The GEMS Club, for girls in grades 3 through 8 who are interested in math and science, meets monthly. Photo provided

By Janis Fontaine

    Pretty is good, Kate Arrizza tells her 4-year-old daughter. “But smart is better.”
    Helping children excel in science, technology, engineering and math,  or STEM, is the focus of everything the South Florida Science Center and Aquarium does, says Arrizza, the chief operating officer.
It has been around for years, but “there are still people who don’t know or understand what STEM is,” she says.
    Most people do know that the United States has been lagging behind other countries academically in these fast-growing fields. Re-educating the workforce starts in elementary school. And because more than half of today’s workforce is women, there is a push to educate girls and prepare them to be leaders, Arrizza says.
    One program that grew out of that need is the GEMS Club, which stands for “Girls Excelling in Math and Science.” It’s a monthly club for girls in grades 3 through 8 who are interested in science and math.
    The champion of the GEMS movement, Laura Reasoner Jones, started the first club 22 years ago as an after-school activity for fifth- and sixth-grade girls. Today nearly 50 programs exist nationwide, including this one.
    The science center’s program started in July 2014, with 76 girls the first month. The next month, more than 200 girls came. Now it’s leveled off to about 120-150 girls who regularly show up to talk science, do experiments or crafts, listen to guest speakers, eat pizza and talk.
    The GEMS program has two purposes: introducing girls to fields they didn’t know existed and pointing out where the good-paying jobs are, and building their confidence to compete in a male-dominated industry.
    At each GEMS meeting, a female professional from a STEM field comes to talk to the girls about her job. Girls get to meet role models such as entomologists or rocket engineers.
    Kids are so savvy these days, Arrizza says, they are very interested in where the money is and they’ve actually asked the speakers what kind of green they’re earning.
    Now there’s good news for the girls in the north county. Beginning Oct. 11, a second GEMS Club will meet at the STEM Studio in Abacoa.
    Each GEMS Club meeting has a different theme. One of the highlights each week is the guest speaker, a woman who has made a career out of science, technology, math or engineering, who shares her story.  
    Amanda Long, who leads the group, earned a bachelor of science with a concentration in marine biology from Palm Beach Atlantic University in 2015. She credits a science teacher who planned nature walks on weekends with building her confidence and encouraging her to pursue a science degree.
    Long says parents mention how inspiring the women who speak to their daughters are.
    At the next meeting, Oct. 25, the topic will be the “Science of Fear.” A registration fee is $5 in advance, $7 for walk-ins, which covers pizza and refreshments. Most of the cost is absorbed by Aerojet Rocketdyne, a tech company in Jupiter.
    South Florida Science Center and Aquarium is at 4801 Dreher Trail N., West Palm Beach. The group meets from 5 to 7 p.m. the last Tuesday of the month at the Science Center. Reservations are recommended. High school girls are needed to volunteer to be mentors. Info: 370-7710 or visit www.sfsciencecenter.org/gems.

Mark your calendar
    The Science Center’s Fall Family Fun Fest will take place from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Oct. 8. This event features an interactive Mobile Learning Adventure, a traveling exhibit for children up to 5 years old, plus themed crafts, face painting, a bounce house, live science demonstrations, carnival-style games and the petting zoo, a perennial favorite, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
    Food is available in the WT Cafe. The event is free with paid admission to the Science Center, which is $13 for adults, $9 for ages 3-12, $11 for seniors and free for members and age 2 and younger.
    Call 832-1988.

The human body, really
    A new Science Center exhibit, “Our Body: The Universe Within,” looks at the human body and what it does, with actual bodies and organs preserved using a process known as polymer impregnation.
    This national exhibit, which opens Oct. 22 and runs through April 23, is appropriate for all ages.
    On weekends, medical students from Florida Atlantic University will staff the center and answer questions about how the body works. Just look for the people in white lab coats.

Teacher open house
    The center is hosting a STEM Teacher Open House from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Nov. 8, in partnership with the Palm Beach Zoo. Guests will take a behind-the-scenes tour of the zoo’s state-of-the-art animal hospital, participate in live science and animal demonstrations and build, tinker and explore in the Science Showcase area.
    The free open house, which includes lunch, is designed for teachers in grades K-12. Professional development points are available through the Palm Beach County School District.

Advance registration is required online at sfsciencecenter.org or call 832- 2026.

ABOVE: Internationally recognized children’s author Kwame Alexander provided multiple discussions about the joy of reading and the process he goes through to write. BELOW: While he talked about his award-winning book, The Crossover,  Gulf Stream School third-graders Parker Forman, Christian Kahlert, Juliet Baum and Lily Thomas helped him by pretending to play musical instruments.

