Westchase - Vol. 4, Issue 6, June 2015

By Alexis Selbyy

Since opening her practice in2011, Sandra Makram, D.D.S. has be-come a well-known and highly trustedname in the Westchase area – and forgood reason! As a pediatric dentist,Dr. Makram’s compassionate, knowl-edgeable care, coupled with her calm,friendly demeanor and innate ability towork with children has allowed her tohelp kids all across Tampa Bay to

achieve and maintain bright, beautiful,confident smiles.

In the past four years Dr. Makramhas really enjoyed growing with theWestchase community and her pa-tients, especially those who have beencoming to her since the very begin-ning. “It’s been really incredible towatch the kids grow and develop andto see how they continue to changeover the years,” says Dr. Makram.“I’ve been here enough time now that

children who started coming to mewhen they were young toddlers aregrowing into big kids now. It’s fun tosee, and really gratifying!”

Pediatric Dentistry of Westchaseis always very excited to welcomenew patients to the practice, so if you

The Premier “Shop Local” Community Magazine Directly Mailed To Over 15,000 Homes In Citrus Park, Westchase & Surrounding Areas

This Independent Community News, Business & Dining Guide Is Directly Mailed Once Each Month To:Arlington Park • Aston Villas • Bay Arbor • Berkeley Square • Calf Path Estates • Enclave At Citrus Park • Fawn Ridge

Fawn Lake • Forest Lakes • Hampton Lakes • Highland Park • Lake Chase • Mandolin • The Eagles • Tree TopsTwin Branch Acres • Waterchase • West Hampton • Westchase • Westchester • Westwood Lakes • Windsor Place

INSIDE THIS ISSUE:

ECRWSSPostal Customer

Dated MaterialPlease Rush!

PRSRT STDU.S. POSTAGE

PAIDTAMPA FL

PERMIT 1185

From an Advertising Perspective...3

Community Calendar &

News Briefs................................4-5

Realtor Gigi Gauthier............8-9

Arbor Terrace of Citrus

Park...............................10-11

Your neighborhood. Your magazine.

Vol. 4, Issue 6, June 2015

By Deborah Bostock-Kelley

When you think of homemade,owner and chef Milouska Kenniswants Sweeties by Mili to be first caféand bakery that comes to mind forfreshness, quality of ingredients, andunparalleled flavor.

Though some bakeries mayclaim to make homemade, chef Miliexplained that unfreezing a pastryand heating in the oven does notconstitute homemade. She is proudthat her decadent Swiss chocolaterum truffles and chocolate trufflesdon’t all look identical in the display.They were rolled out by her hand,not by a machine.

Serving breakfast, lunch and a

wide array of sweets, Sweeties by Miliis proudly celebrating two years at itslocation in Citrus Park at 11961 Shel-don Road this month.

One of a kind, family-owned andoperated, Sweeties by Mili is whereeverything, from the ganache in thebrownies and the dulce de leche andstrawberry marmalade in the cakes andcookies, to the mayonnaise in thechicken salad and even the butterycroissant, have been hand createdfrom the talent and imagination ofchef Mili.

Originally from Peru, chef Milicombines her love of baking native Pe-ruvian desserts with her degree fromthe prestigious and European-inspired

See “Sweeties” on page 18.

See “Pediatric Dentist” on page 14

®

Think Sweeties by Mili for Superior Homemade Delicacies!

Sandra Makram, D.D.S

2 JUNE 2015 Neighborhood News & LifestylesFor Ad Info 813-928-6124 • NNLFlorida.com

Neighborhood News & Lifestyles For Ad Info 813-928-6124 • NNLFlorida.com

Neighborhood News& Lifestyles

Directly mailed once a month to 15,000households in zip codes 33626 & 34677

220 S. Safford Ave. Tarpon Springs, FL 34689

Phone: (813) 928-6124; Fax: (727) 942-2432Advertising E-mail: [email protected] E-mail:

[email protected]© 2015 Westchase Neighborhood News & Lifestyles is

published by ADS 2 Publications, Inc.

