By Margie Plunkett

A proposal by Ocean Ridge Mayor Geoff Pugh to give city employees a 5 percent raise this year — to compensate for three years without an increase — met with shock from a contingent of commissioners.

To support the pay increase, Pugh said he would cut other budget requests, including an increase in the town’s alarm monitoring fee and two new cars for the Police Department. “We could get this together with millage of 5.52 percent, a 3 percent increase over last year,” Pugh said, calculating that would raise taxes $139 a year on a home with a taxable value of $500,000.

The mayor made his proposal at a special meeting to discuss the budget. The town will hold its next budget meeting on Sept. 10.

“If you want this level of service to stay as it is, that’s not a high price to pay,” he said. “In order to have what you want to have here, it’s going to cost you some money. What’s it worth to you to live in the town of Ocean Ridge?”

Opponents criticized the mayor’s suggestion as hampering negotiations with the police union and adding operating costs without appropriate analysis. The added salary would set a higher base for future operating costs, they said.

“To throw that number out here tonight, it’s a little irresponsible,” said Commissioner Ed Brookes. “We’re going to look like schmoes if it comes down. We haven’t been draconian, including benefits and time off. I think we’re being a little lazy to just throw a number out.”

Commissioner Zoanne Hennigan said, “I’m just shocked that you did that. You have to inch up on this stuff.” She agreed with Brookes that “we’re trying to be as generous as we could be. What are other towns doing? They haven’t given raises either. They’ve even laid off.

“Long-term, it’s going to be unsustainable,” Hennigan said.

Pugh did have support. “I agree with Geoff on this. I don’t think he’s in any way negated the (police) negotiations,” said Commissioner Lynn Allison, also pointing to the need for quality of life for the employees. 

During the special meeting, commissioners also debated the possible boost in price of the alarm system from $180 to $300 annually. 

The alarm monitoring service is provided by the Ocean Ridge Police Department.

The increase was too steep and generates a profit instead of simply recouping costs, according to some commissioners. 

But others argued that the funds raised wouldn’t really be a profit — because if the money isn’t raised through the alarm, it will have to be raised elsewhere.

“By increasing it by $300, it would be a profit of $90,000 and inappropriate to single out a set of people for special services,” Hennigan said. “We should be charging to recoup, but not to make a huge profit.”

About 300 people use the alarm monitoring service, which would cost $25 a month if increased to $300. Commissioner Gail Aaskov said she didn’t think it right that such a small number of people bore the added cost.

But Brookes pointed out that revenue sources aren’t easy to find for the town. “If you don’t look at these revenue generators, we have so few.” 

Ocean Ridge

Current tax rate: $5.25 per $1,000 of taxable property

Proposed tax rate: $5.75

Public hearings: 5:01 p.m. Sept. 10 and 25

By Tim O’Meilia

The South Palm Beach Town Council might dip $118,000 into their reserve money to keep from raising the tax rate on condominium owners next year. 

The council spent much of a budget workshop session Aug. 7 trying to slice at least $20,000 from the $1.75 million budget proposed by Town Manager Rex Taylor. 

The cuts would keep the tax rate at $4.32 per $1,000 of taxable property, the same as the current rate. In July, council members tentatively approved a $4.39 rate but noted they would try to reduce it.

The council scrutinized the town’s $62,000 share for a beach renourishment study, legal expenses for collective bargaining with the police, employee health care costs, $3,700 for replacement ballistic vests for the police and deferred compensation for the town manager and clerk.

Eventually, the council took Taylor’s suggestion that the $20,000 come from reserves rather than slice what Mayor Donald Clayman called a “tight budget.”  If next year’s expenses do not amount to what is projected, some of the $20,000 would not be spent. 

“I strongly recommend we have a flat tax,” said Councilwoman Stella Jordan, who led most of the questioning. She said she feared becoming one of the California towns that recently declared bankruptcy.

Keeping the tax rate the same would, on average, reduce the actual taxes paid by town residents because property values in the town dropped 1.7 percent, a loss of $4.5 million in value. 

“I really thought we were at the bottom last year but it did slip down a little this year. Maybe now we’re at the bottom,” Taylor told the council. 

“I truly don’t think the numbers are going to change much next year or the year after. It will probably be two years out before we can see any real change and then it won’t be significant,” the manager said.

At first, Taylor suggested that the council not use reserves to buy down the tax rate, but assign that money for one-time capital expenses. “I’ve never seen a town council that did that give back that money later,” he said.

The town has a $2.2 million reserve fund, $1.4 million of it earmarked for future beach erosion costs. Taylor had already proposed taking $98,000 from the remaining $800,000 to balance the 2013 budget. 

Councilwoman Bonnie Fischer, the town’s representative on beach matters, proposed cutting the $62,000 beach budget. The town is obligated to pay 20 percent of an environmental impact study on beach restoration. 

The workshop generated some exchanges between Jordan and Police Chief Roger Crane, who defended an extra $1,000 next year for ballistic vest costs. The cost is for bullet-resistant panels that fit into traditional police shirts rather than vests over the shirt. 

“We need to be in a traditional uniform rather than look like we’re trying to go out and fight a war,” Crane said. 

When Jordan questioned fuel and uniform costs for public works expenses, Crane replied, “If we’re going to start counting pencils, I’m going to start counting pencils, too,” he said, referring to instances he and other town employees spend replacing light bulbs, picking up trash and doing small jobs not in their job descriptions. 

Both Councilman Robert Gottlieb and Vice Mayor Joseph Flagello insisted that any cuts that are made not require a reduction in town services.   

South Palm Beach

Current tax rate: $4.32* per $1,000 of taxable property

Proposed tax rate: $4.39*

Public hearings: 7 p.m. Sept. 4 and 19

*Does not include Palm Beach County Fire-Rescue service tax rate"Toqw"Town Council", 

 By Tim O’Meilia

Former alderman Karen Wiggins was appointed unanimously by the Briny Breezes Town Council to fill the seat of Lowen Poock, who died unexpectedly Aug. 9. 

Wiggins, who has lived in the town/mobile home park since 2004, was the only resident to express interest in the post, Council President Sharon Kendrigan said.

“Mrs. Wiggins was with us once before, then left to serve on the corporation board and we’re very glad to have her back,” Kendrigan said.

Wiggins, 70, will fill the seven months remaining in Poock’s two-year term. She also was appointed to fill Poock’s position on the town’s three-member audit committee, which is in the process of interviewing firms to audit the town’s books, as required by state law.

