“I’m of the opinion that if my creative work is making people feel anything – I’m doing it right,” said Lakeland-based visual artist Sara Savannah Jones. Emotion is the nucleus of the 28-year-old’s work. Her pieces are engrossing and cool, and mystifying. Working primarily with acrylic paints, Jones uses found objects, photography, drawing, painting, and recycled materials. She notes in the ‘About Me’ on her website, “I find that using recycled canvas and “found” surfaces are an essential technique to convey humanity in my work.” Born and raised in Lakeland, Jones is a resident artist at ART/ifact Studios, serves as the vendor coordinator for Buena Market, and is a K-12 teacher at the Cygnet School, heading up their art department. Jones’ Instagram bio reads in part, “World’s greatest hotdog artist,” an inside joke she said has gone too far. But she’s not wrong – her hotdog paintings are superior. In addition to originals and prints, Jones accepts commissions for album covers. “It’s a lot more fun than people asking me to paint their dog’s portrait,” she joked. Jones has created album art for a number of local bands and musicians, including her sister, Emily Ledford, Rover, Revel in the View, Bobby Hawk, Kevin Sumner, Joe Black, and most recently, Liquid Pennies, out of St. Pete. Jones is inspired by New York-based artist Kehinde Wiley and noted an affinity for the vaporwave aesthetic. “My dad’s a graphic designer, and that had a huge impact on what I do,” she said. Her style heavily emphasizes color theory. “With my acrylic paintings, I’m not blending my colors – I’m layering them,” Jones explained. She even has tattoos depicting CMYK and RGB color theories. These elements and influences have culminated into her present style, and “I hope it keeps changing,” she said. BACKGROUND Photography was an early preoccupation for Jones. She would fill up the disposable cameras gifted to her by her parents. A homeschooled student until the ninth grade, she hoped to go to Harrison School for the Arts for photography but wasn’t admitted into the visual arts program. She instead attended Lakeland High School. “The art teachers there absolutely changed my life,” Jones said. She sunk her teeth into the school’s art offerings, taking classes in graphic design, art history, digital and film photography, ceramics, painting, and beyond. In high school, Jones met surreal photomontage photographer Jerry Uelsmann. She said of the film photographer, who passed away last April, “His work is layered. It looks like they’ve been Photoshopped – the base of a tree that turns into a house – but he’s done all of it in the darkroom.” Hopeful and hungry, Jones asked Uelsmann for any advice he had to give. “He told me to always work from an emotional basis.” The advice was somewhat of an epiphany. At the time, Jones approached her art through the lens of what would work aesthetically. “I started thinking about how I could turn a thought or an emotion or something that I was going through into something that was represented abstractly in a visual way.” Small-scale acrylic works remained central after she graduated. When the pandemic hit, Jones explored a larger format, something she has gained traction with in the last few years but found herself still looking to ‘break in’ to the art scene. “I noticed in Lakeland, especially after Covid, that there was nowhere for artists to go after they graduate,” she said. After participating in a show at ART/ifact, Jones was offered a resident space at the studio. She shares her spot with studio roommate, florist Bethany Lynam of Golden Wild. ART/ifact founder Eli Hults asked Jones if she wanted to do a solo show shortly after she took up residency at the studio. “But then Roe v. Wade was overturned, and I was feeling very much like not wanting to talk about myself. So, I put on the Punks for Planned Parenthood show.” The art show fundraiser amassed nearly $3,000 to donate to Planned Parenthood. The show also introduced new artists to the studio, and like Jones, they wanted in. “I love love love Lakeland. I can see myself living here forever, and I want to see the scene change,” Jones said. “It’s been dominated for a while by a lot of the same artists. And that’s great; I want everyone to find success. But I want everyone to have a chance for that.” So, she partnered with VOLUME Art Collective to produce another show called ‘BREAKING IN!’  The exhibit boasted over 50 visual artists of varying mediums, many of whom had never publicly displayed their work. Pursuing art seriously since age 14, Jones finds herself 14 years later, finally established. “It often can feel like the arts community is something you can’t break into unless you attach yourself to someone else,” Jones said. That sentiment catalyzed the BREAKING IN! art show at ART/ifact. “I love the underground arts community. A lot of the artists came to me and told me that they didn’t feel welcome to display their art because it wasn’t what you see around here traditionally. I want to uplift those people and give them more opportunities.” A NETWORK OF WOMEN The BREAKING IN! art show was orchestrated almost exclusively by women. Asked about her experience as a female artist on the local scene, Jones prefaced that she didn’t have a bone to pick with the arts community and certainly didn’t think she had the correct or only vision for its direction, but that it had been tough, especially in Lakeland. “It’s been a male-dominated arts community for a very long time. All the galleries were owned by men, all of the successful artists were men, most of the murals were painted by men,” she said. “It’s been a challenge. Other male artists love to give me unsolicited advice. I’m happy that you want to help, but I’ve found a level of success that I want, and I’m not trying to pursue anything greater than that.” “I try to keep myself close with women,” Jones said. She called her mom, Tracy Jones, “the most beautiful feminist I know,” adding, “She always inspired me to be myself, whatever that looked like, and it looked like a lot of different things growing up.” Women like Buena Market creator Stephanie Bernal and Art Crawl founder Ellen Chastain have also been influential to the artist. Bernal empowered Jones to start putting on events, and of Chastain, Jones said, “She’s always given me constructive criticism and talked to me about how my art has grown.” She is surrounded by other creative, powerful female forces like her studio roommate, Bethany Lynam, sister Emily Ledford, and VOLUME Art Collective founder, Sunny Balliette. Jones said of fellow ART/ifact resident artist Morgan Patterson of Patterson Tattoos, “I call her the best business bitch I know because she’s extremely intelligent and has a huge focus on making a safe and accepting space to get a tattoo.” And, of course, she would be remiss not to mention Cygnet School Director Dr. Wendy Bradshaw. “She’s fed me, housed me, given me a job. She’s a powerhouse.” QUEEN OF CMYK A large, bright piece demanding space and attention in Jones’ ART/ifact studio sits unfinished, ready for the next element to be painted. When asked about approaching her work from an emotional basis, as advised by Jerry Uelsmann, this is the painting that came to Jones’ mind. She fished the heavy 4x4 wooden canvas from a dumpster and got to work on what has become an homage to her support system. The painting features a magenta background (one of her favorite colors) with CMYK along the left side and a melange of painted objects given to her by a friend or acquaintance or left at her house. “Each item exists in real life and represents a person in my life or someone who has passed through my life,” she said. “I’ve been working on it for years because I keep meeting new people who mean something to me.” Asked if the work had a title, Jones replied, “It doesn’t. I feel like maybe I’ll title it once it’s done, but I also don’t think it will ever be done.” When browsing her portfolio, one painting that caught my eye was entitled “Big Fish Boy,” depicting a shirtless man holding a fish. As absorbing as the painting is, its backstory is even more so. Jones used to live in a historic duplex in Dixieland. The house had a detached garage in the backyard full of personal things left behind by previous tenants. The artist decided to poke around and found a gallon Ziplock bag of old family photos. “I thought it was cool to look into these strangers’ lives,” Jones said. She drew the images that she especially loved, of which “Big Fish Boy” was one. She created an entire Polaroid series on this stranger, based on the abandoned photos with notes written on the back, which she used to title her pieces, like ‘Auction School’ and ‘Chris, Night Before Our Wedding.’ “I thought those were so beautiful and sad that they were left behind,” she said. “I love being able to solidify a memory or some kind of nostalgia in my pieces.” HOLDING THE DOOR FOR OTHER ARTISTS “I’ve found the best way to find success is by lifting up other creatives, so that’s the direction I’m trying to go in,” Jones said. She joined the ART/ifact administrative board several months ago. “I wanted to see life in here, and I wanted people to have opportunities, and be around their peers, and have a hub and a place to talk.” “I’m so thankful for Eli because here they understand that struggle, and I feel like together we’re going to put on a lot more shows that feel like they’re for everyone and create a safe space where you don’t have to tack yourself to a man who’s already found success here,” Jones said. Jones noted an almost requisite part of any change in the arts community will be embracing art you’re not used to and “creating a space for art that you’re not used to calling art. [...] You don’t have to like it, but if it makes you feel something, then it’s doing its job.” Reach out to Sara Savannah Jones through Instagram or email to purchase originals and prints or inquire about commissioning an album cover. Photography by Amy Sexson IG @sara.savannah.jones sara.savannah.jones@gmail.com sarasavannahjones.wixsite.com

