Keys style

KEYSStyle PEOPLE • EVENTS • FEATURES

2018

®

| SUMMER EDITION |

Mr.

VEL..OUS R A M

?

@

SHIRREL KEY WE ST' S

Rhoades

COMPL

COPY

IMENT A RY

$3.95 US

2 . KeysStyle . S U M M E R

2018

S U M M E R 2 0 1 8 . Keys Style .

3

LOCATED A BLOCK FROM DUVAL

SO FIN LV D C E PU LUE ZZ S! LE S!

U YO IN ? S AN PE TE A C C U ES IN

60

M

• ESCAPE

StUDY • hAVANA JAIL BrEAk • PIrAtE trEASUrE hUNt

thE

e Treasure Hun t a r i P t ABOUT THE COVER Shirrel Rhoades photographed in Key West at the Tropic Cinema, a tourist hot spot, is the film critic for the Key West Citizen newspaper. His reviews are among a long list of credentials. See the full story on page 38.

keywestroomescape.com | 305.916.5517 314 SIMONTON STREET IN OLD TOWN

TRADITIONAL STRAIGHT RAZOR • HAIRCUT, EAR, NOSE & BROW TIDY • HOT TOWEL SHAVE • BEARD TRIM • HAIRCUT & SHAVE

ADDISONS

® P E O P L E • E V E N T S • F E AT U R E S

PUBLISHER

Richard Tamborrino

EDITOR

Kay Harris

CREATIVE MARKETING STRATEGIST

Dannielle Larrabee

WRITERS

Barber Parlor

Kay Harris, Sarah Thomas, Karuna Eberl, Jill Zima Borski PHOTOGRAPHERS

Rob O'Neal,

ADVERTISE 305.292.7777 or

email: [email protected]

FRONT COVER: ROB O'NEAL 3420 NORTHSIDE DRIVE KEY WEST, CT 33040 305.292.7777

Appointment Only

www.keysnews.com

305.434.6480 • 1075 Duval Street

A Cooke Communications Florida LLC Publication


2018

A QUARTERLY MAGAZINE CELEBRATING THE UNIQUE LIFESTYLE OF THE FLORIDA KEYS

TA B L E O F

CONTENTS | Photo by Rob O'Neal |

38 COVER STORY

MR. MARVEL ..OUS

Shirrel

RHOADES by Kay Harris

| Above: Shirrel Rhoades, at The Custom House, is the President of the Key West Art and Historical Society |

THE END OF A KEEPER 06 Sand Key Lighthouse and the

1846 Hurricane

by Karuna Eberl

26 THE FIT AND THE FUN

Running the Bridges of the Keys

by Sarah Thomas

30 GOOD DEEDS WITH

DIRTY WEEDS by Karuna Eberl

14 THE SWEET LIFE

of The Matheessens

by Jill Zima Borski

50 KEYS WIDE EVENT CALENDAR

20 GET CULTURED

This Edition: The Stone Soup Gallery

by Sarah Thomas

Digging into the Keys’ Micro World.

Key West to Key Largo and everything in between.

keysnews.com . KeysStyle . 5

BELOW: An aerial photo of Sand Key lighthouse. Sand Key was about an acre in size in 1846. Throughout the centuries, sand builds up and washes away. There was a small bit of land there toward the end of the 20th century, but today it remains below water.

| by K a r un a EB E R L |

24.4540° N 81.8775° W

T H E

E N D

O F

A

K E E P E R

SAND KEY LIGHTHOUSE AND THE 1846 HURRICANE K E Y W E S T, O C TO B E R 1 0 , 1 8 4 6

Though the air was stagnant and unusually hot, erratic waves were beginning to lap against the seawall at Sand Key. This small, but ominous warning sign was likely overlooked in the excitement of a family reunion. Captain Joshua Appleby’s only child, Eliza, and his young grandson had 6 . KeysStyle . S U M M E R

2018

just arrived on the island for a visit. For the last nine years, Appleby had lived 7 miles offshore on Sand Key, where he manned the lighthouse. He steadfastly kept the oil burning through storms and summer heat. His efforts ensured the safe passage of countless ships, and enabled the young Key West harbor to thrive.

It was a demanding and sometimes dangerous job. The hurricane of 1844 just two years earlier had reduced the island’s size by half and destroyed his quarters. They had only recently been rebuilt when his daughter arrived, along with her husband and son, plus a family friend and her child.

➻ | phot o by Ro b O ' N EAL |

BELOW: No photos exist of the original masonry Sand Key lighthouse, which was obliterated in the Great Havana Hurricane of 1846. The current iron lighthouse (pictured) was erected in 1853.

Eliza’s own mom had died when she was a year old, leaving Appleby to raise her. All accounts suggest they enjoyed a strong bond, and so this was likely a welcome reunion for them both. But it would be short-lived. As they shared stories and dinner, they had no way of knowing what catastrophe nature was brewing. The next morning the wind rose fiercely. Waves pounded the seawall and the barometer fell so low that Appleby must have thought it was broken. The strongest and most destructive hurricane to ever hit Key West was upon them, and it would soon prove to be the last exploit of Appleby, and his 73-years of adventure.

Born in Rhode Island, Appleby first took to the sea as a cabin boy. After raising Eliza, he remarried and set sail for the Keys. That was 1820, one year before Spain relinquished the territory to the United States. He and his new wife fell in love with the place, and soon co-founded a settlement on Knights Key. Dubbed Port Monroe, it was one of the first villages in what is now Marathon. As historian Jerry Wilkinson once speculated, the couple may very well have been the first “developers” of the Keys. They made a living fishing, farming and salvaging shipwrecks. They even commissioned the first general store on Indian Key. These were wild, frontier days, and Appleby was an enterprising fellow. Port Monroe thrived, but also gained a reputation for lawlessness, especially after Appleby joined forces with Columbian privateer Charles Hopner. Hopner’s job was to capture Spanish ships, but international law required him to deliver his “prizes” to Columbia. To circumvent that inconvenience, he instead sailed them to Port Monroe and ran them aground, where Appleby would then salvage and sell the cargo.

| ph ot o by Karun a EBERL |

➻


7

NOTE: The original Sand Key lighthouse was made of masonry, and the keepers quarters were on the ground level. The 70-foot-tall tower cost $16,000 to build and was first lit on April 15, 1827. It took around 500 gallons of sperm whale oil (spermaceti) to keep its 11 lamps burning for a year.

E F O R E long, Key West’s new anti-pirate task force caught wind and sent a sloop-ofwar to arrest Appleby. He was taken in irons to Charleston, South Carolina, but soon released after President James Monroe personally examined his case and exonerated him. Appleby could not escape Hopner, however, who successfully sued him for $7,112 in unpaid promissory notes due from their final prize’s cargo. (In Appleby’s defense, his lawyer pointed out that there technically were no profits that should have been split, since that load of cargo had been seized when Appleby was arrested, and as such never sold).

Port Monroe eventually dwindled and Appleby set up shop in Key West. Thanks to being officially absolved of any nefarious practices, he was able to legally obtain a wrecking license, which he actively used until he accepted an appointment as head keeper of the Sand Key Lighthouse in 1837. Where he once profited on ship’s misfortunes, he was now paid $600 a year to keep them safe. By now he was 67. His second wife had died several years earlier. Some historians speculate that he saw this job as welcomed respite from the physical rigors of wrecking. If he did, he soon realized that was far from true. His quarters and the lamps were repeatedly damaged by many storms,


2018

including the hurricanes of 1841, ’42, ’44 — and finally the Great Havana Hurricane of 1846. On that fateful day, as the tide rose, the waves and surge would have begun rushing over the seawall and flooding the island. Appleby probably moved his family into the tower, since the lighthouse masonry had withstood every other storm. But not this one. During the night, forceful waves washed away the sand, first undermining the tower’s foundation, then eventually eroding the entire island. The next morning, not a trace existed of the Applebys, the lighthouse, or even Sand Key itself. Lt. William C. Pease of the USS Morris later recalled,

“Poor old Capt. Appleby - I knew him very well: he told me the first hurricane would sweep all to destruction, and alas! his prediction is verified.”


9

NOTE: The hurricane of 1846 was described by Colonel Walter C. Maloney as “the most destructive of any that has ever visited these latitudes in the memory of man.” It still holds the record for the most destructive storm to have hit Key West in modern history.

