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Wesley Chapel Doubles Its Odds on American Idol

Two Wesley Chapel teenagers are headed to Hollywood Week on American Idol, thanks to auditions that earned unanimous votes from the judges.

Zach D’Onofrio, who also earned a golden ticket in 2018, and Alanis Sophia will begin competing this week as the show moves into the Hollywood phase.

Zach, a Wiregrass Ranch graduate, got his second golden ticket on Sunday’s show, when he played the piano and sang the Beatles’ “Golden Slumbers” for judges Katy Perry, Lionel Richie and Luke Bryan.

In his first audition, Zach sang Frank Sinatra’s “The Way You Look Tonight” — his voice transforming from nervous teenager to timeless crooner — and danced with Perry after giving each of the judges designer themed socks. Bryan was the first to recognize Zach, calling him “Sinatra Boy.”

“I’m back,” Zach said.

This time around, he joked that he had graduated from socks to “dressing up in my best sweater”, singing in a purple sweater with a flowered design.

The judges seemed perplexed about what to make of a second version of D’Onofrio after his song. “Zachary, you’re like a math equation you just leave permanently up on the chalkboard,” Perry told him. “I’m still confused and would like to hear more.”

Zach had a surprise for song No. 2 — his girlfriend Catie Turner, who was a top-6 finisher in 2018. He called her out to sing with him on a second song, “Falling”, by Harry Styles.

Perry told Zach after the song there was something interesting about him, but that he reminded her of a turtle.

“A turtle sometimes hides in its shell,’’ she said. “But the turtle wins the race.”

“What we need now,” Ritchie added, “is for you to come out of your shell.”

And with that, Zach is headed back to Hollywood.

Like Zach, Alanis Sophia is another great voice with a great story.

She says she remembers watching “American Idol” as a child, peering between the bars on her crib. When she was 4-years old, her mother Kathy bought her a happy meal from McDonald’s so she could get the toy inside – a plastic blue and yellow American Idol microphone, with the show’s catchphrase – “You’re Going To Hollywood!” – on it.

Being on the show became one of Alanis’ dreams. On the Feb. 28 audition show, filmed in Los Angeles, Alanis wowed the judges — and millions watching at home — with a perfect, soaring rendition of Demi Lovato’s “Anyone.”

The performance left tears in the eyes of Perry, and Richie and Bryan also appeared moved.

Alanis Sophia sings with the same plastic microphone that ignited her American Idol dream.

Alanis, who was named after pop singer Alanis Morissette, sang into that exact same Happy Meal plastic microphone during the audition that gave birth to her dream.

Pretty ironic, don’t ya think?

“In the midst of all of this noise, there’s the purity of your voice and your personality that requires nothing but exactly who you are,” Richie told her.

“It was real, and it was honest, and it was awesome to watch,” Bryan said.

Perry, who said she got into music because of Morissette, told Alanis that she was the best performer the judges had seen that day.

After calling her mom Kathy out, and making her cry with their praise of her daughter, the judges told Alanis that she was advancing to Hollywood. The teen grabbed her golden ticket and held it high proudly as she and Kathy left the room.

Alanis said she felt good and liked her chances after finishing the song.

“When I walked in there, I was like, holy cow,” Alanis told the Neighborhood News. “I was nervous at the beginning, but I sang my heart out. Once I started singing, I was in a zone.”

Although not technically currently a resident of Wesley Chapel — she lives in Dade City — Alanis has lived in Wesley Chapel and attended John Long Middle School for two years.

While Zach is still relatively new to singing, it’s not that big a surprise that a seasoned performer like Alanis would deliver such a performance. In fact, because her budding music and acting career kept her so busy, she had to move to online classes and is a 2019 Pasco eSchool graduate.

The oldest of three other siblings, Alanis is no stranger to the music business. When she was 11 years old, she finished second on “La Voz Kids,” the Spanish version of “The Voice.”

She later became the face of VisitFlorida, made commercials and did some acting, and was signed to the Big Machine record label, which was looking to fuse her into a Latin-Country star.

While that didn’t work out, Alanis continued to make music and build her brand online, with hundreds of thousands of followers between Instagram, Twitter, YouTube and TikTok.

That may seem like a full career for many, but at 19, Alanis is just getting started. She looks at “American Idol” as an opportunity to break through as a star, but if not, she’ll keep pushing on.

