sandoway house nature center - News - The Coastal Star2024-03-28T18:55:55Zhttps://thecoastalstar.com/profiles/blogs/feed/tag/sandoway+house+nature+centerGardening: Grass River Garden Club Grant -- Sandoway House Nature Center, Delray Beachhttps://thecoastalstar.com/profiles/blogs/gardening-grass-river-garden-club-grant-sandoway-house-nature-cen2015-03-04T16:01:47.000Z2015-03-04T16:01:47.000ZChris Felkerhttps://thecoastalstar.com/members/ChrisFelker<div><p style="text-align:center;"><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}7960561492,original{{/staticFileLink}}"><img src="{{#staticFileLink}}7960561492,original{{/staticFileLink}}" width="326" class="align-center" alt="7960561492?profile=original" /></a></p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><em>Grass River Garden Club President Holly Breeden (second from right) presents a check for $10,000</em></p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><em>to Sandoway House Nature Center. The grant is given to help the Nature Center take their animals</em></p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><em>and programs on the road to schools that currently do not have enough money for field trips.</em></p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><em>Shown (l-r): Sandoway Executive Director Danica Sanborn, Sandoway Board Co-Presidents Chris Davies</em></p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><em>and Ann Heilakka, Breeden and board member Christina Benisch.</em></p>
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<p style="text-align:center;"><b>Photo provided</b></p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><b> </b></p></div>International Coastal Cleanup: Sandoway House Nature Center, Delray Beach – Sept. 20https://thecoastalstar.com/profiles/blogs/international-coastal-cleanup-sandoway-house-nature-center-delray2014-10-01T15:39:04.000Z2014-10-01T15:39:04.000ZMary Kate Leminghttps://thecoastalstar.com/members/MaryKateLeming769<div><p style="text-align:center;"><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}7960529674,original{{/staticFileLink}}"><img class="align-center" src="{{#staticFileLink}}7960529674,original{{/staticFileLink}}" width="499" alt="7960529674?profile=original" /></a><em>Volunteers cleaned beaches and waterways from Boca Raton to Tequesta as part of the International Coastal Cleanup.</em> <br /><em>RIGHT: The Niemann family from Boca Raton (from left): Mark, Lori, Luke and Matthew poses for a photo during the cleanup at the Sandoway House Nature Center in</em> <br /><em>Delray Beach. </em><br /><strong><em>Tim Stepien/</em></strong><br /><strong><em>The Coastal Star</em></strong></p></div>Tots & Teens: Shark feeding a frenzy of fascinating factshttps://thecoastalstar.com/profiles/blogs/tots-teens-shark-feeding-a-frenzy-of-fascinating-facts2014-09-03T14:52:54.000Z2014-09-03T14:52:54.000ZMary Kate Leminghttps://thecoastalstar.com/members/MaryKateLeming769<div><p style="text-align:center;"><em><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}7960522466,original{{/staticFileLink}}"><img width="750" class="align-center" src="{{#staticFileLink}}7960522466,original{{/staticFileLink}}" alt="7960522466?profile=original" /></a></em><em>Jennifer Urbanek leads a shark feeding at the Sandoway House. Shelley Gilken/The Coastal Star</em></p>
<p><strong>By Shelley Gilken</strong><br /><br />Who needs Sharknado, modern-day megalodon attacks, or a submarine shark lurking off the coast of South Africa? There’s no need for fictitious shark attack “facts” when the real-life creatures are fascinating. <br /> Take, for example, the three nurse sharks swarming at the edge of their tank at Delray Beach’s Sandoway House nature center. <br /> They each have row upon row of teeth numbering in the thousands in powerful jaws. In fact, sharks lose and regrow up to 30,000 teeth in a lifetime. But this particular species is not threatening unless it is acting in defense. Despite their reputation on television, shark attacks are quite rare.<br /> “Dogs, pigs and vending machines are far more dangerous,” said Jennifer Urbanek, Sandoway House Nature Center assistant, who narrates such interesting tidbits as she calmly places pieces of shrimp, squid and sardine in the tank using a pincer. Children and adults line the edges of the tank and watch closely, snapping pictures as the sharks chow down. <br /> Daily shark feedings are a popular draw at the Sandoway House. On an average day in the summer, there are more than 200 people. <br /> The feeding is geared to visitors of all ages from camps to families to senior citizens.<br /> “I try to get the kids engaged and ask them questions,” Urbanek said. “I try to impart a lot of information even adults don’t know.”<br /> The nuggets of information combined with the experience of seeing real-life sharks makes it a fun, educational experience for children.<br /> Urbanek said children respond to the sharks with a combination of fear and wonder: “Everything from kids who are very frightened to others who want to bend over and touch them.”<br /> The Sandoway House is also launching a new outreach program this school year that entails bringing certain fish on location to schools. <br />The school programs in 2014-2015 will cover topics such as amphibians, reptiles, birds and insects. It’s a way for more children to be able to get a glimpse of all that Sandoway has to engage people.<br /> “Sandoway is such a unique place — a historic house, alligator, sharks in an aquarium that’s a converted swimming pool. You can still see the steps,” Urbanek said.