By Geoff Fox APOLLO BEACH – Christopher Akel was busy analyzing data on a web site he recently created for a merchant services company in Georgia. A 42-year-old Long Island, New York, native Akel started Razor Digital last year. The company mostly builds, manages, maintains…
By PAUL CATALA Toni Armstrong has had the roughly century-old treadle sewing machine ever since she was a teenager in Bossier Parish, Louisiana. Although Armstrong, of Apollo Beach, hasn’t used the sewing machine – mounted on a veneer cherry wood table – in decades, she…
By Geoff Fox RIVERVIEW – The clubhouse in the sprawling South Pointe community was full of chatter, paint, some wine, and an assortment of small ceramic Christmas trees. A group of more than 20 people, mostly women, had gathered for a Hammer & Stain workshop…
By Yvette C. Hammett APOLLO BEACH – As an active Navy man, Michael Ball had little time to connect with his community, get to know the people that keep the wheels turning or get involved in events that bring people together. Now that he has…
Photos and Story by Geoff Fox Tammy Holt said she was shocked when she and several friends recently walked into The Vineyards Trattoria and Pizzeria for the first time. The location at 250 Apollo Beach Blvd. has been home to several restaurants over the years,…
By PAUL CATALA Since 1961, something fishy has been going on at this Gibsonton business. On about five acres off Big Bend Road, tens of thousands of fish are kept in tanks before they are sent to more permanent housing in aquariums around the world.…
BY GEOFF FOX APOLLO BEACH – Jill Scott shook her head and laughed softly as Zelda, a 5-year-old tuxedo cat, splayed herself horizontally near the cash register at Bark & Purr Persnickety Emporium and began licking her paws. Scott scratched Zelda’s head and the two…
By YVETTE C. HAMMETT For 21 years, the Riverview community has come together to host hundreds of lonely seniors who might otherwise go through the holidays with little or no festivities. Each year, volunteers would come up with a location, theme, menu and gifts for…
By RICK MAYER RUSKIN − A wandering eye can be excused after stepping into Heart to Home, a home decor business featuring refinished work by the owner, Sarah Sheppard. The front room is a tight fit, though, so step cautiously as your head gimbals amid…
By RICK MAYER RUSKIN − A heavy summer thunderstorm is doing its business, hammering the roofs around South Shore. Outdoor endeavors face possible rain delays. For Jacob Collier, the drenching is pennies from heaven. You see, inundated baseball diamonds typically equate to busier-than-normal nights at…