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Empowered For Performance Helps Athletes & Others Manage Pain

When Olympic track and field athlete Marco Arop took home the bronze medal in the men’s 800-meter race at the 2022 World Championships in Eugene, Oregon, he says he felt lucky to have Licensed Massage Therapist Ewaldson Francois, LMT — who goes by Francois — at the meet with him.

“Francois traveled with a group of us, and every one of us medaled at Worlds,” Marco says. “That’s pretty impressive.”

The group met Francois when he was the massage therapist for the athletics department at Mississippi State University (MSU) in Starkville.

Now, Francois has opened a new business in the New Tampa and Wesley Chapel area, as he and his family have moved here for the long term.

His business is called Empowered For Performance Massage, and Francois currently works out of a suite at Barefoot Massage, located in the New Tampa Professional Park in Pebble Creek. He is available to help athletes of any caliber, as well as those who are looking for relief from long-term pain.

“He’s really special as a therapist,” Marco says, “not only in the techniques and his ability, but also in his dedication.”

Marco says Francois is always eager to learn and try new techniques and that his sessions with Francois have become a huge part of Marco’s career.

“I’ve seen a lot of improvement over the last year,” Marco says. “It’s not just keeping me healthy, but also building strength through new techniques. I have to give him credit for a lot of my accomplishments.”

*LMT Ewaldson Francois can help you get Empowered for Performance, too!*

Francois’ background is in sports massage and medical massage, helping people who suffer from chronic pain, and also helping athletes with recovery from injuries, increasing performance and muscle balancing. He is certified to provide not only those types of massage, but also myofascia release (manipulation of the tough membranes that wrap, connect and support muscles) and manual lymphatic drainage (to stimulate lymph system flow).

As a kid growing up, Francois says his aunt always asked him to massage her feet.

“I realized how much it helped her and how much I enjoyed it,” he says, “so I developed a love and passion for massage.”

At that time, though, Francois never considered that it could become a career.

Out of high school, he joined the U.S. Navy and worked in the medical field. After the attacks of September 11, 2001, he decided to extend his stay in the military to “do his part.” At that time, his sister went to massage school and the seed of an idea was planted for what Francois might do after leaving the military.

While stationed in Virginia and working nights as an x-ray technician at Portsmouth Naval Hospital, he began going to massage school during the day. He graduated with an Associate’s degree from a program at ECPI University. It was at that time that Francois left the military and met his wife, Martisa. He moved to Mississippi, where she was a teacher.

Francois began his massage career at a spa in Mississippi but quickly realized that wasn’t for him. Instead, he began working with the athletes of the track and field team at MSU. He then worked with the football team — traveling with them for two seasons — and eventually worked with all of the sports teams in the university’s athletic department.

He then started his own business, called Golden Triangle Massage Therapy, in 2016.

“I wanted to work for myself and had the desire to be an entrepreneur,” he says. “I wasn’t scared of the hard work that comes with it.”

But, Francois and Martisa knew they didn’t want to stay in Mississippi forever, so they began looking for the perfect home to begin the next chapter of their lives together. Their search brought them to the New Tampa/Wesley Chapel area, where they plan to raise their daughters, five-year-old Olivia and three-year-old Hosanna.

Now, Francois works with athletes from the high school level to college and professional, and with weekend warriors such as triathletes and cross-fit athletes.

“Anyone who takes their body to the extreme limit,” he says, “my job is to help you recover so you can get the most out of your workouts.”

He says that often starts with deep tissue massage to increase blood circulation. He also is certified in what is called “muscle activation therapy” to make sure the smaller muscles are working as well as the larger ones. Francois explains that this therapy is personalized based on the individual anatomy of each athlete and how their muscles get fatigued.

Francois also helps people who aren’t athletic, too, especially those suffering from chronic pain. “My goal is not just to fix the problem, but also to find out what’s causing the problem,” he says, “which could be simple things in day-to-day living.”

