This week, a little star quality has touched Sarasota Jungle Gardens, and in turn, touched me.  Linda and Ellian Rosaire, two members of the legendary Rosaire family, have joined the attraction as the new animal department managers.

The sisters come from nine generations of a family known worldwide for their gifted training ability, their work in the entertainment and film industry, and as animal educators and conservationists.

Linda and Ellian’s father, Derrick Rosaire, Sr., known as one of the world’s finest animal educators, trained well known animal stars like Gentle Ben, Clarence the Cross Eyed Lion and the animals on Daktari just to name a few.

The Rosaire family has spent their lives immersed in a world focused on communicating with wild animals including lions, tigers, bears, elephants, chimpanzees and more.

Another sister also in the family business is Kay Rosaire, president of the Big Cat Habitat and Gulf Coast Sanctuary in Sarasota.  She made the connection between her sisters and Chris Lavick, Sarasota Jungle Gardens’ chief operating officer, which resulted in their new appointments.

Each sister is unique and offers different talents to the animal kingdom. Recognized as a modern day “Dr. Doolittle,” Linda has a lifetime of experience caring for exotic and domestic animals. For more than 20 years, she traveled the country with her petting zoo and animal show which included a variety of animals from baby goats to bears and wildebeest. Most recently, she has provided care to the animals at the Big Cat Habitat.

Ellian Rosaire, known as an expert equestrienne, owns and manages Rosaire’s Riding Academy in Sarasota and is also the hoof stock director at Big Cat Habitat where she handles donkeys, camels and more. Ellian has also performed with, trained or cared for exotic animals including big cats, bears, buffalo, and dangerous reptiles. As Ellian says, “We have been working with animals all of our lives.”

The addition of Linda and Ellian Rosaire has also opened the door for a partnership between Sarasota Jungle Gardens and Big Cat Habitat that will provide visitors with even more fascinating animal encounters from these two attractions.

Chris is really excited about having Linda and Ellian on board. He says, “They bring a family legacy, unmatched experience, and a great respect for the animal kingdom that provide the best care for our animals as well as to set the stage for new programs that will enthrall our visitors. We can all expect exciting things to come.”

It has been a fun and interesting week, learning about the Rosaire’s family history, the sisters’ unique talents communicating with animals and what all this will mean to Sarasota Jungle Gardens.

To find out more, visit Sarasota Jungle Gardens’ website or call (941) 355-1112, x 313 . To learn more about the unique and exciting elements in the PR life, visit my website!

Today is Day 1 of my personal training program at Fitness Together Fort Myers and so far, I see many parallels between their personalized, one-on-one attention and an effective public relations plan that focuses on achieving client’s goals and objectives.

As of today, I am a client of my client, LouAnn Good, owner of the private training studio on Gladiolus in Fort Myers where the theme is, “One Client. One Trainer. One Goal.” This is really exciting for me as it is the beginning of a five-month journey leading up to the Philadelphia 1/2 Marathon on September 19, and then the NYC Marathon on November 7.  My husband Steve and I want to make sure we get there in a safe healthy way (we haven’t run a marathon in several years!), so we enlisted the help of LouAnn and personal trainer Jamie Swagler to help us. I already know that this was a very wise decision! I will be punctuating my regular blog posts with weekly updates on our progress (with some real pics, not just representative), and the benefits of a sound mind AND a sound body.

Here’s how it went today: our first session included a customized fitness evaluation where we were measured, tested and evaluated as to our level of fitness — not sure what the results are yet! LouAnn will enter the data into her specialized software program along with all our stats. In the PR world, this would be the research phase of the plan. This will generate a complete report that will specifically evaluate my body — where it is now, and where it needs to be over the next several months. LouAnn and I are setting goals and objectives that will lead to the strategic component of this “campaign”  – another similarity to the PR business.

So far, this is a unique experience. I have gone to gyms before where the atmosphere is very impersonal, usually with a staff member giving you a tour of the facility, a worksheet to figure out your reps, and a generic description of what you should do.  Then all of a sudden you’re alone with the equipment.  This is especially frustrating for me — being mechanically challenged, I would spend more time figuring out how to use each machine than actually using it.  And do I really want a room full of people watching me do this?

At Fitness Together LouAnn and Jamie are working with us in a private studio setting and showing us exactly what to do — correctly.  I really like their approach and we can all learn from it — no two clients are the same, and we have to plan differently for each based on individual needs and goals.

