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Mark Goeller named State Forester and Director of Forestry Services

admin

Jun 8, 2018

Mark Goeller was recently named State Forester and Director of Oklahoma Forestry Services by Secretary of Agriculture Jim Reese. Goeller has served Oklahoma Forestry Services, a Division of the Department of Agriculture, Food and Forestry, for the past 33 years. He has held various positions with the division, the latest being Fire Management Chief and Assistant Director since 2005.
“I am pleased to name Mark Goeller as the new State Forester and Director of Oklahoma Forestry Services,” said Secretary of Agriculture Jim Reese. “With his extensive experience and leadership abilities, Mark is the right person to take the division forward to the next level.”
In his new role, Goeller will lead the division of over 100 people who are dedicated to conserving, enhancing and protecting Oklahoma’s forests and natural resources. In addition to providing forest management advice and best practices, Oklahoma Forestry Services is the state’s lead agency for wildfire suppression. “I am proud of what we have been able to accomplish over the past years and excited about the opportunity to continue to provide valuable services to the people of Oklahoma,” said State Forester and Director of Oklahoma Forestry Services Mark Goeller.
In addition to his regular duties, Goeller also serves in leadership roles on the state, regional and national levels. He is chair of the National Wildfire Coordinating Group Risk Management Committee and serves on the S-520 Advanced Incident Management Steering Committee. He also chairs the Southern Group of State Foresters Fire Management Chiefs. Additionally, Goeller is an Operations Section Chief, having served in that capacity on a Northern Rockies Type I Incident Management Team since 2005. His incident management experience comes from wildfire and all-hazards assignments in 21 states. He also serves as chair of Oklahoma’s All-Hazards Standards, Qualifications and Training Committee for Incident Management Teams and a member of the Oklahoma Incident Management Team Advisory Committee. Goeller holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Agriculture – Forest Management from Oklahoma State University.

Oklahoma City Artist Honored in Competition

admin

Jan 9, 2017

art-show-with-betty-hatcher-and-her-purple-iris — Betty Hatcher poses next to her cross-stitching of a purple iris, which earned an honorable mention spot in a national art calendar competition hosted by Watermark Retirement Communities.

Betty Hatcher, a resident at The Fountains at Canterbury in Oklahoma City, earned an honorable mention spot in a national art calendar competition hosted by Watermark Retirement Communities.
The national calendar, created by Watermark Retirement Communities which manages The Fountains of Canterbury, is designed to be a source of inspiration for all those who receive it. Pieces of art submitted for the competition included sculpture, needlepoint, oil and watercolor paintings and mixed-media work. The Expressions art calendar is distributed nationwide and celebrates active aging and the arts.
Hatcher’s cross-stitching was selected as one of 24 honorable mentions for the 2017 Watermark Expressions art calendar out of entries from 39 Watermark communities across the United States.
Hatcher began learning needlework from her mother at a young age. She went on to use her skills as a member of the Oklahoma City Embroiderers Guild for more than 20 years. Her favorite thing about cross-stitching is the multitude of colors and watching a piece transform into artwork. Today, Hatcher is 98-years-old and continues her love of cross-stitching by creating knitted caps for adults and babies as well as baby blankets.
“The Fountains at Canterbury is home to many talented individuals who thrive each day through continuing their life’s passions and discovering new ones,” said Becky Strong, director of community life at The Fountains at Canterbury. “Betty is an incredible artist and we are proud to see her receive national recognition for her talent and hard work.”
The piece was first judged as part of a local competition among residents at The Fountains at Canterbury. Three local experts narrowed down the pieces and sent the five best on to the national competition. Final selections to be featured in the calendar were made at the Watermark Retirement Communities’ national resource center in Tucson, Arizona.
The calendar is available to the public at no charge while supplies last. If you would like a calendar, please call (405) 381-8165.
The Fountains at Canterbury is dedicated to being the first choice in senior living, providing a continuum of care including independent living, assisted living, memory care, innovative rehabilitation therapies and skilled care. The Fountains at Canterbury is managed by Watermark Retirement Communities and is committed to creating an extraordinary community where people thrive. To learn more, please call (405) 381-8165 or go online to www.watermarkcommunities.com.

