06/27/2019 ISSUE 26

Former newspaper building may
house a grocery store. P8
School District
getting new CFO. P4
Accused Duve slayer seeks

video testimonial from grandma. P9

For breaking news visit

MY VERO High-speed rail
to make crossings
BY RAY MCNULTY more dangerous

Vero being sued over how
sex sting was conducted

Now that Vero Beach is be- BY GEORGE ANDREASSI
ing sued for the way the city’s Staff Writer
police department conduct-
ed its video surveillance of a Closed stores along the deserted main corridor of the Indian River Mall at noon on Monday. PHOTO BY KAILA JONES Virgin Trains’ high-speed
downtown massage spa dur- passenger rail service is ex-
ing a highly publicized – but Can the increasingly empty Indian River Mall survive? pected to increase risks for mo-
legally troubled – prostitution torists and pedestrians alike at
sting, it’s fair to ask: BY NICOLE RODRIGUEZ pressing reality, but one that million, the mall continues most railroad crossings in the
Staff Writer does not seem to have its lat- to slide downhill, with more county, Public Works Director
Was it worth it? est owner yet ready to give up. stores closing and the owner Rich Szpyrka told county com-
Was it worth all the man The Indian River Mall, falling behind on property missioners on June 18.
hours and money invested by which 23 years ago opened to Two years after New York- taxes and utility bills, same as
police and prosecutors in an great excitement, is now more based Kohan Retail Invest- the prior owner. Virgin Trains plans to start
exhaustive, months-long inves- than 25 percent empty – a de- ment Group bought the strug- construction this year in In-
tigation that, to this point, has gling shopping center for $12 CONTINUED ON PAGE 4 dian River County on a second
produced far less than claimed set of tracks, upgrades to the
during February’s crime-of-the- current tracks and improve-
century news conference? ments at railroad crossings.
Was it worth the relentless
public shaming endured by The company’s goal is to
the 160-plus men arrested in operate 16 round-trip passen-
this county on misdemeanor ger trains between West Palm
solicitation-of-prostitution Beach and Orlando starting in
charges based on secretly re- 2022. Virgin Trains has provid-
corded videos – footage that ed service between West Palm
and Miami since May 2018.
CONTINUED ON PAGE 6
Several crossings in Indian
County passes ban on River County are expected to
pet store sale of dogs become more dangerous as a
bred at ‘puppy mills’
CONTINUED ON PAGE 3
BY NICOLE RODRIGUEZ
Staff Writer 180-foot freighter Voici Bernadette becomes
the Treasure Coast’s latest artificial reef

It’s now illegal for pet stores BY DEBBIE CARSON coming to rest on the sea floor
in the county to sell dogs and Staff Writer 100 feet below and assuming
cats bred at “puppy mills” and a new identity as the Treasure
“kitten factories.” Surrounded by more than Coast’s latest artificial reef.
200 boats, the 180-foot freight-
The Indian River County er Voici Bernadette slipped Those who had gathered
Commission at its June 18 meet- beneath the surface of the At- seven miles out from shore
ing unanimously approved an lantic last Sunday morning, sounded their ships’ horns
ordinance banning pet stores
CONTINUED ON PAGE 2
CONTINUED ON PAGE 2

June 27, 2019 Volume 12, Issue 26 Newsstand Price $1.00 Sunshine Therapy
hopes to treat more
News 1-12 Faith 60 Pets 61 TO ADVERTISE CALL kids for free. P10
Arts 25-28 Games 41-43 Real Estate 63-72 772-559-4187
Books 38-39 Health 45-49 St. Ed’s 40
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Editorial 34 People 13-24 CALL 772-226-7925

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

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

NEWS

Sale of ‘puppy mill’ dogs county, refrain from regular breed- “For every puppy that is ordered for Brevard and Sarasota counties, which
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 ing and infrequently sell or give away sale in a community, another litter is have enacted similar bans.
kitten and puppy litters to friends or bred in a puppy mill that will be trans-
from selling cats and dogs born at in- family. Hobby breeders are catego- ported. The conditions are inhumane Indian River County officials foresee
humane high-volume breeding facili- rized by breeding a specific breed of and many of the animals are just mass no lawsuits stemming from the new
ties that churn out pets for profit. dog roughly once a year and selling produced. There’s very little attention ban – which is effective immediately
the puppies using the Internet or so- given to the care and wellbeing of the – since no retailers currently sell cats
The new law permits the sale of cial media. animals,” said Ilka Daniel, director of and dogs in the jurisdiction.
cats and dogs from nonprofit rescue animal protective services for the Hu-
organizations, animal shelters or the “I don’t believe we’re going to put mane Society of Vero Beach & Indian The city of Vero Beach currently has
Humane Society of Vero Beach & In- an end to this, but if each jurisdiction River County. “So these animals will no ban on dog and cat sales, but also
dian River County. The ordinance also does this, then perhaps, maybe those not be suffering at least in Indian River has no traditional pet stores in its ju-
allows for the sale of such pets from large factories and mills ... will be County and we thank our commis- risdiction. Pet Supermarket sells res-
family and hobby breeders, according eliminated eventually,” Commissioner sioners for coming forward with this, cue dogs and cats, and several stores
to county documents. Joseph Flescher said. because it’s an amazing step forward.” sell other animals and pet supplies.
Vero Beach City Manager Monte Falls
Family breeders, as defined by the Animal advocates celebrated the The move follows in the footsteps of is currently gauging the City Council
ban after its passage. to see if there’s interest in implement-
ing a ban like the county’s, said Jason
Jeffries, the city’s planning and devel-
opment director. 

Ship becomes reef
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

and cheered as the Voici Bernadette
tilted to one side and took on enough
water to disappear.

“Everybody was screaming,” said
Kathy Green, one of the volunteers who
had helped raise money to prepare the
freighter for life as a reef.“It was insane.”

Mark Music, another volunteer, mar-
veled that after a year of prep work, it
was done.

“What have we done today?” he
asked rhetorically. “We sank a pirate
ship!”

The Voici Bernadette, which had
sailed under the flags of several na-
tions, ended up in the hands of drug
smugglers and was seized by the U.S.
Customs and Border Protection. The
government transferred the vessel to
St. Lucie County last June so it could
be stripped and cleaned – then sunk.

Music was one of the last to step foot
on Voici Bernadette before she sank. He
helped pull off banners while another
volunteer took down the U.S. flag.

“It’s bittersweet,” Music said. “My job
is finished.”

Though Music’s “job” is done, the
Voici Bernadette’s is just getting started.
She will serve as a habitat for marine life
and a new dive site for recreational div-
ers. The top of the ship’s towers will be
60 feet beneath the surface.

No divers were in the water when
Voici Bernadette went down, but
there were cameras affixed to the ship
to capture footage as it sank. Three
drones flew overhead during the sink-
ing, catching the scene from a bird’s-
eye perspective.

The freighter is expected to quickly
become a thriving habitat for a variety
of fish and other marine life.

It will also serve as a test site for a
lionfish device meant to attract the
destructive invasive species so they
can be taken by spear fishermen and

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / June 27, 2019 3

NEWS

divers with nets. It is hoped the device what are we going to do with the Street in downtown Vero Beach last “What if this had been Brightline
can be modified in the future to be- queuing of the traffic?” Szpyrka asked. month, blocking the tracks while the (Virgin Trains’ previous brand)?” Sz-
come a lionfish trap. “This is something we need to get ad- driver unloaded the vehicles so the pyrka asked rhetorically during the
dressed prior to anything going on trailer could clear the hump. June 18 Indian River County Com-
Ten-year-old Vivi Pipes watched with Bright Line and Virgin Trains at mission meeting. “Would there have
Voici Bernadette sink. “It was shock- our intersections.” The May 2 incident illustrates the been ample warning?
ing,” she said, to see such a large ship heightened danger facing motorists if
sink so quickly. Once it began to settle, As an example of how problems can slow-moving freight trains are joined “We don’t know because at this
the freighter sank in about 10 minutes. occur at crossings, Szpyrka mentioned on the tracks by Virgin Trains’ two- point in time, construction plans don’t
a car-carrier vehicle that got stuck on way passenger rail traffic at 110 mph, really say.”
“We’ve been watching” the process the slightly elevated crossing on 26th Szpyrka said.
unfold regarding Voici Bernadette, CONTINUED ON PAGE 4
Vivi’s mom, Nyla Piper, said. To see
how they create a new habitat with the
freighter, how it’s cleaned up and the
location selected, “It’s pretty amaz-
ing.” 

Dangerous crossings Exclusively John’s Island
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1
The lure of stunning seaside views. The appeal of luxurious appointments.
result of the second track and the two- All on the largest oceanfront lot in John’s Island. Nestled on a cul-de-
way higher-speed rail service, Szpyrka sac, privacy is paramount in this luxurious 5BR retreat designed for
said at the County Commission meeting. indoor/outdoor living around the poolside terrace and summer kitchen.
Impressive features of this 14,574± GSF home include the double-
The Sebastian Boulevard/County height living room - which commands brilliant ocean views - a gourmet
Road 512 crossing is likely to be trou- island kitchen with butler’s pantry, the grand and relaxing 1st floor master
ble because of the complicated con- wing with morning bar, library, wine bar; elevator and 4-car garage.
figuration of the nearby intersection 692 Ocean Road : $9,995,000
with U.S. 1, Szpyrka said. Pedestrian
safety is also an issue there. three championship golf courses : 17 har-tru courts : beach club : squash
health & wellness center : pickleball : croquet : vertical equit y memberships
“We don’t really see in the design
plans where they took pedestrian safety 772.231.0900 : Vero Beach, FL : JohnsIslandRealEstate.com
seriously, in our opinion,” Szpyrka said.

Another hot spot for vehicles get-
ting stuck on the tracks in traffic is the
Roseland Road crossing near the U.S.
Post Office, Szpyrka said.

Railroad signal failures at the Avia-
tion Boulevard crossing in recent
weeks have caused backups, Szpyrka
said. But the emergency phone num-
ber on the signal box did not work.

“It was a fiasco,” Szpyrka said. “So,
we’re working on having that fixed.”

The added trains are expected to
worsen daily traffic jams as motorists
line up on the streets leading to the
crossings, particularly on U.S. 1, Sz-
pyrka said.

The traffic and safety issues are
complicated by the proximity of the
railroad right-of-way to U.S. 1, the
county’s most heavily traveled road.

Just north of the 26th Street crossing,
the distance from the railroad right-of-
way to the curb of U.S. 1 is just 6 feet,
a Vero Beach 32963 survey found. The
distance from the right-of-way to the
curb ranges from 16 to 18 feet at other
crossings in downtown Vero Beach.

Because tracks are close to U.S. 1,
there is little room for cars turning off
the highway to queue at a crossing,
which causes traffic to back up onto
the highway.

Traffic signals beyond the tracks
compound the problem. If a light just
beyond the tracks turns red as backed-
up traffic is crossing the tracks after a
train goes by, cars sometimes get stuck
on the tracks.

“When an additional track is there,

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

NEWS

Dangerous crossings the train as it’s coming that there is Kohan Group principal Mike Kohan to the county, but paid the $2,400 he
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 3 something stuck on the track and ... told Vero Beach 32963 he’s been at- owed on June 21, said Vincent Burke,
it’s an automatic stop,” Roberts said. tempting to attract smaller retailers the county’s director of utilities ser-
County public works officials have and recruit restaurants, but offered few vices. Had Kohan failed to pay, water
provided comments to Virgin Trains Traffic Control Preemption manages details. service to the mall would have been
about crossing construction plans, the traffic signals near a crossing to al- scheduled to be shut off, Burke said.
but have not heard back, Szpyrka said. low vehicles to get off the tracks before “It’s not an easy task,” Kohan said.
a train comes through, Roberts added. “We’re still not there, but I’m very op- The closure of stores has spurred
“Brightline (Virgin Trains) did reach timistic.” a steady decline in the mall’s value,
out to us to set up a meeting to discuss “We also have diagnostic monitor- said Wayne Bibeau, a commercial real
construction in the county, but that ing of the signals, so that if there is a Kohan has hired real estate firm Col- estate appraiser for the Indian River
meeting has been pushed off to July,” malfunction, a gate is not working liers International to spearhead the ef- County Property Appraiser’s office.
Szpyrka told the commissioners. quite right, the cab driver and the fort, he said. Representatives from the The current appraised value is roughly
engineer in the engine of the train is firm could not be reached for comment. $10.3 million, down $30.4 million from
Virgin Trains USA Vice President automatically notified electronically,” the $40 million-plus appraised value
Rusty Roberts discussed some of the Roberts said. “He notifies dispatch in Kohan purchased the mall three in 1998, county records show.
company’s safety initiatives during a Jacksonville and the trains are ordered years after Wells Fargo foreclosed on
presentation to The Republican Club to slow down until that is fixed.” it and a neighboring shopping center. “As the mall has been experiencing
of Indian River County on June 6. Simon Property Group – the nation’s a downward trend in occupancy, the
Most railroad crossings in Indian largest mall owner – had defaulted on value comes down with it,” Bibeau said.
“Operational safety is very impor- River County are going to have “quad a $71.3 million loan.
tant as we know,” he told the audience gates” and a center median so cars “It is a struggle here,” said Tareek
at Grand Harbor Golf and Beach Club. cannot get around the gates when a Since then, Kohan encountered fi- Beasley, owner of Flavaz Clothing & Ac-
train is coming, Roberts said.  nancial issues of his own, falling behind cessories, who was having a going-out-
Virgin Trains, tracks and crossings on more than $250,000 in property tax- of-business sale last week. Beasley, who
will be equipped with many of the Indian River Mall es in 2017. He’s now current on property operated the store in the mall for three
safety measures cited by Szpyrka, in- CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 tax payments, according to the Indian years, said he began thinking about clos-
cluding Positive Train Control, Vehicle River County Tax Collector’s office. ing his store after about a year and half.
Presence Detection and Traffic Con- In late June, roughly 24 storefronts
trol Pre-emption, Roberts said. in the mall were empty and the food More recently, Kohan neglected to To combat closures and increase foot
court offered just five dining options pay two-months’ worth of water bills
Positive Train Control systems are after Counter Culture Vero and Subway
designed to prevent train-to-train colli- closed up shop. As more stores close, SCHOOL DISTRICT IS GETTING
sions, overspeed derailments and switch- causing the mall’s value to plummet, NEW CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER
related mishaps.The systems also enable the Kohan Group’s plans remain murky.
the dispatch center to halt a train in case
of a potential conflict on the tracks.