“I like politics. I take after my father,” joked Wiggins after the council’s Aug. 23 meeting. “I like arguing.”

She said she wanted a part “in hopefully guiding a small community to a future cohesiveness.”  

Wiggins was first elected in 2008 when she was unopposed for a two-year term as alderman. She was unopposed again in 2010 but resigned to accept a one-year term on the board of directors of Briny Breezes Inc., which owns the park. 

She said she had a career in sales and lived in San Diego before settling in Briny Breezes.

“Every job evaluation I’ve ever had said I lacked tact and diplomacy,” she said. “But if you want the truth, ask [me].”

Alderman Sue Thaler suggested advertising the vacancy for a month, as the council did when Thaler was appointed in May to fill Kathleen Bray’s post. But the council decided otherwise.

“We’re just glad to have someone willing to serve,” Kendrigan said.        

Bill Slavin, Civil War Union re-enactor, fires off a round to the enjoyment of the crowd at the American Legion Post 65 in Delray Beach. Post 65 held the Civil War re-enactment the weekend of Aug. 11 to raise money and awareness about the nation’s history.     Tim Stepien/Coastal Star

The water drain project on Hypoluxo Island is complete.

Jerry Darr, Lantana’s utilities director, said work on the much-needed project finished on Aug. 6.

And there’s more good news for the town: The cost was almost $60,000 less than expected.

The estimate for the 6-inch water main on North Atlantic Drive, including engineering services, was $163,646. The final cost was $103,793, saving Lantana $59,853.

Still to come is the road paving project on North Atlantic Drive from Ocean Avenue north and Beach Curve Road from Southeast Atlantic Drive to Barefoot Lane.

“We have to wait until the North Atlantic Drive and Beach Curve Drainage improvement project is complete, which should be in mid-October,” Darr said.

Money for the projects was put aside during last year’s budget talks. Residents had been frustrated by poor water drainage for 30 to 40 years. After heavy downpours, rising water made driving a car on the road challenging.                  

 — Mary Thurwachter

Changes may be in store for the Carlisle, the high-end, six-story senior living community at the corner of A1A and Ocean Avenue in Lantana.

Up for discussion at the Sept. 10 Lantana Town Council meeting will be a request from the Carlisle to reduce the number of units from 310 to 280.

The number of independent living units would go from 250 to 226, and the number of assisted living units would decrease from 60 to 54.  

Dave Thatcher, the town’s development services director, said that “because of market changes and demands for different kinds of units,” the Carlisle is asking for amendments to the town’s covenants, a special exception, and a variance request to allow for kitchen facilities or microwave ovens in 144 of the independent living units and 136 of the assisted living units.

Currently, kitchens are only permitted in some of the units, Thatcher said. 

The Carlisle sits on property once owned by the town. In 1997, when the property was sold, the town drew up restrictions and covenants outlining what could be done there, Thatcher said. That’s why the amendments and a variance are needed.

The town’s plan review board gave a “thumbs up” to the proposal, Thatcher said. 

Now it’ll be up to the Town Council. 

 — Mary Thurwachter

de Hoernle

Drive around Palm Beach County, especially Boca Raton, and it’ll be hard not to see a building bearing the name of Count Adolph and Countess Henrietta de Hoernle. The Red Cross, YMCA, Museum of Art and The Railway Station are all examples of the de Hoernles’ generosity.
Since 1981 when the couple — German immigrants who, as the patriotic countess says, became “Americans by choice” — arrived in Boca Raton, they have made substantial gifts to many organizations.
After her husband died in 1998, the countess continued her charitable work, donating more than $40 million to charities and serving on the boards of 16 organizations.
de Hoernle, who turns 100 on Sept. 24, is still inundated with stacks of requests for monetary help and does her best to help when she can. But this month it is Boca Raton’s turn to lavish some love on the countess. Her birthday wish is to raise money for Boca Raton-area nonprofits. That wish will be granted via a formal benefit gala at Boca West Country Club on her birthday.
Other events include a communitywide “Red, White & Boca-Blue Countess Appreciation Day,” and the presentation of a giant birthday card with thousands of signatures from people whose lives have been touched by the de Hoernles’ kindness.
In honor of her birthday, she agreed to a Q&A with The Coastal Star.
— Mary Thurwachter

At her 99th birthday celebration, de Hoernle was surrounded by children at the YMCA. 

Q.What’s your secret to a long and happy life?

A.Vitamins. I take about 20 every day. I drink socially. I like chocolate and I play bridge about four times a week.

The couple in their younger years.

Q.What early memory in your life made a deep impression on you? 

A.While volunteering at a hospital as a young woman, I marveled at buildings that carried the names of people who gave money for people they didn’t know. I wanted to do the same one day. I felt it was my obligation.

Count Adolph and Countess Henrietta de Hoernle announce
plans to restore the FEC Railway Station. 

Q. Do you still get many requests for donations and how do you handle them?

A. I’ve been at this for 25 years and served on 16 boards. There are always requests and it’s hard to keep up. I say “yes” only when there is no other way.

Q.Is there something you haven’t done, somewhere you’d like to go, that you haven’t been able to do yet?

A.I’ve been on over 100 cruises and traveled around the world, but I’ve never been on a river cruise. I would like to do that. I would also like to go to China again. But I don’t travel anymore.

Countess de Hoernle receives an honorary
degree from Lynn University in Boca Raton. Photos provided

Q. What kinds of books do you like to read?

A. Mostly romance books, especially if they are set in England or have a connection to Christmas.

Countess de Hoernle attends an event to build the
Caldwell Theatre’s auditorium, which later was
named for her husband.

Q. Who was the great love of your life?

A. I never liked German men. They were too domineering. It so happened I married three of them. My second husband was my big love. He loved me so much, maybe too much. But the last one [Count Adolph de Hoernle, who made his fortune manufacturing stamped metal products] was the best of all. We were together for 48 years. He let me do what I wanted to do.

Q. Did he always agree with your philanthropic choices? 

A. When I wanted to help restore the (1930 Florida East Coast) Railway Station, he didn’t like the idea. He said he could build a new one for less money, which he could, of course. But it wasn’t about that. It was about preservation. So I did it and gave it (The Count de Hoernle Pavilion) as a present for his birthday.  

Q. Are you dating anyone now?

A. No. Companionship is nice, but I’m glad to be by myself now. I like my privacy. I live in assisted living and there are only nice people here.