SN&L TEMPLATE 32 PAGE 02-01-23 CARTOONS

WPHHAdmin

Feb 7, 2023

Senior teaches kids how to achieve

admin

Nov 1, 2016

11370-016 — At 64, John Koons gets some of his greatest joy volunteering inside middle schools with Junior Achievement of Oklahoma.

by Bobby Anderson, Staff Writer
John Koons has always volunteered. It’s in his DNA.
The summer he was 15 his parents urged him to go do something.
Too young to get a job he went to University Hospital and signed up for the Volunteen program as a candy striper.
“It was one of the greatest experiences I ever had in my life and I learned about life out there more than anything,” he said. “I just loved volunteering. Actually that turned into a part-time job my junior and senior year of high school.”
At 64, Koons recently celebrated his 44th year with OG&E and plans on holding his current title of community relations coordinator at least six more years to give him an even half century with the utility giant.
Maybe it’s no coincidence OG&E was one of the four founding companies of Junior Achievement when it came to Oklahoma City in 1966.
Junior Achievement inspires Oklahoma K-12 students by bringing the business world to life inside the classroom through memorable, exciting, hands-on learning experiences.
Established locally in 1966, JAOK serves more than 56,000 Oklahoma students in 68 school districts and 292 schools. Junior Achievement utilizes more than 3,800 dedicated members – like Koons – of the community to implement their programs.
In 1988 Junior Achievement was looking for volunteers to go into metro classrooms 45 minutes a week for six weeks to teach financial literacy.
“I volunteered and I fell in love with it,” Koons said. “I’ve never had any kids but I think I have a gift working with kids. It just took off from there and I’ve been doing it ever since.”
Jo Wise, OKC Regional Director of Junior Achievement, says Koons is now Junior Achievement’s No. 1 volunteer in the state.
“The fact that teachers constantly request John to return to their classrooms speaks volumes on the impact he has had on their students,” added Wise.
Koons is living proof that anyone can volunteer.
“Everybody has a story,” Koons said. “Being there in the classroom, that’s what’s important to these kids. They know you’re volunteering. They know you don’t have to be there. Just to show you care, there’s nothing better than giving.”
“It’s such a great feeling to see that you’re making a difference.”
In 2015, Koons was honored by the Oklahoma Foundation for Excellence.
“John was born for this job,” said Madison Elementary math teacher Anne Luttrell Lawrence. “He has touched the lives of thousands of kids at Madison. He has taught them not to mess with electricity and how businesses are organized. He is Cat in the Hat every spring and Santa Claus every Christmas. Madison Elementary thinks the world of our friend and mentor, John Koons.” In addition to mentoring, Koons is past chairman of the Junior Achievement Board of Directors and an avid recruiter for new mentors.
One of Koons’ favorite volunteer stories happened just a few years ago. Teaching seventh graders financial literacy, he found himself at a Norman Chamber of Commerce banquet when some friends came up.
“They said he’s not into school at all … but he came home after you started teaching this and he’s excited and talks about it all the time,” Koons said. “What was really neat six years later I saw that couple again. The mom said (the son) was now at the Price School of Business at OU. It was Junior Achievement that started him in that direction.”
Junior Achievement makes it easy to volunteer in the classroom. Lessons are premade and all volunteers have to do is show up.
“I find that when I share the things I didn’t do well in my life that’s when the kids really sit up and listen,” Koons said. “I tell them my story and how it hurt me over the years.”
And Koons jokes he has lots of those experiences.
“I don’t have the best story in the world about education because I went to school for two years after graduating high school in 1970 and both years I did terrible,” he said. “My dad looked at my transcript and said ‘you’re wasting your time and my money. I think you need to go to work for a while and then see if you are serious.”
So Koons entered OG&E in the mailroom. More than four decades later he’s worked his way up the ladder. Years later Koons went back to finish his degree and then earned a master’s degree.
It’s a story that Koons enjoys telling and one that has made an impact on literally thousands of Oklahoma school children.

