Tommy Thomas, retired U.S. Marine Corps, served from 1959 to 1979. Thomas’ 20 years in the service included active duty in Viet Nam from 1965 to 1967.  He retired as a Gunny Sergeant. Thomas will be marching in the honor guard at the Pompano Beach Memorial Parade this year.
The parade follows 9 a.m. memorial services at Westview Cemetery, 2100 W. Copans Road.
Thomas remembers when Memorial Day was a time for protests.

By Anne Siren
Pelican staff
More than 200 people joined the Sample-McDougald House Preservation Society last week to honor Frank H. Furman, recently named by Pompano Beach as Citizen of the Year.

Furman, chairman and owner of Furman Insurance, came to Pompano Beach with his wife, Martha Jane, and family in 1955.

Furman has since been a strong supporter of community events, including the annual Holiday Boat Parade, Yuletide Parade, Tiger Trail event, Seafood Festival and much more.

Furman has served as chair of the Pompano Beach Chamber of Commerce and board of directors of John Knox Village.
Steve Hickman, president of Florida Shores Bank emceed the event.

Pompano Beach commissioners are scrutinizing the cost of hiring someone to oversee beach development. This week, acting in the capacity of the Community Redevelopment Agency, or CRA, they agreed to advertise for a CRA director.

Two major CRAs are active in the city. In the west, plans to redevelop the Martin Luther King corridor with mixed-use, combining retail and residential units in the same building, and affordable housing, are already in motion. The city has purchased several homes on MLK, and the entire area for development covers about 3,000 acres.

The East CRA focuses on the beach and Atlantic Boulevard as far west as Northeast 18 Avenue.
A strong contingency of beach residents have opposed high rise development in this area for years. Two city-owned parking lots between Ocean Drive and A1A have been controversial issues as well.

Six years ago, the city began negotiating a contract with Michael Swerdlow, a Miami developer, to build a hotel and a parking garage on the lots. As local elections neared, commissioners realized that support of the Swerdlow development could cost them their seats.

It did, and support for Swerdlow’s plan reversed. Negotiations were halted. Swerdlow sued the city, and today the pier parking lot remains in litigation.

The Pompano Beach Elks will host a Memorial Day picnic, May 28, at 700 NE 10 St., Pompano Beach following the city’s parade and services at Westview Cemetery and Pompano Beach City Cemeteries.

Hot dogs, hamburgers and more will be on sale. The Elks will also have a children’s playground, live music and raffles.
Services at Westview Cemetery, 2100 W. Copans Road, begin at 9 a.m. A parade beginning on 23rd Ave. and East Atlantic Boulevard will begin at 11 a.m. and continue to the Pompano Cemetery, 400 SE 23 Ave.

Volunteers are need for Memorial Day. Call 954-782-2817.

Plans are brewing for a Starbucks in downtown Lauderdale-By-The-Sea.

Investor Chris Weaver says he’s in negotiations with Starbucks to open a coffee shop at the former site of First Church of Christ Scientist at 251 E. Commercial Blvd.

He envisions an espresso bar where customers could hang out and listen to music.

The owners (the church) are actively marketing and selling it, Weaver said, though the deal has not yet closed.

“We have a strong, personable relationship with the sellers of the church, and they back our endeavors,” Weaver said. “This type of development would be great for the town and for the area. It would be a wonderful meeting point for people to have a beverage, surf the Internet and talk. The west side of Commercial Boulevard could use more activity,” he said.

Roberto Berrocal, concert pianist and Jennifer Zetlan, Soprano, are members of Florida Grand Opera’s Young Artist Studio, one of America’s finest training programs for young opera professionals. They enjoyed meeting Village music lovers at Townsend’s reception before their concert. Zetlan will soon become a member of New York City Opera Co. while Berrocal will spend the summer with the San Francisco Opera Co.

Hundreds of residents of John Knox Village or JKV, jammed the auditorium on Monday night, April 30, seizing a rare opportunity to enjoy an evening of concert quality piano and voice.

