There are often situations where we face what seem to be insurmountable odds, unable to break through obstacles, and in truth, that does happen. At times, however, whether you want to call it perseverance, stubbornness, tenacity, faith, or another word, we find a way to beat those odds, to achieve a goal that others may in fact have told you was impossible.

Deena Hoagland is an amazing woman that I had the privilege to recently meet.  Deena and her husband, Peter, head the small staff of Island Dolphin Care in Key Largo, Florida, but their facility is not the place to simply go and frolic with dolphins. Recreational/educational swims with dolphins are available in Key Largo at Dolphins Plus and Dolphin Cove, but Island Dolphin Care provides extraordinary therapy that focuses on special needs children, wounded veterans, and selected other special needs adults.

This remarkable story is provided on their site at www.islandfdolphincare.org, but in essence Deena and Peter’s son, Joe, was born with a heart defect and required multiple surgeries as an infant and toddler. At age three, he suffered a stroke that left him partially paralyzed. Docotors recommended the family move from the high altitude of Colorado and therapists did what they could for the young boy with minimal results. The medical community basically told the Hoaglands that their son wasn’t likely to ever see much progress. It was their second move in Florida to Key Largo when Deena thought that perhaps aquatic therapy could help, yet even that option didn’t seem available. She contacted everyone she could think of and finally one day, she and Joe were able to come in for a swim at Dolphins Plus after the day’s activities had ended. There was no intent for a dolphin interaction, yet Fonzie, one of the Atlantic bottle-nosed dolphins, couldn’t resist at least a little play. Their son’s response to Fonzie gave Deena hope that she could use this initial spark to encourage Joe to achieve small, then greater movements in order to “play” with the dolphin.

Within a year Joe had made remarkable progress, enough to bring attention to Deena’s efforts. By now Deena was convinced of the value of dolphin interaction therapy, but she did not stop with the satisfaction of their son achieving what therapists had said was impossible. She began to tirelessly promote the concept, overcoming skeptcism and the inevitable financial hurdles to initiate therapies in a small way that showed consistent success. Not with every child, of course, but with many. Within a few years, Peter was able to join with her and fully establish the not-for-profit organization as it is today. They have now helped thousands of families as children with autism, cancer, developmental delays, and other needs have experienced breakthroughs in the man-made lagoon where the staff works with the six dolphins. It is an inspiring story that is well worth reading about.

I had the great pleasure of joining Kim Chesure of FM 103.1 and Terry Albury of the Green Turtle Inn in Islamorada for Tuesday’s Girls’ Night Out. The weekly show is live from the Green Turtle Inn and as a plus to just having a good time with several guests, it was our first experience at the iconic restaurant that was opened in 1947. When you consider how often restaurants come and go being in business for more than sixty years says something, even with changing hands upon occasion. This is one of those places where you have laid-back Keys combined with white tablecloths and an atmosphere that draws you in when you step through the door onto the plank flooring. The U-shaped bar is a focal point of the main room and it was easy to see why people filled it for both drinking and dining.

The menu is selective and if what we had is typical, I know we’ll be back for more. And by the way, I admit that I had never considered the idea of “tater bites for grownup”, but if you take those little goodies, flavor them up with garlic, parmesan cheese, and I’m not sure which other spices, you do get a taste that is not like when you were a kid. As tempted as we were by the concept of lobster lasagna, my husband hadn’t had veal Osso Bucco in ages and he couldn’t pass that up. I decided on the “Flight” of three dishes paired with three wines; a special that they have during Girls’ Night Out. We didn’t indulge in dessert, although the description of the Chocolate Decadence Mousse Cake was intriguing and I’m sure their Key Lime Pie is excellent.

Now about those awesome women – in addition to Kim and Terry, I mean.  On the way down to the Green Turtle Inn, my husband and I ran by Island Dolphin Care, an incredible facility in Key Largo that provides therapy for children, wounded veterans, and others. This unique dolphin-human interaction is a result of the determination of Deena Hoagland, supported by her husband, Peter, after they had attempted numerous traditional therapies for their young son Joe who was partially paralyzed. Deena’s remarkable vision has now helped thousands of people and I’ll talk more about her and Island Dolphin Care in my next post.

Denise Nedimyer, one of the Directors for the Coral Restoration Foundation, was another guest on the show and we chattered away before and after our times with the headphones and mike. I’ll also explain more about Denise and their program in another post.

There were other guests as well, but I got rather caught up in the hub-bub as I often do, and missed some segments of the show. And that was even before I had a glass of wine! It was a terrific night and I thoroughly enjoyed being a part of it.