HISTORICAL

CLOCKWISE: Men having picnic at Sand Key, 1899 The image shows Sand Key when there was about an acre of land, 1846 Sand Key lighthouse and keepers quarters, year unkown Hurricane damage to southside of the lighthouse, 1919


2018

PHOTOS PROVIDED FROM

FLORIDAMEMORY.COM

SOURCES: used in this story. Sources used to compile this story include the research and published works of Thomas Taylor, John Viele, Corey Malcom, Brad Bertelli, Neil Hurley, and Jerry Wilkinson

The Appleby family made up just six of a couple hundred deaths attributed to the storm. Ninety-five percent of the 500 or so buildings in Key West lay in ruins or disappeared completely, including the Key West lighthouse, where 16 people died. Havana fared poorly as well. The Sand Key lighthouse was soon replaced by the 140-ton lightship Honey. Rebuilding was slow but in 1853, Florida’s first Fresnel lens was lit atop the new 132-foot-tall lighthouse. More than 450 tons of iron went into the screw-pile structure that still marks Sand Key today. Lighthouse pioneer George Meade oversaw the engineering feat, before going on to command the Union Army in its victory at Gettysburg. The legacy of keepers came to an end in 1941 with the automation of the lamp. In 2014 the Coast Guard deactivated the light for good, replacing it with one atop a 40-foot structure nearby. But that is not the end of the story for old Appleby. Today, those aboard the Coast Guard cutter Joshua Appleby keep vessels safe by maintaining Florida’s buoys, including those in the Keys. They also arrived in Key West to help after the town’s most recent brush with Hurricane Irma. While officially the ship was named in honor of a man who gave his life to protect others, the ship’s motto — “The Wrecking Keeper” — is perhaps is a nod toward a colorful past, and the notion that we may be allowed of a little bit of mischief, along with our good deeds. The fate of the Sand Key lighthouse is a little unclear today. Last year the Coast Guard requested proposals from those interested in receiving ownership of the site, which is in need repairs and maintenance. It may go to the Florida Keys Reef Lights Foundation, who has helped repair other Keys sites.

“B A S I C A L L Y

T H E Y

MORE ENDANGERED THAN THEY HAVE

A R E B E E N F O R Y E A R S, ”

says Eric Martin, president of the nonprofit. His passion for the lighthouses stems from their history, the story of their keepers, and their unusual architecture. To help any Keys lighthouses, see reeflights.org. KS NOTE: It took nearly two years to rebuild the seawall and keepers quarters after the 1844 storm. When the man in charge of Florida lighthouses got word they were finally completed, he wrote, “I am very happy to learn that you have repaired the sea wall at Sand Key.” In an ironic twist, the letter was dated eight days after the 1846 storm obliterated the lighthouse and all traces of the island. S U M M E R 2 0 1 8 . Keys Style .

11

The Real Keys Waterfront Dining Experience

Sliding Glass Doors Hard to Open? IT CAN BE REPAIRED! Roller Maintenance Track Maintenance Security Pins • Door Alignment Security Locks & Handles Introducing the most SECURE patio door lock on the market

Southern BBQ * Local Seafood Cajun Cuisine Jet Ski Rentals & Guided Tours

The Double-Bolt Lock

Professional • Reliable • Insured

Andy’s

Secure Your Sliding Glass Door

Sliding Glass Door Maintenance

305.998.8953

Homemade Desserts

Now Serving Liquor

Try our great Mojitos!

www.KeysSlidingGlassDoorRepair.com

Glass Bottom Boat Tours aboard the luxurious Local Discount

3-6pm DAILY

75’ Key Largo Princess II NARRATED TOURS

The “ONLY” Glass Bottom Boat with a Full Cocktail & Snack Bar

Beer • Wine Well Drinks • Mojitos Rum Punch & Happytizers

ENTERTAINMENT 6:30 - 9:30pm

7am-11am SMOKEHOUSE BREAKFAST 11am-10pm LUNCH & DINNER

305.289.2065 Marathon • MM47.5 • Bayside www.PorkysBaysideBBQ.com facebook.com/PorkysBaysideBBQFlKeys


2018

W L NO F CAeLt 33% O, Fuse

to g m. trips M. 10 a. e FPKLA OFF cod t 20% use e s, Or, g oon trip 2. 1 n after de FPKL co

2 Hour Cruises: 10 a.m. • 1 p.m. • 4 p.m. Seasonal Sunset Cruise departs 6:30 p.m. Location: Holiday Inn Docks at MM100 - Tickets in Gift Shop BOOK in ADVANCE and SAVE at: KeyLargoPrincess.com Or by phone, call (888) 307-1147 or direct at (305) 451-4655

Florida Keys

BRIDAL the

HOTTEST WEDDING

®

emerald RINGS FOR THE UNIQUE BRIDE

TRENDS FOR THE KEYS

+

COLOR LOOKS YOU'LL

LOVE

DESTINATION

wedding FLAVOR PICK UP YOUR COPY TODAY

AVAILABLE throughout

THE KEYS T he Destination Wedding Magazine


13

Sweet

➸

THE

LIFE

OF THE

MATTHEESSENS BY ➸

JILL ZIMA BORSKI


2018

The

| Below: Mattheessens has seven flavors of cookies, each of which weighs a half a pound! WOW! |

MAT TH E ESSE NS, actual size OWNERS of Mattheessen’s Candy Kitchen, are celebrating 25 years in business, and looking forward to National Ice Cream Month this July. They own three Mattheessen’s locations selling homemade ice cream, fudge, key lime pies and giant chocolate chip cookies. They have learned a lot about commerce along the way, mostly by figuring out everything on their own. They weathered economic downturns caused by hurricanes and made mistakes, but all the while, they worked really hard.

Brent and Christina Mattheessen said keys to their success are making homemade goodies from quality ingredients, matching batch sizes with volume sold so that everything is really fresh, and treating their employees -- some of whom have been with them for more than a decade -- like family. A long time ago, the Mattheessens were working in treatment centers for kids doing addiction counseling. Christina had earned a degree in recreational therapy from the University of Alabama and Brent was an avid University of Miami fan. When unbeaten ‘Bama was set to play unbeaten Miami in the national football championship on Jan.1, 1993, they had to be there and journeyed to the Sugar Bowl in Louisiana. Their lives would never be the same. Maybe it was a good thing it wasn’t the Cotton Bowl or they may have chosen a different business. While visiting Louisiana, they witnessed an expresso cart with a mile-long line; the vendor was getting a big price for a small coffee. They thought maybe they, too, could be successful with coffee. They opened a coffee kiosk in Clinton Square Market in downtown Key West, which was just opening back then. The couple began their new business with a credit card with a $15,000 limit.

TOASTED COCONUT

MINT CHIP

ROCKY ROAD

TURTLE CRUNCH

KEY LIME

KAHLUA ALMOND FUDGE


15

| P h o t o s b y R o b O ' NEAL |

| Right: "Loaves" of fudge are cut into 2/3-pound slices, and are available in a variety of flavors | Below: Brent and Christine Matheessen opened their first store located at 419 Duval Street in 1993, with a third location at 614 Greene Street, Key West, Florida | Opposite Page: Brent holds a tray of fresh baked plain macaroons, a | Ice cream flavors: Their ice cream displays boast 23 flavors of colorful homemade ice creams. A few of the flavors offered are spread across the pages of this story |

They named their business Kayla’s Café after their daughter who was just a newborn, and they also served slushies. In Clinton Square Market, there was a fudge shop, and in 1995, they took over that operation as well. Fudge and lemonade became their mainstays. About 20 years ago, when their first son, Hunter, was born, they moved into a location at 419 Duval Street and launched Mattheessen’s Candy Kitchen. They’ve been there ever since. The shop is open 9 a.m. to midnight, seven days a week, 365 days a year. Ask any of their customers – or read the reviews online – and you might hear the toasted coconut ice cream is the best, but the younger folks love mint chip and cookies and cream, say the Mattheessens. Key lime ice cream and sorbet also are popular because they are synonymous with the Florida Keys, but any of their fudge flavors are popular in ice cream as well, such

BLACK CHERRY


BUTTER PECAN

2018

CUBAN COFFEE

VANILLA

CHOCOLATE

STRAWBERRY

as peanut butter, rocky road and plain old yummy chocolate. Many customers enjoy that they make and retail their goodies in the same spot. You might catch Brent making fudge on any given day in a huge copper kettle which is then poured on a marble slab table. Soon, it is turned into a loaf and cut into 2/3-pound slices. If it’s key lime pie you want, theirs has won many a taste test. The key lime filling is poured into homemade graham cracker crust and has a whipped cream topping, but patrons can get a frozen slice on a stick as well dipped in Belgian dark chocolate. They also make about seven flavors of cookies and each cookie weighs a half a pound!

