09/15/2022 ISSUE 37

Water-sewer rate hikes put off
until January. P12

Hear Duany’s vision
for Three Corners. P11
COVID-19 infections up, but
no sign of predicted fall surge. P11

MY VERO For breaking news visit

BY RAY MCNULTY Low-profile judge
Aileen Cannon is
Has Elite Airways flown Vero island resident
it’s last flight from Vero?
BY ANN E. MARIMOW
Is Elite Airways being sold?
Let’s hope so. Aileen M. Cannon was not
Something needs to change yet 40 years old when the fed-
– and fast – after Elite’s sum- eral prosecutor won decisive
mer no-show in Vero Beach, bipartisan support in a bitterly
when it canceled 27 of its 35 divided U.S. Senate to claim a
scheduled flights into and out seat on the U.S. District Court
of our airport in June, then in South Florida.
scrapped all commercial pas-
senger service here in July, Au- The profile of this young
gust and September. conservative lawyer – who lives
Elite Airways president John on Vero’s South Beach – soared
Pearsall, who has long touted last week after she intervened
Vero as his boutique airline’s in the Justice Department in-
most successful market, told
me Monday we can expect to BY MARY SCHENKEL & LISA ZAHNER with little fanfare. But when cadre of international press vestigation into former Presi-
receive a press release in the Staff Writers the Prince of Wales lent with him. dent Donald Trump’s possible
next week or so, adding only his royal presence to char- mishandling of classified infor-
that the announcement will The exclusive enclaves of ity polo matches at Wind- As the former Prince mation and agreed to grant his
be “all positive stuff” designed Vero’s barrier island are no sor three decades ago, he Charles – now King Charles request for an independent re-
to give the carrier “a lot more stranger to famous visitors, brought Scotland Yard, the III since Queen Elizabeth’s view of material that FBI agents
longevity.” who mostly come and go U.S. State Department and a passing – ascends to the had seized.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 8 CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 Cannon’s controversial rul-
ing, which she called necessary
Riverfront (yes, not to “ensure at least the appear-
oceanfront) property ance of fairness and integrity
listed for $25 million
CONTINUED ON PAGE 5
BY STEVEN M. THOMAS
Staff Writer

Vero’s continuing ascent
into the real estate strato-
sphere was illustrated anew
last month when a riverfront
development tract on the
south barrier island went on
the market for $25 million.

The 17.45-acre property, di-
rectly across A1A from Atlantis

CONTINUED ON PAGE 9

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2 Vero Beach 32963 / September 15, 2022 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

NEWS

Royal visit been traveling for two days and was
suffering from jet lag. Charles scored
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 two points and the Prince’s Windsor
Park team won that day 10 to 7.
throne and mourns his mother’s death
along with royal-watchers around the The royal then made an appearance
globe, his visit so many years ago has at a reception in his honor before de-
been woven into barrier island lore, parting for Palm Beach, where he’d
and Windsor will forever be known play polo again on Sunday. The Orlan-
as the place where Prince Charles do Sentinel found a fan in the throngs
sparked an enduring passion for polo at Windsor who not only had come
in Vero Beach. up to Vero for the Windsor event, but
would also follow Prince Charles back
The Windsor community, creation down to Palm Beach for his match the
of Canadian retail and manufactur- next day. The Baroness Inge von Reith
ing magnate Galen Weston and his of Palm Beach said of the prince, “It’s a
philanthropist and politician wife, for- joy to watch him play.”
mer supermodel Hilary Weston, was
founded in 1989 on 472 acres of island Polo is a fast and physical sport and
citrus land. it’s not uncommon for players to suf-
fer serious injuries. An ambulance was
Before the streets and amenities of standing by on site to whisk Prince
the planned development were even Charles to the hospital should any-
sketched out, the Westons built a sea- thing go awry, but fortunately no one
side holiday home for themselves, got hurt during the charity match.
then homes for a few of their friends.
Next to be cleared and constructed “He has to be careful, you know. Af-
was a private polo field, or polo pitch ter all, he is going to be the king,” the
as the Brits call it, for Galen Weston to Baroness von Reith reminded the Sen-
practice and host matches. tinel reporter.

It was on that pitch that the Prince of Vero Beach 32963’s own staff writer
Wales arrived on Feb. 18, 1989, to play Samantha Rohlfing Baita was working
a charity polo match, and meet fans as a radio reporter in 1989 and covered
who purchased tickets to the elaborate Prince Charles’ Windsor visit, calling
event. Dressed in evening attire and in live reports from the sidelines of the
sipping champagne, Vero residents en- polo match. Though she contained
joyed an escape into a royal fairytale her excitement and handled the as-
for an afternoon. signment professionally, as a life-long
Anglophile who had followed Prince
More than 4,000 people turned out Charles in the news for decades, she
for the area’s inaugural polo match was thrilled to be there.
– quite a crowd considering that In-
dian River County’s population at the “It was a warm and windy day. The
time was only 90,000. Polo aficionados event created a very big buzz for little
drove up from Palm Beach and report- Vero Beach. There was a huge crowd,
ers traveled from London to watch the and security all over the place, a very,
Prince of Wales play. very visible presence,” she said.

Charles arrived by helicopter, flanked Along with local reporters and media
by Scotland Yard bodyguards, landing outlets from across Florida, the event
on Windsor’s north polo field to join his was covered by the Associated Press,
friends the Westons and polo teammate United Press International and the Brit-
Geoffrey Kent, who he’d met in Kenya ish tabloid The Sun. Author George
in 1970. Geoffrey and Jorie Butler Kent Plimpton tossed out the first ball of the
were one of Windsor’s first families. polo match and RolexWatch U.S.A. Pres-
ident Roland Puton attended the event.
Windsor’s debut to the world be-
yond the Westons’ aristocratic social “Obviously everybody, guests, ticket
circle, the polo match was sponsored holders and us, the press, were kept
by Rolex, and raised an estimated very carefully corralled and nowhere
$100,000 for various wildlife conser- near the prince,” Baita recalled. “Sev-
vation causes, including Vero’s fledg- eral of the big networks were there,
ling Environmental Learning Cen- cameras, and ladders and wires all
ter, founded in 1988. Busch Gardens over the place. Many of the attend-
Tampa brought animals for guests to ees were dressed to the nines and the
see up close as zoologist Jim Fowler of champagne was flowing – not in the
the Mutual of Omaha’s Wild Kingdom press tent. The excitement level was
television show emceed the wildlife- off the charts.
themed luncheon of 550 people who
paid $250 a plate to attend. “The action on the field was pretty
breathtaking – big, beautiful, fast polo
Prince Charles petted a Florida ponies, thundering hoofs, the slash of
panther and was photographed feed- mallets – was even more exciting with
ing a chimpanzee with a baby bot- England’s crown prince in the mix,”
tle. Straight from the luncheon, he she added.
changed into polo clothes to warm
up for the match for about an hour, Prince Charles’ first visit to Vero may
a reporter on the scene noted, as he’d have only lasted a few hours, but it made
a big impression on locals. Charley Re-
plogle, owner of the Ocean Grill, recalls

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / September 15, 2022 3

NEWS

being inspired to take up the sport after in shape, so when the lessons came Like Replogle, Kahle joined the polo a team from the Ponte Vedra Polo Club.
watching Prince Charles play. around, I wouldn’t be as likely to fall team at Windsor in those early days. He reportedly spent Saturday relaxing
off,” said Kahle.
The current King of England played at The prince’s second visit to Wind- at the three-story oceanfront estate of
Windsor at least twice, and while Replo- “It’s a really tough sport. I honestly can’t sor came a year later in February 1990 the Kents, and headlined another sold-
gle attended both times, it was the first think of any sport that is more demand- when he spent a bit more time and out charity luncheon before the Sunday
visit that he found most memorable. ing. Certainly no equine sport. I’ve talked played two polo matches on Friday match, raising more money for wildlife
to people that competed internationally afternoon and on Sunday, competing conservation. Roughly 2,000 people at-
“Geoffrey Kent at the time was per- at other horse events and who also play for the Prince of Wales Cup against tended the Friday match, with the crowd
sonal friends with Prince Charles, and polo. Without exception, they all said Canada’s Maple Leaf team, the White nearly doubling on Sunday. Tickets to
he invited Prince Charles to come and that polo is by far the most difficult.” Birch team from Greenwich, Conn and
play at his Polo Club, which was Wind- CONTINUED ON PAGE 4
sor,” said Replogle.

“I already knew how to ride hors-
es, and when I was watching Prince
Charles, I thought, I could do that,”
said Replogle.

“As I recall, they put out over the
loudspeaker a phone number to call if
you wanted to learn how to play polo,”
Replogle added. The person to call
was David Branham, who at the time
was the director of the Windsor Polo
Club, as Max Segunda is today.

“So when the phone number came
across, I called and became a polo play-
er. And so you probably could say that
Prince Charles inspired Charles Replo-
gle to start playing the game,” he said
with a chuckle, noting that he, George
Kahle, and the late Elaine Harrison all
played at Windsor in those early days.

Replogle remembers Prince Charles
as “a very good polo player who was
very nice on the field, a complete gen-
tleman. He was very nice to everybody.
The other players were also being
gentlemanly toward him; they wanted
to make sure he had fun. It was a big
event, and everybody wanted to make
sure that it went well.”

Although he couldn’t remember who
won the match, he guessed it was likely
the team Prince Charles played on. “It’s
a long time ago,” said Replogle. “I played
probably 500 polo games after that.”

George Kahle, who along with his
children and grandchildren would
later become entrenched in the sport,
also considers that visit by Prince
Charles the impetus for his becoming
a polo player.

“It was kind of cool. It was an unusual
opportunity to see this royal person,
and I enjoyed watching the game. So it
was the celebrity factor to a small de-
gree and then just getting exposed to the
sport of polo. Shortly thereafter, Charley
(Replogle) and I both became polo play-
ers and both of us played for close to 30
years,” said Kahle, who retired from the
sport a couple of years ago.

“Leading up to that game, every-
body was instructed that since the
prince was playing and (a member of)
the royal family was there, we could
not wear purple. We thought it was
funny; the impact of royalty on Vero
Beach,” Kahle recalled with a laugh.

“My wife and I have had horses for-
ever, so I rode, but not seriously. Once
I knew that they were going to be giv-
ing lessons at Windsor, I started riding
virtually every day just to get my legs

4 Vero Beach 32963 / September 15, 2022 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

NEWS

Royal visit awarded the title Officer of the Order of 1990s and as Queen Elizabeth II’s rep- gated community. The Sun-Sentinel
Canada in 1990. Later on, he was admit- resentative in Ontario, received the reported that Windsor had 280 luxury
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 3 ted to the Order of Ontario in 2005. Both Queen’s Golden Jubilee Medal in 2002. homesites for sale in 1989.
Galen and Hillary Weston hold the title
the match ranged from $20 to $175 each. of Commander of the Royal Victorian Though the royal visits to Windsor “Windsor was just getting started
Bonds between Windsor’s develop- Order, invested by Queen Elizabeth II. Polo Club were first and foremost for when the prince was here. They were
polo and charity, it was noted in media organizing and promoting polo to in-
er and the British royal family would Hilary Weston, who served as On- coverage that the publicity wouldn’t crease their profile in the community,
strengthen, as Galen Weston was tario’s lieutenant governor in the hurt property sales in the exclusive and they basically had an open invi-

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / September 15, 2022 5

NEWS

tation to come be a temporary Wind- still hosts a well-attended charity cup Judge Cannon dence. The government subsequently
sor person and play polo,” said Kahle. polo tournament every two years.  said it would appeal the decision.
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1
He added with a laugh, “That In addition to the contributions of With less than two years on the
worked for a couple of years and 32963 staff writers, this story draws on under the extraordinary circumstanc- bench, Judge Cannon does not have
then they decided they didn’t need contemporaneous reports from dozens es,” temporarily barred investigators an extensive record to review. The
the riffraff anymore.” Polo continued of media sources, plus articles written from using the documents removed Trump dispute has put a spotlight on
to thrive in Vero, and the local teams about Windsor in the years following last month from his Mar-a-Lago resi- her while presenting untested ques-
moved to Pointe West, but Windsor Prince Charles’ visits.
CONTINUED ON PAGE 6

6 Vero Beach 32963 / September 15, 2022 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

NEWS

Judge Cannon place six months into the coronavi- Cannon specifically whether she had court procedures, after Trump filed suit
rus pandemic, in July 2020, and she any discussions during the nomina- in West Palm Beach.
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 5 appeared before the Senate Judiciary tion process about “loyalty to President
Committee by Zoom. She had the back- Trump.” Cannon, now 41, was born in Co-
tions about the extent to which asser- ing of the Cuban American Bar Associa- lombia, the daughter of a Cuban im-
tions of executive privilege – usually tion, which praised her “temperament “No,” Cannon responded in writing. migrant mother, and grew up in Miami.
invoked by sitting presidents to shield and academic credentials” and pointed In a questionnaire Cannon complet- She spoke at her confirmation hearing
sensitive communications from dis- to her “legal mind and demeanor.” ed for the Judiciary Committee, she about the lasting influence of her moth-
closure – may be applied to past oc- listed her place of residence as “Vero er, who at age 7 “had to flee the repres-
cupants of the White House in conflict By choosing Cannon, the group told Beach” and further research showed sive Castro regime in search of freedom
with their successors. lawmakers, “you enhance the diversity she does indeed reside in 32963 within and security.”
on the bench and help appoint a great the Vero city limits.
Cannon did not respond to a re- candidate for the position.” The property records of state and “Thank you for teaching me about
quest for comment, and she denied federal judges, as well as certain other the blessings of this country and the im-
Vero Beach 32963’s request for an in- In follow-up questions, Democrats officers of the court and law enforce- portance of security and the rule of law
terview. pressed Cannon about her record as ment officials, are sealed but voter re- for generations to come,” Cannon said.
a prosecutor, her judicial philosophy cords show Cannon and her husband
Sen. Marco Rubio, the Florida Re- and her membership in the Federalist Joshua Lorence are island locals. As a teen, she graduated from Ran-
publican senator whose office asked Society, the conservative organization A decade after marrying in Coconut som Everglades, an exclusive private
Cannon to apply for the judicial posi- that played a major role in advising Grove in June 2008, the couple pur- school in Miami, and then attended
tion in 2019, rejected any suggestion Trump on his judicial picks. chased their Vero Beach home, records Duke University. While an undergrad-
that her decision in the classified-doc- show. Though it’s Cannon whose career uate at Duke, she worked one summer
uments case was politically motivated In response to Sen. Cory Booker (D- is in the limelight now, foodies might ar- for Miami’s Spanish-language news-
and noted the support Cannon re- N.J.), Cannon said she considers her- gue that husband Lorence has the more paper, El Nuevo Herald, writing on di-
ceived from Senate Democrats. Twelve self an “originalist” and a “textualist,” intriguing – and likely more fun – job verse topics including Flamenco and
voted in favor of her confirmation. referring to methods of legal inter- as a corporate manager for Chef Bobby prenatal yoga.
pretation that look to the general un- Flay’s chain of burger restaurants called
“Judge Cannon is a great judge who derstanding of the Constitution at the Bobby’s Burger Palace. At the University of Michigan Law
I am very proud to have enthusiasti- time it was written, an approach most According to their marriage license, School, she joined the Federalist So-
cally supported,” Rubio said in a state- often associated with the late conser- they lived in Chicago at the time of ciety, because, as she explained in
ment. “The attacks against her are just vative Supreme Court justice Antonin their Miami nuptials. It’s unclear what response to Senate questions, she ap-
the latest example of hypocrisy from Scalia. or who drew them to Vero, if either preciated the “diversity of legal view-
leftists and their media enablers who Cannon or Lorence has close family in points” and discussion of the “limited
believe the only time it is acceptable Cannon quoted Elena Kagan, the the area, or if they just came to appre- role of the judiciary to say what the
to attack a judge is if that judge rules liberal justice who quipped at her con- ciate the low-key island lifestyle. law is – not to make the law.”
against what they want.” firmation hearing, “We are all original- Many of Cannon’s court proceedings
ists.” are held an easy drive from her Vero Before joining the bench, Cannon
Cannon’s confirmation hearing took home at the Alto Lee Adams, Sr. Unit- spent much of her career in the court-
Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) asked ed States Courthouse in Fort Pierce, room as a litigator. She was a law clerk
where she is the only federal judge. for appeals court judge Steven M. Col-
In addition to the Trump case, Can- loton, who was on Trump’s list of po-
non presides over a federal antitrust tential Supreme Court picks, and an
lawsuit filed by the Town of Indian Riv- associate for three years in D.C. at the
er Shores against the City of Vero Beach law firm Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher.
regarding Vero’s claim to a permanent
water-sewer utility service area. That In 2013, as a new prosecutor in the
dispute is still pending and set for trial U.S. attorney’s office in South Florida,
in January, though Cannon recently de- Cannon handled major crimes, in-
nied Vero’s motion to dismiss the case. cluding drug, firearm and immigration
Cannon was one of 14 nominees cases. Soon after she moved to the ap-
confirmed after the November 2020 pellate division, Cannon was assigned
election, amid the tumultuous af- to defend the government’s conviction
termath of Trump’s defeat. Over four in a large-scale, complex fraud case.
years in the White House, he installed She was up against an experienced ap-
more than 200 federal judges, includ- pellate lawyer and appearing before a
ing three Supreme Court justices. three-judge panel at the U.S. Court of
Until last week, one of Cannon’s Appeals for the 11th Circuit.
most high-profile cases in 20 months
on the bench involved sentencing a Richard Klugh, the veteran lawyer
man who pleaded guilty to making on the other side, was impressed.
death threats against House Speaker
Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Rep. Alex- “She was coming in against an old
andria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.). hand with a tremendously complicat-
In a separate case in April, one of ed record in an important case, but she
Cannon’s new judicial colleagues ac- seemed to handle it with ease,” Klugh
cused Trump of judge-shopping for said in an interview. “She’s quick, tal-
Cannon by filing a lawsuit against Hill- ented and bright. There’s no getting
ary Clinton and former FBI agents in around it. She’s very effective.”
the court’s Fort Pierce division. Trump’s
suit instead landed with a judge nomi- Cannon prevailed, sustaining the
nated by President Bill Clinton. conviction of a Florida lawyer in the
The Mar-a-Lago search case was life insurance scheme that affected
assigned to Cannon, consistent with thousands of investors.