“I keep forgetting that I’m 19, and there is so much more left for me in this world,” she says.

That includes singing, touring, acting and who knows?

“All of that,” Alanis says. “I want to do it all.”

Now that the auditions are over, the show begins “Hollywood Week” this Sunday. The show airs at 8 p.m. on ABC-TV.

American IDol

St. Patrick’s Day Means It’s Been One Full Year Of Covid-19

The photo of Jannah and me was taken on March 7, 2020, at a friend’s wedding, literally a week or so before the U.S. began to shut down because of the early days of the Covid-19 pandemic.

I also remember going to O’Brien’s Irish Pub in Wesley Chapel to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day 2020, and I was already uncomfortable talking too closely to the people we met and especially, with hugging anyone. No one was yet wearing masks — as there was some debate as to whether or not they were effective in preventing the spread of this then-new, still-largely-unknown illness — and I just felt like no one knew how close was too close to be talking to someone in those earliest days of the illness.

Well, St. Patrick’s Day 2021 is now here, which means that the pandemic has been raging in this country for one full year. Thankfully, despite nearly 30 million confirmed U.S. cases and more than a half-million deaths, the number of new cases, hospitalizations and deaths seem to finally be subsiding a bit, thanks to ongoing mask-wearing and social distancing rules, as well as the introduction of millions of doses of three rushed-to-market vaccines. The good news — at least so far — is that those who have been able to receive the Moderna, Pfizer-BioNTech or Johnson & Johnson/Janssen vaccines to date have been avoiding serious illness, hospitalizations and deaths, with minimal side effects for most.

I will admit that those who have been able to receive any of these vaccines once they became available has been a little mystifying to me — I thought it was supposed to be the elderly, true front-line workers in hospitals (doctors, nurses and anyone else with direct patient contact), firefighters and law enforcement officers who were supposed to be first in line to receive them, but I saw many people under age 65 on Facebook who didn’t fit into any of those categories bragging that they had received both doses of the vaccine before my mom was able to get her first dose of Moderna vaccine, which she finally did last week.

But, considering how new all of this is, and how crazy the lines have been at public heath locations just to get a Covid test, I am encouraged by the progress that has been made. I’m also encouraged by the fact that the vaccines all also appear to be effective against the different Covid-19 variants that have been popping up.

I also am hopeful that Jannah and I — who are both under age 65 and in relatively good health — will be able to be included in the next group to be vaccinated, especially once teachers and everyone living or working in long-term care facilities have received theirs. My wife and I genuinely miss going out to crowded bars with live music, but we’ve spent precious few evenings out enjoying dinner and karaoke or to watch a Lightning game since this nightmare began.

I feel fortunate that neither I nor any members of my immediate family have been touched personally by Covid, although at least one Neighborhood News employee did suffer for a few weeks with a relatively mild case. But thankfully, our employees have mostly been working from home and we wear masks whenever more than one of us are in the office together.

Even so, how long Jannah and I will have to continue to wear masks when we go out to eat — something we’ve done far less of the last year, but have started to do a little more of late — remains to be seen. And, I also am concerned that the repeal of mask mandates by the governors of several states may be happening a little too soon, too. The U.S. is nowhere near “herd immunity” yet and I don’t have the same faith in people to wear masks without those mandates that those governors seem to have.

So, while St. Patrick’s Day is one of the holidays I actually have traditionally enjoyed, it will forever be remembered, at least by me, as the holiday when the scourge of the early 21st century first hit home. Stay safe, my friends.

Debra Model Management & School Teaches Model Behavior

Debra Jacobs has an eye for modeling talent, a keen sense of someone who will just leap off the page or screen or make an advertisement pop.

One would hope so because, as a model and modeling scout herself, plus previously running a modeling agency in Delaware, Jacobs now runs Debra Model Management & Modeling School, just a few miles south of Wesley Chapel in Tampa Palms.

Don’t be mistaken — despite its name, Debra Model Management is not a modeling agency, but a school, one that teaches both potential models and even those genuinely interested in learning all of the ins and outs, dos and don’ts of the modeling industry.