Survey: Only One Quarter Of Nursing Homes Confident They Will Make It Through to Next Year

WPHHAdmin

Jul 6, 2021

Majority of nursing homes, nearly half of assisted living communities operating at a loss

The American Health Care Association and National Center for Assisted Living (AHCA/NCAL), representing more than 14,000 nursing homes, assisted living communities, and other long term care facilities across the country, announced the release of a recent survey of providers across the U.S. Results from the survey showcase the urgent need to address the economic crisis facing the profession.
Key findings include:
* Only a quarter of nursing homes and assisted living communities are confident they can last a year or more.
* More than half of nursing homes and nearly half of assisted living communities say their organization is operating at a loss.
* Nearly half of nursing homes and assisted living communities have had to make cuts in 2021 due to increased expenses or lost revenue.
* The top three costs facilities have incurred due to COVID-19, regardless of whether they have had cases or not, are additional pay for staff, hiring additional staff, and personal protective equipment (PPE).
* In 2021, 84 percent of nursing homes said they are losing revenue due to fewer post-acute patients coming from the hospital.
* Ninety-two percent of nursing homes and 62 percent of assisted living facilities said the Provider Relief Fund has been helpful during COVID.
* More than half of nursing homes and more than one-third of assisted living communities say that Medicaid fee-for-service is problematic in covering the actual cost to provide care to residents. Of those, more than one-quarter of both providers qualify it is a serious problem.
“Even though COVID cases in long term care are at historic lows, providers are struggling to recover from the economic crisis the pandemic has induced. Too many facilities are operating under shoestring budgets simply because policymakers have failed to dedicate the proper resources, and this can have devastating consequences,” said Mark Parkinson, president and CEO of AHCA/NCAL.
An analysis by AHCA/NCAL earlier this year estimated that the nursing home industry is expected to lose $94 billion over the course of the pandemic, and more than 1,800 facilities could close their doors. Closures are hard on vulnerable residents who are forced to move, their family members who must often travel farther to see their loved ones, and dedicated caregivers who are out of a job.
“Lawmakers and public officials across the country must prioritize the residents and caregivers in our nursing homes and assisted living communities,” continued Parkinson. “This starts by sending immediate resources through what remains of the Provider Relief Fund, and it continues by finally addressing the chronic underfunding of Medicaid, which only covers 70 to 80 percent of nursing home care. We have laid out key proposals in our Care For Our Seniors Act to transform America’s nursing homes, but without the help from Congress and state legislators, these necessary reforms will not be possible.”
“We look forward to working with federal and state governments to ensure the stability of our care economy, so that every provider has the ability to deliver the highest quality of care. From being able to have an adequate supply of PPE to compensating caregivers for their heroic work, long term care facilities need financial assistance from lawmakers to keep serving our vulnerable residents,” concluded Parkinson.

Significant Women in Oklahoma Agriculture: Brenda Schulz

admin

Nov 9, 2018

IMG_7939 (2) — Brenda Schulz of Grant, Okla. is being recognized as a Significant Woman in Oklahoma Agriculture.

