Nibble and Bytes

Song

Ty & Hildi Visit TPO

If you were a fan of the old “Trading Spaces” home improvement TV show on TLC (formerly The Learning Channel), you probably already realize that the show has made a triumphant return, after a 10-year hiatus.

On April 7, the day the new edition of the show debuted on TLC, “Trading Spaces” co-hosts/designers Ty Pennington and Hildi Santo Tomas (photo, above) appeared for several hours at the Tampa Premium Outlets, to the delight of hundreds of fans who got to get “up close & personal” with Ty and Hildi. A great get for TPO, to be sure.

For more information, search “Trading Spaces” on Facebook.

Cost Plus World Market Is Open!

Although most of the action in Wesley Chapel is centered around S.R. 56, I had no idea how much excitement there would be about the Grand Opening of Cost Plus World Market (5831 Wesley Grove Blvd.; photo above right) in The Grove shopping center off S.R. 54.

The store, which features furniture, décor and gift items, packaged/dry foods and wines, had already been open a few days when World Market hosted a North Tampa Bay Chamber of Commerce ribbon cutting on April 5, which was attended by hundreds of deal-seeking locals.

I’ll admit that I went there with no intention to purchase anything but came home with a half-case of assorted wines, two types of coffee (the World Market Italian Roast? Amazing!), World Market’s own truly delicious vodka spaghetti sauce and assorted unique chocolates. I even ended up joining the store’s savings club. So much for not buying anything, right?

For more info,  visit WorldMarket.com or call the WC store at (813) 371-2433.

Jake’s Pizza Opens In MP

In case you haven’t been on County Line Rd. in Meadow Pointe recently, Jake’s Pizza has opened in the end space in the plaza adjacent to the CVS Pharmacy. Two previous restaurants opened and closed in the space but Jake’s Pizza already seems to have something of a cult online following (maybe from its existing Palm Harbor location), as it serves St. Louis-style pizza. I had never heard of that before, but it appears to be similar to the thin-crust (not the deep dish) Chicago-style pizza, especially in terms of its thick red sauce, but with an incredibly crispy thin crust that’s hard for even a New Yorker to resist. I haven’t yet sampled what Jake’s calls New York-style crust, but there also is a gluten-free option.

Jake’s Pizza (30036 County Line Rd.) is open 11 a.m.-10 p.m. every weekday and until 11 p.m. on weekends. Jake’s serves a variety of appetizers, soups, salads, pastas, subs and desserts. For more information, call (813) 445-7070 or visit http://jakes.pizza.

SongCongrats, Mate…I Mean Mike!

Congratulations go out to my friends Mike and Sue Prenderville for the Grand Opening and two-Chamber ribbon cutting on Apr. 26 of the new location of Song Printing & Design, now located at 38514 5th Ave., in beautiful downtown Zephyrhills.

Both the Greater Zephyrhills and North Tampa Bay Chambers of Commerce brought scissors to the ribbon cutting, which was attended by more than 100 people, many of whom (we hear) stayed after the event ended to try a Song Printing IPA draught beer at the Zephyrhills Brewing Co., the 2018 Taste of New Tampa 2nd Place Peoples Choice Beverage winner, which is located directly next door. How convenient for our British friends, who can’t resist a pint themselves (especially Mike).

For more information, call (813) 715-2212 or visit SongPrinting.com. 

KAP Medical Group Celebrates Its Grand Opening

Congrats also go out to my friends Karina Azank Parilo, M.D., and her husband Dane Parilo, on the Apr. 25 Grand Opening of KAP Medical Group, located in the Windfair Professional Park behind the Shoppes of Wesley Chapel plaza, directly across Bruce B. Downs (BBD) Blvd. from Florida Hospital Wesley Chapel.

Karina and Dane are long-time members of the Rotary Club of Wesley Chapel (see story on page 19 of this issue) and she promises to provide traditional, affordable, concierge-style primary care medicine at her new practice.

