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A Miami Native Who Remained Local Pens A Poem On Her Dying Breed

Pam L. Weiss — Wed, 22 May 2013 12:37:00 +0000

Miami's Acceptance Of Syrian Immigrant Inspires Verse

Aysha Habbaba — Mon, 20 May 2013 13:11:00 +0000

After Bay Of Pigs And Pedro Pan Campground, Cuban Exiles Build Family In Miami

Rene Ruiz — Fri, 17 May 2013 12:10:00 +0000

Our family came from Havana, a beautiful city that some have called a tropical paradise.

My brothers and I came to Miami on a Pan American flight and were taken to a campground that the Pedro Pan organizers had set up in Kendall, near where Town & Country Mall now stands. We were there for about two weeks before being sent to Albuquerque, N.M., where we were taken in by the family of Dr. Eugene Purtell.

Miami Theater Center Redefines Itself With "Inanna and the Huluppu Tree"

Neil de la Flor — Mon, 13 May 2013 12:46:00 +0000

The Miami Theater Center is growing. IFrom the annual contemporary performance SandBox Series to being the new home for Mad Cat Theater Company, MTC has redefined itself as a vibrant center of culture in sleepy Miami Shores.

South Beach’s “Colorful Mélange” Inspires Poem, Green Sequins Included

Beatricia Sagar — Mon, 13 May 2013 12:04:00 +0000

We’ve asked a few of the authors of standout poems for our That’s So Miami project to explain the inspiration behind their work. Find the winners of our contest and more entries here.

Green sequin bikini.

Purple hair and skinny.

Red lipped.

Boob equipped.

Blue high heeled kid.

I saw it, I did.

Thats so Miami.

Early Miami Pioneer Recalls Early Days Of South Florida

Martha Anne Collins — Mon, 06 May 2013 18:21:00 +0000

I was born Martha Anne Peters in Victoria Hospital on Dec. 20, 1937, a second generation native-born Miamian.

A Cancer Patient’s Quest For Purpose And The Pacific Ocean

Angeline Evans — Wed, 01 May 2013 12:45:00 +0000

David Menasche is a light packer. Four days of clothes, basic toiletries, a voice recorder, a laptop and a cell phone are all he needs. Oh, and his red-tipped cane, to help him navigate now that he is almost completely blind.

His quest is heavy on purpose and light on itinerary. His goal: to see the Pacific Ocean before his vision is completely lost, and to visit as many of his former students as possible along the way.

Sandy Hook Made All Schools Feel Unsafe, But Arming Teachers Isn’t The Answer, Mom Says

Dee Trillo — Tue, 30 Apr 2013 12:26:00 +0000

Desegregation Pioneer Recalls School Integration In Miami

Gala Brown Munnings — Mon, 29 Apr 2013 12:27:00 +0000

I was born in Nashville and spent the first four years of my life in Tuskegee, Ala.

My father, Dr. John O. Brown Sr., moved to Miami in 1955 to begin his practice in ophthalmology. To this day, I'm glad he did.

We had neighbors who were white and black. Our next-door neighbor was an older white lady who inspired my mother's love for growing orchids and my brother's passion for collecting butterflies.

Miami Must Move Toward More Open Spaces As The Metro Area Grows

Robin F. Bachin — Fri, 26 Apr 2013 12:39:00 +0000

I spent a recent night watching a performance of the New World Symphony being broadcast on a wall at the New World Center. As the symphony performed inside, the video played simultaneously on a soaring, 7,000-square-foot projection wall on the building’s façade. It was a dazzling night, with hundreds of people speaking multiple languages gathered on blankets and chairs, toting picnic baskets, children and pets.

Daniel Lewis Miami Dance Sampler Covers The World Of Dance, In Eight Minutes Or Less

Neil de la Flor — Wed, 24 Apr 2013 12:41:00 +0000

The Daniel Lewis Miami Dance Sampler was a mixed bag of performances that introduced audiences to contemporary dance, ballet, new flamenco and traditional African dance forms. The performances, billed as six- to eight-minute samplers, highlighted the scope of dance talent that exists in Miami. Produced by Dance NOW! Miami and Miami Dance Futures, the goal of the sampler is to give local talent exposure and to expose audiences to dance forms that they wouldn’t normally seek out.