story and photos by Bryan Painter

GRANT – The cliche is that time flies.
Cattlewoman Brenda Schulz, who ranches near Grant in southeastern Oklahoma’s Choctaw County, won’t argue that point.
However, two 100-year floods in 25 years is more like time sprinting rather than just marching on.
“Some of our toughest times have come from floods,” Schulz said. “Along with the wonderful aspects of having your farm and ranch in the fertile ground of the Red River comes the possibility of flooding. Curt and I have survived not one, but two, of the so called ‘100 year floods.’”
Guess what Schulz thanks for making it through those two experiences? Her cows.
Thanks to the cows
The first of those two floods Schulz is referring to came in 1990.
The May Monthly Summary that year from the Oklahoma Climatological Survey reported that the agricultural-related floods losses exceeded $57 million.
“We had leased farm ground that completely flooded,” Schulz said. “We survived, mainly due to the diversification our cattle provided. Our cattle pastures were up on the prairies around Soper, Oklahoma at this time.”
Then came the floods of 2015.
Gary McManus, state climatologist with the Oklahoma Climatological Survey, said that after being really dry for the first four months of the year, 2015’s “Super El Nino” ended up inundating far southeastern Oklahoma in May and June, and then again in November and December.
“That area near Grant in Choctaw County ended with their wettest year on record, with most of that rain falling within a select few weeks during those four months,” McManus said. “In other words, it was way too much water, concentrated into very short time frames, for the local rivers and reservoirs to handle.”
Schulz said the Red River overflowed its banks and half of their ranch flooded in May. She’s lived in Oklahoma long enough to have seen droughts turn dreams to powder. So she doesn’t curse the rains, she just respects them.
“After the water receded enough to flow within its banks again, areas north and west of us received a lot more rain and the Red River overflowed its banks once again in June,” she said. “We were not able to grow grain crops on our farm ground that year, it was too late in the season and the cows needed it for pasture. The cows have helped us survive those trying times.”
A small world
Schulz witnessed/experienced agriculture from a lot of different geographical viewpoints before landing in Oklahoma in 1984.
Not only did she grow up in North Dakota, she studied animal science at the University of Minnesota and worked with a veterinarian in Colorado where she met her husband Curt. They married in 1983 and a year later moved to Choctaw County, where his parents Delvin and Delores Schulz farmed and ranched.
“We started a beef cow herd as soon as we could,” Brenda Schulz said. “I loved being back around cows and horses. Curtis was custom farming and spraying. We rented farm ground and raised corn and soybeans.”
That was the start.
Today, 34 years after settling down in Choctaw County, they raise Angus cattle, corn, small grains, hay and pecans on 1,500 acres along the banks and in the bottoms of the Red River, south of Grant.
Schulz believes it was meant for her to live here, farm here and ranch here. Why?
Even though she was raised in North Dakota, Choctaw County is within 45 miles of her father Tom Secrest’s birthplace. Her grandfather was a sharecropper cotton farmer around Deport, Texas.
“He decided to settle his young family in east Texas when my grandparents’ wagon broke down, crossing Red River slate shoals,” she said. “These shoals are within 10 miles to the east of Stoneybroke Ranch, which is Curtis’ and my farm and ranch. It’s really a small world. I believe I have come back to my roots.”
Those roots are extending as daughter Kylee and son-in-law Keith Edge (superintendent of Boswell Schools), along with grandsons Kollin, 16, Kamden, 14 and Kolson, 12, take care of their cow/calf operation. They also help out at Stoneybroke Ranch with projects ranging from laying water lines to checking cattle.
Listen close
Cattle and horses aren’t something Schulz just tends to, she cares for them. That was evident as a child when she was around her parents breeding operation of Paints and Quarter Horses. It was evident in what she studied in college and then in the job she took working for the veterinarian. It was evident in how she gives credit to cattle bringing their operation through the floods.
It’s still evident today, especially if you listen real close during certain times of the year.
“In the spring, the cows are calving and all the babies are testing their legs, running and playing,” she said, adding that they tag and vaccinate every calf within 24 hours of birth. “I get to talk to and check the cows for new calves.”
Yes, “talk to.” What do you say?
Schulz said she would softly say something like, “You sure had a pretty baby, didn’t you? Good Mama!”
It is an enjoyable experience like that, that makes time fly at a comfortable pace.

Savvy Senior: What Are the Early Signs and Symptoms of Diabetes?

