​KEY WEST, Florida (MAY 30, 2024) - Lower Keys Medical Center administration hosted an awards ceremony during National Nurses Week 2024 to announce the winner of the DAISY Award for Extraordinary Nurses. The award recognizes nursing professionals for excellence in clinical care and for exceptional compassion. 
 
Laura Wake, RN, medical surgical unit, was nominated by Donna Barnett, a former patient who wrote, "If ever you have to have surgery and be in the hospital, you would be lucky to find yourself being cared for by Nurse Laura Wake. From minute one - and I was hospitalized for five days - she was always the epitome of what a nurse should be. Wonderful attitude, did her job well and professionally, great compassion and caring for her patients and co-workers. Nurse Laura will always have my undying gratitude for her wonderful nursing skills, compassion and all around service." 
 
Laura was presented with a hand-carved Healer's Touch Sculpture, A DAISY certificate and a signature bouquet of daisies. The DAISY Foundation is a not-for-profit organization that was established in memory of J. Patrick Barnes, who died in 1999 from complications of an autoimmune disease. His family was inspired to create the Foundation to honor nurses who make a profound difference in the lives of their patients and families. 

April 30, 2024 – (KEY WEST, FL).  The Key West Business Guild is pleased to announce the 41st annual Headdress Ball, an outrageous showcase of talent for mask-makers and costumers, will take place Thursday, Oct. 24, at Key West’s Coffee Butler Amphitheater in Truman Waterfront Park, hosting this year will be internationally celebrated female impersonator, Randy Roberts. Showtime at 8:00 PM.
 
The Headdress Ball celebrates the creative and free spirt of Fantasy Fest, Key West’s 10-day costuming and masking festival set for Oct. 18th – 27th., the Headdress Ball is Fantasy Fests premier LGBTQ+ event, hosted by the Key West Business Guild. Plans call for it to feature more than 15 contestants, all in awe-inspiring, unique headdresses, each hoping to walk away with the top prize.  
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Although most participants are costumed from head to toe, entrants will be judged only from the shoulders up as they vie for the first-place prize of $3,000. 

Joining Randy Roberts and along with the headdress presentations, music will be overseen by DJ Rude Girl. Both Randy Roberts and DJ Rude Girl will welcome an array of entertainment throughout the competition.
Attendees will also enjoy libations and food service, courtesy of End of Summer Grill, all available to order online when you place your order.

The Headdress Ball has been produced for the past 41 years by the Key West Business Guild, one of the oldest LGBTQ business organizations in the United States. Proceeds from the event help the guild support Key West’s gay and gay-friendly enterprises, community, and the island’s position as a leading LGBTQ vacation destination location. 

Tickets are $320 for a premium table for four people, $270 for a VIP table for four, $35 per person for chair seating and $30 per person for general admission with lawn seating. To purchase tickets and preorder food, visit keystix.com.

Event information: gaykeywestfl.com/headdress-ball, fantasyfest.com 

The Florida Keys Council of the Arts, in conjunction with the Key West Writers Guild, is pleased to announce that Brian “B.J.” Condike has garnered this year's writing award for his manuscript, “Murder in the Family”.  BJ Condike has won several short story contests, including twice placing in the top 1% of Writers Digest’s Short-Short Story Contest. While he loves the challenge of packing a complete story into a few pages, his goal is to traditionally publish Murder is Personal, his first full-length mystery novel. A variety of his stories appear in several anthologies published by Granbury Writers’ Bloc, Sisters in Crime (North Dallas Chapter), and the Key West Writer’s Guild. BJ minored in English at UMass Amherst and has completed The Writers Path creative writing program at Southwestern University in Dallas. He is past president of his local writing club and is a member of Sisters in Crime and the Mystery Writers of America.

This year marks the twenty first annual award which is supported by an endowment under the administration of the Arts Council. Past winners include: C.J. Geotis, Kristina Neihouse, Dale Dapkins, Lisa Mahoney, Joanna Brady Schmida, Richard DeGrasse, Harry Schroeder, the late Elizabeth Warner, Eddie Goldstein, Rusty Hodgdon, Janette Stone, and Mary Lou Condike. 

The manuscript was anonymously reviewed in a competitive field of submittals and selected by three distinguished judges: Michael Blades, of Key West, heads up the RPM Nautical Foundation headquarters in Key West, Florida. RPM Nautical Foundation locates, studies, and protects maritime heritage, primarily in the Mediterranean. He graduated with a B.A. in English/English Education from Purdue University. In 1991, he moved to Key West and worked as Project Director for Reef Relief, a coral reef conservation non-profit for 15 years. Michael was hired by RPM Nautical in 2006 as Office Manager and currently serves as the Treasurer and Secretary of the RPM Executive Committee. Michael also serves on the Board of the Key West Literary Festival as Vice President, and also coordinates volunteers for the festival. Sheila Cullen, of Key West, is a dedicated journalist at the Keys Citizen. She has also sat on the Key West Tree Commission. Cricket Desmarais of Key West, graduated with an MFA in Creative Writing from NYU. Also, Cricket recently graduated from CFK with a B.S. in Marine Resource Management. She currently works with the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary team to oversee the marketing and communications for Mission: Iconic Reefs, an unprecedented, 20-year initiative to restore the coral reef. Cricket has also written for the Florida Keys Keynoter, and has published her book “Love on the Rock”.
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Local writers with works in progress are encouraged to apply for the 2025 award of $2000. To qualify, one must be a resident of Monroe County, a member of the Key West Writers Guild, and working on either a novel or a work of non-fiction. Applicants must read from their work at two meetings of the Key West Writers Guild. Membership is paid annually, and meetings are held at 9:00 a.m. on the second and fourth Saturdays of the month. For more information – please visit the Arts Council website www.keysarts.com    

[Key West, FL] Winners of the Robert Frost Poetry Contest for Children & Teens gathered at The Studios of Key West on Saturday, May 25 for an awards ceremony. The winners in attendance read their poems aloud to the audience of friends, family, Studios staff, and Monroe County teachers.