When Jhoanna Mukai moved from her home in the Philippines to San Diego, California, at 12 years old, she described it as a culture shock. Once she settled in and the shock subsided, Mukai discovered she loved going to new places and trying new things. That same curiosity and contentment with present circumstances have carried on for the middle school science teacher and yoga instructor. From San Diego, the family moved to San Francisco, and Mukai eventually moved to Sin City to attend the University of Nevada Las Vegas. After college, sapped by the club scene, she decided it was time for another change. So, to Puerto Rico she went, where she first tried yoga. A runner slowed down by recurring shin splints, Mukai was looking for an alternative workout. It started as an exercise, and the poses were fun, but it soon transcended that. “I started with Ashtanga Yoga, and that was kicking my butt – that was the first class I took,” she said. “I just kept coming back. I felt really good after, to the point where I’d leave class, and I’d be crying. It got emotional and spiritual, so I explored it more.” Yoga wasn’t the only thing Mukai was introduced to in Puerto Rico. There she met her now ex-husband, an Auburndale native. “I’m grateful for him because he brought me here,” she said. The pair moved to Tampa, Auburndale, and now Mukai lives in Winter Haven. She’s happily engaged and has one dog and 13 spayed/neutered outside cats. “I consider myself a cat rescue now,” she joked. When she moved to the area, Mukai started classes with Inside Out Yoga instructor Jody Reece. “I decided to do YTT (Yoga Teacher Training) just so I could share it. I feel like I’m a sharer.”  The yogic philosophies and principles resonated with Mukai. “Beyond the physical [aspect] of yoga, there’s a lot that I wanted to share with others. Yes, it’s good for balance and strengthening, but also more of that acceptance – that peace of mind.” Her instruction is imbued with that same repose. “That’s what I tell people when they come to class,” she said. “You don’t have to be perfect. Just show up.” Vinyasa and Yin are Mukai’s preferred styles of yoga. “Vinyasa, it’s like the flow, like the power yoga – it challenges you. It’s more of a workout for a lot of people, and I think people resonate with that,” she explained. Yin adversely is a slow-paced practice focused on sustained holds. Describing Yin as mentally challenging, Mukai said, “The practice is to be in the present moment. When that mind wanders, let’s bring it back here.” Seeking mindfulness herself and helping her students navigate the same, Mukai said, “It sounds simple, but I think that’s more difficult than the poses themselves. The mind is a muscle, it’s stubborn, but I think training the mind is more challenging than doing a standing balancing pose.” Teaching middle school and yoga are entwined for Mukai. “Even in teaching kids, there’s something called differentiated instructions where you have to cater to what the kids need. It’s the same thing with yoga – just the understanding that we’re different and approaching it where it would work for the person or the student.” Beyond the meat and potatoes – mitochondria are the powerhouse of the cell to middle schoolers and mindfulness at the yoga studio – Mukai hopes to impart independence and curiosity to all her students. “Be you. Do what you can. Don’t try to be anyone else. [...] Be curious about yourself and the world around you.” Even when things don’t work out initially, “There are so many different ways to get on top of the mountain. Find your path.” Much of Mukai’s wisdom was shared with her by her mother. She learned most from her mother to be happy. “I think for me living in that kind of world – a third world country, there’s poverty everywhere, but [still] feeling happy and loved at the same time,” she said. Watching her mother move fearlessly from the Philippines to California, Mukai said, “It inspired me to explore, to be strong, and take risks. Even if it doesn’t work out, it’s okay to come back to where you were before.” Another thing Mukai admires about her mom is her self-assuredness, describing her as the kind of person to “sing with the band at Grove Roots (like, on the microphone)” and the first to dance at a party or take food home at the end. Attending a recent gathering where they didn’t know anyone, “She was having a great time talking to people and encouraging them to eat the Filipino food she cooked,” said Mukai. “She was loud and unapologetic. It was not the first time I was embarrassed by her confidence. I’ve had to elbow her a few times, but everyone always seems to welcome her energy. [...] I need a little more of that courage.” She encourages other women to take her mother’s lead in that regard. “[Don’t] be afraid to take a risk, to try something new or scary. Even if the plan doesn’t work out, accept that it wasn’t meant to be. Know when to keep trying or when to let it go. I got that from my mom. I just thought that’s an important lesson for everyone.” It’s as simple as doing what makes you happy. “That’s the path to take.” Asked if she’d found her path, Mukai replied, “It’s constantly evolving. So, yes. I’m trying to listen and reflect about what would make me happy now.” Photograph by Amy Sexson

It’s been a year since Lakeland Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Amy Wiggins stepped into that role. We sat down with the Chamber president to discuss the past year, her career, Lakeland’s female leaders, and the women who influenced her along the way. Growing up in Plant City before the town had a movie theater led to plenty of time spent in Lakeland. Wiggins fell in love with the community and attended school at Florida Southern College, where she earned a degree in religion with a concentration on Christian education. She now lives in Lakeland with her husband of nine years, Michael Guerrero, and their retired greyhound. PROFESSIONAL BACKGROUND After college Wiggins joined the YMCA of West Central Florida as the teen development director. She emphasized the impact of her time working for then YMCA of West Central Florida President and CEO Alice Collins and what she learned about volunteer management. “She was always so encouraging to me to get involved,” Wiggins said of Collins. Collins’ encouragement spurred a recurring theme of civic engagement in Wiggins’ life. She is the past president of the Polk Arts Alliance and the Polk County Chapter of the Florida Public Relations Association and is currently serving on the Board of Directors for Lakeland and Polk Vision and is a member of the Lakeland Mayor’s Council on the Arts. Following her time at the YMCA, Wiggins served as a membership executive for the Lakeland Chamber of Commerce and for five years as their vice president of communications. She left the Chamber to join the Lakeland Symphony Orchestra (previously the Imperial Symphony Orchestra) as executive director in 2015, where she stayed for seven years.  The Symphony gave Wiggins proximity to music and the arts – an interest since she was young. She loved ballet growing up but gave that up in favor of marching band, becoming the drum major in her junior high school band. “I love music, and I love the arts, and I recognize how important arts and culture are to a community,” Wiggins said. “If we’re not directly involved on a personal level every day, we tend to take for granted how much music means to us, or how important it is to have an outstanding parks and recreation system, or how beautiful it is to look at a mural, but it’s nice to be awe-inspired on occasion. I think it’s good for our health.” CHAMBER ACCOMPLISHMENTS Last March, Wiggins rejoined the Lakeland Chamber of Commerce as President and CEO. She hit the ground running, hiring people and creating new positions, and fully staffing the Chamber as of January 1, 2023. “I’m proud of the folks that we’ve brought on,” Wiggins said. “We’ve created several new positions to help us meet the mission of the Chamber a little more intentionally.” One such new position belongs to Director of Business Resources, Takiyah Dixon. “It is her job to aggregate and promote all of the resources and educational workshops that are available to our business community,” Wiggins said. “There are so many free resources available to small business owners that folks don’t know about. If we can do a better job of promoting those, then that helps our small businesses become more successful and more competitive.” Under Wiggins, the Chamber has also partnered with Lakeland Vision to bring back the Education Committee, which aims to “identify current resource gaps, connect stakeholders to education partners with clear goals, expectations, and processes, and to promote “good news” stories of educational success and partnership milestones.” “Lakeland Vision has had an Education Committee just about since its inception, and the Chamber really has too, but we had kind of gotten away from that,” Wiggins said. “We know that we are growing our future workforce. It’s critically important for them to have the skills – both technical skills and critical thinking skills – that are going to make them great employees and want to stay in our community. The more engaged our businesses can be in developing the curriculum and letting the kids and parents know that they care about them, the better off we’re all going to be.” The Chamber president also noted the value of sharing the success of local schools with one example. “Students engaged in fine arts in Polk County Schools have a 100 percent graduation rate – that’s something we should be shouting from the rooftops. That’s incredible.” Last year, the Chamber also launched a Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee to “educate, lead and influence businesses on creating diverse workforces, inclusive workplaces and equitable opportunities that help all communities thrive.”  Wiggins said the Committee is “focusing on how we better connect our small businesses with our large purchasers. What are we doing to build those relationships, but also what are we doing to strengthen our small businesses so they’re in a place where they can be competitive in bidding for large contracts.” WOMEN LEADERS IN LAKELAND “We are fortunate here in Lakeland to have an incredible network of women leaders who are supportive and encouraging,” Wiggins said. While attending a groundbreaking ceremony the week prior, the Chamber president stood in a row amongst a commanding group of women – Commissioner Stephanie Madden, Senior Vice President of the LEDC Katie Worthington Decker, LDDA Executive Director Julie Townsend, and CRA Manager Valerie Ferrell. “More than one person commented on what a powerhouse row that was, and I don’t know that we’ve ever been in that space before. It’s really exciting that regardless of who we are, we’re being celebrated as leaders and difference-makers in the community. I’m excited about my peers,” Wiggins said. Wiggins raved about her ten years working at the Chamber with Kathleen Munson. “There are very few women in this community that have had a greater impact on, especially the business community and Lakeland’s quality of life, than Kathleen. I have incredible respect for her, and I really do owe her a lot. As a mentor, she helped me learn things I didn’t know that I didn’t know, which I think is always a tremendous mark of a mentor.” The Lakeland Chamber president had advice for young women with sights set on leadership, including maintaining integrity and staying true to yourself. “The hardest lesson to learn – and I say this as someone who is still learning it – is listening. [...] I think about the people that have been in rooms with me who have garnered the most respect, and they are often the folks who said the least,” Wiggins said. “We as women have such unique abilities to process information and to notice things. One of our superpowers is listening, noticing, and paying attention. The more we do that, the more we can bring people together in consensus. I think we’re in a space now in our community that we need to do that.” Photograph by Amy Sexson

