Epiphany Cathedral in Venice was overflowing with Catholics from around southwest Florida – and a host of Church Dignitaries - to witness the ordination of a new Bishop. Frank Dewane will become second Bishop of the Diocese of Venice when Bishop John Nevins retires this later. Dewane says as spiritual leader of the Diocese one of his top priorities will be attracting more to serve.

“I don’t believe we have fewer callings by the holy spirit or god for vocations – I do think there are fewer people responding to it, in the midst of a society that has a great deal it may appear to be to limiting of oneself – and find young people who are able to accept that challenge.”

Dewane comes to Southwest Florida from Rome where he served as undersecretary for the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace. The Diocese of Venice was founded in 1984 – it includes 10 southwest Florida counties – with about 230 thousand Catholics. W-G-C-U’s Valerie Alker will have a full report on the ordination coming up.

Fifty years ago today the luxury liner Andrea Doria collided with another ship - the Stocholm - off the coast of New England and sank. Fifty people perished. Andrew Stevens of Rotonda was on board the Andrea Doria - with his parents. They were returning to the United States after living in Paris for two years. As Stevens recalls, the collission around 11:30 at night - in a deep fog.


“it was very foggy. I had gone out on deck about twenty minutes before and I could not see the bow of our ship the Doria, nor could I see when looking over our the rail of our ship the wake of the ship passing by the ship.”


Stevens and his parents escaped down a rope to a bobbing life boat and were eventually picked up by another ship - the Isle De France. WGCU Public Televisions will broadcast the story of the Andrea Doria tonight at 8:00 on "Secrets of the Dead".

The CRA Qualified Investment Fund is reaching out to help Hurricane Charley victims. The mutual fund is part of a money management organization. The CRA Fund is investing 7 million dollars in the Charlotte County Hurricane Housing Recovery Program. This investment is creating a pool of millions of dollars that lenders can use to create new home mortgages. The CRA Fund Portfolio Manager Barbara VanScoy says the money will go toward home financing.

“It will be primarily low and moderate income families in Charlotte County that are looking to either purchase homes or to re-have their existing home that may have been damaged by the hurricane. / They’re not going to be given like a grant or lump sum of money. What they’re doing is they’re working with mortgage lenders and they’re getting slightly below mortgage rates.”

VanScoy says she hopes this investment will be the first of many to come from the CRA Fund. Category 4 Hurricane Charley struck Charlotte Harbor on Friday the 13th two years ago leaving thousands homeless and becoming the third costliest hurricane in U.S. history.

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Thousands of people were left homeless by Hurricane Charley and many are still struggling. That’s why the CRA Qualified Investment Fund, part of a money management organization, is investing 7 million dollars in the Charlotte County Hurricane Housing Recovery Program. The CRA Portfolio Manager Barbara VanScoy says this investment provides a good example.

“I think that this is a good template for going forward in other natural disasters to help revitalize and stabilize areas that have been hurt by natural disasters. /We’re just very excited about being able to do this in our home state of Florida and that we hope this will be just the first.”

VanScoy says the investment will help primarily low and moderate-income families by creating a pool of millions of dollars lenders can use to originate new home mortgages. This will help those left homeless by the storm by giving them slightly lower mortgage rates.

City council members in Avon Park vote up or down tonight on a proposed ordinance that would fine landlords who rent to so-called “illegal immigrants”. Dubbed “The Illegal Immigration Relief Act” – the ordinance would fine landlords a thousand dollars for each undocumented person they rent to. Two city council members oppose the ordinance. Mayor Tom Macklin is part of the majority of three. He says illegal immigrants are destroying Avon Park’s character.

“Now that they’re finding low paying construction jobs they’re here year round and that actually compounds the problems in an enforcement mode because the homes are occupied a greater period of the year.”

Avon Park is city of 8 thousand in Highland’s County – about twenty percent of its residents are Hispanic. The proposed ordinance would also make English the official language. Mary Bauer of the Southern Poverty Law Center says it’s legally flawed and mean spirited.

“it’s a ordinance that’s been making the rounds. it’s an ordinance that’s been proposed in similar form in Hazleton penn. and san bernadino California so its clearly being marketed by the anti immigrant crowd .”

The public hearing is at 6:00 followed by the vote. Avon Park Mayor Tom Macklin says he’s willing to defend any legal changes.

Naples-based Health Management Associates announced Monday it will sell three hospitals. The move is part of an effort to shore up shaky earnings. After the sale of the three hospitals in West Virginia and Arkansas, H-M-A will operate 59 facilities in 14 states. The sale comes a few months after the rural hospital operator announced its earnings had slowed. Executives blamed soaring Medicare costs, a jump in uninsured patients and malpractice insurance hikes. But analyst Sheryl Skolnick of C-R-T Capital says H-M-A shouldn’t stop now...

“Perhaps focusing more on the company’s roots of rural hospitals as opposed to things that look a whole lot more urban like the Orlando region. Or even the west coast of Florida. I would hesitate to describe Naples as a rural market.”