“Everywhere I go, people ask me how do I get (me or my child) into modeling?,” Jacobs says. That’s why I started this. I wanted people to have an affordable, transparent modeling management agency so they can really learn about this industry. That’s why this is a school, not an agency. They can learn modeling, they can learn fashion, and they can learn how to manage their careers. That’s what I’m teaching them here.”

Jacobs, whose first modeling gig was when she was just 15 years old, says she loves discovering new talent.

She has approached some of her clients to gauge their interest in modeling, including her newest client, Kannon Wengert, a two-year-old boy Jacobs saw at the Tampa Palms Publix and gave his mom, Rachel, her business card.

“We were just at the Publix pharmacy when Debra spotted us,” Rachel says. “I will say, it did seem kind of weird, but she was like, ‘He’s so cute. He should model.’ I had thought about it and did want to get him into some kind of modeling. Whenever I post pictures of him on social media, people are like, ‘He could be a model.’ But, I figured people were just being nice.”

After meeting with Jacobs, and learning about all her experience in the modeling industry, Rachel thought she would be a good fit for Kannon.

Debra Model Management offers a 10-week course that includes teaching runway techniques and other poses for photography sessions. The photos taken go into the student’s professional modeling portfolio. Jacobs also teaches proper nutrition, fashion dos and don’ts and the importance of self image.

“When I did my first ginormous fashion show,” Jacobs recalls, “it was in Washington, D.C., in Constitution Hall, and they just gave me a bunch of clothes and told me to go out there. I didn’t know what to do. In many modeling schools, they don’t tell you those things, like what goes on backstage and knowing where to go and what to do.”

But, it’s certainly not always easy. Jacobs admits that she faced obstacles. She remembers being rejected, and told she was too “short-waisted,” or all legs, she says. She remembers thinking how cruel that was to tell her, and says she has never forgotten it.

“That is why my company will never reject or give bad feedback to anyone who wants to model,” she says. “People are amazing when they are driven to do something, and won’t take no for an answer. Just because one person rejects you, that doesn’t mean that others won’t accept you.”

Mikayla Alexander, Ashley Lawrence and Kannon Wengert are some of the students at Debra Model Management & Modeling School.

Jacobs went on to model in New York City, and signed with agents in Philadelphia, Washington D.C., and Virginia. She walked runways for high fashion designers, and became a regular fashion model on QVC-TV out of their West Chester, PA, studios. She won a runway modeling competition and was named Washington D.C.’s Super Model of the Year.

One of her Debra Model Management clients, 23-year-old Ashley Lawrence, is getting into modeling because of Jacobs.

“I had been told I should model, but didn’t think I could until I met Debra,” Lawrence says. “It was a lot about getting through the right doors, and she has helped show me how to do that. And, just learning how to model the right way, in pictures and everything.”

Certainly, Jacobs has the experience and knowledge to impart to her students and clients. She has modeled for 40 years and counting, including what she considers to be her greatest accomplishment — modeling for the 1993-94 Ebony Fashion Fair, an event put on by Jet and Ebony magazines, in which they only pick 18 models to go on to tour 189 U.S. cities, the Bahamas and the Virgin Islands.

“I also was known as the model with the most changes,” Jacobs says with pride. “Eighteen changes each show.”

But, Jacobs is well educated in not only modeling, but also fashion. She holds a degree in Fashion Merchandising from Wesley College in Dover, DE, which is part of the coursework taught at Debra Model Management.

Helping Children A Passion

Jacobs says she is very passionate about not only helping children who have aspirations to model, act or perform, but also to give back by working with various charities that help more unfortunate children. Her plan is to get back into charity and community work, just as she did when she worked with abused and impoverished children in the court systems.

It’s easy to see what an immediate impact Jacobs has with kids and one has to look no further than 9-year-old Mikayla Alexander. “I love that she teaches me to be a great model and be a great actress,” Mikayla said. “I’ve learned how to eat better, like more fruits and vegetables, and I’ve also learned about positive self-image. I know all of that is very important now.”

“Isn’t she just so poised for her age?” Jacobs adds, beaming with obvious pride.

Jacobs also is proud to start the first — and currently, the only — modeling business in the New Tampa/Wesley Chapel area. She says she will always go above and beyond for her clients.

Since Debra Model Management is a both school and a management company, Jacobs is focused on helping each of her models realize their full potential, because once that happens, and they have what someone is looking for, they will be found, she says. Just like she was.