Howard Srebnick, an attorney in
Miami who attended the same high
school as the judge, also was on the
opposing side during Cannon’s tenure
as a prosecutor and now has a case
pending before her.

In court, Cannon is polite and pro-

CONTINUED ON PAGE 8



8 Vero Beach 32963 / September 15, 2022 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

NEWS

Judge Cannon team, should be handling those mate- likely, given the airline’s recent history volving the jets that serviceVero Beach.
– service won’t return until later in Oc- “I really haven’t seen any activity
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 6 rials,” Srebnick said. “No one from the tober. Or November. Or …
anywhere,” Scher said, “at least for the
cess-oriented, he said, asking a lot of government should be looking at a cli- There’s no way to know. past couple of months.”
questions while making sure litigants Back in July, when I called Pearsall
can fully air their views. Srebnick sub- ent’s communications with counsel.” to ask about the June cancellations, he One possible reason?
mitted a letter to the Senate in support told me Elite was experiencing an air- Scher said the city was notified by
of Cannon’s nomination, signed by Cannon’s ruling may not be the fi- craft shortage because: Elite’s insurance carrier last month that
more than a dozen alumni of the pri-  The airline’s 50-seat passenger the airline’s coverage had been canceled
vate Ransom Everglades High School nal word. The Justice Department last jets needed to undergo what he de- on July 28, requiring him to warn Pearsall
who also are attorneys. scribed as “major maintenance.” the airline could not fly while uninsured.
week asked the judge to reconsider  A federal Transportation Security Scher also notified Pearsall last month
She has “strength of character,” the Administration program that tempo- that Elite was prohibited from using the
letter said, characterizing Cannon as and temporarily suspend part of her rarily allowed the airline’s 70- and 90- Vero Beach airport’s passenger terminal
“personable and trustworthy, a genu- seat jets to land at Vero Beach Regional until the airline paid the city more than
inely caring person who treats others as order before it formally asks the ap- Airport expired at the end of May. $6,300 in fees that were due in July.
she would want to be treated herself.” Pearsall said at the time Elite was in “They haven’t responded,” he said.
peals court to step in.  the process of removing 10 seats from This is at least the second time Elite
In June, Cannon ruled against Sreb- its 70-seat jets to comply with the TSA’s has been late with its payments. In
nick’s client, upholding the govern- Ann Marimow writes about legal 60-seat limit for the Vero Beach airport, April 2020, the City Council terminated
ment’s decision to freeze the defen- “but we’ve run into a few delays and the airline’s airport usage agreement
dant’s bank account in a Medicare affairs for the Washington Post. A ver- that’s impacted our aircraft availability.” for failing to pay nearly $35,000 in fees
fraud case. He said service was expected to re- it owed the city.
sion of this profile first appeared in sume the following week. The airline eventually paid the bill.
“She clearly spent considerable time Since then, more than two months The more recent problem – Elite’s
and thought in deciding the question that publication. Several staff have passed, and Pearsall refuses to of- cancellation of flights for three months
presented,” Srebnick said. “We just dis- fer any explanation – to me, to Scher, to – surely has damaged he community’s
agree.” writers contributed to this expanded Elite travelers. confidence in an airline that was cel-
Is that how you treat your best cus- ebrated upon its arrival in December
Srebnick, however, said that he story. tomers? 2015, when the carrier began offer-
agrees with Cannon’s decision to ap- Apparently, though, we’re not alone. ing non-stop jet service between Vero
point a special master in the Trump My Vero Scher said he has been monitoring Beach and Newark, New Jersey.
case even though the Justice Depart- Elite’s aircraft on the FlightAware web- Too often, Elite customers say, the air-
ment has claimed to have already set CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 site, and he hasn’t seen any activity in- line doesn’t notify travelers that flights
aside potentially privileged records. have been canceled until 24 hours be-
What does that mean? A takeover?
“She is spot-on correct that a special A major new investor?
master, not a government-led filter
Vero Beach Airport Director Todd
Scher said the airline’s website shows
no scheduled flights until Oct. 1, which
prompted him to send a text message
to Pearsall to verify what he saw.

“He responded with a text that said
Oct. 1 was an accurate estimate,” Scher
said.

Estimate?
That means it’s possible – if not

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Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / September 15, 2022 9

NEWS

fore their scheduled departure times, stretch of the Indian River Lagoon. tract, Molano hired Oren Alexander, a lot, listen to this. As managing part-
making it too late to re-book with dif- The tract is composed about equally superstar Miami and New York City ner of Bal Harbour-based MREIT LLC,
ferent carriers. broker who sold the most expensive Molano bought the first chunk of this
of lowlands and submerged or partially residential property in U.S. history a property – 10.75 acres – this March 9,
Earlier this summer, Orchid resi- submerged lands. couple of years ago – a $238 million paying $215,000, according to county
dent Phil Coviello shared his Elite story Manhattan penthouse. property records.
about canceled flights and lengthy de- Miami real estate investor Jonathan
lays, saying, “I had already stopped us- Molano, who has a keen interest in Alexander and his brother, Tal, who The seller was Port St. Lucie-based
ing them for business flights, because Vero Beach, identified the property as left Douglas Elliman in June after 10 Axum Properties Inc., which pur-
you can’t rely on them, and I won’t use an investment opportunity and pur- years and founded their own compa- chased the tract for $2,500 via a tax
them again.” chased the land in two transactions ny, said “this truly stunning 17.45-acre deed in 2007.
earlier this year. assemblage with Atlantic views is an
Scher said Elite began the summer by exquisite opportunity to create a spec- Then in June, Molano purchased four
cancelling flights one day at a time. In “We like the property and assem- tacular private estate, residential devel- additional parcels totaling 6.75 acres for
August, however, the airline scrubbed bled it because we love Vero,” Molano opment, or yacht club with a full marina $300,000 from Atlantis Properties, de-
the entire month, with the intention of told Vero Beach 32963 on Monday. and private amphibious plane landing.” veloper of the neighboring subdivision.
resuming service on Sept. 22. “Vero is awesome, in our opinion –
truly one of a kind.” If the $25 million price seems like a The two sections currently are divid-
On Monday, the rest of September’s
flights were canceled. To market and sell the Vero riverfront CONTINUED ON PAGE 10

“The conversation changed from:
‘When are you going to fly?’ to ‘Are you
going to fly?’” Scher said, adding, “I’m
really surprised there hasn’t been more
public outcry.”

That should alarm Pearsall – and any
potential new Elite owner or partner –
because it tells us a growing number
of customers in our community no
longer care enough to complain.

They’ve simply given up and, de-
spite the home-airport convenience
Elite once offered, are now spending
their air-travel dollars with an airline
they can depend on.

“It’s extremely unfortunate that the
traveling public has to deal with this,
but whether Elite flies or not is 100 per-
cent out of our hands,” Scher said. “We
know people are frustrated, because
we’re getting calls on a daily basis, but
there’s really nothing we can do to help.

“This is a strange situation for us
to be in, too,” Scher said. “Fair or not,
what’s happening also reflects on the
image of the airport and city.”

Let’s be clear: That’s not fair.
The people of this community, in-
cluding the city government, have done
everything necessary to make Elite feel
welcome and support the airline’s op-
erations here.
So what happened?
Why did Elite stop flying here –
without warning, or explanation, or
guarantee it will return?
Was Elite grounded? Did the airline
run out of money? Is there something
else going on that we should know?
Why won’t Pearsall tell us?
“I’ve stopped asking,” Scher said,
“but I wish the guy would just be up-
front with us.” 

Riverfront property
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

and bifurcated, at least for the moment,
by a 110-foot-wide strip, is bounded by
The Moorings’ South Passage neigh-
borhood on the north and St. Christo-
pher Harbor on the south. To the west
is a gorgeous mile-and-a-half-wide

10 Vero Beach 32963 / September 15, 2022 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

NEWS

Riverfront property nient for an owner commuting to their
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 9 weekend home from South Florida.

ed by a narrow strip of property owned The idea of developing the property
by Maasai Special Projects Fund, a Vero as a yacht club and marina seems like
Beach-based nonprofit. Molano said more of an uphill battle.
he is “talking with the group” about
purchasing their property, but is mov- Molano said he and the Alexanders
ing ahead with marketing the acreage did some due diligence and believe
he owns in the meantime. a yacht-club project is possible, but
top island brokers and developers are
In a bit of understatement, he said he skeptical. Likewise county planners.
believes the property he purchased was
greatly underpriced, and that combin- “I would say something like that would
ing the parcels added to their value. The be very difficult if not impossible,” said
property “is like a little private island,” Ryan Sweeney, the county’s Chief of Cur-
he said, noting it has 800 feet of frontage rent Development. “Besides county reg-
on A1A and 300 feet of lagoon frontage. ulations, you’d have to go through FDEP,
St. Johns River Water Management Dis-
“We ran a lot of comps,” he said. trict, the Army Corps – probably all the
“We are offering the property for $33 way up to a federal EPA study.
per square foot while nearby property
has sold for $80 per square foot and “The property is zoned residential,
waterfront lots elsewhere in Vero are which doesn’t allow for building a ma-
asking close to $200 per square foot. rina at all. I don’t see it happening.”

“It’s zoned RS-3, single-family resi- Regardless of what can or can’t be
dential with up to three units per acre,
which means up to 52 homes – in the- PHOTO BY JOSHUA KODIS
ory – but our idea is more to develop
a single extraordinary estate or two built on the property, Molano has some
unique estates.” very high-powered sales help.

He noted the sale of nearby river- The Alexander Team, which racked
front and oceanfront homes with less up $1.7 billion in sales in 2021, was the
acreage for $20 million and $27 mil- topped-ranked Elliman team in both
lion, and said waterfront estates 10 New York and Florida in 2021 based
acres and larger are becoming more on sales volume and gross commis-
popular with ultra-luxury buyers from sion income, according to The Real
places like California and Chicago. Deal – and the brothers are expanding
aggressively in Aspen, the Hamptons,
“Everyone wants to move to Flor- California and elsewhere.
ida and there is very little waterfront
property available,” Molano said. The Alexanders left Elliman because
the brokerage was “set up to take care
“Griffin spent $350 million to as- of too many different segments of the
semble a 12-acre homesite in Palm market,” Oren Alexander told Bloom-
Beach,” he added, referring to billion- berg real estate writer Jenifer Epstein
aire hedge-fund manager Ken Griffin, in August, speaking from St. Tropez,
who recently moved his family and France, where he was cruising for cli-
companies to Florida. ents along the Riviera.

Current luxury waterfront construc- “We sell to the top 1/10th of 1 per-
tion costs are between $500 and $600 cent of buyers,” he said.
a square foot, not including land, ac-
cording to well-known island builder That philosophy and focus might just
Joe Foglia, who has built some of the pay off for Molano. “We’re getting a lot
largest houses in 32963. of calls daily,” he said on Monday. “We
are just waiting for the right buyer.”
At that rate, a boat-loving billionaire
could pay Molano’s asking price, build As for the future, he said he was buy-
a 10,000-square-foot house and be in ing another property here “that hasn’t
for around $30 million – less than 10 closed yet and looking for more in down-
percent of what Griffin paid just for town Vero. We believe Vero is one of the
land 60 miles to the south. few towns that have great commercial
real estate potential that many real es-
When the Alexander brothers tate funds don’t know about yet.” 
launched their new business, OFFI-
CIAL, it was in large part to concentrate If you would like to see how bigtime
exclusively on the “really rich” instead South Florida real estate players view
of the merely “wealthy,” according to Vero Beach in 2022, check out this pro-
an article in Wealth. motional video published by Molano:
https://vimeo.com/733369128
And those are the kind of clients who
can easily spend $30 or $40 or $50 mil-
lion for an expansive waterfront estate
close to all of Vero’s shopping, dining,
entertainment and cultural amenities.

