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In 2023 the Sandestin Beach and Golf Resort in Miramar Beach will celebrate its 50th anniversary. For decades, the resort has drawn visitors to its beautiful white sand beaches, made from quartz carried from the Appalachian Mountains 20,000 years ago. After 50 years, it’s no surprise that the largest resort situated in Florida’s Gulf Coast, spanning over 2,400 acres, and the only one to lay claim to waterfront access to both beach and bay, remains the ultimate destination for generations of coastal adventurers, families, couples, reunions, winter vacationers, and getaways.

In celebration of their 50th anniversary, there are so many milestones to highlight during its five-decade history. The Sandestin as we know it today wasn’t always destined to be a world-class residential golf and beach resort. In the 1950s it almost became the home for “Disney World” as Walt Disney almost bought the land. Later on, In the 1970s, the land eventually  fell into the hands of developers keen on building a resort community and finally in 2010 it was acquired by the Becnel family. The newest luxury offering at the Resort, which started construction in 2019, is Osprey Pointe.

Sandestin is a special and unique place, deeply rooted in community and values, steeped in a culture of genuine hospitality. Over the years the landscape has changed a bit and their story continues to evolve, but one thing remains the same  —  Sandestin has solidified its place as one of the premier resorts in the Southeast, welcoming thousands of families each year to experience the resort and make cherished memories.

In 2021 the resort welcomed Hotel Effie, a luxury hotel with a rooftop pool, full-service spa and a 3-meal restaurant by James Beard winner, Hugh Acheson. In the near future, The Cascade, a new luxury development will open, creating more options for travelers and residents. .

As for 2023, there are many exciting happenings to celebrate this milestone anniversary, including: 30A Songwriters Festival – Jan. 13-16, Mardi Gras Parade – Feb 19, 36th Annual Sandestin Wine Festival – April 13-16, Blue Marlin Classic – June 22-26, and the Baytowne Beer Festival in Oct. The Cascade, the latest residential development and luxury project, will be opening in 2023.

For more information, please visit www.sandestin.com.

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By Michelle Ruschman

One of the greatest gifts you can give to a child is the knowledge they have someone on their side. Carita Smith, Volunteer Recruiter, for the Florida Guardian ad Litem, is on a mission to ensure that local children who find themselves displaced from their homes know there is someone they can still count on to advocate for their best interests. In our area, there should be 136 volunteers. There are currently only 43.

The Guardian ad Litem is made up of a three-pronged system that becomes part of a child’s team when a judge rules they need to be sheltered, or removed from the home. One part of Guardian ad Litem is the Case Advocacy Manager, who maintains the level of care from the office and supports the volunteers to ensure they can advocate effectively. These managers are on staff along with the child’s Best Interest Attorney to make sure the team is running smoothly. At the center of the trio, is the Volunteer Child Advocate. It is this volunteer who visits the children to make sure their needs are being met. If they find the children are in need they report back to the Case Advocacy Manager and the attorney to see if services can be put in place. They are the thread that connects the child to the judge and all other agencies that work with the court. Their sole mission is to take care of the child. It is this Volunteer Child Advocate position that Carita is working hard to fill and it is mission-critical.

“We work alongside any agency that’s in contact with that child,” Carita said.” If the child is in foster care, we visit with them at least once a month, but our volunteers usually go more often. We talk to the child, make sure they’re getting what they need, and ask how they feel. We want to make sure their innermost person is taken care of.

“We also talk with the foster parent to get a sense of how the child is behaving and what their day looks like,” she continued. “If the child has interactions with their parents, we want to know how they responded to the visitation so we can keep an eye out for any triggers. If they’re visiting with a parent twice a week for 30 minutes to an hour, how’s that child’s behavior when they come back? There are a lot of variables that go into a visit like how the visits are maintained and observing how the child feels after these visits. What we observe then becomes information that we provide to the court.”

Due to the shortage of volunteers, Case Managers often have to fill the additional role of the Child Advocate Volunteer, which is far from ideal. Carita shares the steps to becoming a CAV.

“There’s a three-phase training process,” she said. “The first phase is talking with me, submitting your application, and having your fingerprints taken at no cost to the volunteer. You must also pass a level two background screening because of the confidentiality that is required and the places you’re going to. You’re part of the court system and officially taking care of the needs of a child on the state level. Have a clean background.

“Phase two is the classroom portion which is 30 hours, so you do get a lot of training before you get started. Volunteers can choose to do it all online or in two parts by doing the majority online and then coming to a one-day class from 9a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

“Phase three is the most important because it’s when you go out and do the work,” Carita said. “This is when you’re visiting with a child, going to court, seeing how the parents react, and seeing how the judges behave. Just going into court can be scary but when you just observe and start building an understanding of what people are doing, then it becomes easier. You understand that you’re just putting down on paper what you observed and passing it on to someone else. You understand your role in the process of helping these children.”