He says he has helped people discover the source of their migraines and other headaches, as well as sciatica and other chronic pain — whether it’s the way you sit, how you hold the steering wheel, if you’re always looking down at your phone, or if your home office isn’t set up with proper ergonomics.

Francois adds that he’s helped many people who were hopeless and thought they could never do certain things again.

“Muscle pain — chronic pain especially — takes so much out of your quality of life,” says Francois. “The doctor will tell you that you need a muscle relaxer or surgery, but that’s not always the answer.”

He says he can’t always explain exactly how he knows how to help people. “It’s a gift,” he says. “I put my hands on somebody and their body lets me know what it needs. Things just make sense to me.”

Jeanie Dale is another client who highly recommends Francois. After playing a lot of sports at a younger age, she started feeling the wear and tear on her body in her early 60s, and she developed gait issues during the healing process after a knee surgery.

“He’s gotten it back to normal,” Jeannie says. “I had to re-strengthen muscles that had lost strength and he definitely helped me. With Francois, massages are not just relaxing — they’re more therapeutic.”

Jeanie says Francois already is tremendously missed in Mississippi, and Marco Arop, the Olympic athlete, agrees.

“I don’t know if other athletes have the same experience,” he says, “but I feel really lucky to have worked with him.”

Empowered For Performance Massage Therapy is located at 8905 Regents Park Dr., inside Barefoot Massage, at the New Tampa Professional Park in Pebble Creek. For more info or to make an appointment, call or text Francois at (813) 461-4591.

New Tampa Players Take First Bows At NT Performing Arts Center!

I can remember the first-ever conversation I had with Graeme Woodbrook and Doug Wall about trying to bring a professional performing arts center to New Tampa. It was the year 2001 and Woodbrook and Wall (the founder of the New Tampa Players) were both on the original organizing committee and both of them told me they believed that one day, their shared vision would bear fruit.

Fast forward 22 years, to the evening of March 25, 2023, and even though Wall — who passed away in 2017 after battling pancreatic cancer — unfortunately didn’t live to see his Players take the stage at the sparkling new, 350-seat New Tampa Performing Arts Center (NTPAC), Woodbrook and I were both on hand to see the Players’ “Prelude & Recognition Performance” at their new home.

As new NTPAC general manager Keith Arsenault was proud to proclaim to that evening’s packed house, “Mission Accomplished!”

*New Tampa Performing Arts Center (NTPAC) GM Keith Arsenault and spoke before the “Prelude & Recognition Performance” by the New Tampa Players at the NTPAC.*

Arsenault, who we introduced in our last cover story about the NTPAC, said he has been involved in Tampa’s arts scene for 50 years, since his mother owned a ballet studio near the University of Tampa. He thanked Woodbrook, former Hillsborough County Commissioner (and State Senator) Victor Crist and former Tampa City Council member (and State Rep.) Shawn Harrison, as well as original Players Lydia Macias, Jennifer Barnakow and Janine Hartfield (who is still a member of the theatre troupe today), current Players producing artistic director Nora Paine (“who is everywhere and doing everything,” he said) and, of course, Wall.

Arsenault, who called the NTPAC a “state-of-the-art” theatre, also said, “We also would not be here without the continuous efforts of (current Hillsborough County Commissioner) Ken Hagan,” who he then introduced as the evening’s next speaker.

Hagan, who said he has been involved in trying to bring the PAC to New Tampa for, “at least 15 years,” also thanked many of the same people — and especially focused on Wall.

*County Commissioner Ken Hagan both spoke before the “Prelude & Recognition Performance” by the New Tampa Players at the NTPAC.*

*The future plaque remembering New Tampa Players founder Doug Wall. The orchestra pit at the NTPAC.*

“The theatre was Doug’s heart, soul and light,” Hagan said, quoting Wall’s cousin Neil Berg, himself a Broadway composer and producer. “We wouldn’t be here tonight if not for his efforts. We realize Doug’s dream tonight!”