“We checked and you can land a
seaplane there,” Molano told Vero
Beach 32963, which would be conve-

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / September 15, 2022 11

NEWS

A 2nd chance to hear Andres Duany’s vision for Three Corners

BY RAY MCNULTY evening to allow working people to at- er volunteers who support the Three potential developers from investing
Staff Writer tend. The exact time and venue won’t be Corners project were “already gearing in the Three Corners project.
announced until this week on a newly up” to advocate for the approval of the
Remember the excitement and en- created www.letstalkvero.com website. city-crafted referendum asking vot- The City Council, however, voted
thusiasm generated by urban planner ers to amend the city charter to allow unanimously last month to challenge
Andres Duany’s vision for the Three Though only city residents may vote commercial use on the 17-acre power- the alliance’s referendum in court,
Corners parcels – a conceptual design on the referendum, Gould said county plant parcel, if officials can negotiate asking a judge to remove the initiative
so well-received that at one public residents are welcome to attend the a long-term lease with a cooperative from the ballot because its language is
presentation in January 2020 the gath- presentation as well. developer. vague and misleading.
ering gave him a standing ovation?
“So much time has gone by since She said the Vero Beach Preservation City Attorney John Turner has re-
Vicky Gould hopes to rekindle those the plan was presented to the commu- Alliance’s referendum, filed shortly be- quested an expedited hearing so the
feelings. nity, and I just want everyone to have fore the county Supervisor of Elections matter can be resolved before the elec-
another opportunity to see what’s pos- deadline last month, only increased tion, but he said if a ruling isn’t issued
Confronting a citizen-authored No- sible there and get re-engaged,” Gould Gould’s group’s sense of urgency. before voters begin casting their ballots
vember referendum that could derail said last weekend. – and if the city wins the case – the judge
Vero Beach’s plan to develop a dining, “This other referendum came along,” has the authority to void the result.
retail, social and recreational hub on “From the outset, our committee she said, “and it has the potential to re-
the mainland’s waterfront, the chair- wanted to give everyone a voice, and ally throw a wrench into things.” “This whole hullabaloo shakes things
woman of the now-dissolved Three the response from the community was up a bit, but we have to proceed as if it’s
Corners Steering Committee wants huge,” she added. “People realized this The alliance’s efforts, which began as going to be on the ballot,” Gould said.
to remind everyone what the project project is so big, so important to our neighborhood opposition to plans to ex- “That means we have to drum up sup-
would mean to the community. future here. But there’s been a little bit pand the municipal marina, morphed port for our referendum, and we’re hop-
of a lull. into a referendum that would thwart ing Andres will be a cheerleader again.
That’s why Gould is bringing Duany the city’s efforts to noticeably expand,
back to Vero Beach on Oct. 12, when “Andres coming here and revisit- improve or develop any of the charter- “This concept is what we’ve worked
he’ll re-present the city’s Three Corners ing the concept – showing us the gem protected parks and other waterfront on for more than two years,” she add-
Master Concept Plan for the 33-acre we could eventually see on our river- properties by requiring referendums. ed. “This is what we came up with.
property that contains the defunct mu- front – is a way to get everyone excited This is what people wanted. Now we
nicipal power plant and still-operating again.” If the alliance’s referendum is ad- want our referendum to pass, so we
wastewater-treatment facility. opted – and all but the smallest im- can move forward with a plan.
The Vero Beach City Council unani- provements and expansions must
The city is neither sponsoring nor pro- mously approved the concept plan rec- be approved by the voters – city of- “As Andres said back when: The lon-
moting the privately organized event, ommended by the steering committee, ficials and other civic leaders say the ger you wait – the more you allow it to
which Gould said will be held in the early but that vote was held in April 2021. uncertainty and delays will dissuade languish – the less chance it will be-
come a reality.” 
Gould said she and a group of oth-

COVID infections up, but no sign of predicted fall surge

BY LISA ZAHNER West Florida and South Florida inching as of Monday, same-day appointments jab. The nasal vaccine rollout in India
Staff Writer back into the High COVID Community were available at several locations. will provide public health officials with
Level category, according to the Centers a wider data set to further the research.
The number of local residents hospi- for Disease Control and Prevention.  Walgreens at 13613 U.S. 1 in Sebas-
talized with COVID-19 declined sharply tian has the updated Moderna booster, As of early September, a total of 712
this past week, but the number of new Indian River County is now a Me- with same-day appointments available Indian River County residents have
infections rose somewhat – though not dium Covid Community Level county. at walgreens.com. Five Vero Beach area died of COVID-19 related illness since
enough to indicate the beginning of the Walgreens pharmacies are offering the the start of the pandemic in 2020. One
predicted fall surge from ultra-conta- Hospitalizations of COVID-positive updated Pfizer booster. quarter of the deaths have been in res-
gious Omicron variants. patients fell 50 percent week over week idents of nursing homes and assisted-
at the county’s largest hospital. “We have The next frontier in COViD-19 vac- living facilities. Fifty-four percent of
New cases reported to the Florida 10 patients in-house with COVID, one of cination may be an intranasal spray the people who died were male, and 92
Department of Health rose from 127 for which is in Critical Care,” said Cleveland vaccine similar to the influenza vaccine percent were white and non-Hispanic.
the week ending Sept. 1 to 178 for the Clinic Indian River Hospital spokesper- administered in the nose. The results of The age range of those who perished
week ending Sept. 8, an increase of 40 son Arlene Allen-Mitchell. a study published this month in Nature locally is 24 years to 105 years old.
percent. New infections typically see a magazine suggest that vaccine shots
bump after three-day holiday weekends As of Monday, Cleveland Clinic had no produced more protective antibodies The demographic that has turned up
when people tend to gather in groups plans to offer new COVID booster shots. in the nasal mucus of people who had a positive for COVID-19 most frequently
and travel, so it’s not surprising that the history of COVID-19 illness than in trial in Indian River County is people age 55
numbers edged up after Labor Day. Several local pharmacies do have subjects who have never contracted the to 64, accounting for nearly 15 percent
the updated Omicron-targeted boost- covid virus. The research indicates that of the county’s 39,883 cases.
School has also been in session for er shots available. an intranasal vaccine formula might be
a month, increasing opportunities for more protective than a shot. This coming week, Indian River
the virus to be passed around.  Publix pharmacies on Miracle County is expected to surpass the 40,000
Mile and at Harbor Point have the up- An Indian pharmaceutical company case mark, but that only counts people
The good news is that the county’s case dated boosters, with appointments at has purchased a nasal vaccine devel- who tested through a lab that reports
positivity rate fell to 10.1 percent from publix.com/covid-vaccine. oped at the University of Washington its data to the Florida Department of
14.5 percent two weeks earlier on the last in St. Louis, and that vaccine got emer- Health. With increasingly easy access to
statewide report. Statewide, Floridians  Five CVS Pharmacies in the Vero gency use approval from the Indian at-home COVID-19 test kits, the actual
are testing positive at about 17 percent, Beach area have the updated Pfizer government on Sept. 6, so people in number of people who have been in-
with several pockets in North Florida, booster shot, but not the Indian River India now have an alternative to the fected likely is significantly higher. 
Shores location, according to the vac-
cine scheduler on cvs.com. Appoint-
ments must be scheduled online and

12 Vero Beach 32963 / September 15, 2022 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

NEWS

First round of water/sewer rate hikes put off until January

BY LISA ZAHNER expect 76.7 percent higher rates by Oc- day for the Vero Beach City Council, is “The idea that you can set rates and
Staff Writer tober 2025. Utility customers inside the that instead of implementing the first forget it for 13 years is not how you run
city limits will be hit with a 63.2 percent phase of the new rate scheme on Oct. a utility,” Lawson said.
The Vero Beach Utilities Commission increase. After that, only an annual CPI 1 as originally planned, the initial set of
got its first real look at proposed water increase is scheduled, but that could increases will go into effect in January. She pointed out that the current rate
and sewer rate hikes designed to finance change if the cost of building the new structure has been depleting the utility’s
the city’s new wastewater treatment and plant rises above the current $82 mil- Finance Director Cindy Lawson cash reserves in recent years by a mil-
fund growing operational costs, and the lion estimate. said she wants the city to look at rev- lion dollars or more annually, and those
price tag will be a steep one. enue requirements every year going reserves need to be built back up to the
The one bright spot in the Raftelis forward to make sure the rates cover $10 million mark to put the city in a
Indian River Shores and unincorpo- consultant’s presentation, which was the city’s costs. The last full-blown rate strong position to seek $80-plus million
rated south barrier Island residents can scheduled to be repeated this past Tues- study was commissioned in 2010. dollars to finance the new plant.

That $10 million is the bare mini-
mum needed in reserves for a $30
million-per-year utility operation, she
said.

Though Lawson and Raftelis consul-
tant Tony Harrison emphasized that
all of the numbers related to financing
the new plant are preliminary and may
change, one factor they can estimate
with some certainty is that the oper-
ating and maintenance of the utility
once the new plant is completed will
increase by about $2.1 million per year.

Indian River Shores Councilman Bob
Auwaerter, who serves as the town’s rep-
resentative on the Vero Utilities Com-
mittee, noted that the cost estimate for
the new plant has risen from $50 mil-
lion to $60 million, and now to $82 mil-
lion, and observed that similar-capacity
plants elsewhere in Florida have cost
upwards of $100 million.

“That’s the cost of operating a util-
ity. Your new facility is going to last de-
cades and decades and decades,” Har-
rison said.

Whatever costs need to be borne,
Harrison said, “under the proposed
rate structure, the rates will be the same
across all the service areas.”

With only two members of the public
rising to the podium to ask questions,
the Utilities Commission voted 4-1 to
advise the City Council to adopt the
results of the rate study and, as Chair-
woman Jane Burton put it, “move for-
ward with the rate increases.”

Only Auwaerter voted nay.
Barrier island resident Judy Orcutt
expressed concern that the significant
sewer rate increases would discourage
people with septic tanks from hook-
ing on to the Vero sewer system via the
Septic Tank Effluent Pump or STEP ap-
paratus.
Aging and failing tanks are believed
to be a major culprit in declining la-
goon health and Vero has promoted
the STEP systems as an environmen-
tally friendly alternative.
Utilities Director Rob Bolton said the
city connects 90 to 100 septic users per
year to the sanitary sewer system with
STEP installation, and that it would
take a decade to get all the remaining
septic tanks in the city on sewer. 

Linda Drake.

SKIM JAM 2022

AN ACROSS-THE-BOARD SUCCESS

P. 22

14 Vero Beach 32963 / September 15, 2022 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

PEOPLE

Tykes & Teens expands its reach and ability to help families

BY STEPHANIE LaBAFF
Staff Writer

Tykes & Teens, a nonprofit found- Milo Hassloch, Art Pingree. PHOTOS: DENISE RITCHIE
ed by Jeff Shearer in Martin Coun-
ty, has expanded its territory over Ken Kenworthy, Andrea Greenlee, Linda Klos and Elizabeth Appleton. PHOTO: JOSHUA KODIS
the past 26 years to provide mental
health care to children and families witness a traumatic event before To address these issues, specially “We support and strengthen
in St. Lucie, Okeechobee and Indian age 4. Messina noted that trauma certified counselors work with the the relationship between the re-
River counties as well. at such an early age can include children and their families. ally young child and the caregiver,
such situations as children being whether it’s a parent or grandpar-
“As a psychotherapist, Shearer removed from their parents and Through the program, which is ent or a foster family,” Messina ex-
was quite a visionary in the field of placed into foster care, the loss of a based on a nationally utilized, evi- plained.
infant and childhood mental health parent, abuse and other tragedies. dence-based treatment model called
services,” said Linda Kloss, Tykes Child Parent Psychotherapy, care- Their Mental Health Consultation
& Teens interim executive director, These types of extreme trauma givers learn from an Infant Men- program is focused on the person-
noting that Shearer had retired in situations are difficult for the little tal Health therapist how to develop nel at early childhood learning and
2020. ones to process and can impact the positive attachment relationships daycare centers, said Kloss.
very young in extraordinary ways. between the infants and themselves.
Samantha Messina, development They utilize a prevention-based
director, added that Shearer’s goal
was to “strengthen local families
and make sure that all children had
access to high-quality counseling
and mental-health services, regard-
less of their financial status.”

Shearer founded the organiza-
tion after discovering that, in many
cases, children were not receiving
needed therapy because their par-
ents did not have insurance cover-
age and could not afford private
pay.

Today, Messina explained, cli-
ents without private insurance can
receive services on a sliding scale,
with costs offset by such sources
such as Medicaid, Florida Depart-
ment of Children and Families, oth-
er government programs, private
foundations and donations.

Through prevention, education
and treatment, Tykes & Teens pri-
oritizes children’s mental health at
home, at school, and in the com-
munity. They currently offer two
programs to Indian River County
residents: Infant Mental Health and
Mental Health Consultation.

Kloss explained that the Infant
Mental Health program, for chil-
dren ages 0 to 4, provides individual
counseling and support to parents
and families in the home environ-
ment. According to their current re-
cords, 57 of the 251 children served
through that program live in Indian
River County.

“It’s shocking that there would
be such a thing as infant mental
health, but we have to remember
that the basis for all of our counsel-
ing is trauma support,” said Mes-
sina.

According to a report from the
Substance Abuse and Mental Health
Services Administration, 26 percent
of all children will experience or

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / September 15, 2022 15

PEOPLE

approach that pairs a mental health ioral problem throughout life,” said and the cases are more complex,” offering that service on Oct. 1.
consultant with early learning edu- Kloss. She noted that early interac- Kloss explained. In the meantime, to provide out-
cators and care providers who work tion is the key to curtailing inappro-
with infants and young children priate behavior before it becomes “During the last fiscal year, we patient mental health therapy to
under 5 years of age, to help them ingrained. served about 1,500 clients through older children and teens, Kloss said
improve the children’s social and our therapy services, but we’ve seen they have added telehealth to their
emotional development. The goal “During the pandemic, we had a over 10,000 through our prevention toolbox.
is to reduce the number of children 300 percent increase in the demand services,” said Messina.
being suspended or expelled from for services at Tykes & Teens. We had “It’s not right for every child, but
early childhood care centers and, a 100 percent increase in high-risk Kloss said that Tykes & Teens is it can be a good way of keeping in
potentially, classrooms later on, due clients,” said Messina. hoping to increase services in Indi- touch and moving treatment plans
to behavioral issues. an River County by offering outpa- along,” she explained. “It’s one of
She added that at one point, they tient services to older children. those things that will always be
“Rather than working one-on-one had a waitlist of 300 children who a vital adjunct to treatment now,
with a child, the program is designed needed to be seen across the four- “We have a proposal in to the Indian because it’s an easy way to stay in
to help the staff in the early learn- county area they serve. There is River Hospital District to open an out- touch with people.”
ing center be better able to deal with still a waitlist among infant mental patient services center for ages 5 to 17,”
emotional behavioral problems. We health clients. said Kloss For more information, visit tykes
support the staff so that they can do andteens.org. 
a better job in dealing with behav- “This is a specialty therapy area, She said that if the funding comes
ioral issues,” said Kloss. through, Tykes & Teens will begin

Based on a training program
called the Trauma Informed Care
Series, roughly 100 staff members at
six early childhood centers in Indi-
an River County have been trained
how to recognize signs and how to
de-escalate problems.

They have also been taught how
to help children better handle their
emotions and deflect behavioral
problems.

As a result of the training, which
has impacted some 440 children,
Tykes & Teens has noted a 17 percent
reduction in the number of children
experiencing challenging behav-
ior at those collaborative childcare
sites.

“A child with more serious be-
havioral issues could be referred
for one-on-one counseling through
Infant Mental Health. Or, if the
behavior can be controlled in the
classroom environment, they can
work with the staff to do so,” Kloss
explained.

Providing an example, Kloss said
one particular 3-year-old child had
been passed from daycare to day-
care.

At age 4, the child was on the verge
of being expelled from yet another
childcare center for aggressive, dis-
ruptive and defiant behavior.

However, after working with a
Tykes & Teens therapist, the child
has shown immense growth and is
no longer being considered for ex-
pulsion.

Research conducted by the Har-
vard University Center on the De-
veloping Child indicates that pro-
longed trauma without appropriate
support can disrupt a child’s normal
development. That, in turn, can lead
to impairments in the brain, and in
their social and emotional develop-
ment. Left untreated, the child is
likely to develop inappropriate be-
haviors.

