Living Fit and Fearless in Doral with Julio Anta

Julio Anta’s studio is dressed in red. Between walls full of news clippings and photos sits perched elaborate Chinese décor. Inspirational sayings line the walls in large letters: “Check your ego at the door,” “Winners never quit, quitters never win,” and “Goals we set are goals we get.”

Anta has an unyielding optimism with both kids and adults. His attitude is somehow old and new, disciplined and unrestrained. For him, the traditional must be wed with the new and the new must understand the traditional. For Anta and his students, it’s just as much about training the mind as training the body.

From body building to corrections officer to being a Sergeant in the Marine Corps, Anta has done it all. But, his biggest passion is martial arts. When Anta and his family came from Cuba in the 50's, he told his father he wanted to be a martial artist. His father supported him 100%. Today, after experimenting with different career paths, Anta has won many titles for being a Kung Fu Master. Most recently, Anta was featured on the front cover of Martial Arts Professional. He was even inducted into the Florida Martial Arts Hall of Fame as Teacher of the Year for 2003 and to the U.S. Martial Arts Hall of Fame as Kung Fu Master of the year in 2006.

Although Anta has reached great heights, locally he is probably most known for his fitness center in Doral --Anta's Fitness and Self Defense – and for the column he writes for the Doral Tribune. As his website describes it, Anta’s center is:

Anta's Fitness and Self Defense is where East meets West and the bridge between traditional and contemporary martial arts and fitness. Our traditional programs offer you traditional Southern Shaolin Hung Gar Kung Fu, forms, weapons, Chi-Gong, reality based Southern Kung Fu fighting, self-defense and Lion Dance training.

Many residents and people from nearby cities have taken part in Anta’s center to improve their self-defense skills. According to customer reviews in the Yahoo! local guide directory, Anta’s Fitness and Self Defense is listed as the best in Miami for martial arts. Others highly recommend it for kids because it will foster confidence, discipline and respect while keeping them in shape.

For more information please visit these links:

http://www.antakungfu.com/

http://www.myspace.com/antakungfu

Check out some moves as described by Julio Anta himself on www.expertvillage.com:

Julio Anta : Beginning Kickboxing Moves

Julio Anta : Kettlebell Training Exercises

Pastor Connects with City of Doral

If there is someone that knows the families, the city commissioners and school administrators in the city of Doral, it's Igor Alonso.

But who is this guy that the city trusts with their events? Well, his blog title says it all: Community, Christ and Cafe con Leche.

Alonso is the campus pastor of Flamingo Road Church Doral. He has helped coordinate and volunteer at Doral's Relay for Life, 4th of July Celebration, Ronald Regan High School's Back-to-School Picnic and a church sponsored event called 'Trunk or Treat' for Halloween.

Last year, Alonso volunteered for the second time at the Doral Relay for Life, an event sponsored by the American Cancer Society to help raise money and awareness for cancer victims. At this event, he met city commissioners, school principals and many families that he kept in touch with. Later, for the 4th of July event, the City asked the church band to play. Then, the church volunteered at the Ronald Regan High School's Back-to-School Picnic. Last year, the church hosted 'Trunk or Treat' during Halloween, an event where different people and companies from the community decorated and filled their car trunks with candy. The idea is to provide a safe environment for families to enjoy food, music and free candy.

Next year, they're doing it all again.

"Connecting with the community is what church should be about," Alonso says.

Alonso's attitude is what motivated the City of Doral to name him the Entertainment Chair for the 2008 Doral Relay for Life. Alonso says that he makes it a priority to build bridges in the community by serving the community. But most importantly, Alonso understands that community starts in the home.

Besides being a pastor, Alonso makes time for his wife; Grecy, his four children; Igor Jr. Jonathan, Ashley, and Jacob. He's also a grandfather of two with another on the way. Their two pugs, Preito and Molly, complete their family. Alonso, who's of Cuban descent, also spends time playing the drums and listening to salsa music which his wife makes him dance to.

Alonso's faith keeps him involved with the community, citing it as his motivation.

"Jesus made it a priority to engage in the community with all kinds of people from different lifestyles."

For more information on Igor Alonso and Flamingo Road Church, click on these links:

http://www.igoralonso.com

http://www.flamingoroadchurch.org

Doral Runners Club

South Florida is known for all the great food. Actually some criticized that all we do is eat down here. That can be true. I mean, we celebrate everything by eating out -- birthdays, engagement, quinces...whatever. Even if we dont go out to restaurant nothing is better than BBQ by the pool. Of course all the eating leads to excess fat, which is not convenient in a place known for its beaches. The other day I was considering getting into shape but wasn't sure how and felt like I need encouragement. To some who may face this same issue there might be a solution: the Doral Runner's Club. These runners have united for the passion for the sport and to stay in shape. Together they encourage each other. They also do marathons and more. Doral Runners have recently merged with Miami Feet, which is of the biggest runner club in South Florida. You can visit their website for more info: http://www.miamifeet.org/

Running is good for you or just ask these runners. Not sure how the runners club works...check out the video.

For all the right reasons

Doral: a great place to live, work and play. Well, so the Doral government says in their advertisement for the city that can be found on their website. The ad portrays the town as a quaint community that is “becoming the premier place to live, work, learn and play in Miami-Dade County.” The ad leans towards the corny side, showing the sun rising over a golf course, children happily and readily learning and policeman diligently patrolling the town.

It highlights Doral’s government as providing excellent cost-effective services, achieving a balanced budget and fostering a sense of hometown pride. Furthermore, it hails the small town of 35,000 residents as the perfect place not only to work but to kick back and relax as well.

