04/21/2022 ISSUE 16

4 nonprofits each awarded
$100K grants. P26
COVID-19 again
edging up here. P15

Shores voters to consider
amendments to town charter. P12

For breaking news visit

MY VERO BY CAROLYN SCHILLER tens of thousands of aviation every two years, but the 2020 Insurance costs
Correspondent enthusiasts to the Vero Beach show was cancelled due to to be addressed
BY RAY MCNULTY Regional Airport to see the pandemic restrictions on large by Legislature
The Vero Beach Air Show U.S. Navy’s famous Blue An- gatherings, so anticipation
Many questions remain next weekend is expected to gels plus an impressive, three- for this year’s show has been BY NANCY SAPEY
about fatal ER shooting be the climax of a booming lo- day lineup of attractions. building for quite some time. Correspondent
cal tourist season, attracting
Maybe I’ve watched too Normally the show happens CONTINUED ON PAGE 12 Skyrocketing homeowners’
many cop shows on TV, but I’d insurance costs with renewal
like to believe that four sher- rate hikes of 20 to 30 percent –
iff’s deputies – two of them or worse, non-renewal letters
members of the agency’s spe- – are catching island prop-
cially trained SWAT team erty owners off guard, and the
– could physically subdue a problem is so serious that the
mentally unstable man armed Florida Legislature will return
only with scissors without re- to Tallahassee to try to solve it.
sorting to lethal force.
On Monday, Gov. Ron DeSan-
That was my initial thought tis announced a special session
when Sheriff Eric Flowers ex- in May to deal with property
plained during a next-day insurance reform, something
news conference what hap- lawmakers failed to complete
pened March 26 on a busy Sat- in regular session, even though
urday night in the Emergency Florida’s rates are among the
Room at Cleveland Clinic In- highest in the nation. The goal,
dian River Hospital. he said, will be “to bring some
sanity, and to stabilize and have
Upon further reflection, a functioning market.”
though,Irealizedthatattempt-
ing to disarm an emotionally Local insurance, real estate
distressed and suddenly dan-
gerous patient wielding what CONTINUED ON PAGE 3
Flowers described as a “pair
of large scissors” could have

CONTINUED ON PAGE 2

Another luxury storage complex–for classic Expansion of City Marina will not impact island dog park
cars, big RVs, large boats – coming toVero

BY STEVEN M. THOMAS BY NANCY SAPEY
Staff Writer Correspondent

The Vero Beach luxury stor- RENDERING The popular Vero Beach
age craze roars on. Dog Park got good news last
and seven already reserved at week when Vero Beach City
Goundbreaking is planned pre-construction prices rang- Manager Monte Falls told
for June for Fortified Storage, a ing from $269,000 to $299,000. its directors the planned
new 15-unit, hurricane-ready expansion of the city’s ma-
luxury project which will have “This is literally the defi- rina will not impact the dog
the largest storage units yet – park as initially feared.
each with 1,500 square feet of CONTINUED ON PAGE 8
versatile, customizable space, CONTINUED ON PAGE 6

PHOTO BY KAILA JONES

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2 Vero Beach 32963 / April 21, 2022 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

NEWS

My Vero tions that remained unanswered as the Flowers told the media gathering that scissors and how close Anderson was to
week began, nearly a month after the he would provide more comprehensive the deputies when they fired. No new
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 tragic incident at the hospital. video from the hospital’s cameras, but video, including footage from the body
as of Monday, it had not yet been made cams worn by the other deputies, par-
put the deputies’ safety at risk. Not ev- Flowers said at his news conference available. ticularly the two SWAT team members
ery cop is Walker, Texas Ranger. that Anderson “died right away,” but who fired the shots. No new answers to
he didn’t know how many shots were “We still are unable to release the hos- questions that continue to be asked.
But did Zachary Taylor Anderson fired or how many times the man was pital footage,” Sheriff’s Office spokes-
– the 29-year-old man whose family hit. And although footage from one of person Debbie Carson wrote in a text Especially this: Why was this inci-
members brought him to the hospital the deputies’ body cameras was re- message late last week. “Hospital ad- dent allowed to happen?
on March 25 because he was suicidal leased to the public, it did not include ministration is contesting its release,
and already had tried to harm himself any video of the actual shooting. which is causing the hold up.” As Flowers tells it: Anderson was at
– really need to be shot dead? the hospital under Florida’s Baker Act
The Medical Examiner’s Office con- Asked if the Sheriff’s Office could law, which allows people with mental
Or to be more specific: Why didn’t the firmed Monday that an autopsy was provide an update on its investigation illness to be held – voluntarily or in-
deputies reach for their tasers instead of performed on Anderson, but a spokes- into the incident, she replied, “Noth- voluntarily – in a mental-health facility
their guns? person said the report won’t be avail- ing new at this time.” for up to 72 hours if they are deemed to
able for several weeks. pose a threat to themselves or others.
Those are among the troubling ques- No new details, such as the size of the
Flowers said Anderson “attempted
to hang himself” and had multiple lac-
erations on his wrists and legs.

The hospital staff attempted to
transfer Anderson to a mental health
facility, but for some still-unexplained
reason, he was denied admission and
returned to the hospital’s ER.

Hospital officials issued a statement
after the shooting, acknowledging that a
patient “behaved in a threatening man-
ner which resulted in the use of deadly
force by deputies who were already on
site,” then adding the incident was un-
der investigation and they were cooper-
ating with the Sheriff’s Office.

You can be sure lawyers will be ex-
ploring the botched process that re-
sulted in Anderson being treated on
a gurney in the hallway of the over-
crowded ER for what Flowers said was
“a day and a half.”

They’ll also want to look into the
reasons Anderson, who was deemed
a threat to himself and others, wasn’t
secured to the gurney; how and why
he had access to scissors; and whether
the deputies working a security detail
in the ER should’ve been monitoring
his behavior.

Flowers said during his news con-
ference, in fact, that Baker Act patients
“want to flee, want to get away,” and
that it “happens all the time.”

If Anderson had been secured to the
gurney, he could not have jumped up,
grabbed the scissors and run around
the ER area, prompting the deputies
to respond to the commotion.

He could not have turned toward the
deputies and come at them in a narrow
hallway while holding the scissors in his
raised hand, posing a threat to their safe-
ty and that of the nearby hospital staffers.

He would not have been shot.
Flowers said the entire episode last-
ed only five seconds and praised his
deputies’ response, which he claimed
was the result of their training and pre-
vented Anderson from harming any-
one else in the area.
“I’m very proud of our team,” Flow-
ers said. “Our guys did a great job. They
were able to stop the threat and not hurt
any of the hospital staff.”
He said Anderson’s aggressive behav-

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / April 21, 2022 3

NEWS

ior and close proximity to the deputies Significant insurance fraud through- both construction materials and labor supply chains make scheduling a job
in tight quarters left them “no choice out Florida precipitated massive liti- costs hard, resulting in steep replace- challenging.
but to do what they did,” explaining gation expenses, financially draining ment costs for damaged structures.
that “in a split-second,” the circum- some insurance companies and put- “All these events combined have
stances changed from a Baker Act pa- ting others out of business. Aging Insurance companies seek to miti- created the perfect storm”, Greco said.
tient running loose to an unstable man roofs – many on the island dating back gate their losses so they created stricter
threatening them with scissors. to post-storm repairs after hurricanes guidelines and policies. Some island Michael Thorpe, a broker with ONE
Frances and Jeanne in 2004 – are now residents are having to replace roofs Sotheby’s who has been selling luxury
Flowers described the incident as nearly 18 years old and a growing risk. in order to re-qualify for their existing island properties in the Vero Beach
“suicide by cop,” saying, “Clearly, this policies. Lumber and roofing shingle market for more than three decades,
man was intent on ending his life.” Piled on top of that, inflation has hit costs have gone up, plus unreliable said rising insurance costs have not

But was he? CONTINUED ON PAGE 4
Or was he merely trying to escape?
Even if Anderson, in his severely dis-
turbed state of mind, was trying to pro-
voke the deputies, there’s no way Flow-
ers can say with any degree of certainty
that the man truly wanted to die.
If Anderson could’ve gotten the help
he needed – the care his family sought
when he was brought to the hospital –
would he still have wanted to commit
suicide?
Look, I understand that the deputies
who shot him were placed in a diffi-
cult, high-pressure situation. I appre-
ciate they had to make a life-or-death
decision in a matter of seconds.
I’d just like to know why they chose
death.
Surely, I’m not the only one wonder-
ing why the deputies didn’t first reach
for their Tasers, knowing they were con-
fronting one troubled patient armed
only with scissors.
And I can’t be the only one who finds
it more than a little curious Flowers
never mentioned the Taser option.
There might be a credible explana-
tion. It’s entirely possible the Sheriff’s
Office’s in-house investigation, as well
as the expected grand jury proceed-
ing, will show that the deputies who
fatally shot Anderson responded ex-
actly as they were trained to do.
At this moment, though, there’s too
much about what happened on that
busy Saturday night in the ER that
doesn’t feel right – and it won’t until all
the questions are answered.
Maybe it has something to do with
all those cop shows I’ve watched on
TV, where you never see four police
officers cornered by one mentally un-
stable guy with scissors.
But I keep thinking Anderson died be-
cause somebody screwed up. 

Property insurance costs
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

and finance professionals who serve
island clientele cite numerous causes
for what amounts to a “perfect storm”
resulting in jolting insurance quotes.

Dave Greco of Gottzmann Insurance
Group on Ocean Drive, an indepen-
dent agent with 13 years experience,
outlined some critical factors leading
to the rate crisis – fraud, aging homes
and inflation.

4 Vero Beach 32963 / April 21, 2022 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

NEWS

Property insurance costs the scales in favor of newer construc- “The cost of a two-by-four has dou- getting out of certain areas, so there
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 3 tion, or the home with the newer roof. bled. The cost of every component of are fewer companies and higher costs,
constructing a home has gone up, so so they’ve got to raise the premiums.”
killed any deals for him yet, but when Though the sticker-shock of insur- it’s going to cost a lot more to recon-
buyers are choosing between two ance renewal notices may be very real struct a home that’s damaged,” Thor- “The end game is that the insurance
homes, insurance premiums can tip for island residents, Thorpe said it re- pe said. “As a result, insurance compa- companies will have less risk overall –
flects the inflationary factors impact- nies are assessing this risk. Some are new roofs, fewer policies in high-risk
ing Florida’s economy in general. areas – it’s just a function of the market,

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Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / April 21, 2022 5

NEWS

so the market won’t fail,” Thorpe said. and flood zones are factors respon- Cash buyers, or those who have paid Pohl, branch manager at Caliber Home
Realtors Kathleen and Jason Pogany sible. One homeowner was quoted off their home loans, sometimes choose Loans on Indian River Boulevard.
$29,000 and another $49,000 per year to self insure and bear the risk them-
with the Reynolds Team in the Com- for insurance coverage. selves, but for those with a mortgage, An HO3 policy is a homeowners in-
pass real estate firm on A1A said they “nearly all lenders require homeown- surance plan that covers the home’s
have recently lost a few sales on the “These quotes are more than the buy- ers here to have HO3 insurance poli- structure, personal belongings and li-
island due to pricey insurance quotes. ers’ mortgage payments, “ Kathleen Po- cies with wind coverage,” said Shannon ability in the event of damage or injury.
Frame homes, aging roofs, windows gany said.
CONTINUED ON PAGE 6

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6 Vero Beach 32963 / April 21, 2022 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

NEWS

Property insurance costs used to be the least expensive com-
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 5 ponent of property coverage, has also
increased. Citizens Insurance, a state-
“Over the last eight months, we’ve run company and often considered
seen a lot of carriers drop coverage, the carrier of last resort for high-risk
so it’s becoming harder to get insured, properties, raised rates significantly in
which in turn impacts home sales,” October. The new changes are being
Pohl said. “The high insurance cost dubbed Flood Insurance 2.0. Ratings
makes it even more challenging to buy were redistributed in an attempt to
a home on top of an already competi- make costs equitable to property own-
tive market with low inventory.” ers across the state.