Photos by Jerry Lower/The Coastal Star

Your guide to the 2016-2017 cultural scene
Illustration by Rollin McGrail

Yes, we have sand, sun and blue waters, alligators and anhingas, chic cities full of beautiful people and warm temperatures while everyone else is shivering through the gloomy depths of a frozen February. But everyone already knows that about South Florida.  
What they may not know is that this marshy part of our peninsula is one of this country’s great unsung arts regions, a place that during the fall and winter months is home to a wealth of artistic activity that can stand comparison to almost anywhere else in the 50 states.
In this edition, the ArtsPaper provides an overview of the performances and exhibits to come in the 2016-17 season, and don’t be surprised if you end up astonished at how much there is to do and see. (We always are, and indeed, most of the previews in this issue are far longer in their online versions at www.palmbeachartspaper.com.)
So take a few moments to read through these previews and get your must-see lists together, and we’ll see you at the show.
­— Greg Stepanich

Oct. 6: The annual benefit for the Delray Beach Public Library will feature complimentary champagne, a silent auction and the latest fashions in recognition of Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Time is 10:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Cost is $60. Call 266-0798 or visit delraylibrary.org. LEFT: (l-r) Jan Kucera, Louise Picarello, Robyn Monahan, Judith Copolla, Dr. Jacqueline  Moroco Maloney, Suzanne Bower, Candace Rojas, Gayle Zimmerman and Colleen Schuhmann.
Photo provided

Oct. 28: The Place of Hope and its Leighan and David Rinker Campus will benefit from an evening of auctions – live and silent – and dinner and dancing to the theme ‘From Broadway to Boca.’ Time is 6:30 p.m. Cost is $250. Call 483-0962 or visit placeofhoperinker.org. ABOVE: (l-r, front row) Laura Campbell, Bonnie Judson, Sung Knowles, Melissa Bonaros, Kelly Fleming, Marguerite Gregorio, (middle row) Martha Yacoub, Lynda Levitsky, Leticia Butkevits, Maria Fife, Bonnie Boroian, Jeannine Morris, Deborah Gaslow, Shari Parson, Nikki Stelzer, (back row) Neil Saffer, Trisha Saffer, Eileen Needleman, Andrea Reid, Julie Lyons, Kaley Campbell and Wendy Cottiers. Photo provided by Carla Azzata

Oct. 13: ‘Wine and Lite Bites’ is a mixer sponsored by Impact 100 Palm Beach County and aimed at attracting women in the community who want to make an impact on nonprofits in South County. Time is 6 to 8 p.m. Cost is free. Call 336-4623 or visit impact100pbc.com. LEFT: (l-r) Cindy Krebsbach, Lauren Johnson, Michael DeSio, Karen Sweetapple and Helen Ballerano. Photo provided by Warner-Prokos Photography

Oct. 8: The black-tie dinner dance returns for a second year to honor elected officials who exemplify the Rotary Club of Downtown Boca Raton’s motto ‘Service Above Self.’ Time is 7 to 11 p.m. Cost is $250. Call 299-1429 or visit rotarydowntownbocaraton.org. ABOVE: (l-r) Boca Raton Mayor Susan Haynie, with Co-Chairs Jon Kaye and Constance Scott. Photo provided

    Junior Achievement of the Palm Beaches and Treasure Coast, The Lord’s Place, the Friends of Mounts Botanical Garden and the Palm Beach Habilitation Center have been busy selecting incoming board members for the 2016-17 season.
    Joining Junior Achievement are Pete Bozetarnik as chairman and Mark Osherow, Ryan Thompson and Jean Wihbey as members.
    “I am confident they will be great additions to the board and will help JA further bring financial literacy programs to students in our community,” President Claudia Kirk Barto said.
    The Lord’s Place’s new slate includes Chairwoman Cornelia Thornburgh, Vice Chairman Michael Diaz, Treasurer Robert Katzen, Secretary Diana Barrett, and outgoing Chairwoman Pamela McIver as board member. Other board members are Ann Brown, Barbara Cheives, Cynthia Heathcoe, Michael Stevens and Adrianne Weissman.
    They will seek to fulfill the organization’s mission of breaking the cycle of homelessness in Palm Beach County.
    Sandy Smith, the newly elected president of the Friends of Mounts Botanical Garden, announced the team: Phil Maddux as first vice president, Martha Gilbert as second vice president, Tom Brockway as treasurer, Paton White as recording secretary, Polly Reed as immediate past president and Bill Brady and Julie Warren Criser as members.
    “All of these talented, insightful professionals will be invaluable assets for Mounts Botanical Garden as we continue to grow and attract new visitors,” Smith said.
    Palm Beach Habilitation appointed four community leaders who come from a range of private- and public-sector backgrounds. They are Dennis Geraghty, Anthony Lofaso, Melissa Santoro and Jacqueline Underwood.
    “Their breadth of experience and expertise in business and financial management, technology, public relations and community affairs will be a tremendous asset to our organization as we further our mission to ensure that individuals with disabilities in Palm Beach County have the best environment in which to learn, work and live,” Chairman Glen Torcivia said.
                                ***
    Impact 100 Palm Beach County has developed a new grants policy that benefits nonprofits in South County.
    According to the terms agreed to by the board, every year the organization’s membership reaches or exceeds 500, a $100,000 grant in each of five focus areas (arts and culture, education, environment, family, and health and wellness) will be awarded.
    “Our membership grows each year, and Impact 100 PBC is optimistic it can sustain member numbers of over 500,” Co-President Helen Ballerano said. “We strive to touch as many lives as possible in southern Palm Beach County, and we are grateful for the ability to award grants in each category now every year.”
                                ***
Boca Raton Regional Hospital has awarded a grant of $18,100 to Florence Fuller Child Development Centers for its health services and family services programs.
    The health services program provides support that otherwise would not be available to more than 700 children. The family services program serves 500-plus parents and caregivers to ensure they have access to education and resources to address their children’s and their own medical needs.
    “This grant continues our incredibly special partnership with the hospital,” said Ellyn Okrent, the centers’ CEO. “Their support helps our centers to both strengthen our programs and to continue providing necessary services for our children and families.”

