Uncertainty remains for Haitians in SWFL under protected status
Q: First, may I say that my wife and I have enjoyed your columns. A quick question is about last year’s mentioning the new additions coming to Gulf Gate Plaza. In November 2024, Gulf Gate Plaza LLC submitted a “zoning verification” letter to the county regarding doing multifamily over commercial for the property, while they are now saying that they may have a large tenant to fill the old Big Lots space. I wondered if they are no longer exploring that plan? –Jim King, Naples
A: Isram Realty Group, doing business as Gulf Gate Plaza LLC, has had discussions with Collier County officials about the possible redevelopment of Gulf Gate Plaza, the large retail center the company owns on the southwest corner of U.S. 41 East and Bayshore Drive. While formal plans have yet to be presented, representatives from both the public and private sector have shown interest in seeing something loftier at that entrance to Bayshore Drive. Isram, based in Hallandale on Florida’s east coast, acquired the 206,785-square-foot Gulf Gate Plaza and its 13.4 acres more than 20 years ago for $10 million. Until closing in 2024 as an anchor of Gulf Gate Plaza, Big Lots operated for more than 15 years in a 36,277-square-foot space that formerly was home to one of the first Publix supermarkets in the area. The discount retailer’s shuttering of this location along
See ATEN KNOWS, Page 7A
3A | MOTHER’S MESSAGE
Tenants square off against ‘noisy’ Pilates studio
By Aisling Swift aisling.swift@naplespress.com
It’s a battle between a new high-intensity Pilates-style studio and upstairs tenants in a quaint building off Third Street South that’s traditionally been leased to quiet ground-floor shops and offices.
The noise is so loud, Pettit Square tenants say, that it’s shaken the entire building, causing at least one tenant to burst into tears — and that was even before Bonded Lagree Naples opened its 8,623-square-foot studio at 290 14th Ave. S. in the Third Street South district. Yet on Feb. 4, there were two noise complaints to Naples Code Enforcement, the second after the studio turned loud music back on after an officer told them it violated the city’s noise ordinance and to turn it off. That came a month after Pettit Square residents sued the new property owner that leased to Bonded Lagree and GLDN Hour Coffee Co. In response, the commercial tenants and property owner said the tenants don’t like change and were engaging in “harassment and bullying” — “an
illegal attempt to control a lawful use” of their own property.
Last week, tenants gathered in City Hall as Pettit Square Homeowner Association President Craig Sutherland told City Council the Planning Department made a mistake allowing such an intense use in their quiet building, a gym “rapidly constructed” after they tried to halt it because it hadn’t received their approval, as their building agreement requires. Sutherland maintained the high-intensity See PILATES, Page 8A
Shy Wolf sues founder
By Aisling Swift aisling.swift@naplespress.com
When Golden Gate Estates resident Nancy Smith rescued an injured black Asian leopard named Moon Dance in 1993, it was the start of Shy Wolf Sanctuary Education & Experience Center.
Sixteen years later, Smith signed over the property to the sanctuary, but the couple signed a life trust agreement, ensuring they’d be able to remain in their home and care for the animals until the couple died.
Now, the sanctuary is suing 80-year-old Smith, asking a judge to evict the couple, contending Nancy Smith is disrupting sanctuary operations and prompting employee turnover. The lawsuit comes 19 days after Smith’s arrest on Jan. 9 on a misdemeanor battery charge after she struggled
The sanctuary, founded by Smith and her husband, Kent, out of their home at 1161 27th St. SW, became a nonprofit in 2001, providing a home on 2.5 acres for roughly 50 captive-bred wolves and other exotic animals, including wolfdogs and cougars.
with an employee, breaking her glasses, as she tried to say goodbye to Chatty, a wolf set to be euthanized.
“There’s a mystery behind the trust agreement,” said Smith’s civil attorney Tony Lawhon, adding that it was signed, the board kept the original and the Smiths weren’t given a copy. “Apparently, the board is now taking the position that this document doesn’t exist and, in fact, if you read their lawsuit closely, they don’t actually identify the reason why Kent and Nancy have
See SHY WOLF, Page 11A
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LCF welcomes new Leadership class
The Leadership Collier Foundation, an affiliate of the Greater Naples Chamber, announced the Associate Leadership Class of 2026. The class started its program with a kick-off celebration and its first session on Tuesday, Feb. 17.
“I’m excited to welcome the Associate Leadership Collier Class of 2026,” said Kristina Park, president and CEO of the Greater Naples Chamber. “ALC offers emerging leaders a powerful opportunity to build meaningful connections, learn from seasoned professionals and develop both personally and professionally. The program is a meaningful investment in the future of Collier County.”
Each winter, the Leadership Collier Foundation accepts approximately 40 area professionals for its Associate Leadership Collier program. The program is specifically designed for emerging leaders and professionals in Collier County between the ages of 21 and 40. Participants go through an intense, 10-session series of workshops focused on key issues affecting the community. After graduation, Associate Leadership Collier members can join the LCF Alumni Association and are encouraged to take an active role in civic and professional issues, address area challenges and work toward solutions in the public interest.
The full list of Associate Leadership Collier Class of 2026 participants can be found at leadershipcollier.org/news/ welcome-to-the-alc-class-of-2026.
CWA welcomes Bollinger
Capital Wealth Advisors, an independent financial advisory firm based in Naples, announced the appointment of Blake Bollinger as an Operations Associate. Working from Naples, Bollinger supports the Mid-Atlantic Team in delivering client service, managing account operations and overseeing day-to-day business activities.
Bollinger joins CWA following an internship with the firm. Previously, he served as a financial representative intern at Northwestern Mutual and a finance associate intern at Four Seasons Wealth Management.
Bollinger earned his bachelor of science degree in finance from Florida Gulf Coast University. He also holds his Life, Health and Variable Annuity License in Florida. Bollinger is currently active in the community as a volunteer with the nonprofit organization Meals for Hope.
“We are pleased to welcome Blake
to our growing team,” said William N. Beynon, president, CEO and managing partner of Capital Wealth Advisors.
Week of Giving raises more than $3.8M
Grey Oaks Country Club raised more than $3.8 million for 70 Collier County nonprofit organizations through its Grey Oaks Cares philanthropic initiative. This year, the initiative expanded into a six-day, club-wide Week of Giving that mobilized members, staff and leadership across the community, reinforcing Grey Oaks’ longstanding commitment to charitable leadership in Naples.
Primary 2026 beneficiaries include Grace Place, Guadalupe Center, Habitat for Humanity of Collier County, Harry Chapin Food Bank of Southwest Florida, Naples Children’s Foundation, Naples Zoo, Neighborhood Health Clinic, Pathways Early Education Center of Immokalee, St. Matthew’s House, The Shelter for Abused Women and Children and Warrior Homes of Collier County, among many other nonprofit organizations addressing essential needs across Collier County.
For more information, visit greyoakscc. com.
Two join Gulf Coast International Properties
Gulf Coast International Properties announced that Realtors Kenny Ogrodnik and Jacquelyn Kisic have joined the firm.
Originally from Rhode Island, Ogrodnik brings a disciplined, service-driven approach shaped by an early career in personal training and hospitality before moving into real estate full-time in 2009.
Kisic brings a strong foundation in media, marketing and client relations to luxury real estate, leveraging her experience in high-profile, fast-paced environments. A Naples native, she earned a bachelor of science degree with a double major in media communications and sports management from Florida State University, where she was part of the award-winning Seminole Productions program, partnering with ESPN and ACC Network+ Families. Her early career as a multimedia journalist and reporter for NBC, FOX and CBS affiliates across the South honed her communication and research skills, qualities that now distinguish her approach in real estate.
DLC receives gift from Naples United Church of Christ
David Lawrence Centers for Behavioral Health has received a $41,545 donation from Naples United Church of Christ. The church selected DLC as the recipient of its holiday offering, with funds specifically designated to support
the DLC Wellness Institute.
Launched early this year, the DLC Wellness Institute represents a reimagined approach to prevention, education and community wellness services. Through interactive presentations, training sessions, workshops and wellness initiatives, the Institute equips community members with tools and resources to strengthen emotional well-being and build resilience, mitigating the risk of behavioral health concerns including substance use and suicide.
“We are deeply grateful to Naples United Church of Christ for this generous investment in our work,” said Jessica Liria, director of community wellness and impact, who leads the DLC Wellness Institute. “As mental health needs continue to rise across our community, NUCC’s support will allow us to expand access to wellness education, prevention resources and community-based supports, helping us reach more individuals.”
Employee fundraiser benefits 2 organizations
Tamiami Auto Group announced that it has presented checks for $17,870 each to the Cancer Alliance Network and Golisano Children’s Health Center in Naples. The funds were raised during the auto dealer’s annual “Nay Shave” initiative in November, when employees made contributions that were matched by the company.
“Our employees really rally around No Shave November, which allows them to forgo grooming to raise cancer awareness and donate saved expenses to support cancer research, prevention and education,” said Tim Zellers, president of Tamiami Auto Group. “Nearly half of our employees participated this year with their contributions bringing in close to $18,000. When matched dollar-for-dollar by Tamiami Auto Group, it brings the total amount of this year’s gifts to $35,740.”
Fund donates $10M to NCH cancer program
Naples Comprehensive Health announced a $10 million philanthropic gift to advance oncology services while honoring the life and legacy of Brynne Coletti, who died in December 2024 after a courageous battle with cancer.
The gift was made by Bob Coletti and his family in memory of Brynne Coletti, Bob’s wife. The transformational contribution will be dedicated to oncology with a focus on women. This gift will strengthen access to advanced care and innovation for women facing cancer today, as well as for generations to come. NCH will recognize this gift through the naming of the Bob and Brynne Coletti Women’s Cancer Program. For information, visit nchmd.org/ philanthropy
Blake Bollinger
COLLIER NOW
‘Humanitarian emergency’
Uncertainty remains for Haitians in SWFL under protected status
By Therese McDevitt terry.mcdevitt@naplespress.com
Many Haitian immigrants in Southwest Florida remain uncertain about the protection status that has kept them from being deported back to Haiti, and challenges continue to grow — including an inability to renew their driver licenses.
In early February, Haitian immigrants legally living and working in the U.S. were set to lose the Temporary Protected Status that has been in effect since the major earthquake that devastated Haiti in 2010 and has kept them from deportation.
But on Feb. 2, a U.S. district judge in Washington, D.C., blocked the TPS expiration, a ruling which the U.S. Department of Homeland Security is appealing.
And while protected status remains for now, those under it living in Florida are unable to fully renew their driver licenses, making it difficult to commute to work, take their children to school or go to the grocery store. All of those licenses expired on Feb. 3, the date TPS work permits were expected to expire.
As of Feb. 20, Florida Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles, which issues driver licenses, was issuing paper permits set to expire on March 15. That is the date currently being provided in guidance from the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services to employers for use on authorization documents verifying eligibility for employment while the case is on appeal.
Leaders in the Haitian community are
See HAITIANS, Page 13A
Gabby Petito’s story
Mother’s message on domestic violence
By Alexandra Cavalier alexandra.cavalier@naplespress.com
Looking back, she had no idea.
“Now, I see everything differently,” Nichole Schmidt said.
The mother of Gabby Petito — the 22-year old aspiring travel vlogger whose 2021 disappearance and death captured national attention — delivered a keynote at the 26th annual Mending Broken Hearts with Hope Luncheon on Feb. 20. She spoke about domestic violence, missing persons cases and the subtle warning signs that often go unnoticed.
More than 700 people attended the luncheon in support of the Shelter for Abused Women & Children, gathering to hear Schmidt share her story.
She opened by describing who Petito was, saying her daughter was creative, vibrant and full of dreams.
“She had an incredible ability to light up any room she walked into,” Schmidt said.
Understanding domestic violence
Before her daughter’s passing, Schmidt said she believed domestic violence was only physical — bruises you could see on someone’s body — because that was how it was often portrayed on television. Now, she said, she realizes she was “completely clueless” about the realities of domestic abuse and intimate partner violence.
She emphasized that abuse often starts with love — with affection, attention and what can feel like deep connection.
Lecture focuses on learning to live with bears
By J.C. Amodea
Attendees at a recent lecture about bears came away well-informed and wanting more.
“Chris Boyce is an excellent speaker; this is the second time we have heard him speak on this topic,” said Diane Copeland who, along with her husband Tom, is a retired scientist. “The information is valuable enough that we will also attend his next lecture in April.”
Tom Copeland said he would share information he learned about people leaving their garbage out.
The couple, along with a capacity-filled auditorium of community members, attended Rookery Bay Environmental Learn-
ing Center’s Lunch & Learn Lecture Series, titled “Living with Black Bears” on Feb. 11.
The lecture was presented by Boyce, South Regional bear management program coordinator for the Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission, who described himself as a “black bear biologist with a few extra steps.”
The one-hour slide show covered key points such as fostering a coexistence between people and bears; basic bear biology; the history of bears in the state; securing attractants against bears; and safely hazing bears.
The presentation Boyce stated that bears can be found
See BEARS, Page 4A
A black bear, in the woods between Naples and Immokalee near Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary, gets ready to scratch itself against a tree.
Photo by Dennis Axer Photography/ Getty Images
Jim and Nichole Schmidt deliver their keynote speech, above, at the Mending Broken Hearts with Hope Luncheon.
Photo by Alexandra Cavalier
Gabby Petito
Photo courtesy Gabby Petito Foundation
CCC’s fate uncertain, legacy assured
A longstanding, trusted civic organization that is part watchdog, part cheerleader and part public policy advocate could be nearing an end after decades of solid service.
The Collier Citizens Council, made up of representatives of property owners associations and civic service groups, is at a crossroads. Should it stay the course, which seems more important than ever in the face of mounting growth and infrastructure challenges, or should it retire and walk away with head held high?
The latter would leave a void for non-partisan campaign forums and championing good causes such as ongoing beach renourishment, clean water, good schools, consolidated fire and ambulance service and more.
Today’s CCC leaders decline to speak publicly — on the record, for print — about what is ahead. But emails by some of the same leadership cite a consensus to fold the tent.
Why — and why now?
Is it because the CCC strived to adhere to objective civic advocacy on issues rather than take political sides? Is politics really the hot button that grabs and holds public attention, despite the sentiment that politics is the problem?
For context, years ago the community learned it is not enough for a policy advocate to be right or correct on an issue such as pollution. That advocate needs to add political clout to get things done.
From page 3A BEARS
throughout Florida and numbered 4,050 in 2025 as compared to 300 in the ’70s. “We live in bear country and in our area [are] next to about a quarter of the bears in the entire state — 1,000 of them,” he said.
Collier and Lee counties are designated by the FWC as “frequent” bear range areas, meaning bears often venture into residential neighborhoods. The key is to educate ourselves on how to prevent harmful or dangerous encounters with these native inhabitants.
Bear facts
Boyce said that Florida black bears are one of 16 distinct subspecies of the American black bear, and the only species in the state. His presentation revealed:
Weight — Male adult bears weigh 250 to 450 pounds, with the largest state record at 760 pounds, as compared to female bears at 125-250 pounds, with the largest weighing 460 pounds.
Range — Males range 62 square miles, as compared to females that use about 15 square miles. The bear you see today will probably be the same one you see again.
Smell — Bears can pick up scents over one mile away. Bloodhounds have 300 times the scenting ability of humans, and bears are seven times more sensitive than bloodhounds.
Preferred habitats — They are found in palmetto stands, swamps, sand pine scrub or wherever they feel protected against danger and where there is good eating.
Breeding — Breeding season is June to August. Females have their first litter at age 2 to 3, with one to three cubs born every other year around Feb. 1, weighing about 12 ounces at birth and being blind and dependent on mom for 18 months.
Diet — About 70% is from plants, acorns, palmetto and other berries and nuts. They also eat some grasses; 22% is from insects such as termite mounds, ant or bee colonies; and 5% is from meat from animals that include carrion and those that play dead (opossums, armadillos).
That’s so Naples Jeff
Lytle
Or, perhaps, has the CCC faded from relevance because the county has gotten so big that the growth train has left the station?
Whatever the answer, at least one civic leader frets about a side issue — what would happen to the CCC’s annual award named after a founder, the late Murray Hendel, who was known for identifying problems and finding and lobbying for solutions.
His legacy is led by beach renourishment, which he insisted time after time is key to the Collier County property tax base. And he led the charge for the tourist tax to pay it.
Hendel, a retired accountant from Chicago, also worked behind the scenes to finish the Freedom Memorial on Golden Gate Parkway, which languished for years as an eyesore that insulted all the veterans and first responders that it was designed to salute.
The list of past Hendel award recipients includes citizens from all walks of life, from cybersecurity to health care and criminal justice. They include Carrie Kerskie, Nancy Lascheid, Nina Gray, Kristen Coury, Russell Budd, Sheriff Kevin Rambosk, Judge Ja-
Rambosk, for one, sizes up the situation. “Receiving the award in 2021 was a highlight and honor in my career, and I would hope that the award program would be able to continue,” Rambosk said. “There are so many terrific leaders in our community that are carrying out his legacy of civic contributions that deserve recognition.”
Rays of light
If there is a bright side, it is this: The community now is aware of what could happen to the CCC and the award. Too often through the years, we have learned about the demise of good things only after it was too late to save them. Or, putting it another way, how many times have we watched a cherished old building come down or a monstrous new
building go up and wonder how that was allowed to happen — without the kind of warning that the CCC could provide?
A template for successful, ongoing civic research and advocacy is close at hand, with the nonprofit Engage Estero organization. Formerly known as the Estero Council of Community Leaders, it is made up of leaders of neighborhoods in and around Estero who monitor and study issues such as traffic, crime and growth. And the group also makes an annual civic achievement award named after a pioneer leader, Don Eslick.
Engage Estero members are wired into each other daily and meet monthly. They are modern-day sentinels with diverse backgrounds, sharing what they see and, when needed, digging into issues.
To stay fresh and connected, they
Largest bears in statewide hunt shot in Collier
The heaviest male and female Florida black bears killed during the state’s first hunt in more than a decade were shot in Collier County.
Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission records show the heaviest male weighed 697.4 pounds, and the heaviest female was 340 pounds. Collier hunters also topped the state at nine bears shot countywide, records show, followed by Hendry at six. The two comprise the southern bear zone.
The bear hunt, from Dec. 6 to 28, ended in 52 bears being killed by hunters; hundreds of bear advocates had applied to purchase one of the 172 available permits with no intent to use them, in an effort to prevent the controversial killings. Opponents contended the FWC used old bear population data to justify the hunt, and that residents can be educated to take precautions to live safely with bears.
Bear behaviors Bears are crepuscular, meaning they are most active during twilight hours. When confronted by something they fear or do not understand, 90% of the time a bear will run, hide or climb. While a bear may growl, froth at the mouth or stand upright with ears and nose raised in curiosity, these behaviors are not typically aggressive.
In the East Panhandle zone, which covers nine counties, records show 16 males and 12 females were killed, while four were killed in the North zone and five in the Central zone, both of which comprise two counties. Records show all bears were killed by state residents.
The hunt followed statewide protests leading up to two FWC hearings last year. Florida allowed regulated black bear hunting from the 1930s until 1994. In fall 2015, a controversial week-long, bloody hunt was halted after two days when it quickly neared its 320-bear quota, with 304 bears killed. Anyone who could pay was granted a permit, leading to a chaotic hunt that ended with at least 38 lactating females killed, leaving cubs to die in the wild.