<br /> While the sharks are the main attraction, visitors are also amused by the shells, snakes, turtles, fossil dig, and an alligator and microscope lab. There are frequently special events such as a beach cleanups or beach combing. <br /> And if that’s not enough, there is a replica of a megalodon jaw that visitors can stand behind. <br /><br /></p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><strong>If You Go</strong><br />Where: Sandoway House<br />142 S. Ocean Blvd. <br />Delray Beach, FL 33483<br />Admission is $4 per person<br />Hours: 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday thru Friday; noon to 4 p.m. Sundays <br />Shark feedings are at 10:30 a.m. Tuesday through Saturday and 1:30 p.m. Sunday. <br />Info: <a href="http://www.sandowayhouse.org">www.sandowayhouse.org</a><br /><br /></p></div>Taking a bite out of shark attackshttps://thecoastalstar.com/profiles/blogs/taking-a-bite-out-of-shark-attacks2014-09-02T21:55:31.000Z2014-09-02T21:55:31.000ZMary Kate Leminghttps://thecoastalstar.com/members/MaryKateLeming769<div><p style="text-align:center;"><strong><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}7960521077,original{{/staticFileLink}}"><img class="align-center" src="{{#staticFileLink}}7960521077,original{{/staticFileLink}}" width="360" alt="7960521077?profile=original" /></a></strong><em>The magnetic device, on a fake hand, repels nurse sharks in the center’s pool. <strong>Photos by Tim Stepien/The Coastal Star</strong></em></p>
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<p><strong>By Ron Hayes</strong><br /> <br /> Shortly before 10 a.m. on a recent Saturday, four ninth-graders from Grandview Preparatory School in Boca Raton presented themselves at the Sandoway House Nature Center, ready to battle three sharks.<br /> Or baffle them, anyway.</p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}7960521095,original{{/staticFileLink}}"><img class="align-center" src="{{#staticFileLink}}7960521095,original{{/staticFileLink}}" width="360" alt="7960521095?profile=original" /></a><em>Bennett Kubach, Tasman Rosenfeld, Alexander Abbasi, and Albin Engstrom, inventors of Shark-X. Engstrom hold the magnetic ankle strap. <strong>Photos by Tim Stepien/The Coastal Star</strong></em></p>
<p><br /> Bennett Kubach, 14, of Ocean Ridge; Albin Engstrom, 15, of Boca Raton; Alexander Abbasi, 14, of Delray Beach; and Tasman Rosenfeld, 14, of Pompano Beach were neatly dressed in the school’s white polo shirts and khaki pants.<br /> Bennett was holding a human arm on a 6-foot pole.<br /> Not an edible human arm. This was one of those gag rubber hands with sleeve and cuff attached, made to be dangled from closed car trunks for the entertainment of fellow motorists and law enforcement officers.<br /> “We ordered it from Amazon,” Bennett explained.<br /> This morning, the wrist wore a waterproof neoprene bracelet enclosing three magnets. The magnets are small, only three-quarter-inch in diameter and eighth-inch thick, but still capable of lifting about 12.5 pounds each. Powerful enough that a single anklet, the boys believe, emits enough magnetic energy to deter sharks.<br /> They have dubbed their product “Shark-X.”<br /> If Shark-X works — and they are certain it does — those magnets will override the electromagnetic sensors in a shark’s nose, disorient the swimming beast and steer it away from tourists, swimmers and surfers.<br /> Tasman Rosenfeld, 14, who describes himself as “the inventor of Shark-X,” is a surfer.<br /> “The ampullary glands on a sharks’ nose are electro-receptors,” he told the members of the press. “It’s an inner compass, really, and sharks use it for navigation. Their nose knows where north is.”<br /> Wear one of his Shark-X anklets, Tasman promised, and its subtle magnetic pull will baffle the shark’s sense of direction and steer it away.<br /> “We haven’t tested them on a Great White yet, but they’re incredibly effective on stingrays,” he added. “It’s not going to keep you 10 feet away from a shark, but it’s going to keep you from losing a limb.”<br /> In at least one test, Shark-X has already proved itself a stunning success, besting a sock-monkey purse, gender-specific emergency kits and other inventions, to take first place in the school’s Entrepreneurial Fair.<br /> “We’re trying to tie our curriculum to real-world results, and this is a great example of that,” said Jackie Westerfield, Grandview’s head of school, watching proudly from the edge of the crowd.<br /> Recently, the four entrepreneurs tested Shark-X on some stingrays at what they describe as “an undisclosed location in Miami because it wasn’t pre-approved.”<br /> The stingrays responded dramatically, they reported, opening their mouths wide and changing direction almost immediately.<br /> “It’s like a flashlight shining in your eyes,” Bennett Kubach explained “It’s really irritating, so they want to turn away.”</p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}7960520887,original{{/staticFileLink}}"><img class="align-center" src="{{#staticFileLink}}7960520887,original{{/staticFileLink}}" width="195" alt="7960520887?profile=original" /></a><em>Grandview Preparatory School ninth-graders Albin Engstrom, Bennett Kubach, Tasman Rosenfeld and Alexander Abbasi demonstrate their invention, Shark-X, at Sandoway House Nature Center in Delray Beach</em></p>