Q. What event have you attended that stands out most in your memory?

A. Princess Diana’s wedding. It was a highlight of my life.

Q. What’s your favorite TV show?

A. The Good Wife. Other than that, I watch a lot of news.

Q. What does someone give a countess for her birthday? What do you like? Birthday cake?

A. I’m not really fond of cake, but I like shortcake and I love Hoffman’s chocolate-covered ginger and chocolate-covered coconut. I like Kahlua, too.                                        

Adolph and Henrietta de Hoernle share a lighthearted moment in earlier times.

Countess birthday events

Through Sept. 7: Community birthday card initiative. In preparation for the gala event, the community is invited and encouraged to sign birthday card panels that will be on display at locations throughout the city.  The panels will be assembled as one card for its debut at the gala event celebration on Sept. 24. 

Sept. 22: VIP Reception (by invitation only). Gala benefactors are invited to a VIP reception hosted by Countess de Hoernle at Boca West Country Club.

Sept. 24:  A Red, White & Boca Blue day-long celebration. The community is encouraged to pay visual tribute to the Countess for her patriotism for the United States, her ‘country by choice,’ by wearing red, white, and blue and wrapping trees with red, white, and blue ribbons.  

Sept. 24: Benefit Gala. The “Our Legend, Her Legacy”-themed benefit gala begins with cocktails at 6 p.m. at Boca West Country Club. More than 700 dignitaries and community, business, and nonprofit leaders will don black or white tie, military or Scottish equivalent, tiaras, regalia, and decorations.  Dinner, music, multimedia tributes, reminiscing, a video retrospective, and presentation of a gigantic birthday card are planned as a benefit to fulfill the Countess’s 100th birthday wish: to raise significant funds to benefit Boca Raton area nonprofits. Individual seats are $375  See www.countess100.org.

Buildings named for the Count & Countess de Hoernle

Boca Raton Children’s Museum 

Rickards House upper floor

Acts Retirement Life Community

Hurricane shelter

American Red Cross

Service center

ARC of PBC

Lobby

Boca Ballet Theatre Company

Center of dance

Boca Raton Community Hospital

Cardiac floor

Boca Raton Historical Society

Pavilion (train depot)

Memorial room

Boca Raton Museum of Art

Great hall

Art school for children

Boys and Girls Clubs of Palm Beach County

New building

Boys Towns of Italy (in Rome)

International Center

Caldwell Theatre Company

New theater

Caridad Migrant Center

Health clinic

Centre for the Arts at Mizner Park

Amphitheater

Children’s Home Society

  Building in West Palm Beach

Count & Countess de Hoernle Pavilion

Alzheimer’s pavilion

Debbi-Rand Memorial Service League

Pavilion (Thrift Shop)

Food for the Poor

Two homes in Haiti

Gulfstream Council, Boys Scouts of America

Headquarters service center

Habilitation Center for the Handicapped

Workshop

Garden center

The Haven

Meeting hall

Two cottages

HomeSafe

Two cottages

Hospice by the Sea

Lobby

Junior League of Boca Raton

Building

Lynn University

Sports & Cultural Center    

International building

Lecture hall

Two dorms

Mae Volen Senior Center

Lobby

Dining hall

Northwood University

Student Life Center

Palm Beach State College,

Lake Worth

Humanities & Technology 

Building

Student center

South Florida Blood Bank

Pavilion

Campus

Spanish River High School

Theatre

St. Joan of Arc Parish

Cornerstone

Lobby

St. Jude

Gathering place

United Way of Palm Beach County

Boynton Beach campus

Wayne Barton Study Center

Study center

YMCA of Boca Raton

Youth center

Youth activity center

Activity center

Cindy Austino

By Mary Thurwachter

The Lantana Town Council is losing its sole female voice. Vice Mayor Pro Tem Cindy Austino, who has served on the council for five years, announced at the close of the Aug. 27 meeting that she would be leaving very soon. “I’m going to move and will be resigning within the next month or so,” a teary–eyed Austino said.

“This is hard for me. I have very much enjoyed serving on the council. It’s been a good learning process.” Austino, 52, an occupational therapist, was born at Bethesda Memorial Hospital and grew up on her grandparents’ dairy farm at the intersection of Lantana and Jog roads. A resident of Lantana since 1988, she was elected to the Group 2 council seat in 2008.

Austino and her husband, Art, will be moving to Berrydale, a small town north of Pensacola, where they have family and friends. She lived in the Panhandle for several years and graduated from high school in Pensacola. Later she graduated from Palm Beach Community College. Mayor Dave Stewart praised Austino for her “dedication and sometimes bullheadedness.”

“You are going to be missed,” he said. Austino encouraged the council to appoint Rosemary Mouring, a resident who has been active in many community organizations including the historical society and the Casuarina Womens Club, to the soon-to-be-vacant post.

Stewart said the council could discuss that at a future date, or the position could remain vacant until the March election. In other business, the council announced it will hold its first public budget hearing at 6 p.m. Sept. 10, before its regular meeting. The town will not raise taxes (and hasn’t for 11 years). The tax rate will stay at $3.24 for the fiscal year beginning Oct. 1.

Property values dropped from $693 million to $682 million, so keeping the tax level the same will mean some sacrifice — it may mean cutting one lifeguard position and making one full-time position in the police force a 30-hour-a week-job. The budget has an anticipated $140,000 general fund deficit, but the town also has a healthy surplus in reserves. Plans call for town employees to get a 2.5 percent cost of living adjustment. This will be their first raise since 2007. 

Lantana

Current tax rate: $3.24* per $1,000 of taxable property

Proposed tax rate: $3.24*

Public hearings: 6 p.m. Sept. 10 and 7 p.m. Sept. 19. 

*Does not include Palm Beach County Fire-Rescue service tax rate

Taffy Brower of Ocean Ridge has played golf for about 50 years
and has won more than 50 tournaments.Tim Stepien/The Coastal Star

By Craig Dolch

Taffy Brower has played golf for a half-century. Not just golf, but competitive golf, which as Bobby Jones famously pointed out, is an altogether different animal from a friendly foursome on the links.

Playing competitively for 50 years doesn’t make the 67-year-old Ocean Ridge resident an anomaly. What sets her apart is she has won more than 50 tournaments — or about one a year since she started playing the game at 7 while shagging balls for her mom, Roz Simmons, in Rochester , N.Y.

“To be honest, I absolutely hated it when I had to shag balls for my mom,” Brower said. “It was so boring. But when I got a chance to play the game, I fell in love with it.”

