By Dan Moffett

A proposal to begin a “sticker identification” program for vehicles in South Palm Beach got a stormy reception during the Town Council’s meeting on Jan. 14.
Councilman Mark Weissman said he brought the idea forward as a way to get more residents involved in the town’s activities, not to invade their privacy.
“It is a voluntary sticker program,” he said, “and a way to show hometown pride by putting a sticker on your car.”
Weissman hoped that having residents register at Town Hall also would be a way of accumulating contact information that could be invaluable to officials when emergencies such as hurricanes require mass notifications.
But those who attended the meeting would hear none of it.
“Too much Big Brother!” one resident shouted.
“I won’t put stickers on my car,” said another.
“We all hate this,” yelled another.
“I feel this is absolutely ridiculous,” said Ellen Salth. “I really feel this is a waste of time and energy. If you need names and email addresses, there’s another way of getting them.”
Vice Mayor Robert Gottlieb said he was willing to consider the idea because it was a voluntary program. “But I don’t like stickers either,” he said. “I wouldn’t use it myself.”
The proposal died on a 3-1 vote, with Weissman the lone supporter and Councilwoman Stella Gaddy Jordan absent.
In other business:
• Mayor Bonnie Fischer said there is still a good chance that the town could begin a beach renourishment project this spring. But it’s up to officials from the town of Palm Beach to make it happen.
For the sand plan to go forward by the April target date, project managers have to get the remaining easements they need to access the beach and hire a contractor. Fischer said the work has to be completed before the beginning of peak turtle nesting season in May.
Palm Beach earned final approval from federal officials in January for its $32 million project and is set to begin dredging this month off Midtown Beach.
The South Palm part in the $770,000 collaboration plan between towns would come after the Midtown work is done. It calls for hauling hundreds of truckloads of sand — dredged by Palm Beach contractors — to South Palm’s beach from a Phipps Ocean Park staging site. That could take three weeks to complete.
• Palm Beach County has added seven-day, east-west Palm Tran bus service from Lake Worth Beach to Wellington, and Gottlieb is hoping to add a stop in South Palm Beach to the route. He said the determining factor would be if Palm Tran officials can find a spot in South Palm or at Lantana Municipal Beach to turn buses around.
• The council has scheduled a 7 p.m. workshop for Feb. 26 to discuss what to do about renovating, repairing or rebuilding Town Hall.

The Meating Place owner Del Valeriay with some of his team (l-r): Brett Fournier, manager Jack Baitz, Erick Andersen and Joey Baitz, Jack’s son. Tim Stepien/The Coastal Star

By Ron Hayes

Sometimes there were moments when he wondered how much longer he’d keep the business. Tastes were changing, the market for quality meats coming and going, everyone looking for bargains. His three children had left for other pursuits. Some of his longtime customers were gone now.
That was in 2010.
A decade later, Del Valeriay still owns The Meating Place, still comes in mornings to make sure his top quality meats are top quality, still greets the customers he’s served for 52 years.
Valeriay is 82 now, and the butcher shop is still at 277 E. Palmetto Park Road. He’s owned it for 42 years, and worked there a decade before that.
“We’re in business more than 50 years now,” he says, “and we’re very proud that it’s our passion for quality and service that keeps bringing our customers back.”
When the doors open at 9:30 a.m., Valeriay has the full trays lining the display cases — the Delmonicos and the New York strip, the porterhouse, the prime ribs, short ribs and sirloin burgers. A little farther along you’ll find the lamb from Colorado and the veal from Wisconsin.
“You have to have the passion for the business in you,” he says, surveying the display. “If it’s not 100%, go on to something else.”
Valeriay was born with it in him, 100%.
His grandfather slaughtered beef in Italy before emigrating, then he and Valeriay’s father owned shops in Meriden, Connecticut.
In 1968, Valeriay came to Boca Raton and went to work for a fellow named Sal Santelli, who had opened The Village Butcher, the town’s first meat market, in 1963, and later The Meating Place.
Ten years later, he bought the business from Santelli and has owned it ever since.
“He was a good friend,” Valeriay says. “He’s gone now.”
In 1993, Valeriay opened another Meating Place at Yamato and Jog roads but sold it in 2013.
The original shop on East Palmetto Park Road is still basically the same as when he bought it, but the town around it isn’t.
“When I was first here, there was nothing,” he says. “Now look. Nine-story buildings all around us.”
He shakes his head, still amazed by the changes he’s seen.
“I remember going to pick tomatoes at a place called U-Pick over where Spanish River High School is now,” he reflects. “Strawberries and tomatoes.”
The Meating Place is a family business in which the employees, unrelated by blood, have become family through longevity. The manager, Jack Baitz, 63, has been here 36 years. His twin brother, Mike, has been a meat cutter and counterman for 15.
They were born on Christmas Day, Jack first by 10 minutes.
“We’re mirror twins,” he says. “Mike’s a lefty, I’m a righty. He has girls, I have boys. He’s mechanical and I’m better at cutting meat. He’s boisterous and I’m more on the quiet side.”
Jack takes credit for the market’s prepared food business.
“When I first came here I said, let me try some ham salad,” he recalls with pride. “That was the first thing I made, and we went from ham and chicken to tuna and crab salads.”
Today, the cases are full of prepared meals — chicken Parmesan and cacciatore; stuffed shells, peppers and cabbage; shepherd’s pie and beef stew. All the cooking is done in the store, using the same high-quality meats they sell.
“I might even do some jambalaya,” Jack says. “Today I’m doing meatloaf.”
One item you won’t find? Veggie burgers.
“I’m a meat eater,” Valeriay says. “But everything in moderation. I eat meat twice a week, and I don’t order meat in restaurants.” He shakes his head. “When you handle the best, you don’t need the rest. I eat fish in restaurants.”
For the past year, Jack’s son Joey, 25, has been here too, learning the business.
“The most important lessons I’ve learned,” he says without hesitating, “are know your stock and know your customers.”
The Meating Place has been knowing its customers for a long time.
“We’re taking care of the kids’ kids now,” Valeriay says. “You know the customers’ names and their dogs’ names.”
Jack nods. “One lady I’ve seen pregnant with four kids over the years,” he says, “and now the kids are finished with college.”
Sal Falcone likes to think his business has been around a long time. He and his brother, Vinny, opened their V&S Italian Deli at 2621 N. Federal Highway in 1985, but The Meating Place gives him pause.
“We buy all our ground beef from there to make our meatballs and lasagna,” Falcone says. “We can’t find anything better in the marketplace. And I love that name, The Meating Place. It’s a great pun, and it’s so true. The people who come in all know each other, so it really is a meating place and a meeting place.”
But how much longer?
Del Valeriay wondered back in 2010, but it doesn’t seem to concern him these days.
“I’m semi-retired now,” he says. “At 82, I think I deserve it. I swim, and I don’t drink or smoke. No desserts, no candy. My mom lived to be 93, and I have her genes.
“How much longer? I leave that up to the Lord.”

