Greetings from St. Petersburg’s version of the North Pole: the Christmas Toy Shop. From the outside, you would never suspect the treasure chest of toys inside. Cars zip by the nondescript beige building on 16th Street close to downtown, not far from Tropicana Field. The only hint as to the shop’s mission is the slogan below the building’s logo: “We exist so no child will be without Christmas.”

The Marine Toys for Tots program might get more national recognition, but on the local level, the Christmas Toy Shop deserves credit for making a powerful difference for families in need. “We’ve had young adults stop by and say their mother got toys at the Christmas Toy Shop, and now they’d like to come back and volunteer with us,” says Sharon Jackson, a former president of the nonprofit charitable organization.… Read More

The Real Life Adventures of Ken Wilson

Old Northeast resident, Ken Wilson, is a Vietnam veteran, pilot, world traveler, motor-scooter enthusiast, blogger, and humanitarian. Ken has been traveling the world since he was six months old when his parents crossed the Atlantic via a military transport ship with Ken in tow. His lifelong obsession with travel and adventure has taken him across oceans – by boat and plane – and North America, Europe, Asia, and Africa on a Vespa scooter! Ken also is a passionate volunteer dedicated to a number of local and international charitable causes. I sat down with Ken to learn more about his story, adventures, and how he is paying it forward.… Read More

When three jazz amigos met at USF, they had no idea what their future together would hold. Awarded Creative Loafing’s Best of the Bay Best Jazz Ensemble for three consecutive years, the trio called La Lucha is comprised of John O’Leary on piano, hailing from Mexico; Alejandro Arenas on bass, from Colombia; and Mark Feinman on drums, from Clearwater, Florida.

Community involvement has been a priority for them from the beginning. All three musicians have served on the board of the Al Downing Tampa Bay Jazz Association, a local non-profit that promotes, preserves, and presents jazz in the Tampa Bay area.… Read More

For years, television viewers have marveled over shows that focus on the duties of Navy and FBI officers. However, it’s different when one has lived that life in reality, and so it has been for St. Petersburg’s own Robert K. Cromwell.

Bob, as he likes to be called, has spent over 30 years in federal service to the United States. It was his humble beginnings in Princeton, New Jersey, though, that helped launch him into his extensive career.

“I did not know I was growing up in a unique place,” said Bob as he reminisced about the town in which he was born and raised.… Read More

The Kids and Kubs slow pitch senior softball club’s first game was May 30, 1931. The club is the oldest continuous soft ball club in the United States. In the early years the club played most of their games at Waterfront Park, generally where Al Lang Stadium is now located. Today they play at Northshore Park, at a dedicated field next to the Northshore swimming pool.

The club has played exhibition games against local teams around the area and especially ‘ladies’ teams for more than 50 years. According to the club’s official history, the club has played before an estimated half-million fans since 1930.… Read More

How does an Old Northeast resident – who is an Aussie immigrant with an acclaimed tenor voice, but who only sings as a hobby – bring the United Nations to Tampa Bay? Well, Robert Kruithoff, who has only lived here for three-and-a-half years, has done all that and then some.

A Melbourne native, Kruithoff (or Robbie, pronounced Rowby, as everyone knows him) is the fundraising and events director for the United Nations Association of the United States of America, Tampa Bay (UNA-USA TB). Wow! And he’s not even a citizen yet.

UN fundraising and events director Robbie Kruithoff at the UNIFIED event

Robbie spearheaded the UNIFIED event held recently at the Morean Center for Clay.… Read More

After retiring in January, I began looking at my bucket list of travel ideas and plans. Immediately after retiring, I participated in a wonderful ten-day trip to Cuba as a volunteer (see article in May/June 2017 issue). I have trips to Greece and Poland on my list for later this year and next year. Although it’s my passion, like most of us,  I can’t travel all of the time!

Back home, I set out to find a meaningful way to contribute to my community. Could I find something here in St. Petersburg that might be tied to my interest in other cultures/countries while helping in some way?… Read More

Haven’t you always wanted to step through a looking glass into a secret land, you know, wandering to wonderland? (Come on, admit it… you have!) It really exists here in St. Petersburg; it’s possible to go on a treasure hunt right here in our city and find hidden wonderlands! The Old Northeast is sort of like that, but the secret spots in this hunt take you out of the familiar.

Don’t believe me? Well, try it yourself with my mysterious hints. But, you have to promise not to use maps or the apps on your cell phone. This is an old fashioned treasure hunt using only written clues.… Read More

Rowdies center back Tam Mkandawire is our man! Meaning really ours… he lives in the Old Northeast! Tam and his family moved here from Tampa just a year ago. That was a small move compared to their trek across the pond – the Atlantic Ocean that is! And, there may be another leap for Tam and soccer fans in the not-too-distant future – more on that later!

The Mkandawires (pronounced makandaweary) hail from Great Britain. Tamika and his wife, Leah, met ten years ago in London. Tam was a star football player (or what Americans call a soccer player) with the Leyton Orient Club, and Leah was a commercial model for several well-known organizations, and then an assistant in the business development department at Christie’s, the well-known auction house.… Read More

In 2012, Nancy Ballard and Kelly Townshend put their worldly possessions in storage, rented out their home in Houston, Texas, got their two dogs vet-approved for sea travel, and set sail for Florida, the Caribbean, and the Chesapeake Bay on their CT-56′ sailboat. After sailing for three years, they decided their boat was too big, and it was time to downsize. This led them to downtown St. Petersburg which would turn out to be their ‘second act.’

Nancy had been sailing for 28 years, but after only two years in, Kelly said, “Let’s go cruising,” something that Nancy had always wanted to do.… Read More