No lactating females were shot this time. To see more data, go to bit.ly/2025bearhuntfacts.
— Aisling Swift
do public polling on priorities and share results and position papers (and videos of forums) on the esterotoday.com website. Emails about community activities, including FGCU, reach 14,000 people. No wonder Engage Estero has earned public trust and elected officials listen when Engage Estero speaks.
That kind of sustainable impact could rise from what’s left of the CCC. Think of it: a non-partisan civic network reaching across Collier County, from North Naples to Naples, from Immokalee to Marco Island, transcending the parochial politics of the county commission’s single-member districts and taking the slack from a once-vigilant daily print and broadcast news market.
To be sure, it would not be easy. A lot of volunteer time and effort would be required.
But, given Engage Estero’s helpful results with traffic, building design review, clean water and more, the effort could be well worth it. And Engage Estero’s president, Allen Bowditch, pledged to share the template, if asked.
The long view: A revitalized CCC could be the check-and-balance that local governance needs. There is still time to build on the past and rechart the course.
Jeff Lytle has been covering Southwest Florida since 1979. Contact him at jlytle1951@gmail. com.
Bears are
are most active during twilight hours.
Retrofit garbage containers with locking mechanisms.
Build a trash can caddy that can accommodate two 95-gallon trash cans side by side.
Purchase a purpose-built, bear-resistant trash can.
Secure gardens, orchards, livestock and bee hives with an electric fence (bears can go straight through or over other types of fencing). Harvest fruit or nuts from trees when ripe. Keep bird feeders 10 feet off the ground and 4 feet from the nearest tree.
Close encounters
Frighten bears by using a motion-activated sprinkler, a paintball gun, a slingshot, bear spray, an air horn or firecrackers.
If you see a bear at close range: stand with raised arms, back up slowly and speak in a loud, assertive voice; do not turn your back, run or play dead.
If contact is made or about to be made, prepare yourself to fight in any way. Punch, kick, gouge its eyes, use your elbows and knees, scream, use a stick or whatever weapon you have.
Emergencies, aggression or illegal activity: Call the Wildlife Alert Hotline at 888.404.FWCC (3922)
Conflicts: If a bear is threatening humans, pets or livestock or causing property damage, contact the local FWC South Region office at 561.625.5122 (West Palm Beach)
Defensive and warning behaviors often include a bluff charge. The bear wants space to retreat, so do not turn and run; instead, stand your ground.
Behaviors include a rush of air through the nose, jaw popping, ears pinned back, and stomping on the ground; there is no eye contact.
Avoid attracting bears by securing property
Feeding bears is illegal in Florida, so avoid leaving food out for them to forage.
Clean barbecue grills after use and store them in a garage if available.
Feed pets indoors or bring in pet food bowls and put garbage out the morning of pick-up.
Learn: Visit myfwc.com/bear; for tips about being “Bear Wise,” visit bearwise.org
Purchase a bear-proof trash can: uline.com (64-gallon $480; 96-gallon $510); bearicuda.com ($495-$763) Build a garbage can caddy: See plans at bearwise.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/bear-resistant-caddy-enclosed.pdf
Source: fwc.com
neice Martin and Linda Oberhaus.
Murray Hendel is rear left of former Gov. Charlie Crist at a gathering of Naples business and civic leaders trying to bring the Chicago Cubs for spring training in 2009. Photo courtesy Gary Price
Rookery Bay Environmental Learning Center’s Lunch & Learn Lecture Series presented a lecture on Feb. 11 titled “Living with Black Bears” by Chris Boyce, South Regional bear management program coordinator for the Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission. Photo by J.C. Amodea
Gulfshore Playhouse appoints Perine as director of education
Gulfshore Playhouse announced the appointment of John Perine as its new director of education, marking “an exciting new chapter in the organization’s commitment to high-impact, professionally guided theatre education,” according to information provided. Perine previously served as manager of The Conservatory and has been a member of the Gulfshore Playhouse Education team since 2022.
In his new role, Perine will oversee all educational programming, including Conservatory productions, classes and camps, in-school residencies and community engagement initiatives. This leadership transition also reflects an enhanced departmental structure, with Peine reporting to Dann Dunn, associate artistic director.
Perine brings extensive experience in theatre for young audiences, with training from Samford University and a master of fine arts in theatre for youth degree from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. His professional experience includes work at Lexington Children’s Theatre, The Rose Theater and Virginia Samford Theatre. His approach to theatre education emphasizes collaboration, creative exploration and building supportive learning environments where students are encouraged to take artistic risks, a news release states.
At Gulfshore Playhouse, he has directed student productions including Romeo + Juliet and The Lightning Thief: The Percy Jackson Musical, and helped expand the Think-
Theatre in-school residency program into AP classrooms.
“I am absolutely honored to be leading the education department at Gulfshore Playhouse into its next chapter,” Perine said. “I’ve been dedicated to creating a supportive learning culture and am looking forward to working with teaching artists to continue emphasizing social-emotional learning alongside the development of incredible artistry with the resources that a professional regional theatre can provide.”
Dunn is an award-winning director, choreographer, producer and educator with more than 25 years of experience working with professional and aspiring performers. He is a co-founder of Music Theatre Philly, a professional training ground for Theatre Education in Center City Philadelphia. A former producing artistic director and a teaching alumnus of Camp Broadway, Dunn has collaborated with institutions including Radio
City Music Hall, Sesame Street Workshop and the Jimmy Awards.
“I am so thrilled for the recent appointment of John Perine as director of education and am honored for the opportunity to work closely with him and the education team as we continue to build the future success of the Gulfshore Playhouse education department,” Dunn said. “During John’s time at Gulfshore Playhouse he has proven to be a creative artist, a wonderful collaborator and an informed and compassionate educator while upholding the integrity and culture of the organization.”
This new structure allows Gulfshore Playhouse to more strategically align educational programming with its artistic vision, professional standards and long-term institutional growth. Together, Perine and Dunn position the organization “to expand access, elevate training quality and deepen its educational impact across Southwest Florida,” the news release stated.
NTSB in beginning stages of floatplane investigation
By John Guerra
The National Transportation Safety Board is just beginning its investigation into the fatal crash of a Cessna float plane that claimed the life of Ryan Cody, a popular youth leader and business manager at St. Finbarr Catholic Parish in Naples.
Cody, 42, was killed and pilot William Goodrich seriously injured when a Cessna A185F Skywagon, equipped with pontoons, flipped over in the water off Ten Thousand Islands Sunday afternoon. Flight data indicates a sudden, rapid drop in altitude — from 800 feet to 100 feet — before the aircraft went down in the water.
FlightAware, a flight tracking website, indicates the aircraft’s speed went from 80 mph to 0 before it crashed. The aircraft’s stall speed is listed as 56 mph. The plane overturned in the water and was partially submerged when a Collier County Sheriff’s Office rescue boat reached the crash site.
The sheriff’s report says a marine unit deputy found pilot Goodrich near the aircraft, holding Cody’s head above water. Deputies pulled Cody from the water and put him on the deck of the boat. First responders continued CPR all the way back to Port of the Islands marina, where he was declared deceased.
In addition to reviewing the aircraft’s movements, including speed, altitude and other aspects of its flight, investigators will interview the pilot, who is recovering from his injuries. The agency will also review the aircraft’s maintenance records, examine the fuel in the tank, and numerous other details. According to Backcountry Pilot, however, the 185 does not come with a black box flight recorder, but 185 owners may use transponders, GPS systems or tablet-based software that record flight data.
Christopher Rusing, an attorney with
Aviation Law Group in Jupiter, has analyzed hundreds of plane crashes for clients. He told The Naples Press that the clues may be in the condition of the aircraft.
“After looking at some of the pictures of the wreckage, I first note that the airplane looks pretty well intact,” he said. “Reports are that the aircraft was found upside down. Also, photos of the airplane after recovery show that the landing gear is down.”
The landing gear will be of great importance to the NTSB, said Rusing, who is also a commercial airline pilot.
“They will look to determine if in fact the landing gear was down as the airplane landed on the water,” Rusing said. “In our experience, floatplanes will immediately flip upside down if a landing is made and the landing gear is down during a water landing. Unfortunately, this is an all-toocommon cause of accidents in amphibious aircraft.”
In nose-overs, “the aircraft will show some damage but not catastrophic damage that you might expect if there was a loss of control and subsequent crash,” Rusing said. “From the photos of the accident airplane after recovery, N7574N looks to be only slightly damaged.”
However, the nose-over may only be the result of a series of mishaps that led to the crash. The NTSB will examine all possibilities.
Rusing says the aircraft’s flight path appears to be erratic. FlightAware shows the aircraft flying in tight circles above the water in the moments before the flight ended.
“Investigators will also look at the Automatic Dependent Surveillance–Broadcast data if available to determine airspeed and altitude in addition to the flight path,” he said. ADS-B is an advanced surveillance technology that combines an aircraft’s positioning source, aircraft avionics and a ground infrastructure to create an accurate surveillance interface between air -
“In our experience, floatplanes will immediately flip upside down if a landing is made and the landing gear is down during a water landing. Unfortunately, this is an all-toocommon cause of accidents in amphibious aircraft.”
—Christopher Rusing, attorney with Aviation Law Group in Jupiter
craft and air traffic control.
“That will help determine if indeed there may have been abrupt altitude gains or losses that might be indicative of a control issue on the airplane,” he said.
As in any investigation, the NTSB will also be looking at other mechanical failures including an engine failure, weather conditions at the time of the accident and human factors, Rusing said.
Here’s what the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association, the FAA and aviation engineers say are common issues with Cessna 185s:
Landing Accidents: The 185 can be difficult to land on water, with a tendency to catch a float, causing it to cartwheel or capsize.
Corrosion: Because they operate in wet environments, 185s are highly susceptible to corrosion, especially on the airframe, engine mount and electrical connectors, according to the FAA.
Engine and prop issues: The Continental 520 engines are known to have low compression issues, which can lead to performance problems.
Fuel system corrosion: Corroded fuel cap seals and sealing surfaces can allow water into the fuel, which can cause engine failure shortly after takeoff.
The NTSB will also review an earlier crash of the same airplane; N7574N crash-landed in an Iowa cornfield in 2021. Its engine shut off in mid-flight. The NTSB determined the plane ran out of gas due to a detached right wing rubberized fuel bladder. The plane suffered substantial damage to the fuselage and right wing, but the pilot and passenger were uninjured.
First flown in 1960, the Cessna 185 was manufactured from 1961 through the mid1980s. The Goodrich-piloted aircraft, which was manufactured in 1981, obtained its last airworthiness certification 35 years ago, on Oct. 8, 1991. FAA rules say the standard airworthiness certificate remains valid indefinitely, provided the aircraft remains registered in the United States, continues to meet its approved-type design and is maintained in a safe operating condition.
The crashed Skywagon, registered under the business name Black Dog Holdings Inc. of New York, is worth between $250,000 and $600,000 in good condition, according to aircraft surveyors on aircraft.com According to Florida business records, the owners of Black Dog were Sean and Libby Johnson of Fort Lauderdale.
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SWFL TOURISM
County weighs ads to entice Canadian visitors
By Therese McDevitt terry.mcdevitt@naplespress.com
With Canadian visitors down 24% year over year in December, the Collier County Tourist Development Council is considering whether a targeted advertising campaign from the Naples, Marco Island, Everglades Convention & Visitors Bureau could help lure them back to the Paradise Coast.
The latest visitor data, presented at the TDC’s Feb. 20 meeting, showed continued softness in international travel. International visitation declined 16% in December and was down 14% from October through December, according to CVB partner Downs & St. Germain Research.
The decline is part of an almost yearlong trend attributed to geopolitical and economic headwinds affecting destinations nationwide, not just Southwest Florida.
James Brendle, project director with Downs & St. Germain, said domestic visitors from the Northeast and Midwest are helping offset the decline.
“We do see that international visitation in December was down 16.3% in terms of the number of visitors and down 12% in terms of the share of visitation that international visitors accounted for,” Brendle said. “We see, as we have in the last few quarters, that’s mainly driven by Canada, down 24.4%. And we see again, as we have the last few quarters, that the Northeast and Midwest are the two main regions that are helping supplement that loss of international visitors.”
International visitors fell from 36,900 in December 2024 to 30,900 in December 2025, while Canadian visitors dropped from 13,100 to 9,900. Visitors from the Northeast increased 2.5%, from 56,500 to 57,900, and those from the Midwest rose 3.3%, from 67,100 to 69,300.
TDC member Laura Radler asked when international visitation might rebound. Brendle said the National Travel and Tourism Office and the U.S. Travel Association estimate 2026 will be a “recovery year.”
“The most recent estimates I saw from them show that they are expecting at the national level to see us near 2024 levels in 2027 or 2028, so it’s going to be a bit of a lengthy process at the national level,” Brendle said. “Obviously, regional trends can change much more rapidly.”
TDC member Nancy Kerns said she heard concerns from Canadian visitors about safety and whether they were welcome. That prompted Collier County Commissioner Burt Saunders, presiding over his first meeting as TDC chair, to suggest a targeted advertising campaign.
“I think the county commission perhaps would even be willing to perhaps provide a little bit of additional advertising funding for a special promotion,” Saunders said.
Tourism Director Jay Tusa said he would explore the idea with CVB partner Paradise Advertising but cautioned that similar efforts elsewhere had “backfired on them.”
Tusa said some markets tried the approach early on after tensions escalated due to tariffs and other issues, and faced resentment among Canadians over the “we’re friends-type messaging that these
destinations put out there.”
“That was very early on, so let me get with the agency and look at what the trend is currently,” Tusa said, “because that was probably a good year ago or so and maybe that trend has changed a little bit.”
Brand campaign evolving
Separately, the CVB outlined its broader branding and promotional strategy. Tom Merrick, chief creative officer with Paradise Advertising, presented a campaign that launched Feb. 10 based on feedback from focus groups in Boston, Chicago and Dallas.
Merrick said the agency, which has worked with the CVB for more than 20 years, has adapted its campaigns to reflect changes in the destination and its visitors.
For the past five years, he said, the region’s unique value proposition has remained consistent, promising “an
elevated coastal, cultural, culinary and ecological paradise to those with an expectation of elegance.”
While the current campaign tagline, “Only Paradise Will Do,” performed well with focus groups, Merrick said another option — “Paradise in Every Sense” — performed even better.
The new campaign emphasizes sensory experiences, including Gulf sunsets, waves breaking along the shoreline, coastal breezes, fresh stone crab and the feel of sand between the toes. A press release states it “brings these sensory moments to life through evocative copy and elevated imagery.”
Featuring photographs by George Kamper and Rhea Anna, the campaign is appearing in digital and print media across target domestic markets.
“It’s multilayered,” Merrick said. “I think it covers that no matter what activity or what your purpose of being here, it will be paradise. The phrase is very simple, yet very comprehensible, very understandable.”
The advertising highlights experiences, such as beach sunsets, dining, nature and adventure, and meetings, conferences and weddings.
CVB privatization update
TDC member Susan Becker also requested an update on a proposal to privatize the CVB, which was recommended to the Board of County Commissioners in December, along with a timeline for a potential transition.
At a late January meeting, commissioners requested additional information before deciding whether
to convert the destination marketing organization from a county entity into a standalone 501(c)(6) nonprofit. Saunders said commissioners asked staff to provide details on how other communities that privatized their tourism marketing efforts addressed concerns such as fraud.
“My understanding is that we’re looking to actually have some sort of an implementation or file a vote in October,” Saunders said.
John Mullins, director of communications, government and public affairs, said no timeline has been set.
“It will be done when it is ready,” Mullins said. “We are trying to work out all the issues, potentially even having workshops with the Board of County Commissioners on particular items to make sure that we work through some of the more contentious issues and problematic things before bringing back any kind of potential contract that would be considered by the board. So, October is a great goal if we can make it, but don’t put any money on it.”
Mullins said concerns raised by commissioners include reports of fraud in other jurisdictions, particularly involving 501(c)(6) organizations, and how safeguards could be implemented.
Supporters of privatization say the change would improve competitiveness, efficiency, flexibility and responsiveness, particularly following major storms or disasters. A feasibility study recommending the transition found the model also could allow the organization to pursue supplemental funding programs to generate additional revenue.
An advertisement promoting the Naples, Marco Island and Everglades region highlights outdoor experiences as part of a broader branding campaign designed to attract visitors to the Paradise Coast. Image courtesy Naples, Marco Island, Everglades Convention & Visitors Bureau
Naples’ new council members sworn in
By Aisling Swift aisling.swift@naplespress.com
Naples City Council ushered in newly elected members last week as outgoing members gave parting words of advice on leading the city, working with the community and city staff — and keeping promises to the community.
Incoming Council members Ted Blankenship, Scott Schultz and John Krol, winners in an eightway Feb. 3 election that ousted an incumbent, were sworn in by City Clerk Pat Rambosk on Feb. 18.
“Today is a celebratory day,” Mayor Teresa Heitmann said before they took the oath of office. “It’s also a day of wishing and best of wishes and blessings to the Council that has served us … It will be very difficult to say goodbye to our Council members, but I do thank them for their service.”
Outgoing Council members were provided with a gift: a wood and brass clock inscribed with their years of service, thanking them for their “dedication to the residents and community.”
That was followed by a prayer and advice by Vice Mayor Terry Hutchison, who termed out after eight years. He noted outgoing Council member Ray Christman was on Council when they were hit by the pandemic, and all outgoing members were there helping the community through hurricanes Ian, Helene, Milton and Debbie.
“You adapted to all of those changes, brought the best you could forward for this city and for its citizens,” Hutchison said, adding they should ask themselves if they accomplished that with as much grace as they could. “Is it the end … is it the beginning for what’s next? Is it the beginning of a new life in public service? Nobody knows what that’s going to be. You’ll know that in your spirit.” Christman, who chaired the Community Redevelopment
Agency, wished colleagues the best in their continued service, praised and thanked city staff and congratulated the three new members. He was elected in a special election in April 2019, then re-elected to a full term in February 2022. This month, he was edged out by 104 votes.
Christman, who worked in public service early in his career in Pittsburgh and was Pennsylvania’s Secretary of Commerce, called public service “one of the hardest jobs” for staff or elected officials.
“It’s one of the most difficult, challenging and toughest jobs — and it’s also one of the most rewarding,” Christman added.
“And so I leave here today having no regrets and no hesitation over the decisions that I’ve made.”
But the strongest words were by Council member Beth Petrunoff, who opted not to
run again after four years. She warned overdevelopment will define Naples’ future and pointed
out low density and lower-scale development aren’t anti-growth, but pro-community principles.
“We’re not just policymakers. We are stewards,” Petrunoff said. “We were elected to protect something fragile and rare — the character, charm and magic of our community. The magic did not happen by accident. It exists because generations before us made some hard choices. They adopted thoughtful codes. Most resisted pressure. They understood that once a skyline changes, once a neighborhood scale is lost, it does not come back.”
She reminded listeners that city zoning codes and comprehensive plans are promises.
“They are promises made to homeowners who invested their life savings here, promises to small business owners who chose the city because it feels different, promises to family who want something other than congestion and concrete,” she said, adding that when Council chips away at codes with a variance, height exception, density bonus or a bad administrative interpretation, that accumulates. “They change the very thing people came here for.
