Month: February 2019

New Tampa Mayoral Forum On Feb. 19!

Tampa City Council member Luis Viera has worked hard during his time in office to raise the political engagement of the New Tampa area he represents in District 7.

So, it was only natural that with more than a candidate forums scheduled throughout the City of Tampa for mayoral candidates, Viera would work on getting one held here.

On Tuesday, February 19, at 7 p.m., The Venetian Event Center at St. Mark the Evangelist Church on Cross Creek Blvd. will host a forum that, as of our deadline, had commitments from mayoral candidates Ed Turanchik, Mike Suarez, Harry Cohen, Judge Dick Greco, Jr., and Topher Morrison.

Former Tampa Police chief Jane Castor, the leader in most early polls, had a prior commitment but will send a representative.

Sponsored by the New Tampa Council (NTC) and the New Tampa morning and noon Rotary Clubs, the forum will be moderated by Neighborhood News editor Gary Nager and NTC member and K-Bar Ranch resident Craig Margelowsky.

The candidates are all running for the mayoral seat being vacated by Bob Buckhorn because of term limits.

Talking Kinnan-Mansfield

February will be a busy month in New Tampa, as Viera also has scheduled what he is calling a community meeting on Tuesday, February 26, at 6:30 p.m., at the New Tampa Regional Library. Viera hopes that New Tampa residents interested in the long-debated potential connection between Kinnan St. in New Tampa and Meadow Pointe’s Mansfield Blvd. will attend.

Viera met in January with Pasco County Commissioner Mike Moore, who represents the Meadow Pointe area. Moore told Viera he was opposed to the connection but would seek compromises whenever possible.

Those compromises likely center around connecting Kinnan and Mansfield so at least first responders and emergency vehicles could use it, as well as bikes and pedestrians. — JCC

Grace Episcopal Church In Tampa Palms Dedicates Its New Sanctuary!

Grace Episcopal Church of Tampa Palms recently dedicated and consecrated its new sanctuary building.

A special prayer was written for the occasion by the head of the Episcopal Church, The Most Rev. Michael B. Curry, Presiding Bishop and Primate, who preached at the royal wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle last May.

In a message to Grace, Bishop Curry thanked God for, “the Love that connects us all and fills our lives with hope and meaning” and asked God, to, “be present in the ministry within these walls and beyond.”

The ceremony, held Jan. 12, was the realization of a dream that has been in place since nearly the inception of the church itself in 1992.

“It is now a place where Tampa Palms and all of New Tampa can have weddings and funerals,” says Warren Sponsler, a member of the church who serves as its senior warden, which is essentially the leader of the people of the congregation. “It is the church rededicating itself to Tampa Palms and the New Tampa community.”

The church’s original master plan called for a sanctuary to be built on the corner of Tampa Palms Blvd. and Bruce B. Downs (BBD) Blvd. But, in 2013, Hillsborough County annexed that land to widen BBD, paying nearly $4.5 million for the property.

With that land gone, the church’s leadership wasn’t sure if there was still enough space to build a separate sanctuary, but they started working on a new master plan, eventually breaking ground in June of 2017.

Church members worshipped for the first time in their new building the Sunday before Christmas a few weeks ago.

Rev. Benjamin Twinamaani, who has led the church since 2005, says the church community hopes to welcome people of all faiths to host their events at Grace Church.

“It’s time to honor our commitments and be the church of the community here in Tampa Palms,” he says.

“Our parish is truly diverse,” he explains. “We both gather and anchor the community, whether they’re Hindu, Muslim, or atheists. We have room for all.”

The design of the building is traditional, with wooden pews, stained glass windows and even a bell tower, but it also has modern and comfortable touches, such as cushions on the pews, space for the church’s youth band to play, and screens on the walls.

Bishop Dabney T. Smith, who oversees the Episcopal Diocese of Southwest Florida, calls its design “purposeful.”

“The shape of the construction and the expansion is a very traditional shape that will be accepting of contemporary worship,” he said. “It’s a good combination —that tradition is a mooring in people’s lives, and contemporary means dealing with the real issues of today.”

Three stained glass windows have been installed so far, with each window sponsored by members of the congregation as part of Grace’s capital campaign, and an additional nine windows will be installed as they are completed.

“I hope the larger community will take the opportunity to check it out,” Bishop Smith says.