“Having no professional interven-
tion sets up a child to be a behav-

16 Vero Beach 32963 / September 15, 2022 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

PEOPLE

For ‘Soup Bowlers,’ no time to spare ahead of fundraiser

BY STEPHANIE LaBAFF Katherine Bauman. PHOTOS: JOSHUA KODIS ter, said Renee Bireley, Samaritan Cen-
Staff Writer ter development director.
on. Some
Potters never really need an excuse to stop doing Somewhat serendipitously, the Heri-
throw mud, but when the call goes out clay. Some tage Center was among the first loca-
each year to use their skills to support build their tions to host the Soup Bowl 30 years
the Samaritan Center’s annual Soup own stu- ago.
Bowl fundraiser, they respond with all dios and
hands on deck. move into “What is more community than the
those. This is Heritage Center?” said Bireley.
Overseen once again by Indian River the one opportu-
Clay, the diligently working potters are nity every year for all The format change to have soup
well on the way toward completing of us to get together and bowl sales at a single location the past
their goal of producing 1,200 wheel- play in the mud together.” two years turned out to be beneficial in
thrown and hand-built soup bowls. some respects, she added.
The distinctly unique works of art will Indian River Clay held open stu-
be available for purchase on Thursday, dio hours during August for potters to “We were actually very successful
Nov. 3, during the 30th Annual Soup make and trim bowls, with September and thrilled that the community came
Bowl, held again this year from 9 a.m. to dates reserved for glazing the creations. out and embraced the Soup Bowl. It
7 p.m. at the Heritage Center. really was wonderful having them all
“It’s nice to have a bunch of people in together because you could see all the
“Local potters have been doing this one place working toward a common different bowls. People bought multi-
for more than 28 years,” said Maria cause. And soup is a humble meal, ac- tudes because they could see them to-
Sparsis, Indian River Clay co-founder. cessible to the entire community. Not gether,” said Bireley, recalling that one
“It’s a good cause. It brings the commu- everybody can buy a $200 ticket to a lady bought 12 to put orchids in for all
nity together, and it’s fun.” fundraising event, but everybody can of her friends.
come out and buy a soup bowl. Every-
Explaining its draw for the potters, body can pitch in to support a homeless This year will see the return of soup
Sparsis explains: “Through the years, family,” Sparsis added. purchases, but in a different fash-
you get to meet a whole lot of potters, ion from years past. At the
and some stay with you and some move The Samaritan Center, a program of Heritage Center, you will
Catholic Charities, provides transition- be able to purchase
al housing for homeless families with cold, soup-to-go by
dependent children in Indian River the quart, donated
County. In addition to shelter, it assists by restaurants and
them to prepare to live independently country clubs. The
through educational programs, coun- donation request-
seling and support. ed is $15 for a quart
container of soup-
Amidst the pandemic, Soup Bowl or- to-go.
ganizers had to amend what had been Additionally, some
a multi-location event, and this year it local churches and
will again be held at the Heritage Cen- businesses will return to
making their own soups to

sell at their locations, but the hand-
made bowls will only be sold at the Her-
itage Center. The requested donation
for each soup bowl is $15.

During the pandemic, many of those
locations thought outside the ‘soup
bowl’ – hosting, for example, a Reverse
Soup Bowl, where Bireley said parishio-
ners were asked to donate cans of soup
in a drive-thru version that were donat-
ed to the Salvation Army.

The nonprofit clay studio, founded in
2018 to promote the learning and devel-
opment of pottery skills, has more than
60 members and 70 others waiting to
get in. Members are working to pay off
the mortgage and put money aside for
another building so that membership
can be expanded.

“There is more demand than what
we can meet, and we need more space,”
said Sparsis, adding that they are add-
ing new classes all the time.

For more information about the Sa-
maritan Center, visit ccdpb.org. For more
information about Indian River Clay,
visit indianriverclay.org. 

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / September 15, 2022 17

PEOPLE

Rosemary Goddard. Linda Hoffman. Ken Gioeli.

Maria Sparsis.

18 Vero Beach 32963 / September 15, 2022 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

PEOPLE

New Jimmy Graves Fields complex seen as ‘heartbeat of Vero’

BY STEPHANIE LaBAFF PHOTOS CONTINUED ON PAGE 20 together for years and years.” “The edu-walk will have spaces
Staff Writer “We want to use every single inch along the way in which you can learn
Carter Ange and Nolan Ange. PHOTOS: JOSHUA KODIS about the history of Vero Beach. Our
The Education Foundation of In- of this land for our community,” students will do that research and
dian River County recently hosted said School Superintendent David identify what innovative things we
a Kick-Off Party to announce plans Moore, referring to the site as “the all need to learn,” said Moore.
for a new Community Complex at heartbeat of Vero Beach.”
Jimmy Graves Fields, located across A 5,000-square-foot Inclusive
the street from the Vero Beach High The 11.5-acre property will house Playground will feature an ADA de-
School. The Graves family donated the Jimmy Graves Sports Complex, sign that encourages play, discovery
the property to the School District a Student Entrepreneurial and and exploration in a sensory-rich
of Indian River County in memory Community Collaboratory, a His- environment.
of Jimmy Graves, who died at age 15 toric Vero Walking Trail, an Inclu-
in a 2016 boating accident. sive Playground and a Community The Student Entrepreneurial
Amphitheater. Center will provide space for stu-
The Education Foundation is sup- dents to market, merchandise and
porting the school district’s fund- “As we approach the sixth an- sell products, such as school spirit
raising efforts to develop the facility niversary of his death, I think he’d wear and Vero Bean coffee, and a
for the entire community. be very proud to come here today student art gallery. They plan for
and see what’s happening,” said Joe it to be a hub for collaboration, in-
“We’re excited to partner with Graves of his son. novation, professional development
the school district to serve our stu- and community partnerships.
dents, teachers and families,” said “One of the big lessons I learned
Heidi Leone, Education Foundation from my son after his passing was A large Community Amphithe-
executive director. that the real meaning in life isn’t ater, with state-of-the-art mobile
what we do for ourselves, but how sound capabilities and a portable
She thanked the Graves family we impact others. That’s what peo- projection screen, is being planned
“for not only giving those that knew ple remember, and that’s the legacy which the community and nonprof-
Jimmy a place to remember him that we leave. Jimmy’s impact on its can rent to host outdoor events
and honor him, but also giving the others, on his schoolmates, on his and concerts.
community an opportunity to come teachers, on his coaches and on
adults was profound. That really Kickoff attendees enjoyed re-
was the inspiration for what you see freshments, visited nonprofit in-
here today.” formational booths, and took the
SDIRC’s Anti-Bullying Pledge.
Graves credited School Board
member Brian Barefoot for devising Citing the importance of elimi-
a visionary plan to make Graves’ nating bullying in schools and
dream a reality, and Moore’s leader- across the county, Moore said, “It
ship abilities for making it happen. takes everyone in the county in or-
der to do so. When a student is bul-
Moore said that $2.8 million of lied, and it is not addressed in real-
the projected $7.38 million cost had time, there are long-term impacts,
already been raised before the cam- not only on that particular child but
paign officially kicked off. possibly on others.”

The Jimmy Graves Sports Com- “We are asking our community
plex will feature an eight-lane reg- members and our families to sign
ulation track, named in honor of because we want our students to
Coach Bill Wilson, with event sta- feel valued, safe and accepted in
tions and a field for lacrosse/soccer. our schools,” added Pam Dampier,
SDIRC assistant superintendent.
The half-mile Historic Vero Walking
Trail will feature facts about historical “Overall, our priority is student
events that helped shape Vero Beach.

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / September 15, 2022 19

PEOPLE

achievement, but we want to make do to enrich the lives of students Willis Sports Association, Life- programs and services to help local
sure our students have a positive in the county: Fellsmere Boys and Builders of the Treasure Coast, Vero students reach their full potential
learning environment to do that Girls Club, Indian River Lacrosse Beach Foundation Little Indian’s and facilitates the Indian River Re-
in.” Association, Indian River Soccer Football, Sebastian Sharks Youth gional Science & Engineering Fair.
Academy, Riverside Theatre Chil- Football and the Gifford Youth Or-
The Education Foundation pre- dren’s Programs, Ballet Vero Beach, chestra. For more information, visit
sented 11 local nonprofits with do- Homeless Children’s Foundation, edfoundationirc.org. 
nations, recognizing the work they The Education Foundation funds

20 Vero Beach 32963 / September 15, 2022 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

PEOPLE

PHOTOS CONTINUED FROM PAGE 18 Kathryn Wilson, Yolanda Lucas and Angela Banzhaf. Shala Edwards and Eric Seymour.
IRCSO Deputies Jessica Ogonoski and Andrew Bartuccelli.

Ashley Gillespie, Amy D’Albora, Amelia D’Albora and Leslie Connelly. Jeff O’Brien, Freddie Woolfork and Stephanie Nelson. County Commissioner Joe Earman and IRCSO Capt. Milo Thornton.

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

PEOPLE

Joe Coakley and Susan Gromis. Chadd Bradberry with Lexie, Lylah and Cayden. Brian and Erin Strickland with Anna and Ethan.

Rachel, Sophia and Johan Graves.

Connor Kiernan.

Bridget Lyons.
David Moore and Joe Graves.

22 Vero Beach 32963 / September 15, 2022 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

PEOPLE

Skilled competitors make Skim Jam across-the-‘board’ success

BY STEPHANIE LaBAFF scribe how waves crash directly on
Staff Writer the beach.”

It was an epic morning for the Nearly 100 amateur and profes-
15th annual Mulligan’s Skim Jam at sional skimmers descended upon
the Sexton Plaza Beach – the final the sandy shores just off Mulligan’s
stop on the Skim USA Triple Crown Beach House to compete in what or-
2022 tour. ganizers say is the largest one-day
skim board competition in the world.
The event was again hosted by
shore lb., which stands for shore Contestants, who participate
pound: “surfer slang used to de- based on skill level in beginner, in-
termediate, advanced, expert and

AJ Flinchum, Todd Rhoten, Tim Capra and Chris Ellison. PHOTOS: JOSHUA KODIS

professional divisions, hitch a ride through, so that participants and
on the waves and are judged on wave their fans could view heats, jersey
selection, incoming and outgoing colors and results instantaneously.
tricks, and the variety and difficulty
of the maneuvers they execute. Ellison said he is constantly in awe
of the family culture of the sport,
“This year, we started our own which draws competitors from all
tour – the shore lb. Triple Crown,” over the world, and credits it to the
said event organizer Chris Ellison, camaraderie that exists throughout
founder/CEO of shore lb. “The first the skimboarding community.
stop was in Vero Beach at Mulligan’s
in March, the second stop was in The Skim Jam also raises aware-
April in Panama City, and this is the ness and funds for the Vero Beach
third stop.” Lifeguard Association – a nonprofit
whose mission is to “promote life-
Participants must compete in all guarding and water safety” by sup-
three skim jams, earning points plying funding for the equipment
along the way, ultimately hoping the lifeguards need to save lives.
to rack up the highest number of
points in their division and earn the “The Vero Beach Lifeguards patrol
Triple Crown trophy. and protect the waters from South
Beach all the way to Jaycee Beach.
The spring competition had previ- They keep us safe on our beaches
ously been held in Stuart, along with here. Without our Vero Beach life-
a surfing competition. guards, so many people would be
endangered and potentially dead,”
“We grew so big we decided to said Ellison, a former lifeguard.
separate from the surf contest,”
shared Ellison. “And we’re lucky He noted that proceeds from past
enough here in Vero to have some of events went toward the VBLA’s pur-
the best skimboarding waves on the chase of ATVs and side-by-sides
East Coast.” used by the lifeguards to patrol the
beaches, enabling them to render
Ellison said he discovered skim- aid more quickly, and paddleboards
boarding while visiting his grand- and kayaks so they can reach people
parents in Vero Beach during the in the ocean more rapidly.
winter and grew so enamored of the
sport that he moved here perma- “Today is about the Vero Beach
nently after graduating from high lifeguards. They’re here; they help
school. to support us,” said Ellison.

“Skimboarding is a combination Afterward, the contestants,
of skating and surfing,” Ellison ex- friends and families headed to
plained, noting that as a result, it Walking Tree Brewery for an awards
draws a variety of athletes. “It bridg- ceremony where they handed out
es the gap between those two ex- awards for the day’s competition
treme sports.” and also announced the Triple
Crown winners.
Ellison said they moved the reg-
istration, heat schedule and scor- For more information, visit shorelb.
ing online this year to liveheats.com com or vbla.org. 
to enable real-time scores to come

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / September 15, 2022 23

PEOPLE

Brady Schraw, Jackson Payne, Jude Stefan and Caleb Eiswerth. Gavin Hayes and Will Grady. Ava Lilliquist and Aubrey Lilliquist.

Anthony Nocito, Brady Hyre and Cole Lott.
Aiden Goldfein, Collin Kelly and Cameron Kelly.

Duy Van.





SECOND OF TWO PARTS The ultimate family holiday... in California 6

The grand steel expanse of the Golden Gate Bridge
is straight out of the movies

By Chris Leadbeater You can source this combination of A young woman skateboarding on Santa Monica Pier, or gazing up at
ingredients in several corners of the on the Venice Beach boardwalk the Hollywood sign.
A brilliant family holiday requires a planet, but for residents of Florida
careful balance of elements. It needs a and the eastern U.S., the Golden State sort of visual X-factor that even the But it is the journey between them
hearty dose of fun to keep the younger – California – is a perfect playground most surly teenager will appreci- which particularly inspires – whales
members of the group happy. It war- for family escapes. It flirts with the Pa- ate – the grand steel expanse of the breaching the waves of Monterey Bay,
rants a pace of itinerary that won’t ex- cific for 840 miles – most persuasively Golden Gate Bridge, the remark- the road clinging daringly to the rocks
haust everybody involved. It doesn’t in the bends of Highway One between able as-seen-in-the-movies steepness at Big Sur. And if this isn’t enough, Cali-
have to contain a beach and a comfy San Francisco and Los Angeles. of Lombard and Filbert Streets, the fornia also soars in high places. Not
hotel next to it, though this tends to gangster stories and striking isolation least Yosemite National Park, a won-
help. Equally, while it’s impossible to Each city is an essential part of the of Alcatraz. LA is no shrinking violet derland where waterfalls splash and
arrange fair weather in advance, sunny experience. San Francisco has the either – a moving gallery of images bears lumber. It also works in a win-
days and pleasant temperatures will al- whether you are people-watching at ning placidity where Lake Tahoe marks
ways make a getaway go better. Venice Beach, riding the ferris wheel the state line with Nevada, kayaks glid-
ing across its surface – and sinks to
Most important, though, is a sense heat and sun-glare where Death Valley
of adventure – that magic extra some- unfurls its ferocious desert.
thing, sprinkled on top, which turns a
good holiday into a great one. This can And yet for all this, California isn’t so
be provided by epic geography and a rugged or fierce as to spurn the giddy
sense of scenic wonder. It can be served amusements of the theme park. Disney-
up by the gravity-taunting rush of a thrill land, in Anaheim, is as much a child-
ride in motion. But it has to be there, to friendly delight now as when it opened
avoid that clarion call: “I’m boooored.” (in 1955). A little of everything will en-
sure everything goes swimmingly. 

The ultimate food and wine holiday... in Spain 7

Tapas can be as simple as a In Seville, home of the magnificent
plate of manchego and spicy Alcazar palace, there is no shortage of
tapas bars sporting hanging hams and
Iberico hams attractive, locally-made ceramic tiles
in the former Gypsy quarter, Triana.
People enjoying Tapas orful snapshots of day-to-day life found chickpeas with spinach (garbanzos Make a pilgrimage to Bar El Riconcillo
in Malaga, Andalucia in any neighborhood tasca or tapas bar, con espinacas). They are always made on Gerona that claims to have invent-
is my ultimate culinary holiday. in-house and presented in mouth-wa- ed the concept of tapas, then head up
By Chris Caldicott tering displays. to Carmona on a spur of the Alcores
Tapas can be as simple as a plate of Hills, above the city, for stunning views
Street food tours have become an in- manchego cheese and olives, wafer The complementary tapas or pinchos at sunset and evening tapas in Plaza
creasingly trendy part of the travel ex- thin slices of cured smoky and spicy provided with your drink are usually San Pedro.
perience. In India, stalls offer spicy se- Iberico hams served on olive oil soaked more salty snacks served to encourage
lections of savory snacks; in Vietnam bread, a scoop of paella or deep fried more drinking; the more sophisticated Tapas in the sherry capital of Jerez de
you can slurp steaming bowls of pho crunchy anchovies. They can also be larger tapas dishes known as racions are la Frontier are accompanied by chilled
soup and noodles on plastic stools in as complex as sizzling earthenware added to your bill and refreshingly good glasses of delicate dry fino; Bar Juanito
every backstreet. casseroles of stuffed squid, clams or value. off, Plaza del Arenal, has a menu of 52,
and artichokes are among its special-
In Europe, however, finding authen- ties.
tic regional cuisine usually requires
booking a restaurant table, removing Down on the Atlantic coast in Cadiz,
a large degree of spontaneity. The ex- wall-to-wall tapas bars specializing in
ception is Spain, where tapas culture super fresh seafood line C Zorilla; try
comes with the same casual street- La Gaditana for the best selection at
food style – with the added attraction excellent value.
of a cold cerveza or copa di vino, often
from an underrated local vineyard. Inland, past the stunning white vil-
lage of Arcos de la Frontera, Ronda sits
I’ve sampled wonderful cuisine in dramatically astride the deep El Tajo
every corner of the world, but a trip Gorge in the Serrania de Ronda moun-
around the historic Moorish towns and tains. Plaza del Socorro is packed with
‘pueblos blancos’ of Andalucia, punc- tapas bars; El Lechuguita at Remedios
tuated with the delicious food and col- 35 is famous for its fried calamari and
vegetarian options.