The half-century affair continues. Thanks to her very understanding husband, Buzz, Brower has been able to follow her dream for most of her adult life, save for a 10-year stretch from 1970 to 1980 when she put away her clubs to raise their children and help Buzz with his business.

Her first title came in the Rochester Women’s District Junior Championships in the mid-1950s, and her most recent came when she teamed with 13-year-old Alexa Hammer of Boynton Beach to win the 65th annual Women’s International Four-Ball Championship earlier this year in Hollywood, Fla.

It was no big surprise when she was asked to name her top accomplishment; Brower needed a few seconds to think. There are, after all, so many options.

“It would probably have to be,” Brower said, “when I held the Southern Amateur and the Southern Senior Amateur titles in the same year.”

That was in 2004, when she was named Player of the Year by the Florida Women’s State Golf Association. It’s surprising she didn’t get that honor more than once, considering she won the Florida State Women’s Match Play Championship four times (she was runner-up three other times), the Stroke Play Championship twice, the State Four-Ball Championship twice and the State Senior Championship once.

Not surprisingly, Brower has done some of her best work locally. 

She won the Palm Beach County Women’s Amateur Championship seven times, the West Palm Beach City Championship three times and was a six-time Tri-County champion. She also has competed in 43 USGA events, qualifying for the 1991 U.S. Women’s Amateur and the U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur an amazing 13 times.

Brower did more than win tournaments; she also helped run them. When the sponsorship for the Palm Beach County Women’s Amateur Championship was pulled by The Evening Times in the mid-1980s, Brower and Mary Hanyak continued to hold the tournament, a move that kept the championship alive and still running.

Brower helped use some of the proceeds from the tournament to assist with the Wayside House in Delray Beach, a place where women with alcohol and drug problems can get free treatment and housing. She was on Wayside’s board of directors for more than 20 years. 

What’s surprising is Brower has not yet been inducted into the Palm Beach County Sports Hall of Fame. It probably doesn’t help that Brower, who is on the ballot after being nominated for the Hall, is not a household name. In fact, the only time she was mentioned in Sports Illustrated was for a match she lost. That’s because she happened to play a 17-year-old named Natalie Gulbis in the finals of the Ione D. Jones/Doherty Match Play Title in 2000.

When Brower was asked about how much it would mean to get inducted into the local hall of fame, she became emotional. It took her more than 30 seconds to respond.

“It would mean more to my kids than it would to me,” she said. “They are so proud of me. Buzz and I have five children between us: 15 grandchildren and five great-grandchildren. They all know Nana plays golf.

“It would mean a lot to me. Are you kidding? I have thought about it, I have wondered. It would be the culmination of all the work a golfer puts into his or her game. We all work hard. Some just have more trophies than others.”

Brower worked at the Gulf Stream Golf Club as a merchandise purchaser for more than 20 years before retiring in 2006. Her “retirement” lasted two years before she went to work for Charlie Bowie in the pro shop at Quail Ridge Country Club in suburban Boynton Beach. Having been a member at nearby Delray Dunes, Brower was familiar with the quality of golfers at Quail Ridge. 

“I am in awe of the caliber of golfers here at Quail Ridge,” Brower said. “They have such a great place to play. This is a perfect place if you love golf.”

And most savvy golf folks are in awe of Brower’s career. “She has accomplished so much, yet she remains so humble,” Bowie said. “We love having her around.”

Looking back, Brower laughs at her initial reluctance to be around the game that has since shaped so much of her life. And it still does.

“What draws me to the game is the people,” she said. “The people who play golf are different than people who play other sports. They are honest, they are kind, they are considerate.

“And I love the challenge of the game, no matter what your age is. The ball doesn’t go in the hole as fast as it used to, but every once in a while I can still pull off the shot.”              

By Tim O’Meilia 

When Hurricanes Frances and Jeanne blustered into South Florida in 2004 and Wilma made a backdoor entrance in 2005, condominium associations — and their owners — learned hard lessons. 

Count ’em: how to reach absent owners to gain entrance to their condos, where to get emergency repairs, which contractors to trust and how to deal with insurance companies, just to name a few.

For a condo board member — almost all of whom are volunteers — the storm’s aftermath could be worse than the hurricane itself. 

As a result, the Fort Lauderdale-based law firm of Becker & Poliakoff, which specializes in condominium and community association law, is offering a free, two-hour seminar on “Disaster Preparedness: Are You Ready to Weather the Storm?” at 10 a.m. Sept. 8 at the Highland Beach Library, 3618 S. Ocean Drive, Highland Beach.

The seminar is directed at association board members and condo managers, but residents also are welcome. 

“One of the big problems we learned from the storms of 2004 and 2005 is that people didn’t understand which insurance covers what. What does homeowner’s insurance cover and what does the association’s insurance cover?” said community association attorney Lisa Magill. 

Another problem is maintaining communication with unit owners. Lacking the ability to enter a water-soaked apartment, for example, can result in more damage. 

Attorney William Strop, an insurance expert, recommends appointing an information coordinator ahead of time to funnel information through and squelch rumors. 

“I live in a condo and whenever there’s no clear flow of information, conspiracy theories abound,” Strop said. “People are sure that so-and-so is getting preferential treatment. Whenever there is no information, people figure something bad is happening.”

Another problem uncovered after previous storms was that associations had not planned for repairs after a catastrophe. 

“The board members were so overwhelmed and so anxious to get started with repairs that they signed contracts that put their associations at risk financially later,” Magill said. 

Common mistakes included signing open-ended contracts for work beyond emergency repairs that left the association with the bill if insurance didn’t cover it all. Some boards panicked and signed with out-of-area contractors, leaving them little recourse later if the work was faulty.

Strop and Magill suggest making arrangements ahead of time with local contractors for emergency work only.

“Do not start significant work until the insurance company has a chance to send an adjustor to appraise the situation first,” Strop said.

That doesn’t preclude halting water or other on-going damage and boarding up areas where more damage could result. Taking before and after photos of buildings, common areas and landscaping can help avoid insurance hassles later.

“Often overlooked is having maintenance and repair records,” Magill said. “Without them, insurance companies could say some damage was the result of lack of maintenance or the damage was pre-existing.”

Both urge that condo associations and unit owners have copies of their records stored somewhere off-site that will survive a storm. More and more associations are digitizing their records so they can be stored in cyberspace. 

Blueprints and as-built construction records are critical to avoid more expense during reconstruction. Contractors won’t have to be hammering through walls looking for utility lines or pipes. 