To submit your news or event, contact Amy Woods at flamywoods@bellsouth.net.

Women of Grace chairwomen Nicole Pasqual and Kimberley Trombly-Burmeister. Photo by Downtown Photo

By Amy Woods
    
The 17th installment of the Women of Grace luncheon will be a wonder of white Nov. 10, when guests gather to raise money for the Bethesda Hospital Foundation wearing their best white frocks.
    The charity event annually honors five female volunteers whose commitment to service has changed lives and improved communities. This season, the women will be celebrated by an audience in shades of cream, eggshell and ivory.
    “We thought we’d do something different to bring attention to the event,” luncheon Chairwoman Nicole Pasqual said. “As a committee, we try to outdo ourselves every year.”
    The white theme will extend to one of the luncheon’s raffle items — a premier table for 12, decorated accordingly. The lucky ticketholder, and all others in his or her party, will get to move to the table and enjoy an upgraded menu, a VIP swag bag and an overnight package at The Breakers, sponsor of the prize.
    Additional raffle items include jewelry, travel and other extravagant offerings that will help Pasqual and her committee meet their $400,000 goal. Money has been earmarked for the purchase of a suite of maternity beds and sleeper sofas at Bethesda Health’s Center for Women & Children.
    “The hospital usually gives us something to raise money for,” she said. “In the past, it’s been the NICU, but now we’re kind of done with that effort.”
    Co-Chairwoman Kimberley Trombly-Burmeister said the maternity ward is one of the busiest in the county, bringing more than 3,000 babies into the world each year, many of whom are critically ill or premature.
    “I’m passionate about the cause — health and life and [being a] mother,” Trombly-Burmeister said. “I am all those things.”
    The 2016 Women of Grace are: Nancy Dockerty, for the Delray Beach Public Library; Betti Lidsky, for Hope for Vision; Valerie Mathieu, for Caps of Love; Michelle Suskauer, for the Legal Aid Society of Palm Beach County; and Diane Wilde for Dress for Success Palm Beaches. They were selected from more than 35 nominees.
    “We celebrate volunteerism, and we honor local women who have just done amazing things,” Trombly-Burmeister said. “Everybody who comes to this luncheon, when they leave, they leave basically saying, ‘I need to do more.’ ”

If You Go
What: Women of Grace Luncheon
When: 10:30 a.m. Nov. 10 reception, 11:30 a.m. luncheon
Where: The Mar-a-Lago Club, 1100 S. Ocean Blvd., Palm Beach
Cost: $160
Info: Call 732-7733, Ext. 84445, or visit www.bethesda hospitalfoundation.org

Faculty, family members and friends ushered in a new school year with the annual barbecue that attracted more than 300, a record. The event also kicked off the school’s Jaguar Fund, a giving campaign. ABOVE: (l-r) Class of ’16 alumni Grayson Westine, 14, Ryan Flynn, 15, Mason Mayotte, 14, Charlotte Rowley, 14, John McLay, 14, Mauricio Barba, 15, and Aiden Veccia, 14, with Class of ’15 graduate Sebastian Tirado, 15.  Photo provided

Soroptimist International of Boca Raton/Deerfield Beach welcomed 30 nominees for the 2016 Women of Distinction Awards to a special gathering kicking off the Oct. 5 breakfast. The evening included remarks by Co-President Dr. Heidi Schaeffer. LEFT: Dr. Ron Rubin, Ingrid Fulmer, Deborah Freudenberg, Janice Williams and Jon Kaye. Photo provided by Barbara McCormick

The Kiwanis Club of Delray Beach celebrated the opening of its Reading Oasis, a transformed room for young readers with more than 1,200 age-appropriate books and a comfortable and safe space to spend quiet time. ABOVE: (l-r) Delray Beach Mayor Cary Glickstein, Orchard View Principal Lisa Lee and club member Scott Youngberg. Photo provided

Boca’s Ballroom Battle
Boca Raton Resort & Club – Aug. 20

The George Snow Scholarship Fund netted a record $325,000 at the dance competition among eight community leaders. More than 770 guests watched as the volunteer hoofers battled for the Mirror Ball trophy. Dancers Peter Gary, founder of Pinnacle Advertising & Marketing ($117,000), and Stacey Packer, development director at Boca Raton Regional Hospital ($89,000), were the top fundraisers. Fred Astaire Dance Studio of Boca Raton provided professional dance partners.
ABOVE: Bonnie Halperin and professional partner Jacob Reide Jennings. Photo provided