<p><br /> Now they would demonstrate the product on the three nurse sharks that rule in the Sandoway House pool.<br /> “Not a lot of people die from sharks, but a lot lose their arms and stuff,” Alexander Abbasi noted. “Would you like to take that chance?”<br /> As about 50 fathers, mothers and children gathered around the kidney-shaped pool for the morning shark feeding, Valentine Fine, the center’s weekend manager, confirmed Alexander’s assertion.<br /> “Sharks don’t eat people,” he assured the crowd. “They bite us by mistake. So it’s important not to confuse them. Do not pet sharks.”<br /> And they don’t bite us all that often, either, Fine agreed. Last year, he said, there were only 23 shark bites in Florida, and no deaths at all. In an average year, there are only five shark deaths worldwide.<br /> “However, there were 10 last year,” he noted.<br /> The trio of nurse sharks at Sandoway House would not require a bigger boat. They are only about 5 feet long, but frisky and sleek. As Fine dropped shrimp into their mouths, they sucked them in with a startlingly loud popping sound.<br /> “They’ve been around about 400 million years, and they haven’t evolved at all,” Fine marveled.<br /> At last the entrepreneurs were introduced as “the gentlemen of Grandview Preparatory School.”<br /> Tasman Rosenfeld, equipped with a headset microphone, acknowledged the applause.<br /> “I’m the inventor of Shark-<br />X,” he told the crowd, and delivered a brief discourse on the science behind his invention.<br /> The arm was lowered into the water.<br /> The sharks approached, slid within 2 or 3 feet of the hand, and turned away.<br /> The Shark-X bracelet was removed from the rubber wrist and dropped into a netted pool skimmer.<br /> The skimmer was lowered into the water.<br /> Again the sharks approached and retreated.<br /> A skeptic might wonder if perhaps it was the hand or skimmer that discouraged the sharks, but Tasman’s mother, Janelle Rosenfeld, had no doubts.<br /> “I think it does work,” she said. “Seeing the stingrays’ reaction was amazing, but for me, as a mom, the exciting thing is to see how he was able to take a scientific idea and turn it into a product.”<br /> Her son wants to solve the problems of the world, she said — and make a lot of money so he can be a professional surfer.<br /> Shark-X should sell for about $15-20 apiece, Bennet Kubach estimated. Boyond that, the boys’ marketing plan is still being developed. They’re in the process of having the name “Shark-X” trademarked, but won’t be able to patent the product because the use of magnets and neoprene is not considered “novel” under current patent law.<br /> “I live right near Nomad’s Surf Shop,” Bennett said, “so I may ask them to carry them.”<br /> He doubted he’d be wearing one much, though.<br /> “I don’t swim a lot, but I like to run on the beach,” he said. “I’m more of a sand person. But I’m proud of what I’ve learned about sharks.” <br /> Albin Engstrom also was pleased with what he’d learned about sharks and magnets.<br /> “I want to become a doctor,” he said, ”but if you have this product, you won’t have to come to the hospital with a shark bite.”<br /> He paused to consider his words.<br /> “But it’s not sharkproof. It’s shark-repellent,” he added.<br /> “It’s not guaranteed.” ;</p></div>Sandoway House Annual Gala: Benvenuto, Boynton Beach – April 11https://thecoastalstar.com/profiles/blogs/sandoway-house-annual-gala-benvenuto-boynton-beach-april-112014-06-04T02:01:50.000Z2014-06-04T02:01:50.000ZMary Kate Leminghttps://thecoastalstar.com/members/MaryKateLeming769<div><p><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}7960508297,original{{/staticFileLink}}"><img class="align-left" src="{{#staticFileLink}}7960508297,original{{/staticFileLink}}" width="203" alt="7960508297?profile=original" /></a></p>
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<p><em>Sandoway House Nature Center’s ‘Where the Wild Things Are’ affair attracted 160 supporters who dined, danced, bid on silent-auction items and raised more than $44,000. Photo: Jestena Boughton (left) gives Executive Director Danica Sanborn a check for $3,000 toward student-outreach programs. <strong>Photo provided</strong></em></p></div>Meet Your Neighbor: Chris Carter Davieshttps://thecoastalstar.com/profiles/blogs/meet-your-neighbor-chris-carter-davies2014-04-02T17:23:27.000Z2014-04-02T17:23:27.000ZChris Felkerhttps://thecoastalstar.com/members/ChrisFelker<div><p><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}7960507469,original{{/staticFileLink}}"><img src="{{#staticFileLink}}7960507469,original{{/staticFileLink}}" width="538" class="align-center" alt="7960507469?profile=original" /></a></p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><em>Chris Carter Davies grew up on the Jersey shore watching her mom be an active community member</em></p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><em>and volunteer. Now she does the same thing as a Gulf Stream resident of the South Florida shore.</em></p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><b>Tim Stepien/The Coastal Star</b></p>
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<p> Successful fundraisers are persistent and dedicated, and that seems to describe Chris Davies to a “T.” She’s been writing letters, making phone calls, and otherwise shaking the bushes for charitable donations for 20 years.</p>
<p> Beneficiary organizations include the Lupus Foundation of America, Southeast Florida chapter; the Delray Beach Historical Society; and the Sandoway House Nature Center in Delray Beach.</p>
<p> Davies, of Gulf Stream, is co-president of the Sandoway House board along with Ann Heilakka, and the two also are co-chairing this year’s annual fundraising gala on April 11.</p>
<p> “Doing a fundraiser is a lot of work,” Davies says, “and you think it’s just impossible, but the night of the event when it all comes together, it’s great. We raised about $50,000 last year, which was the highest ever. We want to top that this year.”</p>
