The Laker/Lutz News

Serving Pasco since 1981/Serving Lutz since 1964

Local News

McBride writes about ‘miracle’ in Lutz

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Karen McBride recalls the moment as if it were yesterday.

She was heading home from a computer class she was teaching in Tampa and had a million things on her mind. She was wondering how she could make the class better for her students. She was thinking about what she would make for dinner. And, McBride knew she’d have to make dinner fast because she needed to get her daughters to karate.

Karen McBride of Lutz shares her story of ‘Listening to our Angels,’ in ‘Chicken Soup for the Soul: Miraculous Messages from Heaven.’ (Photo by B.C. Manion)
Karen McBride of Lutz shares her story of ‘Listening to our Angels,’ in ‘Chicken Soup for the Soul: Miraculous Messages from Heaven.’ (Photo by B.C. Manion)

So, the Lutz woman wasn’t especially in the mood to wait for a long traffic light at the end of the Veterans Expressway, where it intersects with North Dale Mabry Highway.

“I was sitting at the red light,” McBride said. “I was getting impatient because it seemed like the light was never going to turn green.”

She couldn’t figure out what was taking so long.

“There was nobody coming,” she said. “As soon as the light turned green, I saw my grandmother sitting next to me. Right in the passenger seat. She said, ‘Wait. Just wait.’ And so, I waited. I did what my grandmother told me to do.”

Not a second later, a car speeded down Dale Mabry and roared through the intersection, running the red light.

“I had no idea how fast he was going,” she said.

McBride is sure she would have been in the path of the car, had she not followed her grandmother’s instruction. The thing is, her grandmother — Margaret Wilson of Cohoes, N.Y. — died in 1989, 13 years before this incident occurred.

Initially McBride didn’t tell anyone about her experience.

“Even now, I don’t know if people are going to believe me. Or, they’ll just think I’m crazy,” McBride said.

McBride, who is married and has three daughters, said she decided to share her story during a family reunion in the Outer Banks of North Carolina.

“Somehow, somebody brought up the subject of guardian angels,” McBride said. “So, I told them my story.”

Since then, she has shared her story with her family and with friends in her Bible studies at Grace Family Church. And now it can be found under the heading of “Listening to our Angels” in the book “Chicken Soup for the Soul: Miraculous Messages from Heaven.”

McBride, who said she was honored to have the story published, said it gives her comfort to know that others can watch out for us even after their death — and she hopes that her experience can help others feel that same sense of comfort, too.

Merry Makers use music as an instrument of joy

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If you’re looking for a bit of holiday cheer, there’s a new choral group in Wesley Chapel that wants to supply it.

The group, called Merry Makers and led by Edie Ledee-Finnerty, is a choir made up of children ages 6 through 13. And it will soon sing some holiday tunes at Florida Hospital Wesley Chapel, a Publix grocery store and Cobb Theatres Grove 16.

These are the members of the Merry Makers, a Wesley Chapel children’s chorus. They include, in front from left, Nuvini Wijesundara, Sandali Idippili, Sayuri Ranatunga, Yuthmi Gamage, Bianca Walker and Jasmine Mazard. In back, from left, Ravidu Idippili, Thevin Wijesundara, Yeran Gamage, Jeremiah Williams and Breonna Walker. (Photo by B.C. Manion)
These are the members of the Merry Makers, a Wesley Chapel children’s chorus. They include, in front from left, Nuvini Wijesundara, Sandali Idippili, Sayuri Ranatunga, Yuthmi Gamage, Bianca Walker and Jasmine Mazard. In back, from left, Ravidu Idippili, Thevin Wijesundara, Yeran Gamage, Jeremiah Williams and Breonna Walker. (Photo by B.C. Manion)

The children couldn’t be more excited. On Saturday, they were at Ledee-Finnerty’s house, rehearsing the songs they will perform.

As they sang, the choral director periodically stopped them, offering feedback. Sometimes, she called for improvement. Other times she doled out praise.

She clearly had the kids in the palm of her hand.

At one point, they were singing “Silent Night.” Some of the children knew the carol, but were rusty. Others were still learning the song. The first run-through was a little bit rough.

After Ledee-Finnerty’s coaching, however, they excelled on the second attempt.

Ledee-Finnerty’s ability to inspire the kids comes as no surprise to the children’s parents.

“They adore her,” said Jinali Idippili, whose children Sandali Idippili, 8, and Ravidu Idippili, 11, are part of the group.

Parents feel likewise, Idippili said. “She’s wonderful.”

Chulani Wijesundara said her children — Thevin and Nuvivi — have been taking piano lessons from Ledee-Finnerty for years. The teacher offers piano lessons at very reasonable prices, Wijesundara said. “Chorus is free.”

Both Ledee-Finnerty and her husband, Eugene Finnerty, are involved.

“While Ms. Edie is teaching kids, her husband, Mr. Eugene, gives her full support,” Wijesundara added.

Ledee-Finnerty said she appreciates having a group of parents who are involved.

“Each person offers their particular talent — making dresses, buying props, offering rides, making capes and costumes,” she said. “We all work together and it’s very rewarding.”