“When I tell people about all of my experience and accomplishments, I realize some may not believe me,” Jacobs says. “Because I’ve done a lot. But, I truly love modeling and the fashion industry. My business is geared towards those individuals who are excited about it, like I am. When you walk into my studio, I want you to feel like you’re in a modeling wonderland.”

Debra Model Management is located 5331 Primrose Lake Cir., Suite 245, in Tampa Palms. For more information, visit DebraModelManagement.com or email debramodelmanagement@gmail.com.

Debra Jacobs Model

Zukku-San Is Taking Its Place Among Wesley Chapel’s Best!

If you somehow haven’t seen it as you crawl to or from I-75 on S.R. 56, or you haven’t seen the ads (or my previous shorter writeups) in these pages, a favorite from Tampa’s Armature Works has opened in our area.

Zukku-San Sushi Bar & Grill opened towards the end of 2020, next to Crumbl Cookie, and has brought that great Tampa vibe along with it.

But, while the Zukku Sushi location in the Tampa Heights Market at Armature Works is set up (like most restaurants in that space) as a faster-food mix of “curated” sushi, poké bowls and sushi burritos, co-owner Ferdian Jap and his possible future brother-in-law and co-owner/Executive Chef Gia Tran (Ferdian’s girlfriend is Gia’s wife’s sister) have brought the same “works of art” feel to the coolly elegant Zukku-San, which is much more of a sit-down, fine dining restaurant, featuring a super-premium, full liquor bar.

Gia, who spent several years at Sushi Alive in the Westshore Business District, followed by five years at Ocean Prime outside of the International Plaza, says that Zukku-San allows him to get even more into his unique combination of knowledge and love of the freshest sushi and the ability to create more upscale works of art that he learned at Ocean Prime.

In fact, “Zukku” is a canvas commonly used by artists to create their masterpieces and “San” is a title of respect added to a name in Japanese. Amazing food is the art form and the chefs are the artists who use the finest ingredients to create these culinary masterpieces. In fact, there even are large and small sushi and sashimi palettes served on a custom artist’s palette. These folks are not playing around when it comes to food.

If you spend a few minutes with Ferdian and Chef Gia, you can tell just how excited they are about their latest venture together (they also have a Zukku Sushi location in Charlotte, NC) — and they’re not the only ones.

Although fans of Zukku-San pack the place (but please note that there are few eateries better set up for social distancing) for dinner virtually every night, Gia and Ferdian only recently unveiled a new lunch menu, so the lunch crowd is just now building.

But, while you can get the full dinner menu if you go at lunch time, there also are lunch-only items, like excellent tuna and other poké bowls and tender short rib and other bento boxes, all of which include salad, rice, two fried gyoza, or pork dumplings, and Zukku-San’s amazingly fresh and delicious sautéed veggies. The bottom line is that whether you go for lunch, dinner or drinks and appetizers, you really can’t beat the quality — or the artistry — of Chef Gia’s food at Zukku-San.

For Starters…

Jannah and I haven’t always gotten a full meal when we visit Zukku-San because the starters are just so delicious.

But, every dine-in visitor to Zukku-San also receives a towel that puffs up when your server pours hot water on it. But, neither photographer Charmaine George nor I got a picture that really does this magical process justice, so you’ll just have to check it out for yourself, OK?

And, even though Jannah and I aren’t as big on sushi as some Zukku-San diners, the fish is always fresh and excellent, as is the seared ahi tuna tataki. Also outstanding are the fried vegetable spring rolls (served with a unique orange chili sauce), the skewers of beef tenderloin and chicken yakitori (shrimp and scallop yakitori also are on the menu; all are skewered with fresh sautéed onions, peppers zucchini and even broccoli) and the fried pork gyoza.

But, our favorite starters are probably the wide variety of Tempura a la Carte options. Jannah’s favorite is the zucchini and mine are the broccoli, carrot and amazing whole soft shell crab tempura (right). Also on the tempura menu are shrimp, sweet potato, tofu, whole giant squid, avocado, scallops, hamachi (yellowtail) collar, asparagus, onion rings, red and jalapeño pepper and even whole lobster tail tempura.

