Special to The Laker/Lutz News

By B.C. Manion

Lucina Radd lives in constant fear that she’ll go to sleep one night and wake up the next morning in a world that has gone completely dark.
She’s already lost the vision in her left eye and her field of vision in her right eye is diminishing.

The Wesley Chapel woman was diagnosed with retinitis pigmentosa nine years ago, a condition that involves the gradual decline in vision because the photoreceptors, known as rods and cones, die.
Until recently, the 49-year-old has been living in denial – but now she is trying to come to terms with her condition. In a major first step she has signed up to walk in the 3rd annual Tampa Bay VisionWalk Nov. 13 at Al Lopez Park, 4810 N. Himes Ave., in Tampa.
The walk raises money for Foundation Fighting Blindness Inc., a national organization that funds research to prevent, treat and cure conditions that cause vision loss and blindness.
She also wants to start a support group for people with vision impairment who live in the Wesley Chapel area.
Lucina’s declining vision has changed nearly every aspect of her life, said Tony Radd, her husband of 32 years.
It has limited what she is able to do with the couple’s twin 23-year-olds, Brittany and Kyle, and the couple’s granddaughter, 1-year-old Aleina.
Lucina, once a software development manager, has not worked in that field for years. She can no longer drive. She has trouble doing simple, everyday tasks that she used to take for granted.
She used to love to shop for groceries.
“Now, when I walk down an aisle, I have to scan every single item. I can’t look at both sides of the aisle and see what’s on the other side,” she said.
When she’s home and wants to cook, Tony has to help.
“If I have two pots going, I can’t watch both of them. I caught the stove on fire,” she said, noting it’s a good thing Tony was there.
“The cabinets are a big issue because they are dark inside. Even just getting a pot out is a major ordeal,” she said.
Cleaning off the counters is a problem, too, because Lucina can only see small portions at one time.
If someone puts something on the counter – which her son, Kyle, is apt to do when he’s home for a visit – it’s not unusual for Lucina to knock it off, she said.
She enjoys being outdoors, but no longer feels safe sitting alone in her backyard because she knows there are occasional snakes there and a gator lives in the pond.
She can’t watch her granddaughter on her own, either.
Lucina can no longer sew, and while she still enjoys painting, she worries that will end one day too.
Just getting ready to go out for dinner is challenging.
It used to be easy to match her clothes, shoes and accessories and to put on her makeup.
“Now, it’s hard to distinguish the colors or find clothes that match,” she said. When she puts on her makeup, she relies on her sense of touch.
It used to take about 15 minutes to get ready; now it’s more like an hour and 15 minutes.
The couple’s options for having fun are more limited too.
They used to go on long drives to enjoy the scenery, but they don’t do that anymore. Tampa Bay Rays baseball games, Tampa Bay Buccaneers football games, movies and dancing are out too.
“Everything involves sight,” Lucina said.
Even conversing with people is more difficult, she said. “I feel like I can’t communicate as well because I can’t make good eye contact with people,” she said. “It diminishes your spirit. You can’t see people’s expressions.”
As her eyesight worsened, she became depressed and withdrawn, Lucina said.
“You isolate yourself. You don’t fit in the world.”
People don’t understand her condition because she doesn’t wear dark glasses, walk with a cane or use a guide dog, Tony said.
Lucina said she used to hide her condition because she wanted to remain independent. Now, she hopes that getting involved with VisionWalk and reaching out to organizations that can help her will enable her to reach out to help others.
Tony is right there with her. He said he has often told his wife: “You may lose your sight, but life goes on and there are beautiful things in life.”
Lucina hopes that steps she’s taking will set her on a new path.
“I lived in this depression and isolation, which is not the person I am. I want to be back to the happy person I was,” Lucina said. “I really honestly hope I can make a difference for someone else.”
To contact Lucina about starting up a support group, you can e-mail her at or call her (813) 994-6521. To join her team or sponsor her in the VisionWalk go to www.Fightblindness.org/goto/LucinaRadd.

