in the brain chemicals sero- 10. Did you ever borrow to finance
tonin, norepinephrine and dopamine your gambling?
may be factors in compulsive gam-
bling. Many people are able to con- 11. Have you ever sold anything to
trol their compulsive gambling with finance gambling?
medications and psychotherapy, and
with the aid of self-help groups. 12. Were you reluctant to use “gam-
bling money” for normal expenditures?
Gamblers Anonymous provides a
12-step program patterned after Al- 13. Did gambling make you careless
coholics Anonymous. GA has more of the welfare of yourself or your family?
than 1,200 U.S. locations and 20 in-
ternational chapters. You can find 14. Did you ever gamble longer than
GA on the internet at: http://www. you had planned?
gamblersanonymous.org; the phone
number for GA is 626-960-3500. 15. Have you ever gambled to es-
cape worry, trouble, boredom, loneli-
GA offers the following 20 ques- ness, grief or loss?
tions to help people decide if they
have a compulsion to gamble and 16. Have you ever committed, or
want to stop. Most compulsive gam- considered committing, an illegal act
blers will answer yes to at least seven to finance gambling?
of these questions.
17. Did gambling cause you to have
1.Did you ever lose time from work difficulty in sleeping?
or school due to gambling?
18. Do arguments, disappoint-
2. Has gambling ever made your ments or frustrations create within
home life unhappy? you an urge to gamble?

19. Did you ever have an urge to
celebrate any good fortune by a few
hours of gambling?

20. Have you ever considered self-
destruction or suicide as a result of
your gambling? 

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / June 13, 2019 49

HEALTH

Beware – binge-watching TV is hazardous to your health

BY JENNA BIRCH creased fatigue and more insomnia watching is similar to prolonged sed- sleeping may cause you to lose more
The Washington Post symptoms. entary behavior for long-haul flights or sleep, and beyond that night. “Elec-
illness: It can increase your risk of de- tronic screens emit broad-spectrum
Binge-watching – the act of stream- Michigan State University research- veloping conditions such as deep-vein light, including blue light,” he says.
ing many television episodes in one ers presented a link between binge- thrombosis, a blood clot in the leg that “In addition to delaying the release of
sitting – is more common and doable watching and poor lifestyle choices can be fatal if it breaks off and travels melatonin, which keeps you awake,
than ever. New and buzzy series are such as opting for unhealthy meals, to the heart or lungs. In the study, even the blue light can actually reset your
constantly added to Netflix, Hulu, etc. unhealthy snacks and sedentary be- ultimately achieving the recommend- circadian rhythms to a later schedule.”
You can stream the entire multi-sea- haviors at the 67th Annual Conference ed amount of physical activity was not
son backlog of shows such as “Game of the International Communication enough to reverse the risk of clots dur- Because humans “have evolved to
of Thrones,” “Billions” and “Big Little Association in 2017. ing TV binges. do best on a near-24 hour sleep cycle,”
Lies” on HBO or Showtime anytime Chervin says, the shift to a later cycle
you’d like. Though there’s still more research to Tolliver also notes that binge- can cause difficulty falling asleep, dif-
be done on the effects of our culture’s eating and binge-watching often ficulty waking up and a general feeling
Though that might sound glorious shift toward multi-hour TV sessions, go hand-in-hand. “Marathon ses- of sleep deprivation.
to TV fans, it’s worrisome to health here’s what experts believe binge- sions of TV, and associated mindless
experts across the country. With so watching can affect your cardiovas- snacking, can lead to increased risk Sleep deprivation has been associ-
much content available, and so much cular system, your vision, your social- of obesity,” Tolliver explains. “In ad- ated with a number of health risks,
screen time becoming the norm – re- ization and your sleep patterns – all of dition, research shows most people according to Brad Lander, a clinical
placing hours devoted to fitness, so- which can lead to other problems. binge-watch alone,” she says. “Stud- psychologist at Ohio State’s medical
cializing and sleeping – the potential ies have connected a lack of socializa- center: “depression, memory deficits,
health implications of binge-watch- For Sophia Tolliver, a family medicine tion to increased risks of heart dis- lack of coordination, accident prone-
ing are becoming more obvious. physician at the Ohio State University ease and stroke, not to mention, fewer ness, heart problems and more.”
Wexner Medical Center, the first concern significant social relationships may
The research on the health effects “is how sedentary you can become,” she increase the rates of depression and Finally, there’s also reason to be
of binge-watching is still in its in- says. “Studies show that sitting for long other mood disorders.” concerned about digital eyestrain. Ac-
fancy, but a few studies have raised periods of time can increase one’s risk cording to the Vision Council, 80 per-
concerns. According to a 2017 study for metabolic syndrome, which can in- Ronald Chervin, a sleep neurologist cent of Americans use digital devices
published in the Journal of Clinical crease your risk of heart disease, stroke and director of Michigan Medicine’s for more than two hours a day, and 59
Sleep Medicine, avid binge-watch- and Type 2 diabetes.” Sleep Disorders Centers, says watch- percent of them report eyestrain, neck
ers reported poor sleep quality, in- ing multiple episodes on Netflix before and shoulder pain, dry eyes, head-
In a 2018 study, researchers found aches, and blurred vision. 
that prolonged sitting for binge-