The beautiful, new sanctuary also includes an organ which was imported from the Netherlands.

“One of the features is a bell carillon, which can be played by the organ inside the church,” says Sponsler. “It isn’t just bells ringing. It’s designed so we can have a wedding outside and could have something customized playing on the bells during the ceremony.”

The new sanctuary is 3,600 square feet and seats about 300 people. This is comparable to the 290 people that fit in the previous space, but now both spaces are available to use for different purposes.

A Community Hall For Everyone

The new building allows the space that was previously used as a sanctuary to be converted to a community room that can now be used for events such as candidate forms, community meetings, bar and bat mitzvahs, anniversary parties, birthday parties and more.

The church also can now host a wedding in the new sanctuary and then a reception in the Canterbury Hall, as they call it.

Fees for community groups to use the church will be “very nominal,” says Karen Frashier, a member of the church (and New Tampa Rotary Club past president) who is helping with marketing the new space.

As the church’s original sanctuary, Canterbury Hall has windows overlooking the conservation area behind the church, modern lighting and a brand new commercial kitchen with catering available.

Father Twinamaani explains, “It is the fulfillment of a dream from the inception of the congregation of Grace Church to have a larger space. They made the decision to make a difference not only in their church community, but in the surrounding community as well.”

So far, Father Twinamaani says people are definitely showing an interest in both the community center and the church.

“People like new things,” he says. “We have more people visiting every week, and we have people who have been in the pews for years who are now asking what they can do to serve. The new sanctuary gives a sense of permanence that we are here to stay.”

Grace Episcopal Church, located at 15102 Amberly Dr. in Tampa Palms, holds services each Sunday at 8 a.m. and 10 a.m. Visitors are always welcome. For more information about hosting an event at the church’s Canterbury Hall or new sanctuary, visit GraceChurchTampaPalms.org or call (813) 971-8484.

Church Grace Episcopal

5K Road Race & Music Fest Will Benefit Hunter’s Green Elementary PTA

*The Hunter’s Green Elementary PTA is hosting a professionally chipped, photographed and timed 5K road race on Feb. 9, which is the school’s primary fund raiser for the year.*

On Saturday, February 9, the Hunter’s Green Elementary (HGE) Parent Teacher Association (PTA) will host a 5K run and 1-mile fun run starting at the school and winding through the Hunter’s Green neighborhood.

“It’s two weeks before Gasparilla, so we’re inviting everyone to participate as a great training run to get your groove for Gasparilla,” says Emily Milam, HGE’s PTA president, who is one of the event organizers.

Having a chip-timed 5K race in New Tampa, which is open to everyone, is rare, says Milam.

Typically, she explains, these types of races can’t be held in our area because the City of Tampa won’t issue permits to close roads in New Tampa. The roads for the Hunter’s Green race are privately owned by the Hunter’s Green Community Association, which is partnering with the school to bring the race to its residents and the surrounding community.

The race will be professionally chipped, photographed and timed by FitNiche Events. Swag bags and t-shirts will be given to those who register, and medals and prizes will be awarded to winners.

The $35 race entry fee will go to support the school and also includes admission to the second part of the event — a music festival that will be held at Hunter’s Green’s Capt. Nathaniel Hunter Community Park for all residents and race participants from 4 p.m.-8 p.m.

The family-friendly music festival will feature three local bands — Celebrity Romance, Panic Fire featuring Gary Schutt and Chello Hollyday Band. There will be food trucks and bounce houses. While the music fest is being organized by the Community Association for residents of Hunter’s Green, everyone who runs in the 5K race that morning will be invited to come back for the music fest in the afternoon.

“It’s definitely a multi-faceted focus,” says Jenny Giraldo, the social director for the Hunter’s Green Community Association. “The music fest is a great time for the community to come together, take full advantage of our amenities and the wonderful park we’re fortunate to have, while enjoying the live entertainment.”

The Hunter’s Green 5K run and Music Fest will serve as the school’s primary fund raiser for the year. For the past two years, the PTA has hosted an extremely successful gala that raised about $30,000 each year. In addition, the school has held a “fit fest” that included a fun run the past two years.

This year, the PTA is replacing the gala with the expanded 5K run, hoping they can grow it to be as successful an event as the gala has been.