After touring the mesmerizing multi-
arched interior of Cordoba’s Byzantine
La Mezquita mosque, order the wonder-
ful salmorejo cold soup with boiled egg
or the pesto vegetables with fried egg at
Taberna San Miguel in Plaza San Miguel.

Your final stop is Granada, high in the
Sierra Nevada mountains and home of
the mighty Alhambra palace. Los Dia-
mantes at 28 Navas serves superlative
gammas al ajillo (garlic shrimps), and
pulpo gallego (spicy octopus). Reina
Monica at 20 Panaderos offers compli-
mentary Arabic tapas (three with each
drink), and serves a generous tapas
buffet of Andalucia’s finest culinary
treats. 

CONTINUED ON PAGE 28

28 Vero Beach 32963 / September 15, 2022 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 27 INSIGHT COVER STORY

The ultimate rail holiday... in India 8 9The ultimate walking holiday... in Greece

Houseboat on the Kerala Backwaters in South India Vikos Gorge in the
Pindus Mountains of
north-western Greece

By Christian Wolmar savoring the hustle and bustle in the By Richard Madden tains of north-western Greece, near the
knowledge that a comfortable bed and a Walking holidays need to be care- border with Albania. Even though most
There’s something about India’s at- gentle ride through the night await. people have never heard of it, it is one of
tachment to the iron horse that means fully chosen to ensure the right level the world’s deepest gorges and its sheer,
a train ride around that country de- Its holidays start and end with stays in of exertion and the perfect combina- 200-million-year-old limestone walls are
serves a place on everyone’s travel five-star hotels, including, for those on tion of excellent food, accommoda- nearly 4,500 feet high at its deepest point.
wish list. One could explore this vast the Madras Mail route, in Hyderabad’s tion, opportunities to relax, and most
and fascinating country by plane, of truly astonishing Taj Falaknuma Palace, importantly, inspirational landscapes. You’ll find some of the most impres-
course, but it just wouldn’t seem right; which sits on a hill above the city and, An honest assessment of your own sive landscapes in Europe, while the
the trundling pace of a train is far more unlike many pretenders, is a real palace physical capabilities, and those of route is punctuated by traditional stone
suited to the laid-back way of life. built in 1894 by the local Nizam. your group, coupled with detailed on- villages and delightful guest houses.
the-ground research and trail notes
The familiar image of rail travel in A succession of seductive cities await, from a well-trusted and reliable op- After a flight to Corfu and a ferry
the region is one of long delays and with the Madras Mail beginning in erator are all desirable ingredients. ride over the Ionian Sea to Igoumenit-
overcrowded carriages, but the country Mumbai and including stops in Ooty (via sa on the Greek mainland, a bus trans-
of the Taj Mahal knows a thing or two the twisting Nilgiri Mountain Railway), The other element to grapple with is fers walkers to the village of Kapesevo.
about luxury and there are an increas- seaside Cochin, easy-going Trivandrum, whether you are looking for a guided Your base for the next three nights is
ing number of tourist trains aimed at a the venerable temple town of Madurai, or self-guided holiday. Both have their a delightful family-run guest house
Western audience that wants to travel Pondicherry, with its French heritage, attractions. The former are excellent in this traditional stone village. From
the easy way. and bustling Chennai, before reaching for meeting like-minded people with here you will set out each morning to
journey’s end in Hyderabad. a shared love of walking, while the lat- explore the surrounding countryside.
My favorite, the Deccan Odyssey, ter are best for a romantic adventure
describes itself as a “palace on wheels” One key facet of Indian rail travel, as a couple or with a group of friends These expeditions include a walk
and certainly lives up to that claim. even on luxury trains, is that speeds who have known each other for years. into another nearby gorge and up a
Built by Indian Railways to cater to the rarely exceed 60 mph, which is a posi- Choosing a destination that is relative- zig-zag series of more than 1,000 stone
growing number of tourists keen to ex- tive, not a negative – providing time to ly unknown can also add to the appeal. steps before following an 18th-centu-
perience India’s enthralling cities with- see life slowly unfolding before you. ry cobbled track built for caravans of
out the day-to-day hassle of its Byzan- This serves as a constant source of en- A destination that ticks all the boxes mules carrying supplies to the region’s
tine bureaucracy, it is the best way to tertainment; there’s always something is the Vikos Gorge in the Pindus Moun- remote mountain villages. Along the
see the country. to see as the train trundles gently but way, you will descend into wooded
purposefully through the vast distanc- valleys and cross some of the region’s
The train boasts 10 sleeping coach- es between major cities. trademark arched bridges as well as
es, which each have only four cabins – visiting the Beloi Lookout with its epic
ensuring enough room for all guests to One moment you are watching the views over Vikos Gorge itself.
enjoy an en-suite bathroom and show- local farmers plough their fields – usu-
er. And if those are not sufficiently spa- ally with the help of an ox, often ac- The walk along the bottom of the
cious there are four presidential suites, companied by an egret pecking away gorge follows a dried-up river-bed to
each taking up half a carriage and of- at the insects on its back, rather than a the enchanting town of Papingo, where
fering a king-size bed and a much larg- tractor – while the next you almost feel your accommodation has stunning
er bathroom. The food is a highlight – like an intruder as the train passes so views towards Micropapingo on the
always delicious and copious, whether close to the little bungalows in which other side of the valley with the back-
you opt for local or Western fare – and most people live that you can see them drop of your final destination, Timfi
the wine carefully chosen. going about their daily chores. mountain.

Golden Eagle, a luxury train tour com- In contrast, there are long stretches The 3,000-foot climb to the Astraka
pany with more than 30 years’ experi- through the little populated ghats that Refuge and the Dragon Lake is the
ence, combines the train journeys with run parallel to the coastline, or in the toughest day, but ends with the reward
coach tours to temples, forts and other wetlands of Kerala, where the scen- of panoramic views back over the
sights. If you’d prefer to explore at your ery is as spectacular as anywhere on whole of the Zagori region. The best
leisure, there is often time just to wander the planet. It’s a truly unforgettable time to visit is in June and July, when
around the cities where the trains stop, adventure through one of the world’s the temperature is excellent for walk-
most seductive countries.  ing and the foliage fresh. 

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / September 15, 2022 29

INSIGHT COVER STORY

The ultimate hotel stay... in Morocco 10

La Mamounia, a Marrakech institution, comes close to perfection

This centuries-old trading hub has intoxicating energy

Immerse yourself in Moroccan culture with guided tours of the medina
and the souks or day trips to the Atlas

You certainly won't go hungry in Marrakech

By Aoife O’Riordain It helps to have heritage and La Ma- could not be anywhere other than Mo- ing the gardens with views of the snow-
mounia has a compelling backstory. rocco. It leans into its heritage and Art dusted peaks of the Atlas Mountains in
Everyone has their own opinion on Its stunning gardens were originally Deco-meets-Arabo-Andalucian style to the distance.
what makes the perfect hotel. Do you sa- gifted by the 18th-century Alaouite spectacular effect with Moorish arches,
vor the smaller scale and intimate bou- Sultan, Mohammad Ben Abdallah, to giant lanterns and delicately-carved Seamless service is also a given, and
tique style, or is over-the-top opulence one of his sons as a wedding present. masharabiyah wood screens. at La Mamounia it hits that sweet spot
with all the five-star frills more your Two centuries later the Moroccan Rail- between attentiveness and that un-
thing? Maybe it’s all the location or the way Company decided to build a hotel Beyond the hotel walls, you can comfortable sensation of people hov-
superlative service that really matters. fit for the great and the good, employ- immerse yourself in Moroccan cul- ering around you. Other guests are
ing French architects Henri Prost and ture with guided tours of the medina also an essential element of hotel life.
For me, having stayed in hundreds of Antoine Marchisio, who married the and the souks or day trips to the Atlas Winston Churchill was a fan and used
properties in more than 60 countries, Art Deco style of the times with Arabo- Mountains – the concierge can open to paint in the hotel’s garden and a
La Mamounia, a Marrakech institution, Andalucian flourishes. doors not normally available to every- veritable red carpet’s worth of famous
comes as close to perfection as any- one who visits the Rose City. (If you can faces have slipped between its sheets.
thing I’ve encountered, offering every- Evolution is key, of course, and nu- bear to leave, that is; the shady pool, These days, there is ample opportunity
thing you’d expect of a legendary hotel. merous refurbishments – the most no- zellige-tiled spa, and gardens dotted for people watching, whether poolside
table a three-year transformation at the with swaying palms, orange and olive or in one of the bars, where you can
Pulling up outside its history-steeped hands of French tastemaker Jacques trees have a magnetic quality.) speculate and spin stories about your
portals, you can’t help but feel a frisson Garcia, completed in 2009; the most re- fellow drinkers.
of excitement as you are greeted by its cent in 2020 when a cinema, wine cellar Location is also critical. La Mamou-
smiling, tarboosh-topped doormen and new restaurants were added – have nia sits on the edge of Marrakech’s an- Truly great hotels move with the
and ushered in. The best hotels trans- kept things fresh. cient medina, a short stroll to the city’s times but never lose their soul. La Ma-
port you to another world and as soon iconic D’jemma El Fna square. Throw mounia embodies the ideal escape
as you are through the doors, you are The best hotels should echo their open your windows early in the morn- that we’ve all been longing for after two
instantly enveloped by its exotic glam- surroundings, so you are never in any ing and the birdsong competes with years of confinement – a stay here will
our. On this front, La Mamounia cer- doubt where you are. There is a real the evocative sound of the muezzin’s linger in your memory long after you
tainly succeeds. sense of place at La Mamounia; you call to prayer. Ask for a room overlook- have checked out. 

30 Vero Beach 32963 / September 15, 2022 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

INSIGHT EDITORIAL

NASA last week twice aborted the takeoff of the systems and components, including the solid rock- ful on its first mission – won't fly again until 2024.
Space Launch System designed to return Americans et boosters. SpaceX is sending up craft almost weekly; Rock-
to the moon. First conceived in 2010, and initially
scheduled to have its first test flight in 2017, the But the cost-saving never emerged. In 2009, NASA etLab USA Inc. has already launched six times this
rocket is now scheduled to take off no earlier than estimated it would cost $24.5 billion to develop Ares year. Who's really keeping US aerospace skills sharp
late September, and possibly much later. I. Meanwhile, in California, a scrappy startup called while advancing aerospace engineering?
SpaceX was completing development of its work-
NASA, for its part, is hoping Americans will over- horse Falcon 9 rocket and Crew Dragon spacecraft. Employees weren't the SLS's only links to NASA's
look a decade of expensive failure and pray for the NASA invested $396 million in those new craft, both past. Rather than develop a new engine for the mas-
best. They shouldn't. The SLS’s path to the launch of which now fly missions for the space agency. sive new rocket, SLS's engineers adopted and adapt-
pad should never have happened. ed the RS-25 engine that powered the space shuttle.
In 2010, President Barack Obama canceled the Con- The first four launches use modified, surplus shuttle
Some proponents argue that the SLS launch marks stellation lunar program (including the Ares I), argu- engines that NASA had placed in storage.
the beginning of a "renaissance" for the US space ing "we've been there before." But Congress wasn't on
program. It's the first mission of NASA's Artemis pro- board with canceling the jobs that the Constellation Future launches will use new RS-25s manufactured
gram, designed to land Americans on the moon mid- supported. So it added a provision to NASA's 2010 au- by Rocket Aerojet Rocketdyne at of cost of roughly $3.5
decade and eventually lead to a permanent lunar thorization requiring the agency to “extend and mod- billion for 24 single-use engines, or some $145 million
base. All of that will require a working and successful ify” existing contracts for Constellation and the space per engine at a time when reusable rockets and en-
SLS, and this mission – Artemis I – would stress test its shuttle into contracts to build the SLS and the Orion gines are the trend across the private space sector.
capabilities and send Orion, a vehicle that will even- crew vehicle that's riding atop it today.
tually hold astronauts, on a trip around the moon. The promised cost savings have yet to appear:
But early on, NASA made it clear that the SLS would NASA’s own auditors recently estimated that a single
It sounds groundbreaking, but the reality is that only fly every two to four years, calling into question launch of the rocket will cost $4.1 billion – eight times
private-sector space companies have been pushing whether engineers could really be kept sharp and the greater than what the agency estimated in 2013.
boundaries for more than a decade while the SLS missions safe with such a low frequency of launch.
lingered through delays and blown budgets. Meanwhile, overall costs are tipping $23 billion.
In the 2000s, the space Shuttle was launching That's a far cry from what NASA promised Congress,
The last humans to visit the moon’s surface ar- three times per year (and as many as seven times and Congress promised the American people, when
rived via the Apollo 17 mission in 1972. Congress in the 1990s). By contrast, the SLS – if it's success- the program was conceived.
canceled an additional three missions due to cost,
safety and waning public and policy-maker interest. It's possible to do better. For example, the fully reus-
Instead, NASA pursued the space shuttle, the Inter- able engines that power SpaceX's Falcon 9 cost around
national Space Station and a rich robotic explora- $1 million.
tion program of the Earth and beyond.
In fact, the successes of the private space industry
Then, in the 2000s the George W. Bush adminis- appear to have caused Congress to dig in its heels on
tration chose to invest in Constellation, a hugely ex- the SLS. Every year between 2012 and 2022, it appro-
pensive program designed to lead to a permanent priated more money for SLS than NASA requested, in
human presence on the moon. But costs quickly spite of the blown deadlines and budgets.
spiraled out of control, and NASA and its congres-
sional patrons seemed incapable and uninterested Congress appears to have learned nothing from
in controlling them. the backward-looking failure that the SLS represents,
and will continue to throw money at it for years to
For example, as a cost-saving measure, Constel- come. Last week's scrubbed launches are the latest
lation's crew launch rocket – the Ares I – would reminders of that ongoing, sorry legacy. 
draw heavily from existing, proven Space Shuttle
A version of this column by Adam Minter first ap-
peared on Bloomberg. It does not necessarily reflect
the views of Vero 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 / September 15, 2022 31

INSIGHT OP-ED

Dollar Rent A Car cancelledVivian Ever- not the size I reserved. It was too small of the counter. When you pick up a you a new one and kept the money
hart's rental when she tried to tried to to accommodate my passengers. The rental, the first thing you should do be- for your previous car. Then it looks like
swap out an unsatisfactory car. Now following day, I finally got Dollar to fore leaving the facility is inspect it care- it tried to push the responsibility on
they say she has to pay for a car she agree to give me the vehicle I had fully and take photos. Had you done so, Priceline for fixing the problem. I think
couldn't use. booked, a midsize SUV. you probably would have noticed the everyone was a little confused.
missing plates. Then you wouldn't have
QUESTION: But instead of simply exchanging the had to return your first rental. Priceline tried to mediate your refund
vehicle, Dollar treated it like an early request with Dollar, but the car rental
I recently booked a rental car with Dol- return. A representative then told me I When that vehicle had to be re- company claimed it had given you the
lar through Priceline. When I discov- would have to pay for another reserva- placed, you should have been sure right vehicle. It had – initially. But that
ered the car they gave me did not have tion if I wanted a car. the new car met your specifications. If car didn't have plates. Priceline issued
a front or rear license plate, I brought it you had just said "no" to the second you a $25 gift card to make up for the
back to the rental location that night. A Priceline representative promised rental, you might have also avoided trouble. But you wanted – and were en-
I would receive a refund. But Dollar this problem. (You say Dollar told you titled to – a refund for the two lost days.
The second car Dollar gave me was said I voluntarily returned the car, to "take it or leave it" and you had an
which is untrue. appointment, so you reluctantly ac- I publish the names, numbers and
cepted the second rental.) email addresses of Priceline execu-
I have been talking to Dollar and tives and Dollar executives on my
Priceline for the last two weeks, at- You had a prepaid rental, which consumer advocacy site. A brief, po-
tempting to, at the very least, get a means you had already paid Priceline lite email might have moved your re-
refund for the days I couldn't use my for the three-day rental. So when you fund into the fast lane.
rental. Both of them keep telling me returned the car, Dollar simply rented
they do not have my money and the But when I contacted Priceline on
other entity owes me a refund. your behalf, Priceline again reached out
to Dollar, "and we were able to secure
ANSWER: a refund from Dollar on the customer's
behalf, which has been processed back
You should have gotten the car you to her credit card," a Priceline spokes-
reserved from Dollar. Instead, they woman told me. 
handed you the keys to a rental with-
out plates and canceled your next res- Get help with any consumer prob-
ervation. Come on. lem by contacting Christopher Elliott at
http://www.elliott.org/help
But things went wrong on both sides