50 Vero Beach 32963 / June 13, 2019 Style Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

Melania channels Audrey Hepburn’s beauty style

BY FRANCESCA SHILLCOCK Wales and the Duchess of Corn-
The Telegraph wall to Winfield House, the official
residence of the U.S. Ambassador,
It seems the first lady took style as they hosted a black-tie dinner.
With just 60 people attending and
tips from Audrey Hepburn during inexpensive wine on the menu, it
may have been a more intimate and
her state visit to the U.K. last week. casual occasion compared to the
previous evening’s state banquet at
Audrey’s timeless beauty and fash- Buckingham Palace, however this
didn’t stop Melania from oozing
ion style has always been the epit- glamour.

ome of elegance and class, Melania wore a red floor-length
Clare Waight Keller for Givenchy
so it’s no won- gown with a cape silhouette style
as she and her husband welcomed
der Melania guests on arrival to the dinner. The
flowing sleeves and elegant make-
wanted to up style were reminiscent of Hep-
burn’s iconic look in the 1957 film
take inspira- “Funny Face.”

tion from the Melania’s red floor-length Given-
chy dress had cape style sleeves,
iconic actress. creating a silhouette much like Au-
drey’s in Funny Face.
As Melania
It’s not only the first lady of the
and President United States that takes style and
beauty inspiration from the Hol-
Trump arrived lywood icon; she is also a firm fa-

at Bucking- vorite of the Duchess of Sussex’s.
Meghan had her very
ham Palace, we own ‘My Fair

saw her look- Lady moment’ at Ascot
Racecourse last year, as she sported
ing chic and so- a chic monochrome Philip Treacy
hat. Meghan styled this look with
phisticated in a her hair in a elegant low bun to
compliment the hat, with bronzed
white and navy ensemble with cheeks and a pale pink lip a-la Miss
Hepburn.
matching hat, reminiscent of the
It seems Audrey Hepburn’s classic
Hollywood star in My Fair Lady and style ( and love of a hair accessory)
to this day, remains the epitome of
also paid homage to Princess Di- sophistication. The late actress un-
failingly demonstrated the perfect
ana who so often favoured a white combination of class and elegance
throughout her glittering career as
suit. Melania’s hair was elegantly she cemented her name as a Holly-
wood icon. It’s little wonder, there-
styled in a low chignon, along with fore, that we see so much of her
timeless look in today’s fashion and
a smokey-eye look and a nude lip – a beauty world. 

firm favorite of hers.

Last Monday evening, Mrs.

Trump fashioned another Audrey

look as she attended the Bucking-

ham Palace State Banquet with her

husband. This time, Melania had

her hair coiffed into a sleek up-do,

with a ’60s-style quiff to add height,

paired with her fail-safe make-up

look. Melania even wore a sleeve-

less dress complete with long white

gloves to finish off the look, in a nod

to Audrey’s iconic ensemble in the

iconic film “Breakfast at Tiffany’s.”

Last Tuesday, the British weather

wasn’t quite as forgiving, so the first

lady took it in her stride to brave the

showers with a chic Celine mackin-

tosh as she accompanied her hus-

band to Number 10 to meet with

Theresa May. The trench coat has

long been a fashion staple and was a

firm favorite in Audrey’s wardrobe.

Melania again paid homage to the

actress with the tan mackintosh and

a Hermès Birkin bag, demonstrat-

ing sheer Audrey-esque elegance.

Melania’s golden brown locks (the

same hair shade that Audrey used

to sport) were perfectly blow-dried

to contrast her more dressed-down

style.

Last Tuesday evening, the presi-

dent and first lady welcomed guests

such as Theresa May, the Prince of