WPHHAdmin

Sep 1, 2024

Dear Savvy Senior, What are the early signs and symptoms of diabetes? I’m 60 years old, and in pretty good shape, but was just diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. What did I miss? Diabetic Dan

Dear Dan,
The signs and symptoms of type 2 diabetes can be so mild that many people miss them. That’s why testing is so important. Here’s what you should know.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention more than 38 million Americans have diabetes today, and another 97 million have prediabetes, but many of them don’t even know they have it.
Type 2 diabetes is a disease that develops slowly over decades. Most people have prediabetes for a long time before the disease becomes full-blown diabetes, and even then, it progresses gradually.
Diabetes occurs when your blood glucose, also called blood sugar, is too high. This excess blood sugar damages blood vessels and affects circulation, putting you at risk for a host of ailments, from heart attack and stroke to blindness, kidney failure and nerve damage.
Signs and Symptoms
So how can you tell if you have diabetes? The earliest signs, which are usually subtle, including urinating more frequently (often at night), being thirster and hungrier than usual, weight loss without trying, feeling very tired, having dry itchy skin and blurry vision.
And the symptoms that can indicate advanced diabetes and long-term damage has occurred includes cuts or sores that heal slowly, having more infections than usual, and pain or numbness in your feet or legs.
Who Should Get Tested?
Because prediabetes typically causes no outward symptoms, and the signs of early type 2 diabetes can easily be missed, the only way to know for sure if you have it is to get a blood test.
Everyone age 45 years or older should consider getting tested for diabetes, especially if you are overweight with a body mass index (BMI) above 25. See https://www.cdc.gov/bmi to calculate your BMI.
If you are younger than 45 but are overweight, or have high blood pressure, a family history of diabetes, or belong to an ethnic group (Latino, Asian, African or Native American) at high risk for diabetes, you should get checked too.
To help you determine your risk for diabetes, the American Diabetes Association (ADA) has a quick, online risk test you can take for free at https://diabetes.org/diabetes-risk-test.
Diabetes Tests
There are three different tests your doctor can give you to diagnosis diabetes. The most common is the “fasting plasma glucose test,” which requires an eight-hour fast before you take it. There’s also the “oral glucose tolerance test” to see how your body processes sugar, and the “hemoglobin A1C test” that measures your average blood sugar over the past three months. It can be taken anytime regardless of when you ate.
Most private health insurance plans and Medicare cover diabetes tests, however, if you’re reluctant to visit your doctor to get tested, an alternative is to go to the drug store, buy a blood glucose meter and test yourself at home. They cost around $20.
If you find that you are prediabetic or diabetic, you need to see your doctor to develop a plan to get it under control. In many cases lifestyle changes like losing weight, exercising, eating a healthy diet and cutting back on carbohydrates may be all you need to do to get your diabetes under control. For others who need more help, many medications are available.
For more information on diabetes and prediabetes or to find help, join a lifestyle change program recognized by the CDC (https://www.cdc.gov/diabetes-prevention). These programs offer in-person and online classes in more than 1,500 locations throughout the U.S.
Send your senior questions to: Savvy Senior, P.O. Box 5443, Norman, OK 73070, or visit https://savvysenior.org. Jim Miller is a contributor to the NBC Today show and author of “The Savvy Senior” book.

Four Oklahoma City Health Systems Join to Provide Transparency on COVID-19 Impact on Hospitals

WPHHAdmin

Sep 1, 2021

In an effort to provide transparency regarding the rising number of COVID-19 cases in Oklahoma, four Oklahoma City health systems are joining together to provide regular updates on COVID-19 case counts and bed availability.
The health systems will provide a joint update every Monday, Wednesday and Friday until our health care community begins to see relief from this current surge.
As a reminder, these numbers are constantly changing as our teams work to discharge, transfer, and admit patients throughout the day.
INTEGRIS Health: INTEGRIS Health currently has 210 COVID-19 patients in our hospitals, with 173 of those patients in the metro. INTEGRIS Health has no available ICU beds.
Mercy: Mercy currently has 118 inpatients with COVID-19 in Mercy hospitals across Oklahoma, with 66 of those patients at Mercy Hospital Oklahoma City. Mercy has no available ICU beds and three patients waiting in the ER for an ICU bed.
OU Health: OU Health hospitals (all three, including Oklahoma Children’s Hospital OU Health): 42 inpatients with COVID-19. OU Health has no available beds for COVID-19 patients.
SSM Health St. Anthony: 140 inpatients with COVID-19 in SSM Health St. Anthony hospitals. No ICU beds are available.
Information as of Aug. 27, 2021.

