Special to The Laker/Lutz News

Gives You and Your Family Peace of Mind

By Anne Childers

Special to The Laker/Lutz News

Most people are planners. We plan for work and play — vacations, sporting events, social occasions and milestones like births, graduations and weddings.

The only milestone most people fail to plan for is the last one — when we end our journey here on earth. Even those who have accepted that death is part of life can be reluctant to make arrangements for that final occasion.

The caring, professional staff at Trinity Memorial Gardens understands this hesitation. Every staff member knows how to care for others during this time of need, and is trained to assist with unique needs and requests.

Gary Saling, general manager of Trinity Memorial Gardens, commented, “When someone makes pre-need plans for themselves, they find peace of mind knowing that their family members will not need to worry or be burdened about what to do when the time comes.”

“When you make the decisions and the arrangements, you can be assured that your wishes will be carried out, “ said Saling. “You will spare your family the emotional choices that need to be made at a very difficult time.”

In addition to pre-need planning, Trinity Memorial Gardens offers at-need services, traditional burial and on-site cremation at its location on State Road 54, four miles west of the Veterans Expressway. All faiths are welcomed at this privately owned, full service funeral home, which offers a lovely, on-site chapel with seating for up to 250 guests.

There is a Garden of Honor for military veterans, two Catholic themed gardens, the Garden of Prayer and Bell Tower, a non-sectarian garden.   There is also a separate cemetery on-site for those of the Jewish faith, called Beit Olam.   Trinity also serves those of the Hindu faith, as they have the on-site crematory.

The Rose Garden is a newly created area that provides for in ground cremation burials. There is a private estate garden for those interested in a separated family plot, and a public mausoleum with both crypts for full body entombment, and niches for cremation inurnments. There are also glass front niches for a unique way to memorialize a loved one.

Trinity Memorial Gardens is about to embark on numerous constructions projects, including a new niche chapel dedicated to glass front niches, another inside mausoleum, an outside mausoleum, multiple new gardens, and a gazebo near the gardens of Honor and Innocence (the special garden for infants).

A full-time, professional maintenance staff takes care of the beautiful grounds. There are no additional fees charged to families for landscaping and garden maintenance.

Trinity Memorial Gardens, which is part of Dr. James Gill’s original vision for Trinity, is celebrating 20 years of service during 2015. The Gardens continue to grow and expand services to meet the needs of all who call this region home.

General Manager Gary Saling joins his staff in inviting you to call and schedule a personal tour of the Trinity Memorial Gardens campus.

12609 Memorial Drive, Trinity, FL. 34655 • 813-920-4241 • www.trinitymemorial.com

By Mike Matthew

Special to The Laker / Lutz News

Family Medical Centers wants to know you as a person rather than just symptoms in need of treatment. They have offices in Trinity and Port Richey staffed by caring doctors with extensive experience.

Dr. Darren T. Morris is the family physician in charge of their new office in Trinity. He brings with him 14 years of wide-ranging medical expertise including family medicine, urgent care, sports medicine and emergency room care. He also worked three years for the U.S. Border Patrol in South Carolina as their chief medical officer.

“I’ve done a ton of injury care,” says Dr. Morris, “including workplace accidents, sports injuries, along with all the traumas and injuries incurred by officers working for the U.S. Border Patrol.”

Dr. Morris received his undergraduate degree in biochemistry from the College of Charleston in South Carolina and his Doctorate of Medicine from the Medical University of South Carolina in 1997. His residency in family medicine was completed in 2000 at the Medical University of South Carolina, Muse Family Medicine Program.

“I want to emphasize that we’re doctors you can talk to,” says Dr. Morris. “We take the time to listen to our patients. We provide a very personal and professional service.”

He’s been a staff physician, emergency room physician, assistant emergency room director, and a medical director at the Department of Homeland Security. He enjoys outdoor activities such as hiking, camping, kayaking and biking.