“The gala was great and does really well for us, but it’s an overwhelming amount of work,” says Milam. “We also wanted to move to something that’s really family friendly. Kids weren’t allowed at the gala. This is a more of a family-targeted event, so your whole family can prepare for it together and run together, then participate in the music fest together.”

She says reaching out to the Hunter’s Green community and the New Tampa area is an important part of the plans, as well.

“It’s a new era in our school,” Milam says. “We’re trying to reach beyond the walls of our school to impact a lot of the neighborhoods around us and support the school where funding (is lacking).”

She says the PTA spends the majority of its funding to go to technology in the school, where the goal is to have a 1:1 ratio of every child having access to a laptop computer at his or her desk.

The PTA also funds supplemental support for music and art, which Milam says are areas that consistently get cut in the School District’s budget, plus school beautification and teacher support.

For more information or to register for the race, which includes admission for your family to the MusicFest, visit HuntersGreenPTA.com/5k. Registrations will be accepted up until the morning of the race.

5K PTA

Medi-Weightloss Center In Lutz Can Help You Keep Your New Year’s Resolution!

According to a survey done by Statista, the top three New Year’s resolutions for Americans in 2019 were: diet or eat healthier, exercise more, and lose weight.

An earlier survey, conducted in Dec. of 2018, said that just 16 percent of respondents stuck to some of their 2018 resolutions, while 13 percent said they kept none of them. While those three resolutions are obviously intertwined, in order to make lasting changes to one’s health via weight loss and diet, one must adopt lifestyle changes.

Those changes can be easier to make and keep when you have the help of professionals.

Since 2006, Medi-Weightloss of Lutz, one of more than 100 locations nationwide, has helped clients make lifestyle changes that stick. To date, the office located on S.R. 54, two miles west of S.R. 56, has helped patients lose 107,877 pounds.

“I started going to Medi because I couldn’t stick with a diet longer than a week,” client Danielle Crowley says. “I have now been going to Medi for two months, and have lost 20 pounds and nine inches from my waist.”

The professionals at Medi-Weightloss focus on three phases.

The first is the acute phase, also known as the weight loss phase.

The initial visit is a 60-90 minute consultation. Professionals will take weight measurements, do blood work, take an electrocardiogram (EKG), present informational handouts that go into a binder and start a detailed journal where the client will log eating, drinking and sleeping data.

During the acute phase, clients come in once a week until they hit their target weight. Medi-Weightloss has many ways to help during this difficult phase. You’ll get two injections, one called a Methionine Inositol Choline or MIC Combo injection that puts B12 vitamins and amino acids right into your bloodstream. The lipotropic substances help with fat metabolism, liver function and fat excretion.

“The MIC injections are good for everyone and we never charge for them if you’re on the program,” Lutz Medi-Weightloss owner Gerri Willett says. “While you’re on the program, you can come in twice a week and get the MIC Combo for free.”

The second shot is a Vitamin B6 and B1 injection that helps reduce water retention and helps your keep energy up while battling food cravings. In the first phase, clients also will have help with vitamin supplements, a good multi-vitamin as well as calcium and Omega 3 supplements. You’ll also receive a food scale to help with portion control and ketone sticks to detect your level of ketosis.

“Ketosis is a state where your body burns fat faster,” Willett said. “The ketone stick will reveal what level of ketosis you are in. Some don’t get there but it’s okay if they just get close.”

Once you reach your target weight, you’ll move on to Phase 2: the maintenance phase. Clients meet with Andrew Weitzman, M.D., who is Board-certified in Internal Medicine. Dr. Weitzman will try to slowly take you off any medications you may be taking.

“One of my favorite things is getting someone off of blood pressure medications,” Dr. Weitzman says. “You lose 20 pounds and all of a sudden, your blood pressure goes down.”

Phase 3 is the wellness phase. At this phase, clients need only come in once a month.

Shannon Terkoski says she came to the Lutz Medi-Weightloss weighing 250 pounds on Jan. 16, 2018. She now weighs 143.2 pounds, for a loss of 106.8 pounds.

“Week-to-week, they were encouraging but also made real suggestions on what I could do to improve things like the way I go grocery shopping and not just pushing their own products, even though I still take some of their proprietary products,” Terkoski says. “I stopped going on a weekly basis, but I continue to maintain what they have shown and taught me about making better lifestyle choices”

And, it’s okay to come back later. Medi-Weightloss has clients return after completing the program, sometimes 10 years later, sometimes to share their success, sometimes because they are in need of additional help.