Pohl said many homeowners are “Which means the wealthy will pay
choosing to invest in their properties more,” added Greco.
to save on premiums.
He relayed an experience last fall with
“More and more people are consider- a waterfront property he was insuring.
ing the equity they have in their homes The buyer’s closing had to be delayed.
and are doing cash-out refis in order to Prior to October 21st, their flood insur-
cover the cost of the rising insurance as ance would have been $550 per year.
well as fix any-thing that is causing the When their closing was delayed, the
price of their insurance to go up, such new policy quote was $11,000 per year.
as securing a new roof.” Pohl said. “You can imagine how I felt making that
phone call.” said Greco.
“A 10- or 15-year-old shingle roof
might still be in good shape, but it may The Poganys reported that a home
be near the end of its life,” Thorpe said. recently listed for sale – with a flood
“They’re going to certain homeowners insurance bill of $500 per year – has
and saying you’ve gotta replace your seen that skyrocket to $5,600. Proxim-
roof or we’re cancelling you.” ity to the ocean and cost to rebuild is
the driving force in the rate increases.
Roger Lynch, a long-time private cli- Now the Poganys, like Thorpe, are ad-
ent risk advisor with Brown and Brown vising buyers to get insurance quotes
Insurance on Beachland Boulevard, before writing up an offer to purchase.
specializes in property insurance.
Buying a home always involves some
“I have the good fortune to insure element of risk, but island residents
many valued clients in both homes who just want to stay put also are feel-
and condos on the barrier island and ing the pain.
almost everyone is being challenged
with significant increases at renewal Central Beach resident Edward Mal-
for their policies,” Lynch said. lia was shocked when his new insur-
ance bill arrived three months ago. It
Lynch said clients don’t have to wait had increased $1,700, bringing the to-
in dread for their renewal notice. There tal to $5,500. a year. He wrote the check
are multiple things educated home- but wasn’t happy about it. He is invest-
owners can do to reduce their premi- ing in his home with other up-grades
ums. and is committed to continue living on
the island, hoping reform will happen.
“We have important recommenda-
tions,” he said.“First, given water losses “This is the way it’s going to be”, he
from pipe leaks from within the home said. “But insurance companies have
(washing machine hoses, ice-makers, orchestrated a plan that is inflicting
water supply lines) are the number their agenda on people and is causing
one claim we experience, installing a suffering in the process. I am in favor
water shut-off system is highly recom- of adding legislation to control insur-
mended. Many insurance carriers are ance companies.” 
now providing sizable discounts when
such units are installed in the home.” Staff Writer Lisa Zahner contributed
to this report.
Thorpe had some practical sugges-
tions, too, based upon the quotes he’s Dog park
seen come back on homes for sale in
the island market and items flagged as CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1
risky. He advised homeowners look into
four-point safety inspections and ex- When the first draft of the marina
amine their disaster plans because in- plan showed a considerable section
surance companies want to see a solu- of the southern end of the dog park
tion better than boarded-up windows. being taken for a new roadway, Park
President Robert Joy, along with board
“They’re looking hard at the arma- members Penny Chandler and Jill
ments, are your hurricane shutters up Jones, met with Mayor Robbie Brack-
to Miami-Dade code, or are you using ett, City Manager Monte Falls and Ma-
plywood? Upgrading to armaments rina Director Sean Collins on March
that are up to Miami-Dade codes, in- 22 about the plan.
stalling impact widows are both a way
to reduce your risk,” Thorpe said. “Fire Dog park officials produced a copy
safety is also a big one, they are look- of the park’s original leasing agree-
ing at older electrical panels.”
CONTINUED ON PAGE 8
The cost of flood insurance, which



8 Vero Beach 32963 / April 21, 2022 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

NEWS

Dog park Dr. Jen Wortham, Mike Reese, Penny Chandler Norris and Bob Joy at the dog park. PHOTO BY KAILA JONES provements. Joy said he is proud of the
fact that “no taxpayers’ money is used
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 6 group proved it could successfully im- shade. Several water fountains and to maintain the park.” All the utilities,
prove, run and maintain the park, the waste bag stations are located through- insurance liability, mowing and waste
ment along with its survey and point- city agreed to lease renewals extending out, and new sod was recently added. removal costs are covered by private
ed out the intrusion. to 2034. donations. “There are no fees to visit
Dr. Jen Wortham, a member of the this park,” he said.
City officials recognized the error, Visitors now dub it the “Beverly Hills dog park’s board of directors, said
promising the Marina Master Plan of Dog Parks” due to the well-planned there has been a “40 percent increase The park is divided into three sec-
would be altered to move the proposed design and prime location on the island in followers in the past year.” tions: dogs under 30 pounds, dogs over
road as to not encroach upon the exist- along the Indian River. Fences, land- 30 pounds, plus an area for elderly or
ing boundaries of the dog park. scaping, chairs and benches are stra- She attributes this to the upgrades in handicapped dogs. A new observatory
tegically placed to accommodate visi- the park construction and the groups’ area was recently created at the south
“There will be no physical impact tors and safely contain the dogs. Two recent participation in social media. entrance to accommodate guests who
on the dog park from Phase One of the pavilions and sun sails provide needed The new official Instagram page called may not have pets but want to visit and
marina improvements,” Falls wrote to “verobeachdogpark” and the Face- enjoy watching the canine antics.
Joy to confirm that the city’s consultant book page named “Vero Beach Dog
would modify the plan as discussed. Park” have increased awareness of the Joy said he “notified assisted living
park, and serve to educate the public facilities in Vero Beach that all city resi-
“We look forward to the successful of the park’s rules and regulations. dents are welcome to visit the dog park.”
completion of the marina improve-
ments in a manner that is acceptable Quick response square bar codes Parking spaces were recently built
to the dog park and the majority of the known as QR Codes have been posted with pavers to facilitate handicap vans
community,” Falls wrote. around the park to enable visitors to and wheelchairs. A covered area with
scan them into their cell phones for benches has become a welcome spot
Then on Saturday morning, Collins reporting dog park incidents in a con- to watch the dogs and visitors inter-
joined dog park volunteers for a follow- fidential manner. act, providing another inclusive recre-
up meeting. “The City has been very ational activity for the public.
responsive, and promptly corrected A donor box is prominently placed
the discrepancies in the site work of the inside the entrance of the park, and Joy recounted proudly that the dog
Marina Master Plan,” Joy said. donations are used to subsidize im- park has been a haven for the public
during the past two years of COVID-19
The Vero Beach Dog Park was found- restrictions. Visitors could get out of
ed in 2014 by resident Jim Welles who their homes, come and sit in the fresh
has since moved away, Joy said. Five air with their pets, visit with friends
acres adjacent to the municipal mari- and still abide by CDC guidelines.
na was leased by the City of Vero Beach
to the Vero Beach Dog Park, Inc. During the pandemic, he said, many
heartwarming stories came about.
A few years later, after the nonprofit People made strong friendships. Some
became travel partners. One visitor
brought a reclusive elderly neighbor
who had lost interest in life to the park.
She had been an artist. She soon re-
gained her interest in art and has be-
come a dog portrait painter.

Boaters moored in the adjacent ma-
rina are grateful for the amenities the
dog park offers, too. It’s an easy walk
for marina guests through a path by
the docks, making the dog park a ma-
jor draw for marina patrons. 

Luxury storage ter completion and the next project,
Indian River Motorhaus, developed by
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 Joseph Schulke and builder Vic Lom-
bardi, sold out before it was built.
nition of fast track,” said builder and
developer Joe Foglia, who expects the Schulke and Lombardi are now de-
metal buildings, which will surpass veloping another project, Indian River
Florida wind resistance requirements, Motorhaus II, which was half sold be-
to be complete by the end of the year. fore any dirt was turned, and now al-
most half of the units at Fortrified Stor-
Fortrified Storage is the fourth lux- age have been spoken for prior to site
ury storage project in the Vero in the plan approval.
past several years, which together have
brought or are bringing more than 160 The project got off to a serendipi-
units to market. tous start.

All have been co-developed by engi- The same week Foglia and his part-
neers at Schulke, Bittle and Stoddard ners – Jodah Bittle and Bill Stoddard,
and sales have popped at an exhilarat- engineers at Schulke, Bittle and Stod-
ing pace, as buyers, mostly from the dard – first brainstormed about doing
island, snap up units to store valuable a project together, an ideal 1.6-acre
possessions, create luxe hangout spots parcel suddenly became available.
and bolster their balance sheets with
rapidly appreciating real estate assets. “The idea was mentioned, and I
looked online, and this parcel I had
Autohaus sold out four months af- been watching just happened to come
on the market,” said Stoddard. “It was

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / April 21, 2022 9

NEWS

fortunate timing and we had it under make sure the partners could fit enough conference and the county’s techni- Working on a parallel track, Stod-
contract within two or three days,” with 60-foot by 25-foot units on the site to cal review committee,” said Bittle. “We dard oversaw design of the buildings
a period for due diligence before closing. make the development worthwhile. had just minor comments on our plans, in conjunction with Florida Pre-Fab
which have been revised and resubmit- in Tampa, a family-owned company
Wasting no time, Bittle, a master of When he knew the land was suit- ted. We expect to have site plan approv- that has been designing and fabricat-
site plan engineering, quickly investigat- able, Bittle prepared a preliminary site al in the next couple of weeks and break ing an impressive array of metal build-
ed the property, digging into the county plan and submitted it to the county. ground in June.”
plat book and pouring over surveys to CONTINUED ON PAGE 10
“We have been through the pre-app

10 Vero Beach 32963 / April 21, 2022 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

NEWS

Luxury storage are building and already had a road and RENDERING “It is hard to imagine it going any fast-
all the utilities, so very little site work er than it has,” said Foglia.
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 9 was needed.” the fast track because the land was
already prepped for building and the Besides structural strength, a cool de-
ings – from large industrial structures In the current busy building environ- developers also happen to be the key sign and a convenient location on Old
to airplane hangars to churches – for ment, many projects are slow to get go- players needed to plan and execute Dixie Highway four miles south of the
50 years. ing and even slower to finish, in part be- commercial construction. 17th Street Bridge, unit size and ease of
cause essential professionals – surveyors access are the project’s top calling cards.
“Metal building companies do their and architects, engineers and builders “We have a big advantage in terms
own engineering,” said Foglia, who – are swamped with work and booked of speed and budget, since we are en- There is a turn lane on Old Dixie at
is known to 32963 residents as the months ahead of time in many cases. gineers and builders,” said Bittle. “A the subdivision and it is a straight shot
builder of several of the biggest ocean- guy coming in off the street couldn’t back to the storage building site – no
front homes on the island and who is Fortified Storage was able to get on come close to doing this for the cost twists or turns or low hanging trees –
the project general contractor. “They and in the timeframe that we can.” where a 70-foot-wide expanse of pave-
worked with Bill on the foundation de- ment between buildings makes it easy
sign and any intricate details specific to maneuver big boats on trailers and
to this site.” the largest Class A recreational vehicles.

“Florida Pre-Fab designs the build- Unit doors are huge – 14-foot high
ing and calculates the reaction loads,” by 14-foot wide – and there’s LOTS of
said Stoddard. “I take their informa- room inside.
tion, design the foundation system, and
become the engineer of record for the “There is space for six cars, or a big RV
whole project. I review and stamp their and 3 cars, or a 35-foot center console
plans and submit them to the county. boat and trailer with a couple of cars and
a couple of motorcycles,” said Bittle.
“We engineered these buildings to
withstand 170-mile-an-hour winds, “A collector could actually fit 12 cars
which exceeds code requirements.” if lifts are installed,” said Foglia.