Retired Teacher Says Armed Educators Will Keep Children Safe

Evelyn Stahl — Mon, 22 Apr 2013 12:36:00 +0000

When a mentally ill person entered a Connecticut school and slaughtered children and teachers, it was the last straw for some people. In this ultra liberal, politically correct climate in which we find ourselves today, the immediate outcry was to ban this and ban that. The very thought that teachers should not have the right to defend themselves and their pupils is laughable.

Five Centuries Later, Florida Remembers Ponce de León's Tumultuous Arrival

Mari de Armas — Fri, 19 Apr 2013 12:02:00 +0000

Juan Ponce de León served as governor of Puerto Rico for a tumultuous five years. During that time, the native Taínos tried unsuccessfully to overpower him, but, in the end, it was the son of Christopher Columbus who unseated him during a political struggle for power in the New World. Ponce de León’s new “asiento,” or assignment, from Spain’s King Ferdinand II was to set sail and find – not the fountain of youth, as is widely thought – but the island of “Benimy.” After being at sea for nearly a month, he finally sighted land, but it wasn’t Bimini.

Hospital Gun Scare Taught Doctor About Need To Be Armed

Gerald Kratz — Wed, 17 Apr 2013 12:03:00 +0000

In the mid ‘70s, I had recently left the Army and started working as an emergency physician at a hospital in Huntsville, Alabama. It was a Wednesday, church night, and I was working the evening shift.

Close Call At Hairy Intersection Shows Need For Bicycle Education

Ryan Shedd — Mon, 15 Apr 2013 12:01:00 +0000

One particular evening will always stick with me. I was commuting home from work and at the intersection of U.S. 1 and Southwest 27th Avenue, which is a pretty intense during evening rush hour.

One Man's Gun Control Timeline: Riots, Hurricane Wilma, And A Late-Night Visitor

Kevin C Gleason — Fri, 12 Apr 2013 13:01:00 +0000

1969. Seventh grade. School trip to an amusement park. While sitting with a friend in a shaded and secluded spot, I was surrounded by 5 or 6 kids who demanded our ride tickets. When I stood to my 6-foot-2-inch frame and invited them to try and take my tickets, they decided to pick on someone else.

1975. A high-school football linebacker decided to test the band major in the boys’ locker room. Football linebacker had a sore nose. Band major was unscathed.

'Medical Marijuana' Contradicts A Physician's Do-No-Harm Mantra, Doctor Says

Dr. David A. Gross — Thu, 11 Apr 2013 14:32:00 +0000

A patient, we’ll call him John, called my office several years ago, frantic over the behavior of his son Aaron. “My son thinks there are helicopters circling our home, following his movements,” he said.

At my office the next day, dad was frantic. Aaron, who appeared disheveled and preoccupied, presented his experiences in a matter-of-fact style. He was certain some authority had singled him out to be placed under surveillance. He had no insight into the psychotic nature of his thinking.

Just Like That, Kaboom! Adds Three New Playgrounds In Miami

Matt Haggman — Tue, 09 Apr 2013 12:01:00 +0000

For the third Saturday in a row an under-utilized patch of land in South Florida was transformed.

Unlike Most States, Florida Forbids Nurse Practitioners From Prescribing Some Drugs

Valerie Kolbert — Mon, 08 Apr 2013 18:01:00 +0000

Once upon a time, nurses were not allowed to take blood pressure – only the doctor could do that. Times change.

But they haven’t changed enough. For 19 years, nurse practitioners in Florida have tried to get the right to practice to the full extent of our education and capability, which includes prescribing scheduled substances. So far, our efforts have been fruitless.

Lives In Limbo: Lesbian Couple Awaits Supreme Court Ruling On Gay Marriage

Deb Ofsowitz — Thu, 04 Apr 2013 18:00:00 +0000

Last summer, my father-in-law entered the hospital in Germany. My wife, Lu Mueller-Kaul, desperately wanted to be with him. But she was in this country on a complicated visa that forbids her from returning if she leaves. She stayed as her father suffered, cursing the unfair system.