“Ignorance of each other is what has made unity impossible in the past. Therefore, we need enlightenment. We need more light about each other. Light creates understanding, understanding creates love, love creates patience, and patience creates unity.”  — Malcolm X. The Historic Ritz Theatre will host “Malcolm X: The Musical” by Tommie Wofford on February 19. The show chronicles the life and times of minister, civil rights leader, and prolific speaker Malcolm X. “Set against the backdrop of the civil rights movement, “Malcolm X: The Musical” tells the extraordinary story of a man’s transformation from a life of crime on the streets of Harlem, to a minister and leader of the Black Muslim Movement,” according to the show’s synopsis. The musical’s creator, Tommie Wofford, is partnering with the Ritz to make his February show a benefit concert in support of Black-owned businesses and nonprofits, as well as continued support for the production. One of the organizations the Playwright has chosen to support is the Black Homeschoolers of Central Florida. Since 2009, this organization has provided support, classes, field trips, and learning opportunities, along with hosting events for homeschooled youth from Pre-K through 12th grade. As a former homeschooled student, Wofford said, “African Americans entering the homeschool circuit is happening, but it’s happening maybe slower than I’d like to see.  I feel like there are a lot of benefits to homeschooling, especially in our community. Some people don’t know that they can do it. It seems like a foreign concept. Anything I can do to help Rasheeda Denning and Black Homeschoolers of Central Florida, I’m going to do that.” A PLAYWRIGHT FROM THE RIDGE Hailing from Lake Wales, Playwright, actor, and producer Tommie Wofford began writing “Malcolm X: The Musical” at just 14 years old. Storytelling piqued his interest after enrolling in Theatre Winter Haven’s Academy classes at age 12. Semester after semester Wofford explored writing, performing, producing and “fell in love with it.” “As a young African American male, I was doing a lot of identity searching. In that exploration of who I was, I was reaching for different mentors, reaching for material to read and knowledge to glean. That’s how I stumbled upon “The Autobiography of Malcolm X,”” Wofford said. “Because of some of the things that Malcolm X taught and believed earlier in his career, he can sometimes, by society, be viewed as this radical militant and that we should try to distance ourselves from his legacy, even in the African American community.” Wofford’s soul searching, desire to tell African American stories and passion for theatre crystallized into his first musical. “I was able to tap into the passion, pain, and purpose and understand a little better why he believed some of the things he believed and apply those things to my life and my experience,” Wofford said. One moment of the civil rights champion’s life that inspired Wofford to write his inaugural work involves the biblical story of Job as told to Malcolm X by his mentor, Elijah Muhammad. “It says that when Job was afflicted, he had a hedge of protection around him. There was a time when his hedge of protection was moved, and all these bad things happened to him. Once the hedge of protection was put back on, he didn’t have to live in that right life, but he chose to,” Wofford said. “I think that’s a really important lesson to be learned – especially by the youth. Not all the time are eyes on you, but are you still going to do the right thing?” “Malcolm X: The Musical” debuted in a three-day ‘page to stage’ concert at Lake Wales Little Theatre in 2021. Soon after, the production was fully imagined at Theatre Winter Haven. “One of the things I knew early on with this show […] because of my age and the subject matter, it was going to be difficult to get people to get behind it. I had to be even more proactive and even more strategic with how I made my moves,” Wofford said. His approach appears to have paid off as the production has since graced the stages of Stetson University’s Second Stage Theatre, Orlando Shakespeare Theatre Company, and Feinstein’s 54 Below in New York City. Having navigated obstacles to see his musical realized, Wofford has advice for other young creatives. “Just do it, but do it well and find the connections you already have,” he said. “You can’t sit idle and wait for something to happen or some opportunity to fall in your lap – because it’s just not going to happen.” ABOUT THE MUSICAL “Our musical follows [Malcolm X] from those early days in Harlem as a criminal to world-renown activist and minister for this organization that saved his life,” Wofford said. Promotional materials for the show read, “Calling out the injustices of racism, Malcolm X preached a message of empowerment to the African Americans of his day. Step into the knowledge of who Malcolm really was in this contemporary musical, and experience the pain, passion, and purpose of his life story in a new way!” Over 50 years since the assassination of Malcolm X at age 39, Tommie Wofford noted the enduring significance of his legacy. “It’s important now because we have so many online activists. We have people who sit on their couches or sit in the comfort of their homes, and they just spew words of concern, sometimes coming from a genuine place, or hurt or anger at whatever the matter may be. While that’s important, and there is validation in that, I think we need to go a little deeper,” he said. “When you look at Malcolm X, you see this guy who didn’t just tweet something or post something or talk about it. He made actual steps. [...] The activists today tend to be all bark, no bite. I think we need to, creatively and strategically, go from barking to nipping a little bit. If we do that, we may see some change.” THE FUTURE The young musician and Playwright’s talents were recognized by the Lake Wales Rotary Club, which awarded him a music scholarship. And Wofford, now 19, has plenty of schools from which to choose. Since August, Wofford has been a student of Tony Award-Winning Corey Mitchell’s Theatre Gap Initiative program in Charlotte, North Carolina. Wofford will wrap up his time with the program in the spring. “Thanks to Corey’s help, I’ve been accepted into schools like New York Film Academy, Long Island University, and Berkley School of Music,” he said. Beyond his debut musical, Tommie Wofford’s dream is to one day be an artistic director at a theatre company or to start his own with a focus on producing new works. “That will allow me to not only produce my own stuff but be a person opening up the gate for people to come in with their ideas too,” he said. Following his Ritz Theatre show will be an April 30 production of “Malcolm X: The Musical” at the Dr. Phillips Center in Orlando. These will be the last of Wofford’s Florida shows for a while, so don’t miss them! After the April performance Wofford and company will head up to New York to transfer “Malcolm X: The Musical” Off-Broadway this fall. Photography provided by Tommie Wofford “Malcolm X: The Musical” Staged Concert Where: The Historic Ritz Theatre 263 W Central Ave, Winter Haven When: February 19, 2023, at 7 pm. Tickets available at centralfloridatix.com Sponsorships are available; Contact Tommie Wofford at Malcolmxthemusical@gmail.com. FB: Malcolmxthemusical IG @malcolmxthemusical

In honor of Black History Month, the Lakeland Public Library is hosting a Special Edition Stories and Stones Tour of Tiger Flowers Cemetery on February 18. Stories and Stones is a monthly tour offered from October through April, alternating between Roselawn Cemetery and a combined tour of Lakeview and Tiger Flowers Cemeteries. Librarian and event organizer Rebecca Whalon explained the Stories and Stones concept. “We walk through the cemeteries, and I teach you what to look for as far as the stones in the cemetery. What do certain designs mean? What can you tell by the material a gravestone is made of? What can you tell by the symbology on it?” Along with iconography and the meaning behind stones, Whalon time portals guests through Lakeland’s history via vignettes about individuals interred there. February’s Stories and Stones Tour will focus exclusively on Lakeland’s historic Black cemetery, Tiger Flowers. “We’re going to tell their stories, and as we do that, learn more about Lakeland’s history,” Whalon said. “All of these people contributed to the Lakeland we have today, and their contributions were just as valid as from any of the other cemeteries. We want to make sure that’s not forgotten.” Notable figures discussed on the special edition tour include veteran stories, that of civil rights advocate Madeline Brooks, and Lakeland’s first Black librarian, Elsie Dunbar. The Special Edition Stories and Stones tour, aimed at a teen and adult audience, will last about an hour and is free to attend. Those interested must register in advance, as the event has a limited capacity. Registration can be done online or by calling the library. The tour will commence at the southern border of Tiger Flowers Cemetery and will include walking through paved and unpaved areas and potentially uneven ground. Caution and appropriate walking shoes are advised. Community groups interested in taking a private Stories and Stones Tour by appointment are encouraged to contact Rebecca Whalon at the Lakeland Public Library. Find more information about the Special Edition Stories and Stones Tour of Tiger Flowers Cemetery on the library’s website below. Special Edition Stories and Stones Tour of Tiger Flowers Cemetery When: Saturday, February 18, 2023 9:00 am - 10:15 am Where: Tiger Flowers Cemetery Register online: lakelandpl.libcal.com/event/10064365 Lakeland Public Library 100 Lake Morton Dr, Lakeland, FL 33801 (863) 834-4280 www.lakelandgov.net/library FB: Lakeland Public Library IG @lakelandpubliclibrary

Bartow brothers and founders of the Luster African American Heritage Museum, Charles Luster and Dr. Harvey Lester say their commitment to community enrichment was a seed planted by their father. He taught them the importance of giving back, and the pair have spent a lifetime doing so and planting seeds of their own. “Sometimes when you plant a seed, it doesn’t grow immediately – some things take years to grow,” Luster said. Dr. Harvey Lester graduated from Union Academy High School in 1966. Three days later, he joined the military, where he spent 30 years and three months. Lester worked in logistics, infantry, and as a lay pastor in the service and earned a Bachelor’s degree in Human Resources, a Master’s degree in Family Counseling, and a Ph.D. in Theology. The Vietnam veteran was honored with a Purple Heart and retired as a Sergeant Major. He returned to Polk County in 1996. Dr. Lester served as a chaplain at Winter Haven Hospital and Lakeland Regional Medical Center and pastored a church in Plant City. He was later inducted into the Bartow and Union High School Halls of Fame. Lester’s oldest brother, Charles Luster, was born in 1941. Luster, also a Union Academy graduate, worked for Polk General Hospital as the first African American Environmental Manager and retired after 34 years. Luster also retired from the school system after 30 years. “I did that working 16 hours a day for 30 years,” he said. He rejoined the school system and has worked for the last 25 years as a part-time custodian. “This way, I have extra money to buy things for the museum,” Luster said. Many of the artifacts throughout the Luster African American Heritage Museum were purchased with money Luster has made working for the school. LUSTER-ALL PASTORAL CARE AND CULTURAL CENTER “It actually started with our father, who said we’ve got to give something back,” Luster said. “He was very faithful and believed in God and believed in serving and said we always had to care for others as well as ourselves,” Lester said. “Even though we were poor, we were saying, what can we do [to help others]?” This seed was planted in the brothers who sowed knowledge into the community. “We believe that knowledge is power,” Luster said. “We have a purpose here. It has allowed us to do anything we want to do, but there’s a certain thing that God wants us to do. To me, this is my blessing to give out this knowledge. It’s no good if I don’t give it away.” When Dr. Harvey Lester returned home, he told his brother they were going to start