By Thom Smith

End of an era, albeit a tacky, wretchedly excessive era. Say goodbye to the big fat Botero sculptures in the yard at the not-that-old Maison de L’Amitié; say hello to the wrecking ball.
    In August, the Palm Beach Town Council gave Dmitry Rybolovlev permission to demolish the 80,000-square-foot mansion, better known as the old Gosman estate, and break the 6.26 oceanfront acres at 515 N. County Road into smaller parcels.
    Educated as a cardiologist, Rybolovlev made billions selling fertilizer and investing. Forbes estimated his wealth last year at $8.8 billion. In 2008, he bought the estate from Donald Trump for $95 million, according to Palm Beach County property records, although Trump, in typical fashion, claims at least $100 million changed hands. No big deal, since Rybolovlev plans to carve it into three lots, each with 150 feet of beach. With lot prices pegged in the $40 million range, it may qualify as the world’s most expensive subdivision.
    The estate is one of many recent international Rybolovlev investments: the Greek island of Skorpios from Athina Onassis Roussel for $154 million; property in Hawaii owned by actor Will Smith for a mere $20 million; AS Monaco, a prominent European soccer team. His extensive art collection is world-class. He’s restoring old churches and building new ones. He’s building a new arts center in Gstaad, Switzerland.
    The deals, however, were clouded for several years by threats on his life that prompted his move to Switzerland and subsequently by his divorce. Weary of his philandering, his wife, Elena, filed in Switzerland. She won a judgment of $4.5 billion with the Palm Beach estate in play, but Dmitry appealed and all parties agreed to a reduced settlement worth about $600 million.
    The property was one of the first on Palm Beach’s “Millionaire’s (now Billionaire’s) Row.” Robert Dun Douglass — of the Dun & Bradstreet Duns —  erected a Tuscan villa in 1916. Utilities tycoon Harrison Williams, then the “richest man in America,” bought it in 1930. Jayne and Charles Wrightsman arrived in 1947 and had Maurice Fatio redesign the place.
    Leslie Wexner (The Limited) bought it in 1985 for $10 million and tore it down, then sold the lot three years later to health care magnate Abe Gosman for $12 million.
    With his health care businesses riding high, Gosman and his girlfriend, Lin Castre, built Maison de L’Amitié as much resort hotel as home, with 20-foot ceilings, marble on the floors and walls from which hung paintings by Lichtenstein and Hockney, among others, and a massive rotunda/family room lined with reproductions of legendary works of art.
    Gosman became a pillar of the community, giving money to Good Samaritan Hospital, the Norton Museum of Art and HomeSafe. A $1 million gift to the Kravis Center helped build the Gosman Amphitheatre on its eastern flank.
    Shortly after moving in, Gosman opened his home to 250 guests for a fundraiser for Palm Beach Opera in honor of Luciano Pavarotti, who would perform two days later at Palm Beach Jai Alai.
    But within five years, Gosman’s world fell apart. Changes in federal laws and Medicare cuts crippled his nursing home investments, and a bankruptcy was nullified when a judge ruled that Lin Gosman’s previous divorce — in Mexico — was invalid.
    Enter Trump in 2004 to buy the mansion at auction for a Walmart price of $41.35 million. He outbid the notorious Jeffrey Epstein and developer Mark Pulte.
    Trump gutted the mansion and put it up for sale. Rybolovlev toured the property in 2006 and bought it in 2008. He never lived in it. Apparently Trump never met Rybolovlev. When questioned in July, he said his only connection to Russia was the deal with Rybolovlev, who in the mid-’90s spent nearly a year in a Russian jail on trumped-up charges of hiring an assassin.
                                     ***
    Another somewhat prominent part-time Palm Beacher has a new toy.
It’s no secret that Stephen Ross chairs Related Cos., the developer of CityPlace, and owns the Miami Dolphins. His RSE Ventures owns FanVision, which allows NASCAR fans to follow their favorite drivers via cameras in the cockpit.
    But an investment he made last year is even more intriguing. RSE invested $1 million, a paltry sum by Ross’ standards, in the Drone Racing League. The challenge is to attract spectators. YouTube feeds of drone races attract millions of views, but at recent events, the competitors have outnumbered spectators. Ross believes the technology of FanVision can be adapted to the darting drones and attract virtual, paying customers.
    Maybe Ross could use some of the drones to search for  loose tiles that were improperly installed on the roof of the 20-story CityPlace South Tower, a $3.2 million repair job.
                                     ***
    A few hundred feet to the west, The Regional in CityPlace is making big news on the restaurant scene. The latest project from Titou Hospitality, The Regional Kitchen & Public House could be a big hit, or like its predecessors, a flop. Titou has strong cred with Pistache in downtown West Palm Beach and Palm Beach Catch across the bridge and the presence of celebrity chef Lindsay Autry.
But the space is huge, 8,300 square feet, and faces Okeechobee Boulevard. Predecessors over CityPlace’s 15 years, most recently Pampas, an Argentinian steakhouse; McCormick & Schmick’s; the legendary Columbia Restaurant out of Tampa, and Angelo & Maxie’s, have enjoyed little success attracting spur-of-the-moment traffic.