“We’re all crossing our fingers hoping we don’t have to deal with any of that this year,” Magill said, “but you have to be prepared.”

To attend the free seminar, call (954) 987-4550 to
register. Ú

By Ron Hayes

The historic Boynton Woman’s Club made history again recently.
In July, the club’s members officially turned over daily management of their 86-year-old building to longtime local caterer Jim Guilbeault.
Under the agreement, the club will retain ownership of the Mediterranean Revival building, with Guilbeault overseeing its rental and catering contracts for weddings, birthdays and other social events.
Guilbeault said he will return 10 percent of his rental and catering fees to the club.
The landmark at 1010 S. Federal Highway was designed in 1924 by famed architect Addison Mizner, who agreed to donate his services as long as the building was worth at least $50,000. 

Construction began with money provided by the family of Maj. Nathan Smith Boynton, donated as a memorial to the city’s founder.
The building was completed in 1926, and a cornerstone laid in 1932. Also home to the town’s library until 1963, it was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1979.
But a building that old demands more maintenance, which has prompted the new partnership.
    “As a club, our main focus is charitable interests and promoting education,” said club president Kay Baker. “But we were finding it very hard to give money to charities as we had to spend more to maintain a building that is 86 years old and needs constant maintenance. We were having to pull ourselves in two directions.”
In 2011, the building’s market value was assessed at $462,501— down from $549,393 the year before — at the same time the club was struggling to cope with rising operating costs, which Baker estimated at $80,000 this year.
In the past, members had offered to sell the building to the city, and when that was deemed impractical, there was some discussion that a simple deed transfer might be feasible. But that too never moved forward.
Guilbeault, whose company, Catering Solutions, manages the food concessions at the city library and Ocean Inlet Park, said he had discussed a similar management plan in 2003, but while the club’s executive council approved, the membership rejected the deal.
This time, the club’s 68 members agreed.
“There’s always dissension,” Baker said, “but the vote was overwhelmingly in favor.”
Both Baker and Guilbeault say the new contract will serve the club, the caterer and the public at large.
To manage the new operation, Guilbeault has formed a separate company, Boynton Beach Catering Inc., with his partner, Chris Francois.
A representative will be at the club Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., he said, and also available by appointment.
“We used to be open only during the mornings, and only two or three days a week during the summer,” Baker noted. “I would get phone calls from people who said, ‘Can I come by now?’ And I’d have to say yes, but not this afternoon.”
A grand opening will be held Sept. 21, Guilbeault said, with special events such as dinner and fashion shows, a wedding showcase and dinner shows planned.
“We’re just going to be as civic-minded as we can,” he added. “It’s a gorgeous building, and we want to bring it back to its fully operational state.”
Baker emphasized that any existing contracts will be honored as written, and building is still very much the club’s.
“Boynton Beach Catering is not taking over our building,” she added, “or taking us over, or anything like that. If he wants to clean, he can clean. But if he wants to paint, he has to check with us.”                     Ú

For more information, visit  www.boyntonwomansclub.com or call Boynton Beach Catering at (561) 732-7887.

Joseph Rosso

By Ron Hayes

SOUTH PALM BEACH — Thirty-five years ago, Joseph Rosso started a small paving and drainage company in Lake Worth.
At the time of his death on Aug. 1, Rosso Paving & Draining Inc. was doing about $6 million in business each year, including road reconstruction along Avenue A in Lake Worth and a taxiway at Palm Beach International Airport.
Mr. Rosso was 82 and had lived in South Palm Beach since 2002.
“Dad was from the old school,” recalls his daughter, Nancy, who now runs the business with her brother, Joseph. “He taught us how to conduct business, and how to be fair and always do a great job. He was trustworthy. He taught us how to treat people.”
Joseph A. Rosso was born in Bronx, N.Y., on Jan. 10, 1930, and served with the U.S. Army in Korea from 1951-53.
“He was very proud to have honored his country through his service,” his daughter said. “He was proud to be an American.”
Mr. Rosso was married for 53 years to his wife, Irja, whom he met in Somers, N.Y., where the couple raised their family. She preceded him in death, as did a daughter, Wendy.
Moving to Lake Worth in 1969, Mr. Rosso worked in the construction field until 1977, when he founded the company, which he ran until his retirement in 1994.
“My brother and I purchased it from him and moved the business to West Palm Beach,” Nancy Rosso said, “but he was still always helping us out.”
A Rotarian and an avid golfer, Mr. Rosso was a member of Palm Beach National Golf Club in Lake Worth.
He is survived by his daughter Nancy and son, Joseph II; a daughter-in-law, Janet; nine grandchildren, and nine great-grandchildren.
A memorial service will be held at a later date.



   

Noah Yablong is competing in the singles and tennis
doubles competitions at the Paralympic Games in London.
His parents, who live in Ocean Ridge, will be there to
cheer him on, as will his sister Leah. 

Tim Stepien / The Coastal Star

By Emily J. Minor

Noah Yablong, the 23-year-old Paralympic athlete whose parents live in Ocean Ridge, is scheduled to compete in both singles and doubles tennis at the international games that run through Sept. 9.

Yablong, who has been competing in wheelchair tennis since he was in middle school, will be paired with doubles teammate Steve Baldwin. That is, when he’s not playing singles.

Yablong has mostly required  a wheelchair since he developed a degenerative and debilitating hip disease when he was 10 years old.

But that sure hasn’t stopped him.

His mother, Nan Yablong, said she and her husband, Jeffrey, and their daughter, Leah, will make the trip. It will be the first time the family has been there to watch Noah participate in a world event. 

An estimated 4,200 athletes from 22 countries are scheduled to compete in the London competition, and Nan Yablong said they are expecting some fantastic pomp and circumstance.

“The Paralympics have always been the stepchild, but this is really the first that all the media is coming,” she said. “Their opening ceremony is supposed to be just as big as the Olympics.”

Noah was scheduled to leave for the athlete’s villages on Aug. 23. His mom said they are still trying to figure out how relatives and friends in the states can watch the tennis matches. 

Nan Yablong suggests followers check on Facebook — just go to Noah Yablong’s  Facebook page and click on “Journey to the 2012 Paralympic Games” — which is where they will post details of the matches and the results. 

“I also think there is going to be some television, probably on the Tennis Channel,” she
said.                                     