By Christine Davis

The Boynton Beach Mall may halve its retail space and add apartments, hotels and offices. Under a proposal filed for the 108.3-acre site by landowners, the redeveloped mall would include 1,420 multifamily units, 400 hotel rooms, 629,000 square feet of retail, 65,000 square feet of general offices, 65,000 square feet of medical offices, a 20,000-square-foot fitness center and 10,000 square feet of fast-food restaurants.
The mall currently has 1.15 million square feet of retail and movie-theater space. The Cinemark theater and a church would remain, and open space would be increased by 6.7 acres to 23.3 acres of new pedestrian and public spaces. The proposal, considered by City Commission on Dec. 9, will be up for final approval on Feb. 18.

In December, a joint venture between Investcorp and The Preiss Co. secured a $71 million refinance loan from Square Mile Capital Management for University Park, a student housing complex near Florida Atlantic University in Boca Raton. The 11-acre complex, with 159 units in eight four-story buildings at 135 NW 20th St., was completed in 2015.
The joint venture partnership of Rosemurgy Properties, Giles Capital Group and Lewis Rental Properties sold University Park to the joint venture in 2016 for $70 million, as part of a three-property sale for a combined $105.25 million.  

Harold V. Groome Jr., the chairman of Groome Transportation, purchased Thomas and Toni Mendiburu’s home at 484 S. Maya Palm Drive in Boca Raton for $11.5 million. The sale was recorded on Dec. 23. The six-bedroom home, with 131 feet fronting the Grand Canal, was built in 2018. David W. Roberts with Royal Palm Properties represented the seller and buyer in the deal. Groome Transportation provides airport shuttle services at 13 airports.

Grafton Street Capital, led by Sean Posner and Jed Resnick, and Halstatt Real Estate Partners, developers of 3621 S. Ocean in Highland Beach, sold townhouse No. 3 to JHJ Family Trust, managed by trustee Jeffrey Herzog, for $6.05 million. The sale was recorded on Jan. 6.
Also recorded on Jan. 6, the development group sold townhouse No. 4 to Christin and Joseph Kohls for $5.75 million. Joseph Kohls was a senior managing director of Guggenheim Securities’ health care investment banking group, and previously was co-head of global health care investment banking at Bank of America Merrill Lynch.
The development, which consists of two buildings with three units each, is represented by Jennifer Kilpatrick of the Corcoran Group. The buyers’ agents in these sales were the Senada Adzem team, Douglas Elliman Real Estate, for townhouse No. 3, and Kerry Warwick of the Corcoran Group for townhouse No. 4. Two townhomes are listed for sale through Kilpatrick, and one unit is offered for resale through the Senada Adzem team.

Race car driver Vincent Khristov has listed his Delray Beach home for $2.495 million with Michael Prettitore and Derek Barra, agents with Douglas Elliman. Khristov, who drives for the Dallas-based Crosslink/Kiwi Motorsport Team on the U.S. Formula 4 circuit, has competed in 42 races as a professional.
His residence at 943 Fern Drive is a newly renovated contemporary home in the Tropic Isle community. With almost 5,000 square feet under air, the four-bedroom home fronts 90 feet on a wide canal off the Intracoastal Waterway. Features include an open floor plan, cathedral ceilings, marble and porcelain floors, an oversized loft and a large pool.

Group P6 has launched sales for Royal Palm Residences, a 48-unit condominium with three nine-story buildings at the corner of Fifth Avenue and East Royal Palm Road in downtown Boca Raton. Royal Palm Residences will have three- to five-bedroom units, with 2,425 square feet to 7,168 square feet, priced from $1.75 million to $3.9 million.
The Boca Raton-based firm RLC Architects designed Royal Palm Residences, and Suffolk Construction will be the project’s general contractor. The project is expected to break ground in June, with completion in 2022. One Sotheby’s International Realty is handling sales and marketing.

A 41,000-square-foot Whole Foods Market opened Jan. 29 at 680 Linton Blvd., Delray Beach. This is Palm Beach County’s fourth Whole Foods store. One percent of the store’s net sales during the first four days were to benefit community partners Delray Beach Children’s Garden, CROS Ministries Delray Beach Food Pantry, The Milagro Center, Jacobson Family Food Pantry and Healthier Delray Beach.