So who would make the ideal volunteer?

“Someone who loves children,” Carita said. “You have to want to see children get beyond traumatic situations. Children remember what’s happened to them so you have to be patient. Be confident in your abilities so you can ask critical questions.”

Carita stresses that once someone becomes a volunteer, they have plenty of support from the case manager and attorney on their team. In addition to their immediate team, there are also mentors who have been in the position for multiple years, and events are put together so volunteers can be together and make a connection.

As for community support, Carita asks that you contact her to speak about Guardian ad Litem to your churches, small groups, networking groups, businesses, classrooms, etc. She will talk to any group that can help grow the volunteer base.

If you’re interested in talking to Carita about being a Child Advocate Volunteer or would like to book a speaking engagement, call (850) 461-3877 or email carita.smith@gal.fl.gov.

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Why this holiday season may be an ideal time to buy that preowned vehicle you’ve been dreaming about

By Will Estell

Whether you consider yourself a well versed auto aficionado, or someone who simply desires a dependable and presentable automobile to get around in, it’s certainly no secret that both the new and preowned automobile market have been immensely inflated over the past two years. Some of this overvaluation has been due to issues related to the ongoing semiconductor chip shortage, while some – particularly in the used car segment – has been driven by a need for auto dealers with too little inventory to make similar profits while selling fewer cars. This isn’t dissimilar to the perils of many other types of businesses in the past three years. However, this is changing, thankfully.

From 2020 to 2022 we quite literally saw used car prices skyrocket more than ever in automobile history, with the average consumer price of a new vehicle in our country increasing by 6.3 percent from the beginning of 2021 to the beginning of 2022 alone. This, in turn, caused the retail price that most consumers were paying for used vehicles to escalate by 7.2 percent during that same one-year period, according to the U.S. Department of Labor’s latest consumer price index.

All of this means many of us – from dealers to end consumers – have been paying prices that were above previous book value over the past two years. Remember, in simple terms, if the dealer had to buy it high, the dealer had to sell it high – and the truth is, for a while, cars, trucks and SUVs were all trading for well over what their book values could substantiate. There’s no reason to feel bad about being one of those people if you did this yourself. However, I hope you like your car a lot, because unless you paid for it or decide to toss a wad of money with it in a future trade, you’re likely to be stuck with it until it’s paid off, something that will most likely haunt the automobile industry by negatively impacting new car sales a few years down the road.

Jump ahead to the third quarter of 2022, and a lot has changed in the auto industry, and much of that is to your favor, thus, making it a better time to buy than over the past two years. Think of this: only a short year ago people were buying an already depreciating asset, for up to 40 percent above its value, then lenders were actually financing those purchases, based on those inflated numbers. I personally think that’s a recipe for disaster that we won’t see the impact of for two to three years, when people attempting to trade in those vehicles find that they still owe 25 percent to 50 percent more than any dealer or private party would be willing to pay for it. But that’s a discussion for an entirely different article, and one not quite as upbeat and positive as gifting yourself or your loved one with a new car this holiday season.

In the short term, those inflated sales prices of the past two years, combined with supply and demand issues, began to push the actual book values up, too – not to the amount the cars were being sold for, but some. This was because many valuation analysis tools such as NADA and KBB (National Auto Dealers Association, and Kelley Blue Book) are at least partially built upon the averages of current sales transactions, as reported by consumer reporting agencies and automobile dealers around the country. However, it is now a fact that prices have been coming down at the major auctions for close to six months as of this writing, and though it takes a while for the dealer pricing to catch up to the auction and wholesale trends (in terms of what they paid for their current inventory) we are now seeing the results of substantially lower prices (which also affect real book values that are also trending downward from what they were for the same vehicles six months or a year ago) at the retail level.

Over the last four months of 2022, we’ve seen wholesale pricing of almost all pre-owned cars drop considerably around the country. This means that consumers should see those 10-15 percent reductions passed on, with retail pricing already showing signs of tremendously trending downward in major metropolitan markets where more people want more cars, along with more dealerships needing to sell cars, often keeps the prices most competitive. This is exactly why this holiday season may be a much better time to negotiate that ‘best price deal’ than any time in the past two years would have been.

As of this October used vehicle prices were down 10.3 percent from a year ago, according to The Manheim Used Vehicle Index. The wholesale price of used luxury brands is getting hit the hardest and is down 13.5 percent from this same time last year. This is exactly why buying a three- to five-year old Audi, BMW or Mercedes – even at a good price – is often less expensive than even buying a preowned Toyota, Honda or Genesis of the same year, class size and mileage. Preowned SUV prices are down 12.3 percent for the same period, and pickup trucks have now dropped in price by almost 9 percent over the past 12 months.