In order to introduce her direct primary care practice (the first in our area) to the Wesley Chapel community, Dr. Azank Parilo is hosting a series of free Open House/Question & Answer events at the new office. The next one will be just a few days after you receive this issue in your mailbox — on Tuesday, May 8, 5 p.m.-7 p.m. — and it’s a great opportunity to meet Karina and her friendly staff and find out why direct primary care may be the right choice for you and your family in today’s crazy health insurance environment.

For more information about the Open House events or how the practice works, stop in at the office at 2615 Windguard Cir., Suite 101, call (813) 536-0050, visit KAPMedicalGroup.com or see the ad on pg. 38.

And, One More Pat On The Back…

Congratulations to my beautiful fiancĂ©, Jannah McDonald, the marketing and events coordinator for the Pasco Education Foundation (PEF) — the 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that supports Pasco County’s public schools — for putting on an amazing annual gala (formerly called the “Cinderella Ball”) at the beautiful Heritage Springs Country Club in the Trinity area of New Port Richey on April 7.

Although Jannah rightfully shares the credit with her boss, Stacey Capogrosso, and the rest of the PEF staff, this year’s gala surpassed last year’s fund-raising total by about $5,000 and Jannah secured WTVT-TV Fox 13 News anchors Linda Hurtado and Chris Cato to again emcee the event, as well as the Bus Stop Band (one of our favorites) to provide the evening’s entertainment.

PEF gave away $200,000 in scholarships to graduating students from all 13 Pasco high schools at its annual Scholarship Awards Banquet in April and Jannah also finds the time (after work) to help me get our invoices sent out every two weeks. Thanks, babe!

WRH’s Ian Flores — Elite Midfielder, Faithful Teammate, Savvy Webmaster?

Ian Flores led Wiregrass Ranch High with 20 assists last season.

Certainly it was Wiregrass Ranch High (WRH) senior Ian Flores’ prowess on the soccer pitch that made him such a highly sought-after recruit, but his character and knack for web design and self-promotion helped make him the most recruited soccer player to come out of the school
ever.

 

“Ian is the most highly recruited soccer player that has ever played at Wiregrass Ranch,” athletic director and head boys soccer coach David Wilson says. “We have had 14 players accept offers from colleges in the past five years, and all of them combined had fewer offers than Ian.”

In late March, he signed with Division III Oglethorpe University in Atlanta.

Flores’ resume is impressive.

He led the Bulls with 20 assists his senior year, which was second in all of Florida’s Class 5A.  He was nominated to the All-State team both his junior and senior years, becoming the first Wiregrass athlete in 11 years to be nominated as a junior.

He was nominated as an All-American four times, and for the first team All-Conference by the Florida Coaches Association twice.

Flores was invited and tried out for the professional Major League Soccer club DC United, and also has participated in the U.S. Olympic Development Program (ODP). He had 20 scholarship offers and has been in talks with 60 different colleges over the course of his high school career.

Flores says he picked up some invaluable techniques working with DC United and the ODP.

“The competition level there is way high,” Flores says. “You learn a lot of small details like not just making passes but where to make a pass, like passing to the correct foot so the other person can make a better touch.”

Already drawing attention with his athletic exploits, Flores, after his sophomore year, took his recruiting endeavors to the world wide web. During the summer of 2016, he launched his recruiting website, IanFlores.com. He got some help putting it together from his proud father, Carlos, who owns and operates an online full-service creative agency called Milorian Studios, but Ian has since taken over control.

“He (dad) still helps with issues like posting videos from different platforms,” Flores says. “But I do all of the editing, creating content and posting articles that come out.”

The website is impressive. It has links to highlight videos he’s edited and stories written about him in different media outlets. He even publishes his own blog.

“It’s a first-class website,” says Eric Sims, who has coached Flores on the club team he plays for, Tampa Bay United. “Ian also has first-class communication with coaches. He does everything the right way and gives things all he’s got. It’s really opened doors for him.”

To top it all off, Flores is a consummate team player.

“You can play with teammates that are not necessarily your friends but when your teammates are your friends, there’s a big difference,” he says.