FSB Menswear, noted for its Italian product line, will close its Ocean Avenue store in Boynton Beach on March 31, ending nearly 50 years in business here. The company, known for its slogan, “You enter as a customer and leave as friends and family,” is taking a sabbatical to reflect on its next business venture.
“I wish only the best to the (Boynton Beach) business community, of which I was proud to be a part for all these years,” said Giovanni Marquez, operations director. The news release said the company planned to maintain its website to stay connected to “20,000 faithful shoppers worldwide.”
“We are not quitting and we’re not retiring,” the release said, “but rather will be reinventing and refreshing.”

The Palm Beach County Business Development Board has made note of South County kudos reported in Florida Trend’s December 2019 issue. They included findings by Vanessa Caceres in U.S. News that half of the hospitals listed for “Largest Hospitals Around the State” in the Southeast category are in Palm Beach County: Delray Medical Center — 493 beds in Delray Beach; JFK Medical Center — 486 beds in Atlantis; St. Mary’s Medical Center — 460 beds in West Palm Beach; Bethesda Hospital East — 401 beds in Boynton Beach; and Boca Raton Regional Hospital — 400 beds in Boca Raton.
Florida Atlantic University was highlighted for launching a master’s degree in artificial intelligence.
Out of 20 restaurants that won “Golden Spoon Hall of Fame” awards in the Southeast, these are in south Palm Beach County: Casa D’Angelo, La Nouvelle Maison, Louie Bossi’s Ristorante Bar and Pizzeria, TwentyTwenty Grille, The Grove and Salt7. 

Jessica Steinweg is the new director of marketing and communications at Delray Beach’s Old School Square. 
Previously, Steinweg was at BrandStar, a brand-marketing agency in Pompano Beach, where she oversaw marketing promotions for the company and for its TV programs.

The South Florida Science Center and Aquarium was awarded $100,000 through the Stiles-Nicholson Foundation to increase STEM education for Palm Beach County students, centered around a goal to expand robotics programs through the nonprofit FIRST, or For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology.
This award is in addition to a recent $50,000 STEM Equity Community Innovation Grant received by the Palm Beach County School District from FIRST, which advances science, technology, engineering and math education.
The Palm Beach County School District, the South Florida Science Center and Aquarium, and Green Mouse Academy have already begun to implement a FIRST Lego League program expansion for pre-K through grade-four students, to provide robotics equipment labs, curriculum, training and coaching.
This year’s FIRST global robotics theme challenges students to imagine and create a building that solves a problem and then use Lego robotics to design and program their Boomtown Build.   

The Florida Prepaid College Board recently lowered prepaid plan prices by $1.3 billion, which will benefit 224,000 customers. The price reductions, which apply to plans purchased since 2008, were due to successive years of lower-than-anticipated tuition and fee increases.
Nearly half of the customers have refunds available, totaling more than $500 million. The remaining plans will have lower monthly payment amounts.
Open enrollment is Feb. 1 through April 30. Families can enroll in a prepaid plan for free, a $50 savings, by using promo code EARLY50 through Feb. 29.
Families can use the prepaid plan online tool (www.myfloridaprepaid.com/prepaid-plans/plans-and-pricing/) for information on plans and payment options.
Those eligible to receive refunds or reductions received notification from the board in January. For information about how a plan was affected, go to myfloridaprepaid.com/lowprices.   

Boca West Children’s Foundation is partnering with the Junior League of Boca Raton’s Diaper Bank to raise awareness that diapers are as essential as food and shelter for infants and toddlers.
On Feb. 18, the two organizations will set out to collect 50,000 diapers to aid underserved families in Palm Beach County. Drop-offs can be made at the league’s Vegso Community Resource Center at 261 NW 13th St.
“Our mission is to help local kids in need, and with the cost of diapers being prohibitively high for many families, the Diaper Bank is such an impactful way to help,” said Pamela Weinroth, executive director and chief operating officer of the foundation. “When families have limited funds, keeping an infant in diapers becomes a luxury.”
For information about the foundation, call 561-488-6980 or visit www.bocawestfoundation.org.
For information about the Junior League, call 561-620-2553 or visit www.jlbr.org.

The Greater Delray Beach Chamber of Commerce’s Delray Business Partners leads group set a record for collaboration under the leadership of its chair, Jan Kinder. During 2019, the 35 members of the Delray Business Partners generated more than $165,000 of gross sales by doing business with one another as well as by referring their colleagues in the group to other potential clients.
“At each meeting, members are encouraged to exchange business leads — potential clients or customers for other members of the group,” Kinder said. “In effect, their contacts become your contacts; their customers can become your customers. Members also rotate making short presentations about their businesses.”
For more information, contact the chamber’s Kristopher Fisher at 561-278-0424, or visit www.delraybeach.com.
For information on the Delray Business Partners leads group, visit https://delraybusinesspartners.com.

The Greater Boca Raton Chamber of Commerce partnered with the Dolph Map Co. to publish a Boca Raton street map, which will include a member business directory section. The chamber will distribute the map and include a link to it on its home page at  www.bocachamber.com. ;

Send business news to Christine Davis at cdavis9797@gmail.com. 

Event Chairwomen Rosemary Krieger and Anne Vegso. Photo provided

By Amy Woods

The shelter’s statistics say it all. Four hundred women and children received emergency housing last year while another 750 received referrals to other resources because the facility was at capacity. Outreach services increased 32%. Programs for community education, professional training and violence prevention grew 136%.

In all, Aid to Victims of Domestic Abuse helped more than 15,000 residents in 2019.