One of the moms, Katrina Williams, is the group’s choreographer. She enjoys helping the children make the right moves.

Ledee-Finnerty sees music as a powerful force for good, offering a bridge between people of diverse cultures.

“You can bring very different people together and have them learn the same song,” she said. “I particularly love music from around the world because we learn so much about each other through our music.”

It can be fun, too. As the kids sang “The 12 Days of Christmas,” they were going through the motions of milking, leaping, dancing and other actions contained in the Christmas carol.

The choir is made up of Yuthmi Gamage, 6; Sayuri Ranatunga, 7; Nuvivi Wijesundara, 7;

Bianca Walker, 8; Jasmine Mazard, 8; Sandali Idippili; Jeremiah Williams, 9; Breonna Walker, 9; Yeran Gamage, 9; Ravidu Idippili and, Thevin Wijesundara, 13.

Every member of Merry Makers said they enjoy singing.

Sandali Idippili, who attends Wesley Chapel Elementary School, put it this way: “When my voice is going high, I think of the blue sky and the birds are coming down and singing with me.”

The children are memorizing all of the words to the songs they will be performing, and Sandali Idippili believes they’ll be ready. She credited the choir director, noting, “She’s very talented.”

She offered another reason, too: “We practice a lot.”

Merry Makers performance schedule:
• Dec. 13, 6 p.m., Florida Hospital Wesley Chapel, 2600 Bruce B. Downs Blvd.
• Dec. 14, 2 p.m., Publix at Shoppes of New Tampa, 1920 County Road 581
• Dec. 15, 1:30 p.m., Cobb Theatres Grove 16 & CineBistro, 6333 Wesley Grove Blvd.

A stroll to remember

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With its decorative gingerbread woodwork, distinctive minarets, chrysanthemum windows and wrought iron balconies, the University of Tampa is an interesting place to visit any time of the year.

At the holidays, however, the National Historic Landmark — originally opened in 1891 as the Tampa Bay Hotel — becomes even more special. That’s when visitors to the Victorian Christmas Stroll can get a look at 14 rooms dressed up for the holidays in the Henry B. Plant Museum.

This tree, with its ‘Babes in Toyland’ theme, offers a look at the kinds of toys that children enjoyed during simpler times. (Photo courtesy of Henry B. Plant Museum)
This tree, with its ‘Babes in Toyland’ theme, offers a look at the kinds of toys that children enjoyed during simpler times. (Photo courtesy of Henry B. Plant Museum)

Museum staff takes great care in creating rooms that offer a sense of walking into the era when winter visitors came from all over the world to experience the opulence of the grand hotel.

“We really want you to feel that you’re stepping back in time,” said Sally Shifke, who handles museum relations.

The structure, built by railroad tycoon Henry B. Plant, graces a plot of land on the western edge of the Hillsborough River in downtown Tampa. It took more than two years to build the grand hotel, at the cost then of $2.5 million. Another $500,000 was needed to purchase the hotel’s European furnishings and artwork.

Visitors to the Victorian Stroll, now in its 32nd year, will have a chance to walk the same grounds Teddy Roosevelt did when he commanded the Rough Riders during the Spanish-American War. They also will be able to claim they’ve been to the same place as famous visitors who stayed or performed at the hotel, including John Phillips Sousa, Sarah Bernhardt, Clara Barton, Booker T. Washington, Thomas Edison and Babe Ruth.

Of course, there are those who are not particularly interested in history or architecture, and for them, the stroll offers a chance to see plenty of old-fashioned ornaments, garland and twinkling lights. And, in a gesture of true Southern hospitality, strollers are invited to conclude their visit by relaxing on the hotel’s vast verandah to enjoy a complimentary cookie and cup of spiced cider.

Like its name implies, the Victorian Christmas Stroll aims to give visitors a chance to slow down and breathe in the beauty and magic of the holidays. One room in this year’s stroll, called “Toys, Then and Now,” features toys from the days of the hotel — from the 1890s to the 1930s and from the present day — including Lincoln Logs to Legos, Raggedy Ann to Barbie.

“We feel that this exhibit will really provoke conversation. The fact of the matter is that all children like toys and they use their imagination,” Shifke said, noting the room will likely evoke pleasant memories for older visitors and prompt questions from younger guests.

One thing that patrons may notice is that the toys of today are made from synthetic materials, while those of the past are made from metals, woods and natural fibers, Shifke said.

Another room, known as the Men’s Reading/Writing Room, is the most authentic room in the museum, Shifke said. It features two trees, with masculine themes. One tree is decked out in playing cards and cigar boxes.

“When men came to the Tampa Bay Hotel, they played cards. There was a card room and they would smoke cigars,” Shifke said.

The other tree sports a baseball theme.

“They always talk about Babe Ruth hitting his longest home run on the grounds of the Tampa Bay Hotel,” Shifke said.

Another room on the stroll features a tree, standing nearly 14 feet tall, decorated with peacock feathers. That tree pays homage to the peacocks that once strolled about in a garden that the hotelier had built for his guests.

In addition to the dressing up the trees, the museum staff pays attention to the small details.