“… I urge future councils that are sitting before me, hold the line,” she added. “If our comprehensive plan says low density, honor it. If our code sets a height limit, respect it. If a project technically fits but clearly overwhelms its surroundings, have the courage to say no. Smart growth means thoughtful growth.”
Later in the meeting, Blankenship — who served on Council from 2020 to 2024 before unsuccessfully running for mayor — was elected vice mayor, a two-year post. Council member Linda Penniman, the CRA’s vice chair, was elected CRA chair for a two-year term, replacing Christman, and Schultz, who served on the Planning Advisory Board, was appointed CRA vice chair. Council members also retained or volunteered for various committee posts.
with hundreds of others nationwide has left a gaping hole.
The challenge provides an opportunity for Isram to replicate what it did in another shopping center it owns on the east coast of Florida after anchor tenant
Winn-Dixie supermarket closed a decade ago. Isram razed the former supermarket and some restaurant spaces at Riverwalk Plaza in Boynton Beach and built the 10-story Avion Riverwalk, with 319 luxury apartments above five new retail suites and covered parking, as part of the more than $85 million resort-inspired development completed in 2023.
Last year, Collier officials had an opportunity to see firsthand what Isram accomplished with the retail center redevelopment project along the Intracoastal Waterway. Collier County Commissioner Dan Kowal and Bayshore Gateway Triangle Community Redevelopment Area program manager Shirley Garcia are among those who were impressed with what they saw during a private tour.
“It was a beautiful mixed-use, absolutely beautiful,” Garcia said. “We loved it and we asked them if they would do the same on this coast for Gulf Gate Plaza.”
After touring Isram’s Avion Riverwalk, Kowal compared the development to a self-contained setting with restaurants, stores and
amenities to serve the hundreds of high-end residences that were created.
“It’s kind of like you don’t really have to leave campus if you don’t want to,” he said. “It’s a unique setting with restaurants and a mixed-type design.”
Kowal thinks Isram could do something similar in East Naples. Although redeveloping the inline commercial center at Gulf Gate Plaza into a mixed-use planned unit development wouldn’t be on a waterway, it still could have Avion Riverwalk’s wow factor.
“I think that’s on the lines of where they probably want to go,” Kowal said. “Now, that would have to be a rezone and a PUD down the road. They would have to create their own planned unit development, what they call a mixed planned unit development, an MPUD. That would go through
zoning and everything.”
In November 2024, an engineering firm representing Isram Realty & Management Inc. filed a zoning verification letter with Collier County planners asking if a multifamily project over commercial uses would be allowed on the Gulf Gate Plaza parcel, which is in a C-4 commercial zoning district and a mixed-use subdistrict of the Gateway Triangle Zoning Overlay District.
Isram wanted to know if the project would require a public hearing and what the maximum density would be for both commercial and multifamily components, county records show.
In a December 2024 reply, a county planner and zoning manager verified that a proposed project with multifamily development over commercial would be a mixeduse project permitted within
this zoning designation. “The purpose and intent of the mixeduse subdistrict is to provide for pedestrian-oriented commercial and mixed-use developments and higher-density residential uses. Developments will reflect traditional neighborhood design building patterns. Individual buildings are encouraged to be multi-story with uses mixed vertically, with street-level commercial and upper-level office and residential,” according to a letter from the zoning services section of the county’s Growth Management Department.
Would this require a public hearing? “Yes, [mixed-use projects] that do not meet the thresholds for administrative approval may be approved by the BZA [Board of Zoning Appeals] through a public hearing process,” the county planners replied.
Answering the density questions, the county said a minimum or maximum requirement for commercial square footage does not exist, but the county’s land development code states that a mix of uses is required so that neither residential nor nonresidential exceeds 80% of the gross building square footage. According to the density standards section of the LDC, the maximum density permitted by the mixed-use subdistrict is 12 units an acre. While there is not a timeline yet for redevelopment plans at Gulf Gate Plaza, an agreement is expected in 2026, but the local project most likely would be
years in the making. Isram Realty President Matthew “Mati” Rikman could not be reached for comment, but leasing agent Ryan Hayoun said Isram wants to redevelop the center that includes the space vacated by Big Lots. “We’re in talks right now,” Hayoun said. “Nothing is signed yet.”
Kowal, who is a member of the BZA as a county commissioner, sees redevelopment as a viable opportunity for Gulf Gate Plaza, which he said looks run-down. He noted that the Community Redevelopment Area that includes Bayshore stems from a desire to give the community a facelift.
“The CRA was created just for that reason,” he said. “These people pay a few cents on their tax to have redevelopment or to have blighted properties brought up to a modern, better-looking product than what’s been there in the past.”
Garcia agreed that a facelift is needed for the aging shopping center, which she called “the gateway into Bayshore.” Isram is willing to work with the county to revitalize that corner, she said. “They so badly want to be involved in the revitalization of this area, and that would be a great promotional opportunity for them to do something grandiose like that,” Garcia said. “We would just love to see that happen here on the corner. It would just be fabulous.”
The “Tim Aten Knows” weekly column answers local questions from readers. Email Tim at tim. aten@naplespress.com.
Ted Blankenship, Scott Schultz and John Krol, left to right, take the oath of office on Feb. 18, as Naples City Clerk Pat Rambosk swears them in as City Council members.
Incoming Naples City Council members, from left to right, Ted Blankenship, Scott Schultz and John Krol pose for a photo during the swearing-in ceremony, joining Council on the dais in City Hall. From left to right, Council member Bill Kramer, outgoing member Beth Petrunoff, outgoing Vice Mayor Terry Hutchison, Mayor Teresa Heitmann, outgoing Council member Ray Christman, who chaired the CRA, Council member Berne Barton and Council member Linda Penniman. Photos by Irene Perez
Gulf Gate Plaza, the retail center on the southwest corner of U.S. 41 East and Bayshore Drive in East Naples, is prime for redevelopment. Photo by Naples Press Staff
New charter school raises $150,000
By Aisling Swift aisling.swift@naplespress.com
Autism Collier Charter School, which opened in Golden Gate Estates last August, just celebrated its first 100 days with an event to thank supporters and donors.
Although the Jan. 26 event was tailored to thank the K-12 school’s supporters, it raised $150,000 for the school, which shares space with another charter school, BridgePrep Academy of Collier, at 3161 Santa Barbara Blvd., Naples. ACCS has roughly 85 students, but plans to grow to 300 over six years.
“Our intention for the evening was to lay the foundation for future support by showcasing our students and communicating what the needs will be as our school community grows,” said ACCS Board Chair Jen Mitchell, an ACCS co-founder and former Collier district school board member. “We were so overwhelmed with gratitude at the turnout. The support was
far beyond our expectations.
“Our students and families are at the center of all that we do at ACCS and to see such marked progress only halfway into our first year has been wonderful,” she added. “We have a staff that is so dedicated to serving our students’ very specific needs and it’s an honor to build this school community with them.”
The free, invitation-only event at Gulfshore Playhouse highlighted the progress, with school leaders reflecting on student growth, confidence and achievement — offering insight into how individualized supports and high expectations are helping students thrive.
The event gathered 150 attendees: educators, families, philanthropists and Southwest Florida civic leaders, including Sheriff Kevin Rambosk and his wife, Naples City Clerk Pat Rambosk; County Commission Chair Dan Kowal and commissioners Rick LoCastro and Bill McDaniel Jr.; Naples City Council Members Berne Barton and Scott Schultz, who was just elected; Collier School District School
Board Chair Stephanie Lucarelli; developer Phil McCabe; philanthropist Shelia Smith Davis; Naples Children Foundation CEO Maria Jimenez-Lara; former Naples city councilman Gary Price; Mitchell and other ACCS co-founders, Stephanie Nordin, co-founder of the Autism Collier Resource Center, and Emily Kafle, the district’s former director of Exceptional Student Education.
The event was co-chaired by Price and his wife Kim; Mitchell and her husband Chris; artist John Arsenault and his wife Krista; Aries Title Inc. owners Marc and Holly Shapiro; entrepreneur Wael Berrached and Melissa Centra, both of advertising and marketing firm Eview 360.
School officials say the money raised will support innovative programming, including transportation for community-based learning, expanded fine arts programming and new health and wellness initiatives — investments that directly enhance student growth and long-term success.
ACCS plans to buy or build a space, but opted to share a building with an existing school the first year. ACCS and BridgePrep are the only county charter schools that share space. Property records show Miami-based BridgePrep Property Holdings LLC purchased the 27,736-square-foot home for $8.3 million last July.
Mitchell said current enrollment is 80 students, with plans to double that next year, if space permits. ACCS wants no more than about 350 students in a building because schools tend to get diminishing returns for student outcomes if there are too many students.
ACCS now has a maximum of 10 students per classroom, with three staff members, a certified teacher, a certified Exceptional Student Education Assistant and a certified registered behavior technician, according to Mitchell, who called that an optimal ratio for significantly cognitively impaired students. There currently are 275 students on ACCS’ waiting list.
use goes against city code and that there’s insufficient parking. He asked city officials not to approve the certificate of occupancy, which will allow it to open in early March.
“It’s a little difficult to talk about the sanctity of your home and the investments in your home without getting emotional,” Sutherland said, calling Bonded Lagree “a high-volume, high-traffic, open-assembly gymnasium with waves of group classes all day long, seven days a week, with a very loud, powerful sound system already proven to be capable of shaking our entire building from one end of it to the other.”
He urged city officials to remember outgoing City Council member Beth Petrunoff’s advice to the new Council, with three newly elected members sworn in that day. Petrunoff had noted: “Our zoning codes and our comprehensive plan are promises. They are promises made to homeowners who invested their life savings here.”
Sutherland said they’d tried for two months to meet with city officials but Bonded was approved without city planners considering the input and objections of residents, the 50% owners of the mixed-use building. They were only able to meet with the Building Department and Code Enforcement heads and a city police officer, who helped. However, Sutherland called it a burden neither Code Enforcement nor City Police should bear.
“When something approved by the Planning Department requires the immediate actions of Code Enforcement and the Naples City Police, it seems obvious that the Planning Department maybe has made a serious error in their judgments,” he said.
After visiting 15 other gyms approved by the city, he discovered Pettit Square’s approval marked a first: The first in a comparable mixed-use building, in the more restrictive C1 commercial district, and in a “99.99% residential, quiet, single-family home neighborhood in Aqualane Shores.” The 15 were in “100% commercial-use buildings in commercial areas.”
He suggested city planners approved Bonded because they had incomplete information about Pettit Square, or Bonded’s intentions, and told Council this is its “first opportunity to do the right thing.
“The staff, we believe, should have required the owners to apply for a conditional use permit with a truly independent review by the Planning Advisory Board,” Sutherland said, with City Council ultimately determining if it’s a more intense use than allowed.
Mayor Teresa Heitmann asked City Attorney Matthew McConnell if the residents could appeal the permit approval. McConnell said he’d research whether a third-party appeal is possible.
Bonded’s intentions
Bonded Lagree’s lease says it “will not permit any noise, vibrations or noxious odors to emanate from the premises or annoy other tenants … or any owners or occupants of neighboring property.” The 10-year lease says Bonded, founded by April Woodward and Lori Russell, will pay $12,753 monthly, but it increases yearly. It’s the first Lagree-style studio in Naples.
people. They say they’ve installed a real-time, decibel-monitoring system to ensure ongoing compliance, and they “welcome constructive dialogue” with Pettit Square residents to show their concerns “are being heard and taken seriously.
“Bonded Lagree came to Naples to create meaningful local jobs and to build a beautiful, welcoming space where residents can invest in their health and wellness in a safe, supportive environment,” the businesses said in a statement provided to The Naples Press
“Bonded Lagree provides an elevated, high-touch Pilates experience designed to help people become the best versions of themselves in a setting that reflects the standards and spirit of Naples.”
Bonded partnered with GLDN Hour to offer coffee and matcha to its patrons in a “refined, boutique environment,” the statement said, and has complied with its lease, city zoning and permitting requirements.
“The city carefully reviewed the plans and issued the necessary approvals authorizing the wellness studio to operate,” the statement said. “In reliance on those approvals, we have invested significant capital, time and effort to thoughtfully improve a space that has been vacant since Hurricane Ian.”
City denies mistake
which are allowed in the district. However, Martin said it’s only approved for a gym use, not a coffee shop, which requires further approvals. Building Official Steve Beckman visited on Feb. 4, ordered all the café signs be removed and confirmed there was no coffee equipment inside.
Before opening, Martin said Bonded still must obtain a Florida Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services healthstudio certificate and a city business tax receipt.
“The buildout is compliant with our codes and the consistent interpretation of personal services,” Martin wrote, noting it received a certificate of completion so further complaints must go to Code Enforcement.
Court battle
Last month, Pettit Square sued NECO 290 14th Avenue South LLC, Bonded Lagree and GLDN Hour. NECO is an affiliate of Aspenbased M Development, which settled a lawsuit against the city in 2024 after Council halted all pending underground garages due to flooding after Hurricane Ian. M Development branded it an illegal moratorium that prevented staff from administratively approving its plans for The Avenue.
In October, the lawsuit says, Bonded Lagree posted a redesign on Instagram for a new common-area courtyard and new furniture and its plans to share space with GLDN Hour, a use tenants say is prohibited in the building’s declaration.
The lawsuit notes the property is governed by a “declaration of covenants, conditions, restrictions, reservations and easements.” Property records show NECO purchased half the property for $8.56 million in 2023. The declaration says neither the association nor NECO can make substantial alterations to the exterior, courtyard or other areas, or seek governmental approval for usages or changes without consent of the other.
“Between November and December 2025, NECO representative Dan Morin attempted to conceal from the association the partnership or collaboration between Bonded and GLDN and made continued, express representations to the association president that the terms of the lease would govern and address any concerns,” the lawsuit alleges.
The lawsuit contends NECO never obtained the association’s consent before signing Bonded’s lease and didn’t seek its consent for the Lagree studio, a coffee shop and food and beverage sales, or to modify or alter the courtyard.
Although it hasn’t been modified, the association says Bonded intends to proceed with a courtyard redesign, “including new furniture and promoting the shared space for social purposes with the community-atlarge and for the consumption of food and beverages.”
The lawsuit alleges Bonded and GLDN Hour “will create a nuisance” for residents, interfere with their rights to use and enjoy their homes, increase the need for security due to increased “foot traffic” and affect “already limited parking.”
The lawsuit asks for a judge’s order to stop Bonded and GLDN from operating there. The association’s attorney, Jessica Tolin, declined to comment, except to say: “The parties are currently involved in discussions in an effort to determine if a resolution can be reached.” Morin, of M Development, did not respond to The Naples Press’ requests for comment.
NECO fights back
In its motion to dismiss, NECO, Bonded and GLDN Hour point out the declaration broadly defines NECO’s use of its units as “commercial,” disputes there will be a coffee shop “in the traditional sense” or that the lease is a change of use.
“Nothing in the declaration can be read to limit NECO’s ‘commercial’ use to past historic uses or, more accurately, uses that the residential unit owners like,” the motion says, noting past restrictions against coffee shops there no longer exist.
The motion says the residents cannot dispute that a Pilates studio and coffee shop are commercial uses, adding, “They are therefore expressly permitted by the declaration and are not a modification of usage such that the consent of the association would be required, which dooms plaintiff’s complaint.”
Bonded Lagree and GLDN Hour say they were founded on a simple idea: Take care of
Residents met with City Manager Gary Young and city staff last Friday. City spokeswoman Monique Barnhart said the meeting was “informational” and added, “The city manager, staff and Code Enforcement will continue open dialogue and enforcement efforts related to this matter.” From page 1A
In a memo to City Manager Gary Young, Planning Director Erica Martin, Building Director Steve Beckman and Code Compliance Manager Bill Quinsey said Pilates and yoga studios are considered personal services or health-fitness establishments,
Pettit Square’s breach of contract lawsuit notes it’s a two-story building with eight homes, seven commercial suites owned by NECO and a shared, common-area courtyard. There are eight parking spaces for residents, two for handicapped parking and 25 for visitors and commercial tenants. Bonded’s lease gives it two spaces.
In an Instagram post, Bonded Lagree, which plans to open at 290 14th Ave. S. in Naples, told followers it plans to redesign the common-area courtyard at Pettit Square and add new furniture. Photo by Harriet Howard Heithaus
NONPROFIT ORGANIZATIONS
Fresh Force combats food insecurity
Harry Chapin Food Bank brings mobile grocery to Naples
By Alexandra Cavalier alexandra.cavalier@naplespress.com
Harry Chapin Food Bank recently expanded its Fresh Force Mobile Grocery Experience with a new stop at Bayshore Community Church.
The program supports individuals and families facing food insecurity in high-need areas. Designed as a one-aisle mobile grocery store, the market offers fresh, healthy food in a shopping-style setting, allowing guests to choose items that best meet their needs.
Bringing food to food deserts
An area is considered a food desert if there isn’t a grocery store within walking distance for residents.
“We help eliminate the transportation obstacle by bringing the food to them,” Mobile Market Coordinator Dennis Anaya said. “They can still drive if they’re able, but they can simply walk. We know that this is a way that they can get access to this food that perhaps they otherwise wouldn’t be able to.”
A choice-based grocery experience
The food bank gets its food through donations from grocery stores, restaurants, farms and individuals, as well as partnerships with manufacturers and distributors. It also participates in government programs and buys food when needed to ensure a steady supply. Fresh produce often comes from local farms, giving the food bank the ability to provide nutritious options that meet the community’s needs.
The selection of food at the mobile market may vary with each visit, but fresh fruit and vegetables are always available, along with a dependable source of protein. The grocery experience also helps residents by allowing them to choose the foods that best meet their needs and preferences.
“It provides them an opportunity to get the support with dignity and at their own pace. As opposed to, ‘Here’s a handout,’” Anaya said.
On the morning of each distribution, the truck trailer is loaded at Harry Chapin Food Bank in Fort Myers before heading to its Naples location. Once on site, staff and volunteers prepare for distribution as residents begin to arrive.
Each guest enters the back of the truck individually with a Harry Chapin Food Bank–labeled grocery cart and selects the items they need, creating a personalized and dignified shopping experience.
Community support and accessibility
Bayshore Community Church Pastor Jean Paul welcomes the mobile pantry on site and encourages everyone in the community — not just church members — to take advantage of the resource.
“I’ve been in the community long enough to know what their needs are, so I can look for whatever I can get to help my community, especially now, that [it] is a very difficult time,” Pastor Paul said.
He also shared the story of one resident who purchased a bicycle specifically so he could travel to the site after facing challenges that left him without reliable transportation.
“He had to buy a bicycle to come because his wife is not working. He needs that assistance. That’s why this is such a big help for the community,” Paul said.
Stories from the community
Anaya has gotten to know many of the attendees personally, taking time to learn their stories.
“What we’re seeing at a lot of the distributions are people who say they never imagined they would be in this situation,” Anaya said. “They may have donated in the past or even volunteered, and now they find themselves needing assistance.”
He hopes the pantry helps inform the community that support is available.
“I just want people to know there is a place they can turn to for food when money is tight. I’d like them to know there is an outlet where they can truly get the help they need,” Anaya said.
The Fresh Force Mobile Grocery Experience visits Bayshore Community Church every other Tuesday from 10 to 11 a.m., providing residents with convenient access to fresh and nutritious food.
Groceries, including bread, vegetables and canned goods, are stocked on the shelves of Fresh Force Mobile Grocery Experience truck trailer. Photos by Alexandra Cavalier
ABOVE: Harry Chapin Food Bank-labeled grocery carts are available for residents to use while shopping on site.
