Spirit of Ybor warms Capitol cockles

Tampa columnist HOOPER E-mail: Click here Archive

© St. Petersburg Times
published March 5, 2002

TALLAHASSEE -- The only hot things about Ybor City Day in Tallahassee Monday were the flamenco dancers and the bean soup.

On this blustery, chilly day, volunteers served lunch, waved at local representatives, bounced to Latin music and huddled in the cozy state House lobby. There were, however, plenty of warm sentiments about Ybor days gone by and Ybor days to come.

I went along on the Ybor City Chamber of Commerce bus from Tampa to chronicle the day, and I was proud to end up with a ladle in my hand. The way state workers flocked to the table, it was clear Cuban sandwiches and guava pastries are not an everyday occurrence in Tallahassee.

But Ybor City Day is an annual occurrence at the Capitol, and has been for more than 40 years.

Monday, Chamber officials were eager to speak to legislators about the proposed Interstate 4-Crosstown connector and about getting more signs for the historic district.

They did not get a chance to talk with Gov. Jeb Bush. He was in their back yard, at the Strawberry Festival.

The bus departed from Ybor at 5 a.m., which means I woke up at 3 a.m. I would tell you how much sleep I got, but I really didn't go to bed. Consequently, I spent at least part of the four-hour drive giving the volunteers an earful of snoring.

At least I wasn't alone.

After the sun rose, I spent a few minutes talking with some of the longtime volunteers. Anticipating the cold, 83-year-old Steve Lester wore a suit instead of the traditional guayabera shirt. Still, he looked every bit the part of an Ybor City resident in his trolley conductor hat.

Lester hopes to take two of Ybor's greatest traditions and combine them in a chocolate-covered guava cigar. He explained that the guava has been in Ybor longer than the cigar, and now he's aiming to start his own business at Fiesta Plaza.

"I like to stay active and doing things because it keeps my mind sharp," said Lester, who explained he isn't looking to become a millionaire. "I just want to make $999,999.99. Millionaires die with their money all the time. A million dollars can't buy you another day of life or another day of happiness."

Several minutes after we began our conversation, Lester said sometimes he has trouble expressing himself. It was the funniest thing I had heard all day.

Dee Sanchez, a past president of the charitable West Tampa Sherife Association, has been making the bus trip to Tallahassee for Ybor City Day since 1982. Over the years, she can recall meeting Bob Graham and Lawton Chiles, but what keeps her making this trip are her fond memories of Ybor.

Sanchez grew up in the district and as a teen she worked at W.T. Grant's, a five and dime store.

"When I got off at 9 o'clock, I would just walk home," Sanchez said. "There were no worries. Everyone was out on their porches and you knew everyone."

Sanchez is not opposed to Ybor's nightclub overhaul, but she would like to see a few more merchants in the neighborhood.

"But I guess five and dimes don't exist anymore."

While many on the bus reminisced about the past, 17-year-old Melissa Busciglio said she believes Ybor has a pretty good future. "The new apartments that they have down there and Centro Ybor have given Ybor a new feel," she said. "It's a lot nicer than it used to be."

After lunch I hustled down the street to see my mom. I grew up in Tallahassee as the son of two Florida A&M professors. While my mother no longer teaches, she does run The Copy Corner just down the hill from the Capitol. She turned 70 Saturday, and we remarked that it is always cold on or around her birthday.

One year, it snowed in Tallahassee on her birthday. I've got the picture to prove it.

Jean Huffman made the trip to Tallahassee with Sanchez. Her relatives want her to move back to Missouri and on any other day, I would say they need to come to Tampa. On this day, however, you couldn't convince an Eskimo to live in Florida.

That's all I'm saying.

-- Ernest Hooper can be reached at 226-3406 or Hooper@sptimes.com.

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