Nothing that appears in Westchase NeighborhoodNews & Lifestyles may be reproduced, whether wholly or inpart, without permission. Opinions expressed by WestchaseNeighborhood News & Lifestyles writers are their own anddo not reflect the publisher’s opinion.

The management of Westchase NeighborhoodNews & Lifestyles is always happy to accept outside edi-torial submissions to the paper. Please call for outsideeditorial submission and advertisement deadlines.

Westchase Neighborhood News & Lifestyles will con-sider previously non-published outside editorial submis-sions if they are double spaced, typed and less than 500words. Westchase Neighborhood News & Lifestyles reservesthe right to edit and/or reject all outside editorial submis-sions and makes no guarantees regarding publication dates.Westchase Neighborhood News & Lifestyles will not returnunsolicited editorial materials.

Westchase Neighborhood News & Lifestyles reserves theright to edit and/or reject any advertising. Westchase Neigh-borhood News & Lifestyles is not responsible for errors in ad-vertising beyond the actual cost of the advertising space itself,not for the validity of any claims made by its advertisers.

Westchase Neighborhood News & Lifestyles is pub-lished by ADS 2 Publications, Inc.

PublisherTim SelbyGeneral ManagerMatt Selby Advertising SalesJim O’ReillyLinda ViegaMike BirdJared NagerAccounting ManagerDoreen SelbyBilling AssistantTina O’Reilly

EditorAlexis SelbyCorrespondentsKim ThomasJulie KanehlKatie ThomasMarcy SanfordDara TuckerArt DirectorTony SicaGraphic ArtistDat X. DoMarketing & DevelopmentAshley Knoblach

JUNE 2015 3

From The General Manager Matt Selby

From an Advertising PerspectiveYou may have noticed that we

added Citrus Park in our logo thismonth. Since we’ve expanded intothe zip code 33626, which is consid-ered by many as the “Westchase”area, a few years ago we’ve run intothe same issue. Even though we listall the neighborhoods in which wedirect mail our publication on ourfront cover header, which is over 20,people still think we only mail to thespecific neighborhood actually called“Westchase.” In truth, this editorialis directed towards local Businessowners and serves to prove whyreaching their target market of localcustomers with our magazine is soeffective. With that being said, if youdon’t own a local business and arestrictly a consumer, I still would likeyou to read this, so stay with me.

When you flip through ourpages month in and month out you’llsee the same simple concept- the no-tion of fueling a “shop local” mental-ity. Our readers know this about usand they understand we aren’t tryingto provide them with anything otherthan what we are, and that’s a qualitylocal publication that prides itself oncovering what’s going on in the en-tire zip code of 33626 and surround-ing areas and the intricate web ofentrepreneurial innovations our localbusiness owners possess. If you readmy “shop local” feature a while back,I briefly touched on how impressed Iam and continue to be with the busi-ness owners in our community andtheir story. Every single one of youhave a story to tell and most of youprobably have already come to the

conclusion that if you could justtell everyone that special storyof yours, you’d have a lot morecustomers; customers that un-derstand not only your businessbut also YOUR unique and in-spiringly powerful journey. Ourreaders want to know what setsyour business apart from com-petitors in the area. They wantto know why they should spendtheir hard earned dollars withyou and not your competitordown the street. The pages ofthis magazine offer you a chanceto tell that story!