LEFT: Mobile Market Coordinator Dennis Anaya holds bags for residents as they select their groceries.
The Fresh Force Mobile Grocery Experience stores food in a truck trailer for transport to distribution sites.
been permitted to live in the house even after they transferred title in 2017.”
“Her intention was to be able to say goodbye to an animal that they were euthanizing — and they refused to let her do that,” Lawhon said, adding she wasn’t allowed to be there when Chatty was euthanized. “She’s put the care and treatment and the best interests of those animals first for literally decades. She has treated them as if they were her children. The saddest part of this is that the board is doing everything in their power to essentially separate her or restrict her ability to care for or have input about the health and welfare of those very animals that she has cared for over 30 years.”
Derek Verderamo, who represents Smith in the criminal case, declined to comment while the case is pending.
Small rescue becomes renowned nonprofit
Smith dedicated her life and career to rescuing, rehabilitating and providing lifetime care to displaced wild animals, including wolves and panthers, growing her sanctuary into a recognized nonprofit. She remained on the board, but stepped down in 2019, state records show. In 2021, the sanctuary paid $1.7 million to buy a 17-acre property at 221 Golden Gate Boulevard to move to and expand, but property records show the board sold the land for $1.95 million in 2024.
In a statement, the Smiths, who’ve been married 40 years, and Lawhon said they agreed to transfer ownership on the conditions that they’d be permitted to live in their home until they die, and she could continue to participate in the animals’ care and well-being. The sanctuary’s board of directors agreed and a written contract — a trust agreement — was prepared by local attorney Jamie Hewitt, with the Smiths and the board signing it. The original was kept in the sanctuary’s office.
“That agreement was intended to provide stability for the founder and continuity for the organization and was made in the good-faith understanding that Nancy and Kent could continue to reside on sanctuary property in their residence for the remainder of their lives,” the statement says. “It also was designed to allow Nancy to participate in the care and well-being of her babies — those animals she had raised and nursed back to health, some over many years.”
property,” Lawhon said.
The arrangement was “mutually beneficial and successful for many years,” but for reasons that are unclear, the statement says, the board in recent years heavily restricted her interaction with the animals and sanctuary and input on care and treatment.
Other similar events unfolded that prompted her to be more vocal about concerns over their care and treatment, the statement says. Rather than listening to or respecting her input, the board took additional steps to “minimize her role,” including suing the Smiths to evict them from their marital home and “formally sever” her involvement.
Before suing, the statement says, the board claimed it didn’t have the original agreement or a copy and refused allow Nancy Smith to search the office where the original was stored.
Shy Wolf claims Smith is a danger
such a nuisance and distraction that the continued presence of defendants on the property is undermining the effective operation of the organization,” the lawsuit alleges, noting Smith isn’t a trained professional in caring for or treating animals.
“As the organization has grown, and trained professionals have come on board, defendant Nancy Smith has disputed the organization’s care and treatment of the animals in an everincreasing crescendo.
“Often, these disputes have boiled over into loud arguments on the premises as Shy Wolf’s employees tried to work,” the lawsuit alleges.
“She has ignored instructions to stay out of the fenced-off animal enclosures area, and that she is not authorized to serve as a volunteer in the enclosures. Instead, she routinely enters the area — often by herself and after hours — against the express instructions of Shy Wolf. Her actions are both a danger to herself and to the animals.”
with maintaining adequate staffing,” the lawsuit alleges, noting her actions have caused financial harm to Shy Wolf.
The lawsuit contends potential and current supporters routinely visit Shy Wolf to view its work before deciding whether to provide support, but on several occasions, Smith confronted potential and current benefactors, advising them not to donate money to Shy Wolf and deriding its management in front of staff as they hosted benefactors.
For 1½ years, the lawsuit says, Shy Wolf officials tried to reach a compromise to enable the Smiths to remain, but it failed, so they offered them a larger, rent-free home a few miles away. After negotiations, they refused to leave and since then, Nancy Smith’s behavior has “increasingly turned malevolent and violent.
“She continues to interfere with the organization’s effective operation and has instigated verbal and physical altercations with multiple staff members. She shoved a Shy Wolf employee in December 2025 when she had an altercation in the animal enclosure area,” the lawsuit says, noting she was arrested after another incident a month later.
The lawsuit notes the Smiths aren’t employees or board members, have no right to be in animal enclosures, and have withheld full use of the property. It asks a judge to eject the couple so the property can be exclusively used by Shy Wolf, which also filed a motion asking a judge to prevent Smith from entering animal enclosures and coming into contact with staff, board members and others at the sanctuary.
Shy Wolf’s attorney, Scott Atwood, declined to comment on the pending litigation, but Lawhon said Shy Wolf has reached out to try to resolve the situation.
Lawhon said Nancy Smith denies many allegations in the lawsuit, including interfering with donors.
“Nancy and Kent also have no intention of moving from their primary residence, which is the sacred right negotiated for and protected by that trust agreement the board conveniently ignores in its lawsuit,” Lawhon said, adding they’re considering filing claims against the board.
Although they weren’t provided with a copy of the agreement, their statement says, they “have more than enough evidence” to prove its existence. “The life trust and its existence absolutely limits any right they would have to try to remove her and Kent from the
Shy Wolf’s lawsuit says that after the Smiths transferred their home, the board paid their mortgage and utilities for years, paying off the mortgage, while using the home for its administrative offices. Until recently, the lawsuit says, the arrangement was satisfactory.
“Ever since founding the sanctuary, Nancy and Kent have had a deep and lasting commitment to the sanctuary’s original mission, the rehabilitation and care of displaced animals,” the statement says. “No lawsuit will ever take away or lessen that commitment and the unwavering love and support they have for the ongoing health, safety and well-being of the animals housed at the sanctuary. Nancy and Kent will continue to advocate for transparency and stability during this difficult time and hope to find an acceptable resolution with the sanctuary in the near future.” From page 1A
“Nancy Smith’s actions have now created
gerous part of an abusive relationship.
But over time, she said, it becomes about manipulation, power and control. It is designed to isolate, confuse and erode a person’s confidence and sense of self; something she believes Petito experienced.
Schmidt added that leaving is not a single moment, but a process, and often the most dan-
“The question I hear too many times — and one we need to stop asking — is, ‘Why don’t they just leave?’” Schmidt said. “That question shifts responsibility from the abuser to the victim. The risk of serious injury or death increases dramatically when someone tries to leave.”
Asking that question implies that a victim has the choice to leave — but abuse takes choices away. Victims are often cut off from friends, family, money and transportation. That isola-
The lawsuit accuses her of instigating “multiple verbal and physical altercations” with staff, and blocking entry to the sanctuary, including refusing to move her vehicle to allow feed trucks to unload supplies.
“Nancy Smith’s repeated harassment has directly resulted in staff members resigning from Shy Wolf, creating significant issues
tion, combined with the removal of personal agency, creates shame and fear, leaving many victims silent.
The danger of silence
“Silence is exactly where abuse thrives,” Schmidt said.
Jim Schmidt, stepfather of Gabby Petito, added that blame-shifting often follows isolation. He noted that abusers may pressure victims to move quickly, spend excessive time together and make them feel like they are the center of the abuser’s universe.
“Sometimes, that’s why blame shifting — where everything becomes your fault —jealousy and possessiveness disguises as concern,” he said.
He said that Petito experienced many of these red flags, including Brian Laundrie being overly attentive, controlling and isolating her from her support system when she moved to North Port to live with his family.
A tragic loss
On Sept. 19, 2021, eight days after she was reported missing, Petito’s remains were found in Bridger-Teton National Forest, a remote area in Wyoming. She died from homicide by strangulation.
Jim Schmidt faced the task of identifying her body, grappling with grief, pain and a profound sense of failure to protect her, both as a first responder and as a father.
“We’re not supposed to bury our kids,” he said. “It’s not the way it’s supposed to work. Unfortunately, it’s a reality that some of us face every single day.”
Turning grief into action
The Schmidts realized that their daughter’s story had touched millions, and in the fall of 2021, wanting to turn their grief into action,
they established the Gabby Petito Foundation. It is dedicated to supporting organizations that locate missing persons and aid survivors of domestic violence.
Domestic violence cannot be addressed with a single response. Instead, it requires a trauma-informed, multidisciplinary approach that protects survivors, equips first responders and strengthens community partnerships.
However, Nichole Schmidt emphasized that simply reacting to these situations is not enough — prevention is where lives are truly saved.
“Awareness is only the beginning,” she said. “Change requires action and action requires all of us. We cannot do this alone.”
She continued to stress the importance of examining the abuser more closely.
“Let’s stop asking why they stayed and start asking why the abuser was allowed to stay, and what systems failed to remove the danger,” Nichole Schmidt said. “Together, we can make our communities safer, because every step counts.”
Nichole Schmidt, Gabby Petito’s mother, and Jim Schmidt, Gabby’s stepfather, said domestic violence often begins with isolating a victim from friends, family, money and transportation.
Photos courtesy Gabby Petito Foundation
Nancy Smith and Honey, a fennec fox native to the North African deserts that’s among about 50 rescues and captive-bred exotic and un-releasable wild animals being cared for at Shy Wolf Sanctuary Education & Experience Center at 1161 27th St. SW in Golden Gate Estates. Contributed photo
Two solemn goals
Child artist program restores patients’ sense of self, raises funds for pediatric health care
By J.C. Amodea
Children such as Mila Rauser of Estero are proving to be a powerful force. Mila spent several weeks in the neonatal intensive care unit after birth due to eating and growth issues. During her first two years, doctors closely monitored her alpha-fetoprotein levels, an indicator for cancer. At age 1, she underwent hip surgery for dysplasia, and since age 2 has worn spine braces to help slow scoliosis and kyphosis.
In 2024, Mila became the featured artist of the Child Artist Program at the Southwest Florida Wine & Food Fest, an annual fundraising event of SWFL Children’s Charities. Since 2006, 20 child artists have participated in the program.
Each year, one child artist’s work is selected to be featured at the Wine & Food Fest’s paddle raise, with funds going to support the pediatric services of the Golisano Children’s Hospital of Southwest Florida in Fort Myers. Mila’s painting, “Peace, Love & Art,” raised $200,000 at the 2024 event.
The selected child artist for 2025, Bensin Gaff of Cape Coral, battled multiple seizures but, with strong support from family and friends, prevailed. His artwork, “The Fierce Bensin Blue,” brought in just under $300,000. Combined with other paddle raises and auction items, the total raised was $2.6 million.
At this year’s Wine & Food Fest in February, Remi Roland of Naples, daughter of local chef and business owner Brian Roland and his wife Nicole, will be the 2026 featured artist with her painting, themed “I Want to See the World.”
At 9 months of age in 2022, the youngster began exhibiting eye issues and was referred to an ophthalmologist at the Southwest Florida Children’s Charities Eye Center at Golisano Children’s Hospital. Remi continues to receive services as needed, and her family can access quality local care without traveling out of the county.
The youngster will be joined onstage by her parents. Brian Roland is now back in the public eye after surviving a horrific 2021 accident, when his daughter was 3 weeks old. The Rolands had been supporters of the Wine & Food Fest for years and are now coming
NEWS BRIEFS
Ski Olesky, Immokalee’s longtime Santa, dies
other children in need.
full circle as recipients of the eye center’s services.
Fortunately for Remi and other children, when the need was recognized for a local eyecare facility that eliminates the need for families to travel outside the area for care, the nonprofit organization pledged $3 million to establish a pediatric ophthalmology outpatient clinic. It opened in August 2021 and offers eyecare and surgical services to local patients.
History and process of the child art program
The Child Art Program was started in 2006 by Michele Eddy as a Rotary Club event and became a paddle raise in 2010, initiated by Elaine Hawkins, a charity trustee who has chaired past wine fests. Each year, a festival theme is selected and one child who has undergone care at Golisano Children’s Hospital is chosen to create a piece of art that expresses their arduous journey of care, healing and recovery. Thus far, 20 child artists have provided original artwork.
According to Beth Oliver, the child art program provides children who have been treated through the hospital’s services an outlet to reclaim their identity, knowing they’re giving back to
A longtime volunteer in the Immokalee community and countywide, Edward “Ski” Olesky — known to many as Santa Claus — died this month.
Olesky, 83, who died on Feb. 17, owned Lake Trafford Marina for 50 years and served on numerous boards for many years, including the county Tourist Development Council and Parks & Recreation Advisory Board, Immokalee Rotary, Immokalee Chamber of Commerce, Immokalee Community Redevelopment Advisory Board and Health Network.
Ann Olesky Park in Immokalee is named after his wife, who died in 2004 after surgery.
“Our hearts are broken today as we say
“For donors, it’s not that they are buying a child’s piece of art, although that’s a tangible outcome,” Oliver said. “It’s the money behind it that’s going to help other area children and families.”
After a child is selected to showcase their original artwork, a volunteer child artist mentor steps in to guide their young charge in creating the piece at the child’s home. Among the mentors over the years is former television news journalist and anchor Rachel Pierce, who has served as a mentor from 2019 to 2026.
“Guiding a child through their artwork for the food fest is truly special,” Pierce said. “Their paintings tell a story of resilience and hope — and at the auction, they help raise funds that make a real difference for children at Golisano Children’s Hospital.”
After the event, the artwork is donated back to the hospital and displayed on a second-floor hallway wall alongside children’s artwork from previous years. The paintings are framed and installed with a plaque listing the year, the child artist’s name and the donor’s name. A small ceremony with the child and parents is held for each art installation.
goodbye to a true Immokalee icon … a man who dedicated his life to serving our community,” the Immokalee Chamber of Commerce said in a statement. “Ski was a pillar of our community, sitting on many boards and working tirelessly behind the scenes
“But to most of us, he was simply ‘Santa,’” the chamber wrote, noting that for years, he was the highlight of the Chamber’s annual Christmas Around the World Parade & Gala. “He was our local celebrity, bringing pure magic and joy to generations of families. He didn’t just serve Immokalee; he loved Immokalee, and we loved him back.”
Olesky served on Healthcare Network’s board of directors for over 18 years, “offering his time, insight and unwavering dedication.
“He was a steadfast supporter of the Immokalee community and brought that same commitment and heart to his work,” the network said in its statement. “His deep roots in the local business and civic community made a lasting impact that will not be forgotten.”
Collier
“There is a real connection for the child who has spent time in the hospital. As they see their art receive so much attention, accolades and prominence, they beam with pride knowing the part they played in raising money for other children,” said Heidi Davis, executive director of SWFL Children’s Charities, Inc., who plans and executes the annual Southwest Florida Wine & Food Fest.
Event, paddle raises and lasting contributions
The charity’s Wine & Food Fests have raised more than $32 million over the years. Chef vintner dinners at private homes and venues on Feb. 27 will kick off the 2026 event, and from noon to 5 p.m. on Feb. 28, a Grand Tasting and Auction will be held at the Hyatt Regency Coconut Point Resort & Spa, Bonita Springs. Some 375 attendees are expected.
The program includes a video interview with the child artist and their parents about their child’s health challenges.
In the event’s early days, the initial paddle raise bid was set at $4,000, then eventually raised to $5,000. One of the largest amounts raised, in 2013, was $600,000, Hawkins said.
Child artists and their families typically come up onstage and the
Fruit Growers holds annual sale
Collier Fruit Growers will hold its annual sale and free educational event Saturday, just weeks after the coldest temperatures in 16 years significantly damaged many trees.
The nonprofit club is holding a sale and discussion from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Feb. 28 at Freedom Memorial Park, 1515 Golden Gate Parkway, Naples. Cash and credit cards will be accepted for tree sales.
Experts will discuss which trees survived the historic cold front and how to select varieties suited to Southwest Florida’s climate. Resilient trees will be available for purchase. For more information, visit collierfruit.org.
Water shortage warning issued
South Florida Water Management District has issued a regional water-shortage warning and restrictions for Collier County, its two cities and five other counties to raise awareness about dry conditions and encourage
child presents their artwork.
“It’s thrilling for the child to be invited on stage and receive a rousing welcome from guests who raise their paddles to bid,” Davis said. “This is probably one of the most emotional moments of the event. Seeing the child and hearing their story reminds everybody exactly why we’re there — to support each child’s health journey.”
This year, funds raised will provide the seed money for a new Center for Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities. Davis explained that families with children, or an adult who has an intellectual development disability, now must travel to multiple locations for programs, analysis and assessment and a determination if the program can provide the necessary care.
“It fractures families, as they must travel to Tampa or Miami and still maintain work and other childcare obligations,” Davis said.
“The hospital’s goal is to create a central hub where different specialists will be located — like a one-stop shop.”
Hawkins agreed. “Having good healthcare facilities contributes significantly to the quality of life in our community,” she said. “It helps attract people to move here. Having these facilities for children is a real quality-of-life issue and a game changer.”
Golisano Children’s Hospital of Southwest Florida treats a variety of children’s conditions and illnesses, including pediatric cancer and pediatric mental health. It funds, among other needs, the intensive care unit and its equipment.
Southwest Florida Wine & Food Fest
When: 6 to 9 p.m. Feb. 27 (private chef vintner dinners); noon to 5 p.m. Feb. 28 Grand Tasting and Live Auction (ticketed event), followed by a separate ticketed post-party Where: Hyatt Regency Coconut Point Resort & Spa, 5001 Coconut Road, Bonita Springs
Tickets: $1,250 grand tasting and auction only (Feb. 28); $2,000 one seat to a chef vintner dinner and auction (weekend ticket); visit swflwinefest.networkforgood. com/events/93966-2026-swflwine-food-fest. Online auction opens to the public 5 p.m. Feb. 20 to 5 p.m. March 1 (link at swflwinefest. org) More: swflwinefest.org
water conservation.
The notice does not apply to properties that use reclaimed water, but those residents are asked not to irrigate lawns and landscaping between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m.
Here is a list of restrictions:
• Even addresses may use irrigation water on Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday.
• Odd addresses may use irrigation water on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
• Marco Island city officials ask that irrigation systems be set from midnight to 8 a.m. on those days.
• Irrigation is not allowed between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m.
• No irrigation allowed on Fridays.
• On Marco Island, other water uses — such as vehicle, boat and exterior house and roof cleaning — are allowed if low-volume pressure equipment is used and water must drain to a pervious surface or a recycling-reuse system. For more information, go to bit.ly/ ccwaterconservationtips.
courtesy Louis Venne for Charlie McDonald
Edward Olesky
Shake Shack opens in North Naples
Chain plans more locations in Southwest Florida
By Tim Aten tim.aten@naplespress.com
With its first location in Southwest Florida up and running, Shake Shack already anticipates additional locations in Collier and Lee counties.
The trendy burger chain just opened Feb. 20 at Mercato in North Naples but already is building out its next location at 6833 Collier Blvd., a former Pollo Tropical location at Restaurant Row Naples. Daniel Mercado, general manager of the new Shake Shack in Naples, will help open the next regional location — which will launch in the third or fourth quarter of this year, perhaps as early as this summer, he said. The first location in Lee County is targeted to open at least a year from now on Alico Road near Interstate 75 in south Fort Myers. “That actually will be our third location,” said Mercado, who formerly was general manager of the Shake Shack in Coral Gables.
“I’m happy to be here,” he said. “I just moved here recently. I’ve been in this area for the past five months.”