Hagan also noted and displayed a photo of a plaque created in Wall’s honor and memory that wasn’t quite finished in time for the “Prelude” performance, and mentioned that until the PAC was completed, the Players were a “theatre troupe without a home.”

Also speaking before the performance was Michelle Giles, the current chair of the Players’ Board of Directors, who presented Paine with a pre-performance floral bouquet.

The “Prelude & Recognition Performance” itself included almost 30 musical performances by the 13 current Players, interwoven with explanations of how the troupe’s shows are chosen, how the audition process works (including for directors and choreographers) and other ins and outs of the community theatre business.

The performances themselves were amazing and I’m sad that I don’t have room here to hit all of the highlights, but here are a few:

Kyle Fisher’s “One Last Kiss” from “Bye Bye Birdie,” Janine Hartfield’s “No Time at All” from “Pippin,” Bri Filippelli’s “Do Re Mi” and the title song from “The Sound of Music,” Makayla Raines singing “Little Girls” and Olivia Carr’s “Tomorrow” from “Annie,” and “We Go Together” from “Grease” by the entire company. What a great night!

Speaking of “Grease,” that will be the first show produced by the Players at the NTPAC. As shown in the ad below, the auditions will be held at the Uptown Stage at University Mall on Monday & Tuesday, April 24-25, and all performers are welcome to try out at this open audition.

For more information, to volunteer and/or make donations to the New Tampa Players, visit NewTampaPlayers.org.

For questions about the NTPAC, email ArsenaultK@HCFLGov.net.

Original New Tampa Players cast member Janine Hartfield performs a song & dance routine with Jarrett W. Koski-Kohler to “No Time at All” from the Broadway hit “Pippin.”

New Tampa New Tampa Performing Arts Center new tampa players NT Performing Arts Center NTPAC

Popular New Products Fueling Your CBD Store Of New Tampa

Battling with anxiety and not quite sure what to do while driving up Bruce B. Downs (BBD) Blvd., Alex Colley was looking for a sign.

Little did he know that sign would quite literally be the one that David Curler, the co-owner of Your CBD Store of New Tampa, was twirling on the side of BBD.

“David was out there spinning the sign, and it said ‘Free CBD Samples, Come On In,’” Alex says. “I had seen him out there before and didn’t think anything, but I’ve had anxiety for a long time, and I literally was driving by as I was having a panic attack. And I was like, ‘I guess that’s my sign, right? Like, literally, there’s my sign to go in.’”

Alex went in and David gave him a sample that immediately calmed him down, and Alex has been a regular now for four months. “David is my CBD doctor,” he says, chuckling.

David is quick to point out, however, that he is not a doctor. He and his wife Debra are just owners of the Your CBD Store of New Tampa, located in the Pebble Creek Collection, and are true believers in the power of CBD and its healing properties.

Pick a malady, and Debra can point you towards the right remedy, with David ready to answer any questions about your choices.

Having trouble sleeping? They’ve got you.

Anxiety? Depressed? In a lot of pain? Just need to relax? They have answers.

Looking for relief from the effects of PTSD? Cancer? Arthritis? There’s a multitude of CBD products to help with any of those ailments.

“We love helping people,” Debra says. “It’s why we started doing this in the first place.”

They also are true believers because they use some of the products they sell themselves. Debra had a knee replaced and finds that her store’s SunMed CBD-infused creams bring her relief, while David finds his issues with sleeping washed away with a nighttime gummy.

“I like that they use the products and can tell you from first-hand experience what they do,” Alex said. “It’s not like deciding what to order at a steakhouse and finding out your waiter is a vegetarian.”

Debra says new customers like Alex and the friends he has recommended to the Curlers are coming through their doors every day. While they have their regulars, on a recent Sunday, Debra says that every customer who stopped by was a new one.

While the effects are not guaranteed because everyone is different, Debra says many customers rave about the effects.