The partners closed on the parcel The concept and design of Fortified
on March 7, paying $487,900 for three Storage was influenced by Bittle and
lots in the Olde South Commercial Stoddard’s experience at Vero Beach
Park Subdivision on Dixie Highway be- Autohaus on 12th Street, the first lux-
tween 4th Street and Oslo Road. ury storage project in Vero, which they
co-developed with other engineers in
“Finding the right piece of property their firm and well-know island builder
is the hardest part,” said Bittle. “This Vic Lombardi.
property was already zoned for what we
“As we sold Autohaus, we realized

CONTINUED ON PAGE 12



12 Vero Beach 32963 / April 21, 2022 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

NEWS

Luxury storage world,” and costs a mere $1 million, Air show all over Florida, from across the coun-
you don’t want the vehicle broken into try and even from overseas – with
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 10 and vandalized or banged up by a tree CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 approximately 30 percent of the ex-
falling on it in storm. hibitors coming from outside Indian
most of the units were too small for the All tickets purchased for the 2020 show River County, further increasing mon-
largest vehicles,” said Bittle. “We were But until now it has been nearly im- will be honored this year, according to ey spent in local hotels, restaurants,
constrained by the width of the lot and possible to find convenient, secure, en- show sponsors. and other businesses.
only four of the 37 units really worked closed storage for RVs that large. Most
for a larger boat or a big Class-A RV. cities and HOAs don’t allow RVs to be “We are very excited to have the air The streets and beaches of Vero have
parked beside a house on a normal resi- show back in Vero Beach, and expect been busy all spring, according to the
“That is why we did these – we know dential lot and existing storage facilities
pretty much anything that is legally on just aren’t big enough. to have between 20,000 to 30,000 at- island’s hoteliers and restauranteurs.
the road will fit!” tendees each day of the Air Show. The The Air Show was only one of a num-
“I was storing my RV in an outside show is a wonderful event and helps ber of special events that filled the April
The focus on size has paid off. Foglia lot,” Bittle said. “I asked the lot owner instill pride in our nation’s accom- calendar, which also included the An-
said most reservations so far are with what happens in a hurricane, and he plishments,” said Robert Paugh, Presi- tique and Exotic Car and Boat Show at
people who have RVs. said, “It’s insured isn’t it?’ dent of the Vero Beach Air Show. the Moorings Club, and the Vero Beach
Annual Orchid Society Show.
It might seem strange to pay $300,000 “People don’t want their equipment Spectators will see the Blue Angels
for a place to park a motor home, but wrecked when a storm comes along. Demonstration Team roar overhead Chad Olson, General Manager, Cos-
the most luxurious Class-A recreation- The first thing they say when a hurri- with their new F-18 Super Hornets. ta d’Este Beach Resort & Spa said the
al vehicles – which are typically 45 feet cane approaches is ‘get off the island,’ Added to the April 29 through May hotel was near or at capacity for the
long – cost anywhere from a couple but where are you going to go? 1 schedule this year is a Friday night weekend of the Air Show.
hundred thousand dollars to more than event which is a first for the Air Show.
a million. In fact, according to Luxat- “Having one of these units solves 90 Ocean Grill owner Charley Repolgle
ic.com, the most expensive RV on the percent of the problems. You can put Paugh said that attendees of past said the Vero Beach Air Show “is one
market rings up at a bracing $3 million. your stuff in a safe place and take shel- shows have descended on Vero from spectacular show – a one-of-a-kind ex-
ter here yourself instead of taking off perience and we should make every ef-
“The Marchi Mobile EleMMent Palaz- for Georgia.” fort to keep it here in Vero.”
zo is the most impressive and at the same
time most expensive motorhome you These storage units come pre- ”People come from all over to watch
could buy right now,” the website reports. plumbed for half-baths and can be cus- it,” added Ellen Lane, co-owner of the
tomized with completed bathrooms, Riverside Café. 
If you have something like that, or air conditioning, epoxy floors, mez-
even just a Country Coach Prevost, zanine levels and electric hookups for More information and tickets can
which “combines a wonderful aero- RVs, making them comfortable spots be found at www.veroairshow.com.
dynamic aesthetic with a great deal of to ride out a storm or simply hang out
amenities and luxury to offer one of with friends while drinking beer and
the best travel experiences around the turning wrenches. 

Shores voters to consider charter amendments

BY LISA ZAHNER idating and moving legal definitions to
Staff Writer an appendix, correcting word capital-
izations and tightening up housekeep-
Indian River Shores voters are ex- ing matters to make sure the charter is
pected to be asked to consider sev- consistent to state law.
eral amendments to the town charter
laying out new provisions for town The Town Council reviewed the rec-
staffing, land use, potential highway ommended changes at a council meet-
widening and participation in special ing in March, and directed staff to work
taxing districts. with Supervisor of Elections Leslie
Swan to coordinate a mail-out ballot
The town’s Charter Review Com- packet to be sent out likely next Janu-
mittee, with the help of Town Attorney ary when the most voters are in town.
Pete Sweeney, combed through the
25-page governing document, consol- Four proposed substantive changes

CONTINUED ON PAGE 16



14 Vero Beach 32963 / April 21, 2022 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

NEWS

Rosario warns School Board on books harmful to children

BY RAY MCNULTY Rosario said the board’s Feb. 28 cause it allowed the books in question According to Florida statutes, it is
Staff Writer adoption of a protocol giving parents to remain in the libraries. a third-degree felony for an adult to
the option to restrict the level of ac- knowingly distribute to a minor on
Jackie Rosario, who is facing a stiff cess their children have to books in Her remarks appeared to stun the oth- school property – or post on campus
challenge in her bid for re-election school libraries – she cast the lone er three board members in attendance. – any book, pamphlet, magazine, or
to her District 2 School Board seat, vote against it – doesn’t preclude (Mara Schiff missed the meeting.) other printed matter that contains an
said last week board members could board members from being criminally explicit and detailed verbal descrip-
face “felony charges” for returning to charged. School Board Chairman Teri Baren- tion or narrative accounts of sexual
school libraries books with sexually borg immediately challenged Rosario’s excitement or sexual conduct and is
explicit content and other materials Speaking at the board’s workshop assertion, saying, “Please don’t say you harmful to minors.
state law deems harmful to children. session, Rosario called the parental- think that’s the case – because it needs
consent policy an “illegal option” be- to be found true.” Such a crime is punishable by up to
five years in prison and a $5,000 fine,
Experience That Delivers “But it is the case,” Rosario replied, and each individual act constitutes a
Exceptional Results adding, “The law is the law. There’s no separate offense.
getting around what the law says. It is a
BUSINESS SERVICES felony. … I didn’t say that we are being Neither Barenborg nor the other
Audit & Assurance charged. I said the law trumps parental two School Board members who at-
consent in this case. Parental consent tended the workshop said they were
Tax Preparation & Planning does not trump the law.” worried about the possibility of being
Accounting & CFO Solutions • Tax Resolution criminally charged.
Superintendent David Moore said
Mergers & Acquisitions the School District’s opt-out policy “Am I concerned? No,” School Board
was “legally reviewed and vetted to en- Vice-Chairman Peggy Jones said. “I
INDIVIDUAL SERVICES sure that we are on legal ground.” believe our book-review process was a
Financial Planning good one and accomplished what we
However, Moore confirmed the Sher- needed to do.”
Tax Filing & Representation iff’s Office – in response to a complaint
Elder Care filed by a member of a small-but-vocal School Board member Brian Bare-
fringe group that claims to be nonparti- foot, who preceded Barenborg as chair-
Estate Planning • Family Office san while advocating for parental rights man, said the book-review process
– was investigating the School Board’s implemented by the district was prop-
www.nuttallcpas.com handling of the book controversy. erly publicized, seemingly effective and
entirely legal, adding, “We don’t do any-
In a phone interview last weekend, thing our attorney doesn’t sign off on.”
Moore said he has spoken directly
with Sheriff Eric Flowers on several oc- Rosario also attempted to insinuate
casions since the complaint was filed, that Moore tried to hide the Sheriff’s
and he expects the investigation to be Office investigation from the School
concluded within the next two weeks. Board, or at least her.

Moore said he doesn’t expect any “Have we been contacted by the Sher-
criminal charges to be filed because iff’s Office at all with regard to any com-
the School Board responded in good plaints about these books being current-
faith to the fringe group’s challenge of ly in our library system?” Rosario asked
156 books alleged to have been inap- Moore. “Are we under investigation
propriate for students in any grade. about the placement of these books?”

The district created a committee Moore confirmed the Sheriff’s Office
composed of its media specialists, who was investigating, saying the agency is
he said conducted a comprehensive obligated to do so when a complaint is
review of the books – five of which were filed.
removed and 25 that were moved from
middle-school to high school libraries. “Because board members weren’t
aware of that, right?” Rosario said.
All of the removed books were in
high school libraries. Barenborg, Jones and Barefoot quick-
ly jumped in, all of them saying they
“We had a pretty solid process, and knew of the investigation.
we’ve done more than pretty much ev-
ery other district in the state,” Moore Rosario then said she hadn’t received
said, adding that the committee exam- “anything” from Moore about the inves-
ined the “full literary value of the entire tigation, and asked if he had discussed
book – not two-sentence excerpts.” the matter with other board members.
He responded, “As it came up in brief-
Moore said parents should be able ings, yes.”
to decide which books their children
are reading and what materials they’re Again, Barenborg intervened, saying,
checking out from school libraries. He “We didn’t receive anything in writing. I
didn’t understand why Rosario believed asked a question.”
that allowing parents to do so is illegal.
Last weekend, Jones said she was
“You got me on that,” he said. puzzled by Rosario’s grilling of Moore:
As of last week, Moore said, the par- “If she didn’t know anything about it,
ents of only seven students had cho- then why did she bring it up?”
sen to restrict access to school library
books. Some of the books challenged Rosario made her remarks during a
were purchased by the district as far School Board discussion about creat-
back as the 1980s. ing a committee to establish a com-
munity standard for reviewing library

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / April 21, 2022 15

NEWS

books – and even textbooks – to de- ity district,” so it’s crucial that the com- States with the highest prevalence less likely to cause serious COVID-19
termine whether their contents are in mittee includes diverse voices. of the BA. 2 variant include many of disease.
compliance with state law. the places the island’s tourists and
In addition to white members, Jones snowbirds hail from – New York, Con- With so many unknowns, anyone
The dialogue was prompted by Gov. said the committee should include rep- necticut, Massachusetts, New Jersey, age 50 and older – an age group con-
Ron DeSantis’ March 25 signing into resentatives from the county’s black, Rhode Island, Maine, Pennsylvania, sidered at higher risk of serious com-
law House Bill 1467, which requires Hispanic and LGBTQ communities. Virginia, New Hampshire, Maryland plications from COVID-19 infection
school districts to list all library and She also wants Richard Myhre, assistant and Illinois. Washington, D.C. is also – is eligible to get a second booster,
instructional materials on their web- superintendent of curriculum and in- among the locales where the Stealth or fourth vaccine shot, according to
sites, with a multi-step review process struction, on the committee, and raised Omicron variant is running rampant. federal guidelines. Florida is still in
before they can be approved. the possibility of including at least one the “low” category for community
high school senior. That variant is thought to be 60 to 80 transmission, according to the CDC,
The process must include manda- percent more transmissible than the though the case positivity rate rose 11
tory public hearings and reasonable “We need to hear from all represen- BA.1 Omicron variant which caused percent this past week to just under 5
opportunity for public comment. tatives of this community if this is tru- record case numbers in January, but percent.
ly going to be a community standard,” it’s not yet known for certain if infec-
The new law also requires elementa- she said. “We can never forget that.” tion with the new variant is more or Rapid-testing before social events
ry schools to hire Florida Department of
Education-trained media specialists to Moore said he will meet individu- CONTINUED ON PAGE 16
curate materials. It also compels school ally with board members and plans
districts to report books and other ma- to present to them at their May work-
terials that prompt public objections. shop his recommendations for a time-
line, how to move forward and what
The DOE would then publish that list, should be accomplished.
which could result in removing books
found to be not in compliance with state He’ll need to address how commit-
standards, such as those that include tee members will be chosen, how often
Critical Race Theory and Common Core. the group should meet, how to post
challenged materials on the district
School Board members here say the website and whether books in ques-
formation of a committee that would tion should remain in libraries during
establish community standards, iden- the review process.
tify the criteria by which books will be
assessed and provide a transparent re- “It’s a tremendous amount of work
view process would give credibility to for a staff that’s coming to the end of
its recommendations. a long and challenging year, but it will
be worth the effort,” Moore said. “Ev-
Given the polarization in both the ery school district in the state is deal-
country and community, however, they ing with this, but we’re choosing to go
know there will be disagreements over above and beyond.”
what is age appropriate and acknowl-
edge that compromise will be difficult. Once the committee is formed and
the criteria for reviewing materials is
“People have different opinions on established, Rosario wants the books
what’s OK for kids to look at, obviously,” already reviewed to be reconsidered.
Barenborg said, adding, “I believe the But Jones said doing so would set a
committee can come up with a commu- “terrible precedent.”
nity standard according to the statute.”
Jones said the process in place
Board members said the makeup of when those books were reviewed was
the committee, which must include time-consuming, credible and effec-
parents with children in public school, tive, and there’s no need to look back.
will be the most important – and most
challenging – part of the process. “I think we move forward,” she said.
“And if a parent doesn’t like a certain
“The most important thing for me choice, as a parent they can say, ‘Nope,
will be who is chosen to be on this you’re not reading that,’ and fill out the
committee,” Jones said, adding that opt-out form.” 
the board oversees a “majority minor-

COVID-19 infections again rising here;
hospitalizations also starting to increase

BY LISA ZAHNER if the patient seeks medical treatment.
Staff Writer The CDC estimates that about 86

As expected, the number of new percent of the new infections across
COVID-19 infections here has begun the nation, and nearly 40 percent of
to rise significantly, with 97 new cases the new infections in Florida right now
reported to public health officials this are the result of the BA.2 variant some-
week – up from 65 cases last week. times referred to as “Stealth Omicron.”