“Most Japanese restaurants give you an order of tempura that may have some vegetables you don’t like,” Ferdian says. “But, we give you four pieces of zucchini or broccoli or whatever vegetables you like, for only $2.95 per order. At Zukku-San, you pick only the tempura items you want.”

There’s even “Chef’s Features” available, like a tender bluefin tuna appetizer, topped with caviar. Ferdian says that the bluefin appetizer is likely to become a regular menu item in the future, but Gia says other “Chef’s Features” also are coming soon.

There also are soups and salads available as starters, but other than the ginger salad that comes with the entrées, Jannah and I haven’t sampled any of them…yet.

From The Wok & Grill

Just in case you’re still hungry for more than just appetizers, Zukku-San offers mine and Jannah’s favorite chicken teriyaki (above), which is served with those aforementioned sautéed veggies. Also available are dinner portions of those tender, delicious grilled short ribs, plus items we haven’t tried yet, like soy butter glazed baked salmon, miso garlic scallops or tofu, and wok-fired hibachi and udon noodle dishes, all with your choice of protein, or just with veggies.

But, it’s really hard for us to ever pass up the Japanese-style fried rice, which is jasmine rice with egg, peas, carrots and onions and available with chicken, beef, shrimp or fried tofu protein options, but our favorite is the veggie fried rice, which adds red peppers, broccoli, zucchini and amazing baby bok choy. The rice has a nutty flavor that is hard to match.

Zukku-San also has a kids menu, but while the items aren’t cheap, the portions seem adult-sized to us. There’s also a variety of desserts, from triple chocolate cake to matcha green tea cheesecake, fried ice cream and more, but we’ve honestly never had room left over for dessert. There’s also a variety of hot and iced teas, as well as boba milk tea, but Jannah usually gets a wine or hot saki and I usually have either an Asahi Dry or Sapporo beer, or a whiskey.

Zukku-San Sushi Bar & Grill (25916 Sierra Center Blvd., Lutz) opens every day at 11 and is open until 9:30 on weekdays, 10 p.m. on Fri. & Sat. & 9 p.m. on Sun. For more information, visit ZukkuSushi.com, call (813) 419-1351.

chicken teriyaki sushi Zukku-San

Medi-Weightloss Of Lutz Promises Results & Long-Term Help!

Weight gain has been a common side effect of the Covid-19 pandemic, as exercise and other healthy habits have taken a back seat for many people.

Medi-Weightloss of Lutz owner Gerri Willett says the pandemic initially caused a lot of uncertainty for her small business, but ultimately has driven many new patients to the practice, located on S.R. 54, two miles west of where it meets S.R. 56 (near the Tampa Premium Outlets).

In the 15 years since it opened in 2006, Gerri says Medi-Weightloss of Lutz has helped patients lose nearly 130,000 pounds. It’s easy to get started, as completely free assessments are always offered.

Today, while there are 91 Medi-Weightloss locations nationwide, Gerri owns the locations in both Lutz and Brandon, operating the two as a local, family-owned business, which has been her passion for the past 15 years.

The success patients see when they try the Medi-Weightloss program is what continues to drive people to the practice.

“Our patients refer their friends because they know we do a really a good job,” Gerri says.

The Medi-Weightloss program is supervised by Andrew Weitzman, M.D., who is Board-certified in Internal Medicine. The program combines diet and exercise with supplements, managed by a doctor, to help people lose weight and keep it off.

Like most businesses, Medi-Weightloss has had to make adaptations because of the Covid pandemic, creating virtually touch-free visits, while keeping its doors open to better circulate fresh air, providing clean pens, taking temperature checks, having hand sanitizer available and other precautionary measures.

“We also offer telemedicine,” says Gerri. “We do whatever you feel comfortable with, whether that’s telemedicine, or coming in to be weighed when we’re otherwise closed to patients, so you’re the only one in the office, or driving through the parking lot to pick up a prescription.”

The staff is compassionate and understanding, cheering their patients on to reach their goals.

“It can be very difficult for people to step foot into a weight-loss clinic because, a lot of times, they have already tried so many different things,” says Gerri. “People beat themselves up horribly about their weight.”

Whether it’s newfound weight gain as your body changes due to age, weight that was lost in the past but has crept back on, or pounds put on during the pandemic, Gerri says, “We want people to know we’ll figure it out and we’ll get them to be successful.”

