Habitat for Humanity focuses on affordable homeownership for families. Great Explorations Children’s Museum focuses on children. So it was only natural that when Habitat launched a new program creating playhouses for children, Great Explorations was the first organization to get involved.

Last fall, you might have noticed a small painting party underway in the parking lot on 4th Street North which Great Explorations shares with Sunken Gardens. Great Explorations’ staff, board members, and even some of the children from the museum’s after-school program joined in the fun to assemble and paint a playhouse under the guidance of the local Habitat team.… Read More

How far would you go to help a stranger? Old Northeast resident Mark Rankin didn’t hesitate when it came to offering someone he didn’t know the most generous gift one can imagine. He donated his kidney to give a Clearwater grandfather of four a second chance at life.

Mark is a criminal defense attorney and a partner in the law firm of Shutts & Bowen in Tampa. He’s also a former assistant federal public defender for the Middle District of Florida in Tampa. Practicing law is a passion. “Few things are more important in a society than our legal system and making sure that the punishment is just and that everyone follows the law,” says Mark.… Read More

It’s only mid-October, but Bruce Harting already sits at a table at 3 Daughters Brewing fixing a Department 56 Tinkertown Toy Factory. Starting in mid-November, he’ll be ready to display the factory and over 300 other collectibles from Department 56. The Christmas Village spans the length of the popular craft brewery’s tasting room and sits on eight 4-by-8 tables. There are people, stores, houses, trees, a circus, the North Pole, three trains, ballerinas dancing the Nutcracker, Santa with his reindeer, and even a tiny replica of 3 Daughters Brewery.

When people see the display the first time, Bruce – a Shore Acres resident and father of 3 Daughters Brewing owner Mike Harting – says the reactions are “amazed” and “enjoyment.”… Read More

Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds. – USPS Motto

Among the many unique features of the Old Northeast, one of the longest continuous traditions is bicycle mail delivery. St. Petersburg is one of three remaining cities in the country where the United States Postal Service still delivers mail by bicycle.

Built in 1917, the Open Air Post Office at 76 4th St. N was the product of a joint effort among three prominent figures in St. Petersburg. Modeled after Edwin H. Tomlinson’s earlier post office on Central Avenue, the open-air concept was designed to provide postal customers with 24-hour access to their mailboxes.… Read More

When Robin Reed, a board member of the Historic Old Northeast Neighborhood Association, told me her friend Elaine Normile had recently retired as the historian for the Vinoy Renaissance Resort, my first thought was, “wait – the Vinoy has an historian on staff, how cool is that?”

A petite, bright, articulate 70-something, Elaine retired from the Vinoy at the end of May after an exciting 26-year career; 20 years as the iconic hotel’s in-house historian. This summer, just a week after her retirement, I visited with Elaine at her home in the Old Northeast to learn more about what it was like to be on the Vinoy staff during such a pivotal time in the hotel’s history.… Read More

Symphony orchestras don’t grow by chance. Their presence in a community is indicative of thoughtful management, patron and donor support, as well as the ability to attract and maintain quality musicians. How did we get so lucky to have The Florida Orchestra right on our doorstep? It all starts with the musicians, each dedicated to mastering and passing on the gift of music. I recently met with Florida Orchestra violist, Barbara Rizzo, at her Snell Isle home, to gain a better understanding of what it takes to be a symphony musician.

Fertile Soil

Barbara was born into music in Brooklyn, New York.… Read More

Immersing yourself in another culture can be life changing, as student ambassadors for the St. Pete Sister Cities Program quickly find out. Since 1984, more than 50 local high school students have been selected to travel to Takamatsu, Japan for a two-week stay with local families. The students serve as ‘the voice and face’ of St. Petersburg in a unique cultural exchange program.

Chloe Johnson, a recent graduate of St. Petersburg Collegiate High School, was with a group of three students chosen to travel to Takamatsu last summer. “It was an amazing opportunity,” says Chloe, who grew up in Crescent Lake and Venetian Isles.… Read More

Invest in your happiness, declares Old Northeast artist, Anna Ayres. For Anna – a watercolor, oil and acrylic painter – creating art answers the call to be happy.  Her work, “reflects what she sees in nature and doesn’t try to make it one thing or another, but just lets it be.”

“I have always been an artist,” says Anna. “From the moment I could hold a crayon, I have thoroughly enjoyed putting color to surface, although it hasn’t always been something that was encouraged or supported. It’s taken many years of yoga, meditation, and self-discovery to understand what it means to be an artist and to take action toward becoming one.”  … Read More

The day started with an early morning assembly in the central patio courtyard of Canterbury’s Lower School on Snell Isle. Moms and dads stood patiently with grade-schoolers in uniforms. First came the Pledge of Allegiance and achievement awards, then the highlight of the morning – a student-run farmer’s market with bright red radishes, kale, lettuces, herbs, and cherry tomatoes for sale. It was a bounty from the school’s new STEAM garden.

The inspiration of Breck Moorefield, Canterbury’s art teacher, the garden is a several-year project that came together late last year, thanks to a big helping hand from Nic Weathersbee of Urban Micro Farms who provided professional advice on just about everything: organic garden design, tools, hauling tree stumps and branches, digging out the beds and filling them with soil, ordering seeds and picking out plants and seeds, planting them, and teaching the students all necessary garden know-how.… Read More

If you’re walking the dog in the neighborhood and you hear a lilting aria from Puccini’s La Bohème floating down to the sidewalk, you could surmise one of two things: your neighbors are either incredibly talented or incredibly gracious.

Our very own St. Petersburg Opera Company has relied on our neighbors in the Old Northeast, Snell Isle, Crescent Lake, and Crescent Heights to host visiting opera singers, musicians, and behind-the-scenes talent.

Now in its twelfth season, the SPO requires housing for 18-20 guest artists for each of its four mainstage productions throughout the year. Singers are typically in town for four-to-six weeks or longer, depending on the performance or whether they’re part of SPO’s Emerging Artist program.… Read More