Flores says that was mentality was a big factor in choosing Oglethorpe over schools like Rutgers and the New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT). Flores felt welcomed and accepted not just by the coaching staff at Oglethorpe, but even more so by the players.

“I got a great vibe from the other players and from students at the school,” he says. “I felt like these people really wanted me to excel in what I do.”

Flores also picked Oglethorpe because of its proximity to one of the largest metropolitan areas in the southeastern U.S.

He plans to major in business and Atlanta seemed like a great place to start.

“Ian is an outstanding human being and a great kid,” Sims says. “He has set himself up for success, regardless of what he ends up choosing to do, because he’s such a well-rounded individual.”

Better Realty Services For Home Buyers, Sellers, Renters  & Business Owners

(L.-r.) Mike Kane, Kathy Rieger & Monty Bryan have joined forces to open Better Realty Services , located off S.R. 56 in Wesley Chapel, to serve all of your real estate & business brokerage needs.

The three co-owners of Better Realty Services say their name says it all: Their real estate firm will help you have a better experience in a wide range of services, whether you want to buy a home, sell a home, rent a home, manage an investment property, sell a business or buy a business.

Although their company is only three years old, Monty Bryan, Mike Kane and Kathy Rieger bring decades of experience to Better Realty Services, located on Cypress Creek Blvd. in Wesley Chapel (off of S.R. 56, just east of I-75). They each have their own specific area of expertise.

Monty has been a Realtor in the Tampa Bay area since 1982. He started his own real estate company in Tampa Palms in 1989, called Florida Properties Tampa, Inc. He sold that business to Coldwell Banker in 1999 and continued to work at the firm. He now handles the real estate sales and purchases for Better Realty Services.

He met Kathy when she purchased her home — with Monty as her agent — in 1999. He says he recruited her to join him at Coldwell Banker, where she specialized in property management. Today, Kathy brings her property management expertise to Better Realty Services, where she manages investment properties on behalf of owners, making the process of finding tenants, collecting rent and maintaining the property much easier.

Monty and Mike first connected while their children were in preschool together, and the kids later played recreational sports on the same team. Mike launched a business in New Tampa 10 years ago called First Choice Business Brokers, helping business owners who wanted to sell or people who wanted to buy a business. Mike’s role at Better Realty Services is to continue to help business owners as they plan an exit strategy from their respective businesses.

Monty, Mike and Kathy teamed up to launch Better Realty Services in 2015 and will celebrate three years in business together in May.

“It’s synergistic,” explains Mike. “There are a lot of people who want to buy an investment property, and then, we offer professional management for that property. Or, we sometimes sell a business to an out-of-state buyer, who then may be looking for a house to move into this area.”

All three are licensed Realtors, and Mike is the Broker for the office. Because of their years of experience and commitment to hard work and the highest ethical standards, they say they can help any customer who may be interested in any of their varied services.

“We’re a boutique company,” explains Kathy. “We customize our service so that it’s personal and works for every client.”

Good Timing For A Move

Monty says that now is the time of year that the residential real estate market is the busiest.

“Most people want to move before the summer, so this is the busy season for both sales and rentals,” he says. “If you have considered putting your home on the market, this is the time of year when there is the most traffic, so my advice is to do it now.” Monty and his team can help you get your home ready to sell and price it correctly.

“If your house is in good shape and priced well,” adds Kathy, “it will sell quickly.”

Monty adds that the local real estate market has been busy for the past two or three years, after several slower years.

“It took from about 2008 to about 2015 for all of the foreclosures to clear out of the market,” he explains. “Now, we’re in a season of steady growth and lower inventory.”

While lower inventory may mean a higher price if you’re ready to sell, the team explains that it’s still a good time to buy, too. Interest rates are low, which is good for buyers, and builders are active again, offering many new home options in the New Tampa and Wesley Chapel real estate markets.

Long-Term Relationships

Pauline Evans is a former New Tampa resident who now lives near the University of South Florida (USF) in a retirement home. She says she has been working with Monty and Kathy for 18 years, since Monty first helped her buy a home in Hunter’s Green in 2000.

