(Left, l.-r.) Wesley Chapel residents Brittany Long and her daughter Lillian, with New Tampa residents Reha, Mahi and Rudra Patel and Nicole Tuminella, the Tampa Bay Invention Convention Worldwide affiliate for Hillsborough County Public Schools. (Photos provided by Brittany Long and Reha Patel).
Our sincere congratulations go out to New Tampa resident Mahi Patel and Wesley Chapel resident Lillian Long. These two young inventors recently won some impressive honors at the seventh annual Invention Convention Worldwide (ICW)- Youth National Invention Convention June 5-8, at the Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn, MI.
Representatives from the U.S. Patent Office enjoy checking out Lillian’s unique, award-winning slime.
Lillian is a 4th grader at Clark Elementary who invented a “derm-friendly” slime that is suitable for people who have eczema and other skin sensitivities. Meanwhile, Mahi, a 5th grader from Chiles Elementary, created an Artificial Intelligence (AI) program through coding to help better — and more quickly — recognize lung cancer in body scans.
First, the girls entered their projects in the Hillsborough Regional STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering & Math) Fair back in March, after each won first place at their respective school STEM Fairs. Both were entered in the Invention categories in their respective grade levels. Out of more than 1,500 projects at the District-level elementary fair, the girls were then chosen to represent Tampa Bay at the ICW-Youth National Invention Convention.
Mahi with her “Top Show Board” prize winner.
Going for the experience and to share their passion for their respective inventions, both girls ended up walking away from the National Competition with two outstanding awards each. Mahi won 1st place overall in the country for 5th grade entries and the Top Show Board award for the entire event, while Lillian won 2nd place overall in the country for 4th grade entries. She also won the top Medal/Health award of all projects K-12 in the entire event. These were surely some huge accomplishments, considering that there were 366 students who were selected to attend the 7th Annual ICW nationwide event.
Both students have personal connections to their inventions and sought out solutions to help others.
Lillian hopes to create a product line that can be used for many purposes in dermatology offices, child psychology offices, and occupational therapy offices as well. She says her primary goal is to create an inclusive product that is safe for everyone.
Mahi hopes that her product, which uses a different algorithm, can help identify a variety of cancers at a much faster rate, allowing more people to have quicker care and less chances for misdiagnosis. Mahi’s brother Rudra, who is going into his junior year at Middleton High, also has competed in (and won) science fairs in the past.
Both girls also have been selected to represent the U.S. and have their inventions at the worldwide virtual competition, which will be held at the end of this month, with the awards to be announced on Aug. 11! Good luck, young ladies!
Whether or not you’ve ever entered one of our previous Reader Dining Survey & Contests, I hope you’ll consider entering at least once this year.
Yes, while we still have at least three (there could be more) free dining prizes, from $35 to $100 — to the restaurant of your choice, no less — we’re making it easier than ever before for you to enter.
Instead of a full page or more of different dining categories, all we’re asking you for is to answer one or two questions in every issue between now and Thursday, November 16, and you’ll receive one entry into those random prize drawings for each Survey question you answer.
This issue, we’ll start with one question that asks you for FIVE (5) answers — “Name your Five Favorite Restaurants (of any kind) located in Wesley Chapel or near the Tampa Premium Outlets (aka Lutz).”
For your entry to be valid, you must name five different restaurants. If you only name one or two restaurants or fill in the name of the same restaurant in all five spaces, you’ll only have one or two votes counted and your entry will not be eligible for any of our prizes.
Then, in each of the next five issues, we’ll ask you to name only one or two of your favorites — for example, your Favorite Chinese Restaurant, Coffee Shop or Pizza Place — and we’ll give you one additional entry into our random prize drawings for each valid entry you submit. We feel as though this should stimulate more people to enter the contests, because the task won’t be as daunting as having to completely (or nearly completely) fill out an entire page of favorites.
As always, there’s no purchase necessary to enter or win a prize. All we ask is that you follow the following rules:
1. Enter by filling out the entry form in the issue or by filling the form out online by clicking HERE.
2. You can drop your filled-out entry form in the mail (send it to “2023 Neighborhood News Dining Contest,” 2604 Cypress Ridge Blvd., Suite 102D, Wesley Chapel, FL 33544) or even email it to us at Ads@NTNeighborhoodNews.com. *Note-Entries filled out on our website do not need to be mailed or emailed to us.