<p> A native of coastal New Jersey, Davies travels home frequently to see family. She says her hometown on the Jersey Shore was “ground zero” when Hurricane Sandy swept through in 2012.</p>
<p> “My aunt lived in her house for 65 years and it was totally destroyed. And more than 100 of my friends were displaced by Sandy,” Davies says.</p>
<p> She met her husband, Jay, in Florida — even though he’d been a summer resident of her hometown. </p>
<p> “I didn’t know him, but I knew all his friends who went to my high school,” she says. “We met the first night he arrived in Florida — and that was that!” </p>
<p> A retired chef, Jay once worked at Maurice’s Italian Restaurant in Palm Beach. Jay’s shrimp scampi was a favorite of many a well-heeled diner, including the late Ted Kennedy.</p>
<p> The Davies will celebrate their 30th wedding anniversary this year.</p>
<p><i>— Paula Detwiller</i></p>
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<p><span><b>Q.</b></span> Where did you grow up and go to school? How do you think that has influenced you? </p>
<p><span><b>A.</b></span> I grew up in Brick, a small town on the Jersey shore. My dad was the mayor for many years, and my mother was involved with every organization in town. I went to Brick Township High School. As a senior, I was president of the Keyette Club, which was all about volunteering. I attended Ocean County College for two years before transferring down to University of Florida in 1976 to get my degree in early-childhood education.</p>
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<p><span><b>Q</b></span><b>.</b> What professions have you worked in? What professional accomplishments are you most proud of?</p>
<p><span><b>A.</b></span> I always wanted to teach underprivileged children. After I got my teaching degree, I saw a job opening at the Alyce D. McPherson School for Girls in Ocala. My mother thought it was a ritzy boarding school. I went to apply and got hired on the spot, and when the principal gave me a tour of the campus, I realized it was actually a reform school! And it was co-ed. My job was to teach juvenile delinquents how to swim, and also be their swim coach. </p>
<p>After a year there, I got a teaching job at Pine Grove Elementary School in Delray Beach. I taught at Pine Grove for eight years.</p>
<p>Today I have a little side business arranging orchids. I do them for my close friends’ special occasions, but mostly I donate them to silent auctions. I’m really good at symmetry, so I incorporate shells, air plants and other things, and make them seashore-ish. So that’s what I’m most proud of these days. </p>
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<p><span><b>Q.</b></span> As co-president of Sandoway House Nature Center, what do you see as the toughest challenges the center will face this coming year?</p>
<p><span><b>A.</b></span> Transportation to bring schoolchildren to the Nature Center is one of our biggest challenges. The school district doesn’t have the funding to provide buses. We’d love to have more school kids come here on class trips, but we’d need our own bus to bring them. Our goal is to get a large grant, hopefully from the Impact 100 organization, so that we can provide that transportation.</p>
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<p><span><b>Q. </b></span> Tell us a little about your involvement with Sandoway House Nature Center. Why is it important to you?</p>
<p><span><b>A.</b></span> I helped start the Center 17 years ago. I met Laura McCormick and Mary Lou Schillinger in a “Mommy and Me” class when our kids were little, and Laura introduced me to Carolyn Patton, whose idea it was to turn this old house into a nature center. I also met other people who were helping out: Tom Lynch, Nilsa and Frank McKinney, Lisa Tiernan, and Alieda Riley, Carolyn’s mother. In those days we spent most of our time in a trailer out front. I’ve been working to raise money for the center all these years. It’s important to me because of my experience in teaching underprivileged kids in Delray. I know the need for young local kids to learn about their own beach, which some have never seen.</p>
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<p><span><b>Q. </b></span> How did you choose to make your home in Gulf Stream?</p>
<p><span><b>A.</b></span> We moved here 19 years ago when my son was small, mainly to be close to Gulf Stream school. Our neighborhood had lots of young families, which was great because my son was an only child. After school, three or four kids would come home with him to play.</p>
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<p><span><b>Q. </b></span> What is your favorite part about living in Gulf Stream? </p>
<p><span><b>A.</b></span> I love the fact that it’s so close to Delray Beach and the excitement, but I can come home to peace and quiet. And all my neighbors are so nice and friendly.</p>
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<p><span><b>Q. </b></span> What music do you listen to when you need inspiration? When you want to relax? </p>
<p><span><b>A.</b></span> I have very eclectic tastes in music. I like to keep current, so I listen to the latest music on Pandora or iHeartRadio. But I also love classical piano music. In fact, my mom almost became a professional classical pianist, but then she married my dad and had three boys and me. </p>
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<p><span><b>Q. </b></span> Have you had mentors in your life? Individuals who have inspired your life decisions? </p>