Dr. Pierre Andre Armand Vignau 

Dr. Pierre Vignau was born in Caen, France, and was a beloved and unique educator. Teaching was his passion. His patience and humor helped thousands of students master la belle langue, French. Dr. Vignau died Aug. 15, at the age of 87.

Dr. Vignau believed in full immersion as the best (and most fun) way to learn a language. He took hundreds of students to French-speaking countries; with a particular affection for Haiti. He also taught Spanish and Latin.

For those privileged to have been taught by him in his 60-plus years of teaching, he instilled honor, kindness and an unquenchable thirst for knowledge in his students. He shared his massive intellect without condescension. He treated everyone the same; with respect. All this was done with a twinkle in his eye as his mischievous side was ever present.

Dr. Vignau  spoke several languages and earned a doctorate in history from the University of Buenos Aires. 

He taught at Saint Andrew’s School in Boca Raton for most of his career, and it honored his expertise by designating him “master teacher” in 1998. Dr. Vignau was the first recipient of the Founders Day Award, recognized as one of Saint Andrew’s first teachers. He was instrumental in developing the fledgling school into the intellectual powerhouse it is today. 

Dr. Vignau was also a master bridge player and world traveler. His lust for learning never dissipated. 

He is survived by his wife, Virginia, of Boynton Beach; son, Dan Vignau, of Stuart; daughter, Teresa (Frank Gallucci II) Vignau, of Boynton Beach; daughter, Kathy (Tom) Hynds Vignau of Soddus Point, N.Y.; stepdaughter, Michelle (Jeff) Dove of Ormond Beach; grandchildren, Luke, Chelsea, Hilary and Anthony (Amanda); nephew, Grant; niece, Marilyn and thousands of former students. He was preceded in death by his wives, Elizabeth and Maxine, and grandson Frank Gallucci III.  

A celebration of life will be held at the Chapel of Saint Andrew’s at a later date. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to Saint Andrew’s School, 3900 Jog Road, Boca Raton, FL 33434 in memory of Pierre Vignau.

Lorne & Sons Funeral Home, Delray Beach, is in charge of arrangements. 

— Submitted by the family

Sandra Cropper

By Ron Hayes

COUNTY POCKET — Sandra and Reese Cropper bought a winter condo in Ocean Ridge 15 years ago, stayed seven seasons and loved the area so much they decided to search for a bigger home.
They found the county pocket.
“My wife loved the pocket,” her husband recalled recently. “The neighborhood, and all the typical old Florida homes that never change. We call it Margaritaville.”
Sandra Lois Cropper died on the morning of Aug. 22 at Hospice by the Sea in Boca Raton after battling ovarian cancer for more than year. She was 72.
Mrs. Cropper was born in Midland City, Ala., and lived much of the year in Ocean City, Md., where she was a co-founder, with her previous husband, Karl, of Offenbacher Pool & Patio. She served on the board of Meyers Siding Condo there, and was a member of the Dunes Club of Ocean City.
“She just had a great personality that made her an instant friend to everyone she met,” her husband said. “She was just so special, and we’re all better to have had her in our lives.”
In addition to her husband, she is survived by two sons, Lawrence Jeffery Nyce of North Potomac, Md., and Robert Todd Offenbacher of South Lake Tahoe, Calif.; two grandchildren, Lawrence Todd Nyce and Olive Dakota Offenbacher; two step granddaughters, Taylor Clark and Jordan Clark; and numerous nieces, nephews and cousins.
A memorial service will be announced later.
In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made to Hospice by the Sea, 1531 W. Palmetto Park Road, Boca Raton, FL 33486, or St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, 501 St. Jude Place, Memphis, TN 38105.

Dr. Clinton J. Shope 

By Cheryl Blackerby

BOCA RATON — The Shope Hope Bell hangs in the radiation oncology department at Lynn Cancer Institute at Boca Raton Regional Hospital. When patients have completed cancer treatments, they can celebrate their accomplishment, and life itself, by ringing the bell.

The bell was a gift of  Dr. J. Clinton Shope, a radiation oncologist at the institute, who knew how it felt to travel the difficult road of cancer recovery. At the age of 20, he was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma, a cancer of the lymphatic or immune system. 

“I thought it was important to have a symbolic bell in radiation oncology because it’s such a tough part of a cancer patient’s treatment,” said Dr. Shope when he presented the bell.

Dr. Shope died Aug. 8 with his family by his side after battling cancer for a second time. He was 55.

“He was one of the finest physicians to grace the halls of Boca Raton Regional Hospital,” said Dr. Tim Williams, medical director of Radiation Oncology, who worked with Dr. Shope for 29 years. “He got along with everybody, and was the best at ‘doctoring.’ He would open his wallet and give cash to patients for drugs. He would give them extra time. He basically gave his medical advice and warmth and love in a way few people were able to.”

He had enormous empathy for his patients, Dr. Williams said. “He had gone through toxic therapy for Hodgkin’s disease, a full dose of radiation, and beat the odds. It was tough stuff back then, a long and arduous course of therapy. He had an unshakeable faith in God and his place on Earth, and he was able to draw on that faith. And he was ridiculously intelligent.”

When diagnosed, Dr. Shope was a pre-med student at the University of Alabama. After undergoing extensive, and brutal, radiation treatments in 1978, Dr. Shope took summer classes in order to graduate on time with a bachelor of science degree, summa cum laude in microbiology. He then attended the University of Alabama School of Medicine, receiving his doctor of medicine in 1983.

“I kept an open mind when trying to choose a specialty in medicine, but after doing a rotation in radiation oncology with the physician who treated me, I was hooked,” he said.

Dr. Shope, who was born in 1957 in Cherry Hill, N.C, did his residency at the University of Florida, Department of Radiation Oncology, from 1983 to 1987. He worked three years at Naples Community Hospital, Naples, before moving to Lynn Cancer Institute in 1990. 

He met his wife, Elana Hutchinson, a nurse, while he was in the hospital in Naples after falling off a ladder at his house. He woke up in the hospital with a concussion and two broken arms. His nurse, he wrote later, “had the most fantastic smile, was kind and thoughtful.” She was “heaven sent,” and, he noted, she was the only person he had ever met from Iowa. 

On his final day in the hospital, he asked her if she would like to go out for some Chinese food when he could handle chopsticks again. She told him her phone number, but he couldn’t write it down. Luckily, it was the Naples prefix and his birthday. They were married in 1991 and had three children, Hannah, Luke and Nella.