CaptionCall: Helping people feel less isolated

WPHHAdmin

Oct 2, 2024

Phone — CaptionCall phone on display at a recent Health Expo.

Lezley Bell talks with an attendee at a recent Health Expo about the benefits of CaptionCall.
She estimates approximately 500 persons in the Metro area have CaptionCall service in at this time.

By Marise Boehs

With CaptionCall service and phone persons with hearing loss can read their phone conversations in big, clear text with home caption phone service. They can count on instant, accurate closed caption phone calls and can keep up with conversations and connections.

The CaptionCall phone displays large, easy-to-read text that automatically captions a conversation. It dials, rings, and work just like a regular phone.

There is no cost for service or phone and delivery, installation, training and support are complimentary. The phone is hearing aid friendly and has bluetooth connectivity. Features include speakerphone, answering machine and custom audio

While the “no cost” aspect of this service often leads to skepticism, Lezley Bell, Senior Account Manager for CaptionCall by Sorenson, explains, “This is a federally funded program that is part of the Americans with Disabilities Act. We have had a tax on all our phone bills, nationwide, every month since 1990.”

No-Cost Closed Caption Phone Service

You decide how you want to use CaptionCall: customize it to your liking and try out all the features or simply pick up the phone and talk. It works like any other phone except the CaptionCall phone that comes with your service has a large interactive screen so you can turn on phone call captioning and read the text of your conversation in real time.

The phone is designed to be technologically advanced on the inside and simple on the outside. You’ll be comfortably enjoying captioned calls right away, whether you choose our Red Carpet Service installation by one of our trainers or if you or a loved one follow our guided setup.

There’s no cost for people with hearing loss who need captions to use the phone. If you qualify for CaptionCall, you can also get our mobile captioning app, CaptionCall Mobile

How does CaptionCall work?

CaptionCall works just like any other phone call, except you don’t have to struggle to hear it. Your phone calls are transformed into text and displayed on the big, auto-scrolling screen as the person’s talking.

What are the qualifications to receive a CaptionCall phone?

Anyone who qualifies for the CaptionCall service will receive a CaptionCall phone to access their call captioning. To qualify for CaptionCall, you must have hearing loss that necessitates the use of captioned telephone service. You must complete an easy self-certification process and provide other mandatory registration information.

As part of the qualification process, Bell explained, “An applicant must verbally say yes I understand this phone is only for people with hearing loss that need captions for their phone calls.”

Does using CaptionCall impact my phone services?

No. CaptionCall works seamlessly with services from your provider, including call waiting, call forwarding, voicemail, and caller ID.