<p><span><b>A.</b></span> My mother was my mentor. She just did it all. She was a volunteer for every committee in town, so I got my philanthropic side from her. She could play the piano, she could play tennis — she played until she was 86! She was a golfer, a painter and a cook who could make a cake without a recipe. I didn’t inherit her hand-eye coordination, so I can’t play tennis … but I like to ski and scuba dive. </p>
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<p><span><b>Q.</b></span> Who/what makes you laugh?</p>
<p><span><b>A.</b></span> My friends. When we get together, we just laugh and have fun. Also, I’ve been really close to my cousin Virginia. She’s 10 years younger than me, but as we’ve grown older, we’ve gotten really close, almost like sisters. That’s why I go up to New Jersey so much, to spend time and laugh. </p>
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<p><span><b>Q.</b></span> If your life story were made into a movie, who would you want to play you?</p>
<p><span><b>A.</b></span> Jennifer Lawrence, if she could make herself 40 years older! I just love her spunk. And she’s never forgotten where she came from.</p>
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<p><b>IF YOU GO</b></p>
<p><b><i>Where the Wild Things Are </i></b></p>
<p><b>What:</b> A fundraising gala to benefit the <strong>Sandoway</strong> <b>House Nature Center.</b></p>
<p><b>When:</b> 6:30 p.m. April 11</p>
<p><b>Where:</b> Benvenuto Restaurant, Boynton Beach</p>
<p><b>Includes:</b> hors d’oeuvres, open bar, 3-course meal, live music, dancing and silent auction.</p>
<p><span><b>Tickets:</b> $160</span></p>
<p><span><b>For more information or to purchase tickets: </b></span></p>
<p>274-7263</p>
<p><b> </b></p></div>Story reading and book signinghttps://thecoastalstar.com/profiles/blogs/story-reading-and-book-signing2013-12-18T19:55:26.000Z2013-12-18T19:55:26.000ZMary Kate Leminghttps://thecoastalstar.com/members/MaryKateLeming769<div><p style="text-align:center;"><span class="userContent"><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}7960483259,original{{/staticFileLink}}"><img width="750" class="align-left" src="{{#staticFileLink}}7960483259,original{{/staticFileLink}}" alt="7960483259?profile=original" /></a>Parents and children are invited to a story reading and book signing at 11 a.m. Saturday, Dec. 21 at <a href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/Sandoway-House-Nature-Center/152720556402">Sandoway House Nature Center</a>, 142 S. Ocean Blvd., Delray Beach. Meet the creators of Rosie's Song following the 10:30 a.m. shark feeding. The regular $4 museum admission will apply. Hope to see you there (with the kiddos!)</span></p>
<p></p></div>Dr. Do-Much: Sandoway center vet works for the love of the animalshttps://thecoastalstar.com/profiles/blogs/dr-do-much-sandoway-center-vet-works-for-the-love-of-the-animals2012-05-30T18:30:00.000Z2012-05-30T18:30:00.000ZDeborah Hartz-Seeleyhttps://thecoastalstar.com/members/DeborahHartzSeeley<div><p><span><b><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}7960393865,original{{/staticFileLink}}"><img src="{{#staticFileLink}}7960393865,original{{/staticFileLink}}" class="align-center" width="360" alt="7960393865?profile=original" /></a></b></span></p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><em>Scott McOwen, the veterinarian at the Sandoway House, talks<br /> to children about Sir Speedy the gopher tortoise, who is a permanent<br /> resident of Sandoway House. <b>Tim Stepien/The Coastal Star</b></em></p>
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<p><span><b>By Paula Detwiller</b></span></p>
<p>Imagine drawing a blood sample from a macaw’s neck, checking a snake’s heart rate, or de-worming a turtle. </p>
<p>For 73-year-old retired veterinarian Dr. Scott McOwen, it’s all part of his twice-weekly rounds at Sandoway House Nature Center in coastal Delray Beach. The man they call “Dr. Scott” has been watching over the center’s sharks, snakes, lizards, tarantulas, turtles, and birds on a voluntary basis for more than a dozen years. </p>
<p>One of his charges is Crystal, the 18-year-old, very loud, blue and gold macaw.</p>
<p>“Crystal the pistol, we call him,” says McOwen. “I trim his talons, file his beak, check the hemoglobin levels in his blood, do a stool analysis and weigh him on a special scale to make sure his weight is within range. We monitor his health closely because there’s always a possibility he can pick up a cold if someone comes in here with one.”</p>
<p>McOwen’s surgical skills saved a nurse shark after it fought with another shark in the nature center’s outdoor tank. His internal medicine expertise cured Sir Speedy, the resident gopher tortoise, of repeated leg infections and hookworms. And his tender loving care has kept a corn snake named Maizey in fine reptilian health after being handled by many a fascinated boy and girl.</p>
<p>“Dr. Scott” also serves on the Sandoway House board of directors and leads educational programs when young students visit the nature center as part of a school field trip or science camp. </p>
<p>“I enjoy watching the children light up when they see something. The neat thing is to let them observe and discover things on their own.”</p>
<p>He gives an example. Someone had dropped off an injured screech owl at the nature center. Rather than explain to the visiting group of junior high school students how he planned to take care of the bird, he had the kids research it for themselves.</p>
<p>“They ended up finding out what owls eat, what their migratory patterns are. … They brought all the facts together to create a care plan for the animal to live and propagate,” he says. The owl was later released back into the wild.</p>