That 49 percent increase in the Cen- Over the past four weeks, the preva-
ters for Disease Control and Prevention lence of Stealth Omicron nationwide,
statistics does not include people who based upon genetic sequencing of
tested positive on rapid home test kits, samples, has climbed week after week
as those cases are typically only reported from 39 percent to 54 percent to 72
percent, and now 85.9 percent.

16 Vero Beach 32963 / April 21, 2022 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

NEWS

COVID-19 cases again rising creased markedly here this week, but
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 15 the numbers are still in the single dig-
its and the percentage of staffed beds
or before visits with elderly friends or being used for COVID-19 treatment
relatives can also help slow the spread was still very low.
of the Stealth Omicron variant.
As of press time Monday, seven
Island residents who have not al- covid-positive patients were hospi-
ready ordered two shipments of four talized, according to Cleveland Clinic
free at-home COVID-19 rapid tests Indian River Hospital spokesperson
sent to their 32963 home address can Arlene Allen-Mitchell. That’s up 133
do so through the U.S. Postal Service. percent from last week’s patient count
The rapid-test kit instructions are of three. Fortunately, no covid-posi-
fairly straightforward, and tests gen- tive patients were in the intensive care
erally arrive in the mail within two to unit this week.
three days. Results are clearly read-
able in 20 minutes or less. Two covid-positive people have died
in the past three weeks locally, bring-
Hospitalizations of people who test- ing the Indian River County death toll
ed positive for the coronavirus also in- to 652, with 82 of those deaths report-
ed since Christmas. 

Shores charter amendments purpose,” the proposed amendment
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 12 reads. “If the project is not approved
by a majority of those voting, then
would impact the Town Clerk posi- the Town Council shall not proceed to
tion, protect Shores property owners adopt or otherwise approve such proj-
from condemnation for private devel- ect.”
opment, to make it tougher for High-
way A1A to be widened within the Harpring noted on the marked-
town limits, and to give voters a say on up draft going to council that he was
special taxing districts. unsure how much control the town
might have on that matter, since A1A
Town Manager Jim Harpring said is a state roadway.
the proposed charter changes would
be considered as a whole new docu- The fourth substantive proposed
ment by voters to either accept or re- change protects Shores residents from
ject. The changes will not presented as taxation by new entities outside the
individual yes-or-no questions. town government.

If approved by voters, the amended “The Town Council shall not ap-
charter would continue to have the prove or undertake approval to be
Town Council hire the Town Clerk and included in any proposed taxing dis-
determine that person’s salary, but trict without first submitting inclusion
would make the next Town Clerk to in the proposed taxing district to the
replace the recently retired Laura Al- electors of the Town for approval by a
drich “administratively responsible to majority of those voting at a general
the Town Manager.” election or at a special election called
for such purpose,” the proposed
Mayor Brian Foley has said the amendment states. “If the project is
council’s concern was that having not approved by a majority of those
both the clerk and the manager re- voting, then the Town Council shall
port separately to the council is inef- not proceed to adopt or otherwise ap-
ficient. prove inclusion in such proposed tax-
ing district.”
The next substantive change, if ap-
proved, would amend the charter so That amendment was precipitated
that private property in Indian River in part by the recent effort to tax In-
Shores could not be taken through an dian River Shores, Vero, Orchid and
eminent domain process for any sort unincorporated Indian River County
of commercial development. The use residents on the barrier island for
of eminent domain for government children’s services programs through
purposes would still be permitted a phased-in property tax. Island resi-
provided property owners were fairly dents would have shouldered the bulk
compensated. of that new countywide tax burden,
but it failed to gain needed support
The third major change would re- from the island’s municipalities.
quire Shores voters to approve any
planned widening of A1A. Harpring said the charter question
could have been placed on the No-
“The Town Council shall not ap- vember general election ballot, but
prove or undertake any project to add having Swan mail it out will give resi-
one or more additional driving lanes dents time to sit down and read the
to State Road A1A without first sub- whole charter before making their
mitting the project to the electors of decision. He said the council may also
the Town for approval by a majority hold a public workshop on the chang-
of those voting at a general election es for those interested in being more
or at a special election called for such informed. 

Bob Laino, Bart Crosby
and Elizabeth Van Dyk.

BINGO!

GETTING INTO THE SPIRIT OF AN ERA
FOR SENIOR RESOURCE’S P. 22

18 Vero Beach 32963 / April 21, 2022 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

PEOPLE

Foundation’s ‘off the chart’ grant total will go a long way

Aimee Cooper, Teresa Albizu and Linda Hengerer. Don Blair, Andy Nickle and Don Steiner. PHOTOS: KAILA JONES Molly Hart, Betsy Smith and Linda Fox.

Rory Smith, Emily Sherwood and Chuck Cramb. Elise Carr, Francie Elliott and Laura Harris.

BY MARY SCHENKEL Ann and Barry Sullivan with Ba Stone. cult for them to put money aside to SafeSpace served 178 individuals last
Staff Writer fund capital repairs or replace as- year, and they provided more than
“This year we will be making grants sets,” said Blair. “Our investments 1,700 outreach services. With the
Don Blair, board chairman of the to 26 agencies. Our focus this year is support the delivery of critical ser- April 7 opening of the SafeSpace fa-
John’s Island Foundation, had some a little bit different, as we increased vices now and in future years.” cility here – open 24/7, 365 days a year
exciting news to announce at a recep- our commitment to financial stabil- – they expect to assist many more
tion last week at the John’s Island Golf ity, particularly affordable housing,” While some grants maintain or ex- victims in coming years.
Club. As he pointed to a graph with a said Blair. pand existing programs, others fund
top figure of $1 million, he comment- new services. Albizu was also pleased to an-
ed that the board had just approved He reminded donors that the John’s nounce that the John’s Island Foun-
grants for the current fiscal year. Island Foundation focuses on capital “Last year we made a $50,000 capi- dation had just approved their re-
investments, rather than operational tal grant to help SafeSpace open an quest for a $55,000 grant to build an
“And they are literally off the chart. expenses. Indian River County shelter for wom- outdoor play area at the new facility.
We are going to be making grants of en and children who are victims of
$1.1 million in this fiscal year,” said “Few funders directly support the domestic violence,” said Blair. Previ- Blair said that he was initially in-
Blair. assets and the infrastructure that ously, the closest emergency shelter troduced to SafeSpace when he vis-
make those operations possible. For was in Martin County. ited as a member of a site team.
He thanked the event sponsors, or- many charitable agencies, it’s diffi-
ganizers, board members, site team “SafeSpace provides domestic “What I saw that day had a pro-
members and the John’s Island staff, violence services to the Tri-County found impact on me,” said Blair,
before adding: “And finally, I want area,” said SafeSpace CEO Teresa Al- commenting that it taught him two
to thank all of you, the John’s Island bizu, Ed.D., after thanking everyone things.
Foundation donors, because it’s your for their generosity and support.
generosity that makes the work that “First, that being on a site team is
we do possible.” “And what’s important to recog- one of the best ways to truly under-
nize is that we’re not just an emer- stand the needs of our community.
Blair said they granted more than gency shelter, because we provide And second, the work that we all do
$915,000 to 23 charitable agencies very comprehensive outreach servic- can have a tremendous impact on
last year, spread relatively evenly es, which are very important to help people’s lives. So, thank you again to
into health, education and financial individuals transition to an indepen- all of you as donors in the John’s Is-
stability. dent life free of violence.” land Foundation. You are all making
a difference.” 
In Indian River County, she said

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / April 21, 2022 19

PEOPLE

PHOTOS CONTINUED ON PAGE 20 PHOTOS CONTINUED ON PAGE 20
Amanda Robinson, Rennie Gibb and Bob Gibb with Luke Webb and Molly Teter Webb. Sheila and Ed Broderick with Dave and Ellen Wagner.

Francie Cramb and Margie Wheeler.

Dick and Nancy Shoemate.

Tuny Hill and Lyndal Hill.
Sarah Banks and Rob Stevenson.

20 Vero Beach 32963 / April 21, 2022 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

PEOPLE

PHOTOS CONTINUED FROM PAGE 19 Sandy Holmes, Margie Wheeler and Harry Holmes. Ginger and Steve Kent.
Sandy and Lissa England.

Sarah Jane and Bob Moore. Don and Betsy Kittell. Anne and Richard Anderson.

Join us for Sunday Worship Sue and Mike White with Nancy and Ron Rosner.
8:30, 9:30 and 11:00 AM Gordon Harnett, Steve Kent, Bob Cotter and Mary Harnett.
Quality discipleship, fellowship, music,
youth programs, and more - for all ages!
We would love for you to join our church family!

Sunday, April 24th

This week’s message:
“Time to Believe”
John 20:19-31

Dr. G. Timothy Womack, Senior Pastor

520 Royal Palm Blvd First Presbyterian Preschool
Vero Beach, FL 32960 www.firstpresbyterianpreschool.org
(772) 562-9088 PRIMO School of Performing Arts
www.FirstPresVero.org
www.PRIMOMusic.org

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / April 21, 2022 21

PEOPLE

Bob Baldwin and Margaret Sieck. Dana and Nico Apfelbaum. Elaine and Jeff Lovell.

Ron and Emma Dunbar. Kate Graham and Tina Nickle. Julie Uyterhoeven and Carolyn Antenen.

Renee Tyson, Mary Susan Lyon and Susie Hentschel.

Mary Lee Stallkamp, Susan Bouma and Ginny Hoynes.

22 Vero Beach 32963 / April 21, 2022 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

PEOPLE

Getting into spirit of an era at Senior Resource’s ‘Bingo Luncheon’

BY MARY SCHENKEL house and so many of you rocking
Staff Writer your fun flapper attire,” said Karen
Deigl, SRA CEO, as everyone settled
Ladies and gents harkened back down for lunch.
to the Roaring ’20s at the 17th an-
nual Bingo Luncheon to benefit the “This event has such great signifi-
Senior Resource Association, where cance and impact on our ability to
many of the guests got into the spirit help those in our community, and
of the era with wigs, feathers, fring- our lead sponsors truly set the tone
es and pizazz. for giving,” said Deigl, thanking
presenting sponsor New Vision Eye
As they arrived at the Vero Beach Center, John Michael Matthews Fine
Country Club, transformed into an Jewelry for the stunning Roarin’
elegant speakeasy, guests passed Raffle necklace, and others for their
by glossy automobiles of yester- generous support.
year and were presented with long,
glass pearl necklaces, compliments “The number of individuals and
of Treasure Lane Boutique, which businesses who joined early to
also provided prizes for the ‘Purse sponsor this event simply amazes
Game.’ me,” said Deigl.

The jazzy sounds of the Vero “SRA is committed to improving
Beach High School Jazz Band pro- quality of life for seniors and their
vided the entertainment as guests families in Indian River County by
posed – candy cigs in long cigarette creating meaningful social connec-
holders in hand – for photos, pe- tions, actively providing hands on
rused the silent-auction items, and support for everyday needs, engag-
purchased corks for a ‘prohibition ing the community, advocating for
wine pull.’ seniors, and empowering through
independence. Our programs in-
“It is so wonderful to see this full clude well known services such as

Trudie Rainone and Barbara Diemer. PHOTOS: MARY SCHENKEL

Meals on Wheels and the Go Line adding that the SRA relies on volun-
public transportation service,” said teers to do so.
Deigl.
After the moving video, it was
She added that among its many time for play, beginning with the
other programs and services are ever-vivacious Anna Valencia Tillery
adult enrichment facilities, in home engaging the crowd in the popular
services, emergency alert services, Purse Game.
help with energy bills, door to door
transportation through the Com- “I am so impressed with those of
munity Coach, and durable medical you who stepped up to embrace the
equipment. Additionally, its Pub- theme and accessorize according-
lic Guardianship Program protects ly,” said Tillery, before having guests
vulnerable seniors deemed by the rooting around in their purses for
courts as being unable to make de- items that tied into the Roaring ’20s,
cisions on their own. such as gin, bright red blush, and
anything related to the Charleston.
“Suffice it to say, the list of the
ways in which Senior Resource As- And then, daubers at the ready,
sociation helps older adults is long. the crowd got down to business, as
And none would be possible without Tillery pulled the balls and Jeff Pe-
your help,” said Deigl. tersen, a Merrill Lynch Wealth Man-
agement Advisor, bravely and ably
She showed a brief video high- took on the role of Bingo caller, the
lighting their Meals on Wheels pro- hushed silence in the room only
gram, which serves as a lifeline for broken as winners called out “BIN-
many of the recipients. In it, she GO!” with groans of disappointment
noted that the pandemic brought ensuing, hoping for better luck next
even greater attention to the vul- year.
nerability of seniors, to whom they
were serving 16,000 meals a month, For more information visit Senior-
ResourceAssociation.org. 