The fast-casual brand’s fanatics also are happy Shake Shack is here, especially after months of delays.
“There’s been a lot of buzz. The community has been welcoming us being here,” Mercado said.
Edelyn Miesner of Naples had been wondering when the restaurant was going to open. “I’ve been coming here almost like every day. I just live close by,” she said.
Miesner and her son used to enjoy Shake Shack in the Philippines. “It’s our favorite go-to place,” she said. “I love the double cheeseburger.”
On her first visit to Shake Shack in North
From page 3A HAITIANS
working to find answers for thousands of those under TPS who have not been able to drive to work since Feb. 3 without risking arrest for driving without a valid license.
Beatrice Jacquet-Castor, president of the Fort Myers-based Haitian-American Community Coalition of Southwest Florida, said she was told by FHSMV on Feb. 19 that driver licenses or driving credentials were not currently being renewed for TPS holders, pending additional guidance from DHS and USCIS on a new end date.
“However, they are extending temporary driving privileges until March 15, meaning individuals can drive legally until that date, but they are not issuing new or renewed licenses,” Jacquet-Castor said.
She said her organization is advising the community not to risk driving without a license after March 15, which could result in arrest and deportation.
“That’s the risk, and we’re advising our
Naples, Miesner sat at an outside table on the corner and tried something new — the Avocado Bacon Burger — and a strawberry shake, her favorite.
community members not to take this risk, even though they are still legally allowed to work,” Jacquet-Castor said. “A lot of them are currently suffering right now because they can’t drive and most likely will end up losing their job because they can’t get to work.”
The interruptions to daily life without a driver license include not being able to drive to church, or to drop off and pick up their children from school, or to go to the grocery store, she said.
DHS, USCIS and FHSMV had not responded by deadline to several requests for comment on the status of driver license issuance or renewals for those in the state under TPS.
In terms of the challenges still being faced here while the status remains uncertain, one Haitian immigrant residing in Naples said not being able to legally drive is the most stressful — and expensive — one.
Kerby Deshommes has been working for a security company since coming to Naples in 2023 when he was 25, fleeing the gang violence in Haiti. He works five days a week
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Carin Keane, Publisher;
“It’s very simple. Order a ShackBurger and a shake and you’ll be happy,” he said. “Those are the two most popular items. My personal favorite is the SmokeShack.”
SmokeShack is a made-to-order single or double burger that has Angus beef patties topped with applewood smoked bacon, spicy chopped cherry peppers and the signature ShackSauce on a toasted potato bun.
The Avocado Bacon Burger is the favorite for Carlos Delgado, assistant general manager of Shake Shack, who just relocated to Naples from the New York City area, where Shake Shack was founded. Delgado accompanies his burger with a Cookies and Cream shake. “The Cookies and Cream is a top seller. We have the vanilla custard with the Oreo cookies. It’s a big hit all around,” he said.
For his personal favorite shake, Mercado mixes Cookies and Cream with strawberry. “It’s not on the menu, but if you ask, we can do it for you. We’ll make it happen,” he said.
In addition to the handspun milkshakes from which the counter-service concept’s name is derived, Shake Shack’s made-to-order menu of elevated versions of American fast-food classics includes quarter-pound cheeseburgers, chicken sandwiches, flat-top hot dogs, crinkle-cut fries and frozen custard. The restaurant also offers limited-time items throughout the year, such as the recently launched Korean-style menu that includes the K-Shack BBQ Burger.
Shake Shack sets itself apart with high-quality food made with fresh ingredients, and a hospitality team that makes guests feel valued, Mercado said.
and said the inability to legally drive has resulted in him spending about $60 a day to take an Uber to work and back since there are no bus routes close to his employer.
Deshommes said part of the challenge is that he still has to make his car payment and insurance payment while not being able to drive, with his budget getting tighter because of transportation costs.
“One of my friends has a 3-month-old baby, and without a driver license he cannot take his wife to church or to work, he cannot drive himself to work, he cannot go buy groceries for his family,” Deshommes said.
Another challenge, he said, is the fact that an expired driver license cannot be used as a form of identification, which is often required for purchases and for travel.
“I’m afraid of going to a store and having them ask for my I.D., which is expired,” he explained. “Without that, we have to carry our passport, which is very dangerous, because if you lose your passport, it’s not going to be easy to get a new one.”
For its Naples location — its 29th in Florida — Shake Shack built out a 3,000-squarefoot retail space at 9105 Strada Place, Suite 3145, that previously was part of the Hand & Harvest Artisan Market and Charming Charlie women’s fashion store at Mercato. With more than 420 locations nationwide, Shake Shack has a long-term goal to expand to 1,500 company-operated locations. Shake Shack’s hours are 10:30 a.m. to 11 p.m. daily.
He said he has been exploring other legal paths to stay in the U.S., including applying for asylum, but that he cannot currently afford an immigration attorney. His hope, though, is to remain here in the country that he now thinks of as home.
“I would love to live here in the United States peacefully and do whatever they ask me to do and respect the law,” Deshommes said. “I just want a better life. I hope that they give us a chance to have a better life.”
Haitian community fears the worst
The change in protected status would affect more than 350,000 Haitians across the U.S., including 15,000 to 20,000 in Southwest Florida, according to the Haitian-American Community Coalition of SWFL.
Haitians were first granted Temporary Protected Status in the U.S. following the 2010 earthquake, and protections have subsequently been extended several times due to continuing economic and political instability in Haiti.
In late November 2025, DHS announced that Haiti “no longer meets the conditions for the designation of Temporary Protected Status” and that it would expire on Feb. 3.
Jacquet-Castor and other Haitian community leaders disagree with that assessment, citing continued unrest and gang violence in Haiti, and have been working to build support within Congress to extend the deadline for another three years.
She said that deporting people back to Haiti under current conditions is “similar to putting them on death row.”
“I want to be blunt about what’s happening,” Jacquet-Castor said. “There is no government, there is no infrastructure. The country is being run by a gang, and that gang has sent out the message that anyone that gets deported back to Haiti will be killed.
“This is a humanitarian emergency.”
Haiti is not the only country to see temporary protected status revoked by DHS. As of Feb. 20, DHS had also revoked or is seeking to revoke protection for citizens of countries including Yemen, Nepal, Honduras and Nicaragua, among others.
Aten
Beatrice Jacquet-Castor, president of the HaitianAmerican Community Coalition of Southwest Florida, said her organization is advising the community not to risk driving without a license after March 15.
Photo by Evan Williams
REAL ESTATE
Assessing softening labor market’s effects on real estate, tourism
By Karly Williams
Recent data shows the national unemployment rate clocked in at 4.3%, or 7.4 million people, in January 2026. Bureau of Labor Statistics data shows that as a 0.3% increase over January 2025 and 0.6% increase over January 2024, but shows a stabilizing rate when compared to December’s unemployment numbers.
A monumen-
tal Bureau of Labor Statistics revision released Feb. 11 also revealed that 2025 job growth was overstated by the government by nearly 400,000 jobs.
Health care and social assistance hiring contributed 95% of total payroll growth and 72% of private payroll growth in January. Current hiring data shows a labor market essentially propped up by the health care industry and social services sector, spelling continued discouragement for many white-collar job seekers and the long-term unemployed, who outnumber 2025’s long-term job seekers.
Locally, the Naples-Marco Island area is experiencing a moderate softening, with a 0.34% decline in the overall market and a 1.79% decline in the white collar market from December 2024 to December 2025, according to statistics from the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis.
“If this gradual slowdown continues, the most likely effect on Florida’s economy — including tourism and housing — is simply slower growth, not contraction,” said Brad O’Connor, chief economist at Florida Realtors. “Florida’s labor market and economic base remain diverse, and demand across many industries is still strong.”
Employment, tourism and housing
Although the Naples area is disproportionately made up of retirees who don’t depend on W-2 employment income, tourism from working people remains a pillar of its economy, and affordable housing remains
in high demand.
“I don’t see employment or tourism shifting enough to explain the housing market’s two-year normalization,” said Edward DiMarco of Realty Hub. “The more plausible drivers are higher mortgage rates, materially higher insurance and HOA operating costs, and increased inventory and competition — especially in segments where condos and carrying costs matter most.”
Despite a weakening job market, Florida Gulf Coast University’s Regional Economic Research Institute reports Collier’s inflation-adjusted, seasonally adjusted tourist tax revenue at $3.9 million in December 2025, up 3.5% from December 2024.
That’s a positive sign for commercial investors and workers who staff tourism destinations and hotel properties. However, even these industries aren’t immune from labor pool strains.
“The tight labor is being exacerbated by a crackdown on undocumented immigrants and the revocation of work visas for asylum seekers,” said Ben Johnston, COO of Kapitus, a national small business loan financing agency. “Immigration has historically helped fill the gap between economic demands for labor and the available labor supply from
“If this gradual slowdown continues, the most likely effect on Florida’s economy — including tourism and housing — is simply slower growth, not contraction.”
—Brad O’Connor, chief economist at Florida Realtors
naturally born U.S. citizens.”
Future for sales and outbound migration
Despite home sales rising in the area, the Collier County Economic
Development Office reported a 6% drop in new real estate and professional service job postings between 2024 and 2025, showing a lack of diversified, high-paying positions.
That means an even more disproportionate amount of real estate transactions are being targeted to the wealthy and ultra-wealthy for second homes and investment opportunities.
“Would sales be even higher in the area if the job market were as strong as it was two years ago?” O’Connor said. “That’s possible. But the fact that we’re seeing increases now underscores the depth of underlying demand.”
A 2025 United Van Lines National Movers Study found that nearly 72% of outmigration from the Naples area was from full-time residents, specifically middle-class families and working professionals aged 30 to 55.
But even as migration to Sunbelt states has slowed in comparison to its COVID-19 era peak, Florida as a whole is continuing to attract new residents at one of the highest rates in the country.
“That steady population and business growth helps sustain housing demand even as national job growth slows,” O’Connor said.
London Bay Homes has sold a luxury custom estate at 3373 Rum Row in the Port Royal neighborhood. Nestled on a prime homesite along 130 feet of Galleon Cove, the six-bedroom residence offers a study, seven full bathrooms and three half bathrooms, and encompasses 8,377 square feet under air and 11,599 total square feet with covered outdoor living areas, terraces and balconies and two dual-car garages. The estate was sold by Toby Cloutier, director of business development for the builder. The estate represents longtime collaborations with the region’s top industry partners, including Stofft Cooney Architects, Exteriors by Koby Kirwin and Romanza Interior Design.
London Bay offers several completed and under-construction estates in Port Royal, neighboring Aqualane Shores and in Naples’ most prestigious neighborhoods. Estates feature interior design by Romanza Interior Design and architecture by the region’s revered architectural firms and landscape designers.
For more information, visit londonbay.com or call 239.592.1400.
— Naples Press Staff
Sales Carroll Moving Management LLC purchased 8,687 square feet of commercial space at 1025 Collier Center Way in North Naples from McHugh Group RE LP for $3 million. Christine McManus, CCIM, SIOR, and Shawn McManus of Investment Properties Corp. represented the buyer and seller.
Leases Quality Bin Cleaning Inc. leased 2,350 square feet of industrial space at 4227 Enterprise Ave., Unit E, in Naples from 4227 Enterprise Ave. LLC . Brock Rasmussen and Gary Barlow of Lee & Associates Naples-Fort Myers represented the lessor and lessee.
Rooted Family Health leased 1,020 square feet of office space in Northbrooke Plaza, 2590 Northbrooke Plaza Drive, in North Naples from 2590 Northbrooke LLC . Mike Concilla and Nick Matson of LQ Commercial represented the lessee.
Local real estate professionals don’t see a possible softening labor market as having a major effect on Southwest Florida’s home sales. Bigger drivers, some say, would be higher mortgage rates and more expensive insurance. Getty Images
Brad O’Connor
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MUSIC, HIS MENTORING
10
Ongoing events
‘Straight Outa Florida’ with Compton and Bennett
7 p.m. most Tuesdays in season (call to check) at the Norris Center, 755 Eighth Ave. S., Naples. Naples’ most whacked-out songwritercomedy sketch pair is back with new ways to skewer the Sunshine State and its quirky residents. The duo plays six memorable characters, some of whom could live next door to you. $35. eventbrite.com, 239.213.3049 or box office Swamp Sanctuary extended hours
8 a.m. to 5 p.m. through April 30 at Audubon’s Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary, 375 Sanctuary Road W., Naples. The 2.25-mile boardwalk takes visitors through four habitats where a wide variety of wildlife lives. Advance ticket purchase required. Adults, $17. Students and military, $10. Children 6 to 14, $6. Children under 6, free. audubon. org/corkscrew.visit
‘Circle Forward’
Various times and days through March 1 at Gulfshore Playhouse, 100 Goodlette-Frank Road, Naples. Seventeen years after losing her husband, Mia travels the country helping others cope with grief — until a teenager claims to be her husband’s reincarnation. Expecting a prank, Mia is stunned when he knows things he shouldn’t. When the past refuses to stay buried, this humorous, unexpected and uplifting world premiere from the 2023 New Works Festival unfolds. Space is limited. Adult seating: preferred $84, value $39. Educator seating (ID required): preferred $68, value $39. Student seating (ID required): preferred and value, $25. gulfshoreplayhouse.org
‘Dining with the Impressionists’
10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday to Saturday, noon to 4 p.m. Sunday through March at Treasure Island Antiques, Space 102, 950 Central Ave., Naples. Aldo Castillo Gallery is partnering with Gracious Tables to present “Dining with the Impressionists,” a special table setting inspired by “Cherry Blossoms,” an oil on canvas painting by American artist Ken Fraser. Referencing the legacy of Vincent van Gogh, the installation invites guests to imagine the warmth, conversation and artistic spirit of a bygone era. A two-month lead time is mandatory to secure all design elements. Free admission. treasureislandnaples.com
‘The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time’ Various times through March 1 at The Naples Players, 701 Fifth Ave. S., Naples. This production tells the story of Christopher Boone, a teenager whose brilliant mind helps him navigate a mystery that expands into something more personal. Space is limited. Advance ticket purchase required. $42 to $57. naplesplayers.org or 239.263.7990
‘Art Flicks’ film program returns
9:45 a.m. multiple days through March at Marco Island Center for the Arts, 1010 Winterberry Drive, Marco Island. The “Art Flicks” program features foreign, independent and art films.
• March 10 — Saint Ralph
Haydn & Beethoven
3 p.m. March 2 and March 8 at
CALENDAR
MASKED MOMENTS IN OPERA
Featured: 5 p.m. March 5 in the Daniels Pavilion at Artis—Naples, 5833 Pelican Bay Blvd., Naples. Four international artists recreate some scenes of intrigue and romance for Gulfshore Opera in this program that includes the famous masked ball of Strauss’ Die Fledermaus, Lloyd Webber’s Phantom of the Opera and Verdi’s Un Ballo en Maschera, among others. The concert includes popular operas and Broadway songs, and the singers include Matthew Cairns (named one of OperaWire’s “Top Ten Rising Stars”), Andrea Baker (a soprano who starred here in Rusalka last year), coloratura soprano Abigail Raiford and baritone Jean-Carlos Rodriguez. $75. 239.529.3925 or gulfshoreopera.org
Artis—Naples, 5833 Pelican Bay Blvd., Naples. Musicians of the Naples Philharmonic perform two landmark chamber works highlighting pivotal moments in the careers of Ludwig van Beethoven and Joseph Haydn. The program opens with Beethoven’s bold String Trio, Op. 9, No. 3, a restless and dynamic work that showcases his emerging voice and growing confidence. It concludes with a masterfully crafted String Quartet by Haydn, whose inventive and refined style helped define the future of chamber music. Space is limited. Advance ticket purchase required. $52. artisnaples.org
‘Lucky Charms’ exhibition
10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday to Wednesday, noon to 6 p.m. Thursday to Saturday March 2 to April 20 at Fort Myers Beach Art Association, 13451 McGregor Blvd., Naples. Exploring symbols, memories and moments that spark joy or invite good fortune, the exhibition features whimsical, personal, cultural and abstract works in a variety of styles and mediums, offering an uplifting and imaginative visual experience. Free admission. fortmyersbeachart.com
‘Erma Bombeck: At Wit’s End’ 7 p.m. Feb 27 and March 19 to 20 at Norris Community Center, 755 Eighth Ave. S., Naples. She was the queen of droll, rising from a weekly humor column in an Ohio newspaper to become a nationally syndicated star and author who kept us all laughing — but also kept us grounded with some poignant truths. Louise Cornetta recreates the funny lady and her story. $39.19. eventbrite.com
‘Stabilized, Not Controlled’ 7 p.m. March 4, 11, 18 and 25 at Norris Community Center, 755 Eighth Ave. S., Naples. The
5833 Pelican Bay Blvd., Naples. Lecturer Tony Chirinos examines how lenses and photography have transformed human perception, shaping the way we see and understand the world through art, science and technology. $38. artisnaples.org
Ranch Hands Cowboylesque
8 p.m. Feb. 27 at Seminole Casino Hotel Immokalee, 506 S. First Street, Immokalee. Ranch Hands Cowboylesque follows a ranch hand on a humorous journey to regain his confidence, featuring comedy, dance and country music classics. $46. 21+. casino.hardrock. com
Dvořák & Copland
7:30 p.m. Feb. 27 and Feb. 28 at Artis—Naples, 5833 Pelican Bay Blvd., Naples. French conductor Ludovic Morlot returns to lead the Naples Philharmonic in a program pairing American and European masterworks. The evening opens with Ives’ Decoration Day, followed by Dvořák’s Violin Concerto featuring violinist Stella Chen. Copland’s Symphony No. 3, incorporating the Fanfare for the Common Man, concludes the concert with a bold statement of American optimism. Space is limited. Advance ticket purchase required. $15 to $84. artisnaples.org
building’s tenants are at it again, and when you mix their zaniness up with a front stoop’s worth of issues, you’ve got urban comedy at its best. A comedy by Frank Blocker for all of us who were ever apartment dwellers, and those of us who wonder what it was like. Strong language. $39.19. eventbrite.com
‘The Importance of Being Earnest’ Various times March 5 through April 4 at Gulfshore Playhouse, 100 Goodlette-Frank Road, Naples. Hold onto your handbags. Set in Victorian England, this witty comedy follows two bachelors, Jack and Algernon, who lead secret double lives to escape responsibility. When their alter egos pursue two society ladies, chaos and hilarious twists ensue in this timeless play. Space is limited. Advance ticket purchase required. $39 to $119. gulfshoreplayhouse.org
‘Buddy: The Buddy Holly Story’ 7:30 p.m. March 5 to 8, March 12 to 15; 2 p.m. March 7 to 8, March 14 to 15 at TheatreZone, 13275 Livingston Road, Naples. Buddy: The Buddy Holly Story celebrates the energy, creativity and legacy of the rock ‘n’ roll icon. The musical follows Holly’s rise to fame and features more than 20 of his greatest hits, including “That’ll Be the Day,” “Peggy Sue,” “Oh, Boy!” and “Rave On.” Space is limited. Advance ticket purchase required. $50 to $70. theatre.zone or 888.966.3352
This weekend (Feb. 27-March 1)
Classics corner: ‘Great Expectations’
10 a.m. Feb. 27 at Artis— Naples, 5833 Pelican Bay Blvd., Naples. Lecturer Tara Hayes examines Charles Dickens’ Great Expectations, often regarded as the author’s masterpiece. The discussion explores Pip’s retrospective narration, the novel’s memorable characters and its themes of growth, adversity and self-awareness. $38. artisnaples.org
Inside photography
1 p.m. Feb. 27 at Artis—Naples,
$25. eventbrite.com, 239.213.3049 or box office.