Dr. Shope is survived by his wife, Elana; children, Hannah, Luke and Nella of Boca Raton; his mother, Nancy, of Naples; brother David (wife, Priscilla) of Naples; sister, Susannah Standal (husband, Mike) of Durango, Colo.; and niece and nephews, Kristina, J.D., Jake and Zak.

The hospital staff remembers Dr. Shope every time his bell rings.

“Dr. Shope recognized how important it was for cancer patients to feel a sense of accomplishment at the end of their treatments,” says Leticia Toledo, director of radiation oncology. 

The bell’s ringing can be heard throughout the department, she says, and those who hear it “often are moved to tears in witnessing this demonstration of hope.”

A celebration of life service was held Aug. 14 at Calvary Chapel Boca in Boca Raton. Donations in Dr. Shope’s memory can be sent to Shope’s Hope Fund, c/o National Christian Foundation, 5110 N. Federal Highway, 2nd Floor, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33308.

Gladys Forrestal

By Ron Hayes

SOUTH PALM BEACH — Walking with her husband in Costco or Publix, strolling the streets, eating in restaurants, Gladys Forrestal was often approached by women smiling warmly.

“Gladys,” they asked, “is that you?”
    They knew her from the Institute for Women’s Health & Body in Boynton Beach, an ob/gyn office where she worked as a medical assistant.
“Those women were former patients she had helped through a difficult pregnancy, eager to tell her about their kid,” remembers her husband, Zachary.
Mrs. Forrestal died July 29 after a seven-month battle with cancer. She was 49 and had lived in Palm Beach County since 2001 and South Palm Beach for the past three years.
Mrs. Forrestal was born in Peru and moved to this country when she was 3 and to Miami at 11.
After high school, where she excelled at tennis, she returned to Peru for a year, then returned to Miami to marry and raise three children.
She taught Bible study, coached Little League and practiced cheers. After her first marriage ended, she moved to Palm Beach County and sought a new career. She found a new life helping other women.
“I was going through her things the other day,” her husband recalled, “and I found some cards she had put in a file. They were thank-you cards from patients. She just touched so many people’s lives that way. She was just so thoughtful with everyone she met. She was one of the kindest souls you’d ever come across.”
In addition to her husband, she is survived by her children, Jake Morris of Kansas City; Zack Morris of Greenacres; and Randee Morris of South Palm Beach; three grandchldren, Charlie, Wesley and Hailey; her mother, Carmen Pereira; a brother, Carlos Insua; and five nieces and nephews.

A memorial service was held Aug. 3 at Dorsey-E. Earl Smith Funeral Home in Lake Worth.
In lieu of flowers, her family asks that donations be made to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, 501 St. Jude Place, Memphis, TN 38105.

An infestation of Rugose spiraling whitefly covers shrubbery along A1A in Ocean Ridge. 

Photos by Jerry Lower/The Coastal Star

By Tim O’Meilia

Last winter was so warm that even one of South Florida’s most unwelcome visitors — the Rugose spiraling whitefly — decided to stay for the summer and bring his relatives.

Now some coastal landscapes look as if they’ve been decorated for Christmas in August. The leaves of native Florida gumbo limbo trees, the fronds of adonidia palms and dozens of other tree species are strung in white. 

The undersides of the leaves resemble a holiday decoration but there’s no cause for celebration. They’re whitefly eggs ready to develop and feed on the succulent leaves.

“They make the most beautiful patterns — perfect little round white circles like a crocheted tablecloth,” said Ocean Ridge resident Barbara Cook, who discovered the invaders on her gumbo limbo, strangler fig, kumquat and powderpuff trees a month ago.  

“My phone hasn’t stopped ringing,” said Laura Sanagorski, an environmental horticulturist with the University of Florida Palm Beach County Extension Service. “Two of every three calls are about Rugose spiraling whitefly.”

An infestation of spiraling whitefly can cause leaves to wilt, yellow and fall; but University of Florida scientists think healthy, mature plants will survive the attacks. But younger, weather-stressed plants may be more vulnerable. 

The whiteflies coat the leaves with a waxy white substance called flocculent and excrete a sticky substance called honeydew that falls on anything beneath the trees, including cars, patios and pools. 

The honeydew becomes the host for a sooty mold that further covers and stains. 

“In general, we see this whitefly as more of a nuisance than a threat,” Sanagorski said.  “We’re not seeing decline in the plants like we do with the ficus whitefly.”

Unlike the ficus whitefly, its more lethal cousin, the larger spiraling whitefly is the unpicky eater you wish your 3-year-old would become. 

“At first, we thought it was specific to the gumbo limbo but it has branched out,” Sanagorski said. The spiraling whitefly now has more than 90 species on its menu, including coconut palms. 

“It’s prevalent everywhere now,” said Christopher Trent Ward, owner of Aaron’s Environmental Services, who now spends several days a week dealing with the whitefly menace.

Christopher Trent Ward, owner of A. AAron’s
Environmental Services Inc., treats palms for whitefly
infestation at a condominium complex in South
Palm Beach. Jerry Lower/The Coastal Star

Ward treated Cook’s trees with a systemic pesticide spread around the trunk for the trees to absorb and with a spray on the leaves. “I haven’t had any defoliation, so I think we caught it in time,” said Cook, who is a certified master gardener. The treatments will continue every few months. 

Although there are more than 57 species of whitefly in Florida, the spiraling whitefly first arrived in 2009, in Miami-Dade County, probably from Central America. It has made its way up the coast with an explosion of growth beginning last winter, likely because of the warm temperatures.

Based on anecdotal reports, the spiraling whitefly tends to move up the coastline before heading inland. “They seem to do a lot better near water — near the coast or close to the Intracoastal [Waterway],” said Kris Wilson, pest control manager for O’Hara Pest Control in West Palm Beach. 

“When we have a new pest, the first couple of years we see an explosion of growth. The new pest has few natural enemies and it takes some time for them to develop,” Sanagorski said. “It’s pretty happy here now.”

The University of Florida is studying some ladybug-like beetles and several parasitic wasps that hold some promise in containing the whitefly, but nothing is on the commercial market yet.

Both Aaron and O’Hara use systemic insecticides absorbed through the roots so other beneficial insects won’t be harmed but sprays are used if necessary. Neither uses injections directly into the trunks of trees because they say it’s not recommended by the University of Florida horticulturists. 

However, several pest control firms do use the injection method. The town of Palm Beach recently spent more than $24,000 injecting and spraying vulnerable town-owned ornamentals.

“Palm Beach is being very active and definitely wanting to do it the right way,” Sanagorski said.