Vehicle Presence Detection “tells

BY FEDERICO MARTINEZ Moxley, who was hired after Ren-
dell resigned under pressure May
Staff Writer 24, has reversed several controver-
sial personnel decisions made by
After a nearly a year of financial her predecessor.
confusion and uncertainty, the Indian
River County School District is getting The district has been without a
a new chief financial officer to oversee CFO since former Chief Financial
its nearly $300 million annual budget. Officer Carter Morrison resigned
in the wake of Rendell’s clumsy at-
Interim Superintendent Susan tempt to suspend and demote him
Moxley last week reinstated the posi- backfired.
tion of chief financial officer, which
prior superintendent Mark Rendell After Morrison’s resignation,
had done away with, and on Monday Rendell changed the title of the
she selected someone to fill it. job to Assistant Superintendent of
Finance and then again to Deputy
On Tuesday, after this paper goes Superintendent and added addi-
to press, the School Board was ex- tional duties, including overseeing
pected to approve the hiring of Ron the Human Resources Department.
Fagan as the district’s new CFO. Fa-
gan, who currently serves as Execu- During a special meeting this past
tive Director, Financial Services for Friday, the board approved Mox-
the 130,000-student Duval County ley’s recommendations to restore
Public Schools, already has accept- the Chief Financial Officer position,
ed the Indian River position – de- with a salary of $130,000. She also
pendent upon the board’s approval. received the board’s blessing to cre-
ate the new position of Assistant Su-
“It is a pleasure and honor to join perintendent of Human Resources &
the Indian River School District team School Relations. The new assistant
and I am very excited about the op- superintendent position, which the
portunity,” he told Vero Beach 32963. district began advertising this week,
will pay $115,000, Moxley said.
Board members on Monday ap-
plauded Moxley’s selection. “After reviewing the organization-
al chart, I realized we needed more
“It is with complete enthusiasm consistency in the district,” Moxley
that I welcome Mr. Fagan,” said Board told the board. “The work flow kind
Chairman Laura Zorc. “His experi- of goes everywhere right now. We
ence as an Executive Director of Fi- may be seeing more organizational
nance in the sixth largest school dis- changes in the near future.” 
trict in Florida will make him an asset
to the district leadership team.”

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / June 27, 2019 5

NEWS

traffic, malls across the nation are rein- Kohan said that type of mall is his storefront, pet adoption center, mar- duced its operating hours like many of
venting themselves into destinations goal but while Indian River Mall offers tial arts centers and a church. the smaller retailers in the mall.
offering amenities, experiences and en- a handful of dining options, a video
tertainment to enhance the shopping arcade and a movie theater, the rest The mall is still anchored by several Indian River County Commission-
experience – trying to lure bowling alleys, of the shopping center has become a department stores that independently er Tim Zorc said he has made several
bars, salons and fitness centers to fre- hodgepodge of businesses including own or lease their land and buildings fruitless attempts to contact Kohan
quent before, during or after shopping. a vape shop, military store, Hyundai including Dillard’s, JCPenney, Macy’s to understand his business plan,
and a struggling Sears, which has re-
CONTINUED ON PAGE 6

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

NEWS

Indian River Mall My Vero the solicitation cases against the men. tive that police resort to such mea-
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 5 As a result of those orders, in fact, sures only when necessary and, when
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 they do, strictly adhere to the court or-
strategize about ways to reinvigorate the State Attorney’s Office has of- ders that legally allow them.
the mall and offer help. two local judges have ruled inadmis- fered the men a diversion program
sible in court because police violated by which the misdemeanor charges As we’ve seen in this case, the conse-
“We’d like to be as helpful as we can the accuseds’ constitutional rights? against them may be erased. quences of any missteps can be devas-
if we knew what he wanted to do, but tating – to both the police, whose cases
to my knowledge we have not had Was it worth the legal fees the city But the rulings by Morgan and are now in jeopardy, and the accused
any conversations about that,” Zorc will spend on outside lawyers to de- Menz did something else: They pro- men, whose reputations have been
said. “I think there is a list of oppor- fend itself against lawsuits stemming vided the impetus, as well as legal ar- damaged by news outlets that contin-
tunities that could be implemented from an operation that now appears guments, for lawsuits challenging the ue to post on their websites the solici-
at the site out there.” to have been as botched as it was way police executed the court orders tation suspects’ names and mugshots.
overblown? that permitted the secret surveillance.
The county could potentially reduce In his suit against the city, the plaintiff,
the amount of parking the mall is re- The city already must contend with Twice in his complaint against the who has pled not guilty, claims to have
quired to maintain – the lot is typically one class-action lawsuit, filed in Cir- city, the unnamed plaintiff quoted been “subjected to public humiliation
empty except near anchor store en- cuit Court here on May 25 by one of from Menz’s ruling, in which she by incessantly published photographs
trances and the movie theater – which the alleged “johns” – identified in the deemed “unacceptable” the police’s and references in the press and media”
would free the owner to sell part of the complaint only as “John Doe” to pro- failure to minimize the invasion of pri- and “suffered emotional upset, depres-
property to mixed-use developers or tect his privacy – on behalf of himself vacy of innocent spa customers who sion, loss of self-esteem and other dam-
stand-along retailers, Zorc said. and the other men arrested during the were watched and video-recorded ages as a result of this unlawful, uncon-
prostitution sting. while getting massages. stitutional conduct” by the police.
That would put money in the own-
er’s pocket and potentially increase The filing was entirely predictable, Future plaintiffs might also cite The suit also claims the police’s ac-
the mall’s foot traffic and customer after County Court Judges David Mor- Morgan’s ruling on the Sheriff’s Of- tions “were taken without regard for
base, especially if townhomes, con- gan and Nicole Menz ruled on May 16 fice’s video surveillance of the East Sea the risk of public defamation” of the
dos or apartments were built as part that police violated the accused men’s Spa in the Sebastian area. The judge accused men, and that the police “rel-
of a mixed-use project. Fourth Amendment rights to privacy wrote that he had “strong doubts as to ished in the aftermath of this opera-
when secretly video-recording spa cus- whether any of the investigating detec- tion and enjoyed the publicity.”
In the short term, however, Bibeau tomers in varying phases of undress. tives understood the constitutional is-
doesn’t foresee the mall bouncing back. sues inherent in this type of warrant.” The plaintiff’s Fort Pierce-based at-
But should more homes sprout up in the The judges’ video-suppression orders torney, Brad Jefferson, said he expects
western portion of the county in com- put a serious dent in the state’s felony Both Morgan and Menz described other plaintiffs to join the lawsuit.
ing years, demand could increase.  cases against the massage-spa opera- video surveillance as the most intru-
tors and made it difficult to prosecute sive investigative tactic used by the The city has hired an Orlando law firm
government, which makes it impera- that is seeking to have the case trans-

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / June 27, 2019 7

NEWS

ferred from state court to federal court weeks of nonstop video surveillance and Police mistakes have been uncovered. still faced a human-trafficking charge.
– a move Jefferson said he won’t oppose. culminated in a mid-February raid and Video evidence has been excluded. Fel- Now, the first lawsuit has been filed,
William Lawton, the city’s lead attorney, screaming-headlines news conference. onies have been plea-bargained down
did not return a message left at his office. to misdemeanors. Prosecutors are of- and nobody knows how many more
Since then, however, local law en- fering new deals to the accused men. will follow or what the ultimate cost to
Vero Beach Police Chief David Cur- forcement’s roar has been reduced to And, as of Monday, only one woman the city will be.
rey and Mayor Val Zudans both de- a whimper.
clined to comment on the lawsuit. Was it worth it? 
However, Zudans wrote in an email
that he has “full trust in the men and School anti-violence program seen as success
women who risk their lives on a regular
basis to serve and protect our citizens.” BY MICHELLE GENZ schools, and funds would be made were at risk of self-harm, said Jeanne
Staff Writer available to counsel kids in crisis. Shepherd, the MHA’s clinical director.
Certainly, we should applaud Vero
Beach’s police for shutting down a It began with a heartfelt question When the program ended in May, Countywide, six students a day are
prostitution ring that was doing busi- from one of the softest hearts on the the numbers bore out what mental referred for mental health treatment,
ness at the East Spa on 14th Avenue – Hospital District board: Ann Marie health counselors had hoped: Nearly according to Shepherd, who learned
an effort that led to the Sheriff’s Office McCrystal, reeling from the Parkland 1,000 ninth-graders received aware- of that statistic from the school sys-
doing the same to the East Sea Spa in school shooting, asked the leader of ness education and violence preven- tem’s new mental health coordinator,
the Sebastian area. the Mental Health Association what tion training, with close to three-quar- Dr. Sharon Packard. Packard’s position
could be done to help prevent such a ters of the kids saying on a survey the was funded by the state’s post-Park-
Law enforcement’s job is to protect horror from happening in an Indian program encouraged them to make land initiative to combat violence in
and serve, and the Vero Beach police River County school. positive choices and two-thirds saying schools.
rid the city of a criminal enterprise it got them thinking of things in new
that posed a health risk to our com- After much debate about who ways. Shepherd called the number of
munity. Good for them. should pay for an anti-violence pro- mental health referrals “staggering.”
gram in public schools, the Hospital In the course of the 10-session pro-
Unfortunately, though, the police District agreed to fund a two-part pi- gram, 21 kids stepped up to seek coun- She said a study found that 75 per-
didn’t stop there, opting to chase a lot program proposed by the MHA, at seling. Each received four to five coun- cent of school attackers “had prior sui-
suspected human-trafficking opera- a cost of $75,000. A national evidence- seling sessions with a mental health cide attempts and also talked about be-
tion that allegedly was providing the based anti-violence curriculum would practitioner. ing in a state of depression or despair.
local massage spa with sex slaves for be presented to ninth-graders in two
prostitution. Of those, most were dealing with se- “We would certainly work with
vere anxiety or depression, and some those that are expressing a threat. But
So what should’ve been a two-day
prostitution sting grew into a five- CONTINUED ON PAGE 8
month investigation that included six

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

NEWS

George Lawrence School anti-violence program it will increase the number of students
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 7 participating from 970 to 2,772, and will
George Lawrence of Vero Beach, Florida peacefully passed away on Tuesday, June 18, involve 10 schools instead of two.
2019 at the age of 81. George was born on August 9, 1937 in Bronxville, New York to the we also know that treating underlying
late Christopher and George-Ann Lawrence. depression is how schools stay safe.” Rather than seek funding from the
As a boy, he grew up in Bronxville, NY, New York City and Long Island. He spent many Hospital District again, the MHA is
happy times learning to fish and hunt at the Adirondack League Club. His heritage in Even as the program was being requesting $75,000 from Indian River
the Northeast was esteemed. His maternal great-grandfather, George Hubbard Clapp, taught this spring, three Indian River County’s Children’s Services Advisory
who lived in Pittsburgh, was instrumental in the development of the commercial uses County students – including a 13-year- Committee. That group reviews grant
of aluminum. His paternal great-grandfather, William Van Duzer Lawrence, led the old – were arrested in three incidents applications and makes recommen-
development of Bronxville, NY, turning it into the affluent community that it is today involving threats to local schools. The dations to the County Commission,
and established Sarah Lawrence College in honor of his late wife. 21 students receiving crisis counseling which in turn, funds programs.
After graduating from St. Paul’s School, he attended Columbia College. During his through the program were not among
tenure at Columbia, he was a member of St. Anthony Hall. He left college in 1958 those arrested. The MHA believes it can reach more
to enlist in the United States Army and served in Germany. His strong beliefs in the children for the same amount it re-
importance of a liberal arts education motivated his return to school. He graduated The ripple effect of the MHA pro- ceived from the Hospital District be-
from Pace University in Westchester County, New York. gram may extend beyond the students cause the new curriculum it plans to
After his Army career, George returned to New York City and worked on Wall Street who participated, Shepherd hopes. use for both grade levels is available
before joining the family business, Lawrence Properties in Bronxville, NY where he for free and runs for only three ses-
earned his position of President and Chief Executive Officer. He was a former Chairman “We had kids asking for brochures to sions instead of 10, saving on counsel-
of Sarah Lawrence College and in 1988 until his death, he served on the Board of Urstadt take to their parents,” Shepherd said. ors’ salaries.
Biddle Properties, Inc. The Lawrence Family was instrumental in the development of “One said, ‘Oh, my mom needs help
Kensico Cemetery in Valhalla, NY. George continued his family’s legacy with Kensico with her bi-polar,’ and another said The Children’s Services Advisory
Cemetery by serving as Chairman of the Board from 2007 to 2013. He also served on he was going to tell his mom to get in Committee members warned Mental
the Board of Governors for Lawrence Hospital from 1979-1992. touch about his brother who needed Health Association CEO Dr. Nicholas
George had deep love and pride for his country and became involved with The Fund help. That’s always been our message, Coppola that there are more requests
for American Studies, formerly the Charles Edison Memorial Youth Foundation in that it’s OK to get help, so we’re glad for funding this year than there are
Washington, D.C. He served as their President from 1971 to 1974 and continued to that these kids are becoming ambas- funds available.
serve as a Trustee Emeritus until his death. He supported The Fund’s guiding principles sadors for mental health.”
of limited government, free market economics, and honorable leadership, and believed “They asked, if they didn’t give us
strongly in educating young people with these same guiding principles. Next year, the MHA wants to expand the money, would we still do the pro-
George also served his country by working as an advance man on Richard Nixon’s 1968 the program to include sixth-graders, gram? And I told them I might have to
Presidential campaign and on Jim Buckley’s 1970 Senate campaign. He served several using a different curriculum that will in- cut it back to just ninth-graders again,
terms on the National Advisory Council to the Small Business Administration (SBA). clude not only violence prevention but but I would volunteer and teach it my-
After moving to Vero Beach, Florida in 1989, he served his new community as a suicide prevention.That idea came from self if I had to,” said Coppola. “That’s
member of the City of Vero Beach Vision Committee, and the Planning and Zoning the School Board, which to date has re- how important I think this is.”
Commission for Indian River County. He was elected to serve on the Indian River fused to fund the program. If it happens,
County Hospital District Board from 2001-2008 and was Board Chairman from 2002- The committee’s recommendations
2003. He was a dedicated supporter of the Indian River Memorial Hospital Foundation, are expected this week. 
now the Cleveland Clinic-Indian River Hospital Foundation. George also served on
several Advisory Boards for Senior Resource Association of Indian River County. Former Press Journal building eyed
Hunting, fishing, golf and travel were his life-long hobbies. He was a member of sporting as location of specialty grocery store
and golf clubs around the world. In Vero Beach, he was a member of the Riomar Country
Club and The Quail Valley Club. In New York, he remained a member of the Links Club BY RAY MCNULTY tial company with the necessary fund-
and the Saint Nicholas Society of the City of New York. He was also a member of the Staff Writer ing and expertise,” and already has
Ancient and Honorable Artillery Company of Massachusetts, by right of descent. negotiated 10 leases with the grocery
While he believed deeply in honoring his heritage, he was a firm believer in supporting An out-of-town developer is explor- store chain.
future generations to grow their legacy by mentoring and guiding them around his ing the possibility of purchasing and
principles of hard work, devotion to God, family and self, and sacrifice of self for family, re-purposing the former Press Journal “It’s going to take a lot of work, time
community and country. He was considered a mentor by many individuals and is building on U.S. 1 to accommodate a and money to re-purpose the prop-
remembered fondly for the guidance and shared experiences he imparted to them. His niche-type grocery store from a “well- erty, but this group understands that,”
strong faith, integrity, honor and valor made him admired, cherished and loved by all known” chain, the owner of the prop- Summers said. “They still need to get a
who were fortunate to know him. erty said last week. lease signed with the prospective ten-
George is survived by his loving wife of 30 years, Pud (Margaret); his sons: Chris ant, and I know they’re working on it.
Lawrence, Bill Lawrence and his wife Kristen; Stepsons: Clif Dameron and his wife Jesse, Bill Summers, who purchased the
Derrick Dameron and his wife Sara; Five grandchildren: Olivia Dameron, Ry Dameron, 42,000-square-foot building and 3.75 “Their construction team, archi-
Grant Dameron, Anna Lawrence, Suzy Lawrence; and many beloved cousins. acres on which it sits in November tects and tenant’s representatives al-
Services will be held on Friday, June 28, 2019 at 10:30 in the morning at St. Marks 2015, said the developer plans to di- ready have talked to the city about
Anglican Church located at 1795 45th Street, Vero Beach, Florida. vide a renovated and restructured their plans, and everything seems to
In lieu of flowers, please send contributions to: Senior Resource Association, 694 14th building between the grocery store OK,” he added. “So we’re making prog-
Street Vero Beach, FL 32960;The Cleveland Clinic- Indian River Foundation, 1000 36th and at least one other retail shop. ress, but you never know until they put
Street Vero Beach, FL 32960 or The Fund for American Studies, 1706 New Hampshire up the money and make the deal.
Ave NW Washington, D.C. 20009. He said a confidentiality agreement
Arrangements are under the direction of Strunk Funeral Home, Vero Beach. An online prevented him from identifying the “I’ve had it under contract before.”
guestbook is available at www.strunkfuneralhome.com. developer or the grocery store chain, Summers, who bought the property
but he hopes to have a contract to sell at 1801 U.S. 1 from the Journal Media
the property later this summer. Group for $1.4 million, said he expects
the developer to complete its due-dil-
“I can’t divulge who it is, but there igence process by the end of August.
are grocers and then there are grocers, He said the location of the property is
and this one would be a very good fit “outstanding,” prompting “serious in-
in Vero Beach and a big addition to our terest” from about 20 potential buyers
community,” Summers said. “It would and offers from six.
definitely raise the level of the shop- “I’ve had a lot of people call,” Sum-
ping experience here.” mers said, “but I need a commitment,
not conversation.”
He said the developer is a “substan-

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / June 27, 2019 9

NEWS

Vero Beach City Manager Monte Falls The former Press Journal building on U.S. 1. PHOTO BY KAILA JONES chains that could be interested in
said the developer, who also has met expanding to Vero Beach is Lucky’s
with Planning Director Jason Jeffries, Market – a Boulder, Colorado-based
wants to reconfigure the building to company that has been aggressively
make it smaller and install a new façade. targeting Florida.

