A Look Behind The Scenes With John Collins

John Collins, the executive director of the St. Petersburg Arts Council, and his wife Mary Ellen, a writer, met at Tufts University in Boston where he was the associate director of Alumni Relations and she was hired as one of several assistant directors. It was a definite match from the start. “We knew we were in trouble right away,” jokes John.

Another little known fact about John.  When he lived in Boston, he was a street mime at the Faneuil Hall Marketplace.  “I loved it,” says Collins.  “I studied mime with private instructors for two years, did some teaching, and then ventured out into street performing.… Read More

One Woman’s Mission to Raise Awareness in Our Community

When Beth Vivio thinks about people in our community going to bed hungry each night it makes her sad. “We see food everywhere we look: restaurants, specialty food stores, advertisements and TV food shows.” Yet as many as 17% of residents in the Tampa Bay area go to sleep with empty stomachs.

Beth and her husband are originally from Ohio, but moved here in 2011 from Texas with their two sons. Beth works as a full-time volunteer and got involved at the boys’ new school, Shorecrest Preparatory, right away.  Beth is on the board of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Tampa Bay, the All Children’s Hospital Foundation board, as well as the Shorecrest board of trustees.… Read More

They are the greatest generation. No doubt about that. They came out of the worst of the Great Depression of the 1930s, then went to war to defeat two totalitarian regimes in World War II. After that, they went on to build a great America in the 1950s and beyond.

We still commemorate Veteran’s Day on November 11. Among local heroes are names like Bill Priest, subject of the November/December 2005 issue of the Northeast Journal, and Charles O’Neil, brother of Judge David O’Neil who served in the Korean war, subjects of the August/September 2015 issue. For this November/December issue, another hero is commemorated: Andrew H.… Read More

Listed as one of the top 52 places to visit in 2014 by the New York Times, our once sleepy little city is waking up and turning heads. While the natural beauty of white sandy beaches, dramatic splashes of purple, red, and orange sunrises and sunsets in our tropical paradise clearly warrant attention and attract tourists, the revitalization of our downtown area, growing culture, art, and food scenes, are opening eyes everywhere.

The dance community has a new champion in Helen Hansen French, an Old Northeast native. Her simplest movements are graceful, seemingly choreographed to flow delicately with her melodic voice which is replete with crescendos and diminuendos.… Read More