Pinellas County - Clearwater Beach - Sand Key - Belleair Shore/Beach
Indian Rocks Beach - Indian Shores - Redington Shores - No. Redington Beach
Redington Beach - Madeira Beach - Treasure Island - St. Pete Beach
Paradise has a new address
By Brittany Smith
ST. PETERSBURG — For those seeking a place of refuge from the increasingly stressful activity we call life, 
Massage Envy in St. Petersburg recently opened its doors. Massage Envy, a full service massage clinic, strives to bring the advantages of therapeutic massage available to everyone. The nationwide franchise has been the forerunner in the evolution of the massage industry from a luxury service to a preventative medical practice and wellness plan. Massage Envy was among the first to bring the health benefits of massage to the table as an alternative medicine.
Regional developer Rich Dunning opened 12 massage clinics in this region. The franchise boasts more than 450 clinics across the nation. The hours and locations of the clinics make scheduling an appointment easy for those who have busy schedules and the membership packages make routine massage therapy more affordable than most conventional clinics and spas.
“I believe in the medical benefits of massage therapy,” Cindi Bastien said when asked why she forayed into the massage industry four years ago.
Massage Envy’s business model strives to be professional, convenient and affordable so that those who might not initially consider massage as an alternate to health and wellness will have the opportunity to see for themselves if therapeutic massage is right for them.
All of the massage therapists are licensed practitioners in the state of Florida.
Each massage is customized to a client’s needs and concerns including migraines, carpal tunnel, aches and pains, sleep deprivation, stress, muscle stiffness, even fibromyalgia.
Massage therapists Wesley Olive and Robert Quarltere each offered a perspective on the massage industry.
“We have to learn how to take better care of ourselves,” Quarltere said, adding that we often put ourselves last during the most stressful periods of our lives. He also stated one of the results many of his clients experience is a higher energy level, a result of having more relaxed muscles that are better able to break down and absorb energy.
Olive said “the idea of alternative medicine rather than having surgery” is why he pursued a career in the massage industry. “I just wanted to help people,” he added.
Beach museums offer area history
By Aaron Coder
PINELLAS COUNTY —The beach communities are home to just a handful of museums but for those willing to
dig beneath the sandy surface, these institutions offer visitors a unique opportunity to learn about the area’s cultural diversity, early economy, ecological sensitivity and more.
Gulf Beach Historical Museum
115 10th Ave.
St. Pete Beach (Pass-a-Grille)
Newspaper clippings, photographs and centuries-old artifacts offer a retelling of the history and development of the barrier island communities dating back to some of the earliest known European contacts with the area’s native inhabitants. Even the building housing the museum, purported to be the first church built on a Pinellas County beach, is a vestige of days gone by. Visitors can count on the doors being open Friday and Saturday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Sunday, 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. Admission is free, with donations encouraged. The museum offers $10 memberships (that helps fund the operating costs) and includes a newsletter subscription and gift store discounts. Call (727) 552-1610 for more information.
Suncoast Seabird Sanctuary
18328 Gulf Blvd.
Indian Shores
A museum can be defined as an institution which studies, maintains and exhibits for public viewing and education objects considered of lasting significance or value. By this definition, zoological parks and gardens often fall under the umbrella of museums.
As a wild bird hospital and rehabilitation center, the Suncoast Seabird Sanctuary can admit up to 10,000 birds over the course of a year. Among those are several that join the ranks of the permanently injured or are otherwise unable to be released. Those birds become residents of the sanctuary’s permanent exhibits, housed in labeled habitats for viewing by the public. Open now for 36 years, the sanctuary houses 150 to 175 birds at any given time.
Visitors can get a close-up view of the American White Pelican, Pelecanus erythrorhynchos, a visibly larger, more sociable cousin of the Brown Pelican, Pelecanus occidentalis, commonly seen throughout coastal Florida. The sanctuary is home to numerous wading birds, birds of prey, including owls and several species of woodpecker to name just a few.
Michelle Glean Simoneau, the sanctuary’s marketing and public relations director, said plans are in the works to open an educational center by the end of the year.
The sanctuary is open daily from 9 a.m. to sunset. Admission is free, donations are welcome and volunteers are always needed. The sanctuary staff can be reached at (727) 391-6211 or (727) 391-2473.
Indian Rocks Beach
Historical Museum
203 4th Ave.
Indian Rocks Beach
The Indian Rocks Beach Historical Society funds and operates this museum housed in a 1930’s beach cottage once owned by prominent and early residents Carl and Caroline Moseley. Exhibits in the museum include photographs dating back to the 1850’s, period clothing and artifacts, a seashell collection and an abundance of memorabilia significant to the area. Also on display are a scale replica of a sea turtle nest and a small collection of artillery dug up from the days when MacDill Air Force Base used adjacent lands for bombing practice.
It’s also one of the few places where visitors can learn about the Timucuan, an indigenous people who were among the area’s earliest human inhabitants and who, some say, put the “Indian” in Indian Rocks Beach. A collection of native artifacts found in the Intracoastal Waterway near Indian Rocks Beach is on display.
Admission is free and donations are welcome. The museum is open year round, Wednesday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. For more information call (727) 593-3861.
10|01|08