The developer plans to lease the Lucky’s operates 41 stores in 10
northern half of the building to a states, including 21 in Florida, where
“neighborhood grocer,” he said, with the company has said it plans to open
the southern half designated for “spe- at least another 12. The chain’s clos-
cialty retail.” est store to Vero Beach is in West Mel-
bourne, though one is planned for
Falls said the developer already has Port St. Lucie.
had two discussions with city officials
and hopes to start construction early The Press Journal abandoned its one-
next year. time flagship building in June 2015,
amid plummeting circulation, shrink-
“They do this type of work all over ing staff and a continuing consolidation
the country and, from what I’ve seen of newspaper operations in Stuart.
of their plans, you won’t recognize the
place when they’re done,” Falls said. The remnants of its newsgathering
“We’re always excited when somebody and advertising staff moved into a sec-
is willing to re-purpose property. It ond-floor office in the Seminole Build-
would be good to get that building uti- ing downtown. By then, the company
lized again.” had long since relocated its printing
presses to St. Lucie West. 
Among the niche grocery store

Teacher contract negotiations go to mandatory mediation

BY FEDERICO MARTINEZ The school district has been oper- tervention of a special magistrate be- non said. But that raise was offset by a 30
Staff Writer ating without a chief financial officer cause union leaders felt the district was percent increase in insurance premi-
for almost a year, and during the past making no serious effort to negotiate. ums and an extra half-hour added to the
After 15 months of futile contract ne- 15 months the district’s team has can- teacher’s workday – for a total of 98 more
gotiations, School District officials and celed 11 negotiating sessions, changed Michelle Olk, who was hired two hours of worktime per year.
the union that represents the county’s lead negotiators four times, made no months ago as the district’s director of
1,100 teachers were scheduled to plead contract proposals, and failed to re- labor relations, is the latest lead nego- “It really bothered me that ... [for-
their cases on June 26 before Ninth Judi- spond to five proposals put forth by tiator. During a brief May negotiating mer Superintendent Mark Rendell]
cial Circuit Court Judge Tom Young, who the union. session, Olk repeatedly told union lead- frequently went around for three years
will make contract recommendations. ers that she could not discuss any issue telling everybody we had been given
“The problem isn’t that the district dealing with finances, including poten- a 2 percent pay raise,” Cannon said.
If either side rejects any of Young’s is having financial problems,” said tial wage increases or insurance costs, “The truth is we lost more money than
recommendations, the School Board Liz Cannon, president of the teachers until the School Board gives the OK. we received from the deal.”
would then have the final say about union. “It’s that they don’t know what
contract details. they have financially.We understand the “We’re not prepared to talk about Interim Superintendent Susan Mox-
district is having organizational prob- financial issues yet,” Olk said. “We’re ley, who took over after Rendell re-
The main reason the matter is end- lems. I feel for the district, I really do. But still waiting for our board to address signed May 26, said she hasn’t been
ing up in mandatory mediation in they need to do what they need to do. budgeting.” involved with negotiations. But she
front of a judge is that the school dis- has been working closely with the
trict has lost track of its finances, and “They are required to bargain in The district’s teachers received a three- business office to straighten out the
does not know how much money it good faith, which they haven’t done in year contract in 2015, which included a district’s finances. She expressed op-
has available to offer teachers, accord- some time.” 2 percent pay increase per year, which timism that negotiations will be more
ing to multiple sources. translated to about a $900 per year raise, fruitful moving forward. 
In January, Cannon called for the in- for a total of $2,700 over three years, Can-

Accused Duve slayer seeks video testimonial from grandma

BY LISA ZAHNER is facing carries the potential for the grandmother now, in case she does not to travel to Georgia to conduct a video
Staff Writer death penalty. survive until the end of the trial. deposition of Clark to be played for the
court during the sentencing phase if
Five years to the week from when Due to recent changes in Florida law, “A listed defense penalty witness Ann Jones is convicted.
the body of 26-year-old Moorings the state would be required to carry out McDonald Clark, who was born De-
resident Diana Duve was found in the some very specific duties, including a cember 10, 1929 (89 years old), is declin- “Her testimony is material, and it is
trunk of her own car, the trial of her full and independent psychological ing in health. She currently has trouble necessary to this case,” Manship said.
accused killer Michael David Jones fi- competency evaluation of Jones getting in and out of bed, and walking,”
nally seems near. wrote defense attorney Shane Manship, It’s unknown what Clark might re-
While preparation for trial is coming one of Jones’ lawyers. veal that could mitigate Jones’ situa-
Four weeks of courtroom time is be- to a close, defense attorneys are already tion if convicted, but case discovery
ing budgeted for the fall. Should Jones laying groundwork for who they might Clark lives in Macon, Ga., and due documents over the years, dating back
be convicted, sentencing proceedings use as character witnesses for Jones to her health will be unable to attend to Jones’ law school days at the Uni-
could take an additional few weeks as should he be convicted. The defense the trial in Vero. If Manship’s request versity of Miami, show that he claims
the first-degree murder charge Jones on June 14 asked Vaughn to order video is granted, staffers from State Attor- to have had a very turbulent childhood.
testimony be taken from Jones’ elderly ney Bruce Colton’s office would have
CONTINUED ON PAGE 10

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

NEWS

Accused Duve slayer in the news media about the case, as first line of questioning with each po- An emergency hearing may be
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 9 to not poison the entire jury pool if tential juror asked to reveal his or her scheduled to consider the motion to
there are people who have not fol- feelings about the death penalty. order Jones’ grandmother’s video tes-
Prosecutors have asked for a Sep- lowed the sad story of the Sebastian timony, but the next routine hearing
tember trial with the defense team River Medical Center nurse and her The rationale is that defense attorneys on pre-trial motions is set for the sec-
hoping to push things off until October, on-again, off-again boyfriend Jones. can pose the questions in a way that does ond week in July. 
but no start date for jury selection has not predispose the jurors to a guilty verdict.
been published by Circuit Court Judge Assistant State Attorney Brian Work-
Dan Vaughn. Only the ballpark four man, now clocking five years preparing SUNSHINE PHYSICAL THERAPY HOPES
weeks’ time figure was announced this this case, said in general, in instances of TO TREAT MORE CHILDREN FOR FREE
spring, for planning purposes, around individual “voir dire,” potential jurors
attorney vacations. are separated from each other during BY MICHELLE GENZ high copays or deductibles that pa-
questioning, but that they are still ques- tients can’t afford. Or the waiting list
Vaughn’s four-week timetable came tioned in the open public courtroom. Staff Writer may be too long with providers cre-
prior to defense motions that poten- dentialed with the patient’s Medicaid
tial jurors be questioned individually In addition to this individual voir Like its young patients, Sunshine managed care plan.
about what they have seen and heard dire of the jury, Public Defender Dia- Physical Therapy Center, is regaining
mond Litty’s office also wants the de- strength. In the support program, Sunshine
fense and prosecution to alternate the assigns specific patients to each do-
One of the oldest continuing health- nor agency. Consistent donor agen-
Ann Dana Kusch care businesses in Vero, Sunshine – cies range from the county’s Children’s
which was founded to treat children Advisory Council, which makes grants
Ann Dana Kusch, a mother and during the worldwide polio epidemic with taxpayer money, to philanthropic
philanthropist of Vero Beach Florida, of the 1950s – is aggressively fund- groups at John’s Island, Grand Harbor
passed away on the morning of Monday raising for a pediatric program that and Indian River Club.
June 17, 2019. resumed six years ago after a five-de-
She was the daughter of Charles A. cade hiatus. Now going into third year, the sup-
Dana and Eleanor N. Dana of Wilton port for the Sunshine Kids program
Connecticut and New York City. Her Clinic Director Lynne Gates House appears to be growing. Most groups
father was an industrialist who founded wants to treat more kids for free and that gave in years one and two are up-
the Dana Corporation, an international has begun writing grant proposals in a ping their donations for the coming
automobile part manufacturer. Mr. bid to gain more philanthropy dollars. year, House said, with close to $50,000
Dana, also a New York lawyer, was expected next year.
representing a company that owned rights to the universal joint, the device At the same time, she is applying for
that was replacing belts and chains to link the power of an automobile the first time to the county’s Hospital Meanwhile, House is expanding her
engine to the rear wheels of a car. He recognized the growth potential District for $25,000 to defray the 20 per- staff in anticipation of more patients.
of the device and bought an 80 percent interest in the company. Today, cent of treatment costs Medicaid does “We have no waiting list for physical
the universal joint has applications ranging from control of the flaps not reimburse for children who are cov- therapy or occupational therapy,” she
on aircraft wings to the propulsion of golf carts. Additionally her father ered by the government program. says. “But the need for speech therapy
founded The Dana Foundation, a private philanthropic organization that is mind-boggling. We get three to four
supports brain research through grants, publications, and educational Three years ago, the clinic started calls for speech therapy for every one
programs. There are many important institutions that bear his name such the Sunshine Kids Support Program call for physical or occupational ther-
as Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, the research institution in Boston, Mass. that currently allows 21 of Sunshine’s apy.”
Mrs. Kusch who was born in New York City and grew up in Wilton pediatric patients to get free therapy.
Connecticut had been living in John’s Island, Vero Beach Florida since The clinic, which provides physi-
1979. She had many friends who loved her big generous heart, sharp wit, Most of the eligible children have cal, speech and occupational therapy,
fun youthful nature, and her elegance. She was a passionate supporter issues with insurance, House says. currently has about 150 adult patients
of medical research, funding The Ann Dana Kusch Multidisciplinary Often there are limits on the number and 100 pediatric patients. 
Program for Interstitial Lung Disease and Pulmonary Hypertension of treatments covered and the patient
Research Grant. In addition, she was a supporter of animal, children, and has maxed out benefits. There may be
Service Personnel charities.
She attended The Spence School in New York City, The Ethel Walkers VERO COUNCIL VOTES TO RETAIN CONSULTANT
School in Connecticut, Brillantmont International School in Lausanne, TO HELP WITH PLAN FOR CENTENNIAL PLACE
Switzerland, and Finch College, in New York, NY. She married her beloved
husband Robert Eugene Kusch on October 1, 1961, who passed six years BY NICOLE RODRIGUEZ wastewater treatment plant, former
ago. They enjoyed a long and loving marriage that spanned 52 years. Staff Writer city electric plant and former postal
She is survived by her three children, two grandsons and three dachshunds. annex. The firm in April proposed a
Laurie Kusch Molbert of Ocean Ridge, FL, the mother of her two grandsons In a reversal, the Vero Beach City nearly $150,000 plan for conducting
Robert Hart Talcott of London, England and Charles Dana Talcott of San Council has decided to seek the help community meetings and workshops
Francisco, CA, her sons Jeffrey Charles Kusch of Miami Beach, FL and of an outside consultant in coming up to come up with concepts for the
Robert Alexander Kusch of Vero Beach, FL, and her dogs, Cassie, Maggie, with a plan for redevelopment of the prime waterfront real estate.
and Pretzel. All of these she loved and touched deeply. electric power plant site and adjacent
In lieu of flowers, gifts in memory of Mrs. Kusch may be made to city-owned property. At that time, the council decided to
JHU (Ann Dana Kusch Program in Memo) hold off on negotiating a contract with
Attn Anne M. Kennan Department of Medicine Development Office Fund for At its June 18 meeting, the City Coun- DPZ and another company that also
Johns Hopkins Medicine 5200 Eastern Avenue MFL Center Tower, cil authorized city staff to negotiate the offered consulting services, in part
Suite 355, Baltimore, MD 21224-2735. terms of a contract with Miami-based because of the cost of the services.
DPZ CoDesign for consulting services But last week, council members had a
to redevelop the 35-acre riverfront change of heart.
property on 17th Street and Indian River
Boulevard known as Centennial Place. Nearly two dozen members of the
public turned out at the June 18 meet-
The site consists of the current ing to support the idea of hiring DPZ,

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / June 27, 2019 11

NEWS

which claims to have designed and ready neighborhoods that encourage “I’m thrilled beyond measure that – a place with meaning and purpose.”
built more “New Urbanist” projects mixed uses and allow the landscape we might have access to their expe- “The citizens want a voice. This is a
than any other design company, ac- to shape streets. DPZ has completed rience,” city resident Victoria Gould
cording to the firm’s website. dozens of projects around the world said of DPZ. “They have a long history very important, passionate issue. We
and helped redevelop downtown Na- of designing incredible projects and need to let them be heard,” said Coun-
The principles of New Urbanism ples and downtown West Palm Beach, will bring so much knowledge to help- cilman Robert Brackett, who originally
promote the creation of communi- according to its website. ing us to create a place that we all love opposed DPZ because of the firm’s
ties with pedestrian-oriented, transit-
CONTINUED ON PAGE 12

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

NEWS

Centennial Place adding voter turnout would be greater or Val Zudans to allow private develop- Letting private developers submit
during a presidential election year. ers to propose their own redevelopment plans would give voters more choices and
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 11 ideas and give the public the option to help the city “have the opportunity to get
Brackett also asked city staff to garner choose concepts from those plans. top dollar for its asset,” Zudans said. 
proposed price. “I also believe we have DPZ’s thoughts on a suggestion by May-
to go through an outside planner. I
think this would be a big undertaking Human skeleton found in the Shores still a mystery
for our staff ... it’s going to be a lot on
their plates even with an outside plan- BY LISA ZAHNER still is a total mystery to police, with June 14 to resume work on most of
ner to help them out.” Staff Writer no ready answers from lab scientists the site, except the immediate area
or state archaeology officials. where the remains were unearthed
With the aid of outside experts, the A near-complete human skeleton on June 5. Crews were back on the
city could potentially formulate a plan that stopped work at an Indian River The developer of Blue at 8050 job June 17.
for the property in time for a Novem- Shores construction site three weeks Ocean, a luxury condo project north
ber 2020 referendum, allowing voters of The Carlton, got the go-ahead Indian River Shores Public Safety
to approve or disapprove of various Chief Rich Rosell said his agency was
development proposals, Brackett said, told last Friday by state officials that
the preliminary report on the old
bones would not be ready before the
end of the month. Rosell said nothing
else related to the remains has been
found.