CHERRY VANILLA

CAKE BATTER

Eight years after the Candy Kitchen, they opened the 4th of July restaurant on White Street where Sandy’s Café is now. Because the 4th of July had name recognition, the Mattheessens kept its name. It had an all-American restaurant menu with hamburgers and grilled cheese and they added an ice cream parlor where they served their own homemade ice cream. They operated it for nine-anda-half years. They were active in the community with sponsorships and shared goodies at community events through donations and gift certificates. Nowadays, a person doesn’t have to wander too far to get goodies from Mattheessen’s Candy Kitchen

VANILLA CHIP

MOCHA CHIP

because additional locations are at 106 Duval Street and 614 Greene Street. The latter opened August 1 in an older building with character, said Brent. With their youngest son, Jack, still in elementary school, the couple expects to operate Mattheessen’s for several more years. Their older children work at their stores and take pride in their parents’ accomplishments.

“Kayla and Hunter made many sacrifices with us running mom and pop stores,” said Christina, “but they are enjoying the fruits of our labors.”

PISTACHIO

DULCE DE LECHE


17

Office Hours: Monday – Saturday 9am-5pm Please contact us with any questions! Phone: 305.294.4603 or email [email protected] The KWBG Office is located at 808 Duval St, inside the Gay Key West Visitors Center. 18 . KeysStyle . S U M M E R

www.kwbgonline.org 2018

Florida Ankle and Foot Institute Dr. John F. Torregrosa www.AnkleandFootSurgery.net • www.AminoAndPRP.net Fellow American College of Foot & Ankle Surgeons Fellow American College of Foot & Ankle Orthopaedic Medicine Doctor for National Motorcross & Supercross Series

• Fractures/Dislocations • Heel Pain • Joint Arthritis or Pain • Muscle Tears • Tendonitis/Tendon Injuries (Achilles or Others)

• Reconstructive & Trauma Surgeries • Ligament Injuries • Wound Care • Nerve Injuries • Bone Repair/Regeneration

91550 Overseas Hwy. Suite #107 Tavernier, FL 33070 (305)853-5151 Dr. Torregrosa

Dr. Thetford

Bayview Medical Bldg. 13365 Overseas Hwy. Suite #101 Marathon, FL 33050 (305)853-5151 American College of Foot and Ankle Surgery

Have your lower leg, ankle and foot ailments treated with the latest techniques in regenerative medicine by our ankle and foot surgeons. Upper and lower extremities (knee and above) as well as trigger points can be treated by orthopedic surgeon, Richard Giovanelli M.D. S U M M E R 2 0 1 8 . Keys Style .

19


2018

get

CULTURED

by Sa r a h TH O MAS | P h o t o g ra p h y R o b O'N EA L

THIS EDITION:

the STONE

SOUP gallery

LIKE A ROLLING STONE: MELISSA TRADER’S JOURNEY TO KEY WEST. The Stone Soup Gallery on White

Street borrows its name from the eponymous children’s story, which begins with a band of hungry travelers entering a village with nothing but a cooking pot. The travelers put a stone and water in the pot and as villagers pass, they add ingredient by ingredient, to ultimately create a bountiful soup. Key West is a natural destination—or at least temporary stop off—for travelers from the world over. Melissa Trader, the owner of Stone Soup Gallery on White Street, was one of those travelers in the mid 90s, following The Grateful Dead and roving the country, from Michigan to Telluride to Portland

| Opposite Page: Owner of The Stone Soup Gallery displays local artists including J. H. Allen |Above Top: A Key West landmark, the Cornish Memorial AME Zion Church located on Whitehead painted by George Lee Crosby is available at The Stone Soup Gallery | | Bottom: Melissa Trader shows off her framing work in the lobby area of her gallery | S U M M E R 2 0 1 8 . Keys Style .

21

| Opposite Page: Oil paintings such as “Two Houses on Fleming” and "Fred on Seven Mile Bridge" both pieces painted by local artist Kitty Rose, line the walls of the gallery| Below: Melissa frames a canvas painting in her studio on White Street |

|

A r t i s t : K i t t y R OS E

|

and finally, to Key West. Trader’s father thought Key West was the right, if unlikely, town for her to put down roots. “He had been coming to Key West since the 70s and 80s,” Trader explains, sitting in her sunny gallery space on White Street. “He dove on Mel Fisher’s boat; he bought 801 [Duval St.] and flipped it; he owned Kennedy Studios in Marathon in the 80s and 90s.” Born in California, Trader was raised in Cape Cod and has lived on the East and West coasts, as well as places in between. “I was on tour with the dead from 91 to 95,” she explains, “and I was in Key West when Jerry [Garcia] died.” Trader didn’t stay permanently then, but she returned to the island. “The gallery opened in 2002, and I haven’t really left since then. That made it… solid.” Trader began as a breakfast cook at Blue Heaven and held subsequent miscellaneous jobs until she saw a gallery space for rent. “My first location was on the corner of Eaton and Fleming. I told my now ex-husband, ‘I’m thinking of opening a frame shop,’ and he said ‘No, it’s too expensive,’ and I signed the lease the next day,’” She laughs. She does credit her ex to a degree for the Stone Soup moniker. The children’s story was an initial inspiration: “I come with the empty space, and the artists add things, and it’s for everyone to enjoy.” Another influence was her husband’s hobby as a rock hounder: “We used to go rock hounding and get crystals and agates and geodes… so, Stone Soup!” With her eye for precious stones and her father’s experience in gallery owning, Trader seems a natural curator. “I just put in what I like. I have to look at it all day. My taste is really very eclectic, though I tend to go on the happier side of things. I think art is supposed to make you feel good and put a smile on your face.” The work exhibited in Stone Soup fits the description: lively, local, and accessible. Many of the pieces at Stone Soup are more affordable than comparable galleries on Duval Street, a conscious effort by Trader. There is a rotating cast of artists, exhibiting primarily paintings, as well as occasional sculpture, and jewelry made my Trader herself. Vibrant, detailed oil paintings by Kitty Rose dot the wall by Trader’s desk. She calls Rose, along with J.H. Allen and Chuck Seaman, her “staples.” Rose’s work is dominated by blues and aquas of the ocean, depicting native flora as well as the architectural flourishes of Key West—“Two Houses on Fleming” features a shock of bougainvillea and a pair of conch cottages familiar to the local eye.

“We used to go rock hounding and get crystals and agates and geodes… so, Stone Soup!” - Melissa Trader S U M M E R 2 0 1 8 . Keys Style .

23

GYOTAKU pronounced (gee-oh-tah-koo) means "fish rubbing” in Japanese. When he prints, he dabs ink on the fish and then places the silk or rice paper on top. Then he carefully rubs the fish while paying close attention to the head, scales and fins so when the paper or silk is lifted, a detailed imprint has been left. The eye is then hand painted.

“IF YOU HEAR IT, AND IT’S LOUD IN YOUR HEAD, THEN THAT’S THE PIECE YOU BUY.”

Allen’s work flanks the walls adjacent, his oils depicting the natural world of the American subtropic—long fingers of mangroves in mossy tones in one panel, verdant green of bamboo in a neighboring one. The other wall houses a more abstract linear collection of Allen paintings titled “Reflections and Flags.” Though Trader handles the framing side of the business and creates original jewelry, she does not consider herself an artist. “I’m a picture framer. Two long ends and two short ends.” She laughs. “I always knew I wanted a gallery and a frame shop. Not just a poster shop and a frame shop.” Trader is breezy about her success, though


2018

| Below: MJ. H. Allen depicts the wonders of our tropical environment in his oil paintings. Mossy tones, mangroves, and green bamboo have been an inspiration to this reputable artists' works of art |

being the sole proprietor of a successful Key West gallery for sixteen years is no small feat. “Fake it til you make it,” she says matter-of-factly. “Originally, my business plan was having a different show monthly, because it puts your name in the paper. And it tended mostly to be my friends, and it was kind of whoever wanted to show at that point.” And most importantly: it worked. Now the gallery walls are covered with recognizable artists, offering a vision unique to Key West and Stone Soup. Rife with local talent, Stone Soup evokes the sense of home Trader found on the island. “Key West is not for everyone. It’s one of those towns that embraces you or spits you out. For me, it’s a gorgeous place, and you’re sitting there on the beach, looking out on the water in February like ‘Damn, this is where I live.’ My son goes to the May Sands Montessori school, which is great, and they can be outside—in February!” Trader is not only a gallery owner and mother, but she also publishes the Key West Art Guide, a publication featuring and available in galleries around town. In the foyer to the gallery hangs Chuck Seaman’s work, paying tribute to local marine life via an ancient Japanese technique called Gyotaku. The prints on silk are both otherworldly and realistic: the tentacles of an octopus appear about to lift off the page and come to life. Trader explains: “Hundreds of years ago when Japan was tribal, they would travel to a fish market, but all the fish had different names in different places—just like how dolphin is also called ‘mahi.’ So they made ink prints of the fish so that you could point to the type of fish you wanted rather than use the name. Now it’s an art form that is incredibly labor intensive, and Chuck just got his Master’s Certification. The only thing you’re allowed to repaint is the eye.” While unlike any of the other pieces, the Gyotaku prints like “Octopus” strike a harmony with the rest of the gallery. “I have a theory about art,” Trader says. “It has a voice, and either you hear it or you don’t. If you hear it, and it’s loud in your head, then that’s the piece you buy.” KS