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / April 21, 2022 23

PEOPLE

Elke Fetterolf and Barbara Petrillo. Karen Deigl and Helen Post. Susan Smith and Don Wright.

Susan Lorenz, Anna Valencia Tillery and Janine Dillon.

Este Brashears and Diana Castleman. Eva Gurley and Liz Brunner.

PHOTOS CONTINUED ON PAGE 24
Ashley Novander, Jeff Petersen and Emily Snow.

24 Vero Beach 32963 / April 21, 2022 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

PEOPLE

PHOTOS CONTINUED FROM PAGE 23 Carla and John Michael Matthews. Susan Cremen and Brenda Lloyd.
Pud Lawrence, Kay Brown and Celeta Arden.

Maureen Campeau, Maggie Foreman, April Dooley and Carmen Stork. Peggy Cunningham, Denise Battaglini and Kathie Pierce.

Laurie Wykoff, JoAnne Crosby and Denise Laino. Shasta Woolfork, Sherrie Smith, Anteria Mortimer and Jennifer Courtney. Eileen O’Donnell, Kenny Borchers and Colette Heid.

April Valles and Tori Hume. Peter and Kathleen Saxon. Adriane Null and Lisa Buell.



26 Vero Beach 32963 / April 21, 2022 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

PEOPLE

Immense ‘Impact’ as 4 nonprofits awarded $100K grants

MaryEllen McCarthy and Tracy Sorzano. Amy Acker and Gladys LaForge.

Dr. Suzanne Conway and Brenda Lloyd. Jane Coyle and Denise Battaglini.

BY MARY SCHENKEL MaryEllen McCarthy, the 2022-2023 ry. “Careers are their dreams.” cess Training Employment program)
Staff Writer president, challenged members to Vicki Soule, CEO of Treasure Coast – take place at the UP Center.
learn about the organization and be
The Gifford Youth Achievement ambassadors for Impact 100, spread- Community Health, will apply the “Thousands of residents across our
Center, Treasure Coast Community ing the word like ripples on a pond. grant to a Vision Program at the county, in particular those that would
Health, United Against Poverty and Dodgertown Elementary Community benefit most from our programs, sim-
the Youth Sailing Foundation of In- And Leslie Bergstrom, who has School, where TCCH has a wellness ply don’t have access to the UP Center
dian River County are the newest Im- served on multiple panels, said that coordinator. A TCCH optometrist will because of transportation barriers,”
pact 100 Community Partners, each as a “proud board member,” her focus perform vision exams to diagnose eye said Tanner.
having received $100,000 grants at the will be on increasing membership to alignments, “lazy eye,” focusing is-
2021-2022 Annual Meeting and Grant 600 women. sues and near- and far-sightedness. A Stu Keiller, Youth Sailing Founda-
Awards Celebration last week at the pilot program began in July 2021 at its tion executive director, said the grant
Oak Harbor Club, sponsored by PNC Angelia Perry, executive director of Fellsmere location, and this will ex- will support the Homeless Children
Wealth Management. the Gifford Youth Achievement Cen- pand it into the Gifford area. Sailing Squadron. YSF will work with
ter, said their grant will be applied to the Homeless Children’s Founda-
“This is the first time that we’ve a Youth Employability pilot program She spoke of one little boy who told tion to identify and recruit homeless
been in this room since 2019. It is awe- designed to prepare students with the TCCH tech, “I need glasses in my children for the program, who will be
some to be back,” said Tracy Sorzano, employability and occupational skills life. I take a lot of tests,” adding that he joined by sailors from Dodgertown El-
the 14th Impact president. training for targeted, high-skill, high- had connected the dots between be- ementary School and later from Vero
wage jobs. It will also match students’ ing able to see and being successful in Beach Elementary School.
Prior to the grants being presented, career interests with summer work as- school.
Sorzano asked Sue Tompkins to share signments. “It’s not about sailing, it’s about giv-
a tribute to the late Ellie McCabe, Matt Tanner, executive director ing some of our most desperate kids a
who in 2001 had been the “spark” for “This dynamic, youth workforce of United Against Poverty, said the chance to succeed. They’re just like all
Women in Philanthropy, from which program prepares students to bet- grant will fund a Going UP Bus to of- the other kids out there on the water,”
the Indian River Impact 100 evolved. ter compete for and enter targeted fer transportation to the UP Center or said Keiller. “It’s the basic building
In her honor, Tompkins encouraged in-demand careers after high school to on-the-job training at UP employer blocks of life that we’re teaching.”
everyone to “be the candle that lights graduation. It will also provide local partners. Their four main programs –
other candles. Be a spark.” employers with a pipeline of excep- Member Share Grocery, Crisis Stabili- Adam Schnell, founding artistic di-
tional job rating on workers,” said Per- zation, UP Education, and STEP (Suc- rector of Ballet Vero Beach, received
a Merit Grant of $20,000 for a Fellow-

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / April 21, 2022 27

PEOPLE

Gail Nourse, Sharon Purdie and Heidi Sommers. PHOTOS: MARY SCHENKEL AND KAILA JONES PHOPHTOOSTOCSONCOTINNTUINEDUEODNOPNAGPEAG2E8 20
Terrie Mitchell, Sally Munson and Barbara Gervais.

Elisa Sielinski and Vicki Soule.

Pamela Sandzen and Anne Duffy.

ship Initiative for Dancers. Working
with Indian River State College and
the Learning Alliance, students in the
program will emerge with an AA de-
gree, professional dance experience,
innovative ancillary education, and
hands-on teaching experience.

Schnell said the initiative will help
increase their Education Engagement
programs’ capacity, including their
Stage to Page program, which uses
arts integration and literacy tech-
niques to open up the arts to hundreds
of elementary students each year.

The Impact 100 model calls for an-
nual memberships of $1,100 by Feb. 28
of each year, with $1,000 used to cre-
ate $100,000 grants – the number of
grants is determined by the number
of members – and $100 to fund opera-
tional costs. Grant finalists are nar-
rowed down through a multifaceted
grant review process, with members
casting a vote to determine recipients.

For more information, visit Impact
100IR.com. 

28 Vero Beach 32963 / April 21, 2022 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

PEOPLE

PHOTOS CONTINUED FROM PAGE 26 Kris Slack, Nancy Sullivan and Fritzi Byrnes. Sandy Pancoast, Sue Tompkins and Sandy Rolf.
Liz Locke, Beth Tucker and Jean Kjellman.

Nancy Edmiston and Barbara DiMarzo. Elke Fetterolf and Susan Smith. Lee Moore and Mary Graves. Bill Krueger and Stu Keiller.

VERO BEACH’S PREMIER
COUNTRY CLUB COMMUNITY

Angelia Perry and Ray Lundy. Adam Schnell and Linda Downey.

Every luxury and amenity imaginable awaits you inside of Oak Harbor’s
clubhouse. Join us for a wide range of social and wellness programs

as well as our award winning cuisine in our richly appointed dining room.
Enjoy golf on our Joe Lee designed golf course with no greens or cart
fees. Tennis, Croquet, Bocce, Pickle Ball and a heated pool
are just a few of the other outdoor activities.

Fully licensed On-site Assisted Living Facility and In-Home Healthcare.
Transportation, Housekeeping and Maintenance services available.

4755 S Harbor Drive • Vero Beach, Florida 32967 • www.oakharborfl.com • 772.562.3808

Vicki Soule and Judi Miller. Matt Tanner and Nancy Bucklew.

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / April 21, 2022 29

PEOPLE

Aubrey Thorne Carey and Kate Hoffmann. Nikki Pfeiffer and Lois Conrad. Barbara Butts and Clarice Donahue. Christine Dean and Lynn Byrnes.

Beth Wright and Deb Polackwich. Messina Shields and Sherri Kolo.

Leslie Bergstrom and Kay Harvey.

CariAnn Gowin and Joanne Liakos. Beth Johnston and Cheryl Michel. Dr. Patricia Carneval, Linda Triolo, CariAnn Gowin and Chris Rud.

30 Vero Beach 32963 / April 21, 2022 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

PEOPLE

‘Rising Star’ quality pervades Vero Opera’s Masque Ball

BY SAMANTHA ROHLFING BAITA were Rich Vogel, who has gracious-
Staff Writer ly hosted VBO parlor concerts, a
splendidly costumed Linda Sposa-
Venice in the Golden Age of Opera Roman and Joan Ortega-Cowan. STORY, PHOTOS CONTINUED ON PAGE 32 to, and Carolyn Lange channeling
was wonderfully channeled at the the elegance of another era in an ex-
elegant Grand Harbor Club, which PHOTOS: STEPHANIE LABAFF quisitely hand-embroidered green
overflowed with laughter, color, and gold gown, a rare, 100-year-old
gourmet food and drink, and, of treasure.
course, wonderful music during a
Grande Masque Ball, the climax of Grand Harbor had prepared an el-
the Vero Beach Opera’s 2022 season. egant repast that included a splen-
did surf and turf of lobster tail and
Beneath the soaring ceiling of filet mignon, and concluded with
the great hall, round tables were an utterly decadent chocolate de-
dressed in black and white, each nouement.
centered with bursts of color-
ful flowers surrounding dazzling, Highlighting the evening were
feathered masques. performances by five Rising Stars
competitors, who entertained the
The opera-loving glitterati went delighted guests with opera favor-
all out, with dashing gentlemen in ites throughout the evening. The
black tie and lovely ladies in swirls performers were again accompa-
of color. With unavoidable irony, ev- nied by Jared Peroune, their incred-
eryone was delighted to don masks: ible competition pianist.
exquisite, exotic masks in true Ve-
netian style, featuring black, gold, Unfettered by competition, the
silver, crimson, harlequin checks, Rising Stars engaged with the audi-
feathers, sequins, ribbons and mys- ence, often moving about the floor
ter y. while sharing their exceptional vocal
skills, as well as the joy and passion
Among the 70-plus attendees they clearly have for their art. Also



32 Vero Beach 32963 / April 21, 2022 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

PEOPLE

STORY, PHOTOS CONTINUED FROM PAGE 30 Maryann Kann and George Cooke. Lea and Jim Cornell.
Jose Simerilla Romero and Yashira Ortiz.

providing music through the evening the swaggering toreador with “Votre
was accordionist Zoltan Racz. toast” (aka the Toreador Song) from
Georges Bizet’s “Carmen,” and “The
Meryl Dominguez, the 2021 Ris- Impossible Dream” composed by
ing Stars First Place winner, per- Mitch Leigh and Joe Darion for
formed “Chi il bel sogno di Do- “Man of La Mancha.”
retta” from Puccini’s “La Rondine,”
“Quando m’en vo” from Puccini’s The couple joined voices for a
“La Bohème,” and “I Dreamed a moving interpretation of “If I Loved
Dream” by Claude-Michel Schön- You” from “Carousel,” by Richard
berg and Herbert Kretzmer from Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein.
“Les Misérables.”
Among the 2022 competitors per-
Dominguez’s husband, opera forming at the gala were the charm-
baritone Aaron Keeney, wowed as ing and animated soprano Murella

Murrella Parton and Barbara Ruddy. Dr. William Cooney and Gerri Smith.

Susan Kamer. totum” (often called ‘that Figaro
song’ by opera newbies), from Gio-
Parton, Ryan Capozzo, a tenor achino Rossini’s opera buffo “The
with a compelling dramatic sense, Barber of Seville,” with laughter
and baritone Eleomar Cuello, who punctuating the music as the tempo
walked onto the floor and led the increased.
audience in a sing-along of sorts,
with the famous aria “Largo al fac- The Third Place winner, tenor
Jose Romero, brought the excep-
tional showmanship he displayed
in the competition, this time in the
aria “La Donna è Mobile” from Gi-
useppe Verdi’s “Rigoletto.”

The Vero Beach Opera Guild was
founded by a group of opera-loving
friends in 1988 and reorganized in
2003 to support a more professional
platform and more ambitious mis-
sion. The Opera Guild became the
Vero Beach Opera, Inc. in 2006 and
began producing professional per-
formances with world-class stars.

The VBO offers a Community Out-
reach Program, a homestay program,
and vocal and piano scholarship
programs. As Joan and Roman Orte-
ga-Cowan, president and artistic di-
rector respectively, and VBO leaders
since the guild days, are wont to say,
“The best is yet to come.”

For more information, visit vero-
beachopera.org. 

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / April 21, 2022 33

PEOPLE

Paul and Sue Gauthier with Meg and Jake Foley. Toni Lemoine, Celeste Martin and Paula Andreozzi. Meryl Dominguez, Aaron Keeney and Cricket Barlow.