“The number of people demanding our services is at an all-time high,” said Pam O’Brien, AVDA’s president and CEO. “For the last three years, it has been that way.”

O’Brien, who is gearing up for her organization’s annual fundraiser, the Heart of a Woman Luncheon, on Feb. 26, said the Me Too movement has empowered more women to come forward and report abuse.

“I think that the conversation nationally about intimate-partner violence is so prevalent today that it’s made people more comfortable reaching out for help,” she said. “They know they’re not alone, and our numbers show that.”

Proceeds from the luncheon will benefit AVDA’s 24-hour crisis hotline and 32-bed apartment complex in addition to the services and programs mentioned above.

“We have had a tremendous outpouring of sponsorships for this event, which has already exceeded our expectations,” O’Brien said. “I’m grateful for the support from the community.”

Audrey-May Prosper is the keynote speaker. Prosper will share her shocking story of survival, what she learned from it and how it led to a lifelong mission of helping others like her thrive in the aftermath.

“She speaks as a woman who has lived through something horrific,” O’Brien said. “Her focus will be on the positive and making the best of a scary situation and moving past it.”

The luncheon begins at 10:30 a.m. with a mix-and-mingle, a silent auction and a luxury raffle. A community service award will be presented to Kol, an 8-year-old golden retriever certified by Golden Paws Assistance Dogs and owned by Jane Eisenberg.

Therapy dog Kol will be honored for work at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. Photo provided

The two spent nearly four months at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland following the 2018 mass shooting there.
“I have been very involved in AVDA for many years, and it is an organization that is close to my heart,” event Chairwoman Anne Vegso said. “We’re just wanting this event to be the best ever.”

Chairwoman Rosemary Krieger agreed.

“We want to make this the best yet,” Krieger said. “We want to acquire sponsors, and we want to be out there telling people why we’re here.”

Send news and notes to Amy Woods at flamywoods@bellsouth.net.

If You Go

What: Heart of a Woman Luncheon

When: 10:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Feb. 26

Where: Royal Palm Yacht & Country Club, 2425 W. Maya Palm Drive, Boca Raton

Cost: $175

Information: Call 561-265-3797 or visit

www.avdaonline.org

Cathy Sauer and her brother Bobby Wollenberg run Nina Raynor, their family-owned business in downtown Delray. Photos by Tim Stepien/The Coastal Star

Nina Raynor has a new address, but the same personal service and showstopper dresses

By Joyce Reingold

On a Saturday afternoon in January, a customer arrives at Nina Raynor, Delray Beach’s special occasion women’s clothing boutique, carrying a dress she’d recently purchased. A club event is hours away and although she loves the dress, she’s having second thoughts about whether it’s right for the party.

Store associates show her a small selection of options. After a few try-ons, an accessory tweak and a discussion about shoes, the woman leaves the store smiling, her original purchase on her arm.

“They’re just great,” she says of the Nina Raynor team. “And so patient, listening to me obsess.”

That kind of personal service, no-pressure sales environment, and singular garments that look like works of art are some of the reasons Nina Raynor is Delray Beach’s oldest clothing store in continuous operation.

In December, the boutique opened its doors for the 62nd season at a new location: 210 NE Sixth Ave.

The shop, which traditionally operates seasonally from October through June, was a presence at its previous location, 1031 E. Atlantic Ave., for 29 years. Last year, Ocean Properties, the building’s owner, announced plans to repurpose the space, according to Bobby Wollenberg, who operates the family-owned boutique with his sister Cathy Sauer.

“They decided to expand their office space, so they needed to come into that part of the building,” he said. “Change is difficult, but yet it’s fun and exciting at the same time.”

When customers first learned the store was leaving its East Atlantic Avenue home, they had two main concerns, Wollenberg said. “All they kept repeating was they didn’t care where the store was, they just wanted Nina Raynor to exist. And the biggest request was that it would have parking. … So, I was able to accomplish that. It’s a great location and great parking.”

Fashions have changed, but the mannequin has remained the same over the decades at Nina Raynor. The store is in its 62nd season.
Photo provided

“We are thrilled the store was able to remain in Delray Beach,” Sauer said. “Local businesses are the fabric of a community. They are what make up the unique character of a town but also create a synergy that helps it thrive. For instance, there are people coming to the store that may not have had a reason to visit Delray previously. We direct them to restaurants for lunch or dinner, where to shop for shoes, order flowers, advise them of special events taking place, hotels to stay in. My brother is a huge advocate of promoting business in town, so much so we joke that he is the concierge of Delray.”

Joanne Wollenberg at work in 1991. Photo provided

The late Nina (pronounced NINE-ah) Raynor opened her eponymous boutique in 1958, offering a collection of resort clothing that was largely sportswear-driven. Wollenberg and Sauer’s mother, Joanne Wollenberg, purchased the business in 1983. She ran the store until her death in 2012.

Wollenberg said it was Joanne, a former fashion model, who established the shop as the destination for special occasion clothing.
“She was beautiful on the outside, but she was more beautiful inside,” Wollenberg said of his mother and mentor. “The customers adored her.”

From one millennium to the next, the boutique has helped women select designer clothing for important life events.

“What brings most women in for the first time is a special event. The No. 1 category is weddings, but the bar and bat mitzvahs are a close second,” he said. “Very often we will dress the mother of the bride, the mother of the groom and grandmothers for the same occasion. I would say 50% of the time we’re dressing both sides of the family. We try to make everyone look beautiful for the same occasion.”

Nina Raynor has customers who’ve shopped there for 50-plus years, Wollenberg said. In addition to its local devotees, the shop draws women from across North America. “We have a very large Canadian following and we’re deeply appreciative of that,” he said.