25

ABOVE: Runners approach the hump of the Seven Mile Bridge Saturday morning, twenty minutes into the 32nd annual Seven Mile Bridge Run. The landmark structure is closed each year from 6:45 a.m. to 9 a.m. for the 1500 registered runners.

the

FIT

and the

| by Sa r a h TH O M AS |

FUN

RUNNING THE Bridges of the Keys The Seven Mile Bridge is usually quiet in the predawn hours: a few trucks and sleepy travelers making their way home. But on April 14th it’s abuzz with activity—lines of cars both east and west, police officers and school buses and masses of volunteers in aqua blue First State Bank t-shirts as the sun


2018

first peeks over the horizon. There are coolers of water and heaps of bananas, cowbells and children cheering. The sky is pink and the sun is getting hotter as a large digital clock passes 35:00 minutes, and the first group of runners, first distant shadows on the horizon, come into shape and race toward the finish line.

| p h o to s by R ob O'N EA L |

At 40:01, a ruddy-cheeked teenage boy comes charging across the finish line. Aydan Child, a 17-year-old junior at Marathon High School, finishes first. At 42:43, a lithe woman in yellow hibiscus pattered shorts crosses as the first woman to finish. It’s Laura DiBella’s sixth time competing in the Seven Mile Bridge Run, and it’s her fourth time winning the women’s division. There is a grin on her face, despite the heat and exhaustion. Someone asks if she lives in the Keys, and she answers, smiling: “Soon!” The finish line becomes a cacophony of cheers and whistles as more and more runners cross with the sun at their backs. Volunteers are at the ready, as is water, medical care, and even an FDOT helicopter spinning above. Ginger Sayers is the Director behind the significant production that is the Seven Mile Bridge Run—a race now capped at 1500 runners, whose December registration reaches capacity in less than ten minutes. The 2018 race was the 37th annual run, and Sayers has been one of the chief organizers since the race’s inception in 1982. She began co-directing in 2006. “Our home phone number was the original informational number in 1982. We had people just calling all night in the middle of the night. I finally just unplugged the phone.” Sayer is Director of the Marathon Runner’s Club, the entity of athletes and community members behind the Seven Mile Bridge Run. Sayer says the run’s inception was for the dedication of the new bridge on May 23, 1982. “That was when it started at 8:30 am. It was only that first year that we ran from west to east and started it that late. It was at least a month later than the others and it was a whole hour later too. And it was hot. I was five months pregnant with my 35 year old. He’s run it several times now—he rollerbladed it when he was in eighth grade. But he couldn’t do that nowadays. There is liability now.” While the rules may have tightened on what began as a local run, its reach has broadened significantly. This year, 32 states and Puerto Rico were represented by visiting runners, as well as a number of other countries, including Switzerland and Austria . That said, most of the runners are from Florida, and the run remains a Keys community event. “Once we went online, we made it so that there is a local registration the Thursday before the Tuesday that

is general registration,” Sayer explains. So local runners get an advantage to sign up, if not in the race itself. While a seven—technically six point eight— mile race in the subtropical heat might seem grueling, runners describe it as “spiritual,” “a high,” and “unlike any other run.” Sayer says: “I think that the thing that makes it most unique is that you’re surrounded completely by water. And there is a spirit out there.” Whether spiritual or humanistic, the organizers, who Sayers says have remained largely the same since the inception of the race, create a wholly distinct experience. “The people that work the water stations are into the encouraging and cheering, and the water stations have their own character. One has reggae music; one has fruit that people wanted to offer runners. We have a fire truck with a shower that people can run underneath…. there’s no doubt it’s a special event, and a special run, and it’s unlike anything I’ve done before.” Another special event unique to the Keys actually grew out of the Seven Mile Bridge Run five years ago. Cow Key Bridge Zero K Organizer David Sloan explains the inception of his team’s event that takes place the same weekend: “Chris Shultz and I were out drinking one night, and the next morning he called and asked if I wanted to run the Hemingway 5k. Still feeling giddy from the night before, I said yes, and I almost died. I came in last in my age group, but I finished. And then he said, ‘Let’s do the 7 Mile Bridge Run.’ And I said the only bridge I’m running over is the Cow Key Channel Bridge.” The 300 foot Cow Key Channel Bridge connects Key West and Stock Island and has become the site of one of the most creatively costumed, high energy, human and animal athletic efforts in the Keys. Along with Sloan, the event is produced by Marky Pierson, Morgan Fraga, and Elizabeth Love. Sloan says, “We decided to pump up the creativity by bringing in a bunch of our favorite weirdos. And we don’t sell out in two minutes, and everybody can attend our event!” To be fair, the Seven Mile Bridge Run sold out in approximately eight minutes this year. This year the theme was Discow Inferno, and along with the many participants costumed as cows, there were glittery disco queens in roller skates, bell bottoms, and hot pants. There were several nuns and even a Pope, as well as bedazzled dogs, cats and birds. “Every year they blow us away,” Sloan says.

“Just when we think they can’t get more creative, they do.One costume that ➻ S U M M E R 2 0 1 8 . Keys Style .

27

The Real Local Guys PRODUCTS

Ready Mix Concrete Concrete Block & Building Materials Aggregates

305.453.0368

Ocean Reef to Key West 101075 Overseas Highway Key Largo, FL 33037 10610 7th Avenue Marathon, FL 33050

Serving Monroe, Dade, Broward and Lee Counties

www.allkeysconcrete.com

Email: [email protected]

FURNITURE & INTERIOR DESIGN www.RoyalFurnitureAndDesign.com

featuring

FLOORING by Mohawk:

Stunning design. Worry-free installation. Amazing results!

Call 305-481-1790 to schedule a complimentary in-home consultation, or stop by any of our three stores:

KEY LARGO

Carpet

Wood & Laminate

305-451-5700

MM 99 Median

MARATHON 305-743-4397

MM 50 Oceanside

KEY WEST

305-295-6400

Searstown by Publix


2018

Ceramic & Porcelain Tile

specializing in

WINDOW TREATMENTS by Hunter Douglas

{continued from page 27}

stands out was a cow with udders that dispensed shots of Fireball.” There are five heats: fastest time (held at 23.1 seconds), humans and animals, relay teams, The Walking Cow Stampede (all participants), and finally slowest, awarded to participants to take the longest time while still proceeding in forward motion. This is all followed by the Absurd Herd Party Parade to the after party at the Sunset Green Event Lawn behind Rum Row. “The parade,” Sloan notes, “is longer than the run.” The Cow Key Channel Zero K could be dismissed as a colorful excuse to party—as if Key West needs one— but it also is a community event that bridges ages and stations. “A veteran came up to me one year, and he said I’ve had debilitating back pain, and I used to be a runner, and I finally got to run across a bridge with my granddaughter. And so there’s that human element there. We’re family friendly, and it’s really about bringing people together and helping the animals. Four legged and party animals alike!” Indeed, both of these runs use a portion of their proceeds to fund goodwill community efforts. The Cow Key Channel Zero K gives part of its proceeds to the Monroe County Animal Farm, an animal refuge on Stock Island overseen by Deputy Jeanne Selander that houses exotic and otherwise orphaned animals.

Inmates from the neighboring Stock Island Detention Center have the opportunity to work with and care for the animals in a program unique to the Keys. Perhaps the most famous animal under Ms. Selander’s care is Mo the Sloth, a local celebrity that participated in and did photo ops at this year’s Cow Key Channel Bridge Run. The Seven Mile Bridge Run has offered impressive donations annually, primarily to the Marathon public schools and the school athletic programs. Ginger Sayer even runs a breakdown of the money donated in the local paper. This year they donated $92,100 in total, and the largest allotment was to the Marathon High School Athletic Department. The event funds athletic programming for boys and girls alike, and Sayer has been a volunteer, parent, and former teacher with the Marathon public schools for nearly forty years. “I’m about to turn 66,” she says, “and I was in high school back before [track and field] was possible or available for girls. We could be a cheerleader. And I was a cheerleader. But we didn’t have track.” 27 girls eighteen and under ran the race this year. The Cow Key Channel Zero K moved their event to Sunday, so that runners participating in the Seven Mile Bridge run can do both. A number of athletes partying at the Rum Row after party on Sunday were sweating it out on the Seven Mile Bridge the day before. Any chance Sloan will tackle it in the future? “I did the Seven Mile Bridge Run once. Of course, it was in a helicopter. I was with Rob O’Neal when he was shooting for The Citizen. The Cow Key Bridge Run is definitely more my speed.” KS

ABOVE: Members of the 'One Human Herd' gather before the annual 'Cow Key Bridge Run.' S U M M E R 2 0 1 8 . Keys Style .