a nonprofit providing education and a cultural museum. Lester oversaw the school and Luster the museum curation, and the two came together to run them both. The brothers established Luster-All Pastoral Care and Cultural Center in 1996 as a nonprofit program that would “provide for the underserved and under-educated residents of Polk County so they may have an opportunity to experience educational success and achieve economic independence through vocational training and job placement, construction technology, culinary arts, health education, family counseling, community development, and cultural enrichment programs.” The program trained students for over twenty years with a 95% services and vocational training completion rate and a 90% job placement rate. “We have done well even with a shoestring budget for twenty-something years. We’ve trained well over a thousand people,” Lester said. Luster-All students have gone on to contribute to the community as nurse practitioners and registered nurses, earn advanced degrees in radiology and catering, provide military service, and start their own businesses. “We are grateful for that,” Lester said. “Every now and then, some come back and say we are a Luster-All girl or a Luster-All boy.” Luster-All Training Center of Hope received various awards and recognitions over the years, including two Polk County proclamations in 2004 and 2017, a Spirit of Bartow Award, and recognition from the Florida Department of Health Board of Nursing for a 100% graduation rate in 2014 compared to the State of Florida graduation rate of 63.5%. Luster-All was honored with the Florida Association of Postsecondary School and College (FAPSC) School of the Year Award in 2006-2007, an honorable mention letter from Governor Jeb Bush, and a congratulatory letter from Governor Charlie Crist. Though the school closed in 2020 due to a lack of funding, its impact over more than two decades is measurable in more than lives changed. According to the Luster-All Training Center of Hope and Cultural Center, “Student taxable income earned over the past 21 years has amounted to $18M in the county.” While launching the school, the brothers began developing the Luster African American Heritage Museum with the goal “to educate the public about the importance of the African American historical legacy in Polk County and the Central Florida region by empowering and enriching visitors with knowledge of the extensive and valuable contributions African Americans have made to Polk County, the State of Florida, and our nation.” The Luster African American Heritage Museum opened at the old Polk General Hospital, where it stayed for almost six years. It has moved several times over the years, but has settled into a more permanent home on Summerlin Street in Bartow. TURNING A PAGE History has no value if you don’t learn from it,” Dr. Lester said. That’s why the brothers have worked to provide the community with this cultural resource. The museum’s layout flows like a book, chapter by chapter of African American history, atrocity, contribution, art, and excellence. Charles Luster was deliberate with its layout. “It’s like turning a page. First, we’re going to go into Africa itself,” he said. “Most museums start with slavery and go on, but we started with Africa for the African American people to know their DNA. Once you know where you come from, then you know who you are,” he said. Exhibits flow from the great kings of Africa to African trades and cultures. Beyond a beaded partition, relics including intricately adorned instruments, tools, ebony wood, statues, photographs, and detailed information about people, events, traditions, and customs line the room. “It’s a reading museum,” Luster explained. “You have to come many times.” Just outside that exhibit room is a sizable replica slave ship. Luster crafted figures to represent enslaved Africans, illustrating revoltingly inhumane conditions. “They were packed in the ship like sardines,” he said. “Any space they had a space, they put them in.” Another exhibit details slavery and plantation life. “People say slaves were taken from Africa. This is not true. People were taken from Africa and made into slaves,” Luster said. Luster moved on, past Nat Turner and Harriet Tubman to a section of ‘Bartow Notables.’ He pointed to photographs of African American doctors, city commissioners, judges, veterans, principals, mayors, builders, trailblazers, and city founders. He pointed out Bartow’s Palm Theatre and dance hall, built by successful businessman Tom Burnett which drew crowds from surrounding communities, as far as Tampa, every Friday to see musicians like Sam Cooke, Muddy Waters, BB King, and James Brown. An exhibit on segregation includes anti-Black imagery and racist stereotypes like Jim Crow dolls, “mammy” caricatures, and dehumanizing advertisements. Luster and Lester attended Union Academy, a then-segregated school, and had many personal accounts of racial oppression to share. “Know your history but don’t let it be a burden to you,” Luster said. “It’s not only my history. We say, ‘African American history,’ but it’s American history.” He motioned to a copy of “The Green Book,” a guide for African American travelers. “I remember when we were kids, my dad would say, ‘Get up, it’s time to go,’ and I’d say, ‘It’s 5 o’clock in the morning.’” Young Luster wondered why they had to leave so early. “He didn’t tell us that we had to be at a certain place at a certain time. If you weren’t at this place at this time, you can’t eat today because the Black restaurant would close.” Then there were the cruelties of Jim Crow “etiquette.” “I couldn’t walk down the sidewalk holding my wife’s hand, and that’s my wife. But that was a law,” Luster said. “You learn all this stuff, and then you have to go through life. PTSD, I think we had that before the war. It was little things.” Studying the exhibit on civil rights lined with photos of great leaders and speakers like Martin Luther King Jr., Luster shared a story. “My sister got baptized in a lake because churches didn’t have a pool at that time,” he said. “The whites would get baptized on one side of the lake, and the Blacks would get baptized on the other side of the lake. Same water, but we couldn’t get baptized in the same spot.” Another sprawling exhibit dedicated to the military acknowledges the contributions of Black service members and military heroes throughout history, including the Buffalo Soldiers, Tuskegee Airmen, and Triple Nickles. “Do you know who that is?” Charles asked, nodding to a photo of two uniformed military men. It was Harvey Lester and Charles’s son. The pair were in the military simultaneously. The Luster African American Heritage Museum’s media center has some 500 books available for check-out and a computer for students to do research. The next room is dedicated to education, including the brothers’ alma mater, Union Academy, a Rosenwald school built in 1928. Luster remembered being taught by the first white teachers at his school in the late sixties. The room displays school desks, a typewriter, and abounding yearbook photos of accomplished graduates and athletes. “We had a powerhouse football team,” Luster said. The Union Academy running back hoped for a tough nickname like ‘Tiger,’ ‘Killer,’ or ‘Big Red.’ “I wanted a name like that, but they called me ‘Sweet Thang’ because I weighed about 145 lbs,’” he said, prompting a laugh from his brother. In addition to its many exhibitions, the museum has a lecture room where they hold talks and show movies. Lester, Luster, and museum volunteers also give back through community events. Before New Year’s, they gave out collard greens sourced from a Black farmer and black-eyed peas and cornbread donated by the Mulberry Walmart. On Sunday, February 5, 2023, from 1-4 pm, the museum, in partnership with Main Street Bartow, will host a “Drum Circle” celebration honoring Olushola Camaro. The free community event will feature food and retail vendors, dancing in the street, and Kuumba Dancers and Drummers. Bring your lawn chairs. Admission to the museum is free, but donations are appreciated. The only funding the Luster African American Heritage Museum receives is a small stipend from a Statewide Network of African American education organizations, contributions from Black Voters Matter, and patron donations used for curation, development of the exhibits, and planned educational programs. Poignant words posted towards the museum exit read, “History is not for you to like or not like. It is there for you to learn from it, and if it offends you, even better because you are less likely to repeat it. It’s not yours to erase. It belongs to us all.” Photographs by Amy Sexson Luster African American Heritage Museum 585 E Summerlin St, Bartow (863) 800-6872 FB: African American Heritage Museum laahm.org

Black History Month began as a way of remembering important people and events in African communities across the world. The United States observes this month during February each year, and Winter Haven has built a new tradition by bringing the remembrance close to home. After the cancelling of key Black History Month events in 2021 as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Conversations spurred amongst City staff about other ways to commemorate this important celebration. That is when the idea to line the parade route with banners honoring Black heroes came to light. Bringing the Tradition Home The original banners showcased national heroes from Black history such as Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Aretha Franklin, but Winter Haven has a rich history of local black heroes who have made an impact in the local community. In 2021, a committee was formed to identify and honor local Black heroes. The community submitted nominations to the group, and four outstanding honorees were selected. Those local heroes each blazed new trails while demonstrating passion, dedication, and empathy or compassion for the community, and this year’s honorees have done the exact same. Ernestine Mason Davis has made a lasting impact in the community due to her roles as a local, state, and national civil rights leader, community organizer, and philanthropist, and by volunteering countless hours to serve on local boards and committees. The Week of January 30, 2023, will be Ernestine Mason Davis Week in the City of Winter Haven. Mildred Bennett Foster made her impact in the community through her years as a music teacher, choral coordinator, community activist, businesswoman, and champion for youth development. The Week of February 6, 2023, will be Mildred Bennett Foster Week in the City of Winter Haven. Althea Margaret Daily Mills cemented her place in the history of the community through her work as an advocate for equality in education, a postal manager, and a civil rights leader. The Week of February 13, 2023, will be Althea Margaret Daily Mills Week in the City of Winter Haven. Charles R. Richardson Sr. forged a legacy within this community through his work as an educational administrator, City Commissioner, Mayor, County Commissioner, and all-around public servant. The Week of February 20, 2023, will be Charles R. Richardson Sr. Week in the City of Winter Haven. George & Seretha Tinsley together have created a lasting impact within the community due to their shared legacy as business leaders, philanthropists, mentors, and champions for youth development. The Week of February 27, 2023, will be George & Seretha Tinsley Week in the City of Winter Haven.