Since then, Pauline says that Monty has been her real estate agent for several more transactions, as she purchased two investment homes in Wesley Chapel.

“My husband and I were managing our own properties, and Kathy and Monty were always there as advisers,” Pauline says. “They helped us to be entrepreneurs and manage our own properties.”

Since her husband, who was retired from the U.S. Army, passed away about three years ago, Pauline has turned her rental properties over to Better Realty Services for Kathy to manage. She says she trusts Kathy to manage her properties as well as she and her husband did, when they used to send one of their sons over to mow the lawn or fix small problems at any of their investment homes.

“Everything is in Kathy and Monty’s hands now,” she explains. “Now, they just send me a statement each month.”

Pauline says it’s much easier on her, and that the friendship and advice she has received from Monty and Kathy over the years has led to her trusting them with her investments.

“I am blessed to have these rental properties,” she explains, “which make it possible for me to live in this community, which is more expensive than living in a little house somewhere.”

Monty, Karen and Mike hope to become that trusted source of expertise for anyone in the New Tampa and Wesley Chapel area who is considering buying or selling their home, or an investment property, or even their business.”

Their years of experience have given them a perspective that is somewhat unique. When Monty opened the first real estate office in New Tampa in 1989, the only neighborhoods were Tampa Palms, Hunter’s Green, Pebble Creek and Williamsburg.

“I knew this area was going to grow, because I could see this area of raw land on the map,” says Monty. “But, it’s kept growing and growing, and now moved into Wesley Chapel. That’s a lot of growth in 30 years.”

Monty says with all that he’s seen over the last three decades, he still truly enjoys what he does.

Mike concurs. “I think it says a lot that we’re all still in this business after all this time.”

Better Realty Services is located at 2654 Cypress Ridge Blvd., #103. The office is open Monday–Friday, 9 a.m.–5 p.m., and evenings and weekends by appointment. To reach Mike, Monty or Kathy, call (813) 793-4380. For more information, visit BetterRealtyServices.com.

The Continuing Saga Of Our Own Wild Bill; Plus, A Kayaking Editor Update

Wild Bill Peterseim & Derrell Newell

A little more than three months ago, in our January 12 issue, I told you a little bit about the story of my friend, local karaoke legend Wild Bill Peterseim. The article gave a lot of information about a 70-something man who not only does a pretty good Elvis impersonation while doing pushups during the musical interludes of his (and other people’s) karaoke songs at O’Brien’s Irish Pub in the Wesley Chapel Village Market, but also of his  long business career and of him saving a man’s life at the Lexington Oaks clubhouse pool.

Lexington Oaks is the community where Bill lived with Linda, his beloved wife of 46 years, who passed away last year from an extremely rare form of melanoma and where the couple lived in the aftermath of Bill falling victim to a trusted business associate’s Ponzi scheme. Believe me, the above is the Reader’s Digest version of the story.

Since then, Bill has had the home in Lexington Oaks taken away from him by the bank in the aftermath of the Ponzi scheme (another really long, hard-to-explain story) and it was possible he would have to move to Winter Haven to live with one of his two daughters and her family.

Shortly after my article came out, Derrell Newell, another O’Brien’s karaoke regular who actually is a professional Elvis impersonator, informed Wild Bill that he was planning to perform a benefit concert at O’Brien’s to (at the time) try to keep Bill in his home.

That benefit was held in February and, more than 60 songs later — including about a dozen duets by Bill and Derrell — a total of $700 was raised, all of which was donated to help Wild Bill pay some bills.

About $160 of that total came from Bill’s new friend, local photographer and DJ Chuck Amstone, who read about the benefit in the Neighborhood News and contacted me to get involved in the fundraiser, even though he had only met Wild Bill once or twice before (Bill does have that effect on people).

Chuck brought his photo booth to the benefit and raised his money by asking people for donations for Bill when they took pictures in the booth during the show.