In celebration of National Poetry Month in April, and Robert Frost (1874-1963), The Studios of Key West is delighted to host the Annual Kids and Teen Poetry Contest each year through the gracious donations established by the Jeane and Jessie Porter Fund at the Community Foundation of the Florida Keys. Jeane Porter was especially committed to encouraging young writers, while supporting the Poetry in School contests around Monroe County. This year marked the 30th annual poetry contest held in Monroe County for school age children, beginning in 1994.

This year, The Studios of Key West received nearly 400 poems and awarded just 12 of those entries. The contest is highly competitive, and results in a very encouraging level of creativity within the younger generation in the Florida Keys.

The kids category (6-12) gave three honorable mentions to Oskar Davis, age 10, Sutton Lucey, age 10, and Joyce Kiger, age 10. Ryleigh Cooke, age 11 received third place; Tristan, age 10, second place; and first place to Mallory Browning, age 11. The teens (13-18) had three honorable mentions: Annalynne Dodd, age 13; Lizzie Portillo Alonso, age 13; Taylor Thomason, age 13. Sofia Dubon Espinoza, age 15, won third; Antonio Gomez, age 17, received second; and Dominik Galaz, age 14 won first place. Read the winning poems at https://tskw.org/kidspoetrycontest

 MONROE COUNTY, FL – Monroe County Fire Rescue (MCFR) will host five “Beat the Heat” events this summer at different locations throughout the Florida Keys. MCFR will be providing a gentle stream of misting water for children of all ages to enjoy in a safe and fun environment. It is a great way to meet your neighborhood firefighters, learn about fire prevention, and cool off from the summer heat. Children are encouraged to wear a bathing suit and water shoes, and bring a bottle of water and a towel. The events take place on Saturdays from 10 to 11 a.m.
 
June 8 - Tavernier, Harry Harris Park
June 15 - Layton Community Baptist Church
June 22 - Big Pine Community Park
June 29 - Sugarloaf School
July 6 - Stock Island, Bernstein Park
 
“These events are some of our favorite community outreach programs for kids where they get to come out a meet firefighters and play in water,” said Fire Marshal Craig Marston. “It’s a great way for the children to learn summer safety tips and have fun at the same time.”
 
For more information, please call Monroe County Fire Rescue at 305-289-6005. These events are subject to cancellation due to inclement or threatening weather.

MONROE COUNTY, FL – The 2024 Disaster Preparedness Sales Tax Holiday provides residents with the opportunity to purchase qualifying disaster preparedness supplies tax-free during two 14-day sales tax holidays. The 2024 Disaster Preparedness Sales Tax Holidays will take place Saturday, June 1 through Friday, June 15, and Saturday, Aug. 24 through Friday, Sep. 6.
 
Eligible items include:
· Pet leashes, collars and muzzles costing $20 or less
· Flashlights, lanterns and pet beds costing $40 or less
· Batteries and weather radios costing $50 or less
· Coolers costing $60 or less
· Smoke Detectors costing $70 or less
· Tarps costing $100 or less
· Generators costing $3,000 or less
 
A full list of tax-free items is available at FloridaRevenue.com/DisasterPrep.
 
Stock a disaster supply kit that can last the entire household, including pets, for at least seven days. The complete disaster supply kit checklist is available for download at FloridaDisaster.org/Kit.

MONROE COUNTY, FL – Monroe County offices will be closed in observance of Memorial Day on Monday, May 27. On Monday, Monroe County’s Veterans Affairs Department will participate in the Memorial Day wreath service at 10 a.m. at the Key West Veterans Memorial Garden at Bayview Park and is co-hosting with VFW Post 10211 a ceremony at the Murray Nelson Government Center at 11 a.m.
 
Ceremonies in Monroe County include:

• Key West Cemetery - Winslow Plot, Key West, 9 a.m.
• Key West Veterans Memorial Garden – Bayview Park, Key West, 10 a.m.
• Southern Keys Cemetery - Big Coppitt Key, 11 a.m.
• Islamorada Hurricane Monument - MM 81.5, 9 a.m.
• Murray Nelson Government Center - Key Largo, 11 a.m.

 
"On Memorial Day, we, as a nation, pay tribute to the brave service members who lost their lives while defending our freedom," said Director of Monroe County Veteran Affairs Cathy Crane. "Their courage, sacrifice, and unwavering commitment to our country will never be forgotten. It is our duty to honor their memory and express our gratitude for their selfless service."
 
Memorial Day is traced back to the end of the Civil War and was known as Decoration Day, a day when graves of fallen soldiers were decorated in memory of their service. In 1971, Congress made Memorial Day a national holiday on the last Monday in May to pay tribute to those who died while serving in the military.
 
For more information on Monroe County Veterans Affairs, visit www.monroecounty-fl.gov/va, or call 305-453-8777.