How It Works

During the first phase of the program — also known as the acute or weight-loss phase — clients come in once a week.

After an initial consultation with weight measurements, blood work and an electrocardiogram (EKG), patients receive a binder to store educational handouts, recapping the information shared at each session. They also receive recipes for delicious, healthy meals, with ingredients that are easy to find. Patients also start a detailed journal to log their eating, drinking and sleeping data. They also receive vitamin supplements, a food scale to help with portion control and ketone sticks to detect their level of ketosis.

(Note: Physiologic Ketosis is a normal response to low glucose availability, such as low-carbohydrate diets or fasting.)

Medi-Weightloss has many ways to help during the weight-loss phase, including injections of Methionine Inositol Choline (MIC Combo) to put B12 vitamins and amino acids into the bloodstream, both of which help with fat metabolism, liver function and fat excretion. Patients also receive Vitamin B6 and B1 injections, which help reduce water retention and keep your energy up, while battling food cravings.

Dr. Weitzman says the goal is always to reduce medications that patients may be taking. “One of my favorite things is getting someone off of blood pressure medications,” he says. “You lose 20 pounds and, all of a sudden, your blood pressure goes down.”

After the acute phase of the program ends (once ca client reaches his/her target weight), they check in less often during the maintenance and wellness phases.

But, if a client should re-gain weight after completing the program, Gerri says there’s no reason to worry.

“Life happens and we are here to help,” she says. “It doesn’t mean you failed. It means you had stress in your life, or something happened. Just pop back into the program! There is no restart fee.”

Caring, Helpful Staff

Medi-Weightloss of Lutz has a staff of caring professionals who truly understand what it’s like to be in their patient’s shoes. In fact, some are former patients.

Erin Jones had lost her husband in 2010 and then, she says, “I ate for a year.”

In 2011, she started the Medi-Weightloss program and lost 50 pounds.

After that, she joined the team. Erin is now a full-time medical assistant and the office manager at Medi-Weightloss of Lutz and Brandon.

“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,” Erin says.

Medical assistant Patty Pinson has been with Medi-Weightloss for a decade and is a retired Registered Nurse (RN). Other Certified Medical Assistants (CMAs) include Karina Gonzalez and Alex Pierantoni, while Raquel Sanford manages the front office.

Dr. Weitzman is a Board-certified Medical Doctor who earned his Doctor of Medicine degree from Tel Aviv University in Tel Aviv, Israel, and completed his residency at Nassau University Medical Center in Long Island, NY. He operated a primary care practice in New York, then moved to Manatee County, before coming on board at Medi-Weightloss more than four years ago.

He says there actually are many similarities between primary care and weight loss.

“The main difference is that with primary care, you’re already treating a patient’s disease. Here, we’re working strictly with prevention.”

He stresses all three legs of the weight-loss process: diet, exercise and appetite suppression. “You must do all three in order to succeed,” Dr. Weitzman says.

Sally Morrison is a Medi-Weightloss patient who has found success. In the past nine months, she’s lost 90 pounds, just in time to celebrate her 70th birthday in early February.

Before Medi-Weightloss, Sally says she felt terrible. As a former nurse, she knew the consequences when she saw how bad her lab results were after a checkup, so she decided to make a change.

A friend had success with Medi-Weightloss, so Sally decided to try it, too.

“When I was in my 30s, I was an operating room nurse in the Army. I ran every day back then,” she says, “and I feel almost as good now as I did then.”

She says she had tried a different program about 10 years ago, but the weight crept back on. And, the clinic she went to had closed, which left her feeling abandoned.

This time around, Sally is confident she has the support and resources she needs to keep the weight off. “They’ve been my cheerleaders and my mentors,” she says. “I’ve had long talks with the doctor and he’s fabulous. They all are. I highly recommend people go there.”

To schedule a free assessment at Medi-Weighloss of Lutz (24420 S.R. 54, Lutz), call (813) 909-1700. The office is open five days a week: 6:30 a.m.-1 p.m. on Mon.; 9 a.m.-6 p.m. on Tues., 6:30 a.m.-1 p.m. on Wed; 1 p.m.-7 p.m. on Thur.; and 6:30 a.m.-1 p.m on Fri. More information is available at MediWeightloss.com/locations/lutz/.

Medi Weight Loss