Three Winter Haven women have joined their visions and talents to open a unique concept off Central Avenue. Gourmet ingredients, local produce, and an open kitchen provide an intimate hospitable experience at Agape Agora Trattoria and Marketplace. Light spilling into the arcade onto tables a shade lighter than lapis and painted lemons along the window are evocative of an Italian coastline. The scene is a calm, deep breath. And the meals? Hearty, wholesome, and made with love – the highest form. Co-founders of Agape Agora Prima Burney, Wellie Liao, and Sheila Flecha navigate life and business with a deep-seated purpose. Intentionality is at the heart of the trattoria, from the color scheme, ingredients used and offered in the marketplace, and the reason for its opening. Prima Burney put it best. “It’s culture, it’s community, and it’s culinary.” THE TRATTORIA TRIFECTA Wellie Liao is the owner and sommelier of Obscure Wine Company, which opened in Winter Haven last summer. From a family of generational restaurateurs, Wellie has worked in every facet of the hospitality industry, from food trucks and fast-casual to Michelin Star restaurants. An affinity for wines the world over led her to pursue a winemaking and viticulture certification and eventually become a level 3 sommelier with credentials through the Court of Master Sommeliers, the Wine and Spirits Education Trust, 3iC Italian Specialist, and U.C. Davis Certified in Winemaking and Viticulture. Liao was mentored by renowned wine expert and journalist Ian D’Agata. After a stint in the corporate world and a successful run with the Hawaiian and Taiwanese-inspired food truck, Happy Ending, Liao started her popular Central Avenue wine bar. Open Door Wellness founder and yoga teacher Prima Burney started her business to help others navigate life and healing through wellness and herbal alchemy. The Winter Haven native and mother of three is a Polk State College and Le Cordon Bleu graduate and worked in the culinary industry for 15 years. She attended shamanism training, including Ayurveda, in 2019, which led her to begin testing spice blends for teas and tinctures. In 2020, Burney completed Yoga Teacher Training at Inside Out Yoga. That same year, the Slow Flow master made Open Door Wellness official and began offering certified organic herbal products, yoga, energetic work, and herbal wellness sessions. Burney joined Liao and the Obscure Wine Co. team last year. Liao described Burney as “an employee that was no longer an employee but somebody that was a confidante, someone I could trust, somebody who could take my vision and have it as their own.” She continued, “That gave me the ability to let go so I could start creating again because that’s what I like to do.” Sheila Flecha was born and raised in Puerto Rico. The military wife left to travel with her husband in 2005. While stationed in Guam, Flecha joined a program for culinary arts. She graduated with honors and became a mentor for other military spouses interested in the program. Flecha worked as a freelance personal chef upon returning to the States. Following a divorce, Flecha moved to Texas, which led her to a career as a corporate-level chef. Then the pandemic descended, and everything changed. Flecha had always loved Florida and had family here. She moved to the Sunshine State with no plan, waiting tables and getting side gigs to pay the bills. “I came to Winter Haven because, on Facebook, I saw the farmers market. I thought, ‘Oh my God, how cute.’ And here I am. I just fell in love with Winter Haven that day,” she said. She described the town as a “Hallmark movie” and joked that she’s still waiting for the handsome small town farmer to sweep her off her feet. After that, life fell into place. She even found a charming cottage overlooking Lake Howard in 2021. “I fell in love with this place,” Flecha said. “As much as I love home, and I want to go back home and sit on the beach drinking whiskey from a coconut, this feels like home to me. I don’t have any intentions to go anywhere because this is growing, it’s developing, and I’m excited.” Flecha took her vision for a meal prep concept to Catapult in Lakeland, where she again met Prima, whom she’d already connected with over her teas at various markets. It wasn’t yet the right time to start her business, so Flecha entered sales for gourmet food products. Obscure became a client, and soon Liao became a friend. Out of the blue, Liao asked Flecha, ‘What do you want to do?’ “She just picked my mind,” Flecha said. “I shared my vision for the meal prep and the community kitchen and all of these things.” “In listening to Sheila’s story, she had a vision of what does a single mom do when she has three-day-old vegetables that are about to go bad, and she has no idea what to do with them? She wanted a space where a person could walk in and ask, ‘What can I do with this? Can you show me? Can you do something for me?’ Being a place where it’s not just a restaurant, it’s a resource. It’s an intentional space where you can feel safe to be vulnerable and heal yourself,” Liao said. When Liao approached her later about a new project she was working on, Flecha, unfulfilled by the ‘just another number’ slog of corporate work, said, “I wanted to be a partner. I wanted to invest money, time, blood, sweat, and tears. […] I’m turning 50 this year. I need something for my future. I need something to build for myself, and that’s exactly what we’re trying to do here.” The Obscure owner discovered a higher calling. “I really found that my calling wasn’t to make a wine bar. It wasn’t to make a trattoria. It was to help people have access to their goals because that’s what’s fulfilled me more,” Liao said. Prima Burney noted that stepping into Obscure and working with Liao was also a “moment of alignment” for her. She, too, wanted to be involved with this new concept which echoed her culinary yearnings. Coming out of culinary school, being in a traditional restaurant was never Burney’s goal. She was inspired by a place in Asheville that served as a kitchen, gourmet deli, and a place where intentional ingredients were used to make meals one could pick up. “You could get off work, and there was this responsibly sourced [food] that you could pick up for your family and know that you were feeding them in a way that was intentional. That was always what my vision was,” Burney said. She envisioned picking up cheese and crackers, a great bottle of wine, and olives, all in one place for a picnic overlooking one of our beautiful lakes. “When [Wellie] said she wanted to do that, I told her I wanted in. She said, ‘That’s a partnership; that’s not just you coming to work.’ That’s when you know somebody sees you,” Burney said. Born and raised in Winter Haven, downtown has been a destination for Burney since she was young. “Seeing it go docile to seeing the renaissance that’s happening, and walking through these iron gates and having a set of keys to a door off of Central Avenue was more than I could have ever dreamed. To get that with these two beautiful ladies is a dream come true.” LOVE AND GATHERING Choosing a name for the trattoria and marketplace was as deliberate as the ingredients sourced for the food. “‘Agape’ is the highest form of love, and ‘Agora’ is a gathering space and also a place of assemblies,” Liao said. She sees the eatery as a space for connections, solutions, creativity, inspiration, love, food, and healing. “It makes complete sense to me,” Flecha said of the name. “To me, Agape is the conversation starter to talk to people about it. This is not just another restaurant.” As with the Obscure Wine Company concept, lighting, music, interior design, and aroma, “Everything is chosen for a reason,” Liao said. “There are studies that what you say to your water and what you say out loud vibrates into the 70 percent water we are composed of. When you speak ‘I love you’ to your water, you’re ingesting that. […] It’s the same thing as preparing food with love.” A WARM HUG Purposefully-sourced gourmet ingredients line the shelves of the marketplace and the menu. Agape Agora’s offerings are ever-changing and, above all else, “prepared with love,” Burney said. The trio aims to utilize produce grown by local farmers to join their cultural backgrounds and world travels and create meals to be shared with the community. Folks have expressed to the Agape co-founders the desire for better options for their health and well-being – and they intend to fill that need. Soups, salads, sandwiches, and daily specials are the menu’s backbone. “The concept of soup is so dear to my heart because it’s one of the first things I learned to do with my grandma,” Flecha said, describing a spoonful of hearty soup as a “warm hug.” The specials are crafted with fresh produce and gourmet/local products from their market to offer guests a taste and ideas for utilizing them. Flecha, Burney, and Liao plan for a demo kitchen with classes and meal prep eventually. Partnerships within the community are vital to the owners. Cold pressed juices from Orgen D’nal, small batch gourmet jams made with real fruit from Heirloom Jams, sourdough from Born and Bread Bakehouse, pastries from Bandidas and Honeycomb, and produce from Farmer Will in Lakeland and Thorpe’s Organic Farm in Lake Wales are only some of the local partnerships Agape Agora has so far fostered. NOW OPEN Following a soft opening in January, one piece of feedback that especially pleased Burney was that the Agape Agora experience felt like pulling up a chair to a friend’s kitchen table. “I couldn’t think of anything better to do with my day,” she beamed. Flecha agreed. Though she’d been at the trattoria until midnight the night before, the work remains unburdensome. “It feels like home,” she said. Excitement swelled for the Central Avenue trattoria long before it opened. “People saw the connections – it’s what we all lack,” Liao said. “You don’t die tomorrow thinking, ‘I should have had a nicer car.’ You leave this world thinking, ‘Who would I have spent more time with?’ […] This concept is the energy of love.” The work is passion, the customers are a community, but above all else, the three women have become soul sisters. Wellie Liao grew up with a large, tight-knit stepfamily of many cultural backgrounds. Get-togethers were a “melding of it all.” “It feels so comfortable because I have those same cultures around me now,” she said. “Our partnership is basically what I grew up in. For me, it’s a comfort.” Burney’s passion has been culinary since she attended school. She walked away from that for a time to start her business, Open Door Wellness, and then had to decide if she could move forward with that along with Agape Agora. The two women at her side cheered her on and told her constantly, ‘Don’t let that go. We’re going to figure this out, and on top of that, we’re going to build even more.’ “It gives you a place to plant the seeds and grow what you want,” Burney said. “It’s just easy.” “We have found a common link between our purpose,” Flecha said. “I cannot wait for the future to see other projects coming together and keep building for this community.” Photography by Amy Sexson Agape Agora 254 W Central Ave B, Winter Haven (863) 370-7037 FB: Agápe  Agorá IG @agapeagora www.agapeagora.com