“We do try to pretty much decorate every nook and cranny,” Shifke said. They add miniature antique Christmas trees and other holiday accessories to mantles, cabinets and curios, using items of interest from the days when the Tampa Bay Hotel attracted affluent visitors to winter there.

In other places on the tour, visitors can see Santa climbing a stairwell, a vintage goose-feather Christmas and an exhibit featuring sock monkeys, paying tribute to the monkey house that was once on the hotel grounds. John Herrmann of Pasco County loaned the museum the goose-feather tree and 23 of the sock monkeys, Shifke said.

When strollers want to take a break, they can settle in to watch a movie about the hotel’s history.

Besides getting a glimpse of the life that was at the hotel, Shifke believes the stroll prompts visitors to conjure personal memories of Christmases gone by.

“If you weren’t in the Christmas spirit before you got here, you certainly will be in when you leave,” Shifke said.

If you go
WHAT: The Victorian Stroll
WHEN: Dec. 1-23, 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., with carolers performing nightly. The stroll is also open from Dec. 26 through Dec. 31 from 10 a.m. until 5 p.m.
WHERE: Henry B. Plant Museum, 401 W. Kennedy Blvd., in downtown Tampa.
COST: $13 for adults; $11 for senior citizens (65 and older); children, ages 4-18 are $7, until Dec. 23; after that, $10 for adults, $7 for seniors and students, and $5 for children, ages 5 through 12. (There are no carolers, cider or cookies after Christmas)
INFO: PlantMuseum.com

‘Barley Claus’ is coming to town

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Move over Santa. There’s a new jolly elf in town.

That’s the message the folks at East-West Animal Hospital in Lutz are trying to get out as the date draws near for “A Very Barley Christmas Party.”

Barley and his ‘mom,’ Lea Murray, will make an appearance at ‘A Very Barley Christmas Party’ Dec. 14. (Photo courtesy of Lea Murray)
Barley and his ‘mom,’ Lea Murray, will make an appearance at ‘A Very Barley Christmas Party’ Dec. 14. (Photo courtesy of Lea Murray)

The holiday-themed celebration is a fundraiser with a twist. Proceeds will benefit a variety of animal rescue groups, including Second Chance Boxer Rescue, Kitty City and the National Opossum Society. Instead of a visit from St. Nick, attendees can meet “Barley Claus,” an opossum that’s become quite a local celebrity since he was rescued and nursed back to health nearly two years ago.

Barley was involved in a car accident as a baby. That accident killed his mother and siblings, explained hospital spokesman Dennis Costantino. With some tender, loving care from East-West’s staff and his new “mom,” Lea Murray, Barley survived.

Since his rescue, Barley has become the hospital’s mascot of sorts, but more importantly he’s “an ambassador for these very misunderstood animals,” Costantino said. While some people think opossums are mean and others brand them nuisances, Costantino said those perceptions are false.

“They are very solitary and quiet,” he said.

Opossums tend to avoid people and only hiss when they’re cornered and scared. They don’t carry rabies, but they do play an important role in Florida’s ecosystem.

“They’re basically the garbage men,” surviving off carrion and bugs, Costantino explained.

Opossums are highly resistant to poisonous snake and spider bites, and tend to keep areas where they live free of such pests as roaches, Costantino said.

They’re also quite photogenic — or at least Barley is. That’s why the locally famous marsupial plans to pay a visit to the hospital’s celebration dressed as “Barley Claus.” Attendees can get their holiday pictures taken with him during the event for a donation to the animal rescue groups.

Proceeds from the photos and chance drawings will be split among numerous rescue groups, explained Jade Sceusa, the hospital’s office manager. Fifty percent will go directly to the opossum society, while the other half will benefit a host of other groups.

Although the celebration is meant for fun, it does have a serious purpose.

“We wanted to do more for the species,” Sceusa said. “We are so passionate about rescue.”

Why has Barley become such a celebrity?

“Everyone has just fallen in love with Barley,” Sceusa said. “He’s the cutest little guy.”

A Very Barley Christmas Party takes place Dec. 14 from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m., at East-West Animal Hospital, 1524 Land O’ Lakes Blvd. The event features food from Uptown Pizza & Subs, Panera Bread, Publix and The Breakfast Nook.

There will also be a variety of local vendors present, goodie bags given away and opossum fans can pick up their Barley calendars and T-shirts.

For more information, visit www.EastWestAnimalHospital.com.

By Sherri Lonon

Business Digest 12-11-13

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Kiki Young
Kiki Young

New massage therapist at Cameo Salon
Kiki Young has joined Cameo Salon & Spa as a licensed massage therapist.
Using a unique combination of Lomi Lomi techniques and traditional massage, Young develops individualized therapeutic treatment plans for every client. Her massages include sports, Swedish relaxation, customized deep tissue, prenatal and trigger point.
Cameo is located at 1817 Collier Parkway in Lutz.
For more information, call (813) 948-7411.