32 Vero Beach 32963 / September 15, 2022 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

INSIGHT BOOKS

Asked if he ever read the humorist Art Buchwald, called, took it in stride, ers. At times, the book
Richard Nixon replied: “No, no I don’t think he is fun- reads less like a biography
ny. He is certainly not serious.” or even played along. Bu- and more like a document
dump.
Nixon was wrong – on both counts. Buchwald chwald’s satire was biting,
was funny and serious. In the tradition of Benjamin “Funny Business” con-
Franklin and Mark Twain, he concealed deep wis- but the bites were deliv- tains plenty of laughs but
dom in the seemingly silly and farcical. As for Nixon’s also elicits pangs of sad-
potshot, Buchwald was not the least perturbed. “As a ered so slyly that recipients ness. The reader feels sad
humor columnist, I need Nixon,” he said. “He’s been for Buchwald, who for so
great for me. I’m going to run him for a third term.” rarely objected – or even long felt compelled to
hide his struggle with
Over the decades, Buchwald was equally grateful knew they had been bitten. depression. Sad for the
for many other presidents, including Jimmy Carter passing of an era when
(“I worship the very quicksand he walks on”) and A young Buchwald artic-
Bill Clinton (for obvious reasons). Only George H.W. the nation had a com-
Bush let him down. “Nothing to write about, every- ulated the satirical strategy mon conversation,
thing was dull,” Buchwald is quoted as saying in Mi- even if it was one con-
chael Hill’s brisk and engaging biography, “Funny that he stuck with through- ducted in raised voic-
Business: The Legendary Life and Political Satire of es. And sad for today’s
Art Buchwald.” Meticulously researched and deliv- out his long career: “The comedians, inheri-
ered in a taut, almost staccato style, “Funny Busi- tors of the Buchwald
ness” glides along the surface of Buchwald’s remark- writer must be careful he is tradition, who must
able life, venturing wide but not especially deep.
not accused of being a hater find ways to be funny
In his column, published for decades by the Wash- when the news sati-
ington Post and, at its peak, syndicated to 550 news- of mankind. The best way rizes itself.
papers around the word, Buchwald often crafted In the 1990s and early
creative, tongue-in-cheek solutions to the nation’s to do this is to abuse people 2000s, Buchwald suffered several setbacks, including
problems. Gun violence out of control? Impose a a bitter and protracted lawsuit over the movie “Com-
federal mandate to cut off all Americans’ trigger fin- and make them laugh while ing to America,” a film that Buchwald claimed was
gers at birth. (“The Constitution gives everyone the his idea. Next followed a series of painful health cri-
right to bear arms. But there is nothing that says an you’re doing it. It indicates ses until, in 2006, he entered a Washington hospice.
American has to have ten fingers.”) Bogged down in His days were numbered, but that number turned
the Vietnam War? Instead of dropping bombs, drop that the writer is just having a out to be much higher than anyone suspected.
American autos that had been recalled. The unsus- Weeks, then months, went by, and Buchwald was
pecting North Vietnamese “would proceed to kill good time and he’s really your still alive and funny. His kidneys began functioning
each other” with the faulty cars, he quipped. again. He actually gained weight. From his hospice
friend. The abuse will stick.” bed, he conducted radio interviews (“I had nothing
Some of Buchwald’s satires were so spot on they else to do”) and welcomed visitors to what became
were mistaken for truth. When in 1964 he wrote a The first two-thirds of known as Buchwald’s hospice salon.
column titled “J. Edgar Hoover Just Doesn’t Exist,” When he finally did die more than a year later,
many Americans believed him. Hoover, clearly not “Funny Business” reads like Washington A-listers gathered to honor him. But it
amused, called Buchwald “a sick alleged humorist.” was fellow humorist Dave Barry who best captured
John F. Kennedy briefly canceled all White House a journalistic fairy tale. There the big-hearted comic genius that was Art Buchwald.
subscriptions to the New York Herald Tribune, at the “He talked funny, he wrote funny, he lived funny, and
time the newspaper that carried Buchwald’s column. is Buchwald in Paris dining damned if he didn’t find a way to die funny.” 
Lyndon Johnson, irked by Buchwald’s criticism of the
Vietnam War, ordered the National Security Agency at the city’s finest restaurants FUNNY BUSINESS
to secretly surveil the humorist. Buchwald took heat
from both ends of the political spectrum, but he and rubbing elbows with Lau- ren Bacall THE LEGENDARY LIFE AND
found “the extreme Left” pricklier. Satirizing them,
he said, “takes a little more guts.” and a young Robert Redford. There he is at the Play- POLITICAL SATIRE OF ART BUCHWALD

For the most part, though, those on the receiving boy Mansion in Chicago, and on Broadway, watch- BY MICHAEL HILL | RANDOM HOUSE. 307 PP. $28
end of Buchwald’s “Buchshots,” as his barbs were REVIEW BY ERIC WEINER, THE WASHINGTON POST
ing “Sheep on the Runway,” the play he wrote. There

he is receiving the Pulitzer Prize. And, all the while,

there he is hunched over his trusty Olivetti type-

writer, chomping on a cigar and making it look oh so

easy. Life was good, or so it seemed.

The truth is that Buchwald, like so many comedi-

ans, had a dark side. When the black dog, as Winston

Churchill called his depression, nipped at his heels,

Buchwald turned to humor, “the greatest defense in

the world.” And it worked. Until it didn’t.

In 1962, he suffered a debilitating bout of depres-

sion and was briefly hospitalized the following year.

For many decades, he kept his struggle secret. Final-

ly, in 1991, he went public, teaming up with fellow

celebrities and depressives Mike Wallace and William

Styron – the “Blues Brothers” they called themselves

– to raise awareness about the disease.

Hill skillfully chronicles Buchwald’s ups and

downs, relying heavily on a treasure trove of corre-

spondence he unearthed: letters between Buchwald

and A-list celebrities on both coasts, including Ted

Kennedy and Charlton Heston. Some of these mis-

sives are more illuminating, and funnier, than oth-

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / September 15, 2022 33

INSIGHT BRIDGE

NORTH

A DEFENSE FOR A YEAR AND THE AGES K J 10 9 7

By Phillip Alder - Bridge Columnist 10 9

The Gidwani Family Trust Defence of the Year award from the International Bridge Press Q62
Association in 2020 went to Brad Bart from Canada for his play in this deal. It was
originally written up by Danny Miles, also from Canada. 10 8 6

Cover the East and South hands. Against four hearts doubled, you (West) lead the WEST EAST
diamond king: two, three, 10. Since you and your partner use upside-down signals, you AQ
do not know who has the diamond four. What would you do now? 6 6543
AKJ9875
In the auction, North’s redouble showed spades, of course! If North had known his A97 Q72
partner was going to bid four hearts, he probably would have doubled four diamonds
and collected 300 for down two, declarer losing one spade, one heart, one diamond 43
and two clubs. But then it would have ruined a great story.
Q543
What did you lead at trick two? If the diamond ace, declarer will ruff, cash the heart ace
and play a spade, leaving you with no riposte. If you duck, South pitches his second SOUTH
spade on the diamond queen. If you take the spade trick, declarer can get home if
he reads the layout correctly. A trick-two shift to a trump or a club is also ineffective, 82
chewing up partner’s queen in that suit. After the spade ace and another spade, South
can run dummy’s heart nine, then go back to the spades. AKJ8543

Bart found the only defense — at trick two, he led the spade queen! Declarer won 10
with dummy’s king, ran the heart nine and played another spade. West took that trick
and led the diamond ace. South, cut off from the dummy, had to lose two club tricks, KJ2
going down one.
Dealer: South; Vulnerable: North-South

The Bidding:

SOUTH WEST NORTH EAST OPENING
1 Hearts Dbl. Redbl. Pass
3 Hearts 4 Diamonds Pass Pass LEAD:
4 Hearts Dbl. All Pass K Diamonds

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36 Vero Beach 32963 / September 15, 2022 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

INSIGHT GAMES

SOLUTIONS TO PREVIOUS ISSUE (SEPTEMBER 8) ON PAGE 58

ACROSS DOWN
1 Watery part of milk (4) 2 Afternoon meal (4,3)
4 Tawny-brown colour (3) 3 Toady (3-3)
6 Large body of water (3) 4 Quaint (4)
8 Breakfast/brunch dish (4,8) 5 Sewing instrument (6)
10 Crowd scene actors (6) 6 Fast-moving (5)
12 Helplessly drunk (6) 7 Behave! Grow up! (3,4,3)
13 Honourable (5) 9 English film director (3,7)
14 Perused (4) 11 Full of regret (5)
15 Expensive (4) 12 Great happiness (5)
17 Dry and brittle (5) 16 Queen, -- of Aquitaine(7)
19 Swagger (6) 17 Stroke lovingly (6)
21 Alpine skiing discipline(5,1) 18 Deter; postpone (3,3)
23 Toilet water (3,2,7) 20 Detailed investigation (5)
24 Place (a bet); amateur (3) 22 Imitate (4)
25 Suppose; speak (3)
The Telegraph 26 Taxi passenger (4)

How to do Sudoku:

Fill in the grid so the
numbers one through
nine appear just once
in every column, row
and three-by-three
square.

The Telegraph

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / September 15, 2022 37

INSIGHT GAMES

ACROSS 105 1963 Paul Petersen hit 56 Chou ___ The Washington Post
1 Oodles (of) 108 Certain glow 57 Wharton prizes
6 Hector’s city 109 Track unit 59 Jonathan Larson musical BLENDING IN By Merl Reagle
10 TV network, 1995-2006 110 Al Jolson’s female co-star 63 Jan. 1, 2000, e.g.
13 Care cos. 64 Preoccupy too much
17 African tree in The Jazz Singer 65 Eurasian chain
19 Hardy’s partner 112 “Beats me” 66 Agents, familiarly
20 Careless 116 Writ 67 Everglades flyer
22 Drumming Mouseketeer 11 Very devoted 68 French street
24 Wisconsin city 118 The Graduate girl 69 Park attractions
26 Initials related to 30 119 ___ facto 70 Mudbath sites
120 Distress call 75 Certain enlistee: abbr.
Across 121 Critic Shalit 76 Carioca’s home
27 Hematite et al. 122 Worries 77 Bulldog’s home
28 Family members 78 Nerve-cell part
29 Father of 54 Across DOWN 79 An American in Paris star
30 R. Nixon 1 F prelude 80 Start of many a title
35 Suit material 2 Mecca resident 81 She played Cécile in
36 Hickey opener 3 Brain sections Dangerous Liaisons
37 “Hold ___ minute” 4 Recede 82 Hardly fond (of)
38 Flower part 5 Path 86 Rickey ingredient
41 Craps equipment 6 Bucked (off) 88 Rival
46 Other name of 6 Across 7 Good news at work 89 Cap or pop follower
47 Concorde, e.g. 8 Cheer for Charo 90 Do the Twist
50 Made docile 9 Dough for noodles? 91 Scales
51 Subject of the bio Leading 10 Exhaust 92 Proof letters
11 Blueprint 94 Mini-bank in a market
with My Chin 12 Of gobs and swabs: abbr. 95 “___ say!”
52 “___, economy is always 13 The “good” cholesterol 96 Evaporate
97 Purchase option, ___-you-
beauty” carrier go
(Henry James) 14 Conductor Lorin 98 Planet whose fourth moon
53 Chinatown gumshoe 15 Type of willow is the site of the main rebel
54 War god 16 Indicate ignorance base in Star Wars, 1977
55 Gets sick, in a way 18 Cartoon crying 99 Jacket material
58 Cardboard box: abbr. 21 Pentium containers 100 West end
59 Brit. flyers 23 Pal of “pal” 101 Kate’s TV chum
60 Das ___ Testament 25 Legal ending 102 Intimidate
61 Disagreeable 28 Hollywood first name 103 Fencing choices
62 Theme of this puzzle 31 Adams et al. 105 Red Army builder
71 “Boy!” 32 Opposite of sud 106 Actor Montand
72 The La ___ Tar Pits 33 Copier co. 107 “You’ll ___ such thing!”
73 Astronaut Grissom 34 Sault ___ Marie 111 Rickles oldie, ___ Sharkey
74 Impudence 35 Walmart guy 112 Witch
75 Very attractive 38 Venus, e.g. 113 “Hail, Caesar!”
82 Nothing, in Nogales 39 Yeats’s home 114 Kansan Landon
83 Hollywood crosser 40 Dress for Pavlova 115 It has a neutral
84 Feats of Witt 41 First of a series
85 Sighing words 42 Change of a sort
86 Gets the short end 43 Flutter, to a Scot
87 Little one 44 Investigator: abbr.
88 Brush complement 45 Ltd., over here
89 What crossword books 46 Computer food
make? (I hope) 47 Clean with high-velocity
91 Ethan and Joel of Fargo
fame particles
92 Vadis opener 48 Enjoy Telluride
93 Singer who reversed her 49 Perk-me-up?
real name 50 Rotation-measuring
94 Confuse
97 1941 Cary Grant device, for short
tearjerker 52 “Got it”
104 Amos or Spelling 53 Slayer of Absalom
55 Where to stash trash

The Telegraph

38 Vero Beach 32963 / September 15, 2022 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

INSIGHT BACK PAGE

When the recent divorcée openly flirts with your spouse

BY CAROLYN HAX partner and letting those two realities handle the vast
The Washington Post majority of your concerns without reacting or saying
a word.
Dear Carolyn: What do I do if the
recently divorced female rector of It’s also OK not to play the trust-me-on-this card
my church is openly flirting with my here – not yet. This seems to have happened only
husband at a church retreat? I have once, so maybe a lonely person let her guard down
described to several close friends her and a kind but oblivious person failed to pick up on
comments to my husband, and they that? So you can choose not to speak up, or even give
agree that the comments appear to be flirtatious and it another thought, unless it happens again.
are inappropriate.
My husband is a handsome, kind man who really Hi Carolyn: I know you always say it’s a good idea
likes to be liked, but he’s also incredibly loyal and lov-
ing and is a wonderful husband. He doesn’t “see” any- to wait two years before fully committing to a person.
thing inappropriate, as a general matter, when I’ve
lightly brought it up. I’m thinking I need to get con- I’m 37 and have been with my boyfriend for a little less
firmation from a third party who attended the retreat
and approach them lightly to see whether they noticed than a year. Five years ago, I would have waited longer
anything. Another church is always an option, but he is
a member of the vestry, so it’s a little complicated. Or I to move in together or get married, but we both really
could ignore it and continue to be happily married, but
it is annoying. Any advice would be much appreciated. want kids (biological, if possible), and the clock is tick-

– Annoyed ing. I have dated a lot, including serious relationships,

Annoyed: This is me lightly suggesting you worry and I can’t imagine finding someone more well-suited,
less about lightness and more about saying what you
mean, and less to friends and more to your husband: but I realize you can’t possibly know someone fully af-

“I think it’s fair to say I am not one to get jealous or Then: “Would you agree with that?” He would say ter such a short period of time. Do you think it’s always
accuse people of flirting with you.” This is true, right? yes, right?
(Because if it isn’t, then I need to build a different flow a bad idea to move in together, get married or get preg-
chart.) If so: “Thank you, I appreciate that. Now please
show me the courtesy of taking me at my word when nant earlier than two years in? – Anonymous
I say the rector was crossing a line with you. If noth-
ing else, recognize that I felt uncomfortable – and I Anonymous: It’s a reality check, not a rule. It says,
hope that is reason enough on its own to be mindful “These feelings are influenced in some part by novel-
of boundaries with her.” ty, which will go away.” That information can be used
responsibly in many ways.
It is OK to play the trust-me-on-this card where
it’s warranted – and, in fact, that is why you want to As can the knowledge that you’ll still have the hus-
keep this card playable in the first place. That means band even if the kids don’t happen.
choosing a trustworthy partner, being a trustworthy
So if you trust your judgment, then trust your judg-
ment. (Congrats!) 