By Kyle LoJacono

When it started 44 years ago, the Rattlesnake Festival was very different from the fall carnival it is today.
Jack Vogel was one of the events founders and remembers those humble beginnings.
“From the early days, the festival was indeed a rattlesnake roundup with people capturing rattlesnakes to enter competitions for size, weight and appearance although no rattlesnakes were slaughtered,” Vogel said. “Real gopher turtles were also used for the races. Children and businesses would paint them and compete for trophies. In the ’80s, however, environmental concerns changed all that.”

Plenty of rattlesnakes will be present this year, but they are not longer the only attraction.
The event, which draws 30,000 to 40,000 from around the Tampa Bay area, is from 9 a.m.-4 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 16 and 11 a.m.-4-p.m. Sunday, Oct. 17 at San Antonio City Park near city hall. Both admission and parking are free.
“We’ve tried to keep it as affordable as possible for a family to come out and spend the day or weekend,” said Stephanie Stephenson, festival board secretary. “All the shows and crafts and contests are less than $10 to enter.”
Stephenson said it is more of a fall festival today, but there is also an educational element to the event. Part of that teaching comes from the snake and reptile show, which includes many rattlesnakes. The show is $5, $2 for children ages 12 and younger.
Other attractions at the festival include wildlife exhibits, pony rides, crafts, contests and plenty of food, all of which is made at the event.
One of the highlights is the gopher race, which is $1. The event used to have real gopher tortoises, but today mockups of the reptile are used instead.
“It’s an outstanding event and I have participated in it for many years,” said Pasco County Commission Chairwoman Pat Mulieri. “In fact, I will be calling the 1 o’clock gopher race on Sunday.
“The race brings the community together, gives local people a chance to participate and does help the economy of the area,” Mulieri continued.
Mulieri is also the chairwoman of the Pasco Tourism Council. She said the influx of people to east Pasco helps the entire county when people buy gas, get food at the restaurants or stay at a hotel for the two-day festival.
Many people think they serve rattlesnake at the festival, but Stephenson said that is not the case.
“The funny thing is we’ve never served rattlesnake at the festival,” Stephenson said. “I hear that from people. We just have chicken, fish and other carnival food.”
The day will begin with the Rattlesnake Festival 5-mile and 1-mile races starting at 8 a.m. and 8:10 a.m. respectively. About 600 participate in the run each year. The start and finish lines are both on Magnolia Street near San Ann Liquors & Restaurant. The course is challenging with varying terrain and includes hills. For more information or for a registration form, call (352) 588-4444.
Also part of the festivities are the five Miss Rattlers, which will be named in the days leading up to the event. The five new winners will be out and about at the various events throughout the festival.
Contests include the Corn Toss Tournament, best Western Wear contest and the gopher race. For more information on event times, visit rattlesnakefestival.com.
Money from the contest, wildlife shows and food sales goes to benefit area churches and groups like Girl and Boy Scouts
“There’s something for everyone out here,” Stephenson said. “Where else can you see pageant winners, gopher races and rattlesnakes all in one place?”

By Elizabeth Gwilt

From music to wings to cars and hayrides, organizers of this weekend’s Wesley Chapel Fall Festival promise enough attractions to fill a whole weekend.
The festival will take place on Saturday, Oct. 16 and Sunday, Oct. 17 at the Grove mall. Formerly called the Wesley Chapel Craft Show, last year the festival drew crowds of about 30,000 people over the course of two days, and this year’s attendance is expected to be the same.