 

Connerton’s $1,000 Grand Tour
Connerton, the planned community of 8,000 homes in central Pasco County, is offering visitors a chance to win $1,000 by taking part in its grand tour of homes. But anyone looking for a chance to win will need to hurry, as the drawing is set to take place Dec. 15.
Builders taking part in the tour include Ryland Homes, Taylor Morrison, M/I Homes, and Homes by WestBay. Each offers different types of homes ranging in price from the higher $100,000, to more than $700,000.
Ryland can be reached at (813) 996-1800, or at Ryland.com. Taylor Morrison is at (866) 495-6006, or at TaylorMorrison.com. M/I is at (813) 388-6836, or at MIHomes.com, while WestBay can be reached at (813) 428-5973, or at HomesByWestBay.com.
Since the community’s grand re-opening in May, more than 75 homes have been sold in the community.
Connerton is located west of Interstate 75 on U.S. 41, five miles north of State Road 54.
For more information, visit Connerton.com.

 

Kirk speaking at chamber breakfast
The Greater Dade City Chamber of Commerce will host a business breakfast Dec. 17 beginning at 8 a.m., at the Hornbuckle Room of the Dade City Business Center, 15000 Citrus Country Drive in Dade City.
The guest speaker is Arthur Kirk Jr., president of Saint Leo University.
Cost is $5 per person.
For more information, and to RSVP, call (352) 567-3769.

 

New community phase opens at Connerton
Ryland Homes recently opened a new phase for single-family homes beginning at $190,000 in Connerton. It’s located at 8641 Savory Walk Drive in Land O’ Lakes.
Mike Finley, vice president of sales and marketing for Ryland Homes in the Tampa Bay region, said the homebuilder has released 32 conservation and water view lots in the new phase.
Connerton is a master-planned, designated “New Town” community with a theme park-style pool, community center, restaurant, and a highly rated elementary school within the community.
For more information, visit www.Ryland.com/Tampa.

 

Cross Insurance comes to Lutz
Douglas Scribner is helming the newest office for Cross Insurance from his Lutz location.
The office is located at 1423 Kensington Woods Drive in Lutz. Scribner will become Cross’ head of Southeast Surety Operations, and will be responsible for handling the bonding and risk management needs for a diverse group of construction companies and businesses within Florida’s surety marketplace.
“With Florida poised to become the third largest state in the nation, we feel there’s room in this marketplace for a strong player to duplicate Cross Surety’s successful Northeast business model in the Southeast,” said Michelle Orlando, president of Cross Surety Inc., in a release. “Doug’s knowledge of the surety industry in Florida makes him the perfect choice to lead our new office.”
A native of Maine, Scribner has worked in Florida’s surety industry for the past 24 years. Prior to joining Cross Insurance, he has served as an account executive and officer for Travelers Casualty and Surety’s Construction Surety Division in Tampa. Scriber also worked with ProSure Group, Aon Risk Services and Amwest Surety.
Cross Surety is a wholly owned subsidiary of Cross Financial Group, and currently has offices in Massachusetts, Maine and New York.

 

Chamber hosts quarterly membership meeting
The Greater Zephyrhills Chamber of Commerce will host its quarterly membership meeting Dec. 11 beginning at 9 a.m. at the chamber office, 38550 Fifth Ave., in Zephyrhills.
Scheduled to speak are Krista Covey from the SmartStart Business Incubator, chamber president Carolyn Sentelik, and chamber executive director Vonnie Mikkelsen.
For more information, call (813) 782-1913, or email .

 

New home style introduced at Grand Hampton
ICI Homes recently hosted a grand opening to showcase its new Salerno luxury model home at New Tampa’s Grand Hampton.
The homes, according to ICI’s vice president of sales and marketing Rosemary Messina, offers contemporary styling and an open floor plan with four bedrooms, three bathrooms, and an optional bonus room and additional full bathroom in a little more than 3,400 square feet of space.
Prices for the building style begins at just under $440,000, with plans to build 35 of them at Grand Hampton, located in New Tampa between Bruce B. Downs Boulevard and Interstate 75, just south of East County Line Road on Dunham Station Drive.

 

Dade City eatery has new owner
Tropical Café in downtown Dade City has opened its doors under new ownership.
Luis Rivera said he will keep the name and same style of cuisine that has been a part of the restaurant since it opened.
He purchased the restaurant from Ivelisse Martes, who was recently hospitalized and then advised by her doctors to step away from the restaurant business, according to a release.
Tropical Café is located at 14249 Seventh St., in Dade City.

Acts of kindness abound, and not only at the holidays

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It’s that time of year again when efforts begin revving up to provide holiday meals and gifts for those who need help, and lots of groups and individuals are stepping up to help out.

But the season of giving expands far beyond the holidays in The Laker/Lutz News coverage area.

On any given day, the newspaper receives emails detailing the good works being done. Requests pour in, too, seeking help to put the word out for a wide array of charity events.

The communications are telling. They paint a picture of a community that cares.

Noah Schultz gets a look under the tire of a 1998 Honda Prelude that he’s helping to repair for Matt Feldhouse, a member of the military who was deployed at that time to Kyrgyzstan. (Photos by B.C. Manion)
Noah Schultz gets a look under the tire of a 1998 Honda Prelude that he’s helping to repair for Matt Feldhouse, a member of the military who was deployed at that time to Kyrgyzstan. (Photos by B.C. Manion)

Here’s a look at just a few of the dozens of charitable acts performed in recent months, by young and old residents of Central Pasco, East Pasco and Northern Hillsborough counties.