That’s why even though this is more of a physical process, I can’t help comparing it to the work we do every day in public relations and marketing — both include Research and incorporate Goal-Oriented Strategies.  Plus, very clear Measurement procedures are in place — and what’s more important than positive results?

And so the journey begins….I am excited about our first real training session next week, bringing us one step closer to our goals!  Stay tuned…in the meantime, check out www.ftfortmyers.com or www.pkecreative.com to learn more about us.

A delightful afternoon in the company of artist Deena Gu Laties happily confirms the fact that the ultimate benefit of social media and online communication lies in real face-to-face human interaction, and hopefully the beginning of a lovely new friendship. I first met Deena via email in response to an invitation to a reception I planned for my client North Star Yacht Club.

A new resident at the riverfront condominium community in North Fort Myers, FL, this exceptionally talented watercolor artist loves the panoramic water views and incredible natural light that inspire her painting.

When we finally got to meet at the event,  I was struck immediately by Deena’s warmth and her ability to draw others into interesting conversation, and following the party I was eager to learn more about her art and her background growing up in Shanghai.  I learned a lot by visiting her website www.deenagu.com and she inspired my idea for a new feature column on North Star Yacht Club’s website: “The Company We Keep.”

But like the new media experts espouse, electronic communications works best as the means to an end — it’s the face-to-face encounter that sparks a real relationship.  So when I decided we had learned enough about each other on line, I asked Deena if she would like a mini-tour of the Fort Myers area and an introduction to the local arts community.  I thought the best way to accomplish that was to bring her over to the Alliance of the Arts. There, she could get to know several hundred area artists and become familiar with the wonderful resources that organization offers.  Publicity director Chelsea Birczak gave us a very informative and friendly tour — Deena was extremely impressed and is planning to become a member.

Next stop, downtown Fort Myers where I filled her in on the recent refurbishments and excitement about the downtown area, Art Walk , the Sidney & Berne Davis Center and the growing arts community.  She was also interested in learning about the Greater Fort Myers Chamber of Commerce so I brought her into the downtown banking office of Florida Gulf Bank to meet some of the leaders of the business community. Finally, we enjoyed a delicious outdoor lunch at Delicious Things where we shared conversation about our families and our backgrounds.

Yes, the sun was shining on another beautiful day in Southwest Florida — but the warmth really came from a day filled with so much personal interaction — from Chelsea’s warm welcome, to the Florida Gulf Bank staff taking some time out to greet a new community member, to the interesting and inspiring lunch conversation — the experience was a shining example of the impact new media can have when it leads to the ultimate goal: building relationships.

I hope others have similar experiences they would like to share — find out more about me and my PR firm at PKECreative.com.

(Here I am with my sisters Jane and Erica, the birthday girl)

It took awhile to dawn on me, but I just discovered that the issue of work/life balance continues even after your children have left the nest. While I no longer have to balance press conferences with soccer matches, or editorial deadlines with school concerts, I realize that this transition might not mean going full tilt to the “all work” mode…a place where I have been for quite some time, and thought that’s where I was meant to stay.

What caused me to reconsider?  A family weekend for my sister’s surprise birthday put more than 1,500 miles between me and my laptop — something that hasn’t happened for more than two years. It’s amazing what you can see when you look up from the computer screen — did you know that the people who have shaped you and been a part of your life forever, have been growing and thinking and becoming more amazing and wonderful while you weren’t watching? It’s true.

In less than 48 hours, here’s what I experienced:

*A joyful airport reunion with one of my sisters;

*Meeting more than 100 of our youngest sister’s friends, work associates and the people that make up her universe today;

*The unbelievable look of shock and surprise when she first saw us — that was worth the whole trip;

*The chance to get better acquainted with my niece and nephews and wonderful brother-in-law;

*The lovely realization that you can enjoy your parents and the adult versions of your siblings even more than during the earlier stages;

*The knowledge that none of this could have occurred by phone, email or social media.

The result?  Chances are the 60+ hour work week will continue for quite some time — mostly because I am passionate about what I do and enjoy almost every minute of it.  However, I know that I don’t want  that to come between me and the life experiences that make a life — so next time it will be much harder to say, “I can’t” and much more important to try to find a way to say, “I can.” It won’t happen overnight — but hopefully I can begin to find my balance.

Learn more about the work side at  www.pkecreative.com

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