Here’s something wearen’t: we aren’t “that publica-tion” that allows advertisers topay to write their own “advertorial”all about how great they are and howeveryone else is left in the dust. Wetake the confidence our readers placein our words extremely serious, so wehave a very straight forward way ofdoing things. Yes, we do businessfeatures on our advertisers, becausethey are loyal to us and spend goodmoney to place an ad within thepages of our publication. It’s not tosay however, we don’t provide fea-ture articles on non advertisers aswell. For example, Ciccio Cali re-ceived a great dining feature in ourvery first issue of our New Tampaedition just because we love theirfood and enjoy the experience mywife and I receive every time we visit.We write these stories as a thank youto the fantastic local businesses in ourarea. Ad campaigns with us aresimple, effective and cheaper than

anything comparable! If you findsomething comparable with ourquality and distribution we’ll beattheir price, and that’s a guarantee!In most cases we can even beat theprice of a media outlet with lesserquality and circulation! Our readersknow we focus on the local busi-nesses heavily so they use us as a re-sourceful tool to find goods, services,dining and entertainment.

Readers go through our maga-zines cover to cover, taking the time tonot only read over the articles but toalso take a second and see what kind ofdeals our advertisers are running.

Building a business is all aboutbuilding credibility and developing arelationship with each customer. Wecreate your ad, help you with a mar-keting strategy and tell your story, allat no extra charge! My family hasbeen in this business here in the Bayarea since 1994. You can trust us to

give you the very best exposure inyour market, bar none! If you’recontemplating advertising with us Ican personally guarantee nobody willwork harder for you than my team!

Call us today to schedulean advertising strategy ap-pointment. We reach everysingle home in the zip code33626, every single monthwith our magazine. It’s timeyour business reaches itsENTIRE local market too!

Alexis and Matt Selby at a Tampa BayRays game. Enter to win these same press

level seats! See ad on page 22.

ing or mail entry with check payableto “Believing Tampa Foundation”7008 N Himes Ave, Tampa, FL33614. For more information, pleasecontact: [email protected]

Believing Tampa Foundation is anonprofit organization committed tohelping people who suffer with spinalcord injury, stroke, cerebral palsy, mul-tiple sclerosis and other neurologicalimpairments to have access to ad-vanced rehabilitation therapy. Since in-surance companies do not cover thespecialized long term therapy that ac-tivity based exercise centers offer, po-tential clients who are not able toafford rehabilitative therapy costs donot have the opportunity to seek re-covery options that are beneficial totheir well being and quality of life.This event will help to fund a therapyassistance program that would enablethe individual to participate in a ther-

apy program geared towards recovery.The Westchase Golf Club is lo-

cated at 11602 Westchase GolfDrive in Tampa. For more informa-tion on the golf tournament pleaseemail [email protected] orvisitwww.believingtampa.org/events orwww.westchasegc.com/believing.

Tampa Bay Youth Expo –Educate. Train. Empower.

Saturday, July 18 from 9 a.m. – 2p.m. The Tampa Bay Youth SportsExpo (TBYSE) is the region’s pre-miere forum to educate, train and em-power youth, parents, coaches, andsport administrators in effective youthdevelopment through sports. Thisone-day event gives young athletes theopportunity to sharpen their skills,while learning invaluable informationthat is applicable in both sport andlife. Join us for everything youthsports related – all under one roof.

Interactive Skills Zones The Interactive Skills Zones are a

series of scheduled skills developmentsport clinics for girls and boys ages 6-15 presented in 30 minute sessionsthroughout the day starting at10:00am-2:00pm. Clinics will be of-


Community Calendar & News BriefsFirst Annual Golf Tourna-ment of Believing TampaFoundation

Believing Tampa Foundationproudly welcomes you to join in theirfirst annual charity golf tournament,which will be held at the WestchaseGolf Club, located at 11602Westchase Golf Drive in Tampa, onSaturday, June 6th.

Registration begins at 7 a.m. witha shotgun scramble starting promptlyat 8 a.m. The registration fee of $100for individuals or $380 for a foursomeincludes the greens fee on the beauti-ful Westchase Golf Club, a cart and aprime lunch served when players finishtheir rounds of play.