    Autry will blend concepts reflecting her Southern roots and some even more southerly  — the Caribbean and Mexico — plus a little French flair. Initial offerings include: grilled snapper in banana leaf with green tomato salsa verde and roasted market vegetables; cobia with ricotta gnocchi, country ham, Okeechobee mushrooms and pea greens; grilled ribeye with Seminole fried rice, grilled broccoli, toasted garlic and soy. We also hear that the pimiento cheese on club crackers is killer.
     The Titou presence actually has expanded far beyond CityPlace. Six months ago, founder Thierry Beaud, a principal in Palm Beach’s legendary Au Bar, opened his second Paneterie Cafe and Bakery west of Delray Beach on Jog Road in The Shoppes at Addison Place.
It’s like a neighborhood bakery and cafe in Europe, Beaud said. Fresh croissants, panini, éclair — all fresh daily.
The man running the kitchens at both sites is Patrick Léze, who rolled his first dough four decades ago as a teenager.  
               ***                     
    Attention New Yorkers and all other lovers of decadent food. If you’re reading this, Junior’s first restaurant in South Florida should have opened in Boca’s Mizner Park. It’s taking over the old Ruby Tuesday’s space. Target date to begin serving its legendary cheesecake, latkes, high-rise pastrami sandwiches and steak burgers was the last week of September.
    Actually, owner Alan Rosen had no choice: His dad, Walter, who ran the operation in New York, moved to Delray Beach, and he needed a place to eat.
                           ***         
At St. Andrews Episcopal Church in Lake Worth on Oct. 23, actor David Perez-Ribada and Core Ensemble (cello, piano and percussion) will perform Los Valientes, based on the lives of artist Diego Rivera, martyred Salvadoran Bishop Oscar Romero and Mexican-American folk hero Joaquin Murrieta.
    A reception and an art exhibit by the children of farmworkers will follow. Jointly produced by Core Ensemble, the Norton Museum of Art and the Farmworker Coordinating Council. Admission is free. (Call 582-6609.)
                                     ***
     Another Delray festival bites the dust. Faced with a doubling of city usage fees, the Bacon and Bourbon Fest will not return next March. It joins Garlic Fest, which after 18 years will move to John Prince Park in Lake Worth; the Wine and Seafood Festival, which was scheduled for Nov. 11 and 12 (its website says “postponed”). Three smaller craft fairs also will not return. City officials concluded the fees paid by as many as 16 festivals were insufficient to cover police services and sanitation. Businesses, especially restaurants, complained the festivals hurt their revenue. Residents objected to traffic jams and property damage. The city proposed raising the rate for Bacon and Bourbon Fest from $10,000 to $45,000. Based on attendance, that would require a ticket price of $30, according to Nancy Stewart-Franczak, who produces several events for the sponsoring Delray Beach Arts Inc. & Festival Management Group. 
                                     ***
    Good Morning America news anchor Amy Robach and actor/husband Andrew Shue headline the Boca Raton Regional Hospital’s 13th annual Go Pink Luncheon on Oct. 21 at the Boca Raton Resort & Club. The event supports the hospital’s breast cancer awareness programs and community outreach.
    While having a nationally televised mammogram on GMA to promote breast cancer awareness, Robach, then 46, was diagnosed with breast cancer. A double mastectomy and chemotherapy followed. Now she passionately promotes awareness and detection. (Details at donate.brrh.com.)
                                     ***
    Former American Idol judge Randy Jackson and actor Shawn Hatosy will make their first appearances at the 27th Chris Evert/Raymond James Pro-Celebrity Tennis Classic Nov. 18-20. They’ll join Evert, returning celebs Jason Biggs, Alan Thicke and David Cook and pros Martina Navratilova and Rennae Stubbs for some lively matches at Delray Beach Tennis Center and the Pro-Celebrity Gala at the Boca Raton Resort & Club. (Details at chrisevert.org.)
                                     ***
    Olympics withdrawal? Well, the games may be over and the U.S. team was stunning, but one group was virtually ignored — the equestrians.
    The team members, most of whom call Palm Beach County home at least part of the year, were given a passing salute for a silver medal in show jumping. But two riders from Wellington, both Olympic rookies who helped the dressage team claim bronze, were left out.
    Allison Brock on Rosevelt and Kasey Perry-Glass on Dublet joined six-time Olympian and 1996 bronze medalist Steffen Peters of California and another rookie, Laura Graves of Plymouth, Fla., to produce the United States’ first dressage medal since 2004. The steady hand of Wellington resident and four-time Olympic bronze medalist Robert Dover, as chef d’equipe, didn’t hurt.
    Despite being without Wellington’s Beezie Madden because of an injury to her horse Cortes ‘C’, the U.S. team pulled off a remarkable silver medal performance in show jumping. Wellington’s Kent Farrington accrued a one-point time fault; California-born Lucy Davis, who lives in the Netherlands and is a regular at the Winter Equestrian Festival, picked up four faults on the final triple jump; McLain Ward, another winter regular, jumped clear for a five-fault total. France took the gold with three faults.
    Another Wellington winterer, Phillip Dutton riding Mighty Nice, took bronze in eventing. It’s the equestrian equivalent of the decathlon, as each rider and horse compete in jumping, dressage and cross country.
    Though the United States won no gold medals, it and Germany were the only teams to medal in all three disciplines. Bravo!

