ST. PETERSBURG | Watermark’s bi-monthly Tampa Bay social networking event Watermark Wednesday benefited SPCA Tampa Bay at The Woodhouse Day Spa Jan. 16.
SPCA Tampa Bay is the only nonprofit animal welfare agency that runs an open-admission animal shelter, pet training facility and public veterinary center in Pinellas County. Founded in St. Petersburg in 1940, the organization has cared for homeless pets throughout the area for over 75 years.
It’s been two years since we, as a country, entered into the reality that is the Trump Administration. The country feels more divided than ever and the phrases “fake news” and “it’s all a witch hunt” are commonplace.
The violence that seems to define who Americans are these days is also there, particularly in Florida, where there has been no justice for the five transgender women of color who were murdered and yet another mass shooting—this time at a high school in Parkland, Fla.—pulled the focus of the world to our state.
Toward the end of each year, Watermark highlights local, unsung heroes who have gone above and beyond to show with action just how remarkable they are.
We want our readers to help decide who deserves recognition for their inspiration, contribution or achievement in the 2018 calendar year. In honor of the year, we are looking for the 18 — 9 from Central Florida and 9 from Tampa Bay — Most Remarkable People of 2018.
Sometimes after a sheriff has wrestled all the varmints in town and saved the day, they have no other option but to hop on their horse and head west to find more towns who need a hero. So is the tale of Orange County’s first openly transgender sheriff deputy Rebecca Riley Storozuk.
She broke the news on Facebook saying she has accepted a job with the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office.
Here we are in the thick of the holiday season. It’s sometimes hard to tell that the holidays are approaching in mid-Florida. There is so much to be done this time of year that the days fly by, and it doesn’t help when the weather is in the 70s and 80s. Luckily we are in what Floridians would call a “cold spell” right now, giving us a small taste of North Pole weather.
Christmas has become my favorite time of year. My fondest holiday memories are of when I was a kid. Christmas Eve was a special night for us. It was a night for the whole family to be together. We’d enjoy the lights my dad and uncles put up and snack all night on my mom’s famous date-nut bread. I was in charge of mixing the sherbet and ginger ale, a concoction I apparently couldn’t get enough of when I was young. When it got late, mom would tuck us into bed and read us Luke’s Christmas story from the Bible until we would fall asleep. Sometimes we were too excited so she’d have to read ‘Twas The Night Before Christmas as well. We’d wake up to a wonderland. I remember nothing but warmth, happiness and love. It was magical.
Watermark has chosen those who stood out from the LGBTQ community – 16 remarkable individuals who made a mark in 2016; whether through activism, generosity or beating the odds.
It has been a difficult year for all of us, both politically and personally, and those we have selected have made the most change, been the most inspiring and helped to make our LGBTQ community that much stronger in the face of adversity.
Below, our 16 Most Remarkable People of ’16.
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Bohemian rhapsody! May 28, 12:36 PM
Their cover of the Sound of Silence is amazing. May 21, 7:06 AM
hallelujah May 19, 12:29 AM
Watermark is a multi-faceted media company using opportunities and innovations to communicate and advance LGBT interests, with a corporate emphasis on professionalism while building strong relationships with our readers, customers and community.