“We went out there and searched
the whole area with a metal detector
to see if we could find anything – a
button or buckle or a doubloon, any-
thing that would help to date the re-
mains – and we found nothing,” Rosell
said.

Project developer Yane Zana said
he spoke with Katie Miyar, assistant
to the State Archaeologist of Florida,
who was very helpful. “She said the
state has no jurisdiction and that
her main interest is the proper han-
dling of the remains and where they
will end up because that person is
someone’s long-ago relative,” Zana
said.

Sarah Revell, spokesperson for the
Florida Department of State, under
which the state archaeologist oper-
ates, confirmed that local law en-
forcement and the regional medical
examiner, not the state, are the lead
agencies. “It’s still considered an ac-
tive investigation,” Revell said last
week.

That’s where the case status will
remain while a determination is be-
ing made whether the remains are
less than – or more than – 75 years
old.

If scientists date the bones at older
than 75 years, they fall under the cat-
egory of “archaeological interest,” and
a process laid out in Florida Statute re-
garding unmarked graves will dictate
happens next and who takes jurisdic-
tion over the remains, depending on
the outcome of tests to determine the
age and origin of the nearly complete
human skeleton.

The day after the find, Rosell had
reported that crime scene techni-
cians said vaguely that they sus-
pected the bones were “very old.” He
said the remains have become a local
curiosity in the Shores, which is typi-
cally a pretty low-key place during
the summer. 

Larry and Madelyn Bowman.

HOT STUFF! CLASSIC CARS AND
TUNES REV UP RIVERSIDE

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

PEOPLE

Hot stuff! Classic cars and tunes rev up Riverside

Garrett Schiefer with Larry House and Jim Ricciardi. John Caccavone and Donna Witmyer. PHOTOS: DENISE RITCHIE PHOTOS CONTINUED ON PAGE 16
Mary Callahan.

Tom and Sue Elznic. Michelle Sechen and Bill Schabot.

BY MARY SCHENKEL Edward and Judy Czajka. A retro ‘drive-in’ menu even in-
Staff Writer cluded yummy soda fountain favor-
arrivals to the coveted shady spots, he and come out just for that; the clas- ites with a grown-up twist – ice cream
“Rock ’n’ Roll is here to stay” – and said that they were expecting about sic cars are just a little bonus,” said floats spiked with vanilla vodka – all
so are classic cars. Both were en- 30 cars, ranging from antiques and Schiefer. “Classic cars are 20 years or topped, of course, with whipped cream
joyed last weekend at the second an- classics to current day sports cars. older, but we are accepting other cool and a cherry.
nual Doo-wop Concerts and Classic cars too. It’s just a fun event.”
Car Show at Riverside Theatre, held “People love the doo-wop music “Summers are cooler at Riverside
in conjunction with a rock ’n’ roll- Theatre,” laughed Jon Moses, River-
themed Howl at the Moon Experi- side’s managing director/COO. “It’s
ence in the Waxlax Theatre. going to be a hot one, but it’s going to be
cool here. Usually about 1,000 people a
With even early-evening tempera- night turn up for these events.”
tures hovering near the 100-degree
mark, folks were literally ‘sweat- He noted that beginning July 5 and
ing to the oldies’ outside at River- continuing for four weekends in July,
side’s Live in the Loop free concerts, the lobby is going to be filled with
which featured the bands Johnny & people attending Vegas Nights prior
the Blaze Friday night and Doo Wop to their alternating Howl at the Moon
City Saturday night, before heading and Comedy Zone Nights, with casino
into the air conditioning for more game proceeds benefiting the River-
rocking and rollicking with enter- side Theatre for Kids Discount Tuition
tainment by pianists Rob Volpe and Program. The music changes in Au-
Rhoda Johnson, and drummer Mark gust to the Jimmy Buffet-style Cheese-
Hagan. burgers in Paradise events the week-
ends of Aug. 9-10 and 16-17.
As Garrett Schiefer, Riverside The-
atre promotions director, directed For more information, visit river-
sidetheatre.com. 



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

PEOPLE

PHOTOS CONTINUED FROM PAGE 14
Johnny and the Blaze.

Betty Talley and Anne Couzens.

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / June 27, 2019 17

PEOPLE

Roman and Joan Ortega-Cowan with Dr. Robert and Marcia Loewinger.

PRINCESS FLOWER COLLECTION

Dick Monaco Jerry Weick.

3325 Ocean Drive
Vero Beach, FL
(772) 234-3404

Randy, Jennifer and Emma Joseph.

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

PEOPLE

Centennial luncheon serves up tales of Vero’s growth

City Councilman Robbie Brackett, Alma Lee Loy and Bob Brackett. PHOTOS: DENISE RITCHIE County Commissioner Peter O’Bryan, Aaron Stanton and Vice Mayor Tony Young.

BY STEPHANIE LABAFF
Staff Writer

A cast of heavy hitters gathered re- Sid Banack and Sheriff Deryl Loar. Toni Abraham and Anna Valencia Tillery. Kathie and John Schumann.
cently for a Centennial Legacy Busi-
ness Luncheon at the Vero Beach and folks who have made those in- fore they regaled the crowd with sto- his bride after graduating from col-
Country Club, hosted by the Indian vestments, been part of our commu- ries of bygone days set against a more lege and embraced the citrus indus-
River County Chamber of Commerce nity for a long time, and then helped bucolic backdrop. try with gusto. He predicted that even
and the City of Vero Beach Centennial build us from the ground up,” said through all its ups and downs, Indian
Committee to celebrate the legacy of Dori Stone, IRC Chamber president. Sam Block, whose family has River Citrus will once again reign as
several local business leaders. owned businesses in Vero Beach for the best citrus in the world.
“This is a very, very special occa- 82 years, recalled sweeping the side-
Special guests Alma Lee Loy, Sam sion with very important panel mem- walk outside Alma Lee’s Children’s “I’m a native of Vero Beach and I’m
Block, Sid Banack and Bob Brackett bers today, as we celebrate an auspi- Clothing Store, and shared memories pretty proud of it,” said Loy. In the
shared recollections of Vero Beach cious occasion for the City of Vero of attending school from first grade 1960s Loy was among those, along
“back in the day” during a panel dis- Beach,” said Young. He shared tidbits through his graduation in just one with Dan K. Richardson and others,
cussion moderated by Vero Beach about each of the panel members, be- building. who, she said, sought to “design the
Vice Mayor Tony Young, co-chair of requirements for a city that would at-
the Centennial Committee. “Growing up here and doing busi- tract new citizens and help us hold
ness here, it’s been like a Camelot,” onto the way of life that we were al-
In addition to showcasing the city’s said Block. ready enjoying.”
history from a business standpoint,
attendees also used the occasion to Bob Brackett’s family came to Vero To close out the celebration Sen.
celebrate the 90th birthday of Vero’s Beach in 1947, the year Loy graduated Debbie Mayfield read a proclamation
“first lady,” Alma Lee Loy. from high school. He said his first im- cataloging the long and varied histo-
pressions as a 13-year-old boy related ry of Loy’s dedication to Indian River
“Since we are a business-driven to the smell from sulfur water, living County and the people who call our
organization, we thought that it was in the country and pranks such as seaside town home.
most appropriate that we work with tricking the bridge tender into open-
the city and the centennial commit- ing the bridge for non-existent boats. “Each generation bears the respon-
tee to recognize legacy businesses sibility of leading the continuation of
“We were a place that people didn’t these elements that make us a very
A Moment’s Notice know about; a place that didn’t get special city,” said Loy.
caught up in the activities that were
HEALTH CARE going on around us,” said Brackett, The Centennial Celebration will
adding that as an adult, he came to continue through Oct. 26, conclud-
• Serving Indian River and Surrounding Counties since 1974 appreciate what made Vero Beach so ing with a Centennial Finale Parade.
• 24 Hours A Day / 7 Days Per Week special. “We grew slowly.” For more information, visit vero-
• Private Duty Home Health Agency / Qualified Caregivers beach100.com. 
• We Don’t Use Independent Contractors Sid Banack said he settled here with
• Our Rates Are Among the Most Reasonable in Our Area
• Our Mission is to Provide an Excellent Level of Independent

Living for Each Patient in His or Her Own Home
• As the Saying Goes, “There’s No Place Like Home”

www.amnhc.com License Number HHA20007095 772-978-9092

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / June 27, 2019 19

PEOPLE

Sam Block and Chad Hogan. Gerri Smith, Carol Kanarek and Ann Marie Suriano. Ed Barenborg and Dori Stone.

Joe Chiarella, Cindy Goetz and City Councilman Harry Howle. City Councilwoman Laura Moss and Emily Wilcox.

Joe Coakley and Janie Graves Hoover. Jessica Schmitt and Tammy Bursick.

Christina Klingler and Cindi Dixon. Tracey Zudans and Ann Marie McCrystal.

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

PEOPLE

Sizzlin’ support for Gifford Youth Orchestra at BBQ

BY KERRY FIRTH
Correspondent

Larry Stanley, Crystal Bujol and Jim Parks. PHOTOS: DENISE RITCHIE Floyd Jones with Iva Powell-Perry and Jada Powell. PHOTOS CONTINUED ON PAGE 22
Wilfred Hart with Opal Nelson and George Blythe.

BY KERRY FIRTH Justice Hopewell with Ciera Hopewell. County children whose families platforms. “I think the Gifford Youth
Correspondent could not afford lessons or instru- Orchestra is a huge blessing to these
under the shady oaks provided the ments. young musicians, as music can be
The enticing aroma of barbecued perfect place to relax and enjoy the their ticket out of a life of poverty.
ribs, chicken and fried fish perme- delicious food, music by DJ Mike Children are provided with a The program gives them the confi-
ated the dense summer air at the Baisden and the camaraderie of stringed instrument or access to a dence and people skills to succeed
Martin Luther King Park in Gifford, those who support and encourage piano as well as lessons, all at little in life.”
as members and supporters of the the youths to use music as a stepping or no cost. Students also learn how
Gifford Youth Orchestra gathered stone to life. to perform on stage and become Board member George Blythe said
recently for a Community Barbe- poised public speakers with the Jr. that many of the former students
cue and Fish Fry to raise funds and Bujol started the Gifford Youth Or- Toastmasters, gaining confidence return from college to mentor and
awareness. chestra, also affectionately known and leadership skills that they can teach the younger students during
as the College of Performing Arts, in carry with them for the rest of their their summer breaks.
“We wanted to bring everyone 2003 to teach music to Indian River lives.
together to enjoy the day and learn “These kids are so talented that
about our wonderful student musi- “Music is a building block that they’ve been invited to perform at
cians. Last year we had a small fish empowers students to step up in all the prestigious Mike Block String
fry but this year we decided to intro- their other classes,” said Bujol. “All Camp public concerts,” said Blythe.
duce barbecue,” said Crystal Bujol, our students who’ve been with us “In addition to purchasing instru-
GYO artistic director. until high school graduate, and have ments, some of the funds from this
either enrolled in or graduated from barbecue will go towards scholar-
She noted that thanks to the gen- college. They ultimately become re- ships to this camp.”
erosity of event sponsor Charlotte sponsible people who get on in the
Terry Real Estate, which enabled the world.” Deemed ‘the ideal musician of
purchase of ribs and chicken, Rhon- the 21st century’ by Yo-Yo Ma, cel-
da’s Seafood, which donated the Alonzo Phillips, a Christian rapper list Mike Block and a cadre of world-
fish, and C.J. Walker and Larry Wil- professionally known as Top Notch famous musicians teach workshops
son, who donated their time to cook 772, came to the event to support the for string players with a focus on
the mouthwatering entrees, 100 per- orchestra and its students. contemporary musical styles and an
cent of the proceeds would benefit emphasis on creativity and learning
the Gifford Youth Orchestra. “I was raised in Gifford and I’m by ear. The concerts take place July
here to support my people,” said 10, 12 and 13 at First Presbyterian
Picnic tables placed strategically Phillips, whose inspirational mu- Church of Vero Beach. 
sic is now streamed on many music



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

PEOPLE

18TH ANNUAL James and Tonya Broxton with daughter Venetia.

INDIALANTIC PHOTOS CONTINUED FROM PAGE 20
Mieca-Eeja Ferguson and Pryscalina Douzable.
Craft
Festival Joan Haar and Helen Perry. Craig Walker.

An Outdoor Craft Show
at Nance Park

July 6th – 7th
Sat./Sun.

10am – 4pm

FREE ADMISSION

N. Miramar Avenue
in Indialantic (A1A)
(near Melbourne, FL)

ArtFestival.com Cathy Katrovitz and Paula Herger.
Cyril Jones.
American Craft Endeavors
(561) 746-6615

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / June 27, 2019 23

PEOPLE

McKee adds colorful twist to Waterlily Celebration

Madonna Krekel. PHOTOS: KAILA JONES

PHOTOS CONTINUED ON PAGE 24

Faith Wescott and Suzan Phillips.

BY STEPHANIE LaBAFF Additionally, the 15th annual Wa- CARPET ONE Creative Floors & Home has more for your
Staff Writer terlily Photo Contest entries were on CREATIVE FLOORS entire home from the floor up! With Flooring,
display in the Hall of Giants, with visi- Tile, Cabinets and even vacuum cleaners!
There’s always something bloom- tors selecting the winner of the Peo- & HOME
ing at McKee Botanical Garden, but ple’s Choice award that day. 772.569.0240
hundreds of shutterbugs and artists
were drawn to this little patch of para- What else is blooming? In late Sep- 1137 Old Dixie Hwy • Vero Beach
dise for the 15th annual Waterlily Cel- tember McKee will host a soft opening creativefloorscarpet1verobeach.com
ebration. of the Children’s Garden. For details,
visit mckeegarden.org. 
“This year the horticulturists have
changed things up a bit, and the wa- WATERLILY PHOTO
terlilies are organized by color,” said CONTEST WINNERS:
Christine Hobart, McKee executive
director. Color:
Al Harty, Vero Beach
Waterlily enthusiasts were lined
up early in the morning, even before Black and White:
the garden opened, all itching to get a Lee Benson, Vero Beach
peek at the more than 100 identified
waterlily varieties that have taken root Manipulated:
in the ponds and waterways. Lynne Hollingsworth, Vero Beach

While the waterlilies showcase their Youth:
glory year-round, folks are drawn to Cooper Hyland, Palm City
this special day, said McKee gardener
Nikki Stoltze, as she demonstrated People’s Choice:
waterlily repotting near the Gator Juanita Saylor, Micco
Pond.

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

PEOPLE

PHOTOS CONTINUED FROM PAGE 23 Gerri Ripp and Laura Shucart. Ellie Davis and Deb Davis.
Valerie Conway and Kerrigen Conway.