David West, director of the Wesley Chapel Chamber of Commerce, said the event has undergone some changes in recent years.
“It’s no longer just a craft show,” West said. “We have such a variety of activities now: food vendors, pumpkin patches, live music all day — you name it.”
A custom car show is one highlight of the festival, with classic cars on display Saturday and Hot Rods taking center stage on Sunday.
Entire areas at the festival are designated just for the kids. Traditional autumn-themed entertainment such as scarecrow making and hayrides are available, but bubble machines, rock-climbing walls, human hamster ball rides, moon bounces and face painting are offered as well. Geoffrey the Giraffe from the Toys ‘R Us franchise will also make an appearance.
Battle of the Wings is one returning attraction, with Texas Roadhouse, last year’s winner, coming back to defend its title.
Restaurant manager Karina Evans is confident that Roadhouse wings will win again. “Our wings are always fresh and we have a legendary sauce,” Evans said.
“We are changing things up a bit this time. We are trying out a new flavor at the contest, and we’ll see what the other restaurants do,” Evans said.
This year, however, the competition says it’s ready. Ken Santo, owner of Santo’s Pizza and Pasta, says his wings are better. Santo came in second place at last year’s festival, but he doesn’t plan on changing his recipe.
“We serve a ton of wings at my restaurant. Our wings use the best products and the sauce takes four hours to make,” he said. “I’ve eaten the competition’s wings, and they’re decent, but I know mine are better.”
Both restaurants will be selling food at the festival along with other local eateries.
In addition to all the interactive fun, eight live bands will be playing through the duration of the festival. Looper Band, GreenLight Iguana, Bryan Edwards, and Ferengata will perform Saturday, while Sunday’s entertainment lineup includes Harold Jones, Nunes at Night, The Bucket List and 10th Concession.
“We are really hoping that families will come and have a great time together; there really is something for everyone,” West said.

Sharing recipes is a source of joy for mother and son

By B.C. Manion

They don’t have a fancy test kitchen, sophisticated equipment or years of formal culinary training, but this Lutz mother and son have big dreams.
They’re aiming for their own cooking show.

Years ago, they would have never pictured themselves having such lofty ambitions, but that was before they turned their hobby into a publishing venture that they hope will lead to bigger things.
Indeed, it already has.
Iris and Michael Raie are scheduled to appear Oct. 15-17 at the Epcot International Food & Wine Festival. They will be talking about their cooking techniques and recipes and signing copies of their book, “No Place Like Home: Southern Cooking with a Latin Flair.”
The mother and son say their love of cooking is rooted in generations of good cooks in their family.
“My mother was an excellent cook,” Iris said. Her grandmother was too, she said. “My mom grew up in the kitchen cooking. I grew up in the kitchen cooking.”
Michael has cooking in his genes too. “I grew up in a household that cooked. I fell in love with it.”
When he was just 4, Michael said, Iris caught him standing on a chair near the stove frying bacon.
“I came downstairs and I smelled bacon,” Iris said. When she went to see what was going on, she saw that Michael had the task well under control.
“Most boys like playing with cars and trucks, but my love was cooking” Michael writes in the cookbook. “My toys were an Easy Bake Oven, play stove and pots and pans.”
While the mother and son said they have always loved to cook, decorate and entertain, neither expected to turn their passion for making delicious foods into a larger pursuit.
The family used to live in South Tampa, Iris said. They decided to move out to Lutz several years ago after suffering some personal losses.
Michael’s big brother, Scott, who had epilepsy, died suddenly while he was sleeping. That happened in July 1997.
“I almost had a nervous breakdown,” Iris said.
Three years later, Iris’ husband, Jack, suffered a stroke that left him disabled.
The family decided to move to Lutz to begin making new memories, Iris said. Her mother, Lillie Pope, moved with them – and at 85 she was still cooking.
“Shortly after we moved here, we started seeing her decline,” Lillie said. In 2006, Lillie died, and while Iris knew her mother’s recipes by heart, they were not written down anywhere.
Friends encouraged Iris to compile the recipes in a book, and after she’d begun the project she decided to branch out and add her own recipes and some from her friends. Creating the book was a monumental task.
As Iris and Michael made Lillie’s dishes, they had to constantly measure ingredients that for years they’d added by a pinch or a handful.
The project was pricy. Buying the ingredients to make all of the recipes was expensive.
It also was time-consuming. They spent many long days prepping the ingredients, preparing the dishes and then cleaning up afterwards.
Ultimately, they decided to self-publish the book.
Their initial efforts of working with a publisher were frustrating and disappointing. The company did not do much to help them promote the book and its first royalty check bounced, Iris said. Eventually, the company went bankrupt.
She and Michael decided to try again with a second publisher, Tate Publishing & Enterprises, based in Mustang, Okla. The new publisher quickly agreed to take them on, and after making some changes, the new version was released on April 13.
Now the pair plans to self-publish a series of five cookbooks. Once they sell enough volumes they will recoup the money they have paid to the publishing company, Iris said.
Already, they are tasting more success. They’ve been on radio and television programs and will be featured in a podcast, called “The Delicious Story,” produced in Des Moines, Iowa.
They recently taught a cooking class on southern cuisine at The Rolling Pin in Brandon. They demonstrated how to make fried green tomatoes, chicken and dumplings, skillet cabbage and country-fried apples.
They hope the Epcot talks will open many new doors.
Their next cookbook, slated to come out next year, will be called “No Place Like Home: Holiday Creations.” Other books are planned on children’s recipes, desserts and international foods.
Besides tapping into her personal history to recall family recipes, Iris says she sometimes dreams up new flavor combinations. “I’m asleep and a recipe comes to mind,” she said.
Sometimes she researches several recipes for the same dish and then combines portions of the various recipes to create a new approach.
She also enjoys eating foods at restaurants and then figuring out a recipe to mimic the flavors she’s tasted.
The 280-page cookbook features a broad array of recipes, including appetizers, beverages, breads, breakfast items, salads, salad dressings, seafood, entrees, vegetables, side dishes, pies, cakes, cookies and candy.
Specific entries include recipes for guacamole, salsa, fried ravioli, fried green tomatoes, cheese olive puffs, quiche Lorraine, cranberry walnut bread, chicken salad, buttermilk biscuits, Spanish bean soup, collard green soup, baked tilapia, devil crabs, chicken and yellow rice, red beans and smoked sausage, pot roast and picadilla.
The $21.99 volume also includes recipes for fruit punches, an old-fashioned malt, deep-dish peach cobbler, sour cream pound cake and an assortment of cookies and candy.
Sharing recipes is a source of joy, Iris said. She said she doesn’t understand why some people want to keep them secret.
“There was a lady at the church where we used to go and she made the most delicious pickles and the most delicious apple butter,” Iris recalled. “I said, “I would love to have that recipe”
“She said, ‘Honey, I don’t give my recipes out to nobody,’ ” Iris said.
Michael added: “She said, “I’m taking them to the grave with me.”
“And she did,” Iris said. “To me, that is a waste. I would want to share – (so that) our recipes live on.”
For more information about the cookbook go to http://noplacelikehome.tatepublishing.net.