The town of Ocean Ridge recently followed Palm Beach’s example and approved an ordinance requiring residents to remove dead or dying foliage due to spiraling and ficus whitefly and other pests. Residents have two months to try to treat their plants before removing them. 

Palm Beach residents face a $250-a-day fine, but Ocean Ridge leaves the punishment up to its code enforcement board. 

“It’s been a problem,” Ocean Ridge Town Manager Ken Schenck said of the whitefly, the ficus species in particular. “What we didn’t want was for residents to jeopardize their neighbors.”                         

Lowen Poock

By Ron Hayes

BRINY BREEZES — For a time in the 1990s, Lowen Poock, a certified public accountant from Des Moines, Iowa, stayed at the Ritz-Carlton hotel in Manalapan while he worked on a special project for Meisner Electric in Delray Beach.

Every day, Mr. Poock drove along state road A1A, passing through Briny Breezes on his way to and from work.
“I wonder what this place is about,” he thought, stopped in and bought a home.
Two years ago, he retired permanently to his Briny Breezes home and immediately put his expertise to work by volunteering as a town alderman.
Mr. Poock served as chairman of the town’s audit committee from September 2010 until Aug. 9, when he suffered a heart attack and died. He was 70.
Lowen Karl Poock was born on Aug. 12, 1941, in Waterloo, Iowa, and grew up in nearby Readlyn. At 17, he joined the U.S. Navy and served honorably from 1959 to 1962.
After his military service, Mr. Poock attended Drake University and the American Institute of Business, both in Des Moines, and embarked on his career as a certified public accountant. He was an avid cyclist who rode in the Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa, an annual seven-day event; a snow skier who enjoyed winter trips to Colorado; and a traveler who cherished his visits to Germany, Austria and Russia.

Above all, though, Mr. Poock loved baseball.
“We met when he was walking by my place and I teased him about his New York Yankees cap,” remembers Kevin Dwyer, a neighbor and friend. “He was just a super-nice, bright, smiley, happy person who loved everybody. You’d have to do something very wrong for him not to like you.”
His home in Briny will now be visited by his sister, Doris Studer.
“He was just a wonderful brother,” she said. “I got to come use his place every winter, and I’ll still do that. I love all the activities in Briny — the the pool, the beach, the exercise groups. He’ll be missed by both his family and friends.”
In addition to his sister, of Waterloo, Iowa, Mr. Poock is survived by two sons, Martin, of Chicago, Ill., and Alan, of Grand Rapids, Mich.
    A funeral service was held Aug. 15 at Dunn’s Funeral Home in Des Moines, followed by burial at the Iowa Veterans Cemetery in Van Meter.
    In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made to the Briny Breezes Charity Fund or Our Savior Lutheran Church, 1615 Lake Ave., Lake Worth, FL 33460.

Scott and Christel Koedel hold their daughters,
Kaia, born Aug. 3, and Katniss, age 18 months.
Tim Stepien/The Coastal Star 

 By Paula Detwiller

On the afternoon of Friday, Aug. 3, while her Ocean Ridge neighbors tended their gardens, ran errands, and sunbathed around their pools, 34-year-old Christel Koedel was inside her house having a baby. 

It was just where she wanted to be.

Koedel already had one baby at home — Katniss, born 18 months ago — and now a little sister was on the way. 

With assistance and support from a licensed midwife and two student midwives, Koedel labored all morning and into the afternoon until finally pushing out her second daughter, Kaia, at 2:28 p.m.

To say it was “all in a day’s work” would be to sell short the miracle of birth. But clearly, Koedel has this home-birth thing down.

“With Katniss, I basically leaned over a kitchen chair and yelled with every contraction. I stood up the entire time,” she says. “This time I reclined in a warm tub, and it was a more gentle labor. This birth was very calm and quiet.”

Husband Scott Koedel, who was present for both births, is in awe of his wife’s abilities. “She is tougher than me and anyone I know,” he says.

The Koedels represent a growing number of middle- and upper-income couples (he rescues failing businesses, she’s a former international trade specialist) opting not to have their babies delivered in a hospital. Instead, they are choosing home birth or delivery at a birth center, using a midwife for medical assistance and, in some cases, a doula for emotional and physical support.

Midwife student Allison Lynum sits with Christel Koedel
after assisting her in the home birth of her 6 pound, 3 ounce
daughter Kaia in Ocean Ridge. Photo provided

In Palm Beach County, many of those couples are tapping into the services of The Palms Birth House in Delray Beach. 

Open for about a year now, the birth center offers midwives and doulas for hire, natural childbirth classes, prenatal care, in-house lab tests, ultrasound exams, massage — even an upscale mother-and-baby boutique. Two tastefully appointed birthing rooms await those who choose to deliver there. 

Business has been so brisk, say birth center owners Miriam Pearson-Martinez and Lorie McCoy, they’ve had to start a waiting list. 

“Stereotypically, people envision the kind of woman who would choose a midwife-assisted natural birth to be a little hippie-dippie, a little lower income — but that’s not the reality,” says McCoy, a certified doula. “Our clients are local business professionals, doctors, attorneys. They’ve got time and money on their side, and they spend time researching this option and then come to us because they don’t want the same old same old.”

“Usually it’s the second-time moms who say ‘I never want to do that again’ after giving birth in a hospital,” says Pearson-Martinez, a licensed midwife who says she has helped deliver more than 600 babies, including Katniss Koedel. “But now we’re seeing a huge increase in first-time moms choosing this.”

Obviously, pregnant women at high risk for complications are encouraged to deliver in a hospital. But studies show that for a normal, healthy pregnancy, little medical intervention is necessary and home birth is safe.

It’s also cost-effective. McCoy says countries in which low-tech, midwife-assisted births are common spend far less money on maternal health care and have lower infant and maternal mortality rates.

Koedel, who did a mountain of research before deciding on home birth, says the out-of-pocket cost of having Kaia at home was roughly the same as an insurance-covered hospital birth would have been after paying the deductible: about $5,000.

But cost was never a deciding factor, she says.

“I didn’t want to be hooked up to a fetal heart monitor, which confines you to bed. I wanted to have control over my environment — wear what I wanted, be allowed to eat and drink throughout labor, and be less likely to end up with a C-section or some other intervention.”

After two home births, Scott Koedel still thinks the whole experience is a little surreal.

“You wake up in the same bed you were in the night before, just the two of you — and here you are a few hours later, laying there with this new little life,” he says.