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JEWELRY CONTEST BRINGS DESIGNS TO LIFE FOR DESERVING MOMS
“One day, I decided I wanted to do something for women, mothers. You know it’s the old saying, ‘Without mothers, you can’t have a father.’ There’s no life without the feminine, the feminine is the whole earth and everything around us is the feminine,” said Armando Gonzalez, founder and owner of Blue Marlin Jewelry in Islamorada.
CONCHS AND FINS SOFTBALL FIGHT TO STAY ALIVE IN STATE TOURNAMENT HUNT
Marathon’s softball team faced a familiar foe in the FHSAA 1A District 16 quarterfinals on April 29. They played Mater Academy Bay, a team they handled easily just over a week prior. This time, the Rays gave the Fins a bit more of a challenge. It came down to the wire, but in the end, the Lady Fins prevailed, winning 7-6 and staying alive in the hunt for a district championship. Senior pitcher Allison Garcia struck out six batters, walked two and gave up six hits over seven innings. Offensively, freshman Maeve Merryman drove in two runs off a pair of base hits while junior Shynell McGuire singled and tripled for the Fins. Junior Elena Eubank doubled and added a pair of stolen bases to her stats. Freshmen Sara Robinson and Madelyn Thornton added one hit each, with Robinson earning extra bases with a triple. Garcia smacked a solid double to make it eight hits for Marathon.
NEW FIRE BOAT PROGRAM APPROVED IN ISLAMORADA
More boats recreating off Islamorada mean the possibility for increasing emergencies on the water. Following years of work to secure a vessel by Fire Rescue, Islamorada council members approved a fire marine emergency response program during a May 7 meeting. While the U.S. Coast Guard and Florida Fish & Wildlife...
ETHICS COMPLAINT AGAINST ISLAMORADA MAYOR GETS DISMISSED
A state ethics commission dismissed a complaint lodged against Islamorada Mayor Buddy Pinder by a former councilwoman. An investigation found Pinder didn’t use public funds for his 2022 re-election campaign. Filed by Cheryl Meads last fall, the complaint alleged Pinder used a contracted village employee at the time, Carlos...
REIMAGINING THE SEVEN MILE BRIDGE: FDOT SEEKS INPUT ON REPLACEMENT BRIDGE
First things first: Florida Department of Transportation officials want everyone to know the Seven Mile Bridge is NOT structurally unsafe. It’s solid, they’ve repeatedly said publicly. No worries. But like the rest of us, the iconic two-lane span built in 1982 and unveiled as a marvel of engineering...
Pascal’s Way scholarship available to graduating seniors
Pascal Weisberger’s short but impactful life was defined by kindness and a passion to help protect the environment and animals. A college scholarship called Pascal’s Way was created to honor his legacy by providing support to youth with a similar philosophy of community service, compassion for others and a commitment to improving the world, as Pascal sought to do. A 5K run/walk on Saturday, May 11, will raise funds for the scholarship program. ...
EARLY CANCELLATIONS ROB COMEBACK ATTEMPTS FOR MARATHON & CORAL SHORES BASEBALL
In another universe, the Marathon Dolphins and Coral Shores Hurricanes did battle last Thursday for a district championship in one of the best in-county baseball matchups in Keys history. In this universe, Mother Nature and the Florida High School Athletic Association had other plans. Coral Shores defeated Somerset South Homestead...
Coast Guard rescues 2 divers off Florida Keys
A U.S. Coast Guard Station Islamorada boat crew rescued two men last week after they drifted away from their vessel while diving near Tennessee Reef. Coast Guard Sector Key West watchstanders received notification via 911 relay at 5 p.m. on Thursday, May 16, reporting two divers, visiting from Fort Lauderdale, going into the water and not resurfacing for over an hour. Sector Key West watchstanders launched Coast Guard Station Islamorada...
MARATHON COUPLE PLEADS GUILTY TO JANUARY 6 RIOT CHARGES
A Marathon couple will both await sentencing after pleading guilty for their roles in the U.S. Capitol riots on Jan. 6, 2021. According to court documents filed April 30, 51-year-old Bryan Bishop, a Marathon resident living in Boot Key Harbor at the time of his August 2023 arrest, pleaded guilty in federal court to a felony charge of “assaulting, resisting, or impeding certain officers.”
Second deputy injured in crash
For the second time in roughly a month, a Monroe County Sheriff’s Office deputy has been injured in a vehicle accident while making a routine traffic stop in the Florida Keys. Monroe County Sheriff’s Office Traffic Enforcement Deputy Andrew Leird, 49, was injured Tuesday, May 7, while on morning patrol in a school zone in Marathon, according to Sheriff’s Office spokesman Adam Linhardt. Leird was attempting to make a traffic...
Big donation supports the reef
While Mike Goldberg of Islamorada started out his work life pursuing money — putting in long hours for 12 years offering financial services — now money is pursuing him. Delores Barr Weaver, former co-owner of the Jacksonville Jaguars NFL franchise, is donating $650,000 to I.CARE’s coral reef and sponge restoration efforts after seeing Goldberg on CNN TV in December 2023 as a Hero of the Planet candidate. Due to his...
KEYSWIDE BLOOD DRIVE SET FOR MAY 9 IN HONOR OF INJURED DEPUTY
Monroe County Sheriff’s Deputy Julian Garcia has undergone multiple surgeries since a traffic stop in Islamorada one month ago nearly cost him his life. “I think he’s had like eight surgeries, so he’s in a very difficult state,” said Monroe County Sheriff Rick Ramsay, who talks to Garcia every few days. “He’s in really good spirits considering what he’s going through.”
INAUGURAL PICKLEBALL TOURNAMENT RAISES $16,000 FOR ISLAMORADA FOUNDATION
The inaugural Alma Wealth Open Pickleball Championships were held in March at Gib Reese Park, benefiting the Islamorada Foundation. Some 60 participants, several volunteers, committee persons and community leaders raised about $60,000 in the event. This event is scheduled to be held annually on the second Saturday in March. As...
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