They even boast that Doral provides some of the best public schools in Miami-Dade. The Department of Education scored all Doral schools recently with an “A”.

The ad signs off with the sugary catchphrase “we call the city of Doral our hometown...for all the right reasons.”

Have you been to Doral? Do you work, live or even play there? Does it live up to this picture of the quintessential planned Floridian community? Do you think the local government lives up to the ideals portrayed in the ad?

Anti-Christ has church in Doral?

This guy has been all over the media, but in case you haven't heard, Jose de Jesus Miranda claimed he was Jesus one day and claims to be the Anti-Christ the next day. He has churches all over the world and he has one in our very own city of Doral called "Creciendo en Gracia." In February of this year, he moved from South Florida to Houston, TX. Miranda's followers shower him with expensive gifts and they believe that there is no sin, no devil and therefore they can do whatever they want. Miranda is their only god. Many testimonies from family members of followers say that Miranda brainwashes and isolates them from their loved ones. Miranda also urged his followers to get "666" tattooed on their body.

It's crazy how so many people buy into what Miranda says. These people could be your neighbors and it's scary. I usually think of cults forming in the middle of nowhere, in a small town far, far away. But I would have never thought that a cult would form in a city like Doral. Very strange.

To read more about Miranda click on the link:

http://abcnews.go.com/Primetime/story?id=2925021

- Ana

Doral's New Heart

A community will often be placed on the map when a local attraction becomes all the rage. Coconut Grove has Coco Walk. Coral Gables has Miracle Mile. An otherwise average town like Sunrise even has places like the Office Depot Center and Sawgrass Mills to bring revenue to their town. Doral, a city established in June of 2003, is next with Downtown Doral.

Downtown Doral will be bordered on the west by NW 87th Avenue, on the north by NW 54th Street, on the east by NW 79th Avenue, and on the south by the Doral Resort's White Course. Upon completion, Downtown Doral will have 2,840 residential units, over 1 million square feet of commercial space, including 180,000 sq. ft. of retail space, and 400,000 sq. ft. of new class 'A' office space that will mostly house national tenants for either corporate or regional headquarters.

Although Doral already houses a world class golf resort and spa, Downtown Doral will work as a perfect supplement to it whereas upon completion it will be walking distance from the Doral Resort.

Local politicians and developers alike hail the vision as a welcome and lucrative addition to Doral. Many locals are also on board and look forward to a booming cosmopolitan area that they can call their own.

Don't let the publicity fool you though. Many worry that such an expansive area will lessen the quaint and somewhat suburban feel of Doral and worsen traffic in an area that already fights it. Developers do assure that they are working with the best planners and architects to counter these concerns.

Construction has already begun of Doral's new center and will be built in phases over the next decade. The beginning phases of Downtown Doral are set to open in as little as one year.

For more information visit http://www.downtowndoral.com

-Lalinda

What the heck happened to the Krispy Kreme on 107th and 39 St?

Every Sunday morning I knew that they would be waiting for me. Hot, fresh and deliciously glazed donuts were always laid out at the entrance of the church I attend. There were times that I helped myself to one of these donuts and other times that I simply ignored them, without knowing that one day they would be gone.

One day, my friend Ivanessa (a devout Krispy Kreme customer) had a huge craving for donuts. She drove through horrible traffic and got cut off but she had that donut on her mind to help her through it all. When she finally gets to the store, she notices there is no one inside.

“Ana, I could not believe it, after everything I went through to satisfy my craving, I get there to find that the store is closed,” she said.

I must admit I never stepped foot inside the Krispy Kreme store but I never had to because I counted on the presence of those donuts every Sunday.

And now it’s gone. Krispy Kreme was one of those unappreciated gems of Doral. I don’t think people knew how lucky we were to have a Krispy Kreme in our backyard. Now the only Krispy Kreme in Miami is the one on 590 N.E. 167th St. I read on the Miami New Times that another Krispy Kreme store closed somewhere in the South Miami area.

I wondered, was anyone as devastated as I was?

When I shared my sad tale to a classmate of mine who also lives in Doral, she recounted her experience at the Doral Krispy Kreme store.

“I waited and waited for the employees to stop talking, acknowledge me and take my order. When I got tired of waiting I said ‘Excuse, me’ and they looked at me like I had interrupted their conversation,” said Lalinda De LaFuente.

After listening to Lalinda’s story, I realized that could be the reason Krispy Kreme in Doral is no more.

If anyone else has a Doral Krispy Kreme store experience they would like to share or if you simply would like to express your grief, feel free to leave a comment on this post.

- Ana

From Swamp to second business center in the county

It may seem hard to believe but what started as an idea for a country club and golf course over 40 years ago turned into one of the fastests growing cities in Dade County. Doris and Alfred Kaskel bought the land when it was basically nothing -- 2,400 acres of swamp. I guess the swamp part is not too hard to believe because all Florida was probably a swamp at some point. The Kaskels built the Doral Country Club and Hotel in 1962, which still exists and has been the host of the PGA Tour since. Not bad. The name Doral is a combination of both the couple's names (Doris and Alfred). I never would have guessed. I thought it was some legend about the Fountain of Youth or something like it. But anyway, I'm sure Doris and Alfred did not expect that their land would be a booming city filled with businesses and a great variety of people groups. In 2003 Doral became a city and since it has become full of life with a mix of residential and business areas. Recently Doral opened its first high school - Ronald Reagan/Doral Senior High School. The school opened August 14th for 9th and 10th graders, approximately 750 of them. I'm not sure well all those kids came from but then again South Florida is over-populated. The school is offering studies in the areas of communication, technology anc Cambridge. Uniforms are enforced...something parents will probably appreciate.

--Jen