29

| by K a r u n a E B E R L |

DRAGONFLY. Anything crawling from flower to flower is a pollinator, including lizards and beneficial dragonflies like this Eastern pondhawk.

good

DEEDS

with

dirty WeeDS // D I G G I N G I N T O T H E K E Y S ’ M I C R O W O R L D //


2018

Some people see a manicured yard, with mulchencircled palms and a white gravel drive as aesthetically pleasing. Naturalists are not those people. In their eyes, those are landscapes of environmental calamity. “Anything is better than bare pea-rock,” says wildlife biologist Sarah Steele Cabrera. “Well, a monoculture grass lawn is not much better.” It feels like it’s about 105 degrees out, as Cabrera cheerily pushes her wheelbarrow through deep sand, explaining the benefits of her favorite native flowers that are most often regarded as weeds. In her tub is a load of gray nicker-bean seedlings she’s about to plant along an isolated beach on Lower Sugarloaf. If her spiny plants survive, she’ll realize a goal she’s been working toward for several years: reintroduction of the Miami blue butterfly. Tiny Miami blues weigh only slightly more than air and are smaller than a dime. They are one of the country’s rarest insects and depend on the nickerbean as food for their larvae. Their diminutive size does not undermine their significance, at least for Cabrera, who has been researching them through her job with the University of Florida. She hopes that the endangered flutterer will become an ambassador for other insects.


31

“butterflies are a gateway bug, she says.

”

SNOW SQUARESTEM (below). Cabrera suspects that dead grass and muck from the hurricane might be acting as good fertilizer, since many native wildflowers like snow squarestem have been popping up in healthy numbers.

“It wasn’t a really great smell for a while,” she says, “but you gotta look for the sliver lining.” -Sarah Steele Cabrera


2018

“Most folks aren’t really big fans of insects but it’s hard not to like a butterfly. The Miami blue is just one small species, but it’s a sign of the massive losses we are having in our insects and pollinators.” Here and around the world, researchers are finding a staggering decline in insects, which is only just starting to come to light. A recent landmark study in Germany showed a 77-percent decrease in flying insect populations over the last 27 years. Scientists cite several probable factors, including pesticides and climate change, but in the Keys Cabrera feels it’s safe to say a major contributor is also habitat loss. While the notion of a life with fewer insects might seem like a great convenience, it’s actually a huge problem. Without bugs, ecosystems collapse. So Cabrera and others hope Keys residents will rethink the definition of what constitutes a beautiful landscape. Instead of seeing a disorderly patch of weeds on the edge of the yard as something that needs exterminating, perhaps we’ll start seeing it as an intriguing, native

MIAMI BLUE BUTTERFLY (below right). The endangered Miami blue butterfly is known to exist on only a couple of uninhabited keys in the Key West National Wildlife Refuge, though efforts are underway to reintroduce them in several locations in the Lower and Middle Keys. It’s strongly suspected that mosquito control practices helped their demise, but today Cabrera believes their greatest threat comes from habitat loss. “Their preferred habitat is beach berms, which happens to be the same habitat we really like to build condos and beach resorts on,” she says.

micro-world, where a dominion of flora and fauna go about their business decomposing detritus, pollinating plants, and feeding birds and lizards. The guy who wrote the field guide to Keys wildflowers, botanist Roger Hammer, says he has noticed a gradual and encouraging upturn in the creation and acceptance of messy yards designed to attract butterflies and birds, even though he laments that Florida is an especially difficult state in which to create a native plant movement. “People move here to retire and just want warm weather,” he says. “They want a lawn and queen palms and red mulch. They just don’t know about Florida’s environment, so it takes a while to teach them landscaping with a purpose.”

handful of particularly harmful invasive species, such as Brazilian peppers and Mexican petunias. He further encourages gardeners to put in a water source and a winding trail or two, then certify their yards as wildlife habitat through the Florida Wildlife Federation. For yard wildflowers, Cabrera and Hammer are particular fans of Spanish needles, fogfruit and snow squarestem. After that, they recommend talking to local nurseries and botanical groups for suggestions. They warn against purchasing seeds and plants from large chain stores, because many of them are pretreated with ➻

Hammer has advised many residents over the decades on how to develop and maintain a beneficial yard. He says adding Florida friendly, non-native plants along with native ones can be equally as helpful to the birds and the bees, so long as people keep an eye out for a


33

SPANISH NEEDLES. (right) Native Spanish needles sprout up around houses, vacant lots and gardens. Their seeds inconveniently congregate on socks and dog fur, but a patch will bring in a brigade of butterflies and honey bees, including the dainty yellow sulphur butterfly, which uses it as their larval host plant FOGFRUIT a.k.a. CREEPING CHARLIE. (right) “Creeping Charlie is probably the plant that caused people to make weed-and-feed,” says Hammer. “They’d see it on the lawn and say, ‘Oh my god let’s get out the herbicide.’ But now it’s come full circle.” Nurseries are starting to grow flats of the Keys native, since it’s great for attracting pollinators and is a good ground cover that can handle foot traffic. It’s also the larval host plant for white peacock, phaon crescent, and common buckeye butterflies. SARAH CABRERA (below) plants gray nicker-bean seedlings, which are a host plant for Miami blue butterflies. This summer, she and her colleagues hope to release blues that were bred in captivity in an effort to revive the dwindling wild population. Cabrera works for Florida Museum of Natural History and the University of Florida, but lives in the Lower Keys, where she works closely with the National Wildlife Refuges and the Fish and Wildlife Service.


2018

{continued from page 33} neonictitoids, an insecticide that can harm caterpillars and kill bee colonies. In addition, for a healthy insect population, it’s important to avoid chemical herbicides and pesticides. Cabrera concedes it’s tough for most people to find the time to do any native planting, even at her own home, but says it doesn’t have to be all or nothing. Even the most unmotivated person can make a difference. “I am a big fan of what I call ‘lazy gardening,’” she says. “That is basically where you just let a patch of your yard grow up in native weeds such as Spanish needles and grasses. If people are willing to use a little bit of their landscape toward looking messy, it’s super helpful and requires almost zero effort.” KS

SANDSPUR. These native prickles are not the most pleasant of plants, but they help reduce beach erosion, add to biodiversity, and are edible with a little processing. If you get some on you, Cabrera suggests wetting your fingers before trying to pull at them. After a recent run-in, this writer concurs that that actually does help, a little. S U M M E R 2 0 1 8 . Keys Style .

35

THE KEY WEST GARDEN CLUB @ WEST MARTELLO TOWER LOCATED @ 1100 ATLANTIC BOULEVARD ON HIGGS BEACH

FREE

305.294.3210 • KEYWESTGARDENCLUB.COM

TO VISIT THE GARDENS

A Key Largo Dining Tradition since 1982!

THE FISH HOUSE Restaurant & Seafood Market An Authentic Keys Dining Experience!

Specializing in Fresh Seafood & Fresh Fish from local commercial fishermen filleted daily on premise.

Open Daily LUNCH: 11:30am - 4pm DINNER: 4pm - 10pm SEAFOOD MARKET: 10am - 10pm 305.451.4665 • 102401 Overseas Highway • Key Largo 36 . KeysStyle . S U M M E R

2018

KLI

Home Center Award Winning Customer Service

Serving the Keys for more than 40 years Bath & Door HUGE Selection Showroom of Stainless Fasteners Pressure Treated SPECIAL ORDERS Lumber If we don’t have it, we can order it! • Building Materials • Plumbing • Electrical • Lawn & Garden • Drywall • Rebar

PADDLE

SERVICES • Delivery • Re-Key Locks • Custom Chainsaw Chains • Cut Keys • Match & Mix Paint

Mon-Fri • 7am - 5:00pm PELICAN COOLERS Saturday • 7:30am - 5pm Now Available!

305-451-0311 www.klishell.com MM102.5 * Oceanside

305-453-6332 • Free Hearing Evaluations • 60-day Trial with 100% refund • 3-Year Warranty; including Loss & Damage Coverage • Reasonable Prices every day! ALWAYS 40% off MSRP • WE SERVICE ALL MAKES AND MODEL OF HEARING AIDS.

Jamie Atkins Hear in Paradise LOCALLY OWNED AND OPERATED

FREE SERVICE ON ALL VA HEARING AIDS First Professional Centre Tropical Optical 5701 Overseas Hwy, Suite 5 81933 Overseas Hwy Marathon, FL 33050 Islamorada, FL 33036 Florida AS5006 Wednesday Only

OUTFITTING ADVENTURES IN THE FLORIDA KEYS & EVERGLADES

305.451.3018

www.floridabayoutfitters.com 104050 OVERSEAS HWY., KEY LARGO, FL

Authorized Hobie Dealer

~ ESTABLISHED 1991 ~


37


2018

SHIRREL RHOADES IS

PREVIOUS PAGE: Shirrel Rhoades sits in front of the Captain Outrageous exhibition, installed at the Custom House

MR.