3. Please check the address and zip codes of the restaurants you choose, as only votes for restaurants in zip codes 33543, 33544 and 33545 (Wesley Chapel) and zip code 33559 (Lutz, within 1-2 miles of the S.R. 56 exit off I-75) will be counted as “Wesley Chapel” votes. When we ask you next issue for your “Five Favorite Restaurants (of any kind) in New Tampa,” only restaurants located in zip code 33647, or in the Oak Ramble Plaza on Bruce B. Downs Blvd. (in zip code 33613) and in or near the Palms Connection Plaza on E. Bearss Ave. (zip code 33559) will be counted as “New Tampa” votes.
4. In order to be eligible to win any of our free dining prizes to the restaurant of your choice, your entry form with a response to at least one of our questions over the next five months must include your name, full mailing address (including your zip code), the community you live in (Avalon Park Wesley Chapel, Seven Oaks, etc.), a daytime phone number where you can be reached and your valid email address.
We look forward to seeing how this year’s contest shakes out. Good luck!
If you love songs like “You’re the One That I Want,” “Hopelessly Devoted To You,” “Grease (Is The Word)” and “Beauty School Dropout” from the Broadway musical and subsequent movie (starring John Travolta and the late, great Olivia Newton-John) “Grease,” I can personally guarantee, in all sincerity, that you will not be disappointed if you check out the New Tampa Players (NTP) production of the 1972 Tony Award winner later this month.
The performances will be presented at the all-new New Tampa Performing Arts Center (PAC) off Bruce B. Downs Blvd. the weekends of July 21-23 and July 28-30 and tickets are already selling very well.
“We had less than 100 tickets left (of the 350 available for each performance) for the two Sunday matinee shows (on July 23 & 30),” said NTP producing artistic director Nora Paine shortly before we went to press with this issue. “We definitely expect to sell out all six shows.”
The hard-working cast (photo above), under the direction of G. Frank Meekins with choreography by Sarah Walston, features the tremendous talents of Dylan Fidler as Danny, Olivia Carr as Sandy, Kyle Fisher as Kenicke and Alyson Gannon as Rizzo. But honestly, as someone excited to be playing a minor character (Vince Fontaine) in this show, the entire ensemble is amazing.
For tickets & more information, see the ad below or visit NewTampaPlayers.org. — GN
The last time New Tampa had its own bagel place, it was called The Ultimate Bagel, which closed its location in Tampa Palms about 20 years ago.
In other words, the people in the community just south of Wesley Chapel have been waiting quite a while for a true New York-stye bagel place to open in zip code 33647.
Well, the wait it over, as Jeff Cofini (left in photo) and his nephew Nick Cignarella have opened Zio’s New York Bagel & Deli in the Pebble Creek Collection (at 19651 BBD Blvd.) and yes, the bagels are legit!
My fried egg, bacon and cheese (photo left) on a sesame bagel was outstanding and Zio’s has not only your favorite bagel varieties, but also everything cheddar, cheddar bacon (with real strips of bacon baked in) and more.
Breakfast, including freshly-made omelets, is available all day, but don’t forget the Boar’s Head meat-and-cheese sandwiches, like The Melvin (below, left) with pastrami,, corned beef, melted Swiss & cole slaw.
For info, call (813) 388-9498 or visit “Zio’s New York Bagel & Deli” on Facebook. — GN, photos by Charmaine George & GN
Attorney & Wesley Chapel resident Cela Webster’s Chapel Legal in Tampa Palms can help with all of your estate planning & family law needs. (Photo by Charmaine George).
When Cela Webster opened Chapel Legal just eight months ago, it was both a homecoming and the culmination of a career that has prepared her to help clients in the areas of family law and estate planning.
Chapel Legal is located in the Tampa Palms Professional Center off of Commerce Palms Blvd., near the Bruce B. Downs exit of I-75. While Cela is available for in-person consultations at her office location, she says many clients prefer to talk on the phone or meet virtually via a videoconferencing app.
Most often, she helps families who need custody arrangements for children, or need to modify arrangements that have already been made. She can help with divorce, adoption, and other family matters, as well.
Chapel Legal also helps people create a will, designate a healthcare surrogate, set up power of attorney or guardianship, and other important areas of estate planning.