In response to Typhoon Haiyan that killed thousands in the Philippines and rendered others without food or shelter, the Rev. Federico Agnir of Wesley Chapel had a charity benefit on Nov. 24 at Atonement Lutheran Church. The concert was free, but donations were collected for the Pacific Typhoon Response Fund of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America.

The Zephyrhills Historical Association also had a recent fundraiser at Ruby Tuesday in Zephyrhills. The restaurant donated 20 percent of diner proceeds for the fundraiser to support the Rosemary Trottman Scholarship Fund. The scholarship goes to a qualified Zephyrhills High School graduate.

Other examples of the community’s giving nature abound.

Nearly 600 hikers turned out for Hike for Hospice, on Nov. 10 at the Land O’ Lakes campus of Rasmussen College on State Road 54. The event raised more than $56,000 to support programs at Hospice Houses and bereavement centers from Gulfside Regional Hospice, as well as to help patients and their families facing life-limiting illnesses in Pasco County, according to a news release.

The GFWC Lutz-Land O’Lakes Woman’s Club routinely stages events to raise money, which in turn, benefits groups ranging from scout troops, to domestic violence survivors, to the homeless.

Woman’s club members Joan Collins and Pat Serio recently delivered a truckload of infant and toddler clothing to Alpha House of Tampa. It helps homeless pregnant women and mothers with young children by providing a safe place to live and equipping women with tools to become self-sufficient.

Throughout the year, Gloria Dale, another woman’s club member, signs cards that are shipped during the holidays to military personnel overseas, and delivered to residents at local nursing homes.

Other groups also work all year long to show their support for the troops.

Support the Troops in Wesley Chapel ships boxes including microwaves, refrigerators, televisions, snack foods, coffee and other items to military personnel overseas. The Lutz Patriots sends care packages, including snacks, personal hygiene supplies and other items to the troops, too.

Patricia Murphy of Land O’ Lakes enlists local businesses and volunteer groups to help her organization, Books for Troops. The books are distributed to military personnel and at local nursing homes.

Members of the men’s group at Grow Life Church in Wesley Chapel performed a personal act of support for a member of the military. They decided to restore a 1998 Honda Prelude owned by U.S. Air Force Master Sgt. Matt Feldhouse while he was deployed in Kyrgyzstan.

The car broke down before Feldhouse went overseas. While he was gone, the men’s church group rallied local businesses and others to help support the project and made the needed repairs.

They surprised Feldhouse at an event at The Shops at Wiregrass, a popular venue for many community events, which often are coupled with fundraising efforts for local charities.

In this age of tweets and texts, Gloria Dale uses an old-fashioned way to send holiday cheer to veterans and troops. She writes each of her greeting cards by hand.
In this age of tweets and texts, Gloria Dale uses an old-fashioned way to send holiday cheer to veterans and troops. She writes each of her greeting cards by hand.

For instance, this year The Shops will host a new event called The Wiregrass Wobble Turkey Trot, with proceeds from the Thanksgiving morning race going to Feeding America Tampa Bay and local charities through New Tampa Rotary Foundation and the New Tampa YMCA.

Local chambers of commerce also commit acts of kindness, often sponsoring student of the month celebrations and scholarships and getting involved in cleanups and other community projects.

The Lutz Civic Association drums up support for community organizations through its annual race for Lutz Guv’na. This year’s candidates raised $12,596, which was distributed to support various community organizations.

The race for honorary mayor in Wesley Chapel also raises funds, which are used to support the Wesley Chapel Chamber of Commerce and local causes.

Some networking groups also get into the act.

The Christian Business Connection, a Central Pasco group, hands out a number of checks each year. Recently, the group donated $250 to Big Brothers Big Sisters of Tampa Bay, using funds from the networking group’s membership dues.

Women-n-Charge, a women’s networking group, presents an annual fundraising tea to raise money to support two $1,000 grants to help women advance their business goals. This year’s fundraiser went so well the group raised extra money, so they also contributed $1,000 to A Woman’s Place, a ministry devoted to providing free help to women facing unplanned pregnancies.

Bigger organizations get involved, too.

For example, Regional Medical Center Bayonet Point recently kicked off its “Connected in Times of Need” campaign. This four-week effort is aimed at raising money to provide emergency funds to help Hospital Corporation of America employees and their families when they face extreme financial hardships. Those difficulties can arise from a natural disaster, an extended illness or another kind of tragedy.

More than $15 million has gone to help more than 14,000 employees and their families since the fund was established in 2005, according to a hospital news release.

Florida Hospital Wesley Chapel also is involved in various community events. In August, for instance, it sponsored a seminar to help educate parents, coaches and athletes about the dangers of concussions, and steps to reduce the risks of concussion injuries.