CBD, or cannabidiol, is one of more than 100 cannabinoids that grow on cannabis, of which both hemp and marijuana are varieties. Like “weed,” CBD originates from hemp, but contains less than 0.3% of THC (tetrahydrocannabinol), which is the ingredient that causes the “high,” while marijuana has much higher levels of THC.

Most of the CBD products at Your CBD Store of New Tampa are offered as “full spectrum,” which are generally stronger but still contain no more than the legal limit of 0.3% THC, and “broad spectrum,” which have no THC at all.

The Delta Experience

The recent explosion of Delta 8 and Delta 9 products has pushed the limits of the THC content in CBD products, making it more important than ever that consumers know they are legitimate. Your CBD Store only sells SunMed products that the company says are vigorously tested. In fact, a QR code on the products can be scanned for the complete independent lab reports for each SunMed product.

*The Curlers say SunMed’s Above and Beyond Delta-8 and Delta-9 products (above) are the hottest sellers at Your CBD Store of New Tampa.*

SunMed grows its hemp in Oregon and Colorado, and processes it in nearby Palmetto, FL.

SunMed has recently launched Above and Beyond lines, which have higher levels of THC — but still remain below the legal limit — and are the best sellers for Debra and David.

“These will be gone by the end of the weekend,” Debra says, pointing to a shelf filled with SunMed’s Above and Beyond products,

The new product called Above blends Delta-8 with other cannabinoids, which SunMed says delivers a high that is described as “gentle body feels,” as opposed to a psychoactive high.

Meanwhile, Beyond products contain Delta-9 (and 400-percent more cannabinoids than your usual full-spectrum), and come in calming (indica) and uplifting (sativa) versions.

There also is a hybrid version that blends the two together.

David also raves about his Your CBD Store’s CBG products.

They aren’t new, but he has a special appreciation for their effectiveness, especially the full- and broad-spectrum neuro-water soluble and the CBG Citrus, which helps with inflammation.

Great For Relief

Jack Martin used to go to the CBD store near his Land O’Lakes home before it shut down. He says he is thankful he found Dave and Debra’s location, because they have been a godsend.

Once every three weeks, he places an order for CBD and CBG products for his 80-year-old mother. The CBD helps with her sore joints and arthritis, while the CBG, which can be more effective treating muscle soreness, is for the neuropathy in her feet.

“As long as mom’s taking it, it’s like someone flipped a switch,” Jack says. “Just being pain-free and being out of the misery of having the feeling of burning feet all the time, it’s been a wonder.”

Jack may not use the Above and Beyond products at Your CBD Store, but he does appreciate the above-and-beyond service provided by David, who delivers Jack’s order free of charge.

“On a scale of 1-10, they are a 15,” he says. “And, you have to be careful where you buy this stuff these days. Everyone is selling it, but I trust the product at David’s store.”

While CBD products continue to be debated, they also are becoming more commonplace and accepted. As a result, SunMed continues to produce highly-tested, top-quality products.

“There’s something here for everyone,” Debra says. “We can help you find what you need.”

Like most CBD-related products, they come in various forms — like gummies, water soluble and tinctures, as well as vapes and pre-rolls (primarily for the Above and Beyond line) for those who prefer the smoking effect.

Other products include:

Immune+, a tincture blend that contains CBGA, the “grand daddy” of cannabinoids, and CBDA. Both are acids which are converted to CBG and CBD, and Immune+ combines them with cinnamon, clove, blue gum eucalyptus and lemon essential oils and then adds Vitamins A and D3 to give your immune system a boost.

TRIM is SunMed’s first foray into the weight loss product market. TRIM features THC-V, which blocks your appetite-stimulating CB1 receptor (THC-D9, by contrast, causes appetite stimulation). David says he lost 21 pounds using TRIM, although he confesses to gaining a few back. He says weight loss while using TRIM will vary with each customer.