H-M-A recently purchased the former Cleveland Clinic in Collier County. Skolnick says she wouldn’t be surprised if H-M-A sells even more unprofitable hospitals in the coming months.

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Shares of Health Management Associates start the day three-percent higher. It comes after the Naples-based rural hospital operator announced it plans to sell three of its facilities in West Virginia and Arkansas. H-M-A has reduced its earnings outlook this year and hinted a few months ago it might sell some operations. H-M-A owns about 60 hospitals nationwide and had been on a buying spree the last few years. But now analyst Sheryl Skolnick of C-R-T Capital says this latest message is confusing.

“This is inconsistency of we get big. We get small. We get big. We get small. [It] can make one feel a little bit like you’re watching a tennis match as opposed to watching a company with a very clear, long-term strategic growth plan.”

The brother of Israeli Prime Mininster Ehud Olmert was in Southwest Florida this weekend. Yossi Olmert spoke Sunday in the Student Union Ballroom at Florida Gulf Coast University. He says his brother has the support of the majority of Israeli’s in the current armed conflict with Hezbollah in Lebanon.

“he’s a very strong person, a democratically elected leader – and he leads the state of Israel as far as I can judge from the facts that I have in my command – he enjoys the support of over 80 percent of the Israeli people as shown by public opinion polls and the steadfast resolute – always on the defense of the Jewish people.”

Yossi Olmert current lives in New York and lectures widely. His lecture at FGCU was sponsored by the Jewish Federation of Collier County.

Meanwhile members of the local Arab community and others rallied outside the Student Union at FGCU Sunday to show their support for Lebanese civilians One of the organizers is Fouad Jaber, an area resident and Lebanese citizen.

“We want to point out that Lebanese citizens are suffering from the Israeli bombing and our aim to get the world to see that and have a cease fire immediately and then whatever Israel wants can be negotiated but they have to stop and have a cease fire immediately, and that’s the aim of our rally.

Jaber is scientist with the University of Florida Research Center in Immokalee.

Punta Gorda City Council Members were briefed on possible solutions to the city’s affordable housing shortage Friday. Hurricane Charley 2 years ago pummeled Punta Gorda taking out close to 300 affordable housing units. There’s been a flurry of construction since then – but most of the new housing is classified as upscale as opposed to workforce. Punta Gorda’s Urban Design Manager David Hilston says options up for consideration include setting up an urban land trust.

“plus the land trust comes into play in that we can reduce the cost of the home by pulling out the value of the land thereby making it affordable.”

The city is also taking ideas for ways to provide more affordable on at it’s website – www.PuntaGorda.fl.us.

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There’s a flurry of building go on in and around Punta Gorda these days. One of Hurricane Charley’s legacies is many empty lots. But luxury homes are going up where modestly priced homes once stood. The city’s urban design manager, David Hilston is looking for ways to encourage developers to build affordable housing. He’ll present strategies for that at today’s City Council meeting – including ways to promote mixed use construction.

“how can we incorporate mixed use into new projects coming in and how can we provide inclusionary zoning that would be a functional mix of high end middle and low end housing”

Punta Gorda lost about 300 units of affordable housing to Hurricane Charley. Part of that was public housing. Funding is now in place for the Punta Gorda Housing Authority to begin construction on 80 new units.

The school food service is taking applications now for students who need free or reduced meals.
In Charlotte County about 42 percent of public school students qualify for free and reduced meals. The Charlotte School District’s spokesman Michael Riley says at one school in particular almost 80 percent of students qualify. And just getting food to them is not enough.

“There has been a focus recently on health and nutrition with the kids./ They’re trying to find alternatives to get so many of the sweets out of the school and get more nutritious snacks in. Our food service director has worked very hard to comply with federal and state standards and really to provide nutritious meals to the kids. That’s their goal.”

Riley says qualifications for free and reduced meals are based on a federal formula involving the number of children in a household. Children from families with incomes at or below 130 percent of the poverty level are eligible for free meals, while those between 130 and 185 percent of the poverty level are eligible for reduced meals.

Senator Smith hails from the small town of Alachua, just outside Gainesville. He doesn’t have the name recognition of the other contenders and trails in the polls and fundraising. But he has seen increases in both in recent weeks. Smith will square off against (Democratic) Tampa Congressman Jim Davis in the September primary. Speaking from his motorcade as he barnstorms the state, Smith says his campaign has got momentum.

“The fundraising’s going very well. The polls are showing that we’ve been constantly moving. We’ve closed the gap on Congressman Davis. He started off, of course, with an enormous advantage...been in politics a lot longer. So we knew we were spotting him a few points to start with but that’s all getting less and less relative now.”

On the Republican side, state Attorney General Charlie Crist and Chief Financial Officer Tom Gallagher will vie for the G-O-P nomination. Crist leads in the polls, partly because of his fundraising and early television commercials

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