Cory Lake Isles Resident Yogi Goswami Inducted Into FL Inventors Hall of Fame

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Dr. Yogi Goswami, pictured here with his wife Lovely, was inducted into the Florida Inventors Hall of Fame on the USF Tampa campus at an Induction Ceremony & Gala on September 16.

Thomas Edison. Henry Ford. Yogi Goswami.

These three are among the 20 inventors who have been inducted into the Florida Inventors Hall of Fame since its inception in 2013. Only one, though, lives in New Tampa.

Yogi Goswami, Ph.D., P.E. (Professor Emeritus), is a University of South Florida Distinguished Professor and director of the university’s Clean Energy Research Center. The Cory Lake Isles resident is one of seven inventors honored at an induction ceremony and gala at the Inventors Hall on the USF Tampa Campus on September 16.

Dr. Goswami has lived in New Tampa with his wife Lovely for 10 years, since he left his position as director of the University of Florida’s Solar Energy Research Lab in Gainesville. He came to USF because he says it gave him, “more opportunities for doing groundbreaking research.” For example, Dr. Goswami says, “To establish a new research lab, you need space to do that, and USF was able to give me that space. Because the university is newer, it is open to a lot of things that may be harder to do at a (more) well-established university.”

The Florida Inventors Hall of Fame chose Dr. Goswami for his work in solar energy and indoor air quality. “I have 18 patents,” he says. “Some are related to solar energy, some to energy storage, and six are related to indoor air quality and the technology to disinfect and clean air.”

He says the key to being chosen for this honor is for those patents to be in use and helping people.

“My inventions are being used around the world,” Dr. Goswami says, “especially my invention to disinfect

When his now-grown son, Dilip, was much younger and suffering from allergies and asthma, Dr. Goswami began to look for a way to help him. He used his expertise to develop the technology that actually destroys the pollutants in the air that were making his son sick.

“The air inside homes and offices has a lot of pollutants, not just bacteria, viruses and mold,” says Dr. Goswami, “but also volatile organic chemicals that come from paints and other materials we use inside our buildings. Those things make us sick. Before air conditioning was so widely available, we used to have open windows so we would have fresh air. Now, these pollutants concentrate inside. This technology is the first on the market that destroys them.”

Dr. Goswami and Dilip co-founded Molekule, the company that is now producing an indoor air purifier that uses this technology. The first two production runs of the device, also called Molekule, have completely sold out, and the company currently has a waiting list for the next batch of air purifiers, which are expected to be available for sale in November.

He says many of his other inventions are related to making solar energy conversion more efficient, to bring the cost down.

“Costs have come down quite a bit over the last few decades in solar energy,” says Dr. Goswami. “We can make it more efficient and bring the cost down even further in the future.” He also has inventions related to storing energy more effectively, since solar energy is “intermittent,” meaning it’s not available at night or when it’s cloudy. His work in this area is directed toward large- scale power plants that produce solar energy.

“The Florida Inventors Hall of Fame is very prestigious,” says Dr. Goswami. “I feel honored to be inducted, especially seeing the people who were inducted before me, such as Henry Ford, Thomas Edison and Dr. Robert Cade, the inventor of Gatorade.”

The Florida Inventors Hall of Fame is located in the USF Research Park at 3702 Spectrum Blvd., Suite 165, and is online at FloridaInvents.org.

For more information about the Molekule air purifier, visit Molekule.com.

New Tampa’s Sweet Party Store Is Your Halloween Headquarters!

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Maher and Leslie Alagal opened the Sweet Party store in the Trout Creek area of New Tampa in May. The store is loaded with an array of party themes, supplies and accessories.

If you’re trying to judge party stores, you are probably going to start with, well, the party.

Holding a luau?

Sweet Party has you covered.

Mardi Gras? Bridal Shower? Gasparilla?

Check, check and check. And the list goes on and on.

“We are filling so many themes that you can’t find elsewhere,’’ says Maher Alagal, who owns the largest party store in the New Tampa and Wesley Chapel area with his wife, Leslie.

Sweet Party, located in the Trout Creek Commons plaza, just off Bruce B. Downs (BBD) Blvd. and right behind the Bay Breeze Castrol Lube Express and Burger 21, has been open since May, and seems to be finding its footing in the area as a one-stop shop for party planners. You can find most any theme (say, LEGOs, princesses or ninjas) that can include streamers, cups and napkins. Candy and prizes have their own aisles at Sweet Party, along with balloons, confetti and gift bags.

“We have been thinking about doing this for 3-4 years,’’ says Leslie, who has lived in Tampa since 1992. “There was no large party store to provide for the people of New Tampa and Wesley Chapel, so we jumped in and did it.”

The 7,000-sq.-ft. party place seems to have everything, and if they don’t, Maher says they can find it for you. Case in point: one customer was looking for party cups and napkins in the hard-to-find color of robin’s egg blue. Now, right near a seemingly endless wall of colored cups, napkins and plates, sits a robin’s egg blue display of those items as well.

And, Maher and Leslie offer a 10-percent discount to military and first responders, as well as various other community members. Mention that you read this article, or visited his Facebook page, and he’ll give you 10-percent off, too.

“This place is incredible,” wrote Tampa’s Amanda Gill on Sweet Party’s Facebook page. “Just went to browse for my son’s upcoming party and this place has everything…. If you’re looking for anything party-related, or even just extras for a get together, this place has it! And I even heard him telling another customer if there is something they don’t have, let them know and they’ll try and get it! But I’m telling you, they have EVERYTHING!”