Full spectrum, hemp-infused full-spectrum SunMed seltzers, which come in indica (called Just Chillin’) and Delta-8 (aka Island Time). David says a doctor from nearby AdventHealth stops by for a case of seltzer every month and shares them with his patients.

There also are topical creams and sprays and Debra says the broad spectrum cream and the topical spray, both produce outstanding results. Or, try another one of the newer items, the broad spectrum-infused massage oil.

For your doggies, Your CBD Store offers Chillin’ Out (for relaxation) and Movin’ Easy (for mobility and aches and pains for senior dogs) broad-spectrum hemp chews.

Your CBD Store New Tampa is located at 19651 Bruce B. Downs Blvd., Suite B-1. It is open Monday-Saturday, 10 a.m.-6 p.m., and 1 p.m.-5 p.m. on Sunday.

For more information, call (813) 994-0599 or visit CBDRX4U.com/find-us/florida/new-tampa.

New Tampa Your CBD Store

New Tampa’s 2022-23 Teachers Of The Year

The 2023 Excellence in Education Awards, hosted by the Hillsborough Education Foundation in partnership with Hillsborough County Public Schools, recently recognized outstanding educators at the county’s public schools, including 11 in New Tampa.

Each school nominated one candidate for the each of the three county-wide awards — Teacher of the Year, Ida S. Baker Diversity Educator of the Year and Instructional Support Employee of the Year.

While none of the District winners were from New Tampa’s schools, it is an honor to be nominated for the many deserving teachers and support staff at all of our local schools.

Congratulations to the New Tampa nominees for Teacher of the Year (pictured on this page), and the Ida S. Baker Diversity Educators and Instructional Support Employees (not pictured).

Megan Boghosian Language Arts Liberty Middle School

New Tampa Teacher of the Year

Local Author Lois Lewandowski Hopes To Inspire Others

*Local author Lois Lewandowski poses with most of her “vanity published” books, including* The Ghost on Swann. (Photos by Charmaine George)

I recently read a novel by someone I’ve known indirectly for more than 20 years — Hunter’s Green resident Lois Lewandowski.

To be fair, despite knowing Lois’ husband (and local financial advisor) Chuck Lewandowski for that amount of time, I had only met her a handful of times and I honestly had no idea that the one-time IT rep for a Silicon Valley company who later worked in the jewelry department of Nordstrom’s was a published author.

So, when Lois (who writes her books as “L.A. Lewandowski”) contacted me by email about buying an ad for her most recent “vanity published” (she hates the term “self-published;” more on this below) novel — The Ghost on Swann — I told her that I would read the book first and be honest with her about whether or not I thought it would be worth buying ads to try to sell copies of it.

Well, quite truthfully, I was blown away by The Ghost. Each chapter of the book is told in first person by one of the four major characters — the ghost herself, Bertha “Posh” Swann, Posh’s friend Victor, Victor’s niece Tyrene and even a mannequin named Maude. The format, albeit a little confusing at first, does make you want to find out what happens next. Posh, who “haunts” the business now owned by her living friend Victor, was murdered in the same building many years earlier.

If you recognize the spelling of “Swann,” it’s because Posh’s family is supposedly the reason Swann Ave. in Tampa’s renowned Hyde Park Village neighborhood (where the entire story is set) was given that name.

For a book devoid of sex and violence (even the description of Posh’s murder was somewhat pedestrian), The Ghost on Swann is a true page-turner. I told Lois that, as I read it, I wondered if maybe Posh’s murder was more of a mystery than the reader is led to believe, but as it turns out, The Ghost is not a murder mystery. Instead, it’s simply a well-crafted story rooted in the fashion industry (as Lois herself has been) that likely will appeal more to women than to men but I wouldn’t discourage anyone from giving it the once-over.

“I’m very proud of The Ghost,” Lois says. “It took three rewrites to get it to where it is now.”

