December 2011

Celebrate The Season At McKee Garden

December 15-18: Celebrate the season with Holidays at McKee from 6 to 8 p.m. December 15-April 30: McKee will kick-off its special exhibit Sculpting Nature. December 27-29: McKee will showcase its holiday light display of twinkling lights and water displays throughout the Garden at Night of Lights from 6-8 p.m.

Winterfest Is Coming To Pointe West

December 17: Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow! It's time again for the eighth annual Winterfest at Pointe West in Heritage Park from 2 to 6 p.m.

Pinocchio Takes The Stage At Riverside

December 28-January 8: Disney's My Son Pinocchio premieres in the Anne Morton Theatre at Riverside Children's Theatre. Join the Blue Fairy, Stromboli and a lively cast of characters as Geppetto journeys beyond the toy shop to discover what makes the "perfect child."

Atlantic Classical Orchestra Opens ’12 Season

January 5: The Atlantic Classical Orchestra will begin its 2012 season, An International Palette of Music, with the Series I Concert at the Waxlax Center for the Performing Arts at Saint Edward's School. There will be a conversation with Maestro Stewart Robertson at 7:10 p.m., followed by the performance at 8 p.m.

IRSA Presents The Royal Philharmonic

January 7: The Indian River Symphonic Association will present the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra at 7:30 p.m. at the Community Church. January 15: The Symphonic Association will also host the Brevard Symphony Orchestra led by conductor Christopher Confessore at 7:30 p.m. at the Community Church.

Antiques On Display At The Museum

January 12-15: The Vero Beach Museum of Art will present its 20th annual Antiques Show & Sale under the management of Charles Miller, of the Miller, Hamilton Company of Chapel Hill, N.C.

Theatre Guild Presents Born Yesterday

January 12-22: The Vero Beach Theatre Guild will present Born Yesterday, a comedy by Garson Kanin.

The Full Monty on the Stark Stage at Riverside

January 12-February 5: Nominated for nine Tony Awards, The Full Monty will make its way to the Stark Stage at Riverside Theatre.

ELC Hosts An Evening In Cannes

January 14: A film festival-style red carpet will be out for the Environmental Learning Center's annual benefit An Evening in Cannes at Maison Martinique from 6:30 to 10:30 p.m.

Quail Valley’s Charity Cup Week

January 14-21: Quail Valley Charities Inc. presents its 10th annual Quail Valley Charity Cup at the Quail Valley River & Golf Club, benefiting 25 local charities with a focus on educating and enriching the lives of children in Indian River County.

The Emerson Center: Arianna Huffington

January 14: The Emerson Center Celebrated Speaker Series will begin with Arianna Huffington, co-founder and editor-in-chief of The Huffington Post at the Emerson Center at the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Vero Beach at 4 p.m. and 7 p.m.

Vero Beach Opera: The Barber Of Seville

January 15: The Vero Beach Opera will open its 2012 season with Rossini's The Barber of Seville at 3 p.m. at the Vero Beach High School Performing Arts Center.

Supper Club At Riverside Theatre

January 17: The Riverside Theatre Skyline Room will be transformed into a New York Supper Club for an evening with Christine Ebersole at 6:30 p.m.

IRMC’s Transformation Celebration

January 21: The Indian River Medical Center will present its event of the season, Transformation Celebration, beginning at 6 p.m. at The Moorings Club.

Distinguished Lecturers At Riverside Theatre

January 23 - April 9: Riverside Theatre's 2012 Distinguished Lecturer Series welcomes several renowned experts discussing a wide range of topics on national and global issues.

Walk A Mile For SafeSpace

October 29: Over 100 local men participated in the second annual SafeSpace Walk a Mile In Her Shoes to raise awareness for SafeSpace’s domestic violence programs.

14th Annual Women’s Refuge Golf Tournament

October 29: Participants enjoyed a beautiful day of golf at the 14th annual Women’s Refuge Golf Tournament at Sandridge Golf Club.

Ski Club Fashion Show

October 26: The Vero Beach Ski Club presented a fashion show courtesy of Peter Glenn and an open house highlighting the club’s upcoming trips, including a winter adventure to Banff, Canada, with the Florida Ski Council.

Bowl To Build No. 5 For Habitat

October 23: Indian River Habitat for Humanity held its fifth annual Bowl to Build at Vero Bowl, which raised over $11,000 for the organization’s educational scholarship program.

Education Foundation Turns 20

October 22: The Education Foundation of IRC celebrated 20 years of service to students and teachers in the county with its fall fundraiser We’re Going Platinum – Celebrating 20 Years of Recorded Hits.

Frightening Formals For Halloween

October 22: Guests sported frightening formal wear from scary bridesmaid and prom dresses to powder blue leisure suits, and danced the night away at the Heritage Center’s Frightening Formals on 14th Avenue: Heritage Halloween Dance Party.