Stella, with Bobby Wollenberg, has been on the Nina Raynor team for over 30 years. Tim Stepien / The Coastal Star

When Gerry Ehrlich of Boca Raton walked past the shop’s signature topiaries and into the boutique for the first time, she was looking for a special occasion dress.

“I was just really impressed by the personal attention they gave to me — how they helped me to find something that not only suited me, but was the right size, color, that sort of thing,” she said. “And I think besides the attitude and the service and then the quality of what they offer, is the fact that if something doesn’t quite suit, if it doesn’t really fit you perfectly, they have a seamstress there … who with a little twitch here and a little tuck there can make something just look like it was made for you.”

Wollenberg said: “We’d rather not sell to you than to sell you something that, a) doesn’t look well on you, or b) that we know there’s already one at your party, your club, etc. Because that’s how you lose customers. We build relationships. We like to think that once you become a customer you’re part of the family.”

In the boutique’s showroom, elegant gowns hang at perfectly spaced intervals. Fabrics are sumptuous to the eye and touch. In the fashion trade, the feel of the fabric is called the “hand,” Wollenberg said.

“When I’m on a buying trip, it’s all about the fabrication. If the hand is not of a certain quality or caliber, then it wouldn’t be chosen for this store because our clients are quite particular — and should be. They’re very much into beautiful fabrications and that’s something we’re known for.”

The details on the dresses also are showstoppers. There are exotic birds hand-embroidered on tulle. Crystal jewel trim on black peau de soie. Beaded lace appliqué. A bodice swathed in hundreds of artistically arranged Swarovski crystals.

Wollenberg describes Nina Raynor’s fashion aesthetic as “beautiful, classic, unique and elegant.”

The shop features designers like Peggy Jennings, who has designed clothes for U.S. first ladies, and Catherine Regehr, known in part for using laser-cut fabrics that move like soft, kinetic sculptures. The shop is hosting trunk shows by these and other designers this season. The full schedule is available at www.ninaraynor.com.

In addition to its evening wear, the store carries accessories and what Wollenberg calls “nice casual” clothing. That’s one of the reasons longtime customer Carole Ann visits the shop.

“I don’t go to all that many formals, so I’ve bought a lot of my sports clothes there,” says the Boynton Beach resident, who asked to be identified only by her first names. “But the main thing about it is they’re very, very warm and friendly. And when you come in, they offer you a Coca-Cola or water. And at Christmas, Bobby’s sister bakes cookies for everybody. It’s that kind of a warm, family feeling.”

Stella and Bobby in 1998. Photo provided

In talking about the business, Wollenberg is hesitant to use the word staff. “We’re a team here, so they’re more like family to me,” he said of his associates. One of those family members is Stella, known to all by her first name, who’s been with Nina Raynor for more than 30 years. She “was my mom’s right arm,” he said.

Laura Simon, executive director of the Delray Beach Downtown Development Authority, also cites family as an important value in talking about Nina Raynor’s importance to downtown Delray Beach.

“They are family-owned, provide true customer service and have become a destination for unique fashion and gowns,” she said. “We are thrilled that during their relocation process the decision was made to remain here in downtown Delray Beach and the DDA district. They are a piece of the fabric of the community and a part of our legacy as a small, family-owned business.” 

Cathy Sauer and Bobby Wollenberg with their mother, Joanne Wollenberg, in 2010. Joanne Wollenberg ran the Nina Raynor store from 1983 until she died in 2012. Photo provided

“Mom’s idea about the business was to treat each customer as a guest,” Wollenberg said. “Because without the customer there’s no store, and without a store, no one has a job. So, it’s all about the experience. … We just really try our best to make you feel welcome and special. … Just the fact that someone makes the effort to come here and wants to even look, I mean, that’s an honor.”

Giovanni and Grace Marquez celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary with a vow renewal celebration. Giovanni vividly remembered the day he met Grace in downtown Pittsburgh in 1967. He was picking up someone after work and noticed Grace as she came out of the building. ‘It was the best part of my day,’ he said. Soon after, he saw her at a dance. He asked her out on the floor, and that was it — a love match! They were married two years later, on Sept. 19, 1969, at Saint Paul Cathedral in Pittsburgh. The couple lives in Boca Raton and at Marina Village in Boynton Beach, near their menswear store, FSB, on Ocean Avenue. Both are 73 and agree that the secret to a happy marriage is prayer. ‘A family that prays together, stays together,’ Giovanni said. In their spare time, the couple enjoys the arts, live entertainment, going out to dinner, traveling, spending time with family — they have two grown children — and, of course, dancing. Photo provided

Organizers of the breakfast (l-r) Gloria Sumerville, Lineen Nickel, Jeanne Visentin, Gail Greene and Martha Lowther. Photos provided

Crown Colony Club had a welcome-back breakfast to meet and greet old-timers and introduce new residents. There was an air of camaraderie as everyone enjoyed homemade baked goodies and sipped coffee.

 Keith and Patty Bartlett. Photos provided

Diana Ross with Lois Pope. Photos provided by CAPEHART

Legendary singer Diana Ross wowed the capacity crowd of 600-plus at LIFE’s 26th annual fundraiser with a rousing concert of hits. Guests also laughed out loud as comedian Rita Rudner delivered one-liners. Drinking, dining and dancing followed, all to benefit the Pups4Patriots program for veterans. More than $1 million was raised.

Simone and Dr. Peter Bonutti. 

Luke and Nanci Breedlove, Rick and Suzi Goldsmith and Ashton Breedlove.