..OUS

KEY WEST IS RENOWNED FOR ATTRACTING ALL KINDS OF PEOPLE. BY

K AY H A R R I S

PHOTOGRAHS BY

ROB O'NEAL


39

“sidestep normal society, mingle with interesting people, and live on the edge of the world.” - S H I R E L L

ome come and have to work hard to live while others come to live after years of working hard-and then there’s Shirrel Rhoades, who moved to Key West to live after retiring and never got around to the “retiring” part. When contemplating retirement, or in Shirrel’s case, not having what he terms a “real” job, Shirrel said his wife Diane asked him, “What kind of place do you have in mind? I said, ‘I’m looking for three things: some place warm; a place with a sense of history; and a place with eccentric people.’ That narrowed it down.”


2018

Having vacationed in Key West as a child, Shirrel and Diane were frequent visitors to the city until making it their permanent home in 2002. Both spent their careers around writers and artists, so an isolated enclave with such a strong creative vibe was irresistible. Shirrel says Key West allows him to “sidestep normal society, mingle with interesting people, and live on the edge of the world.” Raised in North Carolina, Shirrel has the manners of a Southern gentleman with only a slight accent left after years spent living in various cities. Referring to himself as a Renaissance Redneck, Shirrel cuts a dashing figure about town as he moves effortlessly between projects, from writing weekly movie reviews for The Key West Citizen to planning the annual Key West Mystery Writers Festival. In between, he finds time to run his publishing house, Absolutely Amazing ebooks, with more than 400 titles published in 4 years.

BELOW: Shirrel explains his online publishing business on the porch of his Grinnell Street home S U M M E R 2 0 1 8 . Keys Style .

41

“I wanted to stay in publishing but without the overhead of inventory and distribution,” - S H I R E L L

ecades working in the publishing industry in New York City have left him with enviable credentials, from Scholastic to Reader’s Digest, working with such notable publications as Redbook, Ladies’ Home Journal, Sport, Cricket, and Harper’s magazines, along with the Saturday Evening Post. But the one publishing house that he called home that has given him the most notoriety is undeniably Marvel Entertainment.

THIS PAGE ABOVE: Shirrel loaned items to the Captain Outrageous exhibit at the Customs House, back in April 2018. RIGHT: Shirrel and his wife, Diane, at a croquet tournament in Key West


2018

BELOW TOP: Shirrel Rhoades gets a kiss in Cuba. BELOW BOTTOM: Rhoades poses with the iconic Marilyn Monroe statue at the Tropic Cinema located on Eaton Street in Key West

In 1996, Shirrel was named executive vice president of the comic powerhouse and succeeded Stan Lee as publisher of Marvel Comics. Lee retains the title of “Publisher for Life” even after numerous acquisitions, buyouts, sellouts and even a bankruptcy forever altered the company. Shirrel spent three years with Marvel before he –and even Lee at that time – were ousted during what has been dubbed “The Comic Wars,” pitting wealthy moguls Ron Perelman, Carl Icahn, Ike Perlmutter and Avi Arad in a battle rivaling that of the Avengers versus Thanos. Although he’s left his Superhero days behind him, Shirrel still remains connected through his weekly movie reviews, which he manages to squeeze in between all of his professional and philanthropic activities, including chairing the board of the Key West Art & Historic Society for the second time. Trying to describe Shirrel Rhoades in a few words is as impossible as it is to write about his life in a few pages, so perhaps the best way is to sum him up as simply... ➻


43

PREVIOUS PAGE: Shirrel Rhoades has been the Cooke Communications film critic for the past 10 years.

“MARVEL

..OUS


2018

LOCAL DOCTOR RELEASES BOOK

Insult to Our Planet & The Florida Keys by Jerrold J. Weinstock, MD

A SHOCKING, REVEALING HALF CENTURY MEMOIR FROM THE KEYS NORTH TO ALASKA. From the 1950s to 2018 the depletion of our fisheries here and north to Alaska has been tragic in the Keys, 90% gone, including Bonefish, Permit and Tarpon.

A DETAILED TAKE ON THE FLORIDA KEYS THEN & NOW. Stunning photos and an array of literary & scientific references provide an important wake up call, many from my journals of first hand experience.

ATTENTION TO SPORT FISHING & COMMERCIAL FISHING GUIDES. CHARTER AND SEAFOOD SUPPLIERS This is for you and your future!

“The power of Weinstock’s pros is undeniable and his passion for the subject matter is infectious.” - The Clarion Reviews BUY IT TODAY ON AMAZON.COM

Key West Island Books, Books & Books @ the Studios of Key West and other local bookstores

RESTAURANT, GLASS BOTTOM BAR AND MARINA

Waterfront dining and “Glass Bottom Tiki Bar”. Featured on Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives on the Food Network and in the Netflix Series “Bloodlines”. Pilot House is located on the water in Downtown Key Largo. Enjoy Air Conditioned dining or relax at our Glass Bottom Tiki Bar while feeding the fish. It’s fun for the entire family. Featuring live entertainment most nights and 18 Large TVs. Fresh Local Seafood, Cold Beer and the best cocktails in the Keys! “Home Port for Locals”.

Mile Marker 99.5 I Ocean Side, 13 Seagate Boulevard I Key Largo

305.451.3142• www.pilothousemarina.com


45

EVENT CALENDAR KEYS WIDE

FIVE TO TRY KEY WEST

JUNE 30 - JULY 4

| Photo by Rob O'Neal |

KEY WEST

ANNUAL KEY LIME FESTIVAL A wacky talent show, pie-eating and cooking contests and other tasty temptations await Key West visitors during the annual Key Lime Festival.

JULY 18 – JULY 21

HAVANA CLUB KEY WEST MARLIN TOURNAMEN Anglers ply the waters once fished by writer Ernest Hemingway, vying for $50,000 in guaranteed cash prizes.

JUNE 6 - 10

KEY WEST PRIDE

UNDERWATER MUSIC FESTIVAL The marine musical event is staged by Keys radio station US1 Radio 104.1 FM. The music is broadcast underwater beneath boats positioned above the reef.

Key West shows its Pride every day, and this is your chance to be a part of the celebration! The five-day schedule includes daytime pool and beach parties, late-night drag shows, on-the-water adventures ranging from snorkeling and kayaking to glass-bottom boat tours, a street fair, a 10k relay for tutuwearing runners and walkers, and pageants to select Mr., Miss and Ms. Key West Pride.

ISLAMORADA

www.keywestpride.org

BIG PINE

JULY 7

SEPTEMBER 15

SWIM FOR ALLIGATOR LIGHTHOUSE Swimmers participate in a 9-mile roundtrip race from Islamorada to the Alligator Lighthouse and back.

KEY LARGO

JULY 4

FIREWORKS ON THE SOUND Blackwater Sound provides the perfect nighttime mirrorlike surface to make the annual fireworks display seem like a 3-D viewing experience designed to dazzle.


2018

305-294-4603

JUNE 9

SIXTH ANNUAL VFW FISHING TOURNAMENT

Sponsored by the Southernmost VFW Post 3911, this family oriented inshore and offshore tournament offers cash prizes for dolphin, wahoo, tuna, snapper and grouper, along with prizes for heaviest fish by a lady angler, heaviest fish by a juvenile angler, pee-wee, senior angler and active service member. The heaviest Dolphin: 1st-$3000.00; 2nd-$1000.00; and 3rd $500.00.

610 304 2392

www.vfwpost3911.org

JUNE 16

SWIM AROUND KEY WEST

The Annual Swim Around Key West is a 12.5-mile endurance swim clockwise around the entire island of Key West. This is the 41st swimming of our event, started by founder Anna Fugina in 1977. The Annual Swim Around Key West is an independent and insured swim, permitted by the U.S. Coast Guard. There are three categories: solo swimmer, two-person relay team and three-person relay team. Presented by Key West Athletics Association. Deadline for registration applications is May 18, 2018. www.swimaroundkeywest.com

JUNE 22 - 24

FIFTH ANNUAL MYSTERY FEST KEY WEST

2018 headliners are Keynote Speaker Ace Atkins, the multi-award winning, New York Times bestselling author of twenty-one novels; Special Guest of Honor, the multi-award winning editor and publisher Otto Penzler - proprietor of the famed The Mysterious Book Shop in New York City; and Special Guest Presenter, New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Heather Graham. Fest highlights include panels, presentations and parties with some twodozen award-winning authors, book signings,

presentation of the 2018 Whodunit Mystery Writing Competition and Award, and social events in the Southernmost City.

