• Condolences to attorney Howard Coker, whose wife Fran passed away late Monday while in Nova Scotia.
• Leaders of our chapter of the Commercial Real Estate Women invite you to attend Tuesday’s meeting at the Marriott at Southpoint to hear Dale Carnegie trainer Olivia Kimball. You can fax your RSVP to 954-7886 and it’s $25 for members, $40 for non-members.
• The boat show will be next weekend at the Osborn Center and they expect 500 boats. In 58 previous years, it’s outgrown every venue including the armory, Gator Bowl, coliseum, civic auditorium and even a hangar at NAS. And no, not everything will fit inside this year.
• The Junior League is getting ready for its “Whale of a Sale” on Feb. 25 at the fairgrounds and is billing it as a “1,200 family garage sale.”
• Assistant state attorney Jay Plotkin has another big job as president of the Rotary Club of South Jacksonville and he had a pleasant duty recently — handing out checks from proceeds from the recent Gingerbread House competition. The Ronald McDonald House of Jacksonville and HabiJax each got $40,000 and the club’s charity fund got $16,000.
• Mayo Clinic Jacksonville CEO George Bartley arrived in Florida in 2002, but he says it’s only recently that he’s feeling like a local. The reason? Bartley’s daughter recently enrolled at the University of Florida, giving him a rooting interest in the state’s sports scene. “Now we have a Gator in the family,” said Bartley. “Now I’m starting to feel like a Floridian.”
• As spokesperson for The Landing, Rachel Kaltenbach often was among the first to know when news broke about the downtown mall. But she was in the dark about one event: her going away party. It was a surprise affair at Koja Sushi Tuesday afternoon.
• After 77 years of exclusively serving employees of select business partners, Seaboard Credit Union has received approval from the state’s Office of Financial Regulation to expand its services to all those who live or work in Duval County. The credit union was established in 1929 for employees of the Seaboard Airline Railroad, which later merged with the Atlantic Coast Line and is now CSX Transportation.
• If you want to watch the Super Bowl at Sneakers Sports Grille at the beach, you’d better have a reservation. Every other day of the year, the beaches location doesn’t have a cover charge. For the Super Bowl, however, a comfy table for two is $20, a four-top $40 and a six-top, which can seat eight, is $60. The cost includes raffle tickets for items such as a $1,200 jersey. “It’s not like it’s a cover charge,” said a Sneakers representative. “There’s only so many seats available. If we didn’t charge it would be an out-right mess. During big games, people fight over tables.” The representative, who didn’t want to be identified, did say that if all the seats were taken, standing-room wouldn’t cost anything. “You can still come and have a beer and stand,” she said.
• The Chamber’s Downtown Council meets this Friday morning and they’ll hear from John Reyes, the executive director of the Jacksonville and the Beaches Convention and Visitors Bureau. The breakfast meeting is at the River City Brewing Co.
• If you don’t have tickets to the NCAA basketball tournament here March 16 and 18 there’s still hope for you. Turns out that they need volunteers and there’s an information session Saturday, February 18 at the arena.
• The Monique Burr Foundation for Children recently announced its 2006 board. Members of the executive committee are Ed Burr, president; Bert Simon, vice president; John Fletcher, treasurer; and Ellen Morris Mills, secretary and chair of expansion.
• The St. Johns Riverkeeper, along with the Mandarin Museum and Historical Society, will celebrate the history and ecology of the St. Johns River March 11 from 11 a.m.- 4 p.m. There will be reenactors, games and activities for children, food, musical entertainment, nature programs, free kayaking and canoeing and boat rides. Boat trips are available for a donation of $10 per person, $5 for children or $20 per family.