The list of charitable acts through The Laker/Lutz News’ coverage area goes on and on. Perhaps it is best represented, however, by Jack Buttafuoco, 9, who took it upon himself to conduct a summer food drive to help fight hunger locally.

The Seven Oaks resident collected canned foods, pasta, peanut butter and other items from friends, family and neighbors to help stock the pantry at Feeding America Tampa Bay-Suncoast Branch. He even pitched in $26 of his allowance.

Buttafuoco said he decided to do the food drive because it makes him feel sad when he thinks of others who are hungry.

Local official on elevated road: It’s when, not if

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Pasco County Commissioners are being asked to give an early blessing to a proposed elevated road project along the State Road 54/56 corridor … and they just might do it.

A nonbinding resolution about the unsolicited proposal was part of the commission’s Tuesday meeting, which took place before The Laker/Lutz News press deadline. The goal was to help Florida Department of Transportation officials get a clear look at where commissioners stand on the project that could exceed $2 billion. That is, even though the commission’s approval is not necessary for it to move forward.

“What DOT wants to know is if we’re still onboard doing this thing,” said Richard Gehring, the county’s planning and development administrator. “The DOT and the county have a lot of partnering history in putting this together and working on it. And basically, we already have $1 million out there in the corridor with detailed studies we’ve done there.”

International Infrastructure Partners Inc. brought the idea of building a 33-mile elevated road — similar to what was constructed over the Lee Roy Selmon Expressway in Hillsborough County — earlier this year. It would be primarily a private venture, with IIP earning long-term profits through tolls.

FDOT had originally set a deadline of last October to receive competing proposals on such a project, but delayed it just ahead of the deadline until Dec. 9 after IIP asked for more time.
Part of that reason was because the Urban Land Institute, the independent growth and development analytical group that is studying the future of Pasco County, had reportedly advised against the project.

Yet, ULI’s recommendation may have been a bit premature, Gehring said.

“They raised the question, wondering if we’ve exhausted all alternatives, and they raised a bunch of study issues,” Gehring said. “But what they didn’t know is that we already had two-and-a-half years of efforts already underway.”

ULI leans toward the development design structure of “New Urbanism,” Gehring said, which emphasizes pedestrians and de-emphasizes vehicle traffic. But what IIP has proposed is much different — allowing the corridor to maintain localized traffic while providing viable options for those trying to traverse the region.

“They said that some communities were taking down their elevated roads, but those were specialized circumstances,” Gehring said. “They were one-, two- or three-mile sections in downtowns that were built years and years and years ago. This is nothing like that.”

Whether the elevated road is the way FDOT and the county goes or not is not going to change the fact that something has to be done to move traffic, Gehring said. Intersections like U.S. 41 and State Road 54 already see 100,000 vehicles each day, and that’s only going to grow as the corridor grows.

“At some point, 140,000 or 150,000 cars per day are going to need to be in that corridor, and that’s going to be both a blessing and a curse,” Gehring said.

The Metropolitan Planning Organization developed a long-range transportation plan in 2008 that warned the State Road 54/56 corridor could require up to 20 travel lanes to accommodate future vehicles in a little more than 20 years. The group later earmarked $800 million for improvements to the corridor that could include toll-based roads and elevated sections.

The resolution considered by the commission also shared an FDOT study completed earlier this year that looked at 18 highway and transit improvement alternatives for the corridor, eliminating anything additional built at the same level as the existing road. Its recommendation was to go up, possibly with four elevated lanes.

Commissioner Pat Mulieri, who has been a proponent of the elevated road, told The Laker/Lutz News last week she planned to support the resolution. By passing it, FDOT and other agencies will get the support it needs for more studies that would define the concept’s revenue potential costs, environmental impacts, explore more possible private-public partnerships, and seek out more public input.

Although IIP has not provided any cost projections for the project, using the Lee Roy Selmon Expressway elevated road as a model from 2004, construction could cost more than $70 million per mile. That would put the total price tag well over $2.3 billion.

The question is no longer if to build something like this elevated road, but when, Gehring said.

“If someone out there has another way to solve this, we would be very glad to listen,” he said.

Company shares secrets behind festive Christmas lights

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Every year, sometime around July, Melissa Christensen will start fielding inquiries from businesses seeking estimates on decking out their businesses with holiday lights.

Melissa Christensen holds a ball of holiday lights, which is easier to wrap around trees. (Photo by B.C. Manion)
Melissa Christensen holds a ball of holiday lights, which is easier to wrap around trees. (Photo by B.C. Manion)

The Lutz woman, who calls herself “The Christmas Light Girl,” works with a crew of up to eight guys, all who have holiday light installations down to a science. The company consists of Christensen, her fiancé Jarrett Lane, his relatives and a friend. They’re busy each year from early November through mid-December.

Christensen can quote jobs ranging from small homes to mansions, from the St. Pete Museum of Fine Arts to Bartow Ford — anywhere around the Tampa Bay area, including Pasco, Hillsborough and Pinellas counties.

Over the years, the installers have learned the tricks of the trade. When planning a lighting display, for example, it’s important to think about the scale of the job, Christensen said. A big tree, for instance, requires more lights, decorations and extension cords.