305-587-9392

www.mysterywriterskeywestfest.com

JUNE 30 - JULY 4

SIXTH ANNUAL KEY LIME FESTIVAL

A wacky talent show, pie-eating and cooking contests and other tasty temptations await Key West visitors during the annual Key Lime Festival. Four days of culinary events for every taste are planned, including favorites from past years like the Key Lime Cocktail Sip & Stroll, and new favorites for Key Lime lovers like The Key Lime Pie Hop. www.keylimefestival.com

JUNE 30

prose and poetry readings, the wacky “Running of the Bulls,” symposium presentations on Ernest and his influence, a commemoration of the 119th anniversary of his July 21 birth, a museum exhibit of rare Hemingway memorabilia and marlin tournament recalling his passion for deep-sea angling. Look alike contest: www.sloppyjoes.com/papa-look-alikecontest

JULY 18 – JULY 21

HAVANA CLUB KEY WEST MARLIN TOURNAMEN

Anglers ply the waters once fished by writer Ernest Hemingway, vying for $50,000 in guaranteed cash prizes. Held in conjunction with Key West’s annual Hemingway Days festival, the event awards $25,000 to the firstplace team.

FKCC KEY WEST ISLAND SWIM:

305-304-0317

The officially sanctioned event is a 12.5-mile swim clockwise around the island of Key West that is open to all age groups. Individual swimmers and relay teams can compete. The route takes swimmers through the waters of the Atlantic Ocean and Gulf of Mexico, ending where they began at Higgs Beach.

JULY 21

SWIM AROUND KEY WEST

305-809-3562

fkccswimaroundkeywest.com

JULY 15 - 18

DEL BROWN PERMIT TOURNAMENT

Anglers fly-fish on the flats in a challenge that honors the late angling pioneer Del Brown, who caught and released 513 permit on fly tackle off the Florida Keys in his lifetime. The tournament is based out of Hurricane Hole Marina.

305-360-6969

www.delbrown.com

www.keywestmarlin.com

26TH ANNUAL HEMINGWAY 5K SUNSET RUN/WALK & PADDLEBOARD RACE

This is the original and oldest ongoing 5K Run in Key West and takes place as part of the the annual Hemingway Days Festival. The race course is a scenic flat course that runs past Key West’s most famous landmarks including

the Ernest Hemingway Home, the iconic Southernmost Point and the famous Green Parrot Bar.

305-240-0727

www.keywesthalfmarathon.com

AUGUST 15 - 19 TROPICAL HEAT

The Key West Business Guild presents this allmale celebration that typically includes pool and dance parties, on-the-water adventures and a fashion show that raises money for a local non-profit organization.

305-294-4603

www.tropicalheatkw.com

AUGUST 30 - SEPTEMBER 3 NINTH ANNUAL KEY WEST BREWFEST

More than 150 beers and micro-brews are on tap at this “tasty” annual event that benefits the charitable efforts of the Key West Sunrise Rotary Club of the Conch Republic. Events from beer dinners, beer brunches, happy hour parties, pool parties, late-night parties, seminars and the Signature Tasting Festival Event are some of the offered activities.

800-354-4455

www.keywestbrewfest.com

HEALTHY

Air Products Exposure to air pollutants can be 100 times higher indoors than outdoors.

EVERYONE CAN BENEFIT FROM

KEY WEST

JULY 17-22

38TH ANNUAL HEMINGWAY DAYS

The annual Hemingway Days festival honors the legacy of the American literary giant who lived and wrote on the island for most of the 1930s. Scores of stocky, bearded men resembling the writer are to compete in the annual Hemingway® Look-Alike Contest at Sloppy Joe’s Bar. Other festival events include

IMPROVED INDOOR AIR QUALITY Call us today about: HIGH EFFICIENCY AIR FILTERS UV LIGHT DISINFECTION SYSTEMS HUMIDITY CONTROL

FOR MORE INFORMATION CALL 305-852-2960 S U M M E R 2 0 1 8 . Keys Style .

47

still apply. There will also be games, kids activities, a face painter, door prizes, food, a “Kissing” booth and fun for the whole family. Stop by either the Key West or Marathon shelter to meet some amazing animals and support the Florida Keys SPCA. KEY WEST

BIG PINE JUNE 1 - 3

ORIGINAL BIG PINE & LOWER KEYS DOLPHIN TOURNAMENT

The Lower Keys Chamber of Commerce presents its 25th annual event, where anglers contend for more than $35,000 in cash prizes and awards. A special cash prize of $20,000 is awarded for the largest dolphin over 50 pounds. Additional prizes await winners in the open, ladies and youth divisions.

800-872-2411

www.lowerkeyschamber.com/ tournaments.php

www.fkspca.org/adopt/

AUGUST 31 - SEPTEMBER 2

JUNE 2

SECOND ANNUAL “TROPICAL NIGHTS” GALA TO BENEFIT WESLEY HOUSE SERVICES

RESCHEDULED:

There will be a fabulous Silent Auction, OPEN BAR, Live Entertainment, and amazing food by the Iron Chefs. Tickets can be purchased at the Royal Furniture location in Marathon or Key West, or the Wesley House Family Services office in Marathon or Key West.

Tickets 305-809-5060

JULY 7

JULY 4

The nationally-acclaimed submerged songfest is held at Looe Key Reef in the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary. The marine musical event is staged by Keys radio station US1 Radio 104.1 FM. The music is broadcast underwater via Lubell Laboratory speakers suspended beneath boats positioned above the reef. www.lowerkeyschamber.com

One of the Keys’ largest fireworks displays. A patriotic parade begins around 10:30a.m. and proceeds from Marathon HS on Sombrero Beach Road (MM 50 oceanside) to free-admission Sombrero Beach, where a celebration features food, drink, kids’ crafts and entertainment, capped off with fireworks.

34TH ANNUAL UNDERWATER MUSIC FESTIVAL

305-743-5417

www.floridakeysmarathon.com

MARATHON MARLIN TOURNAMENT

JUNE 2

DRAGON BOAT FESTIVAL

The waters off Sombrero Beach are to be transformed into a swift racecourse for a day of dragon boat racing that involves 20 paddlers moving in unison a combination of strength and teamwork. Sombrero Beach provides a direct-from-the-beach launch for the sleek, 40-foot-long race boats. The festival is free and open to the public.

813-426-3544

battleinthebaydragonboat.com


2018

HEROES SALUTE TRIBUTE WEEKEND

Each fall, Hawks Cay Resort on Duck Key hosts an annual Heroes Salute program to honor military, fire and rescue, law enforcement and medical personnel; a Labor Day Weekend will include a barbecue, heroes tribute, country music concert and fireworks show.

877-484-9342

www.floridakeysheroes.com

ISLAMORADA

BEACH PARTY & FIREWORKS SHOW

JULY 13 - 15

MARATHON

305-294-4857 305-743-4800

MARATHON

Teams will compete for marlin division trophies as well as fish awards for the three heaviest dolphin fish, wahoo and tuna (yellowfin, blackfin and skipjack). The topmteam in the tournament is to be entitled to free entry into the following week’s Key West Marlin Tournament. Event is based at the Faro Blanco Marine Resort.

305-304-0317

www.keywestmarlin.com

AUGUST 18

NATIONWIDE ANNUAL CLEAR THE SHELTERS EVENT!

The nationwide Clear the Shelters event is from 10am-6pm where we will be extending our hours to host an Adoption Event at BOTH our Key West and Marathon Campus. Adoption fees will be completely waived this day! Current adoption procedures & policies

JUNE 13 - 15

41ST ANNUAL LADIES TARPON FLY TOURNAMENT

The Ladies Tarpon Fly is an all release, fly fishing invitational that has attracted many premier lady fly anglers and guides throughout its history. Whether your favorite species is tarpon or you are looking to put another feather in your cap, the tournament participants range from the expert to the novice who is trying to improve her fishing skills.

917-607-8779

www.facebook.com/keystarpon

JUNE 22 - 23

LADIES, LET’S GO FISHING ANYONE CAN WIN TOURNAMENT!

Intended for novice anglers, enjoy a weekend of learning and a non-intimidating, fun competition! Species include legal inshore and offshore fish. Entry fee $85 per angler/ adults, $35/teens and under plus optional charter fees per person depending on boat type choice. Or, fish on your own boat. This is a casual tournament with prizes for heaviest offshore fish, longest inshore fish and drawings for prizes of those who caught fish, plus bonus drawings.