ALL JAZZED UP

SAXOPHONIST GOULET EXCITED

ABOUT A FUTURE CAREER IN MUSIC

40 Vero Beach 32963 / September 8,2022 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

ARTS & THEATRE

Saxophonist Goulet jazzed

about a future career in music

ing with the famed Birdland comes back to the U.S. to be acousti-
Jazz Club in New York City, cally set up in Salt Lake City, Utah,”
which has featured jazz Goulet explains, adding that his
legends since 1949. equipment is kept up to date at Gary
“I also like to go Underwood Music in Orlando.
down to Fort Pierce
and play at their Jazz Goulet muses that Jazz is, in a sense,
and Blues Society ev- a team sport, with its real-time inter-
ery other week. Those actions.
guys are all fantastic.
“I just love it so much. I look forward
I’ve played with them since I was 12 every day to my interaction with peo-
years old,” says Goulet. Locally he ple, especially with my classmates here,
has also played at the Blues Jam at to interact with people through music.
Catelli Cigar Bar, adding: “That’s a lot It’s the best way I can express myself,
of fun if you are into the ‘Dad rock.’” being more connected to the audience
and the fellow musicians on stage. Be-
Goulet is easy to pick out in any ing open to the fact that you can create
group, as rather than the traditional something absolutely magnificent. It’s
shiny brass or silver, his saxophone is indescribable to capture the true feel-
black. ing of the moment,” he adds.

“It’s built in Vietnam, and then it “The age of jazz started a long

BY DEBBIE TIMMERMANN | CORRESPONDENT year in that band. It has Tanner Goulet.
been a wild, wild ride
Jazz musician Tanner Goulet had ever since; a great, great PHOTOS BY JOSHUA KODIS
some interesting news to share – oh, time,” says Goulet.
not the fact that he is related to the
late Robert Goulet, or that Tanner ac- “The environment is
tually looks like that suave Broadway so amazing, inspiring
baritone. He also revealed that he had and enriching. All of the
studied jazz improvisation this sum- disciplines are so fantas-
mer at the renowned Interlochen Arts tic in their own way. In
Camp in Northern Michigan, the na- the jazz program we are
tion’s premier multidisciplinary sum- all helping to lift each
mer arts program for aspiring artists other up and encourage
in grades 3 through 12. each other to practice
and do our best. Very col-
A senior at Indian River Charter laborative.”
High School, Goulet began playing the
saxophone in fourth grade and has fo- He plays at locations
cused on jazz, his favorite genre, about and events around town
six years, participating in numerous as a four-year member
all-state band, solo and ensemble and lead saxophonist of
competitions and festivals. the Wolves Jazz Band,
with his own jazz/funk
Born in Columbia, S.C., Goulet con- band On the One (a ref-
siders himself a Vero native, having erence to James Brown),
moved here when he was 1 month old, and as a six-year mem-
and says he is very fortunate to have ber of the 20th Street
his family supporting him, noting, Jazz Band, a local group
“My Mom and Dad are music lovers, made up of professional
music is always around the house, ex- and amateur musicians
cept when we’re doing homework.” that practices at the Irish
American Club.
Goulet went to St. Anastasia Catholic
School in Fort Pierce through eighth He is also an active
grade and his saxophone teacher, Al member of the Florida
Shikaly, encouraged him to choose Symphonic Youth Or-
IRCHS, telling him that David Mundy, chestra Jazz Ensemble
the school’s director of jazz studies, “is in Orlando and has
fantastic.” played with numerous
other Treasure Coast
“I had the great opportunity to play musicians. He even had
in the Jazz Ensemble my freshman the rare honor of play-
year here, and this is now my fourth

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / September 15, 2022 41

ARTS & THEATRE

is providing the guidance he needs to the college and then audition to be ac-
find his path and be able to shape his cepted by the musical program.
career.
“Where can I get the best educa-
“IRCHS is truly a special place. tion, where is there a great jazz scene
Without this place I don’t think I’d do within the college town, where could I
music as a career. I don’t think I’d see see myself working, possibly, while I’m
the opportunity, the possibility to do in college, and what is the cost? Going
something I love like this for the rest into college and coming out with stu-
of my life,” says Goulet, who, in addi- dent debt is not something I want to
tion to his diploma, will also earn an do,” he says.
AA degree in April from Indian River
State College. “I have big goals, and if things pres-
ent themselves naturally better at dif-
Goulet plans to apply to colleges in ferent times, I’ll improvise, adapt and
Florida and out of state, mostly on the overcome.”
East Coast. At music-based colleges,
students need to first be accepted by Meanwhile, Goulet seems incredi-
bly busy, but says, “it’s a good busy.” 

time ago, with West African rhythms Goulet says two of his Interlochen
brought over to this country, and gos- teachers, Stafford Hunter and Aiden
pel and blues are so infused in it. No Cafferty, “really broke it down back
matter who spearheads the develop- to the basics. They really simplified
ment of the genre, it still always retains it. It made me take a step back and
that, and that’s why I love it so much. approach it at a different angle. It al-
It’s so many different things, but it al- lowed me, gave me the environment,
ways has that common ground.” to do so.”

Goulet says he didn’t know what to Goulet says his dream is to be a pro-
expect at Interlochen, but quickly re- fessional jazz player, but he is ground-
alized what a special experience it was ed enough to know he needs to obtain a
to be one of approximately 50 people bachelor’s degree, and then see where
in the jazz program. it takes him. He is an Eagle Scout, the
current National Honor Society Presi-
“It’s jazz 24 hours a day for three dent in his school’s chapter and he is
weeks. It was absolutely fantastic. All very involved in his community.
different approaches to the discipline
really expanded my knowledge of the Goulet realizes that it will take hard
craft,” says Goulet, adding that he is work, combined with some good luck,
“trying to constantly better myself as to reach the point where he can make
a musician, better myself as a player.” money as a musician. However, he
recalls the words of his saxophone
Artistic students from around the teacher, who played professionally
world attend the camp to expand their forever, retired, and is now playing
capacity in music, theatre, dance, professionally again.
creative writing, visual arts and film
through performances, presenta- “My teacher told me it’s rough, but
tions and readings. Approximately he would rather get up every morning
10 percent of the nation’s professional and do what he loves, than have to go
orchestra musicians have roots at In- to a 9 to 5 job, hating it. I have thought
terlochen, and its alumni has been many a time about what a possible
awarded nearly 100 Grammy Awards. Plan Triple-Z could be if I ever make it
to that point, but as of now I’m just go-
“So going to a place like Interlochen ing to full force, work as hard as I can,
and having all of these people with meet as many people as I can and play
all of these different ideas and back- with as many people as I can.”
grounds, it was just amazing to be
around that.” In the meantime, Goulet says IRCHS

42 Vero Beach 32963 / September 8,2022 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

ARTS & THEATRE

COMING UP! Volunteer picker-uppers needed for ‘Coastal Cleanup’

BY PAM HARBAUGH Verdi and Beethoven. Admission is a
Correspondent $25 suggested donation. The concert
begins at 7 p.m. at First Presbyterian
1 Help the Vero Beach area tidy Church of Vero Beach, 520 Royal Palm
up and join forces with others Blvd. Call 855-252-7276 or visit Space-
CoastSymphony.org.

around the world by participating in

the International Coastal Cleanup 4 The Vero Beach Museum of Art
presents an “Art Talk” noon
Day this Saturday, Sept. 17. Here, it

runs 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. along almost Wednesday, Sept. 21, in the museum

20 of the county’s waterfront parks. galleries. Called “Masters of Art: Draw-

Organizers expect more than 1,000 ings by Picasso and Matisse,” the Art

volunteers to step up and help. Volun- Talk will focus on select artworks from

teers will receive a free T-shirt, but ar- special exhibitions and the museum’s

rive on time because the T-shirts are permanent collection. The exhibition

limited. Volunteers also receive bags “Picasso, Matisse & Friends: Drawings

to put trash into. This is the largest from a Private Collection” runs Sept. 18

cleanup effort around the world. Dur- to Jan. 8 at the museum. Admission to

ing this time, the Ocean Conservancy the Art Talk is free with paid member-

has been leading the charge to wake ship or museum admission. Space is

up people as to the need to keep our limited, so it is wise to register ahead of

oceans clean by participating in this time. The Vero Beach Museum of Art is

event. Over the 35 years, more than at 3001 Riverside Park Dr. Admission is

17 million volunteers have cleaned $8 general, non-member. Call 772-231-

up more than 348 million pounds of 0707 or visit VBMuseum.org.

trash. The event is also coordinated

by Coastal Connections and Keep In- 5 The A.E. Backus Museum & Gal-
lery has a call to artists for its an-
dian River Beautiful. For more infor-

mation, to register ahead of time, visit nual juried art exhibition “The Best

Coastal-Connections.org or KeepIn- cation. The barbecue will begin at 6 evertailenko is associate professor of of the Best.” Artists may submit work
p.m. Saturday, Sept. 17, at the Walking clarinet at Tarleton State University
dianRiverBeautiful.org. Tree Brewery, 3209 Dodger Road, Vero in Texas. He’s performed throughout through Sept. 23. There is a $30 entry
Beach. There will be ribs and chicken the world and with the Kharkiv Mu-
dinners catered by 14 Bones. There will nicipal Orchestra in Ukraine. Part of fee per work. Both professional and
also be a silent auction and live music. the proceeds from this concert will
2 Miss B’s Learning Bees is hav- Cost is $100 per person. If you can’t go, benefit Perevertailenko’s efforts to amateur artists are invited to submit
ing its first ever “Back to School but still want to help, consider heading care for family members who have re-
to the Amazon page for Miss B’s Back to cently fled Kharkiv, Ukraine. Spotz is work by appointment only. Accepted
School Supply Drive by going to Miss- an award-winning professor of piano
Barbeque Shindig.” The event includes BsLearningBees.org and clicking on at Tarleton State University. She has works will compete for cash prizes and
“Back to School Drive.” performed the world over, including
fun, food and dancing and is designed at the Tchaikovsky Hall in Moscow, placement honors in each category,
the South Bank Center in London and
to help children from the community the Kennedy Center in Washington, which includes oil/acrylic, watercolor,
D.C. The program includes the music
that have high poverty rates. It is the of Ukrainian composers including varied techniques and three dimen-
Verbytsky, Kashyrtsev and Skoryk.
culmination of a two-month supply There will also works from Chopin, sional (includes jewelry). Photography

drive. The Learning Bees program is not accepted into this show. There

started in 2006 when LaToya Bullard, is a 50-pound weight limit for all cat-

known as Miss B, held an academic egories. Entries must have been pro-

enrichment program for economically 3 The Space Coast Symphony Or- duced within the past three years. The
chestra presents “A Heart for
disadvantaged children. A teacher for exhibition is scheduled to run Oct. 8

17 years with the Indian River County Ukraine” chamber concert Saturday to Nov. 18. The A.E. Backus Museum

School District, Bullard was recog- evening in Vero Beach. The program is at 500 North Indian River Dr., Fort

nized as a Distinguished Educator features clarinetist Dmitry Perever- Pierce. Call 772-465-0630 or visit Back-

by the Florida Department of Edu- tailenko and pianist Leslie Spotz. Per- usMuseum.org. 

TEAM WYDERSKI: GERIATRIC INTERNIST,
RN WIFE LAUNCH PRACTICE

44 Vero Beach 32963 / September 15, 2022 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

HEALTH

Team Wyderski: Geriatric internist, RN wife launch practice

BY KERRY FIRTH Cassie Reece, Karen and Dr. Richard Wyderski.
Correspondent
PHOTO: JOSHUA KODIS
Everyone loves a good love story
with a fairy-tale ending and that’s ex-
actly what Dr. Richard Wyderski and
his wife Karen have to tell. But their
love story goes beyond the scope of
personal emotions that led them to
marry after being friends for decades,
to blending their passion for quality
healthcare and opening their new con-
cierge medical practice called Wyder-
ski Health.

The pair knew each other as friends
when they were married to other peo-
ple and found themselves single at the
same time. Karen, a registered nurse,
was living in Vero Beach and work-
ing as vice president and director of
VNA Hospice, while Rich was working
as director of the hospitalist program
and one of the rotating hospitalists at
Mercy St. Joseph’s in Hot Springs, Ar-
kansas. Rich visited Karen in Vero and
took her to Disney World where they
shared their first kiss in front of Cin-
derella’s castle. They married in 2009
and moved to Arkansas.

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1225 US HWY 1, VERO BEACH, FL 32960 JULIE A. CROMER, DDS

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / September 15, 2022 45

HEALTH

Ten years later, the Wyderskis moved Touch therapy to the practice to fur- for hundreds of years,” Karen Wyderski open heart and the intention to bring
back to Vero Beach and Rich joined ther enhance patient health. As a Heal- said. “Most of the work is done off the in energy that will serve the highest
Vero Internal Medicine with Cleve- ing Touch therapist, she uses her hands body. Before a client gets on the table good of the patient.”
land Clinic where he cared for nearly to help restore balance and harmony I ask them to tell me what is going on.
2,500 patients. The high volume of pa- by working with the human energy They might be dealing with PTSD, Dr. Wyderski earned his medical
tients and administrative work at the field. When a patient is stressed or ill, it anxiety or depression. We’ll talk about degree from University of Cincinnati
hospital didn’t allow the time to build is easy for their energy field to become their higher power and set an intention College of Medicine and his Master
the therapeutic relationships with his unbalanced. Healing Touch practitio- for the session. I have been trained to of Medical Management degree from
patients that he wanted, so the couple ners clear, balance and energize the move my hands and feel the energy of University of Southern California. He
founded Wyderski Health. client’s energy field, thereby placing that person’s body to assess what they completed his residency and fellow-
the client in a position to initiate or ac- need. ship in Internal Medicine at University
As a board-certified geriatric inter- celerate the self-healing process. Heal- of Cincinnati Medical Center.
nist, Dr. Wyderski specializes in the ing Touch therapy is offered to non- “A lot of nurses practice Healing
care of elderly patients and takes great members of Wyderski Health as well as Touch in hospitals to reduce anxiety, The husband-and-wife team are now
pride in establishing a close, collab- being discounted for members. reduce pain and promote self-healing. accepting new members at Wyderski
orative relationship with his patients. A practitioner completes five levels of Health located at 1245 36th St., Vero
Geriatricians specialize in the unique “I work with energy and follow cer- education before being certified. The Beach. Visit WyderskiHealth.com or call
health needs of the elderly including tain techniques that have been around key to the process is go into it with an 772-742-3799 to learn more about the
chronic diseases, nutritional prob- practice. 
lems, skin ailments, cognitive loss,
memory impairment, adverse effects
of medications, immobility and bal-
ance issues. His concierge practice al-
lows his member/patients to reach him
24 hours a day, seven days a week via
text, phone and email, and he takes as
much time as necessary to answer all
the questions and concerns about their
health.

“Our bodies change as we age, and by
the time we reach our 70s and 80s there
is a whole new subset of health issues,”
Dr. Wyderski explained. “We’ve got an
aging population much like an invert-
ed pyramid where more of the popula-
tion is older rather than younger.