Pumpkin Roll-Up Cake

Cake ingredients
1 cup granulated sugar
2/3s cup cooked pumpkin
3/4s cup all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon baking soda
3 eggs
½ cup powdered sugar

Filling ingredients
1 cup powdered sugar
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons butter
1 8-oz package cream cheese

Directions
Combine cake ingredients, except for the powdered sugar. Mix with an electric mixer. Cover a 12 by 15 cookie sheet with wax paper. Pour cake batter on the wax paper. Bake in a preheated oven at 375 degrees Fahrenheit for 15 minutes, or until golden brown.
Sprinkle ½ cup powdered sugar on a clean dish towel. Flip cake over on the sugared towel. Remove wax paper and roll cake up in the towel. Unroll the cake when it is cool.
Mix the filling ingredients with the electric mixer. Spread the filling evenly onto the unrolled cake. Roll the cake up again. Sprinkle with remain powdered sugar. Serve after chilling.

Hearty Turkey Chili

2 20-oz packages ground turkey
1 cup diced onions
1 cup diced green peppers
1 cup diced celery
3 heaping tablespoons minced garlic
2 1.25-oz packets of chili seasoning mix
2 16-oz cans chili beans, undrained
2 10-oz cans Rotel tomatoes and green chiles (undrained)
1 15-oz can tomato sauce
1 8-oz can tomato sauce
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon granulated sugar
Olive oil

Preheat large saucepan on medium high for 2-3 minutes. Place a little olive oil in the pan and brown turkey for 5-7 minutes, stirring until it crumbles. Transfer to a large soup pot. Clean the pan and coat it with oil to sauté onion, green pepper, celery and garlic. Cook for approximately 6-8 minutes. Transfer sautéed vegetables into soup pot with meat. Stir mixture. Add the remaining ingredients to the soup pot. Bring mixture to a boil, reduce heat to low and simmer for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally until cooked and flavors are well blended.
Note: This recipe makes a large pot of chili, which will serve about 10 people.
Optional: Chili can be served with grated sharp cheddar cheese and sour cream.