Naples Philharmonic Youth Jazz Orchestra: winter concert 7 p.m. March 1 at Artis—Naples, 5833 Pelican Bay Blvd., Naples. Enjoy a winter performance by the Naples Philharmonic Youth Jazz Orchestra, led by Brandon Robertson. The program features a lively mix of swing, Latin and contemporary jazz, showcasing the talent of these rising young musicians. Advance registration required. Free admission. artisnaples.org
Il Divo
André Knevel pipe organ concert
5:30 to 8 p.m. Feb. 27 at Naples United Church of Christ, 5200 Crayton Road, Naples. Join André Knevel for “An Inspirational Evening,” a benefit concert supporting St. Matthew’s House. Knevel will perform on the church’s 61-rank Schantz pipe organ. The evening also features testimonials from St. Matthew’s House program graduates and "Faces Beyond Homelessness," a portrait exhibition by Wendy Wagner highlighting residents’ journeys from homelessness to hope. General admission (concert and exhibit viewing), $30. Private reception ticket (includes reserved seating, meet-and-greet with Knevel and catered food), $75. stmatthewshouse.org
Naples Philharmonic Youth Symphonia: winter concert 11 a.m. Feb. 28 at Artis—Naples, 5833 Pelican Bay Blvd., Naples. Join the Naples Philharmonic Youth Symphonia for a winter performance featuring an engaging selection of works, led by Gregg Anderson. The concert highlights the progress and artistry of the ensemble’s talented young string players. Advance registration required. Free admission. artisnaples.org
Venturino’s Comedy Night! Rodney Norman, Vee Shally, Nick Gordon and More!
7 p.m. Feb. 28 at the Norris Center, 755 Eighth Ave. S., Naples. Rodney Norman, with his stand-up hair and droll remarks, has a fan base that covers the world. His cast of characters and insightful philosophy combine to promise a delightful and thoughtful night of comedy, with a roster of other stars.
7 p.m. March 1 at Artis—Naples, 5833 Pelican Bay Blvd., Naples. For more than two decades, Il Divo has captivated audiences worldwide with its blend of operatic technique and pop style. With more than 30 million albums sold and 50 No. 1 hits in 35 countries, the quartet returns to Hayes Hall with “Il Divo by Candlelight,” celebrating XX, its 10th studio album and first independent release. Expect an evening of elegant harmonies and timeless songs. Space is limited. Advance ticket purchase required. $413. VIP packages are available, including a Meet & Greet Experience for $413, which features a premium reserved seat, a private pre-show performance, a photo opportunity and exclusive Il Divo merchandise. A VIP Merchandise Package is also offered and includes a premium reserved seat and exclusive tour items for $259. artisnaples.org
20th annual bike brunch and walk
6:30 a.m. March 1 at Cambier Park, 755 Eighth Ave. S., Naples. Enjoy a morning biking or walking with friends through downtown Naples on safer, low-traffic roads, then stay for an after-party with food, drinks, music, raffles and a vendor expo. The event begins with breakfast and coffee from Foxtail, followed by 62-, 30-, 20-, 10- or 5-mile bike rides or a 3-mile walk with rest stops. The celebration wraps up in the park with catering by Jason’s Deli. Downtown walk, $35. five-mile family ride and 10-mile ride, $35. 20-, 30-and 62-mile ride, $65. runsignup.com
Eric Gales at Arts Bonita 7 p.m. March 1 at Arts Bonita Performing Arts Center, 10150 Bonita Beach Road, Bonita Springs. Eric Gales, a former child prodigy who began performing at age 11, brings his blues virtuosity to Arts Bonita’s Hinman Auditorium. Taught to play a right-handed guitar upside down by his brothers, Gales signed his first record deal at 16 and has since released 19 albums, toured with the Experience Hendrix tribute tour and topped the Billboard Blues Album chart with his 2022 release, Crown. Tier 1, $59. Tier 2, $54. Tier 3, $49. artsbonita.org or 239.495.8989
Next week (March 2-5)
Naples Philharmonic Youth Chorus: winter concert
7 p.m. March 2 at Artis—Naples, 5833 Pelican Bay Blvd., Naples. Celebrate the season with a heartwarming night of choral music as the Naples Philharmonic Youth Chorus takes the stage for its annual winter concert. Led
Kyle Pfortmiller and Susan Spatafora will perform at the “Masked Moments in Opera” event on March 5. Photo courtesy Gulfshore Opera
"Buoys" by Kathleen Taylor. Photo courtesy Fort Myers Beach Art Association
André Knevel performs a benefit concert for St. Matthew’s House on Feb. 27.
Photo courtesy St. Matthew’s House
COVER STORY
The beat goes on
By Harriet Howard Heithaus harriet.heithaus@naplespress.com
Chad Craig has one of the longest running bands in Naples. It has a lot of personnel turnover, but his musicians do need to move on to sixth grade.
Craig, a full-time music teacher for Collier County public schools for 30 years, has been directing the before-school Xylophone Club at Seagate Elementary School since at least 2010, and by the looks of the full stage last week, this band is not disappearing any time soon. Craig’s work with his students, as well as with recovering addicts and mental health patients, will receive recognition March 5 when the International Network of Creatives honors him as one of six Southwest Florida Distinguished Artists.
Those around him would gladly second Craig’s honor. Two Collier County seniors, Gavin Moon and Trey Leslie, chose his school in which to conduct their graduation walk-throughs because of his music program.
“I’ve gone back and thanked him again and again,” said Dina Moon, Gavin’s mother. Two of her sons are Xylophone Club alumni. Gavin, a student at Florida Atlantic University, now marches with a national drum and bugle performance group, the Boston Crusaders. “We’re very blessed to have him.”
“Chad is our amazing music educator here full-time at Seagate Elementary. He teaches all grade levels, kindergarten through five, and this club is a great before-school and after-school program he offers” for fourth and fifth graders, declared Skip Pardee, Collier County Public Schools District Administrator, Fine Arts. “Chad is one of our great music educators.”
From piano to drums
None of this life was in the direction Craig thought he was going. The native of Monrovia, Indiana, a former drum corps member of the Indiana University Marching 100, saw his future as a high school band director. He had taken piano lessons, but his high school marching band experience with drumming had set his course; Craig loved it so much he’s still friends with his band director, he said.
“We could be in the high school band in eighth grade because it was a small campus,” he recalled. “So, marching band, symphonic band, jazz band — I just loved drumming, and if there was a xylophone part, that was cool. I got to play it because I knew how to read music.”
But fate brought him south to teach elementary music, first in Immokalee and eventually at Seagate Elementary. Although he could still play piano, Craig gravitated toward drums, and he began providing percussion instruments for the kids to play: “We
“I’m like, ‘We’re going. We’re done with drum club. Now we’re going to get into this,’” he recalled. Thanks to the school’s PTO, they have enough marimbas — the students know them as xylophones — for a class of about 17. A grant from the Education Foundation of Champions for Learning bought drums for Craig’s music classes.
On a recent Thursday morning, all 17 marimbas had players, including some larger instruments with a bass sound and the membraned bottoms that give it the buzz background popular in Zimbabwean music. Sweet sounds wafted toward the breakfast room while students pounded out a harmonious “In the Jungle,” Solomon Linda’s Zulu tune most Americans know as “The Lion Sleeps Tonight.”
Craig accompanied them on drums and would later hold up charts with note progressions as they rehearsed new tunes. The group has several concerts scheduled around town, and Craig has even brought student musicians to another of his outreach projects, the Golden Solos — a group for widows and widowers he has supervised at Covenant Presbyterian Church since he became a deacon. That’s even though he’s married: “I was the new guy, and the new guy got that group,” he said, smiling.
Outside callings
Craig has played percussion for local bands, and he’s a regular drummer for a unique religious service, the monthly Soulful Shabbat at Temple Shalom.
He’s found himself learning from his drum circles at the David Lawrence Centers, Justin’s Place and more. One of the first exercises Craig gives is to have people tap the syllables of their names on their drums.
“It’s funny — it doesn’t matter
whether you’re 6 or 46 or 86,” he said. “People love to have their name heard in a place and [to] be able to come up with something even in that short amount of time. But they are being heard.”
And he enjoys his time with his church’s praise band, which performed at the White House this year. He didn’t see the First Family, Craig said, but it was an impressive evening playing for dignitaries under the official portrait of Teddy Roosevelt. If you talk to him for long, however, his conversation will return to his elementary students. He recalls his own life lessons and offers them to the kids as encouragement to persevere. His own initial application to join the IU Marching 100, was rejected, he tells them: “No one really cared that I was the best drummer at my school.”
Craig studied — studied hard, he recalled — and applied again before his sophomore year. This time, he made the cut.
“I tell the kids that story because I had to persevere and really humble myself,” he said.
made music instead of talking about music.”
The xylophone band began after Craig, who teaches summer workshops for the organization World Music Drumming, was puzzling over a melody he needed to play on the marimba that would match up with a student drumming club. The student watching him listened, picked up the mallet and tapped out the melody perfectly: “Is it like this?” she asked.
Honoring the artists
What: Spring into the Arts Gala to benefit International Network of Creatives, a faith-based organization that works with people in need and in recovery through arts and art therapy. Southwest Florida Distinguished Artists awards will be presented this year to Teri Hansen, Brian Roland, Sandra Lee Buxton, Paul Arsenault, Hope Daley and Chad Craig. Speaker is Kirk Cameron, film and TV star known as Mike Seaver from the 1980s sitcom “Growing Pains” and who is currently a talk show host and producer of faith-based films and TV shows.
When: 5 p.m. reception (4:30 p.m. VIP), 6 p.m. dinner and program, March 5
Where: Naples Grande Beach Resort, 475 Seagate Drive, Naples Tickets: $450 per person; VIP, $850 per person. Purchase at internationalnetworkofcreatives.org
Students play designated parts on their instruments to create arrangements with marimbas and drums in the Xylophone Club at Seagate Elementary School.
When the students are playing with gusto, teacher Chad Craig occasionally uses a whistle to command changes or to start or stop.
Photos by Olga Hayes
Chad Craig teaches the Xylophone Club students keys and rhythm, all of it done for 45 minutes in the morning before classes begin on Tuesdays and Thursdays.
Chad Craig, a student of world drumming and now a teacher of several of its many cultures, holds the directory that shows him on the faculty page.
Chad Craig brings rhythm to many lives in Naples
From left, Edward Deshields, Orin Noblett and Nathalia Ivascu handle the larger instruments during a Feb. 19 session at Seagate Elementary School.
Broadway, transported
TNP ‘Curious incident’ production transcends all kinds of boundaries
By Harriet Howard Heithaus harriet.heithaus@naplespress.com
In 2015, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time scooped up every Drama Desk award on the table and five Tonys, but its sophisticated technology seemed destined to be confined to major metropolitan stages.
The Naples Players took that as a challenge.
For the past three weeks it has created the cacophony of London’s train stations, a star-studded sky, floating characters and flashing visuals of a teenager’s instant computation skills that were part of the original.
“It is a show known for its technical prowess,” said Bryce Alexander, CEO and executive artistic director of The Naples Players, who chose to direct Curious Incident himself. He conceded it was a test. “One of the reasons we chose to do it is because we’re producing it in a smaller theater, the black box theater, really to test our own capabilities and the new facility’s capabilities in tech.
“The show has four huge projectors that project on the walls and on the floor. It’s got all of these amazing technologies. And we had a Tony nominee, Alex Neumann, who came down and designed the sounds for the room. It’s been a really fun technical process.”
The challenge is the fun
“Fun” may be the operative word only for Alexander. Contracted professionals Luis Garcia, the projection director, and Abby May, the lighting designer, both had to work within a theater with an overhead grid and intimate graduated seating that prevented them from duplicating the original’s starry sky on the ceiling and walls. Neumann had to distribute the sound evenly at close range — yet with a sense of direction dictated by the play.
Courtney Laine Self, associate director, associate director on this production, also had to work with the movement during Curious Incident that uses the talents of all three. One scene is nearly a ballet of the entire cast swinging forward and back during the motion of the London train.
Their only staging template was the Broadway play. But Price Studio Theatre is one-tenth the size of the Barrymore, where it ran for nearly two years in New York. Further, as it turned out, neither May nor Neumann had seen it.
“So all of it is original,” Alexander emphasized of the staging here. They
had some indirect help from Simon Stephens, who adapted the play from Mark Haddon’s book, he added.
“The script is written in a way that there is a huge amount of narration about the different things that happen on stage. And so our designers sort of took the script and ran with it based on the different kinds of narrations and sound effects that exist within the script itself.”
Garcia created his own visuals screen: A sweep of wall that curls onto the overhead grid holds a partial section of pale-gray, cutout brick wall from which blocks that serve as furnishings — tables, beds, chests, chairs — can be pulled. Above them is the dominant projection space, where numerals flash in cubed progression as the main character, Christopher Boone, summons them in his head.
From May, changeable colored lighting snakes overhead, mimicking an oversized subway map. Her night sky literally comes to the stage through a tightly choreographed ensemble bearing stars.
Among the technology pros, cooperation had to be strong. This play — or perhaps the book, as May pointed out — has such familiarity to theatergoers here that it was sold out before it opened. The Players added several more performances. They sold out, too.
Thinking alike
Neumann and his fellow creatives saw the play first separately, as a video run-through without effects. He marveled at how closely
their ideas had aligned by the time they actually met to discuss them in what’s known as a “paper tech.”
“One of the things that I found really cool was [that] going into it in the paper tech, how many places all three of us were just like, ‘This is a thing.’ It’s not necessarily anything marked in the script, but all
three of us were like, ‘This particular moment is a thing. We have to do something,’” he recalled. “We all came in independently with that, but we’re already on the same page.”
A self-confessed “train nerd,” Neumann relished the opportunity to bring sounds from his own accumulated recordings in a fashion that
heightened the drama. He was familiar with Steve Reich’s haunting musical work, “Different Trains,” and saw the railway and underground sounds here functioning in something of the same way.
May’s challenge was working with the movement, which is abundant, within a small space.
“It’s tough because he [Chris] suddenly goes from being 5 feet in the air, or 5 feet, you know, not in the air, to 10 feet. And that’s not normally where we have lights,” she said. Part of the problem was solved with ambient light from the overhead subway route “map.”
“I relied heavily on the tracks because they change colors and they emit light, and from there I did what I could,” she said. “But I think the cool thing about this show is it’s all about selective visibility. So there’s a lot of shadow in this show and a lot of darkness, and I think that that kind of leads to the story that we’re telling. If he went out of [the] light for a second while he was being lifted up in the space moments, that actually helped our concept.”
To reach its entire audience in a black box studio with three-quarters square seating, Garcia projected Christopher’s father, as he is ruminating above the stage on one side, to the opposite side, giving the entire audience visibility as he’s speaking.
Possibly one of the greatest innovations of the production, however, wasn’t its technology, but its use of two actors, Matthew Hasley and Thomas Currie, to play Christopher jointly. Hasley, who is on the autism spectrum, has excelled at theater in The Naples Players Improv for Communication Skills. He may understand better than anyone the story of an autistic teen who learns unfortunate truths about his family, and develops his own courage, when he sets out to find who killed his favorite neighborhood dog.
“I have always wanted to do a version that not only was available to the public to feel what it might be like to experience the world through autism, but then also to have actors with autism participate in the play, as well,” Alexander said.
“We have two exceptional young performers in the play who have autism and the authenticity that we’re able to bring to the to the show without even commenting on autism is something I’m very proud about.”
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time is sold out through its closing date March 1. However, names can be added to a wait list.
Chris (Matthew Hasley, Thomas Currie) has arrived in London to live with his mother, after memorizing her address from letters he has found from her, but Judy (Jen Hart) demands to know how her son traveled there with no money.
The noise and lights are hard on Chris (Thomas Currie), who is determined to reach his mother in London, in The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time. Photos by Naples Creative Photography
Chris (Thomas Currie) looks to the stars he wants to visit someday in The Naples Players’ production of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time.
by director Barbara Sletto, the ensemble will perform a beautiful program of festive favorites and inspiring selections to lift your spirits. Advance registration required. artisnaples.org
March walk: nights in nature
6 to 7:30 p.m. March 3 at Rookery Bay Environmental Learning Center, 300 Tower Road, Naples. Experience Rookery Bay Research Reserve like never before, this time under the moonlight! Join a Rookery Bay biologist for magical evening walks beneath the full moon, where the wild world comes to life after dark. As the sun sets, explore the trails (Briggs Boardwalk or the ELC Snail Trail) and tune in to the sounds of birds settling down and night creatures waking up. From flying bats to croaking frogs and unusual nocturnal insects, you never know what might be seen under the stars and moonlight. Advance registration required. $25. rookerybay.org
Asian art and history: They Came to Trade
10:30 a.m. March 3 at Artis—Naples, 5833 Pelican Bay Blvd., Naples. A painted cotton wall hanging from India’s Coromandel Coast, made around 1610 and now at the Brooklyn Museum, depicts more than 200 figures from diverse merchant communities. This talk explores what the textile reveals about Indian Ocean trade in the early 17th century. $62. artisnaples.org
Limón Dance Company
7:30 p.m. March 3 at Artis—Naples, 5833 Pelican Bay Blvd., Naples. The Limón Dance Company returns with a dynamic program performed live with the Naples Philharmonic under Manuel López-Gómez. The evening features The Emperor Jones and Chaconne by José Limón — with music by Heitor Villa-Lobos and Johann Sebastian Bach — and opens with Jamelgo, a new work by Diego Vega Solorza. Space is limited. Advance ticket purchase required. $69 to $120. artisnaples.org
The Martha Graham Dance Company
1 p.m. March 4 at Artis—Naples, 5833 Pelican Bay Blvd., Naples. In 1926, Martha Graham founded her dance company and school in New York City, launching a revolutionary movement style and a body of work that explored myth, literature, psychology and the inner lives of women. Now celebrating its centennial, the Martha Graham Dance Company continues to tour worldwide. This talk examines how Graham transformed modern dance and why her groundbreaking works still resonate today. $38. artisnaples.org
Guided Walk: CREW Cypress Dome Trails, Yellow/Green Trail
9 to 11:30 a.m. March 4 at CREW Cypress Dome Trails, 3980 Corkscrew Road, Immokalee. Join a volunteer naturalist for a guided walk on the Yellow and Green trails at CREW Cypress Dome Trails. Explore the beautiful oak hammocks, pine uplands and seasonal marshes of these trails as you discover the intriguing flora and fauna of CREW Trust’s most diverse trail system. Closed-toe shoes, sunscreen, bug spray and water bottles are highly recommended. Space
6 and 8 p.m. March 4 at Artis—Naples, 5833 Pelican Bay Blvd., Naples. Six-time Grammy winner Gary Smulyan brings his bold, hardswinging style to his Naples Philharmonic Jazz Orchestra debut. Influenced by Pepper Adams and known for collaborations with icons including Dizzy Gillespie and Chick Corea, Smulyan promises an evening of electrifying solos. Space is limited. Advance ticket purchase required. $64. artisnaples.org
The Incorrigibles: Best Of!