The performers, Robert Berrocal, pianist, and Jennifer Zetlan, soprano, are both members of Florida Grand Opera’s Young Artist Studio, one of America’s finest training programs for young opera professionals.

Their artists in residence program which lasts one of two years will soon end for Zetlan who is thrilled to become a member of the New York City Opera Company.

Berrocal will spend the summer with the San Francisco Opera Company before returning to Miami to finish up his time in the program.

The audience was mesmerized by Roberto Berrocal’s skilled performance of Franz Liszt’s Piano Concerto.
That performance was followed by Jennifer Zetlan.

Zetlan’s well controlled, soprano voice reached all the way to the people standing at the back wall of the auditorium. And without a microphone.

People were on their feet, applauding and cheering. They knew they were privileged to hear these two talented people, who will soon be part of the international concert stage.

In gardening circles it’s well known that blue is the most rare of colors in the plant palette.  A true, blue flower, (not purple or lavender, but blue like a summer sky) is unusual.

One such gem is a plant that we can grow with aplomb in South Florida. It is actually from South Africa, where, incidentally, many of our exotic tropical plants come from originally.  Have you guessed it yet?  I am speaking of Plumbago, (P. auriculata).

Perhaps you know it as the old-fashioned powdered blue one, but there is a new cultivar called “Imperial Blue.”  Imperial Blue Plumbago is a clear, deep sky blue.  This carefree shrub grows to a maximum of 4 feet, but can be pruned to any height desired.  Just remember that it blooms on new growth, so a formal clipped hedge wouldn’t be appropriate.

Best if left to grow informally it makes a great border and foundation plant and is excellent for blocking air conditioning units, and other unsightly objects.  Plumbago can also be used as a flowering groundcover, especially nice around palms, as the only requirement is full sun, or nearly so, at least 4 hours.   It is also at home in pots and mixed containers.

Best of all, Plumbago is drought tolerant, making it perfect for our area.  It’s not a heavy feeder, but will benefit from fertilizer a couple of times a year, as well as a good hard pruning in early spring.   Plumbago will bloom continuously from February until November, taking a rest only during the shortest, coldest days of the year.

Plumbago is also the host plant for a lovely butterfly called the Cassius Blue.  A more undemanding and rewarding landscape plant would be hard to find!  The wonderful blue color only adds to its value, as the cool, calming effect of that color is sorely needed during our hot summer months. 

Ingrid Montecchi worked at Mack’s Grove on Federal Highway for 33 years. “I managed a variety of departments as the business grew from a fresh fruit market to an upscale boutique,” she says. “When Joan Massingill decided to retire, I helped them close. I probably sold the last piece of furniture and was probably the last person to leave the store.”

Ingrid decided to go it on her own and honored her former employer’s request to keep the name, Mack’s Cafe, alive. And that’s exactly what she is doing. “Last september, I took over Gus’s Place, at 1004 E. Sample Rd., just east of Hess gas station in Pompano Beach. Before opening, we completely remodeled the place and then paid courtesy calls on the neighboring businesses with our new menus and sample sandwiches.”

Stephanie Ferrer, one of those nearby businesses, happened to be eating a chicken salad at the time of this interview. She says, “The sample sandwich brought me in here the first time. Now I eat lunch here just about every day, and I recommend it to my customers. I’m thrilled with the new owners and the food. I work at Ocean Conversion and Mobility. We install handicap modifications to vehicles.”

Business at Mack’s Cafe is growing nicely but Ingrid is anxious to let her friends and long time patrons from Mack’s Grove know where they can still find the same famous freshly squeezed orange juice and signature sandwiches including tuna or chicken salad, cusabi turkey and zesty roast beef.

“The chicken salad, heaped high sandwiches, are the best sellers here, too, just as they were at the Grove,” Ingrid says. “It’s the only thing I make here because I’m the only one with the secret recipe. Otherwise, all of our food is prepared by Chef Robert Iannuzzi who has been with us since we opened. He’s a great asset. Everybody loves his cooking.”