“My entire life, my mom has been the family cook,” Arthur White said. Thankfully, the community can regularly delight in his mother, Betty Coleman Bent’s scratch cooking at the family’s Lake Wales eatery, Orgen D’nal Cafe. “My great grandmother, Gladys Coleman was an indentured slave from South Carolina,” White began. Coleman eventually moved her family to Frostproof, and White was born and raised in neighboring Lake Wales. Cooking has been a common thread amongst the family, from White’s great-grandmother to his grandmother Betty Watkins and his mother, Betty Coleman Bent. White has a background in Health Science. He went to school for Pre-Occupational Therapy and then grad school for Public Health. He worked in a hospital for a time before opening his training studio, Kingdom Fitness and Nutrition. White was also a teacher for five years before leaving the school system to help his mother start Orgen D’nal. The matriarch in a family of educators, Betty Coleman Bent, is the owner and director of the Higher Learning Academy of Central Florida and has been an educator for over 30 years. White’s wife and older sister are teachers as well. ORGEN D’NAL ORIGINS The family started making juices during the pandemic, prompted by a health scare. “My entire family changed the way we ate,” White said. He was making cold-pressed juices for his gym clients when his mom asked him to bottle some for her. She’d choose what produce she wanted, and White would make it for her. “My mom and all of her siblings picked citrus their entire life,” White said. “We always were a fruit family.” He added, “That’s what really pushed it – my mom’s health. I think that’s what drives us and keeps us going, knowing that it’s benefitting her too.” Eventually, there was so much juice traffic at the gym it was interfering with training. Teaching and operating his gym, a family café was the farthest thing from White’s mind. “I don’t know how it became this, but I know it’s from God. It had to be,” he said. “I heard my mom growing up, my entire life, saying that she wanted to have a restaurant.” When Coleman Bent approached him about opening a Lake Wales café, his initial reaction was, “You’re crazy. Why would you want to do that? And who’s going to work it?” They decided to go for it and signed the lease for a restaurant space. Coleman Bent already had a culinary background, and White described customer service as her number one priority. “Before we even thought about the kitchen, we thought about the atmosphere first,” he said. “Her mission was to create something that represented us. We wanted something that would embody, for one, our original background. […] We wanted to have a place where everyone could come and eat something healthy and also embrace a culture of people.” The name was a foundational part of the brand. “We came up with the name because of the original name of Africa. It was known as ‘Negroland,’” White said. Orgen D’nal is ‘Negro Land’ spelled backward. He gives credit to God and his mom for finalizing the moniker. “The name means a lot to us. We identify as Hebrew, and we’ve been doing a lot of studying about that particular coast of Africa.” White and Coleman Bent plan to travel to East Africa in June for a nine-day trip and say Orgen D’nal à la Africa isn’t out of the question. The Orgen D’nal owners spared no expense in getting their dining room up to par. The space is inviting and comfortable, complemented by lush outdoor seating on their “Back to Eden” patio, which White noted is the perfect place to enjoy Sunday brunch. “We definitely focused on art first,” he said. The space is furnished with framed paintings by Sherelle White (Lakeland, FL), Kwaku Ntow (Ghana), and Uzo Njoku (Lagos, Nigeria). Partitioned areas with couches and monkeypod wood coffee tables flank the entrance. As you walk in, the eye is captivated by a large mural of a beautiful woman crowned with a flower and foliage afro wearing an earring with the Orgen D’nal emblem. Their tables, crafted out of cypress and maple trees by a retired veteran, have a small butterfly carved into each one. “We wanted somewhere that you feel at home – you feel relaxed when you come in,” White said. Even the music – a curated playlist of lo-fi, jazz, and reggae – plays a role in creating that ambiance. Orgen D’nal’s inaugural event was an art show for the books. Florida Highwaymen artist Al Black and second-generation Florida Highwaymen Kelvin Hair were in attendance, as well as several local artists and an artist from Kenya. “We didn’t even know how big that would be for us. That really gave us a name,” White said. Orgen D’nal opened in October 2020 and had an official ribbon cutting with the Chamber last year. FROM SCRATCH, WITH LOVE Betty Coleman Bent is the author of Orgen D’nal’s recipes and the head chef. Her son considers himself her sous chef. “Everything we make is from scratch,” he said. “We don’t buy anything prepared.” Alongside their popular cold-pressed juices, Coleman Bent whips up fresh wraps, salads, and smoothies for lunch Tuesday through Friday. The café hosts an evening dinner service with live music one Saturday each month. This dinner offers changing chef specials like sauteed salmon, chicken masala, curry chicken, and jerk chicken. The latter pays homage to the family’s Caribbean ties. “We make it the way my grandfather made it,” White said, which is rubbed and marinated overnight. The lunch menu’s  Island Chicken Wrap is another Jamaican flare with homemade curry and sauteed chicken thighs. “We make it just like you’d get a pot of curry chicken,” White said. The wrap comes with the option of grilled or curry chicken, mixed greens, peppers, and onions dressed with a pineapple sauce so good, customers have begged them to sell it by the jar. White suggested pairing the wrap with a Citrus Glow juice made with orange or grapefruit, lemon, red apple, ginger, and spring water. But you can’t ‘beet’ the Beet Love or Queen & Slim juices. Orgen D’nal juices are made with fresh ingredients, so customers get the live enzymes from the produce, and the only preservative used is lemon juice. Bella, White’s 8-year-old daughter, lends a hand with the juice biz. Father and daughter held a juicing class at Bok Tower Gardens and have been asked back to lead more. Bella is a hit when they set up shop at markets. Bella isn’t the only one lending her talents to the team. Orgen D’nal is a family operation with Betty, Arthur, his wife Stephanie, nieces and nephews, brothers and sisters, and whatever family is around to help out. One of White’s nieces, who was an integral part of the team, recently left for nursing school. “I’m going to miss her a lot,” he said. “When we call on our other family members to help us, they will.” White’s favorite meal, without hesitation, is his mom’s sauteed salmon. No one holds a candle to Coleman Bent’s version of the dish. “I don’t even like making it at home because it doesn’t taste like hers,” he said. “I guarantee all the people that come here have never had sauteed salmon like that.” Sunday Brunch is another treat drawing crowds from Lakeland and Tampa. Orgen D’nal serves upscale scratch southern-style chef specials, including shrimp and gouda grits, smothered chicken, and salmon croquettes. “You know when you’re getting food – some love was put in,” White said. Orgen D’nal has been approached several times about recreating their magic elsewhere. White said, “We have considered it more than ever now because we know we have something.” Photography by Amy Sexson Orgen D’nal Cafe and Juice Bar 1429 Resmondo Drive, Lake Wales (863) 456-4086 FB: Orgen D’nal Cafe IG @orgendnalcafe www.orgendnal.com

The Hart Art story is one of international love, civil rights hard fought and won, shared creativity turned livelihood, and zany catchphrases come to life. Caroline and Laurie Hart, the artists behind Hart Art have carved out a niche of rustic wood paintings with inspirational themes. And it all started with a tiki bar. Caroline hails from a small West Sussex village. She had a career in the radio industry, including the U.K.’s number-one commercial radio station, London’s Capital Radio. Creativity has been central to Caroline all her life. She loves to write and has trained as an artist, graphic designer, and photographer. Bostonian Laurie toured New England as a professional hula dancer from the age of 15. She went on to spend 17 years working in the medical field. The two met online in 2005. Caroline and Laurie sparked a connection over their appreciation of photography, theatre, and music. That spark would be kindled a month later when Caroline flew across the Atlantic to meet Laurie in person. “And that’s where we first met, at an airport in Boston,” Caroline said, smiling. This meeting nourished their desire to be together. Both women had families to consider – Caroline has two sons, and Laurie has one. They worked out the logistics and flew back and forth internationally every two weeks for 18 months. In 2004, Massachusetts became the first state to legalize same-sex marriage, and the Harts said ‘I do’ there two years later. The federal government, which oversees international airports, would drag its feet on marriage equality for another 11 years. The binational couple continued to fly between countries to maintain their families until turbulence shook them from the cloud nine of newlywed bliss. “Every time Caroline came into the country, there was a problem,” Laurie said. Airport authorities would question Caroline as if she were a suspect in some dubious crime. They required her to jump through hoop after hoop as though their marriage wasn’t a valid reason for her trips to the United States. Six years into their marriage, Caroline was told she was spending too much time in the country and that it would be the last time she was allowed entry. Faced with the options of staying in the U.S. illegally or drumming up support for the injustice attempting to defy their union – the Harts decided on the latter. Laurie was determined to get the word out. “We’re telling our story,” she said. The Harts explained their plight to anyone who would listen, and their account was featured in everything from the Advocate to Huffington Post and Curve Magazine. They garnered the support of GLAAD, U.S. representatives, and celebrities like Sharon Stone and Debra Messing. The Harts chronicled their experience in the short film “Status Unknown,” shot at Boston Logan International Airport. The national recognition landed them before the judiciary committee in Washington, D.C. On June 26, 2013, in a landmark case for the LGBTQ community, United States v. Windsor, Section 3 of DOMA (Defence of Marriage Act), was found unconstitutional. The ruling allowed Laurie to sponsor Caroline for her green card the following year. Love won again in 2015 when the U.S. Supreme Court ruled 5-4 in the case of Obergefell v. Hodges to strike down state bans on same-sex marriage. Marriage equality was further enshrined when the Respect for Marriage Act was signed into law on December 13, 2022, affirming federal recognition for same-sex marriages. This year, the Harts will celebrate their 17th anniversary. On their website, “theLexperience,” Caroline writes, “Love definitely gave me more to feel inspired about, and my creativity has flourished.” And flourished it has. The Harts co-owned a photography business for 15 years in Massachusetts before moving to Winter Haven in 2019, looking to escape the frigid New England winters. They bought their home that August and registered theLexperience LLC as a business the next month as a joint creative venture and outlet. “We knew how important it was to tell our story. Everyone has a story,” Laurie said. They accrued advertisers for the site until the pandemic hit in 2020. “We thought, ‘Now what are we going to do?’” Laurie said. The couple had honeymooned in Hawaii and celebrated their 10th anniversary on its crystalline beaches. Unable to travel with their 15th anniversary on the horizon, the Harts decided to bring Hawaii to them. “We thought we’d build our own Hawaiian oasis in our back [yard],” Caroline said. “We built this tiki bar, the two of us. It was crazy, and it was very funny because we’d never done anything like it before.” Upon constructing their backyard paradise, Caroline and Laurie embellished it with a painting. “That was always my love, doing art. Every kind of thing you could imagine – detailed pen and ink to oil painting,” Caroline said. Their neighbors loved the image, which inspired the pair to embark on more wood-based painting projects. They sold them to neighbors and friends, who in turn requested commission pieces. Fueled by creativity and encouragement, they ventured to local markets to sell their artwork. Caroline remembers thinking, ‘We could really make something of this.’ She added, “We are incredibly grateful for all the local support for our artwork and even have regulars who frequent the markets searching us out.” When creating a new piece, the pair conceive the initial idea together. “Being creative was something we’ve always had between us,” Laurie said. She prepares the wood to be painted, including the hand-carved bottom edge. Caroline sketches the image, and the two decide on a color palette. Laurie paints the background, and Caroline goes in for detail. Their rustic pieces depict their surroundings and subjects that inspire them – Circle B, the Sunken Gardens, Florida beaches, mermaids, birds, food, and more. In 2022, the Harts met “Lord Honey” Chef Jason Smith through a mutual friend. The Kentucky native won season three of “Holiday Baking Championship,” “Holiday Baking Championship: Kids vs. Adults,” and “Next Food Network Star.” The celebrity chef is a judge on “Best Baker in America” and has made appearances on the “Rachael Ray Show,” “Pickler & Ben,” and “Home & Family.” During the pandemic, they’d watched him on the Food Network and giggled over his ‘Jasonisms’ like “Butter my butt and call me a biscuit!” Laurie and Caroline created a painting based around one such ‘Jasonism’ – “Happier than a rooster in socks.” The Hart Art pair presented it to the Food Network darling. “He was absolutely blown away,” Caroline said. Inspired, the couple made more pieces centered around these whacky Southern sayings. “Because we’re both really creative, when he says something funny, in our heads, we can see it and then make it,” Caroline said. They talked about their idea to paint his sayings with Smith over lunch – and he loved it! The chef was “happier than two skunks kissing in a corn patch” to work with Hart Art. “Well, lord honey children, Hart Art artwork is some of the most awesome artwork I’ve seen in years, from the way that they bring the paintings to life, and how they take a one phrase sentence and turn it into a real-life object is just amazing,” Chef Smith said. “With every brush stroke to the ending product, the stories just appear. [...] They just care and take such painstaking time to make all my dreams come true.” From the first painting the Harts gifted Chef Smith, he said, “I knew right then it was higher powers that had brought us together. For that reason, I knew it was going to be a perfect fit. I had always dreamed of a Lord Honey art line, and it just was a sign it was time to do that, and I had found the right people to bring it to life.” Hart Art now has a two-year contract for collaboration with Chef Jason Smith. They’ve created a Jasonism-inspired series of one-of-a-kind paintings in their signature style on wood. Each piece comes with a certificate of authenticity. They’ve also added distinctive limited-edition prints. This month Hart Art will join Chef Jason for the Visit Lauderdale Food & Wine Festival, where he will be doing cooking demonstrations, and they will bring their artwork. Laurie and Caroline Hart have become family to the chef, “I just love them,” he said. Though their roots spread far and wide from the U.K. to New England, the Harts love Winter Haven. Laurie said, “We know how important it is to get local support. […] The people of Winter Haven and all the surrounding [areas], they’ve been so supportive of us.” The two artists love to take pictures of patrons with their work and hear the stories behind why a piece might speak to someone. They aim to show the same support for local businesses, especially women-owned, like Stacy’s Printing, where they get all their printing done. Hart Art is open to any local shops, galleries, or businesses that would like to display their artwork. To shop Hart Art, inquire about commissions, or learn more about Caroline and Laurie’s story, visit their website, thelexperience.com. Photography by Amy Sexson Hart Art IG @hartart2021 thelexperience.com Chef Jason Smith southerncountrybling.com

A flour-covered five-year-old making it ‘snow’ in the kitchen turned Food Network champion is making your favorite farmers market macarons – in case you didn’t know. Chef Briea Lowe is a trained pastry chef with an impressive career, a thriving Central Florida confection business, and a passion for making culinary education accessible to aspiring chefs. The GLAZE Confections owner has loved playing with food her entire life. “My first memory of baking was with my grandmother. She was making what we call bizcochitos,” Chef Brie said. “In Spanish families, you use cinnamon, anise, and a sugar cookie dough.” Though delicious, Briea wasn’t dazzled by the cookie’s appearance like the treats she saw on the Food Network. “That’s when my mom would step in,” she said. “My mom loved all the piping techniques growing up and always made us those old school teddy bear cakes with the star tip with endless stars of different colors.” Like a sponge cake in the oven, a passion for the culinary arts rose within Briea with every captivating Food Network program, baking session with her grandmother, and piped star from her mom. “I decided at a young age that I’d figure out how to get on TV no matter what it took,” she said. From ages 12-17, Briea trained in the first-ever performing arts school in Osceola County. “It was very exciting to be that influenced by art,” she said. The pastry chef joked that she only left the performing arts to avoid becoming a ‘starving artist.’ Her friends heartened Briea that the baking she loved so much and practiced constantly was an art form and that she should pursue it. Determined to find a way to make a living ‘playing with her food,’ Breia applied to Le Cordon Bleu’s rising chef competition. She took 3rd place and received a $15K scholarship. On the way to sign the contract to go to Le Cordon Bleu, her mother cut the car’s wheel and pointed at a school on the roadside – Notter School of Pastry Arts. Briea’s mother encouraged her to be open-minded and check out the school. She’d already won a scholarship. Why divert the plan? “Passion,” her mom told her. The world champion pastry chef, whose name graced the building, Ewald Notter, was on-site that day, building a showpiece. The woman giving Briea and her mother a tour of the school nudged her to make his acquaintance. Briea peeked around the corner at Notter and described him as intimidating and impressive. Accessibility to a chef of his caliber was an ‘epiphany moment’ for young Briea. Notter spotted the 17-year-old culinary devotee and waved her over. As she stood next to him at the demo table, the chef skipped pleasantries and started teaching her how to make chocolate petals. “I’d never touched chocolate, let alone know you could sculpt with it,” she said. A quick study, Briea would eventually become Notter’s Apprentice/ Assistant and help him run the pastry school. After a few short months during her training, he had promoted her to ‘instructor,’ and she was teaching solo by age 20. Having represented the USA at 18 years old and obtained a mentor/coach, she and Notter began entering her into competition after competition. After working with Notter and training alongside his son, the chef helped Briea get placement in Palm Beach, where she became the assistant pastry chef of the Everglades Club. She continued working in resorts from Shingle Creek and Bonnet Creek to helping open the Ritz Carlton in Orlando. Chef Brie consulted for several confectionery businesses. The young pastry chef moved on to work in Virginia. She taught and sold goods at Sur La Table in Alexandria, Virginia. After two years and much success, Briea had learned all there was for her to know in that position. She decided it was time to move on and build something of her own. “I need to be challenged, and I need to share that information with other people,” she said. Chef Brie accepted a job offer from the Michelin Star restaurant group Fabio Trabocchi and went on to work alongside Trabocchi’s executive corporate pastry chef, Christian Capo. She worked in the heart of Georgetown as the pastry chef of Fiola Mare. She returned to consulting until the pandemic hit three months later. Briea and her husband Brad moved back to Florida and started GLAZE Confections four months later. The couple attended their first-ever market as GLAZE Confections in Harmony, Florida, over the Halloween weekend of 2020. “It was exciting because this was the first time we took a leap,” she said. The pastry chef was overwhelmed by the support they received from a town that played such a significant role in their story. Harmony was the place she and her husband went on a blind date their mothers set them up on and where they fell in love over the summer of 2013. The Lowes branched out of Harmony with more markets and events, a hit-or-miss process. After encouragement from other market vendors, GLAZE Confections attended their first Winter Haven Farmers Market in June of 2021. “It seemed to be anywhere we could make people feel like they could create a special moment – that would attract people,” Chef Brie said. “It’s so nice to see that this community appreciates culinary cuisine and creating those real hometown moments.” Orlando and Winter Haven became go-to markets where Chef Brie would sell out of Victorian sponge cakes, dense chocolate cakes (which she calls Grandma’s Chocolate Cake), sandwich cookies, and jumbo macarons. Briea’s own happiness is reflected in the faces of customers enjoying her food – her art. “Watching a person eat is where a chef’s joy is,” she said. “At least for me, it is.” Sweets and Showbiz The little girl who set her sights on a television debut realized her dream many times over. Chef Brie first worked with the Food Network as a contestant on “Sugar Dome” at age 20. Partnered with a costume designer, she built a colossal structure almost entirely out of sugar. “It ended up toppling over onto my head,” she remembered. She joined the network again in 2014 for Season 4 of “Halloween Wars.” During the filming of the last episode, Briea came down with a bad case of strep throat. She pushed on, and her team, Corpse Crushers, won the competition. Like anyone who finds themselves in the judgmental glare of the public eye, Briea received her share of criticism and nasty comments online. “I didn’t use the publicity like I should have at that young age,” she said. “I was too scared based on the criticism that I received.” The Season 4 “Halloween Wars” champ continued, “If I could say anything to a younger generation – never listen to the naysayers who say, ‘You’re so young, you have so much time.’ I hate when older people tell me that. My advice to the younger generation – you run as fast as you want. Do it. If you’re willing to grind and put in the hours, and you’re sweating 20 hours a day at something you want to get good at – I commend you. I encourage you.” Chef Brie was also a part of “Halloween Wars” Season 7 in episodes 1-4. These episodes taught her perseverance. She thought her team would be sent home every episode, but they proved their capabilities repeatedly. “Only pressure can make diamonds!” she said. “We didn’t win, but our edible art spoke its story and sparkled.” The pastry chef returned to Food Network on the team “Baking Spirits Bright” for “Holiday Wars” Season 4, which aired in November. Briea’s favorite part of the experience comes after filming wraps, the episode airs, and reactions to her creations roll in. “I do it because I want to see people’s appreciation for my art.” Pastry Fundamentals Accessible education and mental health in the culinary arts impassion Chef Briea Lowe. When Notter School of Pastry Arts closed its doors, her mentor gifted her all 38 years’ worth of teaching content. “That was the biggest gift he could have ever given me,” she said. “It still brings me to tears that he trusts me that much.” Prepared to offer her skills and talent to the education of up-and-coming culinary students, Chef Brie plans to lean into the online space. More importantly, she plans to keep it free. “I believe in old-school values as far as business goes and learning a skill. I don’t think we should have institutions that charge people for school,” she said. “I genuinely believe that if you want to learn something, that’s on you as a human. Go out and learn it. But to charge people and then to be like, ‘I’ll pay you minimum wage for the next ten years,’ that’s miserable. I don’t think that’s how we should reward the young culinary society.” Long before her television debut, Briea’s mentor gave her valuable advice. He told her, ‘You have so much talent. You will always be belittled for it and pushed down for it to try and dim your light. Just know this and always push through it.’ “Had I known to have more confidence in my skills and myself to not listen to all those naysayers, I think I could have ended up farther than I am at this point,” she reflected. “But I think I needed to go through that to be a better teacher.” The bubbly pastry chef imparts her know-how to viewers on her YouTube channel Pastry Fundamentals, produced by her husband’s company, Lowe Media Works. Briea and Brad have also discussed producing a culinary-centric mental health podcast. With so many ideas and recent health complications, the couple decided to focus on GLAZE and Pastry Fundamentals for the time being. The Lowes moved from Lake Nona to a new home in Orlando that will double as a fully operational kitchen set. Of the 2000 square foot house, 800 square feet is the kitchen, and 200 square feet is a studio space. Several networks interested in a future televised concept have approached the chef. Follow Chef Brie’s sweet journey on social media. Diamonds are more akin to tea cakes than you might think. Pastry chef and business owner Briea Lowe strives for GLAZE Confections to be a brand built on high quality, reasonable prices, and memorable experiences. A television-quality sculpted cake wrapped in fondant and sugar pearls is impressive, like a ruby-studded necklace. All costs considered, sometimes costume jewelry is better than the real thing. It’s just as sparkly, compliments the outfit, and won’t break the bank. “In a sense, GLAZE is the costume jewelry of what the pastry industry is,” she said. It truly is the small pleasures in life. Photography by Amy Sexson GLAZE Confections IG @glazeconfections www.glazeconfections.com YouTube @PastryFundamentals

“There’s no comparison here. There’s no doubt, no fear, no insecurity, and no competition. This is your workout – you just get to do it with all the other ladies around you,” said Stephanie Garrison, owner and instructor at The Balance Culture Winter Haven. The boutique fitness studio has been a safe and supportive workout space for women in Lakeland for the last eight years. This month, owners Ruthie Tait and Stephanie Garrison bring their heart-pumping, soul-nourishing brand of empowerment to Winter Haven. Ruthie Tait, instructor and owner of The Balance Culture, moved to Lakeland in 2009 to attend Southeastern University. A former gymnast, Tait played collegiate volleyball for four years while majoring in Social Work. During college, Tait and her friend Kirstin Czernek connected over their passion for fitness and nutrition, and with graduation approaching, both were considering their career options. Czernek opted to attend nutrition school while Tait started her yoga certification. The initial goal wasn’t to start a business but rather to teach. “All these different ‘God things’ kept happening and opening doors to start The Balance Culture,” Tait said. Czernek’s husband was looking for an office space and found one with an open room next door and thought it would make a good fitness studio. Ruthie and Kirstin began hosting pop-up classes, offering complimentary Pilates and barre, to gauge community interest in a group fitness studio. “It was such an amazing response,” Tait remembered. For a year, the two women worked to build what they wanted their brand to be. The Balance Culture, a women-exclusive group fitness studio, opened in Dixieland on September 28, 2015. They were at that location for six years before moving to a new studio space last year. A year and a half ago, Tait bought out her friend and former business partner, who retired to focus on her family. “It’s hard to believe that it’s been eight years,” Tait said. “We’re just doing what we love every day – connecting with the community, helping women feel empowered, and having fun working out while we do it.” Tait is a 200-hour Registered Yoga Teacher. She is certified through the Athletics Fitness Association of America (AFAA) as a Group Fitness instructor and Mat Pilates instructor, a certified Spin instructor through Mad Dogg Athletics, and a barre instructor certified through Barre Intensity. Stephanie Garrison has been an instructor for The Balance Culture since day one. She and Tait knew each other through Southeastern, where Garrison was first a student and then the Executive Director for Student Development. The Buffalo, New York native, moved to Florida in high school and studied Business Management at Southeastern, eventually earning her MBA. “I loved being there,” she said. “I’m a product of Southeastern.” Garrison has been involved in dance her whole life. She toured, competed, and performed throughout New York and Florida. “I remember going into my first dance studio at three years old and thinking, ‘How can I do this every day of my life? This is the coolest thing ever.’ It’s honestly been a dream for that long to one: own a business, and two: have a space for women to feel equipped and empowered. I feel, 34 years later, the Lord saying, ‘I’ll give you generations of women to have in a studio.’” The instructor turned Balance Culture Winter Haven co-owner continued, “To now have this opportunity to expand into the brand that I’ve loved and built, grown with, and been a part of is a dream come true.” Garrison is certified through the Athletics Fitness Association of America (AFAA) as a Group Fitness instructor, Barre Intensity, and Mad Dogg Athletics for Spin. Her fitness training forte includes teaching barre, Spin, Pilates, stretch, hip-hop, and strength training. The Balance Culture already has devoted members that drive from Winter Haven to Lakeland for their uniquely women-centric atmosphere. Tait and Garrison knew the Chain of Lakes city would be the perfect place for a sister studio. “Every day, it has been support after support from the Chamber to Main Street, Haven, the Sun. Everyone has jumped on board with what we’re doing here and supported us,” Garrison said. “They’re excited for us, and it’s been such a sweet surprise.” She relocated to Winter Haven in July and now lives just two blocks from the 5th Street fitness studio. The 2200-square-foot Winter Haven space boasts an open studio for their signature group fitness classes, including a barre and mirrors along the wall. Cork beneath the gym flooring remains from the location’s former life as a dance studio. The fitness studio has a client lounge with cubbies and restrooms and an area for nutritional coaching. Balance Culture’s bread and butter are group fitness classes, including Barre, Pilates, Endurance Training, Yoga, HIIT, Bootycamp, Strength Training, and beginner classes. The studio also offers personal training, small group classes, private sessions, and community events. In addition to their variety of group classes, Tait noted, “We have a nutrition coach that meets one on one with clients that are interested in having that support in their nutrition journey of ‘What should I eat? How can I partner my nutrition with what I’m doing in the studio to feel my best?’” The boutique fitness studio aims to create an atmosphere distinct from other gyms and workout spaces. “Our whole thing from the beginning was we want to make everyone feel welcome from the moment they open the door,” Tait said. “From our instructors to our interns, everyone is very much into the mission of empowering women, and that’s woven into everything we do.” Along with building physical strength, the Balance Culture owners hope to encourage their clients mentally. “I think our clients really feel that and feel like their effort and the way they show up in the studio has affected the way they’re able to show up in other ways like in their profession and in their relationships,” Tait said. “That’s our heart, a holistic approach to health.” The Balance Culture Winter Haven had a soft launch from December 29 – December 31, during which they offered two classes a day, free to members and $5 per class for non-members. Their grand opening is set for January 2, 2023, when a full schedule of classes is set to begin. Balance Culture members have unlimited access to all classes and are welcome to attend as many as they’d like. Visit their website to register for a Balance Culture membership or reserve classes. Members can also download “The Balance Culture” app to create a profile and reserve classes. “I think it’s meeting new women in a new city, giving them a space of confidence and empowerment,” Garrison said. “That’s a huge part of our story – you’re not just walking into a gym. You’re not just walking into a fitness studio. You’re walking into your vulnerability and your story. If that means you get to stand next to your friend, do some squats, and laugh because your legs are shaking so much – amazing. If it means you get to come in here after a really hard day of being challenged or feeling defeated, and you walk out of here with something new and bright and strong – that’s worth it too. And if it means you get to sit at our table and talk through what’s going on in your life and where you need help – that’s a part of it too.” As it is for many, this is a transformative time for The Balance Culture – new year, new digs, new community. Owners Ruthie Tait and Stephanie Garrison are up to the challenge. “Our heart is to create sustainable change and create something that people can work into their lives not just in January but for the rest of the year,” Tait said. The pair plan to make their Winter Haven space in the image of their flagship Lakeland studio: a place to gain strength, build confidence, make sustainable changes, and celebrate yourself and the women around you. And if you have the occasional slice of pizza or take a self-care day – that’s okay too. Life is all about balance. Photography by Amy Sexson The Balance Culture 1037 Florida Ave S #125, Lakeland -AND- 31 5th St NW, Winter Haven FB: The Balance Culture IG @thebalanceculture thebalanceculture.com