Margaret and Gerry Kazma with their daughter, Leigh-Ann Kazma. Photo provided by CAPEHART

What better gift than the promise of love, safety and a better life? That is what American Humane and a powerful group of guests pledged to give animals in the new year. Having led efforts to rescue, shelter, feed and protect millions of earth’s creatures, Robin Ganzert, president and CEO of the organization, led a hope-filled toast to aid more animals in 2020.

Michael Benenson and Robert Alrod. Photo provided

About 40 people gathered at the Gold Coast Tiger Bay Club event to hear local activist Suzanne Spencer speak about the public health crisis of the opioid epidemic and how to advance the dialogue on the issue. ‘She could have spoken for another hour because she has so much information about it,’ club President Howard Appell said of Spencer, CEO of Living Skills in the Schools. ‘She talked about just about everything that the opioid crisis touches on.’

Paul Miller, Steve Pate, Sandy Alcántara of the Miami Marlins, Stephen Lewis and Mark Wood. Photo provided

Jennifer Arndt, Chris Bell and Marshall Duane, all of Merrill Lynch in Delray Beach, helped raise $106,100 at the second celebrity golf tournament benefiting Achievement Centers for Children & Families. The event featured Major League Baseball players grouped with foursomes. Proceeds will go toward the development of the Nature Playscape at the agency’s Nancy K. Hurd campus, where 125 preschoolers and their families can learn about the connection between nature and healthy living as well as the importance of environmental stewardship.

Kathy Adkins and Frank Weed. Photos provided by Warner-Prokos Photography

Ellen Elam and Karen Sweetapple. Photos provided by Warner-Prokos Photography

Impact 100 Palm Beach County members and prospective members applauded the 26 nonprofits named as semifinalists in the chance to receive one of multiple $100,000 grants. The finalists will be announced in March; they then will pre­sent their projects at the Grand Awards in April, when votes will be cast to award the funds.

The Garden of Lights at Mounts Botanical Garden of Palm Beach County was a success thanks to a $10,000 donation from The Gentlemen of the Garden.
The colorful Christmastime show that extended into January turned the treasured grounds all atwinkle on select evenings. Visitors marveled at jewel-toned illuminations of the lush tropical foliage, majestic trees and signature structures.
“Bob Eigelberger and The Gentlemen of the Garden have a long history with Mounts,” Curator-Director Rochelle Wolberg said. “Now, thanks to their generous support, this year’s Garden of Lights was a magical way to light up the holiday season for couples, families and groups of all sizes.”
Send news and notes to Amy Woods at flamywoods@bellsouth.net.

Children decorated the hearts on the Legacy Wall. Photo provided
Founded in 1969 as the Community Child Care Center of Delray Beach, Achievement Centers for Children & Families began as a pilot program in response to the overwhelming need for affordable care for the sons and daughters of low-income working mothers.
Fifty years later, the organization has expanded to serve 900 local children and their families annually at three sites.
In recognition of the numerous programs that help prepare youths for academic and social success as well as inspire them to discover their talents, a Legacy Wall has been installed at the Barbara D. Smith Toddler Center. The children who attended the installation added artistic touches to the decorative hearts that make up the wall.

The late Bessie and Raymond Kravis in an undated photograph. Photo provided by the Kravis Center

Delray Beach resident Jeffrey Stoops, chairman of the Kravis Center, recently announced that the performing arts hall’s capital campaign, Kravis 2020, was given a big boost.

The Raymond and Bessie Kravis Foundation has gifted $10 million to the expansion project. As a result, the center’s new urban plaza will be named the Kravis Family Plaza.

“Throughout the years, the Kravis family has continued their parents’ legacy of supporting the center through its foundation,” Stoops said. “Their steadfast commitment has played an important role in contributing to the cultural well-being of the community and in introducing us to artists who have not previously appeared in Florida. We are truly grateful that the family has continued such an outstanding tradition of support for the center and its mission.”

Jason Hagensick, president and CEO of the YMCA of South Palm Beach County, with campaign Chairwoman Jackie Reeves and board Chairman Christopher Warren. Photo provided

With support from more than 1,400 donors, the YMCA of South Palm Beach County raised $684,607 for its 2019 Annual Giving Campaign, far surpassing its target of $600,000.
The donations, a record amount, will enhance the agency’s ability to provide assistance to people in need.
“This is a huge accomplishment and would not have been possible without the dedication and hard work of all our campaign volunteers and staff,” campaign Chairwoman Jackie Reeves said. “In addition, 100% of donations are restricted for the Y’s financial-assistance programs, so donors can feel proud about making an immediate and lasting impact to those in need.”

By Scott Simmons

The Plate: Steak and Eggs
The Place: Sande’s, 1717 N. Federal Highway, Delray Beach. 561-272-9104. Cash only.
The Price: $11.50
The Skinny: It’s everyone’s favorite breakfast place, so I’ve been told.

So I’m adding Sande’s to my list of go-to spots for a weekend breakfast or lunch. The Sunday morning we visited, the restaurant was packed and had a waiting list. Once seated, we ordered comfort food. The steak and eggs? Well, the beef is not like that in a steakhouse.

But it was the centerpiece of a hearty breakfast, with a slice of New York cut sirloin, two eggs ordered sunny side up, so the yolks yielded to the fork, offering gooey goodness. Oh, and the biscuit offered on the side was homemade and the sliced tomatoes were sweet and fresh.

Despite their small size, microgreens, like these sold at the Lake Worth Beach Farmer's Market, pack a nutritional punch, often containing higher nutrient levels than more mature vegetable greens. Linda Haase/The Coastal Star

By Linda Haase

“Even when it rains we shine.”