Wellington winter resident Phillip Dutton, riding Mighty Nice at the Rio Olympics, took bronze in eventing, which combines jumping, dressage and cross country. Photo provided
 
Thom Smith is a freelance writer. He can be reached at thomsmith@ymail.com.


 

Lantana Mayor David Stewart issued a proclamation during the Town Council meeting recognizing the Lakeside Village senior community for the health-and-wellness environment it offers residents. The proclamation also honored the facility for its Annual Health and Wellness Day, which this year took place Sept. 27. ABOVE: (l-r) resident Lewis Doctor, Stewart, Rebecca Waldorf, director of community relations at Lakeside Village, and resident Mel Silver. Photo provided

The Plate: Drunken shrimp
The Place: Heroes Sports Bar & Grill, 224 N. Third St., Lantana; 328-9909 or heroeslantana.com.
The Price: $14
The Skinny: I wasn’t sure what to expect from this appetizer, cooked in Heroes’ “signature sauce served with toast points,” but that signature sauce was a rich, flavorful broth with a mild heat that was perfect for sopping with the rectangles of toast.
The large shrimp were perfectly cooked, tender and tasting of the sea.
In fact, each dish we tried was a winner at this restaurant and bar that has been home to the Grumpy Grouper and Benny’s.
Also quite tasty: The Three Peat, a chicken sandwich with sautéed onions, sliced bell peppers, bacon and cheddar and Monterey Jack cheeses served on a perfectly toasted roll. The all-you-can-eat fish special of haddock was fried crisp and served with a tangy slaw.
 — Scott Simmons

By Jane Smith

    The Arts Garage continues to have angels who want to see the performing arts venue succeed.
    Its lease, already extended six months, received another two-month extension in early September from Delray Beach city commissioners. They agreed to the deal, which requires a monthly rent of $866.67 and ends Nov. 16.
    The Arts Garage occupies 10,289 square feet on the first floor of the Old School Square Parking Garage, also owned by the city. The two parties are working on a long-term lease.
    The same evening, its co-executive directors appeared before the city’s Community Redevelopment Agency board. At the meeting, the Arts Garage received $100,366 to cover its deficit after submitting an amended budget in August.
    “We all know the history, they are trying hard and we need to cover the deficit,” CRA board member Paul Zacks said. “We should go along with the staff recommendation.”
    The organization split from its Pompano Beach operation earlier this year, a move the CRA board required as a condition of receiving agency money. The Arts Garage received half of its allocation, or $137,500, in April. The CRA board wanted to make sure its money — taxpayer dollars — was not going to support operations outside of Delray Beach.
    Founder and President Alyona Ushe left the Arts Garage in April to concentrate on arts venues in Pompano Beach, including its amphitheater and a soon-to-open cultural center.
 “My career path, however, has always been focused on launching new venues,” Ushe announced at the time. “I am just thrilled to now be able to put all of my energies and creativity on Pompano Beach.”
    Two staff members — Dan Schwartz, finance director, and Keith Garsson, operations director — replaced Ushe.
In June, they asked the CRA for $275,000 for the fiscal year starting Oct. 1.
    This time, the CRA board agreed to release $170,000 with conditions that require the Arts Garage to streamline its expenses within six months in order to receive the remaining $105,000.
    CRA board members also want to see the Arts Garage become more of a creative collaborative, an umbrella organization, for the arts, which was its original purpose.
    The Arts Garage is reaching out to the West Atlantic Redevelopment Coalition and the Spady Cultural Heritage Museum to offer jazz and blues programs as part of the venue’s programming and classes.
    “We are still trying to diversify the audience,” Garsson said.
    Despite the turmoil, the Arts Garage was able to sell $738,867 in tickets, which covered 64 percent of the program expenses through Aug. 31.
    As in the past, the CRA has a selection committee rate requests from seven Delray Beach nonprofits before recommending whether the organizations will receive the agency’s money. Each nonprofit request is rated on five criteria, including need for the program.
    For the current budget year, the committee consisted of Jeff Costello, CRA executive director; Lori Hayward, CRA finance and operations director; Francine Ramaglia, assistant city manager, and Ferline Mesidort, neighborhood services administrator for the city.
    The committee rated the Arts Garage very low, 60 percent, for its two types of offerings: arts programs and classes.  
    “I hope you look at this and see that you were rated very low,” said Cathy Balestriere, CRA board member. “There are still internal problems you have to resolve.”