Dogs For Life Howl-O-Ween Parade

October 22: Dogs in costumes were the main attraction at the 10th annual Dogs For Life Howl-O-Ween Canine Costume Pawrade & Pet Expo.

Healthy Start Half-Marathon

October 15: Hundreds of runners took part in the Beachside Half-Marathon and 10K to benefit Indian River County Healthy Start Coalition. Participants were rewarded with a pancake breakfast and health fair after the race.

Put on your Pink Bra for Breast Cancer Awareness

October 15: Women, men and children came out to the Sebastian River Medical Center to show their support for the fight against breast cancer.

Dollars For Scholars Football Classic

October 14: The Vero Beach High School Fighting Indians took home the trophy against the Sebastian River High School at the sixth annual Dollars for Scholars Football Classic.

Breast Cancer: Shopping For The Cure

October 14: The Oceanside Business Association merchants provided a day of shopping and hospitality to help raise awareness of breast cancer.

Taste Of Vero Draws A Crowd

October 12: Ocean Drive was bustling during the Ocean Business Association’s Taste of Vero. Guests sampled delicious fare from 19 local restaurants, enjoyed live music and visited the shops.

Lee Corso Scores A TD In Vero Beach

October 12: Football fans gathered at Quail Valley River Club for a visit with Lee Corso, one of college football’s most knowledgable, opinionated commentators on ESPN’s College GameDay.

Brite Future A Best Place To Work

Brite Future Electric was selected as one of the Best Places to Work in Indian River County by Workforce Solutions on October 20. The company was one of four chosen in the under-25 employees category.

Kaleidoscope’s Girls Night Out

December 8: Kaleidoscope Consignments will host its monthly Girls Night Out from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m., benefiting the Homeless Family Center.

Low Country Luxe Candle Debut

December 2: Low Country Luxe will launch its first holiday candle at Decorative Arts during the Downtown Dine & Design's Holiday Stroll from 5 to 8 p.m.

Fashion Show For Breast Cancer

Blondies on Ocean presented its annual fall fashion show benefiting breast cancer awareness at Costa d'Este Beach Resort on October 6. Join Blondies on Ocean December 7-10 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. for a Vintage Highway trunk show featuring one-of-a-kind tee shirts and dresses.

Celebrate the Holidays with Twirl & Penelope’s

December 10: Join Twirl Kids' Boutique and Penelope's for an evening of holiday cheer from 5 to 8 p.m. Enjoy live acoustic Christmas music, wine, cocoa and light bites.

Tootsies Offers Holiday Specials

December 1-31: Gift certificates from Tootsies are the perfect present for the holidays. The store is offering December gift certificate specials: purchase five Simple Pleasures Pedicures for $130, a $10 savings, three Ultra Pleasures Pedicures for $105, a $9 savings, or five Classic Manicures for $90, a $10 savings.

Doctor Recognized As Top Vascular Surgeon

W. Clark Beckett, M.D, FACS, owner of VeinTherapies, was recently recognized by U.S. News & World Report as one of the top vascular surgeons out of 3,000 in the country.

Moulton Layne Featured In National Magazine

David Moulton and Scott Layne of Moulton Layne, P.L., were featured in the current issue of Women's Day Specials: Remodeling & Makeovers for renovating a three-bedroom, three-and-a-half-bath, 2,600-square-foot condominium.

Kilwins Celebrates With Santa

December 2-4: 'Tis the season for Kilwins' second annual holiday open house from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. each day.

Veranda Hosts Elizabeth Locke Jewelry Show

December 14 & 15: Stop by Veranda for a special preview of the Elizabeth Locke Jewels 2011-2012 Collection from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.

Fashion’s Night Out At The Outlets

Vero Beach Fashion Outlets hosted Fashion's Night Out on October 21, which included live entertainment, special offers and refreshments from the stores as well as a variety of vendors offering items from food to beauty and fashion tips.

Jordann Jewelry Trunk Show At Cricket’s

December 9: Cricket's invites you to view the Jordann Jewelry Collection and meet designer Jordann M. Weingartner from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Mark’s At The Pointe Fundraiser

December 10: Join Mark Rodolico "Ask the Hair Guy" and his staff for an after-hours benefit party and auction to raise money for the Healthy Start Coalition at Mark's at the Pointe Salon & Boutique from 6 to 9 p.m. Mark has been selected as a contestant for Dancing with Vero's Stars, and is kicking off his fundraising campaign.

Popsicles At Pocahontas

You may wonder who the popsicle man is on the corner of 14th Avenue and 21st Street in front of the Pocahontas Apartments. He is Michael Haggerty, owner of Hero Pops.

Violet & Co. Hair Designs

Hairstylist and salon owner Violet Aslanian has launched Violet & Co. Hair Designs on 22nd Street off Royal Palm Boulevard.

Sue Tompkins Appointed President Of Impact 100

Impact 100 of Indian River County recently named Sue Tompkins as president of the all-women nonprofit organization.