With a motto like that it’s no wonder the Lake Worth Beach Farmer’s Market — now in its 14th year — is so popular. But there are plenty of other reasons people make this market part of their Saturday ritual.

“We are literally on a peninsula with water views almost everywhere you look. We offer free parking, but we also love to see people walk, bike or drive their golf carts here. There is also a beach to dock your kayak and a boat dock,” says Emily Theodossakos, the bustling market’s former manager, who took over the helm after founder Peter Robinson retired this season.

The pet-friendly market at Old Bridge Park at the corner of A1A and Lake Avenue is shady, compact and easy to navigate. And with nearly 60 vendors, there’s plenty to experience.

Truffle cheese? Check. S’mores cupcakes? Absolutely. Artisan jewelry, clothes, notecards and more? It’s all here. Live music? Check it out, along with quiches, microgreens, keto desserts, organic pickles, seafood, lush plants, glass art, brisket or octopus tacos — and even a chiropractor. The list is nearly endless.

“Our market is more than just a place to shop and go. Those who really get the best out of it are the ones who stroll through slowly, check out all the different vendors, and just relax and have a coffee, juice or meal by the waterfront,” says Theodossakos.

You’ll meet some extraordinary vendors, like Nathalie Cormouls Verre, whose one-of-a-kind Blu Nomad attire is not only immensely wearable, it’s making an impact across the world. She designs the clothes but they’re handcrafted by widows in India.

“I am happy to support them and their kids, and proud to allow them to walk on their path to independence and dignity,” she explains on her Facebook page.

Alicia Falcone, whose Shogo Zen Art booth beckons with her unique hand-dyed scarves, towels, bags and other creative endeavors, often studies abroad learning crafts like rice-paper lamps and indigo shibori from the masters. Falcone, a feng shui consultant and Zen painter, is imaginative down to the very last detail.

Whether you go home with seafood, clothes or other goods, it all makes a difference, says Theodossakos. “Shopping helps the local economy and helps to support many small businesses and their families more than people know. Many of our vendors either live in Lake Worth Beach or have small businesses there or nearby. So the market really is the epitome of ‘shopping local.’”

It often serves as a business incubator, she explains, giving entrepreneurs who don’t have money to open a restaurant or store front a start: “The market gives them the opportunity to build up their business and a regular customer base, which often leads to the opportunity to open a store or restaurant.”

It also brings residents from neighboring towns together, she says. “Many of our customers come from South Palm Beach and we love that we provide an opportunity for people from both sides of the bridge to meet, interact and get to know each other.”

Theodossakos loves the vibe of the market, but wants to mix things up a bit. So she created the Lunar Market, a monthly evening event at the same locale (the next one is Feb. 13, 6-10 p.m.) with boutiques, creative chefs, entertainment, libations — and a full moon.

What can visitors expect?

“Same great location, totally different experience.”

GREEN MARKETS

Boca Raton Greenmarket every Saturday at City Hall (north side), 201 W Palmetto Park Rd. 8 am-1 pm. Free. downtownboca.org; 299-8684 elilly707@aol.com

Delray Beach Greenmarket every Saturday at Old School Square Park, 50 NE 2nd Ave, one block north of Atlantic Ave. Fresh local produce, baked goods, gourmet food items, plants, live music, children’s activities. 9am-2pm. 276-7511; delraycra.org

Lantana Greenmarket every Sunday at Bicentennial Park, 321 E Ocean Ave. 10 am-2 pm. 515-9919; shorelinegreenmarkets.com

Lake Worth Farmers Market every Saturday by the bridge at A1A. 1873 Lake Ave, Lake Worth. 9 am-1 pm. Free. 547-3100; lakeworthfarmersmarket.com

By Joyce Reingold

It may be a mouthful, but the pooled cohort risk assessment equation is a helpful phrase to add to your lexicon in February, American Heart Month.

And with this being a leap year, we have 24 extra hours this month to spend understanding heart disease risks and engaging in heart-healthy pursuits.

“I think it’s important that everybody over the age of 40 know what their cardiovascular risk factors are. They should be aware of their own family history and they need to speak with their physician about assessing their long-term risks for heart disease and stroke in the future,” says Dr. Carlos Victorica, a family physician with Boca Raton Regional Hospital’s BocaCare network.

“We don’t want the first sign of heart disease to be a heart attack. We’ve failed in that case.”

Victorica cites the assessment tool, for individuals over the age of 40, as one of the most important diagnostic advances in recent years. It uses factors such as gender, age, race, cholesterol level and blood pressure to calculate cardiovascular risks.

“We now really try and give you a risk score so we know within a certain probability what the chances would be of a heart attack or stroke within 10 years. And we use that to help dictate what level of testing we do,” he says. “There are all sorts of new tests that we can now do by doing this risk stratification.”

Since President Lyndon B. Johnson established American Heart Month in a December 1963 proclamation, the body of research and recommendations has changed and grown exponentially. Today, doctors regularly emphasize the importance of lifestyle changes — particularly a healthy diet and regular exercise — to stave off heart disease. The recommendations are familiar, but a heart-themed month offers a good opportunity for a refresher.

The American Heart Association recommends:

• “Aim for at least 150 minutes of moderate physical activity each week, or 75 minutes of vigorous activity (or an equal combination of both) each week,” the AMA says on its website.

Victorica says: “I try and tell people that it should be something that is pushing your fitness. It depends on your risk factors and co-morbidities, but if you have the capability to do more vigorous exercise, I encourage it.”