Meri Ziev of Ocean Ridge often has roles at the Lake Worth Playhouse. This month she's Josephine Strong in Urinetown, The Musical.  Tim Stepien/The Coastal Star

By Mary Thurwachter

    A decade ago, Meri Ziev’s children dragged her to an audition for a musical at the Delray Beach Playhouse. Or maybe she dragged them. In any event, her progeny wanted to be in a play and, as she watched the auditions, she realized she could do that too. All of them got parts and Ziev launched her community theater acting career.
    Today, Ziev and her husband, Arthur, live in Ocean Ridge and are empty nesters. Their daughter, Natalie, just graduated from the University of Florida with a degree in marine science and wants to be an occupational therapist. Their son, Jason, has a degree in musical theater from Emerson College in Boston and had lead roles this year in the Lake Worth Playhouse's performances of Tommy and Rock of Ages.
    Ziev works part-time as a speech-language pathologist at Galaxy Elementary School and is a cabaret singer who performs at venues such as the Black Box at the Lake Worth Playhouse, condos and assisted living homes. But much of her time goes to productions at the playhouse. Her current role is Josephine Strong, the mother of the hero in Urinetown, The Musical, a satire of the legal system, capitalism, corporate mismanagement and municipal politics. In the play, a 20-year drought has led to a ban on private toilets.
    The show runs Oct. 6 through 23.
    Josephine, said Ziev, seems slow to understand things but is a strong and fierce defender of her son.
    “The show is coming together in a delightful way,” she said. “It’s a clever, interesting subject without being heavy.”
    Ziev, 56, said she has always loved music and singing and has come to love the camaraderie, creativity, storytelling and music she finds in community theater. Passion is necessary, because community theater requires a serious time commitment. She rehearsed with the rest of the cast from 7 to 10 p.m. Monday through Friday until tech week, when rehearsals run from 6  to 11 p.m. and include weekend hours.
    Her husband, a developer and business consultant, gets involved in the shows. “He’s a big music lover and you can often find him working concessions or as an usher,” she said.
    Ziev’s fondness for music dates back to her childhood. “I remember singing from the backseat of my dad’s car,” she said. “He played eight-tracks, often Sinatra. I played the flute in high school and mom would take me to the symphony. But I was shy in high school.”
    It’s safe to say she overcame her reticence.
    Her favorite part was Bloody Mary in South Pacific.
    “I didn’t audition because I didn’t think I was appropriate for the part,” Ziev said. But when the woman who got the part had to bow out, Ziev was asked to step in.
    “I said, ‘Oh, I get to sing Bali High, I’ll do it,’” she said. “I had to transform completely — my gait, my posture, I lowered my voice and changed my accent. I even had to wear makeup on my teeth.” She found the role “fun and exciting.”
    It was not her most challenging role —that was Lady Thiang in The King and I.
    “I had to get knee pads to do the show because we had to get down and bow to the king so much. It was physically and emotionally challenging,” Ziev said.
    Among her favorite actresses are Meryl Streep, Lily Tomlin and Alfre Woodard. But her all-time favorite is her cabaret coach Faith Prince, best known for her work in Broadway musicals. “She has been in movies, cabaret and on TV,” Ziev said. “She is extremely fun, quirky and interesting.”
    Besides Urinetown The Musical, Ziev is preparing for a cabaret show with Kelly DiLorenzo called The Legendary Ladies of Song: Side by Side at the Stonzek Theatre (Lake Worth Playhouse’s Black Box) March 10-12.

If You Go
What: Urinetown, The Musical
Where: Lake Worth Playhouse, 212 Lake Ave.
When: Oct. 6-23
Tickets: $23-$38
Info: 586-6410;
www.lakeworthplayhouse.org.

ABOVE: Turbulent Backcountry, an oil on Upson board by Willie Daniels, one of the Highwaymen.  The artists often sold their work  along roadsides.

BELOW: Boca Bridge, an oil on canvas by A.E. ‘Beanie’ Backus

The works of A.E. ‘Beanie’ Backus and Florida’s Highwaymen, a group of African-American painters of the late 1950s and 1960s, will be on display Sept. 16-Nov. 19 in the Ritter Art Gallery at FAU. Backus taught some of those artists to paint.

For more information, visit Palm Beach ArtsPaper

Capt. Clay Brand poses in front of a mural at Capt. Clay & Sons Seafood Market in Delray Beach with a lionfish that he speared. He harvests a variety of seafood for his market, including lionfish. Tim Stepien/The Coastal Star

Seafood markets hawk invasive lionfish to help control the  impact on Florida’s native fish

By Willie Howard

Lionfish are so well established in Florida waters that scientists have conceded that the non-native fish with venomous spines are here to stay. The goal now is controlling their spread.
The invasive fish with maroon and white stripes — native to the South Pacific and Indian oceans — steals food from Florida’s native fish and eats their young.          