You can register online by creditcard at www.westchasegc.com/believ-

JUNE 2015 5Neighborhood News & Lifestyles For Ad Info 813-928-6124 • NNLFlorida.com

fered in basketball, baseball, football,hockey, tennis, volleyball, cheer &dance, golf and soccer by professionalteams and local professional trainers.Each skill zone gives participants theopportunity to engage in sports train-ing and activities. The zones are de-signed for youth to learn and practicetheir favorite sport while being intro-duced to new ones. There will also bea Kids Fun Zone for children betweenthe ages of 3-5.

Specialty Clinics Join Pro Players representing

football, basketball, baseball, and

hockey as they provide tips and in-struction on how to improve yourgame at the Expo Specialty Clinics!The clinics provide various specializedfundamental skill stations tailored toprovide the competitive edge neededfor high performance.

A liability waiver is required for allplayers participating in the InteractiveSkills Zone and Specialty Clinic.

*Group rates are available forschools, teams and leagues. Pleasecontact Ken at [email protected] formore information.

See “Calendar/Briefs” on page 6.

Workshop Zone Building the Student Athlete -

Live workshops and demonstrationswill cover nutrition, training, injuryprevention, and college recruitment &NCAA guidelines. Workshops &Demonstrations are presented in 30minute sessions throughout the day inthe main stage area starting at 10:30am-2:00 pm by local organizationsand leading sport experts.

Exhibit Zone Stop by the Exhibit Zone to pick

up products and services related toyouth sports, kids and families.

Tampa Bay Convention CenterThis year’s activities include: • 9 Inter-active Skills Zones • 4 Specialty Clin-ics* • LIVE Workshops &Demonstrations – Building the Stu-dent-Athlete • Exhibit Zone • Char-acter Awards • Tyler’s 3 on 3Basketball Tournament and more!

About The Skills Center, IncWe believe sports offer young

people the skills and knowledge theyneed to function effectively in life,

thus The Skills Center, Inc. was cre-ated as a 501 (c) 3 nonprofit sportbased youth development organiza-tion, “Creating CHANGE throughSports”

Using sports as a powerful learn-ing tool, we teach youth how to trans-fer the skills learned naturally throughsports to other environments in theirlives such as school, work and commu-nity. We offer school day, afterschool,and summer programs as well asleagues, skills development trainingsand travel teams.

Mission: To intentionally utilizeathletics as the mechanism to acceler-ate academic achievement, build char-acter, and promote health & fitness foryoung people ages 3-18 in Tampa Bay.

Vision: Our participants are well-rounded individuals who achieve theirlife goals through academic achieve-

ment and sound character based onintegrity, responsibility, respect, sports-manship and teamwork.

100% of the proceeds will benefitThe Skills Center’s afterschool andsummer programs for at risk, delin-quent and low-income children andteens.

To learn more about The SkillsCenter go towww.theskillscenter.org

Tampa Bay’s Premier Com-munity Day School RaisesFunds for Nepal Relief Effort

On Mon., May 4, 2015, the Hil-lel Academy student body began atwo-week fundraising effort to helpthe victims of the earthquake in Nepal.The tragedy in Nepal offers an oppor-tunity to teach Hillel Academy stu-dents about showing empathy towards

others no matter their nationality orreligion. In addition to raising funds,the students studied the Jewish valuesof helping others, performing acts ofkindness and humanitarian aid. Theyalso learned about the geography ofNepal and earthquakes.

Hillel Academy parent, Yoav Rap-paport, is working for InternationalMedical Corps, doing GIS mappingwork to help relief workers reach af-fected areas. His team has been work-ing in Nepal since the night of theearthquake. He will share valuable in-formation including first hand storieswith Hillel Academy students.

Donations raised by Tampa Bay’spremier community day school duringthe two-week period were given to theInternational Medical Corps. Formore information please visitwww.prnewschannel.com/2015/05/04/tampa-bays-premier-community-day-school-raises-funds-for-nepal-re-lief-effort/.