O, Miami Began With A Simple Idea: Poetry Without The Pipe And Blazer

P. Scott Cunningham founder O Miami Festival — Wed, 03 Apr 2013 10:17:00 +0000

Three years ago, a group of friends and I started to dream up what a lot of people considered impossible: a festival that would bring poetry to all 2.6 million residents of greater Miami.

Unable To Vote In Miami, Local Venezuelans Mobilize For Road Trip To New Orleans

Emily Bello-Pardo — Tue, 02 Apr 2013 18:02:00 +0000

Absentee ballots. Polling centers open for days on end. Early voting. All of these are ways in which Americans can vote for their nation’s elections. So they might be shocked to hear me tell them that 19,542 Venezuelans living in the United States have to go through a much more grueling process to be able to do the same thing they can do rather easily.

Believed To Be The Nation’s Oldest Cop, 86-Year-Old’s Fists Remain ‘Weapons Of Mass Destruction’

Theo Karantsalis — Mon, 01 Apr 2013 18:07:00 +0000

Barrel-chested Leo Thalassites squints like Clint Eastwood, hops around like Jackie Chan and has been an active cop for nearly six decades. He is 86 years old.

He first joined the Miami-Dade Police Department in 1956. He moved to the Hialeah Police Department in 1963, where he has been on active duty ever since. And now, according to the International Police Association, he is the oldest active police officer.

Saying Goodbye To The Miami Herald Building That Once Housed The Community’s Pulse

Bill Andrews — Mon, 25 Mar 2013 12:01:44 +0000

On a mostly sun drenched South Florida day, about 900 former Miami Herald employees—myself included-- joined the current staff on Wednesday to reminisce, cry, and mourn the loss of the once proud building by the bay that will soon become a hotel/condo and possible mega casino now planned for the old property.

The Miami Herald isn’t going away. The newspaper operations, along with news partner WLRN, will move out to Doral in April.

A Victim Of Gun Violence On Gun Control

David C. Hart — Tue, 19 Mar 2013 18:02:09 +0000

On June 22, 2004 I was shot point blank with a .45-caliber gun as I entered a subway station in Astoria Queens. The bullet entered my back and rattled around, destroying my hip. It had just enough inertia to come to a stop after puncturing the femoral artery. Nobody was ever prosecuted for my shooting. Meanwhile, I suffered for six years before being diagnosed with post traumatic stress disorder.

The Florida Public Records Act: A Quick-Start Guide To Open Government

Theo Karantsalis — Wed, 13 Mar 2013 18:01:00 +0000

The Florida Public Records Act, also known as F.S. 119, is straightforward: All state, county and municipal records are open for personal inspection and copying by any person. And it is the duty of each agency to provide you with access to public records.

Texting-And-Driving Ban Likely To Get Driven Out Of Florida Legislature – Again

Bill Andrews — Tue, 26 Feb 2013 19:02:23 +0000

As I lean my motorcycle into the curve that takes me onto I-95, I roll the throttle to accelerate up to highway speeds. Up ahead I see a car going well below the minimum speed of 45 mph, with the left turn signal on but swerving to the right. I give this big unknown a wide berth, and as I pass, I see the person gabbing it up on a cell phone.

From The Curious Vault At The Miami Science Museum: J.P. Friez’s Electrical Sunshine Recorder

Nathaniel Sandler — Tue, 12 Feb 2013 13:00:00 +0000

“I manufacture but one type of these Registers: THE BEST.” -Julien P. Friez

Motorcycles And Miami Don't Always Mix, But Then There's The 360-Degree Views

Bill Andrews — Tue, 29 Jan 2013 13:02:47 +0000

Perhaps you’ve seen the phrase “Live to Ride—Ride to Live” on a T-shirt or bumper sticker somewhere. It has been on my belt buckle for about 30 years. Motorcycling has been a passion of mine pretty much from the day I got my driver’s license. The activity of being in the wind, leaning into corners, the sight of a bike, and the very simplistic nature of the machine, all bring joy.