Harvesting contests such as the Gold Coast Lionfish Derby held in June at the Waterstone Resort & Marina in Boca Raton put a dent in lionfish populations, giving the reefs a break.
And growing awareness about the lionfish problem is helping to control them in another way. Consumers are eating more lionfish, making them more valuable to divers who sell them to fish markets. Conservation-minded shoppers and diners understand they can help control a problem on Florida’s reefs by eating a fish with a delicate white meat.
“The fact that everybody’s enjoying eating them and the price is going up is a good thing,” said Capt. Clay Brand, owner of Capt. Clay & Sons Seafood Market in Delray Beach, who has offered lionfish at his market for about six years.
Brand pays divers $5 a pound for whole lionfish and sells it whole for about $10 a pound. As a diver, Brand sees lionfish on the reefs and spears many of the lionfish sold at his market.  Bigger food retailers, notably Whole Foods Market and Publix, are offering lionfish to their customers, at least when they’re available.

Non-native lionfish was selling for $9.99 a pound whole in August at the Whole Foods Market in Boca Raton. Fillets were considerably more, at $29.99 a pound.
Willie Howard / The Coastal Star

Customers have been calling and putting in orders for lionfish at Whole Foods since the grocery chain began offering lionfish in April, said David Ventura, regional seafood coordinator for Whole Foods in Florida.
“The response has been very, very positive,” Ventura said. “It’s created a lot of interest.”
At the Whole Foods Market on Glades Road in Boca Raton, the seafood department staff often prepares samples of lionfish for customers on weekends.  
“It’s similar to hogfish,” said Corey Hopkins, assistant team leader in the seafood department at the Boca Raton store. “It’s very light, very delicate. It’s good in ceviche. You can do just about anything with it.”
Unlike other fish whose populations could be under stress because they’re tasty, lionfish are actually a scourge, at least in the coastal waters of the United States, where they have no natural predators. That adds a feel-good component to eating lionfish.
A sign at Whole Foods in Boca Raton encourages customers to “take a bite out of lionfish … be a part of the solution.” In August, the store sold lionfish for $9.99 a pound whole and $29.99 a pound filleted. Red lionfish (Pterois volitans) are relatively small, typically 12 to 15 inches, but they can eat fish half their body length. They herd prey with their fan-like pectoral fins and blow water at other fish to get them to turn around before swallowing them.  
In the waters off Florida, lionfish eat more than 70 species of fish and invertebrates, including yellowtail snapper, spiny lobster, parrotfish and Nassau grouper.  With few natural enemies in the Southeast, 18 venomous spines for protection and the ability to live in a wide range of water depths, lionfish have become well established on Florida’s reefs and wrecks.
One problem for seafood markets has been the inconsistent availability of lionfish. When seas are rough and lobster season is closed, divers are less likely to pursue lionfish and they can be hard to find in markets.
At Publix, lionfish are available by special order through the supermarket chain’s Reel Variety program. Publix sells lionfish fillets with the skin on and bones in to maintain texture at prices ranging from $24.99 to $29.99 a pound. (The price of fillets is high because the whole fish yields about one third meat.)

The Lionfish Cookbook by Tricia Ferguson and Lad Akins has recipes for lionfish entrees and appetizers. Proceeds of the book, which sells for $16.95, go to lionfish research and removal programs.

How to cook lionfish

Most seafood markets have suggestions, and serious lionfish aficionados can order The Lionfish Cookbook by Tricia Ferguson and Lad Akins. The second edition of the cookbook contains more than 45 recipes for lionfish appetizers and entrees and is available for $16.95 through the nonprofit Reef Environmental Education Foundation at www.reef.org/store/lionfishcookbook.
REEF uses proceeds from sales of the cookbooks for lionfish research and removal programs. 

By Sallie James

City Council members who have waited years to get a raise finally got the green light on Aug. 30: A charter change establishing the raises squeaked through with 50.4 percent of the vote.
Voters resoundingly approved a second charter change — it won 69.1 percent of the votes — requiring council vacancies be filled by special election.
Council member Robert Weinroth proposed the salary increase.
He  said higher salaries would make it easier for people to serve in a position that is very time-consuming and might increase the pool of willing candidates.
The proposed charter change, which won 4,826 yes votes to 4,753 no votes, established a $38,000 annual salary for the mayor, up from $9,000, and a $28,000 annual salary for council members, up from $7,200.  
The pay hikes take effect in October 2017.
Council member Scott Singer proposed the charter change that addressed how council vacancies were to be filled, saying voters needed the ability to choose someone for an open council seat rather than watch an appointed member serve until the next regularly-scheduled election.
Singer initially introduced the charter change in May, but it went through several revisions before it was approved for placement on the Aug. 30 primary election ballot.
Residents who supported the measure called it a “no brainer,” saying the city needed a more democratic process in place.
The ballot question received 6,546 yes votes to 2,925 no votes.
Residents who favored the salary increases agreed with Weinroth that higher pay is essential to attract quality candidates to a job that requires much time and research.
Previous attempts in 2004 and 2006 to increase council salaries both failed.