<p>McOwen became interested in animals and scientific discovery at the feet of his veterinarian father, Dr. James A. McOwen, who moved the family from Ohio to South Florida in 1954. The elder McOwen purchased an existing veterinary practice in Boynton Beach and also became the chief veterinarian for Africa USA, the sprawling African wildlife tourist attraction that operated in Boca Raton from 1953 to 1961.</p>
<p>“When the famous chimp at Africa USA, Princess Margaret, broke her front tooth, my dad assisted in doing a root canal on her,” McOwen says. “That’s when I got interested in veterinary dentistry.” He was 14 at the time. </p>
<p>McOwen attended veterinary school at Ohio State University during the Vietnam War era and was drafted into the Air Force just before graduation. </p>
<p>He was stationed in Great Britain with the 48<sup>th</sup> Tactical Fighter Wing. One of his duties was to care for the military sentry dogs — including performing root canals when necessary.</p>
<p>“The oral surgeons in the Air Force would work on the troops. I would work on the dogs, with their support. We would make or modify tools to do the work. These dogs were very important to the command. They guarded the nuclear warheads that were put on planes,” he says.</p>
<p>After completing his military service, McOwen joined his father’s practice at Seacrest Veterinary Center in Boynton Beach. He had a successful career, retiring in 1996.</p>
<p>A couple of years later, he showed up at Sandoway House one day without fanfare. Carolyn Patton, one of the nature center’s founders who knew McOwen from growing up in Delray, remembers it well.</p>
<p>“We were renovating the building, painting this huge wall in the back, and this guy shows up in surgical scrubs with a safari hat and sunglasses on, and starts pitching in. I didn’t recognize him at first. He said, ‘Just call me Scott.’ And he has been there ever since, taking care of all our animals so lovingly,” says Patton.</p>
<p>This is McOwen’s 14th year as the nature center’s unpaid animal doctor, wildlife educator and board member. How long will he continue volunteering?</p>
<p>“As long as my health is good, and as long as they want me.” </p></div>Barefoot by the Sea historical celebration: Sandoway House Nature Center, Delray Beachhttps://thecoastalstar.com/profiles/blogs/barefoot-by-the-sea-historical-celebration-sandoway-house-nature-2012-05-30T16:00:00.000Z2012-05-30T16:00:00.000ZDeborah Hartz-Seeleyhttps://thecoastalstar.com/members/DeborahHartzSeeley<div><p></p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}7960390277,original{{/staticFileLink}}"><img src="{{#staticFileLink}}7960390277,original{{/staticFileLink}}" class="align-center" width="238" alt="7960390277?profile=original" /></a><em>Kate Maloney and Zoe Romano, both students at Unity School in Delray Beach, use contrasting forms of communication while at the Historical Society of Palm Beach County, Barefoot by the Sea celebration in Delray Beach. One of the girls followed traditional methods, handwriting three letters for her friends to be delivered as a letter in a bottle. The other made a more contemporary choice, with a text message on her phone.</em></p>
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<p><b><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}7960390458,original{{/staticFileLink}}"><img src="{{#staticFileLink}}7960390458,original{{/staticFileLink}}" class="align-center" width="238" alt="7960390458?profile=original" /></a></b></p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><em>With vintage hat and shoes Diane Lewis helps with a demonstration about the Historic Barefoot Mailman. <b>Photos by Jerry Lower/Coastal Star</b></em></p>
<div><b><br /></b></div></div>Celebrations: End of Season photographshttps://thecoastalstar.com/profiles/blogs/celebrations-end-of-season-photographs2012-05-03T16:50:51.000Z2012-05-03T16:50:51.000ZMary Kate Leminghttps://thecoastalstar.com/members/MaryKateLeming769<div><p></p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><strong>Boca Delray Music Society Luncheon:</strong> <a href="http://thecoastalstar.ning.com/profiles/blogs/boca-delray-music-society-luncheon-delray-beach-club">Delray Beach Club</a></p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><strong>Celebration of Old Delray:</strong> The <a href="http://thecoastalstar.ning.com/profiles/blogs/celebration-of-old-delray-the-colony-cabana-club">Colony Cabana Club</a></p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><strong>Closet Couture Luncheon:</strong> <a href="http://thecoastalstar.ning.com/profiles/blogs/closet-couture-luncheon-benvenuto-s-boynton-beach">Benvenuto’s</a>, Boynton Beach</p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><strong>Heading to College:</strong> <a href="http://thecoastalstar.ning.com/profiles/blogs/heading-to-college-ocean-ridge">Brianna Ritota</a>, Ocean Ridge</p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><strong>Impact 100 Palm Beach County:</strong> <a href="http://thecoastalstar.ning.com/profiles/blogs/100-000-grant-awarded-to-the-parent-child-center">$100,000 grant awarded</a> to the Parent-Child Center</p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><strong>Sacred Heart Flowers Afternoon Tea:</strong> <a href="http://thecoastalstar.ning.com/profiles/blogs/sacred-heart-flowers-afternoon-tea-st-andrews-club-delray-beach">St. Andrew's Club</a>, Delray Beach</p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><strong>St. Paul's Garden Seasonal Closing:</strong> <a href="http://thecoastalstar.ning.com/profiles/blogs/st-paul-s-garden-seasonal-closing-st-paul-s-episcopal-church-delr">St. Paul's Episcopal Church</a>, Delray Beach</p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><strong>Sandoway House Nature Center Gala:</strong> Oceanfront, <a href="http://thecoastalstar.ning.com/profiles/blogs/sandoway-house-nature-center-gala-oceanfront-ocean-ridge">Ocean Ridge</a></p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><strong>Wayside House Spring Boutique:</strong> <a href="http://thecoastalstar.ning.com/profiles/blogs/wayside-house-spring-boutique-the-colony-hotel-delray-beach-1">The Colony Hotel</a>, Delray Beach</p>