7:30 p.m. March 4 at Arts Bonita
Performing Arts Center, 10150 Bonita Beach Road, Bonita Springs. Back by popular demand, The Incorrigibles — Susie Hulcher, Matt Baxley, Darrell Nutt and Rick Howard — return to Arts Bonita for a spectacular “Best Of” concert. This special evening brings together the very best moments from all of their past Arts Bonita performances, featuring songs you forgot you remembered from the ’60s, ’70s, ’80s and beyond. Whether you loved their Classic Soul & Motown nights, their ’80s showcases or their intimate acoustic unplugged concerts, you’ll relive the highlights and enjoy fresh new additions that will have you singing and dancing in your seat. The Incorrigibles are celebrated for their skilled, passionate performances and irresistible chemistry on stage. Tier 1, $48. Tier 2, $43. artsbonita.org or 239.495.8989
TESLA
8 p.m. March 4 at Seminole Casino Hotel Immokalee, 506 S. First Street, Immokalee. Tesla rose to fame in the 1980s with a bluesinfused rock sound rooted in 1970s tradition. Platinum albums such as Mechanical Resonance and The Great Radio Controversy produced hits including “Modern Day Cowboy” and “Love Song,” while Five Man Acoustical Jam featured their signature cover of “Signs.” Decades later, Tesla continues to record and tour, fueled by a loyal fan base and blue-collar work ethic. Space is limited. Advance ticket purchase required. 21+. Tickets start at $115. casino.hardrock.com
Pink Martini
7:30 p.m. March 4 at Artis—Naples, 5833 Pelican Bay Blvd., Naples. “If the United Nations had a house band in 1962, it would be Pink Martini,” said founder Thomas Lauderdale. Returning to Hayes Hall with vocalist Storm Large, Pink Martini blends classical, jazz, pop and Latin styles in a lively, globe-spanning performance. SOLD OUT. artisnaples.org
Kerri Louise
7:30 p.m. March 5 at Arts Bonita
Performing Arts Center, 10150 Bonita Beach Road, Bonita Springs. Celebrate National Women’s History Month at Arts Bonita with powerhouse comedian Kerri Louise. Known for her smart, relatable humor, she has appeared on “Last Comic Standing,” “Funny Women of a Certain Age” and programs including “The Oprah Winfrey Show” and “The Howard Stern Show.”
Louise also starred in the reality series “Two Funny” with her husband, Tom Cotter, and is the author of Mean Mommy and Harry the Elephant Has an Allergy. Authentic and
February 20 - 22, 202
empowering, she delivers an unforgettable night of laughter and celebration. Tier 1, $35. Tier 2, $30. Tier 3, $25. artsbonita.org or 239.495.8989
Artis—Naples wellness workshop
4 p.m. March 5 at Artis—Naples, 5833 Pelican Bay Blvd., Naples. Experience the joy and benefits of art in this therapeutic workshop for lifelong learners. Guided by art therapist Reina Lombardi, participants explore painting, drawing and more to boost well-being, stimulate the mind, reduce stress and connect with others. Open to all skill levels, the hands-on program lets anyone enjoy the transformative power of creativity. $47. artisnaples.org
Masked Moments in Opera
5 p.m. March 5 in the Daniels Pavilion at Artis—Naples, 5833 Pelican Bay Blvd., Naples. See featured item.
Backtrack Blues Band
7:30 p.m. March 5 at Arts Bonita Performing Arts Center, 10150 Bonita Beach Road, Bonita Springs. Backtrack Blues Band brings its high-energy Chicago blues sound back to the stage. Founded by singersongwriter Sonny Charles — also founder of the Tampa Bay Blues Festival — the band features Grammy-winning bassist Jeff “Stick” Davis, Kid Royal, Joe Bencomo and Little Johnny Walter. Tier 1, $58. Tier 2, $53. Tier 3, $48. artsbonita.org or 239.495.8989
Next weekend (March 6-8)
The Travelin’ McCourys
7:30 p.m. March 6 at Arts Bonita Performing Arts Center, 10150 Bonita Beach Road, Bonita Springs. Grammy-winning The Travelin’ McCourys deliver progressive bluegrass that honors tradition while embracing rock and jam influences. Led by brothers Ronnie and Rob McCoury, sons of Del McCoury, the band is known for collaborations and projects such as the Grateful Ball, redefining modern roots music with bold musicianship. Tier 1, $64. Tier 2, $59. Tier 3, $54. artsbonita.org or 239.495.8989
Olivier Latry, Notre Dame organist
7 p.m. March 6 at Moorings Presbyterian Church, 791 Harbour Drive, Naples. Olivier Latry, principal organist of the Cathedral of Notre Dame in Paris, has performed in venues across the globe. He will present a pipe organ program on the church’s Sterritte Family Organ showcasing a wide repertoire — for classics to contemporary works — along with improvisations that demonstrate both virtuosity and imagination. Freewill offering.
Michael Buble/Bobby Darin tribute 7 p.m. March 6 at Norris Community Center, 755 Eighth Ave. S., Naples. Paul Todd Jr. got his musical start performing at age 14, performing a medley of songs from the Bobby Darin bio film Beyond the Sea, and fell in love with cool crooner music. Enjoy a reprise of the two famous singers’ melodies as presented by Todd, a seasoned entertainer, singer and songwriter. eventbrite.com, 239.213.3049 and box office Rock & roll history
10 a.m. March 6 at Artis—Naples, 5833
Pelican Bay Blvd., Naples. This lecture examines the pioneering male composers who shaped rock ‘n’ roll. From Chuck Berry, Elvis Presley and Lieber and Stoller to Bob Dylan’s lyrical poetry, the program will explore how these artists revolutionized music and mirrored cultural shifts. Key figures such as Elton John, James Taylor and Billy Joel will be highlighted for their creative processes, signature works and enduring influence. $38. artisnaples.org
Vienna Philharmonic
7:30 p.m. March 6 and March 7 at Artis— Naples, 5833 Pelican Bay Blvd., Naples. The Vienna Philharmonic returns to Hayes Hall under conductor Andris Nelsons for two nights of orchestral brilliance. The first features Lang Lang in Bartók’s Piano Concerto No. 3 and Mahler’s Symphony No. 1. The second presents Mozart’s Symphony No. 36, “Linz” and Dvořák’s Symphony No. 6, from lyrical nuance to folk-inspired exuberance. SOLD OUT. artisnaples.org
Sue Foley: one-woman guitar
7:30 p.m. March 5 at Arts Bonita Performing Arts Center, 10150 Bonita Beach Road, Bonita Springs. Sue Foley brings her Grammy-nominated, Blues Music Award-winning album One Guitar Woman to a solo acoustic performance honoring Women’s History Month. A guitarist, singer, songwriter and bandleader, Foley has released 17 studio albums and appeared on 19 others. Known for her pink paisley Telecaster and a rare blend of power and intimacy, she will also be featured on the upcoming season of “Austin City Limits.” Tier 1, $48. Tier 2, $43. Tier 3, $38. See CALENDAR, Page 13B
1. Seize the night
March 2 - 22, 202
Event underscores importance of feeding community
By M. Melanie Pefinis
A current of philanthropy and goodwill floated in waves around the Naples Yacht Club on Jan. 23 when it was the site of a fundraising event for Feeding Dreams.
Feeding Dreams, a Naples nonprofit, helps combat childhood hunger. The event raised $1 million, with proceeds supporting meals, mentorships and scholarships for at-risk children across Florida.
The celebration drew 134 guests and featured dinner, music and entertainment for the organization that has provided more than 12 million meals to local children and encourages them to thrive and pursue their dreams.
Jeri Goetz, executive director of Feeding Dreams, explained the connection between proper nutrition and the ability to succeed.
“The link between hunger and poor educational outcomes is stark and well-documented,” she said.
“It’s central to how Feeding Dreams
frames childhood hunger not as an isolated issue, but as a root driver of generational poverty.”
Founder and chairman Ed Mullen spoke at the event, expounding on research which illustrates the connections between accessibility to proper food and scholastic achievement. Citing research, Mullen said children who are “food insecure” are twice as likely to drop out of school. Without a high school diploma, 31% of them will remain in poverty as adults, according to Census Bureau data. Conversely, 96% of those who graduate from college escape poverty entirely.
Goetz reflected on the mission of Feeding Dreams with several statistics underscoring a broader message.
“Hunger isn’t just about empty stomachs,” she said. “It undermines learning, health, attendance and long-term economic mobility.”
Mullen, Goetz and the entire team at Feeding Dreams work within a three-prong program to directly attack this societal problem.
It starts with food. Feeding Dreams delivers 2.7 million highly nutritious meals annually to children in 45 schools and youth centers across Collier County and beyond.
“Research and our own survey results show the impact,” Goetz said. “Children entering our Feeding Dreams Power Pack program improve school attendance by 56% and see 80% fewer visits to the school nurse — a strong indicator of better overall health. By stabilizing nutrition, we cut dropout risk, giving kids the foundation to learn and stay engaged.”
The second prong is mentoring.
“We pair students with consistent, encouraging guides to navigate high school and plan for post-secondary steps,” Goetz said. “Studies confirm that even one caring adult can dramatically improve
outcomes, including graduation rates, particularly for at-risk students. Without a high school diploma, 31% of them will remain in poverty as adults,” according to Census Bureau data.
Lastly, the organization provides scholarships to allow children to pursue their education.
“We provide financial support for college or vocational training, removing barriers so motivated kids can finish and join that 96% success group,” Goetz said.
“We lean on these data points — drawn from national research on food insecurity, poverty and our own program metrics — to reframe hunger, mentorships and scholarships as solvable levers for breaking the cycle of poverty. It’s not charity alone; it’s strategic investment in human potential, with measurable steps from feeding hungry bellies to launching self-sufficient adults.”
The event was considered a success.
“One of the most touching moments came during the presentation of our inaugural cohort of
mentorship and scholarship students,” Goetz said. “Impressive young people already defying the odds.”
During his comments, Mullen highlighted one such child: Marlie C., a ninth grader at Immokalee High School, who dreams of becoming a nurse. Both her parents work; her father as a field hand and her mother in a fast food restaurant. Marlie’s oldest sister is already a medical doctor, the next a dentist and the third is studying to be a lawyer. Mullen told the crowd: “Suddenly, her ambition felt entirely within reach,” which encapsulates the spirit of the organization.
“What’s important to learn from this is that there are a lot of kids like Marlie,” Goetz said. “Even though they are living in difficult circumstances, they are smart, motivated; and with some extra help they will achieve their dreams and lift themselves out of poverty.
“When a child no longer has to worry about where their next meal is coming from, they can start dreaming bigger.”
Chella Scull, Debbie Toler, Jean Kane, Bill Tolar
Roger Drouin, Annie Robin, Jeri Goetz, Tina Gula, Jim Gula
Preston Bradford, Margaret Cowgill, Brad Cowgill, Tom Koehn
Ed Mullen
Sandi Steeneck, Craig Steeneck Kelly Assaad
Melissa Shockley, Terry Brodman, Doug Brodman
Steve Miller
Decades-long inspiration, centuries-old art form
By M. Melanie Pefinis
Students were tapping into their inner artists on Jan. 21 at a workshop on Marco Island. Fabric artist Leigh Herndon was leading her class through the meticulous process of textile dyeing using ancient Japanese methods.
Herndon, an artist within the Naples Arts District, teaches across the region and nationally. Her creations are available at local galleries, boutiques and markets and on Amazon.
But it was the teaching that excited Herndon during the Wednesday lesson. Known for her workshops and classes, she led the budding artists through the delicate and precise process of fabric art. Using traditional
Japanese procedures, Herndon transforms fabrics into works of art, as well as clothing, under her Leigh Designs Naples label.
“After earning an MFA in fibers, I was still using traditional processes,” she said. “Then, while I was working in an art gallery, I met a fiber artist who had recently returned from Japan, where she had studied with the kimono masters for 16 years. She also had just published the only book on rozome in the English language.”
This chance encounter changed the course of Herndon’s approach to art. The Japanese rozome technique is a wax-resist dyeing method which creates a more watercolor-like effect on fabric. Using this more precise and painterly approach, Herdon began creating silk art paintings, much different from traditional batik.
“I enrolled in her class at the art institute and learned the way that the Japanese dye,” she said. “They achieve shading by brush dyeing instead of vat dyeing. I also learned many new ways to apply the hot wax, which improves my expression. Twenty-five years ago, that discovery totally changed the way I work, as shading adds so much depth to my Everglades landscape dye painting.”
Students hard at work in the workshop were guided through the process while Herndon explained the subtleties of this technique.
Her studio on Shirley Street welcomes students interested in learning her methods, but for the artist, her mission is always the same.
“I want them to discover their own
personal style, not copy me or anyone else,” she said.
Elaborating on the skill required for teaching rozome, she added, “I want them to understand and appreciate the amazing Japanese inventive approach to their version of batik, called rozome, and the many unique ways of manipulating silk for shibori (another Japanese method). I want them to understand the basics of dyes, color theory; and to appreciate the qualities of silk, especially as they relate to dyeing.”
The vibrant yet delicate results of these Japanese techniques is a passion for Herndon.
“I want my Japanese batik and Japanese shibori students to learn to create gentle transition of color, i.e., shading,” she said. This is evident
in Herndon’s work and sets her creations apart.
While she limits the use of hot wax, brought to 212 degrees Fahrenheit, to students over 12 years of age, she reflects on her discovery of a special student years ago.
“I had a 9-year-old Spanish girl in an after-school class who was so exceptional that I offered her a scholarship to work with me in my studio for a summer, learning Japanese batik, which uses hot wax,” she said. “She was beyond her age in discipline and focus and she worked very hard and was very creative. She also had a good sense of design.”
She has even branched out into wearable art. The pieces use original artwork and eco-friendly materials and are made to order. Each piece signed by the artist showcases the unique skill set which has made her a nationally recognized talent. It was all local, however, at the Marco Island workshop. Herndon encourages people to appreciate the artistry of fabric and fiber art. “There have been a few impressive fiber exhibitions at the Naples Botanical Garden, including a juried international batik show which included artists from South America, Russia and Europe, to name a few,” she said. While each student is different, Herndon tries to bring the art alive for her students at this workshop and in every class she holds. Much like that chance encounter with the rozome expert a quarter of a century ago, Herndon knows the power of art can transform lives just by being exposed to it.
For more information, go to leighdesignsnaples.com.
Fiber artist Leigh Herndon creates a batik painting. Photos courtesy Leigh Herndon
Shibori class in Leigh's studio. Dyers of silk scarves are, from left, Wendy Lynch, Lisa Doyle and Nadia Van Gorp.
By Melanie Pagan
At Naples Botanical Garden, orchids are at the center of a growing research and conservation program that connects climate change, freshwater flow and land development to the survival of some of Florida’s most vulnerable species. The work is led by horticulturist Nick Ewy, whose program blends propagation, field research, installation and public education.
“South Florida is really the northern tropical boundary where the epiphytic species occur naturally,” said Ewy, director of collections at Naples Botanical Garden. “For them to survive in this climate, they have to be in these kinds of specialized areas. Otherwise, they don’t.”
Those specialized habitats — including swamps, sloughs and forested wetlands — are also the landscapes most altered by drainage canals, urban expansion and shifts in freshwater flow, Ewy said. “Orchids were certainly much more widespread before developments. All the swamps were connected,” he said.
Climate extremes intensify the pressure, as hurricanes, droughts and temperature swings threaten orchids adapted to narrow environmental conditions. Recent hurricanes have already reshaped the Garden’s conservation trials. Experimental plantings in natural areas were lost to flooding and canopy damage, underscoring the need for collaboration to keep orchids alive.
“All it takes is one natural disaster, and entire groups of plants or projects can get wiped out,” Ewy said. “It’s really important to not do the work in isolation. Having them in different locations is key.”
The Garden now shares plant
Orchid observatory
How Naples Botanical Garden protects Florida’s fragile flora
material with partner institutions to prevent a single storm from erasing years of work. The organization has worked with the University of Florida, Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden’s Million Orchid Project and more. It’s also part of a global orchid-conservation collaboration that contributed to the Chelsea Flower Show exhibit, which won a 2025 show gold medal for highlighting rare and endangered orchids.
It’s not just natural disasters that threaten Florida orchids — poaching remains a risk for these tropical jewels, especially for highly coveted species such as the ghost orchid, which is petitioned for Endangered Species Act protection. Its locations are closely guarded, Ewy said:
“Even if you have things like poaching that aren’t happening that often, the plants that they would
take would be the ones that are the heavy producers.”
Propagation is the backbone of the Garden’s orchid program. In the wild, orchid seeds depend on specific fungi to germinate, making natural reproduction fragile. In a lab, scientists can bypass that
dependency and germinate thousands of seeds from a single capsule.
”One orchid seed capsule can hold anywhere from thousands to some of the bigger ones could be up to a million seeds in one little capsule,” Ewy said, which allows labs to rapidly propagate plants under controlled conditions.
The challenge is time. Orchids grow slowly, with many species taking years before flowering. Some terrestrial orchids may bloom within two years, but many epiphytes that grow on other plants require three to six years or longer, with some taking a decade or more, Ewy said.
The Garden’s orchid program began with species native to Florida, which has more than 100, collected under permit and cultivated from on-site specimens. With a new
orchid laboratory and upgraded greenhouse facilities coming online at the 60,000-square-foot Evenstad Horticulture Campus at Naples Botanical Garden, the project’s scope is expanding.
“It’s been one of those things we’re just really looking forward to,” he said. The upgrade will include a much larger, fully equipped grow room with LED-lit racks for flask-grown plants, state-of-the-art greenhouses with advanced environmental controls and water filtration and, overall, more space and resources to grow plants faster and healthier from lab to greenhouse to outdoor planting, Ewy said. “It’s just going to be a completely different world than what we came from when we originally started doing this.”
For Ewy, a fascination with tropical orchids from childhood has grown into both a career and a commitment to habitat care.
Today, it’s paired with urgency. Orchids occupy narrow ecological niches and rely on complex fungal and environmental relationships. When they vanish, it’s usually a sign that the wider ecosystem is in trouble.
“Orchids are kind of like a canary in the coal mine,” Ewy said. “When you start losing the orchids, there’s obviously something wrong.”
Public education is key, and their striking appearance also makes them a perfect way to draw in visitors and spark conversations about water management, climate resilience and protecting habitats. This work safeguards the wetlands, forests and freshwater systems of Southwest Florida, and orchids offer insight into these fragile ecosystems.
“They’re pretty amazing plants, and they’re very tough,” Ewy said. “They occupy niches that a lot of other plants don’t.”
Nick Ewy surveys orchids at Naples Botanical Garden.
Fresh catch, fun weekend
Each year, tens of thousands of visitors from around the world converge on Everglades City to partake in three days of festivities to benefit
the community. The 56th annual Everglades Seafood Festival was held Feb. 13-15 just outside Everglades City Hall at 102 Copeland Ave. N. The festival, made possible through support from the Naples, Marco Island, Everglades Convention and
Visitors Bureau and local sponsors, included live music, creative works by local artisans, an array of local seafood, a variety of beverages and carnival rides. Proceeds from the 2026 festival will fund scholarships and a trip for Everglades City School
students who volunteered at the festival. Other funding opportunities will come.
