Ms. Gibson, 95, has touched many lives
Born in Coconut Grove on December 17, 1926, Ms. Thelma Vernell Anderson Gibson knows a Grove many of us only read about in history books. She turns 95 today. Proclaiming herself…
Stephen Licata loves Grove colors, aviation history
Like many Long Island transplants, Stephen Licata came to Miami to get out of the snow, but also to get an education. Biking from the dorms at the University of Miami to Coconut Grove, Licata felt at home…
Pastor Michael Bryant’s ‘heartbeat is the Grove’
Third generation Grovite Pastor Michael Bryant lives and breathes Coconut Grove. “My grandparents left South Carolina and bought a house in the Grove,” he says. “I still live there.”…
Ruth Ewing is the ‘fairy godmother’ of Virrick Park
“I’m living my passion,” says Ruth Ewing. “Trying to make a better world for those around me, especially children — to fuel their passion.” One of the places for igniting that passion is Elizabeth Virrick Park…
Lisa Remeny, painter, brings ‘light and happiness’
“I’m obsessed with skies,” says Lisa Remeny. “I’ve made a career at being good at painting clouds.” Born in Miami Beach, Remeny has lived in Coconut Grove nearly thirty years, delighting art lovers…
Monty Trainer has loved ‘every minute’
When asked how he got to the Grove, Monty Trainer quips, “by car.” The younger Monty, fresh out of Gainesville in the early 60s with a degree in Public Administration from the University of Florida, may not have…
Katrina Morris loves the ‘soul of a city’
“Some people come to visit and never leave,” says Katrina Morris. “That was me 27 years ago.” California-born Morris says she “followed a boy” to Miami Beach in her twenties. That young love was short-lived…
Pearl Meyer’s dream of flowers came true
Pearl Meyer, the owner of The Blonde Tulip, has always been a flower girl — not the one who scatters petals at a wedding, but rather someone who’s been in love with flowers her whole life. This love affair…
Linda Williams connects the dots for neighbors
Linda Williams loves to say ‘hello’ to everyone she meets — especially from her porch in West Grove. “Saying ‘hello’ opens windows of opportunity,” she says. “I want to know what we have…
Cafecito Espiritual, a Grove-inspired love story
Seven years ago, while meditating at dawn in Peacock Park, Carlos Anaya heard an inner voice: “Your platform will be called cafecito espiritual and it will touch the hearts of millions.” His intuition was spot-on…
Hank Sanchez-Resnik goes extra mile for Grove bicyclists
Sanchez-Resnik has long loved bicycling outdoors. “Why did we wait so long to live in such a great place?” is a question Hank Sanchez-Resnik remembers he and his wife, Lucienne, asked themselves when they moved to Coconut Grove in 2013. The couple had lived in cooler climes — Berkeley, California and Paris — but Sanchez-Resnik’s […]
Joyce Nelson’s lifelong love for trees and heritage
Nelson’s love for Grove trees started with a sapling. Joyce Nelson, a Grovite since ‘74, says she has reinvented herself seven times, but she’s also enjoyed at least two constants in her life — a decades-long devotion to preserving Coconut Grove’s historical landmarks and heritage trees. One of those trees, a royal palm sapling her […]
Caiti Waks inspires love for healthier oceans
Caiti Waks has always had a connection to the sea. “I’ve always been a southeast Florida coastal baby,” says Caiti Waks. The co-founder of Debris Free Oceans, now a mother of two and tireless advocate for healthier seas, became a Grove resident in 2018. Like many Grovites, she loves the trees — but her heart […]
Pilates in the Grove builds a culture of health
Gurka has done more than just strengthen and stretch bodies — she has built a culture of health centered in the Grove.
H. Bredemeier’s lifelong passion for jewelry
For someone who has designed tens of thousands of pieces of jewelry during his career — most of them luxury for a worldly clientele — H. Bredemeier himself could be called a Coconut Grove gem.
Grove Heritage Day Celebrates Miami’s Oldest Neighborhood
Grove Heritage Day Miami celebrated a big birthday this summer and its original neighborhood took us back in time for an experiential, interactive street fair. Keep scrolling for video, highlights and the original post. Grove Heritage Day celebrates Miami’s legacy village Miami is celebrating a big birthday this summer and its original neighborhood is taking […]
Mary Munroe Seabrook’s bayshore legacy
The Commodore’s great-granddaughter keeps the bay close to her heart. “When I was younger, I was shy about having this heritage,” says Mary Munroe Seabrook. “My high school teacher would single me out in class. Later, I really came to embrace it.” Surely, the heritage may have weighed awkwardly on the teenager whose great-grandfather was […]
Fan Zhang’s spirited and tasty path to America
From China to America, Fan Zhang’s path to citizenship is filled with good food and good causes. “Coconut Grove gave me the feeling of home,” says Shanghai native Fan “Helen” Zhang. But getting to “home,” as with many a Grovite, is a journey that often begins on far away shores. In 2008, Zhang was working […]
Heart of the Grove tells the stories of everyday heroes
Heart of the Grove stories are inspired by a legacy of resilience. The idea for Heart of the Grove, a story series about Coconut Grove’s everyday heroes, was born during the Covid-19 pandemic and inspired by a legacy of resilience in adversity. 2020 wouldn’t be the first year neighbors helped neighbors in tough times. As […]
Commander Lewis nurtures village through family concept policing
Commander Lewis brings nurturing touch to her ‘second home’ “Make sure you are good. And that your home is good, too,” is a frequent order Commander Weslyne Lewis Francois gives her officers, whom she sees as family — the way she also sees the community she serves in Coconut Grove, her “second home.” After a […]
Atchana brings Thai food home to Coconut Grove
Atchana Capellini continues her family’s tradition of bringing Thai food to loyal fans and friends on the tree-lined streets of Coconut Grove.
Virginia Yermoli ‘fell in love’ with Coconut Grove
There’s more to Coconut Grove than year-round warm weather. “Who can complain about the weather?” asks Virginia Yermoli about life in Coconut Grove. The Argentine native, who came to the Grove via D.C. and Montreal in 2002, soon learned there was more to the city than year-round warmth. A diplomat’s daughter, she had seen the […]
Coconut Grove is home for world traveler Debbie Dolson
Debbie Dolson has always come home to Coconut Grove. “I will never forget the overwhelming feeling of being in the tropics,” says Debbie Dolson, who came to Coconut Grove when she was a college freshman in Colorado. “I stepped off the plane and felt a scent in the air,” she recalls. “When I got to […]