Kathy and Peter Verrechio.

Leonard Wilson and Sylvia Telezinski.

Nikki Weigel and David Goldhammer.
John and Kathi Schumann.

AI WEIWEI’S ‘ZODIAC’ ANIMALS
TURNING HEADS AT MUSEUM

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

ARTS & THEATRE

Ai Weiwei’s ‘Zodiac’ animals turning heads at museum

PHOTOS BY KAILA JONES

BY ELLEN FISCHER The work comprises 12 gilded bronze Ai left China as an exile in 2015 and lapsed on them. The government tried
Columnist heads of animals in the Chinese zodiac: settled in Berlin, Germany, which is to hide the death toll from the public,
Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, now home base for his varied interna- but the volunteers identified nearly
A shiny treat is in store for anyone vis- Horse, Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, and tional projects. 5,000 students who had perished. Wei
iting the Vero Beach Museum of Art this Pig. The sculptures are mounted on in- then made “Remembrance,” a nearly
summer. Thanks to the generosity of lo- dividual rosewood-veneered pedestals Ai was still living and working in three-hour recording of the children’s
cal collector Bill Miller, the museum has and arranged in a circle in the muse- China in 2010 when he unveiled Circle names being read aloud.
on view a sculpture installation titled um’s Stark Rotunda. of Animals: Zodiac Heads in both a
Circle of Animals: Zodiac Heads by the large, patinated bronze edition of six Between 2008 and 2012, Ai created
internationally acclaimed artist Ai Wei- All the heads, save the pig’s, face in- (with two artist’s proofs) and a smaller “Straight,” an installation piece created
wei. Zodiac Heads will be on display ward. According to the 12-year cycle scale, gilded edition of eight (with four from 150 tons of steel salvaged from
through Dec. 15 of this year. that is the Chinese zodiac, 2019 is the artist’s proofs). schools destroyed in the
Year of the Pig – and the gleaming fel- quake. A severe beat-
low at the VBMA is positioned in a place The large-scale version began touring ing by po-
of honor. With snout pointed down the the world immediately; it first appeared lice that
broad hallway that separates him from at the 29th São Paulo Biennale in Brazil,
the reception area, he is clearly visible to where it was on view from Sept. 24 to
all who enter the museum. Dec. 12, 2010.

“We are very fortunate to have this During that time, in November 2010,
particular piece on loan from a local col- Chinese police placed Ai under house
lection,” says Danielle Johnson, VBMA arrest.

curator of Modern and Contemporary In deed as well as in word, Ai had for
Art, who notes that Bill Miller is not the past several years a lot to say about
only the lender of the piece, but the People’s Republic. In 2005 he be-
also its presenting sponsor. gan a blog that, in addition to airing
Johnson calls Ai Weiwei “one of his views on art, architecture and
the most important contemporary Chinese culture, sharply criticized
artists working today.” government policy.
But, she clarifies, he’s not only an
In the aftermath of the catastrophic
artist. May 12, 2008, earthquake in Sichuan
“He’s also an architect, a poet, a province, Ai created a documentary
video that followed citizen volunteers
writer and an activist. He’s very much as they struggled to determine the
concerned with human rights in Chi- number and names of children who
na, and particularly the lack of democ- died when their “tofu-dreg” (shod-
racy in China.” dily constructed) school buildings col-

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

ARTS & THEATRE

Ai suffered during a 2009 visit to the city fountain setting, but in Ai’s version, they
of Chengdu in Sichuan has been linked are connected to their square, gilded
to those activities. bronze bases by textured stalks of the
same material. To some, those slen-
In 2011, Ai was incarcerated for 81 der stems might read as gore dripping
days in a secret location on charges from the disembodied heads; perhaps
of tax evasion and moral corruption. this could be read as Ai’s commentary
Official protests from the U.S. govern- on the original heads’ forcible removal
ment and the European Union, in ad- from China?
dition of thousands of private citizens
around the globe, helped to secure “I hadn’t thought of that,” says John-
his release. son. “To me the heads look as though
they are rising atop a fountain’s jet. Per-
At first blush, Zodiac Heads does not haps not the snake (whose head drips
appear to have a political agenda. The coin shapes), but certainly some of the
heads were reproduced by artisans af- others. It’s like water, and it evokes their
ter a group that was originally part of a original fountain grouping.” 
fountain at the Old Summer Palace, an
imperial complex of buildings and gar- Han Chinese, who had traditionally
dens in Beijing. ruled China. The sixth emperor in the
Qing Dynasty was an admirer of all
That fountain was created by two things European, and that is why he
Jesuit missionaries who worked in invited European artisans and scien-
the service of the Qianlong Emperor tists to live and work at his court. The
in mid-18th century China. Giuseppe Old Summer Palace, its gardens and
Castiglione was the Italian artist who the art that filled them, were an odd
designed the animal heads, and Mi- mix of Chinese and European styles
chel Benoit was the French scientist/ and materials.
engineer who devised the hydraulics
for the fountain’s timed water displays. Ai found his government’s outcry
over its lost heritage richly ironic. Sure,
Says Johnson, “At the moment the the English and French had humiliated
heads were designed, it was really an China during the 19th century’s Opium
interesting cross-cultural influence of Wars, but the Manchu invaders had
Europeans working in China. Unfortu- done that a couple of centuries earlier,
nately, that changed during the Second and had forever altered Chinese culture
Opium War in 1860, when the original in the process.
zodiac heads were ransacked by British
and French soldiers.” The fact that the animal heads that
originally graced a Qing Dynasty
The seven extant heads have since ruler’s fountain were sculpted with
been returned to China, but the fate a European flair under the direction
of five others remains unknown: the of an Italian Jesuit lay brother was the
snake, dragon, rooster, dog and rat. icing on the cake. And it didn’t hurt,
While the monkey, pig, ox, rabbit, ti- either, that European invaders later
ger, hare and horse are close copies of destroyed and looted the palace com-
the originals, the missing ones have plex that previous European guests
been recreated based on research into had helped build.
how they may have been depicted at
the time. All the representations are In May 2017, a Phillip’s auction house
somewhat anthropomorphic. Shown featured a gold-plated edition of Circle
with their mouths slightly open, the of Animals: Zodiac Heads. The catalog
animals seem almost to smile. description of the lot contained a quote
about the art work that Ai had given the
Johnson agrees. Of the hare, with its Hirschhorn Museum when a set of the
even-toothed grin, she says, “That one heads was displayed there.
looks like a cartoon rabbit; like it’s about
to start talking.” Ai said, “My work is always deal-
ing with real or fake authenticity, and
The heads were subsequently dis- what’s the value, and how the value
persed among collections in Europe. relates to current political and social
In 2009, when two of the heads (then understandings and misunderstand-
part of the estate of fashion designer ings. I think [there is] a strong humor-
Yves Saint Laurent) came up for auc- ous aspect there. So I wanted to make
tion at Christie’s, the Chinese govern- a complete set [of zodiac heads], in-
ment created an uproar, framing the cluding the seven original and the
artifacts as emblems of the west’s in- missing five.
satiable appropriation of China’s cul-
tural treasures. “I think the public deserves the
best,” he said. “Before, only a pope or
China’s patriotic fervor over the an emperor could see those kinds of
theft of its patrimony was the inspi- things.”
ration Ai needed to produce Circle of
Animals: Zodiac Heads. The artist was Now the heads, recreated in multiple
well aware of the disputed artifacts’ editions by Ai Weiwei and made avail-
cosmopolitan history. able for loan around the world, have
come to represent democracy.
To start off, the Qing Dynasty was
founded by invaders from Mongolia No one knows today how the original
in the 17th century. The Manchu were bronze heads were mounted in their
an ethically separate people from the

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

ARTS & THEATRE

Coming Up: Patriotism will be in the air at Emerson concert

BY SAMANTHA ROHLFING BAITA once heartbreaking, uplifting, inspir- A decade ago Jersey native Del Pizzo in the Loop bands – 6 p.m. to 9:30 p.m.
Staff Writer ing and relevant in our tumultuous was an auto mechanic, a job he says Tickets: Comedy Zone – side seats, $12;
times will be, continues the promo, a instilled in him the need to let people table seating: $16 to $22. 772-231-6990.
work by Omar Thomas, “Of Our New know what he was thinking. So he
1 Events this month tend toward Day Begun,” an elegy for the nine vic- crawled out from under the engine and 3 This Friday, June 28 – BTOBS.
the patriotic, as our country cel- tims and families of the June 17, 2015, headed for the stand-up stage. He’s still “Night of Nations” is the theme of
terrorist attack on Mother Emanuel the same likeable guy, and he’s still
ebrates making it to its 243rd birthday. A.M.E. Church in Charleston, South telling us what he thinks, armed with
Carolina. “Thomas’ composition is a lots of true-life stories and plenty of at-
Some of the most stirring, memorable powerful reminder that anger and ha- titude. Miller, says the promo, “is just Main Street Vero Beach’s “Centennial
tred cannot stifle the human spirit.” plain ol’ funny.” In 2009 he beat out
musical works in the world have been You are encouraged to wear the colors 88 other comics to win the Comedy Special Edition” of its monthly Down-
of the flag. Time: 2 p.m. Admission: Central South Beach Comedy Festival,
composed in the name of patriotism, free. Ticket is required. 855-252-7276 is consistently in the top tier in com- town Friday street party, a popular fest
or www.SpaceCoastSymphony.org. edy competitions, and is considered,
and you’ll have the opportunity, this by those in the stand-up know, “one that happens all along and around
of the funniest comics in the state of
Saturday, June 29, to hear some of Florida.” Out front, it’s always time to Vero’s mainland “Main Street” – aka
par-tay, with Live in the Loop, a free
the finest should you choose attend live concert and a full (and fabulous) 14th Avenue. There will be the usual
bar and grill. The Friday night band is
the Space Coast Symphony Wind Or- Big Coque, cranking out classic rock. music-centric fun (food, beverages, a
Taking the stage Saturday will be Col-
chestra’s free patriotic concert – “Sea lins & Company, a lively rock ’n’ pop flock of vendors), and this month with
party band. So: throw a fold-up seat
to Shining Sea” – at the Emerson Cen- in the trunk just in case all 200-plus a definite international “flavor.” A mu-
chairs are occupied. Don’t BYO food or
ter. According to the concert promo, drinks. Or dogs. Time: Comedy Zone sic purveyor will spin “multicultural”
shows – 7:30 p.m. and 9:30 p.m. Live
this free concert, under the baton of 2 Put yourself in a good mood tunes throughout the evening, and
for July by laughing your way
Aaron T. Collins, will “showcase our a Main Street Vero Beach spokesper-

national heritage,” with such inspir- through the end of June at Riverside son says to look for dance demonstra-

ing works as “Victory at Sea,” by Rich- Theatre, where it’s time, this Friday tions – and food – from “around the

ard Rodgers; “God Bless the USA,” by and Saturday, June 28-29, for the Com- globe.” Downtown Friday is always

Lee Greenwood; “American Salute,” edy Zone, Live in the Loop and free bring-the-family friendly, and (ac-

by Gould; and marches from “The live music. Riverside’s weekend frolics companied) dog-friendly as well. This

March King,” by the king himself, have gained a huge following, and a month will be an especially good time

John Philip Sousa. In the program, livelier bunch you won’t soon find. So to bring those Irish Setters, German

of course, will be the always-rousing – join them and see for yourself. The Shepherds, Scottish Terriers, English

salute to the U.S. Armed Forces, and comedy’s inside the theater this week Bulldogs, Siberian Huskies and French

one of George Gershwin’s most fa- with funnymen Frank Del Pizzo and Poodles. Time: 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. Admis-

mous works, “American in Paris.” At Ken Miller. Says Riverside’s promo: sion: free. 772-643-6782. 



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

INSIGHT COVER STORY

Tufts Medical Center in the heart of At Tufts Medical Center, administra- stream, which provides phone and Web 4.7 billion times, according to YouMail,
Boston treats scores of health condi- tors registered more than 4,500 calls services to consumers and businesses. a company that makes an app that
tions, administering measles vaccines between about 9:30 and 11:30 a.m. on “There’s nothing we could do,” Lehm- helps users block suspected spam calls.
for children and pioneering next-gen- April 30, 2018, said Taylor Lehmann, ann said Windstream told them.
eration tools that can eradicate the the center’s chief information security That’s nearly double the amount
rarest of cancers. officer. Administrators at other hospitals, from two years ago, reflecting the ex-
cancer centers and medical research tent to which fraudsters have outwit-
But doctors, administrators and Many of the messages seemed to be organizations around the country ted carriers such as AT&T and Verizon,
other hospital staff struggled to con- the same: Speaking in Mandarin, an share Tufts’s robocall concerns. They lawmakers on Capitol Hill and the
tain a much different kind of epidemic unknown voice threatened deporta- fret that such a seemingly obvious government’s chief robocall cops, in-
one April morning last year: a wave tion unless the person who picked up tech malady has worsened in recent cluding the Federal Communications
of thousands of robocalls that spread the phone provided their personal in- months and that government regula- Commission.
like a virus from one phone line to the formation. tors and phone companies have been
next, disrupting communications for too slow to help. Top telecom providers say they are
hours. Such calls are common, widely doc- working to implement new technolo-
umented scams that seek to swindle They fear that robocallers could gies that would label a call that’s likely
For most Americans, such robocalls vulnerable foreigners, who may sur- eventually outmatch their best efforts to be spam, but widespread imple-
represent an unavoidable digital-age render their private data out of fear to keep hospital phone lines free dur- mentation is many months away. At
nuisance, resulting in seemingly con- their families and homes are at risk. ing emergencies, creating the condi- the same time, the FCC recently has
stant interruptions targeting their But it proved especially troubling at tions for a potential health crisis. stepped up efforts to find and fine
phones. For hospitals, though, the Tufts, which is situated amid Boston’s scammers, while helping consumers
spam calls amount to a literal life-or- Chinatown neighborhood, Lehmann "Imagine a scenario when our phone access tools that can block suspected
death challenge, one that increasingly said. system doesn't keep up," Lehmann spam numbers. But the agency has
is threatening doctors and patients in a said. stopped short of fully rewriting the na-
setting where every second can count. Officials there couldn’t block the calls tion’s anti-robocall rules, something
through their telecom carrier, Wind- This May alone, robocallers rang
Americans’ smartphones an estimated