Denis and Diane Viola. Michelle and Alan Brenner. Val Riback, Marcia Loewinger and Marcia Wilf.

Toni Lemoine, Celeste Martin and Paula Andreozzi. Paula Andreozzi, Toni Lemoine and Celeste Martin.
Jim Hart with Elena and Dr. Sanjiv Tewari. Diane De Francisci with Patrick and Linda Bailey.

34 Vero Beach 32963 / April 21, 2022 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

PEOPLE

Hive of activity at Indian River Land Trust’s Member Day

Ken Grudens with Gail and Scott Alexander and Natalie Grudens. PHOTOS: MARY SCHENKEL Janet and Vin Gemmiti.

BY MARY SCHENKEL erties, the Toni Robinson Waterfront goal of matching a $1 million Chal- “The Land Trust are great stewards
Staff Writer Trail, a 50-acre plus conservation lenge Gift issued by Don and Meg of the mangroves, obviously, and so
area with oak trees, scrub forest, Steiner, but they had exceeded their they allow us access to two proper-
Ken Grudens, Indian River Land mangrove swamp and an observa- goal. ties, this being one. We just keep one
Trust executive director, had some tion area overlooking the Indian hive here, and it’s a very good tool
exciting news for supporters who River Lagoon. “It actually brings our campaign for us to monitor when the nectar
gathered for their annual Member to more than $12.5 million in what is starting to flow. It’s a good litmus
Day at one of its earliest lagoon prop- Grudens announced that the Land started as a $10 million campaign. test of the strength of our bees and
Trust had not only reached its lofty So, it’s just lots and lots to celebrate,” sort of what’s happening east of U.S.
said Grudens. “Without all of you, 1,” said Greenfield, noting that the
we wouldn’t have gotten here. Thank bees there pollinate black and white
you again for making this campaign mangroves.
a reality.”
Mary Hourdequin said she and
The morning featured foot and husband Jim joined the IRLT last
golf cart tours of the property, re- year to support local causes that are
freshments, and music by the Penny making a difference.
Creek Band.
“The more of this we can do, the
Additionally, Pjark Sander, a stu- better it is for climate mitigation.
dent at Indian River Charter High We’re very concerned about the state
School, was on hand to explain the of the lagoon. We’ve been here five
Junior Science program he and oth- years and it is just getting worse,”
er local high school students are she said.
participating in at the Land Trust’s
Coastal Oaks Preserve property, They are also members of the En-
with scientists from Harbor Branch vironmental Learning Center, and a
Oceanographic Institute. guide there spoke about the increas-
ing lack of sea grasses.
“So, my group has been working
on monitoring the recruitment of “The damage that we’re doing to
new plants in the area after Brazil- the lagoon with fertilizers is going
ian pepper was mulched and we to be very hard to reverse. It has im-
have been assessing the health of plications for people’s health, for the
oak trees in that area,” said Sander, climate and for the health of wildlife.
explaining that many of the trees are It wouldn’t take a lot for people not
in decline, having been choked by to plant things that require fertil-
pepper trees and potato vines. izer; to plant native species instead,”
said Hourdequin.
“We hope that by the removal of
the Brazilian peppers that the health “We are just concerned that Flor-
of the oak trees will improve,” said ida in general is not being a good
Sander. steward of the environment. With
all the people moving in, it’s going
Beekeeper Robb Greenfield, of Na- to put more stress on the whole eco-
tive Island Apiaries, spoke about the system. It takes a longtime effort, a
hive on the property and the honey sacrifice.”
business in general, explaining the
differences between the clean honey For more information about the
made by small firms, versus mass-pro- conservation efforts of the Indian Riv-
duced honey that can even be mixed er Land Trust, visit irlt.org. 
with product from other countries.

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / April 21, 2022 35

PEOPLE

George and Sheila Marshall. Dayle Lieberman and Amanda Lieberman Lynn Blaisdell, Karen Mack and Robb Greenfield.
with service dog Champion Swayze Lachey.

Dace and King Stubbs. Marlen and George Higgs with Catherine Milton. PHOTOS CONTINUED ON PAGE 36
Lisa O’Brien and Camille Broadbent.

36 Vero Beach 32963 / April 21, 2022 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

PEOPLE

PHOTOS CONTINUED FROM PAGE 35 Jim and Mary Hourdequin.
David and Katharine Dickenson with Darcy.

Linda and Bill Beardslee with John Johnson and Gregg Casalino. Meg Steiner with Dylan.

Chiaka Nwosu, Christy Northfield and Kelechi Nwosu.

Louise and Joe Huber with grandchildren Sofia and Alexander Hmidi.



38 Vero Beach 32963 / April 21, 2022 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

PEOPLE

Tykes & Teens spreads awareness at Brunch for Babies

Karen Parker, Barbara Weltman and Carol Ferrini. Linda Kloss, Dr.Theresa Kelso and Gloria Quesada. PHOTOS: KAILA JONES Noraida Rivera, Jessica Cervantes, Stacy King and Stacey Washburn.

Laura Girlando, Elizabeth Appleton and Darian Minzenmayer. Misty Stoller and Pam O’Donnell. Andrea Armstrong, Jeanne Fernandez and Donna Blumenthal.

BY KERRY FIRTH health services, which has been ex- Garza said that each year, under the umbrella of their Early
Correspondent acerbated by the pandemic, and the they serve roughly 1,800 chil- Childhood Mental Health Consulta-
numerous ways their services are dren throughout the Treasure tion services, led by director Eliza-
An inaugural Brunch for Babies addressing the issue. Coast, including Martin, St. Lucie, beth Appleton.
event at the Grand Harbor Golf and Okeechobee and Indian River coun-
Beach Club to benefit Tykes & Teens “We receive individuals looking ties. “We have children in Indian River
brought new awareness and raised for help,” said Eric Garza, CEO of County that are being suspended
vital funds for the high-quality men- Tykes & Teens. “We started to provide services to and expelled from early childcare
tal healthcare programs for children Indian River County in 2016 and we centers at astronomical rates be-
and families that it provides. He provided an emotional snap- have slowly been incorporating our- cause they have experienced some
shot of the reasons why families selves more and more into the com- form of trauma,” she said.
While the full capacity crowd come to Tykes & Teens, reading from munity. We are looking forward to
helped themselves to an endless some of the intake statements made establishing an outpatient office in “There has been an increase in
brunch buffet, sipped mimosas, bid by their clients: “‘I just want to be a Indian River soon, in addition to our disruptive behavior like scream-
on silent-auction items and enjoyed good mom,’ ‘I don’t want my mom existing facility housing our Healthy ing, kicking and turning over tables.
a fashion show, Tykes & Teens de- and dad to be arrested again,’ ‘I’m Families program and Infant Mental Through mental health consulta-
partment heads shared stories of trying not to get suspended from Health programs.” tion, we reflect on what we can do
the increased need for child mental school,’ and ‘I don’t want my baby to differently in the classroom to help
grow up like me.’” Laura Girlando, director of Infant these children.”
Mental Health, spoke about the im-
portance of setting the foundation Tykes & Teens reports that the
for social and emotional develop- mental health crisis in children is
ment, saying that doing so ultimate- staggering, with demand for servic-
ly leads to resilience and success es up 300 percent and high-risk situ-
later in life. ations up 100 percent. The complex-
ity and length of treatment have also
“By the age of 6 months, the prun- significantly increased.
ing process to the brain starts and
neuropathways start to close. By age The nonprofit organization has
5, 80 percent of the brain is devel- been a leading mental health pro-
oped. Our role is supporting care- vider for children and adolescent-
givers in understanding what their based programs and services for
child’s needs are and empowering over 25 years. They prioritize chil-
them to support their child to un- dren’s mental health in families,
derstand what happened,” said Gir- schools and communities through a
lando. wide range of prevention, education,
treatment programs and services.
Collaborating with teachers and
staff of early childcare centers for For more information visit Tykes
children from birth to age 5 falls AndTeens.org. 

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / April 21, 2022 39

PEOPLE

Hibiscus Festival: Family fun flourishes along 14th Avenue

Mimi Kuriger and Maddie Henderson. PHOTOS CONTINUED ON PAGE 40

Scott Redfield and Elaine Jones. PHOTOS: STEPHANIE LABAFF Rick and Laurie Wykoff.

BY STEPHANIE LaBAFF Windows: Reflections of Growing Liz Mayo and Janie Graves Hoover. FINE ART AND FINE CRAFT
Up in Vero Beach in the 1960s.” And SHOW WINNERS:
Staff Writer going even further back in time, vis-
its to the Indian River Citrus Muse- Eugene Perry, Sculpture
The two-day Hibiscus Festi- um afforded a colorful history about
val, presented by Main Street Vero our local citrus industry. Best of Show
Beach, bloomed once again with a
colorful variety of art, music, food Heather Stapleton, Vero Heritage Daniel Mastera, Painting
and activities all along 14th Avenue.
The event pays tribute to the Hibis- Jaxon Gonzalez. First Place
cus City sobriquet, coined in 1967,
that highlights the profusion of the Juan Carlos Cahue, Jewelry
flowery plants that flourish in our
tropical climate. Second Place

“People just loved being outdoors, Tim Gregory, Sculpture
walking through the art show, lis-
tening to the music and laying on Third Place
the grass in the beautiful weather,”
said Janie Graves Hoover, MSVB Mark Poole, Ceramics
board member and event organizer.
Honorable Mention
“It was pretty fantastic. Similar to
Downtown Friday, but with a differ- executive director, said that to aug-
ent flavor and feel. One of our goals ment their already extensive citrus
is to bring people downtown, and label collection, they created their
we certainly did that,” said Graves. own fictional “Dolphinette” label
honoring the late Millie Bunnell,
It was a picture-perfect day for the who is credited for saving and pre-
event, with festivalgoers enjoying serving the Heritage Center when it
live music or marching to the beat was marked for demolition.
of their own drum by joining Bran-
don Putzke in a Drum Circle on the Sue Gromis became the executive
lawn. director of MSVB the day after the
last Hibiscus Festival was held, in
Under the shade of the oak trees, 2019, and was thrilled to be able to
attendees perused artwork, nibbled hold it once again and to celebrate
on snacks and even created sno- our rich history.
cones in a human-sized hamster
wheel. She said they focused this festival
on their Hibiscus Festival Fine Art
There were, of course, hibiscus- and Fine Craft Show, a juried show
themed opportunities, including the featuring local and regional artists
sale of blooming hibiscus plants. At working in a variety of mediums, to
the Heritage Center, art enthusiasts differentiate it from their regularly
could dip their brushes into vibrant scheduled Downtown Friday events.
colors to paint their own hibiscus
flowers on canvas, or just sip on de- The Hibiscus Festival is one of
licious hibiscus sunrise drinks. many events held by the nonprofit
to increase awareness of historic
While there, folks chatted with downtown, raise funds for preserva-
Beth Redman Kray, author of “Open tion projects, and promote growth.
Proceeds support MSVB programs,
a scholarship fund for Miss Hibis-
cus, who this year will be crowned
on June 15, and cash prizes for the
art show winners.

Monthly community events in-
clude the First Friday Gallery Stroll,
Downtown Friday and Coffee with
the Mayor.

For more information, visit main-
streetverobeach.org. 

40 Vero Beach 32963 / April 21, 2022 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

PEOPLE

PHOTOS CONTINUED FROM PAGE 39 Marty and Bev Paris.
Jessica Schmitt and Chris Schmitt.

Judy and Rick Doby. Sophia North and Emmett. Sasha Bailor, Dr. Katya Bailor and Marty Zickert.

Andrea Barkett, Paula Marker, Rick and Sue Gromis, Dimitri and Kim Kazarinoff with Bridgette and Jay Seaman. Jennifer Mahlstedt, Beth Kray and Elaine Matthes.
Julie Poteat and Taylor Dingle.

Arthur Way and John Baird.



42 Vero Beach 32963 / April 21, 2022 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

INSIGHT COVER STORY Javier Torres Martínez, 4,
plays in the abandoned
Esteban Contreras restaurant where his
Martínez, 7, walks on family has been living
the ashes of his home since fleeing cartel
in Tehuantepec, burned violence.
by the Jalisco New Gen-
eration cartel after the An explosive dropped
family fled. by drone left a gash
in a home during a
The family fled after a confrontation between
warning that the Jalisco the Jalisco cartel and a
cartel was targeting “self-defense” force in
Javier Martínez, head of Michoacán.
the “self-defense” force
in Tehuantepec.