Lois On ‘Vanity’ Publishing

Speaking of rewrites, as I mentioned earlier, Lois isn’t a fan of the term “self-published,” because it indicates to many people that the books are likely less “professional” than those published by one of the remaining major publishing houses.

However, after reading The Ghost, it’s obvious that Lois’ work is not only professional, she takes a lot of pride in things like her editor (Stacy Juba), the design of the covers of her books, the spelling, grammar and punctuation of her stories and other things that many “self-published” authors don’t seem to sweat as she does.

“I prefer to call it ‘vanity publishing,’” she says. “Just because Viking, Penguin and other traditional publishers haven’t published my books, I care that if you read them, you won’t be able to distinguish it from a traditionally published book.”

She admits, however, that some self-publishers who don’t think they have to pay the same attention to detail, give the vanity publishing business a bad name. Many also don’t think you can make “real” money as a vanity publisher.

“But that just isn’t true,” Lois says. “I’m in a lot of online independent publishing groups and the word is that it takes as many as 15 books to really start making money. The Ghost on Swann is only my sixth book, but my brain is very active and I have at least three more that are close to being ready, so I feel like I’m on my way.”

On the other hand, Lois says that even though sites like Amazon do provide numbers of copies sold to authors, “I don’t really worry about sales. I write because I have stories in my head and I do regularly receive money for my book sales, too.”

Lois says it wasn’t always her dream to be a writer — “I wanted to be a lawyer, really…but it is my dream now.” She points to one vanity publisher who has written 35 or more books, putting out two a year, and has enough of a following that it is now his full-time job. “Amazon has an algorithm (for book sales) and you have to feed the algorithm, so I have to get another book out by October of this year to do that.”

She also says that a lot of people she meets tell her that they really want to write a book and she always encourages them to do so.“Stephen King calls it ‘BIC,” or ‘Butt in Chair,’ which is the only way to get it done.”

In addition, Lois wrote for a blog called “Indies Unlimited” and found out, “that a lot of self-published writers are too cheap to register their work with the Library of Congress to protect it. But, if you really think you have a story people would be interested in reading, why wouldn’t you want to protect it?”

She adds, “Writers’ ideas are not copyright-able, but the words themselves are. If you protect your work, and someone publishes something that’s really close to your words, you can go after them legally.”

Lois says she even has gone so far as to teach “Authors 101” courses at public libraries, where she teaches people who want to write how to get started. “After the Tampa Bay Times did an article on me several years ago, I had 25 or 30 people at my course at the Riverview library,” she says. “The information I gave out then is all old now because of the internet, but I found out that a lot of people definitely have stories they want to tell in a book. That’s why, when I did my Authors 101 course, I felt so good about encouraging other authors to become vanity publishers.”

She also notes that it’s harder than ever to get one of the big publishing houses to publish your book, as you have write query letters to literary agents because, “you can’t even submit a manuscript to the folks at Random House.”

But, Lois says, “If you want to be a writer, your goal should be to publish, not to make money. “I don’t keep track of my sales because my goal is to be proud of my work. If people love my books, the money will come.”

Before releasing The Ghost on Swann in 2022, Lois’ first book was Born to Die, The Montauk Murders (2011). That was followed by A Gourmet Demise, Murder in South Tampa (2014), which Lois says briefly hit #1 on Amazon for a while and may be her career best-seller. Between those murder mysteries was Gentleman Vampire: The Undead Have Style (2012). She also has published Bacon Aporkalypse, which is a collection of recipes paired with short stories in 2014. And, Lois says the ebook Thirty Days of Work from Home Style (2020), was how she navigated the pandemic. She says her next book, which she plans to have out by the end of this year, will be the sequel to Gentleman Vampire.

Search “Books by L.A. Lewandowski” on Amazon.com. Almost all of Lois’ titles are available in paperback and for Kindle.

Book Hunters Green Lois Lewandowski New Tampa The Ghost On Swann

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