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / June 27, 2019 31

INSIGHT COVER STORY

experts say would be necessary to tru- local area codes, tricking health care knew she had undergone a bevy of "We've had people calling around the
ly stop the scourge. workers into thinking it’s a nearby pa- follow-up tests. community, using our name and num-
tient in need of care. ber to tell people they owe money,” he
“These calls to health-care institu- “And when I got that call,” she said said. “That's not what we do."
tions and patients are extremely dan- "They can't not pick them up," said in a recent interview, it wasn’t a doctor
gerous to the public health and pa- Steven Cardinal, a top security official or nurse on the other line. It was some Robocalls targeting hospitals and
tient privacy,” said Rep. Frank Pallone at the Medical University of South Car- recorded voice, saying, “You qualify for other health-care organizations hardly
Jr. (N.J.), the Democratic chairman olina. "They don't have any indicator insurance,” she said. “Seeing the hos- represent a novel threat.
of the House Energy and Commerce it's a spoof until they answer it." pital’s name come across caller ID, it
Committee, who has put forward leg- caused my heart to palpitate a bit.” Add- When Congress adopted the gov-
islation to try to clamp down on ro- Patients, meanwhile, must grapple ing to her alarm, Harris said she used a ernment’s anti-robocall rules in 1991,
bocalls. “The FCC and Justice Depart- with another headache: With the aid call-blocking tool offered by AT&T, her lawmakers specifically cited consum-
ment need to go after these criminals of spoofing, robocallers can seem to carrier. It didn’t flag anything as awry. ers’ complaints that automated spam
with the seriousness and urgency this take on numbers that are the same as, calls were tying up critical emergency
issue deserves.” or similar to, their local health orga- The same issue has plagued pa- lines. More than two decades later, the
nizations. People are likely to answer tients at Noyes Health, part of a net- FCC cited that very authority in issu-
The absence of immediate relief spells those calls out of fear that a loved one work of hospitals affiliated with the ing a $120 million fine against Adri-
particular trouble for medical profes- is in danger. University of Rochester. John Dorak, an Abramovich, a Florida man who
sionals. the director of IT infrastructure, said placed nearly 100 million robocalls in
For Jennifer Waisath Harris, a politi- he has heard regularly from residents a telemarketing scheme that also in-
Scammers often adopt a technique cal strategist in Austin, there was no in this rural community who swear terfered with hospital pagers.
known as spoofing to cover their tracks, hesitation this May when a call from they’ve been contacted by a number
a practice that results in people receiv- nearby Ascension Seton Medical Cen- that appears to be the hospital – but In the telecom industry, phone car-
ing calls from numbers that look similar ter came across her mobile device. Her in reality, it’s a scammer that “takes riers now say they’re investing more
to their own. For a hospital, that often mom had been hospitalized weeks advantage of our good name." heavily in efforts to trace the origins
can mean calls appear to come from earlier on Mother’s Day, and Harris
CONTINUED ON PAGE 32

32 Vero Beach 32963 / June 27, 2019 INSIGHT COVER STORY Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 31 had consumed 65 hours of hospital
response time.
of deceptive robocalling campaigns,
including those that target health-care That came in addition to about 300
organizations. robocalls that appeared to be com-
ing from numbers affiliated with the
From there, they can increasingly U.S. Department of Justice, he told
help federal law enforcement offi- Congress. Summitt said those call-
cials in their investigations, said Pat- ers sought to swindle physicians into
rick Halley, the senior vice president surrendering critical information that
of advocacy and regulatory affairs might make it easier for scammers to
at USTelecom, an industry lobbying obtain prescription drugs fraudulently.
group.
In an interview, Summitt said the
But many health and security ex- cancer center tried to obtain help from
perts say they are still fearful of mass its telecom carrier, CenturyLink. But
disruption at a time when robocalls CenturyLink officials said the problem
remain on the rise. wasn’t severe enough over a 72-hour
period to warrant their help, accord-
The continued threat to doctors ing to Summitt.
and patients prompted Dave Sum-
mitt, chief information security of- In other cases, Summitt said he
ficer for the H. Lee Moffitt Cancer sought to enlist CenturyLink’s aid in
Center and Research Institute, to take finding out who was masquerading
his concerns directly to Congress in as Moffitt, which CenturyLink said it
March. Democrats and Republicans couldn’t do without a warrant.
alike on Capitol Hill long have been
united in seeking legislation to crack In response, Linda Johnson, a
down on robocalls, but they’ve yet to spokeswoman for CenturyLink, said it
pass a single law in response. is “not our policy and must have been
a miscommunication” that someone
Testifying in front of the House En- there informed Moffitt that it couldn’t
ergy Committee, Summitt stressed block certain numbers unless it had
that robocalls represent a "serious received more calls.
threat” to his Tampa-based facility,
which serves more than 60,000 pa- “Our fraud management team
tients each year. Over a 90-day period, worked closely with Moffitt to iden-
he said, robocallers rang more than tify illegal robocalls, trace them back
6,600 times using numbers that mim- to their source and ultimately block
icked Moffitt’s, which he estimated

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / June 27, 2019 33

INSIGHT COVER STORY

them. We will continue to do our part al government affairs at the company, A year later, Whitehead said they are Florida – have been targeted by scam-
to fight unlawful calls,” she added. attributed Tufts’s robocall troubles to still “following up” with Tufts Medical mers seeking to steal information,
its reliance on older phone technol- Center. perhaps in an attempt to obtain drugs
As thousands of robocalls bombard- ogy. “We do have a call-blocking solu- illegally, said Lehmann, the Tufts secu-
ed Tufts Medical Center last year, it had tion we offer. We just couldn’t offer it In the meantime, hospital leaders rity officer.
its own share of problems with Wind- on their system," he said in a recent have labored to train staff and warn
stream, its telecom carrier. But Thomas interview. them of potential fraud. Recently, their “These disruptions,” he said, “add
Whitehead, the vice president of feder- workers – much like those at Moffitt in up to being a big deal.” 

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

INSIGHT OPINION

The U.S. mental health crisis: Bad, and getting worse

So many statistics say that life in the anxiety, schizophrenia, and suicidality. Kennedy signed the Community Men- able to pay out of pocket, availability of
U.S. is getting better. Unemployment A person’s susceptibility depends on ge- tal Health Act in 1963 to provide fund- providers ranges wildly across the U.S.,
is at the lowest level since 1969. Violent netic, social, and environmental factors. ing for new services in the community. from 50 psychiatrists per 100,000 peo-
crime has fallen sharply since the 1990s. The law “drastically altered the delivery ple in Washington, D.C., for example, to
And Americans lived nine years lon- These contributors are believed to of mental health services and inspired 5.3 per 100,000 in Idaho, according to
ger, on average, in 2017 than they did be intertwined; psychological stressors a new era of optimism in mental health research from the University of Michi-
in 1960. It would make sense that the can activate a genetic predisposition, care,” according to the National Council gan’s School of Public Health Behavioral
psychic well-being of the nation would so life circumstances matter a lot. And for Behavioral Health. It also came at a Health Workforce Research Center.
improve along with measures like that. the U.S. is home to some particularly time when new psychiatric drugs were
challenging ones: stagnant wages; ris- emerging, supporting the hope that the And despite laws requiring insurers
Yet something isn’t right. In 2017, ing health-care costs; the proliferation future was going to be brighter for peo- to offer mental health benefits at the
47,000 people died by suicide, and there of highly addictive opioids after a mar- ple in need of care. same level as other medical coverage,
were 1.4 million suicide attempts. U.S. keting push from major drug compa- many make it difficult to find appropri-
suicide rates are at the highest level nies; the disappearance of well-paid Almost 60 years later, it’s clear things ate treatment and limit residential care.
since World War II, says the U.S. Cen- blue-collar jobs and the emergence of haven’t worked out that way.
ters for Disease Control and Prevention. the gig economy; the lack or limited Some countries have started to grap-
And it’s getting worse: The U.S. suicide availability of treatment and services. “People with severe mental illness ple with the problem. New Zealand
rate increased on average by about 1% a can still be found in deplorable environ- Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern unveiled
year from 2000 through 2006 and by 2% The destructive powers of technol- ments, medications have not success- the world’s firstWellbeing Budget in May,
a year from 2006 through 2016. ogy, be it in the form of social isolation fully improved function in all patients earmarking NZ$1.9 billion ($1.2 billion)
or cyberbullying, have been cited in the even when they improve symptoms, and for mental health, which should also
Although suicide is the starkest indi- rising number of teens killing them- the institutional closings have deluged improve services for people living with
cator of mental distress, others abound. selves. Suicide is the second-leading underfunded community services with the type of anxiety and depression that
Drug overdoses claimed 70,000 lives in cause of death for 10- to 34-year-olds. new populations they were ill-equipped doesn’t require hospitalization but still
2017, and 17.3 million, or 7%, of U.S. to handle,” Daniel Yohanna wrote in the has a major effect on their everyday life.
adults reported suffering at least one Whatever the causes, mental ill- AMA Journal of Ethics in 2013.
major depressive episode in the past ness and substance abuse are social The spending proposed by Ardern’s
year. Life expectancy, perhaps the and economic catastrophes. They cost That’s left people without the com- government far outpaces what the U.S.
broadest measure of a nation’s health, U.S. businesses $80 billion to $100 bil- prehensive care they would need to spends on its Substance Abuse and
has fallen for three straight years, in part lion annually, according to a litera- recover from drug addiction or suicidal Mental Health Services Administra-
because of the rise in drug overdoses ture review put out by the Center for thinking. Yohanna cites a poll of ex- tion, the main agency that provides
and suicides. Workplace Mental Health, which also perts who say that 50 beds per 100,000 funding for states to implement ser-
showed that some two-thirds of people would meet Americans’ acute and vices that address these types of prob-
The problems may have different suffering from either mental health or long-term care needs. In some states lems. Ardern’s proposed outlay is 15
and varied causes, but what they add substance abuse disorders don’t receive the number is as low as 5 per 100,000. times as high as SAMSHA’s $5.6 billion
up to is a national mental health epi- any treatment for their conditions. budget request for the U.S. in 2020 on a
demic. The damage is on the scale of People with less severe issues also per-capita basis.
the global financial crisis, yet we lack Unchecked mental health condi- face hurdles when they need help.
the institutions, policies, and determi- tions can result in violence. In America, Most people are at the mercy of their It’s time for a new approach before
nation to address it. workplace shootings have become al- company’s health plans when it comes America’s mental health deteriorates
most routine. to seeking care; a person with fewer even further. 
Mental health problems manifest benefits simply wouldn’t have access to
in a number of ways and encapsulate Some federal actions have contrib- the best resources for either crisis care This column by Cynthia Koons first
a wide range of conditions, including uted to the crisis. Out of concern that or chronic mental health treatment. appeared on Bloomberg. It does not
substance abuse disorders, crippling patients were trapped in mental hospi- necessarily reflect the views of Vero
tals without a path out, President John F. Even for those fortunate enough to be Beach 32963.

SKIN CANCER (PART XV), THE IMMUNOLOGY REVOLUTION

Last time we began a discussion on treatment for mela- can produce harsher adverse effects for some patients, © 2019 VERO BEACH 32963 MEDIA, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
noma, covering surgical excision, sentinel node biopsy which doctors are addressing as early as possible.
and Mohs surgery. Today we’ll focus on the immunology
revolution that most of the world’s top experts believe NEW FOR STAGE III
may one day turn advanced (Stages III and IV) melanoma
into a potentially curable disease. Another big milestone occurred in 2015 when ipilim-
In the 1990s, there was no effective treatment for ad- umab was approved as an adjuvant therapy (an addi-
vanced melanoma. Within a few years, however, two tional treatment following surgery designed to help de-
immunotherapies – interferon alfa-2b for high risk, local- crease the risk of the cancer coming back and spreading
ized Stage II and Stage III patients, and interleukin-2 for throughout the body) for Stage III melanoma.
Stage IV patients – were approved. Interferon was able It quickly became the frontline therapy (first medicine
to delay the recurrence of melanoma a bit and interleu- to be used for patients) as it was shown to delay recur-
kin was able to keep some patients alive longer, but not rence longer than interferon, which was still being used
many. There was still a lot of room for improvement. for Stage III, and provide longer overall survival.
A breakthrough came in 2011. Two distinct types of
treatment – targeted therapy and checkpoint blockade Recently, nivolumab has also been approved as an ad-
immunotherapy – were approved by the FDA. The drug juvant therapy for Stage III melanoma. It was found to
vemurafenib targeted and turned off a mutated cancer- delay recurrence longer than ipilimumab and have far
causing protein called BRAF that’s found in about 50% less serious side effects.
of all melanoma patients. Then ipilimumab (anti-CTLA4) Investigators are now studying the use of a combination
was approved. This drug blocks a key checkpoint called of ipilmumab and nivolumab as adjuvant therapy for
CTLA-4 that mistakenly sends messages to the immune Stage III melanoma. Results of clinical trials will be com-
system through T cells to keep it from attacking mela- ing out at the end of 2020.
noma. Vemurafenib and ipilmumab extended many pa-
tients’ lives by months and years. ON THE HORIZON

NEW FOR STAGE IV It’s very likely more adjuvant therapies will be developed
over the next couple years. Finding an effective Stage III
Within the last six years, close to a dozen new targeted therapy is strategic: The chances of stopping melanoma
therapies and immunotherapies for Stage IV melanoma are thought to be better if it’s attacked effectively at
have been approved. Most notable are checkpoint block- Stage III rather than Stage IV.
age therapies nivolumab (anti-PD1) and pembrolizumab, Finding a cure for melanoma, and all cancers, is the goal.
which block a different immune checkpoint called PD-1 Researchers are getting closer. 
(programmed death-1). It appears using a combination Your comments and suggestions for future topics are
of ipilimumab and nivolumab is the most effective treat- always welcome. Email us at [email protected].
ment for Stage IV melanoma, although the combination

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

INSIGHT BOOKS

How does knowledge travel? It can be difficult protected while elsewhere they had been reduced to fed Cordoba’s impressive production of 70,000 to 80,000
in our Internet-driven era to envision how knowledge ashes. books per year in its heyday. As Cordoba’s prominence
was shared in the ancient world. HistorianViolet Moller’s began to wane, Toledo rose to importance. Located
“The Map of Knowledge: A Thousand-Year History of Moller argues that stable and prosperous empires, at the edge of Muslim and Christian lands and recon-
How Classical Ideas Were Lost and Found” re-creates combined with tolerant and intellectually curious rulers, quered by Christians in 1085, Toledo attracted scholars
the pathways by which scientific and philosophical texts supported the flourishing of knowledge. She introduces from all over Europe. Moller imagines the journey that
were passed down from the classical world to the mod- this premise through a discussion of the ancient library Gerard of Cremona might have taken from Italy to To-
ern era. of Alexandria, Egypt, built around 300 B.C. She follows ledo to survey its impressive collection of manuscripts.
the trail of works created by three scholars who at vari- His translations, including “The Elements” and “The Al-
Popular opinion seems to assume an unbroken ous times studied in ancient Alexandria: Euclid’s math- magest,” brought “the great ideas of ancient Greece and
connection from the ancient Greeks to the Renais- ematical treatise “The Elements” (300 B.C.), Ptolemy’s medieval Islam to Western Europe.” Translating more
sance, but after the decline of the western Roman astronomical compendium “The Almagest” (around 150 than 71 books from Arabic to Latin, Gerard of Cremona
Empire in 476 A.D., most of what is now Western A.D.) and the 3 million-word body of medical knowledge brought this ancient Greek knowledge back intoWestern
Europe was in fragments. The rise of Christianity produced by Galen (approximately 129-217 A.D.), which Europe.
led to the destruction of libraries and nonreligious influenced what was known about medicine for the next
(hence “pagan”) texts, and “by the year 500, secu- 1,300 years. All three works, despite their inaccuracies, Finally, Moller describes how Salerno, Palermo and
lar book production had effectively gone under- were tremendously influential in creating the founda- Venice became epicenters of medical and scientific
ground.” Moller enhances our understanding of the tion for contemporary math, astronomy and medicine. knowledge in Italy from the 11th century onward. Partic-
period from late antiquity until the Renaissance by Yet no original copies remain – so how did these works ularly entertaining is how conquest became intertwined
highlighting the many cities where knowledge con- spread and influence the world as we know it today? with learning in Palermo, as Norman conquerors with a
tinued to thrive during the Medieval era, and where sense of curiosity encouraged scientific inquiry. Howev-
important manuscripts were lovingly translated and Baghdad, the Mesopotamian “cradle of civilization,” er, in Salerno, something peculiar was beginning to hap-
is the first stop on the map of this journey. In the pros- pen: Authors were taking credit for Arab scientific ideas
perous court of the Abbasid caliphate (750 to 1258), pa- without attributing them. It’s possible, Moller asserts,
per, a necessary tool of the scholar, arrived in 793 from that this was done because of attitudes toward Muslims
China via the Silk Roads. Along with other innovations during the Crusades, but nonetheless, this erasure of
in bookbinding, it allowed for an impressive output of sources led to the suppression of Muslim contributions
research, writing and translation. Euclid, Ptolemy and to the history of science. “The Map of Knowledge” goes
Galen were all translated from Greek into Arabic, and a long way toward restoring our understanding of their
scholars used this knowledge to develop multiple scien- role.
tific fields. One scholar, al-Razi, drew on Galen to estab-
lish psychology, pediatric disciplines, hospitals and the Moller ends the journey with the introduction of the
practice of clinical trials that used control groups. Influ- printing press to Europe by Johannes Gutenberg around
enced by Ptolemy’s calculations, other scientists were 1450. As this invention spread, so too did the availabil-
able to determine the Earth’s circumference to within ity of books. Although new discoveries would bring
400 miles of today’s more accurate measurements. “At a into question the accuracy of Galen and Ptolemy (while
time when many Europeans were living on turnips and Euclid’s “Elements” still remains relevant), the work of
trying to fend off the Vikings,” Moller writes, Baghdad’s these scholars was essential to scientific development
scientists were fostering a “golden age of discovery and in the modern era. Such work, Moller argues, would not
enlightenment,” even inventing the crankshaft, which have been possible without the remarkable cities she
didn’t make it to Europe until the 14th century and is still highlights in “The Map of Knowledge.” 
used in today’s engines.
THE MAP OF KNOWLEDGE
Other cities also flourished during the Medieval pe-
riod. In Spain, Cordoba and Toledo were important cen- A THOUSAND-YEAR HISTORY OF HOW CLASSICAL
ters of knowledge. Cordoba was a major site of exchange
for scientific ideas originating in the Middle East, and IDEAS WERE LOST AND FOUND
Moller describes the routes of translation as well as the
new studies in science, philosophy and medicine that BY VIOLET MOLLER | DOUBLEDAY. 310 PP. $30
REVIEW BY RACHEL NEWCOMB, THE WASHINGTON POST