COAHUAYANA, Mexico – María bers are crammed into an abandoned lem in ostensibly peaceful Mexico that and a rival cartel network to control the
Jesús was grilling tortillas. Patricia was restaurant here in Coahuayana, a ba- the country’s Senate is considering region, a hub of marijuana and meth-
frying pork ribs. Adriana was sipping nana-growing town on the Pacific coast, legislation to offer humanitarian aid amphetamine production.
a cup of tea to calm her nerves. For home to an estimated 1,000 Mexicans to victims.
the Martínez sisters, that Friday was uprooted from their communities. But the accounts of the displaced
shaping up like most Fridays in their “We are at war,” said Alma Griselda underscore how unconventional this
mountain village, the women prepar- As criminal groups battle for control Valencia, a congresswoman from Mi- war actually is. At stake are not just
ing lunch in their simple homes as over Mexican territory, the displaced choacán who belongs to the Morena drug routes, but timber, minerals and
their husbands tended the fields. are becoming increasingly visible, in party of President Andrés Manuel fruit plantations. In many cases, the
towns such as Coahuayana and at the López Obrador. “The fact the govern- armed groups have ties to local govern-
Then the women’s father, Javier, sent U.S. border. An estimated 20,000 peo- ment doesn’t want to accept it, is some- ments, business groups and the police.
an urgent warning: The Jalisco cartel ple have fled violence in the past year thing else.”
had arrived. in Michoacán state, roughly the size of Political scientist Romain Le Cour
West Virginia. Thousands more have What does Mexico’s war look like? Grandmaison says displacement is a
“Our lives changed in a minute,” said abandoned their homes in other states In Michoacán’s Tierra Caliente region, sign of the deepening crisis of violence
María Jesús, 31. Gunmen in four armor- like Zacatecas and Guerrero. one of the country’s most violent, in Mexico. “So many actors are interest-
plated “monster” trucks had been spot- homes are peppered with bullet holes. ed in controlling territory and popula-
ted just across the valley, Javier told his Forced displacement is generally as- Drones launch bombs that gash holes tions to extract resources, and to make a
children. They grabbed their kids and sociated with armed conflict – it’s been in roofs. The Jalisco cartel has planted statement: ‘I am the boss, and I have the
ran. a feature of the Russian invasion of land mines. Security officials describe power to displace you,’ ” he said.
Ukraine. Yet it’s become such a prob- the conflict as a battle between Jalisco
Three months later, 17 family mem- That free-for-all reflects what may be

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / April 21, 2022 43

Leopoldo Palominos, a INSIGHT COVER STORY
member of a “self-
defense” force, watches A memorial in Coahuay-
a hill on Jalisco cartel ana marks where Aaron
territory while patrolling Agustín Cardenas, a “self-
Coahuayana's outskirts. defense” force member,
was killed in a fight with
Héctor “Teto” Zepeda, the Jalisco cartel.
commander of the Coa-
huayana “self-defense”
force, stops for a mo-
ment in his office to pet
his dog.

“Self-defense” force
members in Coahuayana
pass a piece of parota
tree at their base. The
area's wealth of minerals
and wood is partly driv-
ing the violence.

Mexico’s most critical problem. While Drugs were nothing new; for years, of his town’s “self-defense” force. For a lages are now swept up in the fighting.
the country has replaced its long-run- marijuana had flourished in Micho- while, things were quiet. “The targets of violence have be-
ning authoritarian system with democ- acán’s rich soil. But the illicit busi-
racy, it has failed to build a justice sys- ness began to change in the 1990s, as “But now,” he said, “here comes El come much broader,” said Falko Ernst,
tem that prosecutes crime effectively. the grip of Mexico’s one-party system Mencho.” senior Mexico analyst for the Interna-
waned. Drug traffickers became more tional Crisis Group. If one group moves
“You can use violence for whatever organized and better-armed. They That would be Nemesio Oseguera into a town, he said, it not only expels
interests you have in Mexico,” said Le branched into cocaine and metham- Cervantes. He leads the Jalisco New its gun-toting enemies but frequently
Cour Grandmaison, who runs the se- phetamines. Then they started to ex- Generation cartel, which has trafficked does a “social cleansing” of their rela-
curity program at the think tank México tort money from ordinary Mexicans. tons of heroin, methamphetamines tives and other civilian supporters.
Evalúa. “It’s a low-cost, very efficient po- and fentanyl into the United States.
litical, economic or personal resource. It Conditions got so bad that farmers in “One of the five most dangerous trans- Economic and family disputes feed
can be used with almost no judicial con- Martínez’s village, Tehuantepec, were national criminal organizations in the the chaos. When the Jalisco gunmen
sequences.” forced to pay a “tax” every time they world,” says the U.S. government. Mar- turned up in Tehuantepec on Dec. 3,
sold a cow or a sack of corn. “We de- tínez sees something else: a bunch of Martínez said, they got help from some
Javier Martínez’s butcher shop is cided to rise up,” said the 53-year-old gunmen determined to snatch control residents who were jealous of his suc-
an unlikely flash point in this war. For butcher. Starting in 2013, thousands of this region’s timber supplies, iron ore cessful butcher shop. Rival merchants,
years he’d sold ground meat, ribs and of Michoacán residents formed citizen mines and banana plantations. he said, “wanted to eliminate the com-
fried pork rinds in his village in Chini- militias, kicking out the brutal Knights petition.”
cuila municipality, a bucolic place ser- Templar cartel. Martínez became head Like the Knights Templar, the Jalisco
enaded by the cackling of chickens. cartel has recruited local men. Instead The gunmen torched Javier Mar-
of cartel-vs.-cartel battles, whole vil-
CONTINUED ON PAGE 44

44 Vero Beach 32963 / April 21, 2022 INSIGHT COVER STORY Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 43 Brandon Moisés Macario
Rodríguez and Lucas Ayar
A house is riddled with López harvest bananas
bullet holes after a fight for export to the United
between the Jalisco States at a plantation be-
cartel and the Chinicuila longing to Coahuayana's
“self-defense” force. mayor.

Bryan Israel Hernández, 12, plays on a beach while visiting his grandmother in Coahuayana, which has become a haven for families fleeing violence.

tínez’s butcher shop and home, and killed by the Knights Templar. Now he laundry. “He even got us a refrigerator denies the charge. The traffickers aren’t
three other houses belonging to rela- leads 120 men in military-grade body and a stove,” María Jesús said. the only ones making such allegations.
tives. By the time state police arrived, armor, equipped with assault rifles. Shortly after taking office in October,
the family had sped down the moun- Most of all, Comandante Teto has Gov. Alfredo Ramírez Bedolla pledged
tain in their pickups and a borrowed “I don’t really want to carry a weap- brought security to the town, an oa- to disarm the “self-defense” forces in
van to the coast two hours away. María on. None of my companions do,” said sis of sea breezes and swaying banana the state. They had come to represent,
Jesús said they had only one real guar- the 51-year-old former auto mechanic, trees, where traumatized families from he said, “a sort of camouflage for illicit
antee of security: sitting at a rough-hewn wooden desk other regions have packed into pastel- activities.”
in front of a wall covered with pictures colored homes.
“My father knew Teto.” of fallen comrades and the Virgin of But the governor hasn’t managed to
Héctor Zepeda – “Comandante Teto” Guadalupe. “But we have to fight every Yet it’s a fragile peace. The Jalisco car- dislodge Comandante Teto. Quite the
– is the law in Coahuayana, and a sym- day, to survive.” tel gunmen are so close that when the opposite. This town of 18,000 recently
bol of how Mexico’s old security ar- “self-defense” forces patrol the town’s issued police uniforms and credentials
rangements have collapsed. To many of the displaced, Coman- perimeter, they can hear their enemies’ to the “self-defense” fighters and put
Hollywood-handsome, with soft dante Teto is a hero. He’s found homes voices crackling over the radio. dozens onto the public payroll. The
brown eyes and a sly grin, Teto be- for them, and given them jobs on his 15 members of the state-recognized
came head of the local “self-defense” force. The Martínezes now live in a In a video last year, the Jalisco fight- municipal police now serve under Co-
force in 2014, after his brother was run-down former restaurant with a ers accused Comandante Teto of work- mandante Teto. When two journalists
courtyard webbed with lines of drying ing with their rivals, Carteles Unidos, a
Michoacán-based crime syndicate. Teto

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / April 21, 2022 45

INSIGHT COVER STORY

recently sat down to interview Teto, proved a bill in 2020 to register and aid For all the administration’s prom- Grandmaison said such war-on-drugs
the former police chief served coffee. people who are forced to leave home. ises to help the displaced, it’s unclear policies didn’t address crime groups’
It covers not only victims of organized whether its security policies will do expansion into extortion and protec-
Mayor Gil Ruiz said many towns- crime violence but those uprooted by much to reduce expulsions. tion rackets. “The only thing that will
folk believed that federal and state land disputes, religious conflicts and solve that issue is justice,” he said.
security forces were corrupt or didn’t natural disasters. The legislation is now Starting in January, authorities poured Police remain poorly trained, and the
have the savvy or will to fight criminal before the Senate. more than 3,000 army and national justice system is underfunded, politi-
groups effectively. In Michoacán, ev- guard troops into Michoacán to “liber- cized and veined with corruption.
eryone remembers the tight embrace Still, López Obrador bristled when ate” towns controlled by organized crime
between the Knights Templar and challenged recently about front-page groups. “We have slowly been recovering For now, the Martínez family has won
many politicians and police. newspaper photos showing people public order,” the state’s chief of security, a respite in Coahuayana. “But honestly,
fleeing Zacatecas state. “There are army Gen. José Alfredo Ortega, told The we don’t feel safe,” María Jesús said. Like
“The people don’t trust” the police, few, very few regions with displaced Washington Post. many people in Michoacán, they have
Ruiz said. “But the people have confi- people,” he told reporters. (Alejandro relatives in the United States.
dence in the self-defense forces.” Encinas, undersecretary for human But the Mexican government has
rights in the Government Ministry, launched military operations in Mi- “We’ve been thinking,” she said, “it
Coahuayana’s economic elite don’t puts the number of victims at 400,000.) choacán before, only to see violence would be good to put in papers to seek
want to rely on the state security ap- resurge after troops withdraw. Le Cour political asylum.” 
paratus, either. The banana growers,
who’ve enjoyed a boom under North
America’s free trade agreement, began
bankrolling Comandante Teto’s militia
years ago. The mayor, a banana pro-
ducer, said the force was the only al-
ternative to the Knights Templar and
their $250-a-day “protection fees” on
fruit shipments.

Longtime residents agree that the
“self-defense” forces ended a terri-
fying period of robbery and murder
under the Knights Templar. But ques-
tions swirl about exactly what role
Comandante Teto’s force has played
in Coahuayana’s unending plague of
methamphetamine abuse. Teto says
he has cracked down on drug sales.

“We don’t know who to trust,” said
one woman, who spoke on the condi-
tion of anonymity out of fear for her
safety. “Of course you’re afraid.”

Coahuayana is a rare haven in Mi-
choacán for people who are fleeing
violence. Others set their sights on the
United States.

Migrant activists have noted an in-
creasing number of Mexicans arriving
at the border. While some want jobs
or to reunite with family in the United
States, many are fleeing the harsh rule
of criminal gangs. “They were forced to
leave, or forced to pay organized crime
a monthly quota,” said Pedro De Velas-
co, director of advocacy at the Kino
Border Initiative, a binational migrant-
assistance group. “And when they were
unable to pay, they had to leave every-
thing behind.”

Stephanie Leutert, director of the
Central America and Mexico Policy
Initiative at the University of Texas at
Austin, said there were no reliable fig-
ures on Mexicans trying to claim asy-
lum, since the U.S. government has
temporarily shut down most process-
ing at the border, citing the coronavi-
rus pandemic. “But it certainly is a sig-
nificant population of Mexican asylum
seekers who are waiting in Mexico” for
the chance to access the U.S. immigra-
tion system, she said.