When figuring out how many lights are needed for a roofline, it’s important to keep in mind the various setbacks on the roof, she said.

It’s also essential to have enough extension cords and timers for each job. It’s easy to underestimate the number of timers that are needed to achieve the desired effect, she said.

At a house the company decks out each year in Odessa, for instance, the job requires nine timers.

While some people use multicolored lights, others prefer clear ones. One winning look involves clear lights, combined with splashes of color for effect, Christensen said.

Her company uses that approach on palm trees. It wraps the trunks in clear lights and then uses a green band of lights at the top of trunk, just below the fronds.

The average tree requires 150 feet to 200 feet of lights. Trying to deck out the fronds can get a bit pricey, Christensen explained.

“Fronds tend to get expensive because you usually have to have a lift. So, the green band on top is a good alternative to getting your color on your palms,” she said.

It’s a good idea to shop around for lights because prices can vary widely, Christensen said. Decorating trees can go anywhere from $50 to $250, depending on the type and size of tree.

Commercial light strands are available at places like Lowe’s and Home Depot, but also can be purchased online. The strands are typically 132 feet for incandescent lights, and 67 feet for light-emitting diodes.

“LEDs are just a spot of light,” Christensen said. “They do not glow or illuminate. If you really want illumination, then you need to stick with the incandescents.”

However, the LEDs do have one big advantage: They last longer.

It’s also important to expect lights to fail.

“It’s usually one of two things: Either you’re missing a bulb, or the squirrel chewed through the wire,” she said. To help spot outages, Christensen’s company uses “stay lits.” If a light goes out, she loses half of the strand, which helps her identify the problem spot.

To help prevent failures, she recommends taping over extension cord plugs to keep water from seeping in. She also said it’s advisable to alert landscaping crews, so they turn off the sprinklers and avoid running equipment over cords.

It’s also a good idea to tape down any cords that are running across walkways, to prevent a tripping hazard.

For those decorating a tree, Christensen does offer a tip: Roll the strand of lights into a ball. Then unroll it as the tree is wrapped the tree.

“It saves a lot of time. It makes it a lot more manageable,” she said. “It allows you to keep your lines tight. It makes it easier than trying to pull the wire through each time you go around.”

Installing lights keeps the company busy for about six solid weeks, Christensen said, but she enjoys the work.

She also delights in seeing a finished job.

“Lights are awesome,” she said.

Contempo students ready to dance for Rockettes

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The Rockettes have high-kicked their way on dance stages around the world since 1925. And for the first time in seven years, they’ll bring their famous precision dance moves to Tampa’s Straz Center.

Contempo School of Dance instructor Kathleen Beach runs the dancers through the routine planned for their Rockettes performance on Dec. 27 and Dec. 28. Joining her are Omar Brito, Madison Blocher, Sydney Bruen, Caleigh Hayes and Kelsey Bognar. (Photo by Michael Hinman)
Contempo School of Dance instructor Kathleen Beach runs the dancers through the routine planned for their Rockettes performance on Dec. 27 and Dec. 28. Joining her are Omar Brito, Madison Blocher, Sydney Bruen, Caleigh Hayes and Kelsey Bognar. (Photo by Michael Hinman)

Before they take the stage Dec. 27 and Dec. 28, however, they’ll have an opening act filled with faces many should recognize: a team from Contempo School of Dance on State Road 54 in Lutz.

“It’s a once-in-a-lifetime chance for us to dance,” said school founder Lani Gunn.

The team had just five weeks to learn their routine, which lasts a little more than 2 minutes and 30 seconds, using music provided by The Rockettes. It will involve 32 dancers in all, who will not only take the stage to tease The Rockettes’ performance — but they will have front row seats for the main attraction as well.

Most, if not all, of the students performing that holiday weekend will watch The Rockettes for the first time. And that includes Gunn.

“I have their DVD. I’ve just never seen them in person,” she said.

The school caught the attention of the New York City Dance Alliance, a dance convention group founded in 1993, through its success at various competitions. The alliance will earn a portion of the ticket proceeds for its scholarship fund to help get dancers into school by anyone who purchases their ticket with the promotional code “NYCDA9.”

The teams get just one hour a week to practice together, but they’re also spending a few good hours each week practicing on their own at home.

“The steps that they are learning, they have learned over the years,” Gunn said. “It’s not like they can just learn it in five practices.”

Which means for all the dancers, this was a performance years in the making. Erika Hanzelka has danced at Contempo since 2007.

“My friend just told me to start coming here, and I loved it so much, I started to take more and more classes every year,” the 11-year-old said.

Other members of her team have been dancing even longer, like Whitney Herd, 12, who started at Contempo when she was 2 years old as part of the studios’ “Mommy and Me” program.

“I always find myself doing tap dances around my house,” Herd said. “With dance, you can express your emotions and kind of let go. And (Contempo) is a place where you can dance and have fun.”

Dancers just get addicted to it, Gunn said.

“When they are 3, they go once a week,” she said. “And then after that, they want to try some other form, and some other one after that. Many of these kids take between 8 to 10 classes a week.”