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Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / June 27, 2019 39

INSIGHT BOOKS

Few books about events

a century ago carry as rele-

vant a message for today’s

world of resurgent nation-

alism as does Matthew

Stanley’s “Einstein’s War:

How Relativity Triumphed

Amid the Vicious National-

ism of World War I.” Writing

to celebrate the centenary

of Sir Arthur Eddington’s ob-

servation of the solar eclipse

on May 29, 1919, and the

credibility this observation

gave Albert Einstein’s general

theory of relativity, Stanley

presents a cautionary picture

of a time – World War I and

its aftermath – when the in-

ternationalism of science fell

victim to nationalist politics,

or almost did. During those

same years, Einstein, in Berlin,

developed one of the most sig-

nificant scientific theories ever

advanced. Eddington, a British

astronomer, mathematician

and astrophysicist, made that theo- dington was intellectually well-equipped to
understand it. Because he was a Quaker and a con-
ry known and celebrated worldwide. Based in enemy scientious objector, he, like Einstein, was not sent
to the front. His university, Cambridge, contrived
nations, both men were fervent antiwar advocates of to avoid the scandal of pacifist labels by having him
exempted from service on the grounds that he was
the open, international practice of science. more valuable as a scientist than as a soldier. When
the war ended, Eddington was almost single-hand-
Stanley is a storyteller par excellence, whether edly responsible for making Einstein a revered sci-
entific figure and international celebrity.
the story is Einstein’s transformation from a “largely
Stanley brings both men vividly to life in his telling
unremarkable student, more known for his ‘roaring, of their engagement with their science, their rela-
tionships and disputes with colleagues and friends,
booming, all-enveloping laughter’ than his scientific and their well-documented reactions to events and
circumstances that affected lives in Britain and Ger-
skills,” the disintegration of a civilized world into a many. Both refused, sometimes at risk to life and
reputation, to engage in nationalist rhetoric. Both
senseless war, Einstein’s agonized wrestling with his grieved when colleagues embraced propaganda that
contributed to the breakdown of communication
theory or Eddington’s adventurous expedition to between the scientific communities, that mindlessly
denigrated all advances and discoveries, past and
find evidence to support it. Stanley doesn’t confine present, from the enemy country. German propa-
ganda demonized British science. In England, es-
the political story to Britain, Germany and, later, teemed scientists of distant German heritage were
dismissed from scientific societies they had served
America but describes the disastrous flow of events for years, and scientific publications and papers
coming from Germany or Austria were barred.
in other countries as well.
In this hostile climate, Eddington contrived to ob-
From the vantage point of the 21st century it is tain British support for an expedition to the South- When the measurements were deemed to support
ern Hemisphere to test a key prediction of Einstein’s Einstein, Einstein’s fame soared. He was able to trav-
easy to overlook the fact that, in spite of having put theory, looking for a minuscule shift in the observed el to Britain and, for the first time, met Eddington.
positions of stars appearing near the sun’s edge dur-
forward his theory of special relativity in 1905, Ein- ing the solar eclipse on May 29, 1919. Would the ob- In his closing chapter, Stanley uses the century-
servation be reliable enough to make it definitive? old disagreement about the reliability of Eddington’s
stein was not a recognized front-runner in physics at Would clouds frustrate the entire enterprise? Could observation to segue into a perceptive, in-depth and
the instruments survive a sea journey to a remote remarkably well-balanced discussion about “what
the time of World War I. He was known only to a few part of the world and, once arrived, be adequate science-done-by-people actually looks like and how
to the task? Would the results be in agreement with it works.” He calls the “deeply human chaotic story
theoretical physicists and not unanimously appreci- Einstein’s new theory or more in line with the long- of relativity … an exemplar.”
trusted theories of Isaac Newton? Eddington was not
ated by them. During the war, he was exempted from only an eminent scientist. He was also a master of This is not a book one reads on tenterhooks, won-
public relations and a skilled popularizer of science. dering whether everything will come out right for
German military service as a Swiss citizen but con- He persuaded the British public to be excited about Einstein and Eddington. We know the ending of this
Einstein’s ideas and to wait expectantly for several “messy adventure,” as Stanley terms it. That doesn’t
fined to the restrictive environment of wartime Ber- months while ambiguous results were analyzed. prevent his splendid book from being a harrowing
journey through a time when no one did know –
lin. Cut off entirely from the network of scientists in when the outcome that has become part of history
seemed unlikely. Both men regarded their achieve-
Britain and America, he was only occasionally able ment as a towering victory for internationalism in
science. The subtitle, “How Relativity Triumphed
to visit or communicate with a small number of col- Amid the Vicious Nationalism of World War I,” might
seem excessive, but it is appropriate. Einstein and
leagues in neutral Switzerland and the Netherlands Eddington would have liked it. 

who were able to comprehend what progress he was EINSTEIN’S WAR

(and wasn’t) making as he tried to extend his relativ- HOW RELATIVITY TRIUMPHED AMID THE VICIOUS

ity into a more general and powerful theory. NATIONALISM OF WORLD WAR I

In Stanley’s riveting, blow-by-blow account of BY MATTHEW STANLEY | DUTTON. 390 PP. $28
REVIEW BY KITTY FERGUSON, THE WASHINGTON POST
Einstein’s struggle, he explains every scientific term

and concept that is likely to be unfamiliar. The result

is an unusually reader-friendly journey into rela-

tivity theory. General relativity didn’t come in one

“eureka” moment but in a long, grueling effort that

advanced by fits and starts, with reversals and dead

ends. Though Einstein’s expectations were high, he

arduously, skeptically weighed the validity of each

step he took. There was hope among only a handful

of others that he would succeed.

Eddington, though not in communication with

Einstein, was one of those few who had infor-

mation about his work during the war, and Ed-

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

ST. EDWARD’S

St. Ed’s academic star earns salute for sporting efforts

BY RON HOLUB
Correspondent

Anand Chundi was the Salutatori- Anand Chundi. ating and all of now are to be a
an of St. Ed’s Class of 2019, something my teammates. dentist or doc-
hardly unexpected coming from a stu- PHOTO: KAILA JONES We built a tre- tor. The dental
dent with the reputation of brilliance mendous amount and medical
across the board in every single class- team should improve a lot and have a of camaraderie schools at UF are
room subject. You might say he was bright future. I really looked forward to through the sea- extremely good.
just channeling the example set by his playing with these guys every day.” son. Going there as
brother Kishore, a 2016 St. Ed’s graduate an undergradu-
currently studying at Yale. Anand was on the middle school bas- “I was a decent ate will help me
ketball team from seventh grade until shooter, rebound- get exposure to
Academics was not the only inter- he finally made the jump to the varsity er, and I liked to research oppor-
est the brothers shared. Despite be- full time as a sophomore. His final high drive to the bas- tunities in those
ing three years apart, Anand was able school season on the hardcourt is re- ket and find open areas. At the Honors College, a subset
to call his brother a teammate on the vealing for what he contributed to help people. This year the coaches expected of the larger university, I will also have
Pirates’ basketball court and baseball a struggling team (6-17) in any way he me to handle the ball a lot more be- greater access to the professors.
diamond. could. cause of all the young guys we had. “My interests have always been pri-
I was not much of ball handler in the marily math and science. I would also
“I started playing basketball way “This year we didn’t have quite the past, and I found it difficult at times like to look into environmental en-
back in the second or third grade,” record that we would have liked,” was especially against teams that liked to gineering because, living here, we’ve
Chundi recalled. “And I actually started Chundi’s understated assessment. “But press. seen the degradation of the lagoon and
playing baseball before that. I was play- we managed to have a lot of fun and I how it has deteriorated over the years.
ing T-ball when I was 4 or 5 years old. I really enjoyed the time I spent with “But I saw it as a challenge and I had Foreign languages have always been
started playing baseball here at school Coach (Greg) Zugrave, Coach (Bill) Ke- to figure it out. It was something I knew one of my strengths, and Spanish is one
in seventh grade. I was on the varsity I could do if I put my mind to it. I think class that I’ve enjoyed over the years.”
at that point because we didn’t have a it ended up OK.” Even with so many diverse options
middle school team. to explore, it’s worthwhile noting that
Bringing that kind of attitude to sports will continue to be something
“I played with my brother and that school every day certainly paid wide- more meaningful than just a sideshow
was a lot of fun, but he could also be spread dividends. It was starkly evi- to demonstrable academic excellence.
very hard on me when I didn’t make denced through his unfamiliar role as “I will look into club opportunities to
the right play. It was always nice to have a senior point guard when he led the play basketball and baseball, but more
him there to keep an eye on me.” team in rebounds and steals, and was than that I have quite a bit of joy writing
second in points and assists. about sports. I have a sports blog and
Chundi finished his high school contribute to a YouTube channel. I’m a
sports career as the type of leader his Chundi will attend the University huge Gators fan and I will comment on
brother could be proud of. This year he of Florida, telling us that was his No. 1 the games I attend,” he said. 
was credited with controlling the tem- option all along. It’s close to home and
po of the game from behind the plate has all of the essentials necessary to
for an improving baseball team while take him where he wants to go.
hitting a respectable .273 and, oddly,
leading the team in stolen bases, some- “My future plans after college right
thing a catcher is not supposed to do.

“Obviously this year I was expected
to be a role model for the younger kids,”
Chundi said as the only senior on the
2019 11-8 baseball team. “It was tough
at times and we had some growing
pains. With so many young kids, the

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / June 27, 2019 41

INSIGHT BRIDGE

MORE BAD LUCK BALANCED ELSEWHERE WEST NORTH EAST
63 K Q 10 5 4 J872
By Phillip Alder - Bridge Columnist 5 KJ72 Q 10 9
K Q 10 4 J6 853
Edward Ugel, a sales and marketing expert, said, “Worrying about gray hair when your J98742 K3 Q 10 6
weight’s soaring out of control is like mowing your lawn while your house is on fire.”
SOUTH
Last week, we had a deal in which a bad trump break was mitigated by a lucky lie in a side A9
suit. Here is another. South was in six hearts. What did he do after winning the first trick with A8643
the diamond ace? A972
A5
North might have jump-rebid four hearts with his six-loser hand. South immediately bid what
he hoped he could make. He knew that moving slower probably wasn’t going to help him, so Dealer: North; Vulnerable: Both
he kept the defenders in the dark.
The Bidding:
South had a possible loser in each red suit. However, if the trumps were behaving, he rated
to take 12 tricks via four spades, five hearts, one diamond and two clubs. But after cashing SOUTH WEST NORTH EAST OPENING
his heart ace and leading a second heart, West’s club discard was a blow. Now declarer 1 Spades Pass
had to eliminate all of his diamond losers before East could ruff in and lead a diamond to his 2 Hearts Pass 3 Hearts Pass LEAD:
partner’s queen. How could South do that? 6 Hearts Pass Pass Pass K Diamonds

The only chance was to find East with four spades. Then if the suit was played without loss,
when East ruffed the fifth spade, declarer would be discarding his last diamond.

If East had four spades to his partner’s two, he was twice as likely to hold the spade jack. So
South bravely played a spade to his nine. When it won, he cashed the spade ace, led a club
to the king and pitched his three low diamonds on the spades to sneak home.

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

INSIGHT GAMES SOLUTIONS TO PREVIOUS ISSUE (JUNE 20) ON PAGE 62

ACROSS DOWN
1 Prepared (5) 2 Recreation (13)
4 Large boats (5) 3 Theatrical entertainment (5)
10 Supplementary (5) 5 Metal-cutting tool (7)
11 Hazy (7) 6 Rain, hail, sleet, snow ... (13)
12 Facade (7) 7 Size (11)
13 Speedy (5) 8 Quilt (5)
14 Retaliates (6) 9 Leading character (11)
16 Canopy (6) 15 Marine reptiles (7)
18 Country house (5) 17 Take a break (5)
19 Resist (7) 20 Glossy textile (5)
21 Sewing implements (7)
22 Small branches (5)
23 Hoard (5)
24 Senseless (5)

The Telegraph

UGLY ROOF? How to do Sudoku:
WE CAN HELP!
Fill in the grid so the
numbers one through
nine appear just once
in every column, row
and three-by-three
square.