TRAVEL/ ENTERTAINMENT – Jamaica: More than the Jazz & Blues Festival

admin

Apr 24, 2015

Jamaica: More than the Jazz & Blues Festival

Photography and Text by Terry “Travels with Terry” Zinn t4z@aol.com

While an excuse is never needed to visit exotic locales, it’s advisable to have an anchor activity for your visit. The Jamaica Jazz and Blues Festival near Montego Bay, was my initial reason for revisiting Jamaica. I had been there decades ago with a group of college chums. Other than the palm trees and azure waters and the natural wonder of Dunn River Falls near Ocho Rios, I don’t remember much.
The Jamaica Jazz and Blues Festival is a three night event, held this year at the Trelawny outdoor stadium near Montego Bay. The musical line up of acts was impressive, fun and educational. Reggae is not in my lexicon of favorite musical styles, as the first night was all nominal Reggae from local and regional bands
The second and third nights the caliber of musical entertainment increased with well-known performers including: Mariah Carey, Arturo Tappin, Richie Stephens, Peter Cetera, Charlie Wilson, Pointer Sisters and Soja, who were nominated for Best Reggae Album at the 57th Grammy Awards this year. While many expected Carey to be the highlight of the Festival, it was Charlie Wilson and Peter Cetera who earned the adoration of the music fans.
Before and after the evening concerts I visited several Jamaican attractions that offer variety, education and fun. Be sure and plan to visit the restored 1760 Rose Hall plantation house. Here with a personal tour you can step back in time to imagine the lifestyle of a sugarcane plantation owner. The most famous inhabitant was John Palmer’s wife, Annee, who turned out to be called the White Witch by her slaves for her cruel treatment, as she murdered a few husbands and herself was killed in the house. It is said she still haunts the house to this day. While the house was in ruin until in 1965, we are thankful it was completely restored to what might have been its glory days.
Chukka Caribbean Adventure Tours (www.chukka.com) offers ATVs, dune buggy rides and Zip lining. It is a safe and enjoyable soft adventure to drive a two person dune buggy through the orchards with majestic views of the distance Jamaican mountains. Zip lining is always an adventure, for no two locales are ever the same. As you sit down into your harness and let go, you never know what jungle vistas will be zipping by. Going through the fork of a large tree, is indeed a thrill. The expert guides at Chukka are to be commended for their skill and attention. Chukka also offers, nature canopy tours, river floating and rum tastings. If you can work into your time, visit the great house. The view from atop this hilltop mansion of the Egg Crate Mountains provides a unique memory.
Over in Ocho Rios, be sure and visit Mystic Mountain (www.rainforestbobsledjamaica.com) with its dry bobsledding ride, Dolphin Cove (www.dolphincovejamaica.com) with its sea life and aviary, and it goes without saying to visit iconic Dunn River Falls (www.dunnsriverja.com). For Jamaican history visit the downtown Montego Bay Cultural Center, by Sam Sharpe square with parking in the rear.
In Montego Bay you may wish to stay at the adults only, all inclusive, upscale Hyatt Zilara hotel (http://rosehall.zilara.hyatt.com) with its extensive pools and palm fringed private beach. While I don’t know if it’s officially recommended, but with eight all inclusive (no bills) dining locales, where reservation are not taken, your own impromptu progressive dinner could be enjoyed. What a luxury to sample an appetizer here, and entree at another venue and then dessert at another.
Hyatt Zilara offers Brazilian style dinning; Italian, with fresh made oven baked pizzas; an anytime buffet at Horizons, and a favorite of all, the on the beach Jerk stand, with melt in your mouth grilled chicken, port and sausage. Open till 6 pm, a beach side sampling, always hot and ready, is indeed a vacationer’s dream. Beach and pool side servers are available to take and deliver your beverage requests. More eating options are also available along with a Crepe stand near the lobby, operating until 2 pm. And don’t forget 24 hour room service. At Flavorz, I had a Welsh Rabbit, Sunday Roast with Yorkshire Pudding (a pastry), topped off with Jamaican Fruit Cake which is more like a chocolate mousse cake infused with fruit flavors.
On my first night I was delighted at the service and ambiance of the dress code-enforced Petit Paris restaurant. Stewart, my server was informative, efficient and personable as he served me scallops, a house salad, Steak Frites and an out of this world coconut CrÃ¨me Brule. I added another perfect martini made from the Stirz bar adjacent to the main lobby. Not many bars in the best resorts can make a proper martini or follow directions, but at the Hyatt Zilara, over several days of enjoyable testing, I found them all accomplished. With an evening beverage in hand while strolling along the balmy ocean surf at dusk, you can create and take in a true lux resort experience.
You need not wait until next year to visit Jamaica during the Jazz and Blues Festival, for as you can see Jamaica has many other attractions around which to center your visit. My thanks to the Jamaica Tourist Board for their assistance, as they can also help you plan your Jamaican visit. (www.visitjamaica.com)