His father was a pilot in the Air Force. He grew up on bases all over the world. After graduating from high school, he moved to South Carolina where his family was originally from. He practiced medicine there for seven years before moving to Lutz in 2007, where he worked for a number of private practices.

Family Medical Centers is a traditional family care practice. They can address a wide variety of your medical needs for patients from ages 2 to 100. Many staff members are fluent in English and Spanish.

The doctors offer comprehensive care and specialize in auto accident injuries. They perform school sports physicals, work-related physicals, drug testing and blood screening. They work with local chiropractors, orthopedic surgeons and have a good network of specialists and attorneys that they work with.

Family Medical Centers accepts walk-ins, new patients and most insurances. They are also available for walk-in urgent care.

The Trinity office is located at 2208 Duck Slough Blvd., Suite A (behind the Outback Steakhouse). The phone number is (727) 375-5885. Further information is available on their website at FamilyMedicalCenters.net.

By Mike Matthew

Special to The Laker / Lutz News

Shaun Walker, lead teaching pastor at Grace Baptist Church in Wesley Chapel, is responsible for teaching scripture from the pulpit and in small groups. He oversees all teaching activities at Grace Baptist.

“My work is not just preaching,” says Shaun. “We care for the whole person by pointing them towards answers in scripture. We want to help people going through life’s trials and also rejoice with them in good times.”

“Church is not just about Sunday,” says Shaun. “Sunday matters because it’s lived out Monday through Saturday. It’s about bringing God’s words to life within each individual so the real meaning of the scriptures shine through everything they do and say.”

Shaun grew up attending church. After receiving a bachelors degree in Bible, he moved to Colorado to serve as an unpaid pastoral intern. He lived with families in the community, moving to a new home every two months for two years.

He spent the last 13 years in Colorado serving as an assistant pastor. As he matured into the role, he recognized people responding favorably to a teaching style of ministry. Grace Baptist was looking for a teaching pastor and contacted him. After going through the interview process, the church voted him in. He moved here in July 2014.

“What drew me was the people,” says Shaun. “I found people truly supporting and caring for each other. They weren’t just doing church on Sunday. They are a loving community of Christians who spend time in each other’s homes.”

“A healthy church requires the meaning of the sermon to reflect the meaning of the scripture,” says Shaun. “Our teachings are relentlessly faithful to the biblical text. I am essentially a reporter of God’s word. Here’s what God said.”

“We can’t just pick a phrase out of the Bible and debate its meaning,” says Shaun. “We need to look at the context, the flow of meaning that exists through the whole text. The teaching must also be relevant. I’m always asking the question, so what? The text has to answer the ‘so what’ question.”

The teachings at Grace Baptist Church are not shallow. “God is trustworthy,” says Shaun. “We’ve been loved and forgiven. This is a foundation upon which to build an active faith.”

Grace Baptist welcomes sinners of all social and economic distinctions. “There is no room in a healthy church for any type of discrimination,” says Shaun. “We need diversity. It helps us to understand how God loves each and every one of us without regard to our apparent differences.”

Anyone dissatisfied with their current ministry or bouncing from church to church should come to Grace Baptist and experience the power of a teaching ministry.

Grace Baptist Church is located at 2600 Cypress Ridge Blvd in Wesley Chapel (behind Goodwill at State Road 54 and Interstate 75). Sermons are at 9:30 a.m. on Sunday, and 7 p.m. on Wednesday, and are open to all (no appointment necessary).

By Anne Childers

Special to The Laker/Lutz News

The well-trained and dedicated staff of Florida Wellness Medical Group, a chiropractic practice in Zephyrhills, takes the lead in managing its patients’ overall health and wellness by coordinating patient care, doctor visits, test results and treatment plans.

The practice philosophy of Dr. Brandon Delle Chiaie, the chiropractor owner at Florida Medical Wellness Group, is 100 percent focused on patients and their personal wellness.

“We are a customer service business working in the health care field,” said Dr. Brandon. “Our goal for every patient, from teens to seniors, is to maintain optimum health and wellness.”