And, Cela also has developed a specialty in church law, where she helps churches with all types of legal questions — from employee matters to Covid compliance. “A couple of them (churches) have me on speed dial,” she says. “I just never know what they’re going to ask.”
But, Cela says, she’s always prepared no matter what they ask her, thanks to a long and varied career that has exposed her to many courtrooms and legal opinions in both Florida and New York.
Cela left her hometown of Temple Terrace after graduating with a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science from the University of South Florida. She says the plan was to go to New York for law school and then return home to practice.
She started off on that path, earning her Juris Doctor (J.D.) degree from the Syracuse University College of Law in Syracuse, NY, in 2000.
She then took an extended stay of almost two decades before she came back.
“I tell people I was there ‘on accident’ for 19 years,” she laughs.
During those years, Cela started off in family law, worked for legal aid and served as an attorney in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of New York. She also served as Chief of Staff for a judge within that district, learning the ins and outs behind the scenes and writing legal opinions.
When it was finally time to come back to Florida in 2015, she and her husband, J. Matt Webster, Ph.D., moved their family — including three children — to Wesley Chapel. As we reported last issue, their son Jack recently graduated from Wiregrass Ranch High and will attend the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, NY, this fall. Their daughter Eliana is now 16 and their son Nathan is 12.
Upon her return to the Tampa Bay area, Cela went to work for Bay Area Legal Services. Looking for a change of pace, she then served as general counsel for Hernando County for three years.
With her wide variety of experience, she says, “I’ve worked on every kind of case on the planet.”
That’s when she decided to take the leap into her own private practice. Cela says this gives her the opportunity to serve clients exactly the way she wants to, which starts with being a good listener and explaining to her clients that — although they may not get everything they want — they will be heard, have good representation, and an attorney who truly cares about them.
“Family law isn’t like the ads you see on TV where lawyers promise to win your case for you,” she says. “It’s got its own rules and standards. Everyone compromises a little bit so that the settlement is fair. It’s not black and white like prosecution and defense.”
In addition to family law, Cela is an expert in estate planning who can help make sure you have the necessary documents in place to protect your loved ones.
A Very Personal Example…
She shares her own personal story so that people understand how important estate planning can be. Even as an attorney who specializes in this area, she unexpectedly found herself in a situation where her mom became temporarily incapacitated, but Cela couldn’t make decisions on her behalf in the hospital because she didn’t have all of the required paperwork beforehand to do so.
Thankfully, her mom recovered quickly and they immediately signed the necessary paperwork so that would never happen again. While Cela certainly didn’t expect to find herself in that situation, she uses her story to help people understand that the time to execute documents such as a Power of Attorney and Healthcare Surrogate is long before you think they will be needed.
Cela is licensed to practice in both New York and Florida, but she is fully focused on serving families in the New Tampa and Wesley Chapel areas.
A local business owner named Ann recently hired Chapel Law to help with an amendment to her will.
“Cela was wonderful to work with,” Ann says. “She’s professional, supportive and clearly knows her stuff.”
Ann says the process was educational for her and her husband, as Cela coached them through nuances and loopholes. “Cela helped us through some tough decisions and was a very good coach,” Ann says. “She is an excellent attorney all around.”
Cela says she considers it a privilege to serve her neighbors and work as a small operation, answering her own phone calls and making it a priority to be available to her clients, including quickly and personally answering all of their emails.
“I’m just a regular person who loves what I do,” she says.
While many attorneys don’t offer a free consultation, Cela says it’s important to her that people have an opportunity to ask questions before they determine whether or not to hire her.
“In fact, if people have a question about whether or not their issue is even an issue, I’m happy to discuss it. Will a judge consider making the change you’re asking? Let’s talk about it,” she says.
And, she’s happy to talk about it in Spanish or English.
As someone who is Cuban and Salvadorian — and a native Spanish speaker — Cela has no problem working with those who only speak Spanish or who prefer to communicate about the sometimes complicated issues of family law in their native language.
Chapel Legal is located at 17425 Bridge Hill Ct., Suite 202. If you need help with a family law or estate planning matter, Chapel Legal attorney Cela Webster offers a free phone consultation. For more information, visit ChapelLegal.com, call (813) 524-6393.