Making Halloween Costume Shopping Less Scary

The store is now prepped for Halloween as well, with dressing areas in the back. On the back wall are more than 400 pictures of the Halloween costumes the store has in stock, ranging from Ninja Turtles and The Avengers for kids, to a host of costumes for adults as well. There is a colorful aisle filled with feather boas of almost every color, plus other costume accessories, such as tights, wigs and masks.

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Looking for Halloween costumes & accessories? Sweet Party has you covered!

Thanks to Sweet Party, you can go to your Halloween party as a pirate, a nurse or a 1970s rock star. If you really want to be obscure, hurry in and snatch that Richard Simmons costume off the hook.

“We expect Halloween to be one of our biggest days,’’ Leslie says.

While themed birthday parties are the most common, another popular party theme these days are the “gender reveal” get-togethers, says Leslie.

Sweet Party has an entire display devoted to the big day, with a slew of different ways, including scratch-off cards, to unveil to your friends whether your family is expecting a boy or a girl.

One gender reveal party Leslie was planning for two weeks ago involved a 36-inch balloon (Sweet Party is the only place around where you can find latex balloons that large) that she was going to be filling with pink streamers and confetti before inflating. At the big reveal, the balloon would be popped and the secret would be out of the bag…or balloon, as it were.

“Gender reveal parties are a big thing today, much bigger than when (our generation) was having babies,’’ Leslie says. “We’ve had people bring in their containers with the unopened envelope in it, because they don’t want to know (until the reveal) either.”

sweetparty_5Behind the front counter of the store is a wall of inflated mylar balloons for every occasion. There are super heroes, “Star Wars” characters, Elsa from “Frozen,” Pikachu of “Pokemon” fame and dozens of others — with more than 100 inflated balloons covering the wall and another 100-plus packaged in their own aisle. Leslie says Mickey and Minnie Mouse continue to be the best sellers, but one can purchase a 46-inch Iron Man balloon, or even a 70-inch “Star Wars” Storm Trooper.

Sweet Party also carries 34-inch-tall inflatable letters — Leslie says no one else in the area stocks them — so you can spell out B-A-B-Y or the name of your party’s guest of honor.

Sweet Party will inflate your balloons for you, or you can rent a helium tank and do it yourself.

“Balloons and candy are our biggest sellers,’’ Leslie said. “But, it all depends. A week ago, the bachelorette party stuff was flying off the shelves. And, graduation was pretty good for us, too.”

sweetparty_2Leslie and Maher say the business is growing well, and they have made a lot of new friends in the New Tampa and Wesley Chapel communities by helping out with  school parties as well. The word is getting out, as people putting on graduation parties from Zephyrhills drove all the way to Sweet Party for supplies.

The store also has a display for sports parties. On the Monday following Florida State’s recent 55-35 win over USF, the shelf with party supplies adorned with the logos of both teams was sparse. There is a section with party supplies for the Tampa Bay Lightning, Tampa Bay Bucs and the most popular NFL teams, like the Green Bay Packers, and even more generic supplies if you’re putting on a party for the future All-Star in your home, like large soccer ball paper lanterns.

“The New Tampa and Wesley Chapel communities have been great,’’ Leslie says. “It’s been fun to interact with customers. We have found out that people party every day of the week.”

Sweet Party is located at 20310 Trout Creek Dr. and is open Mon.-Thur., 9 a.m.-8 p.m.; 9 a.m.-9 p.m. on Fri.-Sat. and 10 a.m.-6 p.m. on Sun. For more information, visit SweetPartyTampa.com or Facebook.com/SweetPartyTampa, or call 994-4900. 

Vuelo’s Getting Ready For Opening

nibs_senortsSeñor T’s To Become Vuelo’s

Speaking of restaurants we liked that had closed, Señor T’s Mexican Grill, which opened in the former location of Romano’s Macaroni Grill on Bruce B. Downs in November 2015 and closed in August of this year, held a two-day Job Fair Sept. 27-28 for people interested in working for a new restaurant, which should open within a few weeks.

According to an on-site manager we spoke to shortly after the well-attended Job Fair, the new restaurant also will be owned by Señor T’s owner Tom Reynolds, but will be called Vuelo’s and both the menu and the concept will be revamped, although it will still be a Mexican restaurant.

We’ll provide more updates as Vuelo’s gets closer to opening.

Hanaq Prana Yoga To Visit Peru

hanaq-prana-yoga-groupA group of women from New Tampa are headed to Peru Oct. 16 to give students in a disadvantaged, mountainous area of the country laptop computers to enhance their educations.

The women are students of Hanaq Prana Yoga Studio, located at 10323 Cross Creek Blvd., Suite E., and the group is led by studio founder and director, Lorena Saavedra Smith, who is a native of Peru.

The group will spend a week at the Willa T’ika wellness retreat near Cusco, Peru, and will have a “packed itinerary” of doing yoga, experiencing the local attractions and serving the community.

“I’ve been planning this retreat since February,” says Lorena. “It’s a time of self discovery, time to reconnect, and for many of these women, a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to visit such a fascinating country.” She says the 10 available spots for the trip were filled quickly and she has a waiting list of three or four women who will be first to attend next year’s retreat.

“We’re going to explore the ruins, enjoy the beautiful scenery, visit the (15th Century Incan citadel) Machu Picchu, taking in all this amazing energy from the mountains,” Lorena says. “Then, the service part is the last day of the retreat, so after we’ve cleansed the body, and taken in the energy, we can serve these kids.”

Tony Selvaggio, owner of eSmart Recycling, has provided 10 laptop computers to be donated for the trip.

“Tony has an amazing business of keeping old electronics out of landfills,” Lorena says. “Thanks to this donation, students in the small village of Cusco will have the opportunity to succeed academically with the access to technology that this donation of laptops will provide.”

For more information, visit HanaqPranaYoga.com.