I give major props to both the charismatic Costco employee who prefers to be called “Elvis D” and to Chuck for stepping up big time for a friend.

Around the same time, Wild Bill’s financial picture became a little bit brighter when yours truly hired him as an office assistant. Even though I knew that Bill was overqualified for the job I hired him to do — organize my shambles of an office and the storage area next to our conference room — I also knew that this vibrant guy who is back to doing pushups on stage after a little bit of a health scare of his own would sink his teeth into it and do a spectacular job. And, he has exceeded my expectations. My only regret is not taking before-and-after pictures because no one who has spent any time at our “palatial” office would believe how organized the place is now.

So, the saga of Wild Bill continues. Come meet Bill, Derrell my fiancĂ© Jannah and all of the other karaoke regulars at O’Brien’s on almost any Wednesday night. Gary Carmichael of Heart & Soul Karaoke is back and he has the greatest song list in creation, so whether you end up singing or not, I know you’ll feel like another member of our karaoke family.

If you’re looking to hire a Vegas-quality Elvis impersonator for your next event, Wild Bill and I both urge you to contact Derrell at (617) 909-0168. And, for all of your DJ/photography needs, call or text Chuck at (727) 215-4487.

This Guy…Is Still Kayaking?

So, if you haven’t watched the recent episode of WCNT-tv, where Susanna Martinez and I tell you how I did in the Sharkbite Challenge & Paddlefest off Honeymoon Island on April 14, I hope you’ll access our Neighborhood News Facebook page and watch it.

Here’s why: Two years ago, when I first entered this four-mile (more on that below) race, I did so in a kayak I borrowed from a friend and it just so happened that the Gulf of Mexico was extremely angry following a big storm that day. It was so bad that the organizers rescheduled the Saturday races for Sunday, where the winds were still 25-30 knots and the seas were 3-5 feet. I ended up flipping the kayak and swimming it to shore.

This time around, I went to check out Honeymoon Island a few days before the Challenge, and it was like deja vu. Even though I now have my own 18-foot-long surfski single kayak (I call it the “Neighborhood News/WCNT-tv Banana Boat”), the winds were whipping up to about 25 knots and I just couldn’t stay in the boat. Oh…and I recorded it all on a GoPro-style camera and showed a smidgen of it during the WCNT video. Pretty funny stuff.

Undaunted, I still returned to Honeymoon on the 14th and, with only 10-15 mph winds and much calmer seas, I finished the 3.5-mile (they did shorten the course because of the wind) Open Division race 61st of 92 finishers, in 58:14. It may not be the feel-good story of the year, but it did make me feel pretty good about myself, despite the fact that others in my age group beat me by more than 20 minutes.

Quail Hollow Kid Cooks Ready To Take Their Talents To The ‘Gridiron Challenge’

(L.-r.) Lindsey Overland, Madison Gulley, Gracie Evans and Katelyn O’Neil show off their Alfredo Smothered Roasted Red Pepper & Sun-Dried Tomato Pasta Swirls.

Quail Hollow Elementary (QHE) students Gracie Evans, Madison Gulley, Katelyn O’Neil and Lindsey Overland will be competing in a “Gridiron Challenge” on Saturday, May 19, at the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ training facility at One Buc Place.

But, don’t expect the 10- and 11-year-old fifth-graders to be knocking anyone down with ferocious hits.

Instead, they will be trying to knock some people out with their Alfredo Smothered Roasted Red Pepper & Sun Dried Tomato Pasta Swirls.

The Wesley Chapel girls will take part in a culinary competition against students from three other schools in the annual Gridiron Cooking Challenge, part of the “Fuel Up to Play 60” initiative, an in-school nutrition and physical activity program run by the National Dairy Council and the NFL.

The event is free and open to the public to attend. And, while it’s still a few weeks away at our press time, the girls say they are already getting nervous.

“I think about it a lot. I’m very excited,” Katelyn says, with her teammates nodding in agreement.