954-475-9068

www.ladiesletsgofishing.com

SEPTEMBER 7 - 9

3RD ANNUAL FLORIDA KEYS POKER PADDLE

Please join Your Paddling Fools and Florida Keys Brewing Co. in Honoring and Supporting Our Courageous Service Men and Women and their Brave Families. Open to everyone to participate in a “poker” paddle race for kayaks and stand-up paddle boards in beautiful Islamorada. Essentially a “poker run” is an excuse to get together, have some fun and raise money and awareness for a great cause. Packet Pick Up on Friday 9/7 as well as a Awards Ceremony Grand Finale Party on Sunday 9/9.

305-407-7939

www.facebook.com/ FloridaKeysPokerPaddle

SEPTEMBER 15

ANNUAL SWIM FOR ALLIGATOR LIGHTHOUSE

Swimmers participate in a 9-mile roundtrip race from Islamorada to the Alligator Lighthouse and back. Proceeds benefit the Friends of the Pool in Islamorada, helping provide scholarship opportunities to those in need, and preserve treasured historic lighthouses on Florida’s coastal waterways. www.swimalligatorlight.com

KEY LARGO

Keys Window & Door Company PROTECT & BEAUTIFY YOUR HOME WITH HURRICANE RESISTANT WINDOWS & DOORS Professional Window & Door Installation

305.587.0477

• IMPACT WINDOWS • FRENCH DOORS • SLIDING DOORS • STOREFRONTS • SHUTTERS

30 Years of Installation Experience in South Florida Florida Certified General Contractor CGC1513148 Whether You Live Here All Year Long or Visiting for a Short Time, You Can Trust The Professionals At

T A O E N’S H W SERVICE CENTER MV10170

Quality Service Since 1972

AMERICAN & FOREIGN CARS, TRUCKS, SUV’S, VANS, TRAILERS & RV’S

JUNE 1 - 3

FOURTH ANNUAL SKIPPERS DOLPHIN TOURNAMENT

This tournament is headquartered at Skippers Dockside Restaurant, behind the Holiday Inn. Anyone, including captains and mates, are eligible to participate. Junior anglers must be under the age of 16 on the first day of the tournament. First-place team is awarded $20,000 cash. Prize monies are given the top six teams, including $10,000 to second place, $5,000 for third place, daily-angler, lady-angler, junior-angler cash prizes and more.

• OIL CHANGES • FULL SERVICE CAR CARE • CERTIFIED MECHANICS • TIRE SALES & REPAIRS • 24 HOUR TOWING

305.522-4868

www.skipperstournaments.com

101500 Overseas Highway Key Largo • MM101.5

Get your vehicle ready for hurricane season... Be ready for evacuation!

(305) 451-3500 S U M M E R 2 0 1 8 . Keys Style .

49

SPECIALIZING IN CUSTOM HOMES & ADDITIONS Dock Repairs • Concrete Repairs • Impact Windows & Doors

KEY LARGO JUNE 8 - 9

FOURTH ANNUAL CORALPALOOZA

George Champigny, III - President State General Contractor

Phone: 305.796.7735 Serving Upper Licensed & Insured - CG C032712

and Middle Keys

[email protected]

HURRICANE RESTORATIONS

CUSTOM INSTALLATIONS & RETROFITS DOCKSIDE SERVICE & INSTALLATIONS • SALES • DOCKSIDE CLASSES • SEA TRIALS

AUTHORIZED DEALER CERTIFIED INSTALLERS

305.240.7081 Serving The Florida Keys & Miami #keysstrong [email protected] • Local in Key Largo MM106 All installations backed by our 2 year dockside warranty 50 . KeysStyle . S U M M E R

2018

Enjoy a weekend dedicated to promoting awareness for our coral reefs, in honor of World Oceans Day. Dive program participants will join Coral Restoration Foundation on Friday for a presentation along with hands on training, followed by a day of reef restoration activities on Saturday. Register online. Must be dive certified to participate.

305.453.7030

www.coralrestoration.org/coralpalooza

JULY 4

FIREWORKS SHOW ON BLACKWATER SOUND

Blackwater Sound provides the perfect nighttime mirrorlike surface to make the annual fireworks display seem like a 3-D viewing experience designed to dazzle. The show is to take place on the bayfront in Key Largo at 10 p.m., July 4. The best seating can be found at Jimmy Johnson’s Big Chill, Sundowners and Senior Frijoles restaurants, Caribbean Club and Marriott Key Largo Bay Resort, all located around mile marker (MM) 104 bayside. Reservations are suggested because seating is limited; contact restaurants directly. www.keylargofireworks.com

SEPTEMBER 14 - 16

REEF LIONFISH DERBY FOR DIVERS PRESENTED BY WHOLE FOOD MARKETS

Register Friday, Sept. 14 from 6:30-7:30 p.m. for those teams not yet registered. Event staged at John Pennekamp State Park 102601 Overseas Hwy. The Captain’s Meeting is mandatory for the team captains, and all team members are encouraged to attend. The team captain must be one of the four participants in the derby, but does not need to be the captain of the boat. Safe collecting and handling techniques and derby rules will be reviewed. Saturday, Sept. 15, collect lionfish from sunrise to sunset; Sunday, Sept. 16 collect lionfish from sunrise to noon. Awards ceremony will begin after scoring is complete.

REEF 305.852.0030

www.reef.org/derbies/keylargoderby

LIVE ISLAND LIFE LIVE LIVE LIVE ISLAND ISLAND ISLAND LIFE LIFE LIFE Your best life begins with a home that inspires you. So whether your next home search leads you to another part of our islands or around the world, help. Luxury is your an a price the Ocean Your best Your lifebest Your begins life best begins with lifeabegins with home a with that homeinspires awe home thatcan inspires that you. inspires Soyou. whether Soyou. whether Soexperience whether next yourhome next yournot search home next home search leadspoint, search you leads toLIVE you leads another to you another part to another part part International experience ofSotheby's our islands of our of islands orour around islands or around theorRealty world, around the world, we the canworld, we help. cantoday. we Luxury help. canLuxury help. is an experience Luxury is an experience is annot experience a price not apoint, price not aLIVE point, pricethe point, LIVE Ocean the LIVE Ocean the Ocean Sotheby's Sotheby's International Sotheby's International International RealtyRealty experience Realty experience today. experience today.today.

oceansir.com Key Largo to Key West oceansir.com oceansir.com oceansir.com Islamorada 305.712.8888|Marathon 305.204.4935|Key West 305.294.1117 Key Largo KeytoLargo Key KeyWest toLargo Key West to Key West MMXVII Sotheby's International Realty Affiliates LLC. All Rights Reserved. Sotheby's International Realty Affiliates LLC fully supports the principles Islamorada Islamorada 305.712.8888|Marathon Islamorada 305.712.8888|Marathon 305.712.8888|Marathon 305.204.4935|Key 305.204.4935|Key 305.204.4935|Key West 305.294.1117 West 305.294.1117 West 305.294.1117 ©

of the Fair Housing Act and the Equal Opportunity Act. Each Office is Independently Owned and Operated. Sotheby's International Realty and the Sotheby's International Realty logo are registered (or unregistered) service marks licensed to Sotheby's International Realty Affiliates LLC.

© MMXVII ©Sotheby's MMXVII©Sotheby's International MMXVII Sotheby's International RealtyInternational Affiliates RealtyLLC. Affiliates Realty All Rights LLC. Affiliates All Reserved. Rights LLC. All Reserved. Sotheby's Rights Reserved. Sotheby's International Sotheby's International RealtyInternational Affiliates RealtyLLC Affiliates Realty fully supports LLC Affiliates fully the supports LLCprinciples fully supports the principles the principles of the Fairof Housing the FairAct ofHousing the and Fair the Act Housing Equal and Opportunity the ActEqual and the Opportunity Act. Equal Each Opportunity Act. Office Each is Independently Act. Office Each is Independently Office Owned is Independently and Owned Operated. and Owned Operated. Sotheby's and Operated. Sotheby's International Sotheby's International RealtyInternational andRealty the and Realty the and the Sotheby'sSotheby's International Sotheby's International RealtyInternational logo Realty are registered logo Realty are registered (or logounregistered) are registered (or unregistered) service (or unregistered) marks service licensed marks service tolicensed Sotheby's marksto licensed Sotheby's International to Sotheby's International RealtyInternational Affiliates RealtyLLC. Affiliates Realty LLC. Affiliates LLC.

THE ULTIMATE SETTING IN THE FLORIDA KEYS!

The Best SUNSETS in Key Largo!

• Restaurant • Sports Bar • Pool & Cabanas • Tiki Bar ate Birthday Parties / Weddings / Engagements / Business Parties Celebr ing Jimmy Johnson’s Sports Bar with 4 bars and Featur 32 TV’s throughout their huge entertainment complex.

L IVE MUSIC 7 D AY S

A WEE K

ON & OFF S I CATERING TE


2018

MM 104 Bayside, Key Largo 305.453.9066 •www.jjsbigchill.com