“During the past five years, we’ve tried to bring the festival back to being a family event,” said Kelly Kirk, one of the festival organizers
and a director with the Florida Stone Crabbers Association. “This year the Friday night festivities included a drone show featuring sea critters. This Sunday was our best Sunday yet, because we had such amazing weather.”
Seafood, much of it locally caught, is a centerpiece of the annual event.
The Ferris wheel towers over festivalgoers during the Everglades Seafood Festival.
Photos by Irene Pérez
Naples Press Staff Report
Meet the Artist Sunday February 22nd 5pm - 8pm
Gallery showing until February 27th
SPORTS
FGCU’s Tollett still living the dream
By David Wasson
Dave Tollett had to pinch himself.
Laid out in front of him was the familiar red, white and blue of the USA Baseball uniform. The longtime FGCU baseball coach was set to serve this summer as a coach on the 2025 USA Baseball Collegiate National Team — and Tollett could barely contain himself.
“This is one of the biggest honors of my baseball career,” Tollett said. “These are the only colors I’ve ever wanted to wear. I’ll never forget where I was when I got the call asking me to be part of this team. It’s such an honor and privilege to be able to represent my country thanks to the sport that I love.”
Tollett’s summer experience with USA Baseball is just another on a long list of honors for the 59-yearold FGCU baseball coach — the only coach the program has ever had. That tenure is now in its 24th season and has piled up more than 700 victories, produced three National Player of the Year honorees, 13 All-Americans, five ASUN Coach of the Year honors and six MLB players.
Not bad for a kid who grew up dirt poor in a Charlotte County trailer, dreaming big dreams. Baseball took him from Charlotte High School to Tusculum College, then back to Charlotte to become a coach at his alma mater for 10 seasons en route to becoming the winningest baseball coach in Tarpons history.
FGCU beckoned in 2003, and Tollett took on the task of building a program from scratch. Eight straight seasons with at least 35 wins came quickly as Tollett kept luring one superstar talent right after another to the Eagles program — none bigger than Chris Sale.
A lanky lefty from Lakeland, Sale quickly blossomed under Tollett’s tutelage at FGCU starting in 2008 — as he ended up leading the nation with 146 strikeouts in 2010 and posted an 11-0 record and a 2.01 ERA over 17 games.
Sale’s road to the majors was on at that point, as he was the 13th overall selection in the 2010 MLB Draft by the Chicago White Sox and quickly ascended to the majors by August of the same year. Sale has since earned nine All-Star Game appearances, won a World Series with the Boston Red Sox in 2018 and captured the National League Cy Young Award in 2024 with the Atlanta Braves. But Sale never wandered away from FGCU and Tollett, giving $1 million to the university several years ago for improvements to Swanson Stadium and to this day returning to campus for offseason workouts with Tollett’s current Eagles.
“If I had to put a value on it, I would say for our pitchers this is $50,000 worth of experience you’re going to get just by watching,” Tollett said. “Chris came and threw a bullpen with us this week, and six of our guys were out there — and he spent
a full hour just talking to them about getting off the field with two outs and little things like that. He always has valuable nuggets for these guys, and they listen.
“He was good with them this week, and it is basically on a weekly basis during the offseason. He is so much a part of this program, and the connection he has with these kids is real. For me, it is better than any NIL [Name-Image-Likeness compensation] I can give a kid.”
Sale isn’t the only Major Leaguer that Tollett and FGCU have produced. Casey Coleman made the bigs just two days after Sale in 2010; former Eagles pitchers Richard Bleier and Jacob Barnes both earned MLB promotions in 2016; Jake Noll became FGCU’s first position player to make MLB in 2019; and Kutter Crawford become the sixth Eagle in the pros when he joined Sale in Red Sox rotation in 2021.
Tollett has another potential big leaguer on FGCU’s 2026 roster, too, as two-way superstar Evan Dempsey earned consensus All-American honors for his all-around excellence as sophomore in 2025 along with capturing the Jon Olerud Award from the College Baseball Foundation as the nation’s top two-way player.
The right-handed Dempsey went 5-1 on the mound in 2025 with a 1.97 ERA in 15 appearances, including 10 starts. As an outfielder, Dempsey played in all 60 games and batted .309 with 71 hits, including 18 doubles and three home runs, for a .435 slugging percentage, and was a perfect 14-for-14 on stolen base attempts.
Despite the otherworldly season, Tollett was quick to point out that Dempsey is still very much just one of the guys around his teammates.
“The kids see it. He works hard. Pitches, plays defense, then goes and
hits,” Tollett said. “He is just one of the guys. He isn’t like what you would think an All-American would act like — he is just one of the boys. But what is different is when he throws his first bullpen and there are 16 scouts here. We haven’t been there since Sale.
“I have an ace that has the best spin rate in the country with his curve and with his slider, and his fastball is touching 97 mph. I really look for Evan to have a great year and carry this club.”
Even with 700-plus wins, Tollett shows no signs of letting up — having worked himself into good physical shape for the 2026 season and amassing all the tools necessary for the Eagles to make a run to the NCAA Championship Tournament.
“This is the first time since 2010 that we return our entire rotation, and we have added some pieces to the puzzle,” Tollett said. “And we have added some depth, too. There is talent here. Our bullpen is better — we return our closer, our setup man and all three starters we ended the season with. I really, really like our pitching staff.
“The program has always held its place in college baseball, but now, for me, I feel like I am 35 years old because of the resources we have. I always know we will be well-coached and that we are going to compete, but now I know we can take the next step because of the resources we have. This is a pretty good club, and anyone who knows me knows I don’t always say that.”
And how will Tollett be celebrating Eagles wins in 2026? The same way he always does.
“It is a pint of salted caramel ice cream,” Tollett said with a grin. “Our kids were at the same 7-Eleven last season when I walked and I put a pint of salted caramel up there on the counter for the lady who is usually there and she said, ‘How bad did you beat them, Coach?’ The kids thought that was really, really cool. We celebrate with salted caramel, and we want to do it a bunch this season.”
Calusa Pines: Private Collier County masterpiece
The best golf course you’ll likely never play is right here in Collier County.
Heck, the best golf course you’ll likely never even see is right here in Collier County.
At the end of Tree Line Road sits a wroughtiron gate and a small sign that simply reads “Members Only.” The callbox is just as unassuming, but if you somehow can conjure up the correct series of nouns and verbs while speaking to the voice on the other end, well … The gate slides open. And the best golf course in Collier County and one of the best in the country slowly unveils itself.
Calusa Pines Golf Club
I’d love to tell you more about Calusa Pines via first-hand experience. But alas, I cannot. Why? Because the business side of that gate is as far as I have ever gotten. And it is likely as far as you’ll ever get, too.
Birthed from the substantial checkbook of founder Gary Chensoff and then carved, massaged and otherwise dug out of a pancake-flat tract of scrubland by the design team of Dr. Michael J. Hurdzan and Dana Fry, Calusa Pines became the most un-Florida-like Florida course the instant it opened in November 2001. What was once unremarkable land was transformed into an undulating, lake-filled property with some stunning elevation changes that make the player — I’m told, anyway — forget they are in Florida. Tons of limestone were blasted to carve out 72 acres of pristine lakes.
Speaking of Sports
David Wasson
And the resultant effect was making the 530acre property an annual part of various Golf Digest magazine national rankings.
The latest of those rankings came earlier in February, as Calusa Pines was ranked No. 20 in the Golf Digest “50 greatest courses built since 2000” list — the highest of the four Florida courses to make the list. The magazine said of Calusa Pines, “Admittedly, our system of tracking overall trajectory does Calusa Pines no favors: it’s climbed 28 places over the last five rankings from a high of 96 in 2017, though only gets credit for climbing three spots. Regardless, it’s one of the most creative and consistent courses built in the last 25 years.”
The other three Florida courses on the Golf Digest Top 50 since 2000 list? Streamsong Red in Bowling Green (No. 44), The Dye Course at White Oak in Yulee (No. 48) and The Concession Golf Club in Bradenton (No. 49). Streamsong is public, while The Dye Course and The Concession are private like Calusa Pines.
The No. 1 course on the list is Pacific Dunes in Bandon, Oregon.
Calusa Pines doesn’t just earn national acclaim among new courses. The track is currently ranked No. 68 in Golf Digest’s Top 100
Calusa Pines was ranked No. 20 in the Golf Digest '50 greatest courses built since 2000' list, the highest of the four Florida courses to make the list.
courses in America — and has been in the Top 100 since 2007. It also is the third-ranked course in Florida according to the magazine, behind only legendary Donald Ross design Seminole Golf Club in Juno Beach and the Stadium
Course at TPC Sawgrass, and miles ahead of four current PGA Tour courses (Trump National Doral, Blue Monster at No. 30; Bay Hill at No. 36; Innisbrook Resort: Copperhead at No. 37; and PGA National: Champion at No. 38). It’s all golf at Calusa Pines, too. You won’t find an Olympic-sized pool there. Or tennis and pickleball. Or traditional residential units — though officials built a handful of cabins to house outof-town members and guests. Not that you’ll hear Calusa Pines crowing about the latest honor, or really any honor. That isn’t its style, though its otherwise-spartan website does brag a bit by stating, “It takes a very special golf course to attract much attention in south Florida mainly because there are so many built with high budgets, big egos, and on relatively featureless sites. Calusa Pines distinguishes itself from its brethren because it goes to excess, some would say; but in such a subtle way that it becomes memorable.”
Memorable for the 275 members — a number which includes a handful of PGA Tour and PGA Tour Champions players. And certainly memorable to their lucky guests who get the magic combination of nouns and verbs to speak into the callbox that activates the wrought-iron gate. Calusa Pines isn’t the only private golf fortress in Collier County. But it is the best by a country mile … so I’m told, anyway.
David Wasson is a 35-year Southwest Florida sports journalism veteran. Follow him on X (formerly Twitter) at @JustDWasson.
With the resources he now has as head baseball coach at FGCU, Dave Tollett says he feels like a much younger man.
Photo courtesy FGCU Athletics
What was once unremarkable land was transformed into an undulating, lake-filled property with some stunning elevation changes that make the player forget they are in Florida.
VACATION to FOREVER
Kalea Bay. The only vacation you’ll ever need to book again. This isn’t just a home—it’s a permanent five-star resort where the vacation never ends. From days spent lounging poolside to evenings around a lavish firepit, Kalea Bay delivers the lifestyle you’ve always wanted. From personalized service to the finest amenities, Kalea Bay is your everyday escape. Final Tower now under construction from $3.5M.
Another stylish spin through town
By David Wasson
For car buffs, it was shifting to a highly similar gear of enjoyment.
Just two weeks after the annual Cars on 5th event, Naples was graced again with the captivating designs, stylish interiors and power of many luxury, vintage and classic cars. And while the vehicles were mostly stationary during the earlier affair, the more recent event resembled a high-octane parade through many parts of the city.
For the first time, the 1000 Miglia (Italian for “miles”) Experience USA Florida started in Naples at The Ritz-Carlton Naples, Tiburón, on Feb. 21. Further, before heading on a more direct path north to the first day’s destination of Tampa, the 64 participating cars — predominantly Ferraris plus some Porsches, Mercedes-Benzes and others — took their time putting in some local miles to favor onlookers before exiting Collier County. (The event finished at The Biltmore Hotel, in Coral Gables, on Feb. 23.)
An event training day was held at the Hyper Club Evaluation Center & Johnny Böhmer Proving Grounds in Naples on Feb. 20, featuring technical and sporting checks for all entrants and on-track sessions. There was a team dinner at the Revs Institute and most of the teams stayed overnight at the resort.
About two-thirds of the teams — each consisting of a driver and a navigator — were from the U.S.; about half of them from Florida. Of the remainder, 16% were from Argentina, 6% from Italy and 5% from Germany. Nine other countries were also represented.
From page 5B CALENDAR
artsbonita.org or 239.495.8989
Stars and Standards
Historic car race begins in Naples for the first time
Gregory and Laurin Skrabonja, full-time Naples residents for 22 years and the sole local team in the event, share a lifelong love of cars.
As a youngster, Gregory would sit in his parents’ diner in Bergen County, New Jersey, and identify cars going by on the highway outside. “I’d read car magazines and try to match them,” he recalled. “I was hooked early on.”
Laurin learned how to use a stick shift in her parents’ Volkswagen Beetle. The couple estimated they’ve bought, sold or leased 50-plus cars over the years including Maseratis, Jaguars, Mercedes-Benzes, Land Rovers and Mini-Coopers. “We’d change cars nearly every year,” Gregory Skrabonja said, adding he’s worked many times with Naples Luxury Imports, Bonita Beach-Naples Mercedes-Benz and Porsche of Naples.
7 p.m. March 7 at Wang Opera Center, 2408 Linwood Ave., Naples. Opera Naples resident artists bring iconic melodies to life, featuring beloved classics from composers such as Berlin, Bernstein, Gershwin and Porter. It’s a night of nostalgia, charm and pure American musical magic. $39 to $119. operanaples.org or 239.844.SING
Herpetology for kids
9 to 11 a.m. March 7 at CREW Flint Pen Strand Trails, 15970 Bonita Beach Road SE, Bonita Springs. Join Shane Johnson, a local herpetologist and ecologist, for a children’s walk on herpetofauna (reptiles/ amphibians) at CREW Flint Pen Strand Trails. Bring your aspiring ecologists and wildlife warriors for this hands-on hike that dives into the ecology and natural history of these scaly, slippery organisms. Closed-toe
Gregory drove and Laurin navigated their 2016 Porsche Turbo Carrera in the event. “It’s very orange and very powerful,” said Gregory, who has also taken several racing courses locally and in Miami.
The couple operate a car club for fellow residents of The Quarry and have brought their cars to support fundraising events for MakeA-Wish, Habitat for Humanity and other organizations.
“This is a bucket list trip for us,” Gregory said of the Miglia event. “In our backyard, how can we beat it?”
Appreciating our weather this time of year, Laurin added, “It’ll be fun to drive a convertible in February.”
Drawing plenty of attention prior to the 8:15 a.m. start in the resort’s parking lot were frequent visitors to Naples Richard and Kate Pineda
shoes, sunscreen, bug spray and water bottles are highly recommended. Space is limited. Advance registration required. Members, $5. Non-members, $10. crewtrust. eventbrite.com
Art Bazaar
9 a.m. to 3 p.m. March 7 at Santini Marina Plaza, 7205 Estero Blvd., Fort Myers. The Art Bazaar features original artwork, greeting cards, scarves and jewelry created by members of the Fort Myers Beach Art Association. The popular seasonal event offers visitors the chance to purchase oneof-a-kind pieces directly from local artists while enjoying the relaxed, welcoming spirit of Fort Myers Beach. Free admission. fortmyersbeachart.com
Rookery Bay nature collage
9:30 to 10:30 a.m. March 7 at Rookery Bay Environmental Learning Center, 300 Tower Road, Naples. Unleash your creativity and connect with nature in this fun, hands-on art class led by local artist Monique Olsen. Explore the natural world
of Fairfax, Virginia, in their 1928 Bugatti Type 40.
Asked what they were most looking forward to before they eased their way to “pole position,” Kate said, “Good weather,” while her husband said, “A trophy!”
The cars were passed under a ceremonial arch by the starter waving both American and Italian flags in groups of two with one-minute gaps. They headed west on Vanderbilt Beach Road, and then south on Goodlette-Frank Road to Fifth Avenue South.
Patty and Steve Capp, who split their time between Las Vegas and Naples, strategically parked on the westbound side in the heart of downtown at the intersection of Sixth Street South to take videos of many of the Miglia cars driving by. “We’ll share them with the kids,” Patty said.
through a blend of painting, collage and organic materials such as shells, leaves, sand and feathers. Learn how to build layered artistic creations with texture and color that tell the story of the beauty of the Gulf coast. No prior art skills needed. All materials provided. Advance registration required. $40. rookerybay.org
Forest bathing wellness walk at Rookery Bay
9:30 to noon March 7 at Rookery Bay Environmental Learning Center, 300 Tower Road, Naples. Enjoy a slow, quiet, guidedsensory and meditative experience in nature at Rookery Bay Research Reserve. A Certified Forest Bathing Guide will conduct a guided-meditation session and offer a series of invitations to use your curiosity and senses to connect with nature and yourself. Look, listen, smell and feel what the forest is offering you. Advance registration required. $50. rookerybay.org
Christopher Cross 7 p.m. March 8 at Artis—Naples, 5833
“We don’t see so many of them every day.
“It’s a nod to the heritage of racing,” she added, reminding them of their own prized 1967 Camaro out West. Nearby, Federica Ligorio, who moved to Naples recently from Miami, took a break from walking her dog Bella to wave and cheer on the Miglia cars.
“I love especially the red Ferraris … the color, everything about them,” she said.
The cars then followed a meandering path up and near the coast through Old Naples neighborhoods, eventually reaching Gulf Shore Boulevard and Bonita Beach Road.
The Miglia event honors an openroad motorsport endurance race that was first held in a round-trip between Brescia and Rome in March 1927, a distance of 1,600 km (about 1,000 miles). Twenty-four subsequent editions were held until fatal crashes in 1957 made it a more sedate event. It was disbanded in the mid-’60s and revived in 1977.
The event is a precision regularity rally — not a speed race — emphasizing timing and navigation. Entries were judged according to a time span for each leg and chronograph trials — tests of turning proficiency and precision on a course of cones conducted at each leg.
Massimo Cicatiello, president of EGA Events USA, which organized the event, said, “Naples offers an ideal launchpad, thanks to its world-class hospitality, an engaged community and immediate access to the Hyper Club Evaluation Center. It combines logistics and lifestyle, making it the perfect place to open a journey that celebrates beauty, craft and performance.”
Pelican Bay Blvd., Naples. With silky vocals, dynamic guitar work and hits such as “Sailing,” “Ride Like the Wind” and the Oscar-winning “Arthur’s Theme,” Christopher Cross returns to Hayes Hall for an evening of soft rock classics. The first artist to win Album, Record and Song of the Year plus Best New Artist in a single Grammy night, Cross remains a defining voice of his generation. SOLD OUT. artisnaples.org
Mia Vassilev: keys on fire
7 p.m. March 8 at Arts Bonita Performing Arts Center, 10150 Bonita Beach Road, Bonita Springs. Pianist Mia Vassilev, a classically trained virtuoso, leads a concert blending classical, popular and crossover repertoire. The program features 1940s to ’60s boogie-woogie, Latin rhythms, early rock and roll and symphonic pops, performed with violin, cello and percussion in a visually dynamic, full-stage production. Tier 1, $48. Tier 2, $43. Tier 3, $38. artsbonita.org or 239.495.8989.
Patty and Steve Capp shot videos of many of the 64 cars participating in the race as they traveled west on Fifth Avenue South.
Laurin and Gregory Skrabonja of Naples are all smiles before revving up their 2016 Porsche Turbo Carrera for the start of the 1000 Miglia Experience USA Florida race at The Ritz-Carlton Naples, Tiburón, on Feb. 21.
Richard and Kate Pineda’s 1928 Bugatti Type 40 was the first of 64 cars to start the race. Photos by Irene Pérez
Answers to these puzzles and New York Times crossword puzzle on Page 5B
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8985 Tamiani Trl N, Naples, FL 34108
◊ MONDAY, MARCH 2ND, 12PM-2PM
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◊ MONDAY, MARCH 23RD, 12PM-2PM
Registration is FREE, but space is limited. Reserve your seat online at MoranWM.com/Seminars or scan the QR code.