Eclectic Treasures On 16th Street

Barbara Falone and Karen Frey opened BJ’s & Company K, a high-end resale shop filled with a blend of eclectic treasures around the corner from Old Dixie on 16th Street.

Heritage Classics Comes To The Treasure Coast

Karen and Jim Patrick recently launched Heritage Classics of the Treasure Coast, a company specializing in fundraising, gifting and awards programs for organizations in Vero Beach and along the Treasure Coast.

New Operations Center For Oculina

Locally owned and managed Oculina Bank celebrated the completion and opening of its new LEED-certified operations center on 24th Avenue in Vero Beach’s enterprise zone.

Justice For All At Outlets

Justice recently opened its 65th Florida store at the Vero Beach Fashion Outlets.

Crocs Opens Clearance Factory Store

Crocs, the casual footwear for men, women and children, has opened the only clearance factory store in Florida at the Vero Beach Fashion Outlets.

A Tradition Turns Twenty

In the autumn of 1992, members of the Garden Club of Indian River County gathered to create a series of Christmas ornaments illustrating Vero Beach icons, with proceeds funding the Garden Club’s many programs.

Italian Inspiration On Easter Lily Lane

Citrus Grillhouse is getting recognized – for its food, style and, of course, for its spectacular view.

By Mary Beth Vallar
Photo by Denise Ritchie

For Whom The Bells Toll

Bob and Diane Macgowan grew up in families that reached out to help people in need, and together they’ve quietly but enthusiastically continued the tradition. For years the couple contacted everyone they knew to man the Red Kettle and ring a bell for the Salvation Army outside the beachside post office during the holiday season.

By Ann Taylor

Mardy & Jake: Two Friends With A Mission

Many life-long friendships have begun at the Community Church Preschool, but perhaps none are as famous as that of Mardy Fish and Jake Owen. Imagine the two rough-and-tumble boys, champions of the playground, never knowing the brilliant future that lay ahead.

By Elizabeth Moulton
Photography By Jon Pine

Inside The “Battle Against Bad Guys”

It is 6:30 p.m. on a humid evening in September, and here, sitting in an air-conditioned auditorium at the Sheriff’s Office headquarters on 41st Street, 47 of us are awaiting the start of a free “Citizen’s Academy.”

By John Parkyn

Same Planet, Different Worlds

The United Way Campaign for 2011-2012 is underway, and Chris Loftus and her husband Don are chairing the community-wide fund drive to support the human services needs of Indian River County’s citizens. Their goal of $2.5 million is indeed a challenging one, yet Chris and Don, along with an army of dedicated volunteers, are confident it can be met if everyone who is able to give makes a contribution.

By Mary Beth Vallar

Unearthing Our Ice Age History

Sometime next year, successive waves of archeologists, paleontologists and volunteer worker bees will start descending the banks of the Main Relief Canal behind the county administrative complex for an exacting, mostly teaspoon-by-teaspoon dig in the dirt. The quest: to find fossils and artifacts to complement a dispersed collection of earlier findings from the Old Vero Site – most notably, human bones found alongside remains of extinct Ice Age animals in an excavation conducted nearly a century ago.

By Deborah Borfitz

Not My Type, Or So I Thought

Room F was dubbed the “lost souls” area of Chicago Animal Control by the few who ventured in. Unlucky canines awaiting court cases, dogs labeled as prisoners’ property, biters, and scarred fighting victims sharply voiced their frustrations or just sat resigned, awaiting their fate. I walked this oppressively hot room with the assistant director, Tom. He had fallen in love with a three-time returnee named Bella.

By Amy Robinson

The Lucky Beans Beach House

It’s not every day that someone knows they’ve found the perfect house within minutes of walking through the front door, yet that’s what happened to John Miller three years ago. After a quick tour of the first floor he took the stairs two at a time to the second, where he counted the number of bedrooms and knew the oceanfront property was just what he had been looking for.

Dreaming Of A White Christmas In Vero Beach

Celebrating winter with tropical style.

Photos by Denise Ritchie

What Do Hurricanes And Yellow Fever Have In Common?

I grew up in South Florida at a time before hurricanes were named and no one evacuated anyone anywhere. It was when grownups talked in somber voices of the hurricane of Labor Day 1935, the strongest hurricane ever recorded, with winds at 200 m.p.h. That was the time when World War I veterans, working in three CCC camps, were swept off the Florida Keys along with a rescue train that was blown off the tracks.

By Evelyn Wilde Mayerson

’Tis the Season for The Nutcracker

In hundreds of households across town, Christmas is as much about dancing snowflakes and the Sugar Plum Fairy as tree decorating and frenzied gift-buying. The holiday season annually unfolds onstage by dancers on their toes retelling the rather bizarre story of a broken wooden nutcracker, saved from the Mouse King by a tenderhearted Clara and magically transformed into a handsome prince.

By Deborah Borfitz
Photo by Denise Ritchie