López Obrador has won praise from
human rights groups for recognizing
the problem of the internally displaced.
The lower chamber of Congress, domi-
nated by his party, unanimously ap-





48 Vero Beach 32963 / April 21, 2022 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

INSIGHT EDITORIAL

BY JEFF WISE tional crisis of 1993, during which Russian President sia would stop selling rocket engines to the U.S. To get
Boris Yeltsin ordered troops to shell the building that to the ISS, the Americans could “fly on their brooms.”
As joke videos go, it wasn’t very funny. Set to a boun- housed the legislature.
cy Russian pop tune, the 57-second clip posted to Tele- After former NASA astronaut Scott Kelly criticized
gram last month showed International Space Station The idea that the ISS was an expression of an un- him on Twitter, Rogozin tweeted at Kelly: “Get off, you
cosmonauts hugging an American astronaut goodbye, breakable partnership influenced its design. The U.S. moron! Otherwise, the death of the #ISS will be on
climbing into the Russian segment of the ISS, undock- and Russia weren’t just collaborating to build a shared your conscience.”
ing, and flying away, as Russian ground controllers property; each was contributing, and would subse-
gave a standing ovation. quently control, a critical function. America would If Russia does decide to tip over the playing board
provide the electricity to run the station, generated and go home, it won’t be as simple as the Telegram clip
What lent the ostensibly lighthearted clip a darker by four sets of solar panels. The Russians would sup- suggested.
feel was the identity of the organization that made it ply propulsion, both to boost it higher when the orbit
– Roscosmos, Russia’s equivalent of NASA – and what decays and to shift its location to avoid space debris. Russia’s simplest route to withdrawing from the ISS
the video implied would happen next. With the Rus- would be to just pull its crew off and refuse to provide
sian portion of the station detached, the ISS would “The station is not built to exist without the Rus- propulsion anymore. In that case, the tiny amount of
have no thrusters to maintain its orbit. The whole sian module,” says Todd Harrison, a senior fellow atmosphere present 250 miles above the Earth’s sur-
thing would be doomed to plunge to Earth. at the Center for Strategic & International Studies, a face would suffice to gradually drag the space station
think tank in Washington. into a lower and lower orbit, until eventually it would
With the West imposing sanctions on Russia for disintegrate in a fireball and crash. It would take 9 to
invading Ukraine, will Moscow retaliate by dooming The balance of the relationship changed in 2011, 12 months for that to happen, said Ann Kapusta, a
the ISS? No one knows, but the possibility is real. when the space shuttle program was terminated. With former American ISS ground controller who’s now
no way to get to the ISS on its own, the U.S. had to rent executive director of the Space Frontier Foundation.
What’s at risk is the largest and most complex inter- rides aboard Russian Soyuz rockets. That dependence
national project ever, a $100 billion testament to hu- left Americans with little leverage when Russia an- If the countries reached a more amicable divorce
man ingenuity and cross-border cooperation. The 490- nexed Crimea in 2014. agreement, Russia could take a payout and continue
ton assemblage, which required more than 40 space to support the ISS on an interim basis while the U.S.
launches to build, sprawls over an area bigger than a When the Obama administration introduced a slate builds and installs replacements for Russian equip-
football field. It’s been inhabited continuously for a of sanctions in response, including on Russia’s high- ment. That kind of gradual exit might set the stage for
manned spaceflight record 21 years. At any given time tech exports, Dmitry Rogozin, who was then deputy one of the other ISS partners – the ESA, Canada, or
more than 100 scientific experiments are under way. prime minister, fired off a pointed barb on Twitter: “Af- Japan – to play an increased role.
ter analyzing the sanctions against our space industry,
All that nerd stuff, though, has always been win- I suggest the U.S. delivers its astronauts to the ISS with For now, Rogozin is maintaining a tough stance. Ac-
dow dressing for the ISS’s original purpose: keep- a trampoline.” cording to Russian state news agency TASS, Rogozin
ing Russian scientists off the street. When the Soviet recently said Russia would determine on its own “how
Union collapsed, one of the world’s most advanced NASA’s efforts to replace the space shuttle turned long the ISS will operate.”
space-launch industries was suddenly adrift. out to be slower and more expensive than anticipated.
Finally, in May 2020, a Crew Dragon capsule carrying Some think a Russian pullout would be good rid-
Because the same technology that puts things in two astronauts was launched to the ISS atop a SpaceX dance. “From a responsible perspective, we shouldn’t
orbit can also be used to lob a nuke, the U.S. was keen Falcon 9 rocket. For the first time in nine years, the want to work with somebody who is acting this way
to ensure all that talent and technology wouldn’t get U.S. could get to the space station on its own. on Earth,” Kapusta says. “I think it’s our responsibility
scooped up by Iran, Libya, or North Korea. The space to say, ‘We’re not going to have that in space, we don’t
station was an exciting project big enough to absorb By that time, Rogozin had been named general di- want to work with you anymore.’ There are ways that
a lot of unemployed space engineers. rector of Roscosmos. His sense of decorum remained we can move forward without them.” 
unchanged. After Russia invaded Ukraine and the
“We signed all the paperwork to admit them into West retaliated with sanctions, including on Rogozin A version of this column first appeared on Bloom-
the partnership right in the middle of basically civil himself, he told a state-owned TV network that Rus- berg. It does not necessarily reflect the views of Vero
war in Russia,” says Garan, referring to the constitu- Beach 32963.

During the coronavirus crisis, our Pelican Plaza office is closed to visitors. We appreciate your understanding.

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / April 21, 2022 49

INSIGHT OP-ED

When Douglas Himberger bought tick- August and finally July 2021. That's saying we had a credit (something they hoping to keep the ticket money. Ticket
ets on Vivid Seats to a Jerry Seinfeld over 18 months after we bought the had never said in all those months). sellers and venues were often their ac-
show, he never imagined the comedi- tickets! While a credit would seem reasonable complices. They played word games,
an would reschedule his performance under normal circumstances, I feel saying they were simply "reschedul-
three times because of the pandemic. I had planned to travel to Atlantic City we should receive a refund. It's been ing" their performances. In fact, they
Can he get a refund? in July 2020, but a couple of days before, two years, and it's not clear that we were canceling their shows and then
I learned from the venue that they had will be able to use the credit in 2022 scheduling new ones, but forcing ev-
QUESTION: canceled the show. The hotel gave me a because of the continuing pandemic. eryone to attend the new show even if
refund for our room even though it was Can you help? it wasn't convenient or they didn't feel
I paid $689 for two seats to a Jerry close to the show date. But I could not safe.
Seinfeld show in Atlantic City through contact anyone at Vivid Seats. ANSWER:
VividSeats in 2020. The show was origi- Under these circumstances, I think
nally scheduled for April, but because I tried emailing and calling. There I think Vivid Seats should have offered a credit card dispute is absolutely fine.
of the pandemic, they rescheduled for was absolutely no way to talk to a hu- a full refund after Seinfeld canceled his Vivid Seats sold you a show on a spe-
man. I couldn't even find out if they first show. cific day, but Seinfeld postponed the
offered a credit or refund. show several times. That's not funny.
But that's not what the terms of your Discover should have advocated for
I checked Elliott Advocacy for ex- purchase say. To get a refund, your show you instead of rolling over.
ecutive contacts but couldn't find any. must be canceled, and Vivid Seats gets
I know my next step wasn't what you to determine if something is canceled. I list the names, numbers and email
advise, but I went to Discover for relief If it's just postponed or rescheduled, addresses of the Vivid Seats executives
by filing a credit card dispute. After all, tickets "will not be refunded or other- on my nonprofit consumer advocacy
VividSeats didn't deliver any product wise compensated by Vivid Seats ex- site, Elliott.org.
and charged us nearly $700. cept in jurisdictions where it is required
by law." So you have to live in Califor- I contacted Vivid Seats on your be-
Almost six months later, in Decem- nia to get your money back. half. The company reviewed your re-
ber 2021, Discover found that the Viv- peatedly postponed show and agreed
idSeats charge was valid. The dispute I'm unhappy about the way Vivid to refund your tickets. 
resolution amounted to Discover ask- Seats and other ticket sellers have
ing VividSeats for details and Vivid- been handling their pandemic events. Get help with any consumer prob-
Seats sending them a copy of the credit I've written several stories about art- lem by contacting Christopher Elliott at
card transaction. ists who kept postponing their shows, http://www.elliott.org/help

VividSeats then sent me an email

Established 18 Years in Indian River County

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

50 Vero Beach 32963 / April 21, 2022 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

INSIGHT BOOKS

In January 1941, at the height of the European war, each other more when they were apart. The com- tled Southern womanhood. She also served happily
a pair of British newlyweds, eager to return home, petition could be brutal. When Leigh won her first as an unpaid and unacknowledged adviser on his
were on a plane weaving a dangerous route from Oscar, Olivier remembered: “It was all I could do to classic Shakespearean films, and he, for his part, sub-
Lisbon to Bristol. About halfway through, the hus- restrain myself from hitting her with it. I was insane mitted to lesser stage vehicles that would allow her
band later recalled, “a fat little uniformed man came with jealousy.” By common consensus, her talent was equal luster.
bustling out of the pilot’s compartment, leaving the smaller and less organized than his, and she had only
door open in his hurry, rewarding us with the sight a quantum of his ambition, yet twice, in the persons Maybe, given time, they would have worked out a
of the cockpit on fire.” Somehow or other, the plane of Scarlett O’Hara and Blanche DuBois, she gathered balance, like the narcissistic leads of “Kiss Me, Kate,”
righted itself, but, had it perished in the manner of so herself for an immortal cinematic portrait of embat- but ticking beneath them was Leigh’s bipolar disor-
many other wartime flights, how would we remem- der, which manifested itself variously as violent mood
ber Vivien Leigh and Laurence Olivier? Probably as a swings, tumultuous affairs and, on occasion, psychot-
pair of star-crossed Hollywood lovers, achingly gor- ic breaks. It was exhausting for everyone involved, and
geous, forever etched by their star turns, respectively, peers were not always sympathetic. (“Personally,” said
in “Gone with the Wind” and “Wuthering Heights.” Noel Coward, “I think that if Larry had turned sharply
on Vivien years ago and given her a clip in the chops,
Life had other ideas. The newlyweds survived the he would have been spared a mint of trouble.”)
war; their careers grew more illustrious, though in
different ways; their marriage descended (we’re still It is here, I think, that Galloway, the former execu-
on that plane) from Romeo and Juliet into, depend- tive editor of the Hollywood Reporter, lifts himself
ing on your perspective, Macbeth and Lady Macbeth clear of previous chronicles, including Olivier’s own
(one of their co-starring ventures) or “The Dance of self-lacerating memoirs, by supplementing firsthand
Death.” And the love affair that Stephen Galloway, in accounts with retrospective diagnoses by experts like
the overreaching subtitle of his probing chronicle, Kay Redfield Jamison and by tracing a genetic link to
“Truly Madly,” calls “The Romance of the Century” Leigh’s great-uncle, housed in a Kolkata asylum for
became the thing that neither of its parties could much the same symptoms. More lucidly than ever,
quite quit, even as it was killing them. we can see how, in the grip of her own brain chem-
istry, Leigh quite literally lost her mind. “Oh, Colin,”
Only in the theater could they have met at all. Ol- she told one friend after a particularly difficult epi-
ivier was a parson’s son, still mourning his beloved sode, “it’s so nice when it’s over.”
mother (she died when he was 12) and trying to raise
himself, as if for her benefit, from matinee idol to Olivier found solace in liaisons with Dorothy Tu-
Shakespearean god. Leigh, nee Vivian Hartley, was tin and Claire Bloom, but it was his stabilizing alli-
the Kolkata-born daughter of a British stockbroker, ance with Joan Plowright, the actress who played his
shipped off at an early age to a U.K. convent, then daughter in “The Entertainer,” that finally embold-
to European finishing schools. She enrolled in the ened him to petition for freedom. Leigh resisted, then
Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and snagged the lead gave in. Her final years, though productive, were also
role of a glamorous prostitute in a play titled “The a losing battle with tuberculosis, which claimed her
Mask of Virtue.” Olivier, a sentient male, took note. finally in 1967 at the age of 53. “Until her dying day,”
Not long after, they ran into each other at the Savoy said one observer, “I don’t think Vivien believed Olivi-
Grill. He invited her to a garden party. There followed er was beyond recall.” Ambitious as ever, Olivier went
lunch dates, in which, according to Olivier’s diary, on to multiple triumphs, including, in “Long Day’s
she went from “Vivien” to “Viv” to “Vivling.” What- Journey into Night,” the searing portrait of a former
ever inhibitions still remained – she was married to matinee idol. But in 1989, in his last days, racked with
a staid lawyer, he to a staid actress – melted, thawed illness, he was discovered by an old friend tearfully
and resolved themselves into a dew when they were watching one of Leigh’s old movies. “This, this was
cast as romantic leads in “Fire Over England,” an love,” he said. “This was the real thing.” 
Elizabethan costume pic whose title could not have
been lost on them. In the middle of a June night, they TRULY, MADLY
ran off together, leaving behind in each case not just
a spouse but a child. VIVIEN LEIGH, LAURENCE OLIVIER

From the start, then, their bond was as guilt-ridden AND THE ROMANCE OF THE CENTURY
as it was undeniable. Over 20 years of marriage, they BY STEPHEN GALLOWAY | GRAND CENTRAL. 416 PP. $30
fought often and fought hard and seemed to love
REVIEW BY LOUIS BAYARD, THE WASHINGTON POST