<p></p></div>Earth Day Gala: Oceanfront, Ocean Ridgehttps://thecoastalstar.com/profiles/blogs/earth-day-gala-oceanfront-ocean-ridge2012-04-04T16:42:25.000Z2012-04-04T16:42:25.000ZMary Kate Leminghttps://thecoastalstar.com/members/MaryKateLeming769<div><p style="text-align:center;"><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}7960379459,original{{/staticFileLink}}"><img class="align-center" src="{{#staticFileLink}}7960379459,original{{/staticFileLink}}" width="576" alt="7960379459?profile=original" /></a><em>Sandoway House Nature Center Gala committee members Carolyn Patton (l) and Elaine Morris meet with Honorary Chair Coach Howard Schnellenberger to plan the April 14 event. The gala features live music by The Valerie Tyson Band and lots of dancing under the stars along with a traditional lobster bake. Tickets are $200. For reservations and location, contact 274-7263 or <a href="http://www.sandowayhouse.org">www.sandowayhouse.org</a>. <strong>Photo provided</strong></em></p></div>Delray Beach: Historic home provides all the creature comforts to … creatureshttps://thecoastalstar.com/profiles/blogs/delray-beach-historic-home-provides-all-the-creature-comforts-to-2011-11-02T19:00:00.000Z2011-11-02T19:00:00.000ZMary Kate Leminghttps://thecoastalstar.com/members/MaryKateLeming769<div><p><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}7960351680,original{{/staticFileLink}}"><img class="align-left" src="{{#staticFileLink}}7960351680,original{{/staticFileLink}}" width="360" alt="7960351680?profile=original" /></a>By Deborah S. Hartz-Seeley<br /> <br />
The Sandoway House Nature Center is the starting point for the first Sandoway House Blue Water 5K Run and 1K Doggie Walk on Nov. 12 in Delray Beach.<br />
“We couldn’t think of a better way to have people see the center and be exposed to all it has to offer,” says Michael Kravit of Boca Raton, president of the center’s board and the organizer of this event.<br />
All the proceeds will benefit the not-for-profit nature center that is home to live sharks, lizards, snakes, turtles, tortoises and tarantulas, as well as a collection of 10,000 shells (only about 20 percent are on display at one time) and a butterfly garden of native plants.<br />
And through Jan. 15, there’s an exhibit of Ice Age fossils from animals that roamed Florida from 10,000 to 1.8 million years ago. <br />
“We need to preserve our natural history and the natural beauty of Florida’s ecosystems,” says executive director Patrick Morehouse. <br />
There’s human history here, too. The center’s home was built in 1936 and placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2002.<br />
You can enter the nature center through its screened front porch where you’ll be greeted by Crystal, a talking macaw with vibrant blue, green and yellow plumage — one of several orphan animals that have been adopted by the center.<br />
<a href="{{#staticFileLink}}7960351881,original{{/staticFileLink}}"><img class="align-left" src="{{#staticFileLink}}7960351881,original{{/staticFileLink}}" width="360" alt="7960351881?profile=original" /></a> Here, you can also find Gigi, a Florida box turtle, eating a plate of scrambled eggs. Volunteer Marilyn Toftsted discovered the animal likes the eggs one day when she was eating breakfast. So now she makes them especially for Gigi.<br />
You’ll also meet Speedy, a gopher tortoise. On our visit, we found him sitting on his plate, having devoured corn on the cob, strawberries, spinach, sweet potatoes and yellow squash topped with an orange hibiscus bloom. “It looks like garnish, but he really eats it,” says Toftsted, who has volunteered at the center for more than five years.<br />
In a small plastic pool here on the porch, you’ll find Sam the box turtle and Custard, a soft-shell turtle. Morehouse hopes to release Sam back into the wild in the next few months.<br />
And don’t miss the sharks. You’ll find them swimming with other fish in a 15,000-gallon coral reef tank that started life as the house’s in-ground swimming pool. Morehouse explains that it was altered to stand up to the stresses of salt water and wildlife. <br />
Today it’s home to a spotfin burrfish or puffer fish; blue runners that are quick-swimming members of the jack family and grunt fish. These look bright with their yellow and blue horizontal stripes and black vertical accents. <br />
But the biggest attraction is the three small nurse sharks. <br />
As Morehead tosses chunks of Spanish sardines, shelled clams and squid, the fish gather at one end of the pool. Each shark gets about two pounds of food a day, he says. <br />
While the other fish are quiet and polite, the sharks grab for their food. Their mouths form a vacuum that results in a sucking noise, explains Morehouse. It’s this sound — like a nursing child — that got them their name.<br />
The largest shark is Miss Barbie, a teenager that’s about four feet long. She’s also the favorite of Kate Graham, 10, who is visiting with her mother and two brothers from Switzerland. <br />