A study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association showed that people who could “do more” on a treadmill during an exercise stress test — regardless of whether they were smokers or had diabetes or high blood pressure — tended to outlive their counterparts, Victorica says.

“I want it to be something where you’re trying to get more physically fit than where you’re at now,” he says. “The main thing I try to do is to make an agreement with the patient where we can have a reasonable goal.”

• “Eat a variety of nutritious foods from all the food groups,” the AMA recommends.

Victorica says to think plant-based foods. He suggests that parents with children at home start inching up a meal’s vegetable quotient to half of the plate. That advice goes for the grown-up set, too.

“I say a plant-based diet, but it’s not that they should become vegetarian. It’s more that the bulk of what they put on their plates should be plant- or legume-based. I do still want them to have meats and, to some degree, animal products because protein is very filling — especially animal protein — and it allows them to consume less carbohydrates,” he says.

“And that’s my bigger issue. We’ve really vilified and demonized fats and cholesterol and meat so much that people … just consume a lot of carbohydrates. And that becomes a bigger problem,” he says.

“I’d rather that we still focus on the main thing that we know is good for you, which is really just fruits, vegetables, legumes and nuts … just a healthy, balanced diet.”

Victorica says he also tells patients, “Life is a marathon and the goal is to try and make small bite-size changes that lead to something greater over time.”

That’s good advice for matters of the heart — heck, life in general — in this leap year and beyond.

Joyce Reingold writes about health and healthy living. Send column ideas to joyce.reingold@yahoo.com.

Photos by Jerry Lower/The Coastal Star

By Deborah S. Hartz-Seeley

To get the most out of your visit to the Karesansui or Zen garden at the Morikami Museum and Japanese Gardens in Delray Beach, put away your cellphone and pay attention to what’s around you.

Then, as you experience the peace that seems to envelop and emanate from this garden, let it guide you toward mindfulness just as the Zen Buddhist monks used viewing these  gardens to aid their meditation.

“Visiting the garden is like a mini-therapy session,” says garden curator Heather Grzybek, who explains that the Karesansui Late Rock Garden, dating from the 15th and 16th centuries, is one of six historic Japanese gardens represented at Morikami.

Heather Grzybek, garden curator at the Morikami Museum and Japanese Gardens, rakes the Karesansui Late Rock Garden into a wave pattern that mimics the water. The shrubs to the left represent mountains and the rocks in the background are islands. 

Here, carefully chosen rocks and granite gravel, instead of plants, represent the essence of nature. Boulders, with their best faces forward, are set in a grouping of three to represent islands; the precisely raked gravel suggests water rippling around the stones.

Although this garden is reminiscent of a traditional Zen garden in Japan, it has unique touches. For example, a traditional rock garden has walls on all four sides to create an intimate space that helps you focus on the here and now instead of what is around the corner.

But this one has tile-topped stucco walls on only three sides with a hedge filling the void. That’s because the garden’s designer Hoichi Kurisu, who was born and educated in Japan, believed that when the garden was created in 1999, Japan had been a closed society. He wanted his country to be more open for the new millennium. “So, he broke the wall,” says Grzybek.

When it comes to maintaining the beauty of this garden, Grzybek or a volunteer spends about 90 minutes sculpting the gravel.

The process — done at least weekly — begins with a leaf rake used in one direction to remove any debris covering the stones. Then a heavy homemade wooden rake with large wedge-shaped teeth and a bamboo handle fashions the gravel to look like current and waves.

Grzybek uses a wooden rake with a bamboo handle to pull the gravel into patterns.

“It’s a very methodical way of raking,” Grzybek says. “You don’t just rake here and there. It’s almost like a dance. Each step leads to the next.”

When she’s done, no footprints remain. If a visitor bypasses the subtle bamboo barricades and leaves footprints in the gravel or rain ruins the current and wave pattern, the job has to be done more often.

The work is hard.

“Often it’s 85 to 90 degrees with 100% humidity and the sun is reflecting off the gravel right into your face. Your brain is already telling you that you don’t want to do this,” she says. But Grzybek has learned that these forces of nature help her focus.

“It’s almost like what you experience in a yoga session,” she says.

As you approach the garden, notice backless wooden benches overlooking the meticulously combed gravel and carefully placed boulders.

The garden is designed to be viewed from one vantage point so that no single element draws your attention. You see the landscape as a whole, as if it is a museum exhibit.

A lantern stands sentry in the garden.

Of course, it’s up to you how you experience this garden. You can hurry in, grab a selfie and move on to another historic garden. Or you can take a seat, turn off your phone, quiet your mind so you don’t think about that game on television tonight or what to make for dinner. Then, just let yourself be.

That’s how Buddhist monks have experienced these types of gardens for centuries and that’s how this Karesansui garden can remain relevant as a spiritual resting place for visitors today.

To see a Karesansui raking demonstration at Morikami, go there at 10:30 a.m. on Feb. 22. It’s free with admission to the museum and gardens. For details, call 561-495-0233.

If You Go
What: Karesansui Late Rock Garden at Morikami Museum and Japanese Gardens
Where: 4000 Morikami Park Road, Delray Beach
More info: 561-495-0233; www.morikami.org
Public programs: The garden holds periodic raking demonstrations and soon will add “raking as therapy” sessions to its calendar. Raking demos are scheduled for 10:30 a.m. Feb. 22 and 10:30 a.m. March 27. The demos are free with paid admission; check the website for more information.
Admission: Adults, $15: seniors 65 and up, $13; youngsters (ages 6-17), $9; children (5 and under), free; no discounts on festival days
Hours: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday; closed Mondays and major holidays

Deborah S. Hartz-Seeley can be reached at debhartz@att.net.