Hillel Academy accepts applica-tions on a rolling basis. Please callthe Admissions Department for in-formation, (813) 963-2242. HillelAcademy offers morning bus serv-ice from North Pinellas county, theWestchase area and South Tampa.


“Calendar/Briefs”Continued from page 5


gage rates are excellent. Now is a greattime to consider buying a home.”

In addition to her buying andselling expertise, Gigi’s caring, fun at-titude helps take the stress out of buy-ing or selling a home. She takes pridein helping her clients in a caring and

honest way. Gigi doesn’t just showyou a house or list yours when youwant to sell it, she’ll give you all theinformation and guidance you need tohelp you through the process.

In addition to helping people findtheir perfect homes, Gigi is also pas-sionate about helping find new homesfor those who can not do it on theirown – abandoned puppies, dogs, kit-tens, and cats. Gigi donates $500 fromevery home sale back to Paw PrintHearts - a 501c3 non-profit organiza-tion that saves animals from high killshelters and helps them find their for-ever homes.

Gigi founded Paw Print Heartswhile she was volunteering for theHillsborough County Animal Shelter,now the Pet Resource Center, whereshe saw many young and healthy ani-mals being killed because there wasno space left for them. “After someresearch, I realized that there weresome states where the animal sheltershad space and had people whowanted to adopt dogs and cats,” saysGigi, “so I decided to start Paw PrintHearts to help connect people whowanted a pet with dogs and cats thathad been abandoned.”

Over the past year, Paw Print

By Marcy Sanford

With her infectious laugh and car-ing attitude, Gigi Gauthier has a knackfor making you feel completely at ease.Combine that with her extensive realestate experience and you have a realestate agent who will help you find thehome of your dreams and will guideyou in the right direction every step ofthe way.

If you’re looking to buy or sale ahome, you can count on Gigi. She hasmore than 17 years of experience inreal estate and loves helping herclients. “The best part of being a real-tor is helping people find their dreamhome,” says Gigi. “For me, real estateis not just about making a sale butabout helping people find the homethat is best suited for them.”

Because she worked with home-builders in new construction for manyyears, Gigi is able to look out for herclients and help them spot potentialconstruction flaws or issues that could

be costly in the future. She also has ex-perience helping both individuals andinvestors with short sales, foreclosures,and bank reo properties.

“Real estate is starting to comeback from the decline,” says Gigi, “buthome prices are still good and mort-

Whether Buying or Selling a Home, YouCan Count on Realtor Gigi Gauthier


Hearts has saved nearly 600 dogs and80 cats from being euthanized. PawPrint Hearts has sent dogs and cats toPennsylvania, Illinois, and Connecti-cut where they find their foreverhomes. The challenge is getting theanimals there.” Gigi says that PawPrint Hearts relies on volunteers tomake the 32-hour round trip to Penn-sylvania with a load full of furry cargo.“About 2 or 3 times a month, we rent

a van and two of our volunteers willdrive the dogs and cats to Pennsylva-nia. We can usually get 25 dogs in onevan with 2 cats sitting up front withthe driver.”

For more information aboutPaw Print Hearts, to make a dona-tion, volunteer, foster or rescue adog or cat, visit their web pagewww.PawPrintHearts.com.

For help finding the home ofyour dreams, contact Gigi Gau-thier. Gigi is a licensed real estateagent with Charles Rutenberg Re-alty. With 17 years of real estateexperience in the Tampa Bay area,she can help you find your new

forever home. If you’re looking tobuy a new home or want to sellyour current one, put her expertknowledge to work for you todayand call her at (813) -333-2499 or(813) 928-0743.

In addition to helping people find their perfect homes, Gigi is also passionateabout helping find new homes for those who can not do it on their own – abandoned

puppies, dogs, kittens, and cats.