“In my private practice in the 1990s,
most of my patients were middle-
aged and now they are geriatric. I en-
joy working with the elderly because I
know that through our integrative ap-
proach to healthcare, which combines
old fashioned self-care with modern
medicine, I can improve their quality
of life in their golden years.”

Wyderski Health is a Direct Primary
Care (DCP) practice that is limited in
size to about 300 members so that Dr.
Wyderski can devote ample time to
each patient. A monthly membership
fee of $250 includes everything that
can be done in the office, including
physicals, drawing blood, adminis-
tering cortisone injections and basic
wound care. It also covers Dr. Wyder-
ski’s time to visit and monitor a mem-
ber’s care if they are hospitalized and
to make house calls when medically
necessary. His patients have unlimited
access to him at any time and are seen
the same day they call in most cases.

“While insurance doesn’t cover my
office visits, I am approved by Medi-
care to order anything that Medicare
covers for that patient,” Dr. Wyderski
continued. “I will write prescriptions
for medications and equipment, or-
ders for lab work and medical imaging,
and referrals to specialists. General
internists take of most everything, but
when things get complicated we often
refer to specialists.”

Karen Wyderski brings Healing

46 Vero Beach 32963 / September 15, 2022 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

HEALTH

Relationship weight gain is real – and can be sign of happiness

BY ANGELA HAUPT pounds and has kept the weight off but then I would gain all the weight, Yet studies indicate that putting
The Washington Post for years. and he doesn’t ever gain weight,” on pounds while in a relationship
said Suwinyattichaiporn, 34, an as- is a common phenomenon. Here’s a
Wendy Irvine had been chunky Over the past decade, Tara Suwin- sociate professor of human commu- look at what the research has found,
– or “well-insulated,” as she likes yattichaiporn has gained weight in nication at California State Univer- plus tips on how to address it.
to call it – from the time she was a multiple long-term relationships. sity at Fullerton. “Right now, some
child. But when she turned 26 and She has been with her current part- skirts are really tight, and some Relationship weight gain is par-
started dating her now-husband, ner for three years, and they’re both dresses are really tight,” so she’s ticularly difficult to study, said
her weight ballooned to the point foodies who enjoy trying new res- pledged to take action, starting Penny Gordon-Larsen, a professor
that she had trouble recognizing taurants together. with journaling about how she feels of global nutrition at the University
herself in photos. She gained about and using that to motivate healthier of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
25 pounds on top of the extra 30 she “My partner is super fit, so we behaviors. For one thing, there tends to be in-
felt like she was already carrying. would eat the same amount of food, sufficient data on both members of
Like Irvine and Suwinyatti- the relationship; only one partner
“My husband lived on pizza and chaiporn, many people report that will participate directly, estimating
fancy bakery treats, and I ate with coupling up eventually means siz- details such as what their partner
him and packed on the pounds,” ing up their clothes: “A lot of people weighs and eats. It’s also rare for re-
said Irvine, 57, a writer who lives in are surprised. It’s a very familiar searchers to collect data on people
Atlanta. “It absolutely bothered me. and intuitive idea that a good rela- before they enter the relationship,
I’d always been a size 12/14, and all tionship should make us better in then again afterward.
of a sudden 16s were cutting off my every way and help preserve our
ability to breathe. I was horrified.” health and well-being,” said Sarah Plus, coupling up often occurs
A. Novak, an associate professor of alongside other major life changes:
About 10 years in, she realized psychology at Hofstra University “That’s the point in the life cycle
that her husband was going to con- in Hempstead, N.Y., who has re- when you’re also getting a new job,
tinue eating cinnamon rolls every searched relationship weight gain. or transitioning to a busier sched-
weekend and ice cream every night, “It’s counterintuitive that there ule, or moving out of your family
and she decided to focus on chang- could be an exception to that, de- home and cooking on your own,”
ing her own diet. “I was happy, of pending on how you think about she said. Any of those factors could
course, but I didn’t like that I’d let weight.” play a role in weight gain.
myself go,” she recalled. She lost 55
Still, there’s a pool of research that

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / September 15, 2022 47

HEALTH

shines a light on who tends to put health sciences department at the Old Fashioned Medical Care
on the most relationship weight. A University of Virginia in Charlot-
2012 study that Gordon-Larsen co- tesville and an expert in behavioral on the Treasure Coast
authored, published in the journal weight management. “There are
Obesity, found that transitioning things that can be quite enjoyable Personalized Touch
from being single or dating to co- besides eating together, like engag- Direct Primary Care
habitation or marriage was associ- ing in physical activity together or
ated with an increased likelihood of going grocery shopping together or Helping Patients and Families Achieve
obesity. The longer a woman lived meal prepping for the week,” she Optimal Health and Wellness
with a romantic partner, the more said. “Particularly during those
likely she was to continue putting early honeymoon months when ev- Bruce Murray, M.D. Sandy Potter, R.N.
on weight, while the risk of obesity erything is fun, you might as well do Board Certified With 45 Years
among men spiked between the first something that’s also good for your of Caring
and second years of cohabitation. body.” “Country Doctor at Heart”
Within a few years of their nuptials,
spouses were twice as likely to be- Pay attention to the way your life- We Still Have Space Available.
come obese as those who were only style has changed and look for a hap- Call us to schedule us a visit!
dating. py medium. If you and your partner We would love to meet you.
love going to brunch together, don’t
It’s impossible to tease out ex- drop that or other favorite activities, The Doctor is Always in!
actly why people gain weight in re- or “prioritize fitness to the exclusion
lationships, Gordon-Larsen says, of the relationship,” Novak empha- 772-226-6461 MurrayMedical.com
but a number of factors contribute – sized.
busier schedules that interfere with Murray Concierge Medicine
health routines; fancy date nights Instead, find a middle ground. 920 37th Place, Suite 103
lingering over restaurant meals; and “Maybe it’s that sometimes we do Vero Beach, FL 32960
spending more time on the couch brunch, and sometimes we go hik-
watching your favorite TV shows. ing,” she said. “Think about, ‘What
Plus, she says, there’s some indica- can we do differently but still be
tion that if you’re eating with some- connected to each other?’”
one who tends to eat larger meals,
you’re more likely to increase your If you’re the only partner interest-
portion size, too. ed in making a change, invest in new
shared activities. Perhaps you and
Interestingly, research co-au- your significant other used to linger
thored by Novak determined that, over gourmet meals together, but
among those who had been mar- now you’re cutting back – or you’re
ried for more than four years, happy blowing off movie night to spend
couples were twice as likely to put time with your Peloton. If your new
on weight than couples who report- lifestyle will “disrupt some of the
ed not being as content with their things that brought you joy togeth-
relationship. er,” look for new shared routines or
activities, Novak suggested. For ex-
It wasn’t a dramatic amount: ample, reserve 8 p.m. every night for
about five to 15 pounds over four distraction-free connection.
years. “It’s this indicator that peo-
ple are comfortable. They’re priori- Over-communicate. It’s best to be
tizing the relationship and saying, clear with your partner about how
‘With our limited time, let’s go get you’re feeling, what kind of changes
brunch,’” she said. “They’re not try- you want to make and what type of
ing so hard to maintain their bodies support will be most helpful (or not).
to look cute in the club.” You might say, for example: “Please
don’t ask me if I want seconds. That’s
Less-happy couples, on the oth- too challenging for me,” Krukowski
er hand, were more likely to keep suggested. Or: “Please tell me one
weight off, because they were moti- time after dinner that I set a goal to
vated by the “mating market model,” go for a walk, but if I tell you that I’m
or the desire to attract a new mate. too tired, don’t continue to bug me
“If you’re single or think you might about it.”
become single soon, you’re going to
invest in things that make you more And remember: Your partner
attractive, like fitness,” Novak said. shouldn’t police what you eat. Per-
Plus, if you’re already checked out haps you’re reaching for the dessert
of the relationship, it might be easy menu when your significant other
to spend more free time at the gym. hits you with an unwelcome com-
ment like, “Are you sure you want to
Some people who gain relation- eat that?”
ship weight feel perfectly fine about
the extra pounds. But for those who Regardless of whether you gained
want to make a change, experts sug- weight in a relationship, you don’t
gest an array of strategies that also have to tolerate such comments. As
seek to protect the partnership. Novak put it: “Even if they have the
best of intentions, if your partner is
Be proactive. Because many cou- focused mainly on your attractive-
ples are prone to weight gain, it can ness – or making jokes or teasing
be helpful to think about prevent- in a way that is not cute – then they
ing it before it happens, said Becca have given you the gift of a giant red
Krukowski, a professor in the public flag.” 

48 Vero Beach 32963 / September 15, 2022 Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

HEALTH

Fueled by COVID-19 toll, U.S. life expectancy down again

BY AKILAH JOHNSON AND SABRINA MALHI ing Twenties. Americans can now disparities in health
The Washington Post expect to live as long as they did in for years and whose
1996, according to provisional data research focuses on
Life expectancy in the United released by the National Center for the pandemic’s effect
States fell in 2021 for the second Health Statistics, part of the Cen- on life expectancy.
year in a row, reflecting the mer- ters for Disease Control and Pre- “There’s some coun-
ciless toll exacted by COVID-19 on vention. Overall, life expectancy tries whose life expec-
the nation’s health, according to a dropped from 77 years in 2020 to tancy in ’21 was higher
federal report released last week. 76.1 years in 2021. than pre-pandemic.
They suffered in 2020,
This is the biggest continuous The biggest decline was among and by ’21, they had
decline in life expectancy at birth Native Americans, whose life ex- more than recovered.
since the beginning of the Roar- pectancy in 2021 plummeted to 65, That’s not us.”

the age of eligibility for Medicare; The federal re-
in a single year, Native Americans port highlights two
forfeited nearly two years of life. key things, said Reed
White people had the second-big- Tuckson, co-founder
gest drop, losing a full year of life of the Black Coalition
expectancy, while Black people lost Against Covid. The first: that many
0.7 years. of these deaths were unnecessary
and preventable, Tuckson said.
“In 2021, things should have been The second: The extraordinary ef-
far better,” said Noreen Goldman, a forts made by the Black community
Princeton University demographer to overcome the excess burden of
who has studied socioeconomic death that plagued it at the begin-
ning of the pandemic so it could
“save itself.”
“We had to come from so much
further back,” said Tuckson, an in-

Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™ Vero Beach 32963 / September 15, 2022 49

HEALTH

ternist and former D.C. commis- the University of Maryland at Balti- tion means being counted among Then came the pandemic, and
sioner of public health. “As disease more County. the coronavirus casualties, be- life expectancy has been in a de-
has progressed through society cause incorrectly classifying Na- cline since.
the last couple of years, that gap And so, even before the pan- tive American people in race and
has closed. Simultaneously, white demic, Native American and Black ethnicity data often obscures their “The idea that people’s life ex-
America, particularly in red states, people lived shorter lives than most health experiences. Because of this, pectancy in such a wealthy nation
is not as compliant with guidance. other Americans. The truncated Echo-Hawk said, the federal report would decrease is a wake-up call,”
Leadership was much less focused. life spans reflect a broader dispar- doesn’t capture the full scope of the Bradley said.
And we’re probably seeing the re- ity: higher rates of obesity, diabe- devastation in that community.
sults of that.” tes, coronary heart disease, stroke The drop in life expectancy was
and chronic liver disease than ex- “In the Native community, a very fueled, in part, by the stagger-
Some of that goes back to mes- perienced by white people. And common saying to say is, ‘You’re ing number of deaths of younger
saging, public health experts said. research shows that they develop born Indian, and you die white,’” people in communities of color.
those chronic conditions years ear- Echo-Hawk said. “There is a lot of COVID death rates in young and
Throughout the pandemic, the lier, too. grief in looking at those data and middle-aged Native Americans
coronavirus disproportionately seeing the people we know die and was 10 times higher than for white
carved a path of death and disease It is because of this history that [who] aren’t represented.” people in 2020 and four to five
through the nation’s communities Abigail Echo-Hawk, executive vice times higher in 2021, according to a
of color. The chasms between the president at the Seattle Indian Life expectancy at birth, consid- peer-reviewed study published last
health status of the nation’s racial Health Board and director of the ered a reliable barometer of a na- month in the journal Demographic
and ethnic groups are centuries Urban Indian Health Institute, said tion’s health, has risen steadily in Research.
in the making, with marginalized she takes issue with the way the re- the United States since the middle
people suffering the deleterious port frames the drop in life expec- of the 20th century, with small The result, according to the re-
consequences of entwining envi- tancy among Native Americans as annual decreases in recent years port, which Goldman co-authored:
ronmental, economic and political primarily the result of COVID-19. caused mainly by “deaths of de- Native Americans’ life expectancy
factors that put them at higher risk The federal study also cites unin- spair” – drug overdoses, alcoholism dropped 6.4 years in two years.
of chronic conditions that leave im- tentional injuries, chronic liver dis- and suicide. Flat and modestly de-
mune systems vulnerable. ease and cirrhosis. clining life expectancy from 2015 to The report called Native Ameri-
2017 caused considerable concern can life expectancy “shockingly
“If someone from a community “We’re not at risk because we’re among public health experts after low” for a high-income country,
experienced lifelong food insecuri- Native,” she said. This is “a virus decades of progress against heart saying it was the lowest of every
ty, no proper access to primary care that took advantage of the rampant disease, cancer and other maladies. country in the Americas “with the
doctors and other adverse experi- health disparities that have been sole exception of Haiti, where the
ences, their immune response to a created by this country. That’s what In 2019, life expectancy ticked estimated life expectancy is similar
disease like COVID would be poor,” this paper shows. We have to recog- back up as the number of fatal drug at 64.”
said Dana Burr Bradley, dean of the nize it for what it is.” overdoses dropped slightly for the
Erickson School of Aging Studies at first time in 28 years. “How is this country going to ad-
Part of that fight for recogni- dress this injustice?” Echo-Hawk
asked. “We die in silence.” 

50 Vero Beach 32963 / September 15, 2022 Style Your Vero Beach Newsweekly ™

Queen Elizabeth, fashion icon?Yes

BY ASHLEY FETTERS MALOY wear in politics and diplomacy. one needs, so the common wisdom Kingdom evolved dramatically in the
The Washington Post For decades now, it has been rela- goes, are a solid and brightly colored 20th and 21st centuries.
boxy skirt suit with a brooch on the
She undoubtedly had a uniform tively easy to dress up – for Halloween, left shoulder, a matching hat (or, for ex- But the queen’s wardrobe was consis-
that helped set a standard for womens- maybe, or for laughs at any given roy- tra credit, umbrella) and white gloves, tently imbued with deeper meanings,
al-wedding or Jubilee watch party – as with a handbag swinging gently on one seen as conveying support or affection
the Queen of the United Kingdom. All forearm. And perhaps a white wig. for other countries and communities,
or even asserting power, when neces-
Queen Elizabeth II, who died last sary. And because Elizabeth’s reign be-
Thursday at age 96 after reigning for gan in 1952, a time before women were
more than 70 years, undoubtedly had regularly seen at the highest levels of
a uniform. In her early years on the government in the Western world, she
throne, in her 20s and 30s, the young helped set a standard in politics-adja-
queen was known to wear practical but cent womenswear.
elegant clothes. She wore gowns with
clean lines and full skirts at formal Queen Elizabeth’s public-facing im-
events and artfully tailored skirt suits age was “smart on the whole, clean-
and dresses in the daytime, un-daring cut, which I think was a very 1950s
in the necklines and nipped in at the thing, really. Not much fuss,” says
waists. And in her later years, of course, Philip Mansel, a fellow at the Institute
her taste for modest, traditional ele- of Historical Research in London, as
gance distilled itself into what we now well as the author of “Dressed to Rule,”
know as her usual public-facing outfit, a book about how rulers have con-
which as many have pointed out, com- trolled their public images.
municated the consistency and sta-
bility of the crown even as the United The queen’s style at home varied
slightly, Mansel notes: “In her last pho-
tograph, greeting Liz Truss, her last