“They can always come back,” Willett says. “If it’s 10 years or 13 years later, I want them to be able to come back in. I want success for my patients. They shouldn’t feel guilty about coming back in. Losing weight is a lifestyle change. If it was easy or just a pill you could take, no one would be overweight.”

A Staff That’s There for You

Some clients are so happy with their results, they join the Medi-Weightloss team, like Erin Jones.

“I lost 25 pounds in the first month-and-a-half and ended up losing 50 pounds overall,” she says. “I liked the program.”

Jones, who affectionately goes by “The” Erin Jones in the office, lost her husband in 2010 and then, “I ate for a year” she said.

She started coming to Medi-Weightloss in late 2011. By April of 2012, not only had she met her goals but she took a job interview at the clinic after her weight loss appointment. She started off working 10 to 12 hours per week and is now a full-time medical assistant and the office manager at Medi-Weightloss of Lutz.

“Patients can take comfort in knowing that we’ve been down their road before and that we can truly say we know what they’re going through,” Jones said.

Medical assistant Patty Pinson has been with Medi-Weightloss for a decade and is a retired Registered Nurse (RN).

“This is a good place to work,” Pinson says. “Everyone gets along, we get to know the patients and it makes us feel good when we’re able to help them — it’s a win-win all the way around.”

Medical assistant Angela Wild is the newest member of the staff, but comes with 14 years of experience in the radiology field.

“This is definitely a happier field than radiology,” Wild said. “People come here because they want to be here and I don’t dread coming to work. I really enjoy it.”

Dr. Weitzman earned his Doctor of Medicine Degree from Tel Aviv University in Tel Aviv, Israel, and completed his residency in Long Island, NY. He operated a primary care practice in New York for three years and ran one out of Manatee County prior to coming on board at Medi-Weightloss two-and-a-half years ago.

“There aren’t as many dissimilarities as you’d think (between primary care and weight loss clinics),” Dr. Weitzman says. “The main difference is with primary care, you’re already treating a patient’s disease. Here, we’re working strictly with prevention.”

He stresses the three legs to the weight-loss process: diet, exercise and appetite suppression.

“The diet we choose for you is sensible,” Weitzman said. “It’s not some newfangled diet. It should be possible for you to eat this way for the rest of your life.”

Dr. Weitzman and the staff at Medi- Weightloss also will help develop an exercise program that fits your capabilities, and he has a lot of experience prescribing appetite suppressants.

“You must do all three in order to succeed,” Weitzman said. “Journaling helps a lot with diet. We also have supplements to help you.”

In the office and also in the startup bag clients receive is a menu of different supplements. From flavored powders for shakes, to snacks and vitamins, you’ll have all the tools for success at your fingertips.

While not at the Lutz location, Medi-Weightloss also employs a full-time dietitian who works at the corporate office in Brandon.

Jeff Cervero is available for consultation and has added valuable information to the company website, like recipes, exercise tips and information. Cervero even went through most corporate restaurants’ menus in the area and came up with a list of options that fit with the Medi-Weightloss program.

“We have no competition that does all the things we do and we do them very well,” Willett says.

From the research and development coming out of the corporate office, to the experienced and well-trained staff, to the emerging technology in the field like a step counter called the Fit-Stik that comes in your initial bag of goodies, all of the tools you need to reach your weight loss goals are available at Medi-Weightloss of Lutz.

“I have done lots of other diets before and none of them worked for me,” Terkoski says. “It has been exciting to follow a plan that actually works. They helped me get over the physical symptoms early in the process and were proactive in dealing with issues. It was all very smooth”

New Tampa and Wesley Chapel residents are invited to stop in at the Lutz Medi-Weightloss Clinic at 24420 S.R. 54. The office is open five days a week: 6:30 a.m.-noon on Monday; 9 a.m.-6 p.m. on Tuesday, 6:30 a.m.-2 p.m. on Wednesday; 1 p.m.-7 p.m. on Thursday; 6:30 a.m.-1 p.m on Friday. For more info, call (813) 909-1700 or visit online at MediWeightloss.com/locations/lutz/

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