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Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / June 27, 2019 43

INSIGHT GAMES

ACROSS to Tia Elena 48 Periodic chart abbr. The Washington Post
91 Take your turn 49 Astronomer Tycho
1 Indistinct 93 Knotted accessory 50 House mosquito genus BIG BUTTINSKY By Merl Reagle
6 Old Greek coin (or a wolf 94 Miss identification? 52 Conductor Riccardo
96 Get around that darned 53 “___ with seven wives ...”
spelled backwards) 55 Pavlov’s bell-ringings, e.g.
10 Leopold’s accomplice Regal? 56 Oklahoma Indian
14 Slays 101 Country with the spittin’est 57 Michoacan mister
16 Where Clint was the law, for 60 Chatterbox
team in beisbol? 61 Hormel bestseller
a while 105 Breezed through 62 Some breads
18 Whacks figure? 106 “___ know you?” 64 City on Puget Sound
107 Frayn farce, ___ Off 65 Source of Monterrey’s rays
20 Famed race car driver 108 Made-for-TV movie about, 69 Actress Virna
from the Midwest? 70 Horse of another color
well, something obviously 75 Alice in Wonderland (2010)
22 Glue brand very weird that I wouldn’t be
23 Poetic paean trying on any time soon? director Burton
112 Free-love free-for-alls 76 “Skip to ___”
24 Is flub-prone 113 Hosts 78 A promising start?
25 Dandruff? 114 They’re nuts 79 TV scientist Bill et al.
115 Hiking of the ball 81 Precarious perch
27 Role that’s not exactly a 116 “Yikes!” 82 Bligh’s guys
stretch for most aspiring 117 Health, to Henri 83 Quitter’s announcement
actors? 84 Mtn. road abbr.
DOWN 85 Does an ore chore
31 Had mush or mushrooms 1 Big name in sneakers 86 Louis Armstrong
32 Meteor’s tail? 87 Perfectly clear
2 Ossicle 88 Dictation taker
33 Mark with heat 3 Author Deighton 92 Scotland, in France
34 Baby word or baby food 94 Respond to Nytol
35 Opposite of dim., 4 Wear and tear 95 Sound of disapproval
in music 5 Up and about 96 Steal, as eggs?
37 Some window transactions 6 Ungraceful one 97 Elizabeth of cosmetics
38 Pillsbury’s Doughboy? 7 Unethical gift 98 Jalopy
45 Mad Libs request 8 Astrologer Sydney 99 Falco and Sedgwick
46 Delhi dressing? 9 “___ smile be your ...” 100 Do-it-yourselfer’s buy
47 Good name for an 102 Where Mongolians
10 French city for which a thread
accountant? is named barbecue
48 Youngster’s recitation 103 Pitcher drink
51 Ghost star’s first name 11 Emerald City princess 104 Floor model
12 “Watchman” of the Old 109 Composer Delibes
54 Cytoplasm content 110 TV maker
55 Mel Brooks’s Life ___ Testament 111 Moving-day rental
58 Robert Morse hit 13 Catholic cap
59 How some hard-to-please 15 Scand. country
16 Some calculators,
kids like their peanut brittle?
63 Pogo’s creator Kelly brand-wise
65 Supper downer 17 Densely packed
66 NBA finesse shot
67 Electronics giant semiconductor: abbr.
68 Winner of India’s first 18 Not taken
19 Winding routes
marching-band contest? 20 Do a yard chore
71 Begone beginning 21 Prefix to comedy
72 Edit out 26 Hungary’s Imre
28 Gus and Madeline
73 From ___ Z 29 Cookie often crumbled
74 Kin of ergot 30 Little ones
35 These places are buzzing
76 Part of MVEMJSUNP 36 Touch-___
77 Chicano bear 37 Movie-set bullets
78 “And ___ that sincerely” 39 Dirty-campaign missile
80 Plant with pads 40 ___ hit (single)
82 Teacher’s remark to a 41 Half of a spy’s name
42 Will of Arrested Development
kid with a metaphor 43 Conform
problem? 44 Actor-monologuist Bogosian
88 Sister “worth” two mules
89 Half of a palindromic
Cambodian
90 That one,

The Telegraph

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

INSIGHT BACK PAGE

Daughter doesn’t need parents to weigh in on her looks

BY CAROLYN HAX to love and support a child in trouble that don’t in-
Washington Post volve condoning malice or recklessness.

Dear Carolyn: I’m just dotting the “i” with this disclaimer,
though; putting on a few pounds and/or squish-
Our daughter, 25, has gained ing them into small clothes is not even close to that
threshold.
a lot of weight and consequently

looks like two pounds of baloney in

a one-pound bag in the clothes she Dear Carolyn:

wears. Any advice on how to ad- OK, so I went on a few dates with this woman over

dress this? Do we parents keep our mouths shut? a year ago.

–T. Before we met up for a third time, she told me

she had a good time with me but was not in a place

T.: Oh my goodness. for anything serious (first-year graduate student).
Mouths shut!
I say this in part because the chances aren’t very We have not spoken since, but I still see her once a
good your words will come out well when your
thoughts involve lunch meat. month or so – we live in the same community – and
It’s also in part because about 2 in 3 U.S. adults
are overweight or obese and about 0 in 3 don’t know still find myself attracted to her.
this about themselves.
But the biggest part is that speaking up is not Was she turning me down for just that moment or
your job.
It’s all too easy to notice when somebody needs forever?
something.
It’s tougher to navigate what someone needs Would there be any value in reaching out to her
from us.
Your daughter may well need better habits – I’m to let her know I am still interested, or would she
just taking your word for it here, since perception
does not equal fact – but that need applies to you I repeat, she does not need from you what she al- make the initial move if her life or outlook has
only if it shows up in the answer to the following ready gets nonjudgmentally from her own mirror.
question: “What does my daughter need from me?” changed?
What she does need from you is more universal
than we parents tend to realize when we’re worried – Still Interested
about our kids: to be treated as inherently valuable.
As-is. Not for what they do, not for how they look, Still Interested: I don’t know what she had in
but for who they are. mind when she turned you down.

This gets complicated when a child harms oth- But if she hasn’t spoken to you once despite
ers on purpose, say, or flirts with life-threatening monthly crossings of paths? I’d guess “forever.” I’m
degrees of self-harm. sorry.

But it’s still on parents to try, at least, to find ways At minimum, I suggest leaving her be unless she
clearly engages with you. 

4

HOSPITALS’ TEAMWORK AT HEART OF
VERO MOM’S TRANSPLANT STORY

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

HEALTH

Hospitals’ teamwork at heart of Vero mom’s transplant story

BY TOM LLOYD anything but simple. Aside from an
Staff Writer incredibly delicate and complex sur-
gery, heart transplant patients also
Vero Beach’s Paige Jerome had a face the risk their own body will reject
change of heart last March. the new organ.

Literally. Johns Hopkins Medical says that
On March 15 this 47-year-old moth- rejection “is your body’s normal reac-
er, educator and art lover underwent tion to a foreign object or tissue. When
a seven-hour operation at Cleveland you get a new heart, your immune sys-
Clinic Weston just days after walking tem reacts to what it sees as a foreign
into the emergency room at Cleveland threat and attacks the new organ. To
Clinic Indian River Hospital thinking allow the transplanted organ to sur-
she had “a touch of bronchitis” and vive in a new body, you will need to
might need a course of antibiotics to take medicines. The medicines will
clear that up. attempt to trick the immune system
It turns out she needed much, much into accepting the transplant” instead
more. of attacking it.
She needed a heart transplant.
Heart transplants are not an every- Moreover, Hopkins points out, “you
day occurrence. The United Network will need to take the medicines to
for Organ Sharing says only about prevent or treat rejection for the rest
3,500 are performed each year world- of your life. These drugs have side ef-
wide. fects too. The side effects will depend
In its simplest terms, a heart trans- on the specific medicines you take.”
plant is surgery to remove a diseased
heart from a person and replace it So how did “a touch of bronchitis”
with a healthy one from an organ do- turn into an urgent need for a heart
nor. transplant?
But the procedure is, of course,
It didn’t.
What Jerome thought was bronchi-
tis was quickly diagnosed by Dr. Brett

Paige Jerome and
Dr. Brett Faulknier.

PHOTOS BY DENISE RITCHIE

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / June 27, 2019 47

Dr. Babar Shareef. HEALTH

‘Oh my gosh, And more new friends. it’s my old heart going off, with this
they are good. I Speaking about the Weston staff, bird, his name is Blue, and he’s taking
honestly wouldn’t Jerome can barely contain her enthu- the old broken heart away and then
siasm. “Oh my gosh, they are good. I he’s putting the new heart in.”
forget their want to go back and see them all and I
names. I can tell honestly wouldn’t forget their names. Today, just weeks after that heart
you that they’re I can tell you that they’re just amaz- transplant, Jerome appears to be on
just amazing.’ ing.” track for successful recovery. She has
And, speaking of amazing things, started cardio rehab here in Vero and
– Paige Jerome when Jerome’s favorite artist, Fabio seems to be rapidly regaining her
Napolioni, whose daughter was born strength.
Faulknier and Dr. Babar Shareef at the with a hole in her heart, got wind of this
Vero Beach ER as “giant cell myocar- self-described “super social” woman’s She didn’t need to regain her enthu-
ditis,” a rare cardiovascular disease ordeal, he took brush in hand and, as siasm or ‘joie de vie.’ Those never left
that occurs for unknown reasons. It Jerome says, “did an original [piece of her. She hopes to return to full-time
is characterized by inflammation of art] for me when I was in the hospital: work in mid-September.
the heart muscle and is a rapidly pro-
gressing, frequently fatal disease. That’s the “heart” of Paige Jerome’s
story. 
And progress it did. Extremely rap-
idly.

Today Jerome has effusive praise for
the emergency department team that
spotted the problem in time to save
her life, including the doctors, nurses
and technicians.

In March, after Vero ER personnel
diagnosed her condition and it was
decided she needed a new heart, she
was transported to Cleveland Clinic
Weston by ambulance because, as she
explains, “they were concerned that
my condition was so poor at the time.

“If you go in the air,” she says, “you
can’t pull off on the side of the road to
[perform emergency procedures]. It’s
different. You’ve got to be able to land
first and be near a place where you
can do that safely.”

Once she’d made the two-hour drive
south to Cleveland Clinic Weston,
members of the Weston transplant
and heart failure team, including Drs.
Cedric Sheffield and Viviana Navas,
took over. One week after walking into
the Vero ER with what she thought was
bronchitis, Jerome had a new heart.

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

HEALTH

Here’s the skinny on a ‘fast’ and free route to weight loss

BY TOM LLOYD physician with Steward Health
Staff Writer Care’s Sebastian River Medical Cen-
ter in Vero Beach, says there is, and
What if there was a way to lose it has been around longer than the
weight, lower your blood pressure, pyramids.
reduce your cholesterol and blood
sugar levels – and not cost you a dime? It’s called “fasting.” Or at least “in-
termittent fasting,” and it is trending
And what if you could do all that big time these days among almost ev-
without any pills, pre-packaged ery age group in the U.S. and beyond.
meals, shakes, gym memberships,
classes or anything else? Medical News Today reports “in-
termittent fasting diets have been
Dr. Raman Ashta, a primary care gaining more and more traction

Dr. Raman Ashta.

PHOTO BY DENISE RITCHIE

among people who want to lose ‘I think that
weight quickly,” and Ashta points out intermittent
“it’s been around since our hunter fasting is a good
gatherer ancestors [and] it’s been a way to lose weight,
religious practice for thousands of maintain that
years,” for virtually all the world’s weight loss and
faiths including Christianity, Juda- to improve your
ism, Islam, Buddhism and Hinduism. general health.’

Fasting has also been used as a – Dr. Raman Ashta
therapeutic or medical technique
since at least the 5th century BCE almost all my patients,” she says. “It
when Hippocrates – the “father of means that you don’t eat for 16 hours
modern medicine” – recommended and eat only during an eight-hour
abstinence from food for patients window.”
who exhibited certain symptoms of
illness. Immediately, however, Ashta adds
an important caveat.
But be aware. There is fasting …
and then there is fasting. That is,
some modern fasting diet plans bor-
der on the extreme while others are
relatively benign.

Ashta, for example, points her pa-
tients toward one of the least extreme
plans which she calls the “16-8” ap-
proach.

“That’s what I usually suggest to

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / June 27, 2019 49

HEALTH

hours, you could do 10 hours the next only restriction is the fasting must
day and then 12 hours the following last a full 24 hours and be on non-
day and expand it slowly. And maybe consecutive days.
do it a couple times a week. Any bit
helps more than not doing it all.” Add to that “The Warrior Diet,”
which entails eating nothing for 20
“In addition to enhancing weight hours each day. A person fasting in
loss, 16/8 intermittent fasting is also this way consumes their entire typi-
believed to improve blood sugar cal food intake in the remaining four
control, boost brain function and hours.
enhance longevity,” according to
healthline.com and other sources. Then there’s the “Leangains” diet,
another 16/8 program which was first
There are, however, naysayers when developed for weightlifters.
it comes to the benefits of fasting.
Men who choose the Leangains
Not the least of those is Harvard method will fast for 16 hours and then
Medical School. eat what they want for the remaining
eight hours. Women fast for 14 hours
It says: “There’s a ton of incred- and eat what they want for the re-
ibly promising intermittent fasting maining 10 hours of the day. During
research done on fat rats. They lose the fast, a person must avoid eating
weight, their blood pressure, choles- any food at all but can drink as many
terol, and blood sugars improve … no-calorie beverages as they like.
but they’re rats.
It’s up to you.
“Studies in humans, almost across If intermittent fasting is something
the board, have shown that [under you think you’d like to try, discuss
proper supervision] intermittent fast- the diet you have in mind with your
ing can be safe, but it’s really no more primary care physician first and see
effective than any other diet,” says if any adjustments to your current
the famed Boston school of medicine. medication might be needed.

Among the many intermittent fast- Dr. Raman Ashta is with the Steward
ing diets currently gaining traction, Health Care’s Sebastian River Medical
says Medical News Today, is the “Eat Center in Vero Beach. Her offices are
Stop Eat” plan which involves eating at 3745 11th Circle in Vero Beach. The
nothing for 24 hours twice a week. It phone number is 772-564-2485. 
does not matter what days a person
fasts or even when they begin. The

Before starting any type of fasting medication adjustment has to come
regimen, you need to consult your before you start fasting to anticipate
primary care provider. that. If you’re on insulin, that dose
has to be lowered quickly to account
Why? Because, as Ashta explains, for lack of food and then, also, to ac-
“if you’re currently taking any medi- count for weight loss.”
cations, it is absolutely necessary
to talk your doctor before you start Overall, though, Ashta says, “I
fasting.” think intermittent fasting is a good
way to lose weight, maintain that
“That’s especially true,” she says, weight loss and to improve your gen-
“with the blood pressure and dia- eral health,” and that the 16-8 tech-
betes medicines because when you nique is “the easiest to follow,” be-
fast and you’re not eating, your blood cause “you can ease into it. If your
pressure can go too low and your fasting window right now is eight
sugars can go dangerously low. So a

50 Vero Beach 32963 / June 27, 2019 Style Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

A 6-piece capsule wardrobe to stay stylish throughout summer

BY FRANKIE GRADDON
The Telegraph

This morning it took me no less than
15 minutes and three outfits changes
to decide on what to wear to work. I
plumped for a silky dress paired with
basket weave slip-ons, which I came
to regret as soon as I walked outside
and straight into a puddle; raffia is
no contest for summer showers. The
day before I misstepped in a mohair
sweater which proved far too warm for
the humid climes, and the day before
that I had to squint my way through
an unexpectedly sunny lunch break
as I’d mistakenly assumed the morn-
ing’s gray skies meant I didn’t need
sunglasses.

If there’s one thing this summer’s
unpredictable weather is playing havoc
with (apart from, presumably, sales of
picnic blankets), it’s getting dressed in
the morning. While one minute a balmy
78 degrees demands summer frocks,
the next sees temperatures skyrocket
to a positively hot 90 degrees and we’re
back in tank-top weather. Then there’s
the rain; monsoon-like deluges which

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