Regular preventive care should always be routinely scheduled, but accidents and illnesses present additional health challenges.

“We’re here to help patients not only with their preventative health care, but also acute care resulting from accidents and unexpected injuries,” said Dr. Brandon.

Florida Wellness cares for patients with ailments from the common cold to high blood pressure to diabetes using traditional medicine, nutrition, exercise and patient education. Dr. Brandon is especially sensitive to the “aches and pains” associated with normal aging and strives to identify the reasons behind a problem, not just temporally stop the pain.

Conveniently located on Gall Boulevard, Florida Wellness Medical Group offers primary care that includes chiropractic medicine, massage therapy, physical therapy, and rehabilitation for accidents and injuries.

Walk-ins are welcome, and same-day appointments are the norm for regular patients. The clinic’s cheerful waiting room is bright and comfortable, but patients don’t spend much time there because of Dr. Brandon’s 10-minute rule.

“We strive for maximum face-to-face time with our patients and do not double-book appointments,” said Dr. Brandon.

Florida Wellness Medical Group accepts auto insurance, as well as most major medical plans and health insurance. In addition to its Zephyrhills office, the clinic has four other locations in the Tampa Bay area. It also partners with an exclusive group of physicians to manage a wide range of health concerns. If a patient’s condition warrants co-management, an area specialist is available.

The Zephyrhills office is open weekdays, except Thursday, from 8 a.m. until 6 p.m. Call (824) 715-2935 to schedule a wellness consultation and learn just how good you can feel.

By Mike Matthew

Special to The Laker / Lutz News

Norma Ruckey walked into Jan’s Wine & Boos II and knew without a doubt that she wanted to purchase it. It was a combination of package store and bar. Her son TJ has been tending bar since he turned 18 and her daughter Kristen was a liquor store manager for eight years. It would be a perfect fit. “I liked the idea of a neighborhood bar, like Cheers,” says Norma. “What I found was a friendly familiar atmosphere where everyone seemed to know each other. It was more of a wine bar then. Now it’s a full-service bar.”

Together they purchased the bar in July 2014. “It was quite a process going through all the licensing issues,” says Norma. “We needed a license for the bar, the package store, for food, and even a music license.”

The first thing they did was renovate and redecorate. The wine was moved from the bar area to the package side of the store which opened up the lounge area to create a real neighborhood bar feeling.

Existing customers are happy with the changes. “We’ve been receiving a lot of great comments,” says Norma. “We really want to know what our customers are thinking. We want to create a place where they can come to relax and enjoy themselves.”

Jan’s is open until 10 p.m., Monday through Thursday, and until midnight on Friday and Saturday. There is live music from local bands on Friday night and karaoke on Saturday. They have wine samplings a couple of times each month and are working with vendors to establish a regular wine tasting schedule.

Cheese trays can be ordered at the bar. “We have your basic cheese/meat/cracker platters or you can upgrade to the much larger gourmet tray,” says Norma. “We don’t want to get into food service. Instead customers can order food from local restaurants and either pick it up or have it delivered right to the bar.” Customers can also order a bottle of wine from the package side of the store to enjoy with their meal.

The package store offers a large selection of top-of-the-line wines both domestic and European, as well as liquors and beers. With the increased interest, they are building up their selection of local craft beers. “We have a much larger selection of craft beers than the previous owners,” says TJ. “Supporting local brewers is another way to build a neighborhood bar. We want this to be a real family establishment where everyone knows each other.”

Customers can place orders for the products they don’t currently stock. Special orders are not a problem.

In additional to live music and karaoke, Jan’s Wine & Boos II, located in the Lutz Lake Crossing Plaza on the corner of N. Dale Mabry Hwy and Lutz Lake Fern Road, offers three TV’s covering sporting events and monthly theme parties. They’ve already had a couple of birthday parties and are looking to handle more of these types of events for the over-21 crowd. They can comfortably seat up to 40 guests.

Visit their website JansWineandBoos.com or like them on facebook to see the latest events and specials.