The Rockettes are performing as part of the Radio City Christmas Spectacular running from Dec. 12 through Dec. 29 at the center’s Carol Morsani Hall. This is the highest-profile venue yet for Gunn’s studio, which has operated in Lutz for the last 19 years.

“We do competitions, and dance at Busch Gardens and Disney, but never at that big stage at the Straz,” Gunn said.

For more information on The Rockettes show, visit StrazCenter.org. To learn more about Contempo, visit ContempoDance.com.

 

Prize-winning writer draws on diverse experiences

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Jeff Wilson never pictured himself as a novelist.

An avid reader and writer for his entire life, the New Tampa man viewed himself as a short story writer. As someone who has pursued many different career paths in life, Wilson honestly didn’t think he had the attention span to develop an idea into a full-length novel.

Jeff Wilson never pictured himself as a novelist, but he has actually discovered that for him, writing a novel is easier than writing a short story. (Photo by B.C. Manion)
Jeff Wilson never pictured himself as a novelist, but he has actually discovered that for him, writing a novel is easier than writing a short story. (Photo by B.C. Manion)

He knows now — as he launches into his sixth novel — that, for him, writing a book is actually easier than writing a short story. A novel gives him more time and space to develop the characters he creates, he explained.

Recently, his novel “The Donors” received a Gold Medal in the Science Fiction/Fantasy/Horror category in the Military Writers Society of America’s Book Awards. His 246-page book fuses elements of horror, medical suspense and the supernatural.

The award is especially meaningful because it comes from authors who have an appreciation for the sacrifices and dedication that the men and women in the military demonstrate through their service, Wilson said. That’s even more meaningful for him after two tours of duty in Iraq, with the U.S. Marines and with the Joint Special Operations Task Force.

Wilson’s writing draws on his diverse life experiences. He has worked as an actor, a firefighter, a paramedic, a diving instructor and a vascular surgeon.

He was in the Navy from 1998 until 2012 and was deployed to Iraq in 2005 with the 2nd Marine expeditionary force as part of a forward surgical team supporting combat operations in Western Iraq.

After that, he was recruited to Naval Special Warfare, where he made multiple deployments as part of a Joint Special Operations Task Force. He transitioned to the reserves in 2008 and remained a reserve until leaving the Navy four years later.

Wilson’s other published books are “The Traiteur’s Ring” and “Fade to Black.” The publisher is Journalstone Publishing of San Francisco, an independent book publisher that specializes in the science fiction, fantasy and horror genres.

Wilson now hopes a major publishing house will pick up his work.

His agent, Talcott Notch Literary Services president Gina Panettieri, is now shopping his book, “Julian’s Numbers,” to various publishers.

Meanwhile, Wilson continues to write. He recently wrapped up his fifth book, “War Torn.” Unlike Wilson’s other books, “War Torn,” has no supernatural element.

“It’s about a young man and a young woman and the effects that war has on them,” Wilson said. “He’s a member of the National Guard. They’re in their mid-20s. She’s very active in her church. He and his best friend are in this guard unit that’s deployed to Afghanistan.”

The soldier becomes passionate about religion, through the influence of his best friend who becomes his spiritual mentor. When his friend is subsequently killed in front of him, he begins to question everything, Wilson said.

“So he comes home, like most of us, a mess. He doesn’t know if he even believes in God anymore. His marriage is strained,” Wilson said.

The book recounts the soldier’s journey back from war.

“Like all of my books, there’s a lot of me in that book,” Wilson said.

Now, Wilson is working on his sixth book, a collaborative project with another author, Brian Andrews.

Wilson said much of what he has learned about writing has come through trial and error and from being a voracious reader. He doesn’t map out his books in advance.

“When I write, it’s like watching a movie. I can’t wait to write again because I want to find out what’s going to happen.” Wilson said. “As I write, I’ll write a chapter at a time.”

As he finishes one chapter, he includes brief descriptions at the bottom summarizing elements of future chapters. The more the book progresses, the more future chapter summaries Wilson will include.

“I generally don’t know how the book ends until maybe the last 50 pages,” he said.

Wilson doesn’t devote full time to writing. He works part-time in medicine and also does contract work for the U.S. Department of Defense.

He typically writes five days a week, for a couple hours at a stretch. He said he’s found that his writing is more effective when he works in concentrated bursts.

And, even though he has a room in his home that was specifically set aside for his writing, Wilson tends to do most of his work at Starbucks or Barnes & Noble. He does that to discipline himself. If he’s at home and his kids — Jack, Emma and Connor — are there, he would rather spend time with them than work on his writing, Wilson said. He is married to Wendy, an adjunct faculty member at the University of Tampa.

Wilson isn’t the only one who enjoys writing. His son Connor told him one day that he would like to write a story. Wilson said he encouraged him to do so, and much to his surprise, his son wrote a 45-page book, which was picked up by a publisher in Chicago.

Since then, Connor, now 13, has made appearances with his book, “A Giant Pencil,” and has even made joint book signings with his dad.

For more information about Jeffrey Wilson, visit www.jeffreywilsonfiction.com. To learn more about Connor Wilson, visit www.thegiantpencil.com.