At the competition, the Quail Hollow quartet will have an hour to prepare their signature dish for a panel of judges, including a Florida dairy farmer, the Bucs’ executive chef, a representative from Publix and teenage culinary whiz Zac Kara, a former MasterChef Junior competitor on FOX-TV.

The QHE team has its own culinary whiz and former television competitor in Gracie. In 2016, when she was just 9-years-old, she battled against nine other kid cooks from across the country on Food Network’s “Star Kids” cooking show.

On that show, Gracie had to present a live audition to judges, prepare dishes on the fly and incorporate social media — such as a Snapchat cooking tip — into her cooking presentation. She still maintains a popular Instagram page, where she posts her most current dishes.

It’s a skill set she picked up from her mother, Juliana, a well-known dessert maker who has appeared on NBC-TV’s “The Today Show,” as well as the Food Network and local TV. She describes herself as a “freelance food stylist,” and her daughter is following in her footsteps.

It was while both were giving demonstrations at the Southern Women’s Fair last October that Gracie was introduced to the Florida Dairy Council, which suggested she take part in the council’s upcoming competition.

The idea of a team competition appealed to Gracie, as opposed to the kid-to-kid cooking combat she went through at Food Network. She decided to team up with Madison, Katelyn and Lindsey, with fifth-grade teacher Alysha Moscarelli and Juliana helping to guide the girls.

“It will definitely be better than my first time,” Gracie says. “You will be able to rely on other people. It helps you relax more. You won’t be as nervous.”

The Power Of Teamwork

In fact, each girl has her own role to play on the team, forming a finely-tuned unit.

Gracie started brainstorming immediately after finding out about the competition. She pitched the Council with one of the recipes she served on the Food Network, modifying it by replacing the recipe’s marinara sauce with Alfredo sauce, as the competition calls for dairy-based recipes.

“I changed it a little bit,” Gracie says. “It was really easy to make and it is an interesting dish because it has a lot of components that, all together, taste really good.”

One of those components, which provides a secondary dash of dairy, could be called the “secret sauce” — yogurt.

“It made it a little creamier, and yogurt has that tart kind of a bite,” Juliana says. “It plays very nicely.”

Katelyn also helps with the Alfredo sauce. “We put a lot of work into it and practice and tasting, making sure it’s real smooth,’’ she says. “And, we have a lot of back-up plans, in case it’s not perfect.”

Lindsey’s job is the lemon ricotta filling, which she says she makes with ricotta cheese (still more dairy), zested lemon, salt and black pepper.

“We mix it all up and put it (on the noodles) and roll it all up,” she says.

Madison is responsible for the roasted pepper sun-dried tomato, which is blended with pesto, baby spinach, parsley and olive oil before being incorporated into the lasagna noodles.

“It’s very delicious,” says Madison, who is dubbed the “Pesto Queen” by her teacher.

Lindsey and Madison both say that since joining the Gridiron Challenge team, they have taken a greater interest in cooking and now make more dishes around their homes.

“I really enjoy doing the cooking,” Lindsey says. “But, I think it all started with this competition.”

The team has been practicing for three months now, sometimes at home, other times at school, where they push three desks together and set up their stations.

Moscarelli, a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering & Math) teacher who has all four girls in two separate math and science classes at Quail Hollow, says she has enjoyed watching them work together in preparation for the upcoming competition, not to mention all the taste-testing she has been able to indulge in.

“It’s nice to see them use their critical thinking skills, communication skills and teamwork in everyday life,” she says. “And, the recipe is delicious.”

The girls are all friends and have each brought their own special talents to the cooking table — with a mix of brainstorming and experimentation.

“They started to talk about it at lunch,” Moscarelli says, “and they would say, ‘Ooh, what if we added this to the recipe?,’ and then would go home and try different things and alter the ingredients. They all jumped right in.”

The recipe is finalized, and the team is now working on the little things, like plating and timing. They will have to plate and present four dishes for the judges, and also are responsible for producing 50 samples for the audience.

The girls are confident they will do well and deliver a hit at the Gridiron Challenge. The delicious kind.

“We have been working hard,” Madison said. “It will be good.”