Morehouse tells the group that if you have been swimming off the beach in South Florida, you’ve probably been near a shark. <br />
Tom Delfer, a student at FAU who is here as part of his classwork, takes great interest in Morehouse’s shark talk. <br />
“I’ve have been swimming around sharks for a long time. And now I learn they aren’t threatening. It’s nice to hear,” he says.<br />
<a href="{{#staticFileLink}}7960352257,original{{/staticFileLink}}"><img class="align-left" src="{{#staticFileLink}}7960352257,original{{/staticFileLink}}" width="360" alt="7960352257?profile=original" /></a> It’s also nice to get to tour this building that was built as a home for J.B. Evans, a produce broker who spent winters in the sunny south. Constructed during the Great Depression, it was designed by Samuel Ogren Sr., the city’s first registered architect. <br />
“He set the style for Delray Beach. He was a trailblazer,” says Roger Cope, a local architect involved with historic preservation and a member of the Delray Beach Historical Society. “Boca Raton and Palm Beach had [architect Addison] Mizner, but thank goodness we had Ogren,” he adds.<br />
In the formal dining room of the house, you’ll find copies of historic drawings and old photos dating from when the house was built. It included four bedrooms, three bathrooms, a living room, dining room and two sun decks.<br />
It is one of the last resort colonial revival houses left in Delray Beach. It features board and batten siding, double-hung windows and a second-story porch from which you can see the ocean and feel the refreshing breezes. It still has its original Dade County pine floors and ceilings.<br />
“Ogren brought sophistication to a relatively simple community,” says Cope. “He gave us our first taste of affluence and style.”<br />
When the county took over this property, it was one of the last resort colonial revival style houses in the area. “People wanted to save it,” says Tofsted.<br />
Those people formed The Friends of Sandoway House Nature Center and raised $1 million to purchase the house and pay for renovations and operating expenses.<br />
The Friends asked Kravit, of Kravit Architectural Associates in Boca Raton, to help with the restoration, which began in 1996. “When we started, the place was a mess,” says Kravit, who volunteered his services. But after removing lead paint, rotten wood and the additions people had made over time, it was returned it to its historic best. <br />
Then the county leased the property to the nature center, which opened in 1998. <br />
“Here you not only get an education about nature but also get to see a historic home,” says Suzanne Mjolsness, who was visiting the center from Iowa with her husband and parents. “I’m glad we came.”</p>
<p><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}7960352282,original{{/staticFileLink}}"><img class="align-left" src="{{#staticFileLink}}7960352282,original{{/staticFileLink}}" width="360" alt="7960352282?profile=original" /></a><strong>IF YOU GO</strong><br /> The Sandoway House Blue Water Run takes off from the Sandoway House Nature Center, 142 S. Ocean Blvd., Delray Beach, at 7 a.m. Nov. 12. The 1K Doggie Dash begins at 7:30 a.m. They will be followed by a healthful breakfast at nearby Caffe Luna Rosa and complimentary admission to the nature center.<br />
The run is $35; the Doggie Dash, $25. All proceeds benefit the nature center. To register, visit <a href="http://www.AccuChip">www.AccuChip</a> Timing.com (click on the Event Calendar and then the date). For information, call 274-7263.<br />
The Sandoway House (<a href="http://www.sandowayhouse.org">www.sandowayhouse.org</a>) is open Tuesday through Sunday. Shark feedings are at 10:30 a.m. Tuesday through Saturday and 1:30 Sunday. There’s a fossil talk at 2 p.m. Friday. There’s a $4 entry donation requested.</p></div>Check presentation: Sandoway House, Delray Beachhttps://thecoastalstar.com/profiles/blogs/check-presentation-sandoway2011-06-01T16:40:06.000Z2011-06-01T16:40:06.000ZMary Kate Leminghttps://thecoastalstar.com/members/MaryKateLeming769<div><p><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}7960341856,original{{/staticFileLink}}"><img class="align-center" src="{{#staticFileLink}}7960341856,original{{/staticFileLink}}" width="576" alt="7960341856?profile=original" /></a></p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><em>Grass River Garden Club Co-President Susan Lyons presents a $6,000 check to Nature Center Executive Director Patrick Moorehouse recently at the nature center in Delray Beach.</em> <br /><strong><em>Photo provided</em></strong></p></div>Ocean Ridge: Sandoway House's annual galahttps://thecoastalstar.com/profiles/blogs/ocean-ridge-sandoway-houses2011-03-02T20:54:47.000Z2011-03-02T20:54:47.000ZMary Kate Leminghttps://thecoastalstar.com/members/MaryKateLeming769<div><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}7960325465,original{{/staticFileLink}}"><img class="align-center" src="{{#staticFileLink}}7960325465,original{{/staticFileLink}}" width="576" alt="7960325465?profile=original" /></a><em>The Sandoway House Nature Center’s Dancing with the Sandoway Stars annual gala was held on Feb. 5 at the Ocean Club in Ocean Ridge. The gala raised a record $40,000 through silent and live auctions and ticket sales. The gala was dedicated to the memory of Alieda Riley, a Sandoway House founder and longtime supporter and gala committee member who died in January. Pictured are gala committee members Chris Davies, Laura McCormick and Fran Marincola. <strong>Photo provided</strong></em></div>