All of this represents what I see as a definite bright light at the end of the proverbial car buying tunnel, if you’re in the market to buy this holiday season or going into the new year. Having the knowledge of these industry pricing trends can positively affect your ability to close your best deal possible on your next automobile purchase. Remember, car buying isn’t like buying clothing, furniture or the food you eat. Almost everything is somewhat negotiable in the world of used automobiles. Whether you’re buying a F250 King Ranch, a 911 GT3, or a 4Runner, do your homework. Know the real value of the vehicle you’re considering buying. Check the prices for the same vehicle in other markets. And if you have a vehicle to trade, know what the NADA and KBB average dealer trade in is, and ask for that price for your trade. The only thing better than putting that perfect vehicle under your tree, is knowing you also gifted yourself with a smart buy while doing it.

Will Estell is a writer, editor, producer and entrepreneur with more than 500 published features and numerous online articles in an array of genres. Over the past 25 years, Will has been instrumental in founding 12 new magazine titles, as well as serving as editor in chief for numerous others. Originally from the backwoods of rural Mississippi, Will is a father of three who splits his time between Destin and Navarre, along with his wife, ABC 3 news anchor Laura Hussey Estell.

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By JoDell Haverfield, Have Travel Memories

One hundred years ago in January, a young writer from England embarked on a 10-month luxury voyage around the world with her husband. She was 31 years old. Her first novel had been published just two years earlier. On her trip she would surf in Hawaii, cruise the Zambezi River, and ride the train through Australia’s Dandenong Ranges. These experiences would find their way into her later works.

Throughout her novels, foreign destinations became more than just a backdrop – they almost became the characters in her books. She traveled many times on the thrilling train that inspired one of her most famous novels, “Murder on the Orient Express.”

By now you know I am referring to the author Agatha Christie. Whether it was a suite at Brown’s Hotel, a luxury ship or train, her travels were a huge influence on her writing. She was very courageous in her youth as she traveled alone to Syria and Iraq, where she met her second husband and later assisted him in his archaeological digs. “Death on the Nile” was published four years after they cruised the Nile River. Many claim their 1958 trip to Barbados was the setting and inspiration for Agatha’s novel “A Caribbean Mystery.”

By the time Agatha Christie reached the height of her fame, she was an older woman, but it all started with the adventures of her youth. When she first went to Baghdad, she was on her own. She got on a train in London and stopped off in Istanbul. Later, with her first husband and then her second husband, she would travel the whole world. While for most of us our travels won’t make us famous, but they will make us happier.

There is something in our psychological well being about the travel experience. Growing evidence shows that travel is good for body and mind and taking a vacation is more than just a fun diversion from the grind of daily life. Psychologists call it the Easterlin paradox. Travel literally rewires the brain; it reduces depression and just the anticipation of a vacation makes you happier. Perhaps this explains why after the pandemic and mandates, travel is one of the busiest and highest grossing industries. Millennials value experiences over stuff, and science says they might be onto something.

Cruising the Holiday High Seas
A few years ago, my husband and I had the opportunity to host several couples on a Crystal Cruise during the Christmas season. I wasn’t really thrilled about cruising during the busy holidays, even though Crystal is a luxury cruise line and a favorite of many of my clients. “What, Me? Not excited about going on a cruise!?” I know you don’t believe me, but it’s true. We had never sailed at Christmas, and I expected to be eager to get home to my long list of things to do. However, we soon discovered that even with our cruise experience, we seriously underestimated a Crystal Christmas. Soon we became what is known as “Crystalized!” Their 6-Star personalized service and sophisticated atmosphere have long been a favorite of cruise enthusiasts. Crystal Cruises is the world’s most awarded cruise line. Spending time on a Christmas ship transports guests to a winter wonderland and truly magical world. Since that Christmas cruise, Dave and I have sailed the Holiday High Seas a few more times, especially with our grandchildren, sharing with them the magic of a Christmas cruise. Every cruise line from family to luxury celebrates Christmas so there’s a holiday cruise for every budget. A few of my clients even wrap up a cruise ship, plane or train as a gift under the tree.

Very Special Cruises
Through the years, I have had the pleasure of helping my clients plan trips as gifts and surprise trips for other special occasions like anniversaries, birthdays, graduations, reunions, retirements, honeymoons and more. I have even helped two clients plan bucket list trips for their terminally ill spouses and one terminally ill client asked me to help him plan his dream trip, to take his family on an Alaska cruise before he passed. I personally witnessed the joy and comfort these trips brought to my clients and their families. The family memories will last forever.

During the pandemic, the entire world lost the right to travel. Now that all the mandates have been lifted and travel is back to normal, think about planning a trip in 2023 or 2024. Make memories with those you love! This week, our team will head for Israel to see where Christ was born and walk where he walked in preparation for our November 2023 tour to the Holy Land. Those who did the 2022 tour absolutely loved it.

I wish all my readers a very Merry Christmas!

~JoDell, CEO and Luxury Travel Advisor at Have Travel Memories Vacations
jodell@havetravelmemories.com
www.havetravelmemories.com

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