By Deborah Bostock-Kelley

There are some people who areperfectly suited to their profession.Michelle Lauletta, the EngagementDirector at Arbor Terrace at CitrusPark, is one such person. This gre-garious woman with a contagious biglaugh and even bigger heart is doingher “dream job” with her “dreamteam.” Her face lights up when shetalks about the people she works withand preparing activities for the seniorcitizens who call this newly openedassisted living and memory care facil-ity home.

Conveniently located in the heartof the Citrus Park and Westchaseareas, Arbor Terrace at Citrus Parkopened just a month ago at 13810Sheldon Road, and unlike a sterilehospital environment, this fabulousstate-of-the-art community evokes thefeel of a luxury hotel or resort. “Weare not at all clinical,” said Michelle.“We try very hard to be as home-likeas possible with the normal activitiesof daily living.”

Three types of apartments areavailable for rent – studio, one-bed-room and two-bedroom companionsuites with a shared bathroom andkitchenette. Small pets are welcome,but the resident has to be able to carefor the animal.

The benefits of an assisted livingfacility are plentiful. “Right away,they have the social interaction theywouldn’t have if they were just sit-ting at home watching TV. Theyhave friends who are going throughthe same things they are,” saidLauletta. “We keep them physicallyand mentally active. We do exercisesevery morning. Their health is moni-

tored. We have nurses on site work-ing here 24 hours a day. Familieshave that piece of mind that theirloved ones are safe. We try to keeptheir lives as normal as possible.”

Arbor Terrace at Citrus Park pro-vides different levels of assistance,based up on the individual needs ofeach resident. The first floor offers asecured memory care for residents thatrequire round-the-clock specializedcare. The second floor offers theBridges program and includes a higheracuity level of care provided by theirECC license (Extended CongregateCare) which also allows the residentsto age in place. The third floor is forSenior Assisted Living.

“Bridges is for early onset de-mentia and Alzheimer’s. It’s wherethe same question is repeatedthroughout the day. They’re notneeding a secure community, butneeding a little more attention,” ex-plained Lauletta. “Part of our train-ing is how to deal with this. Somepeople need redirection, some people

need distraction, some people justneed you to sit and listen to themand that’s what Bridges is all about.”

Lauletta said that so often theBridges group of residents gets lostin assisted living communities be-cause they are not yet in memorycare where that is addressed one-on-one, but not able to live anymore inassisted living. “We try to reach outto them and to gear our activities fortheir needs,” she said. “We set themfor success and want them to feelgood about themselves.”

When visiting the nurses’ station,several students from Rasmussen Col-lege were beginning their first day in-terning at the facility. When askedabout their first impression, they re-sponded, “It’s a great facility with agreat staff. The residents are verypleasant. We love it!”

Arbor Terrace at Citrus Parkshowcases rooms themed to theTampa Bay area. The “Tampa The-atre” features a media room withcomfortable seating and a big screen

TV. “We will do popcorn and amovie,” Lauletta said. The “SiestaKey Salon & Spa” provides a placewhere the residents can get pamperedin the salon every Tuesday, Thursday,and Friday. The Multi Purpose Roomoffers a kitchen, couches, TV and ta-bles for the residents to play gameswith staff and a state-of-the-art com-

Arbor Terrace of Citrus Park ProvidesHome-Like High-Quality Senior Living


puter lab connects seniors to the In-ternet. At Arbor Terrace’s Ybor CityBistro and Café guests can enjoy aFriday afternoon happy hour and acappuccino machine.

The Longboat Key dining area isreminiscent of dining in a five-starrestaurant. Cream fabric tableclothscover each table, napkins are balancedin a perfect erect column on the centerof each placemat, and a single beauti-ful rose and baby’s breath sit in thecenter of the table. The dining roomalso boasts a private dining area with awide-screen TV for guests to bring

family to share a private meal. Arbor Terrace at Citrus Park also

offers a special dining program calledDining with Dignity that enablesthose that have lost their ability tohandle utensils or chew food to enjoythe same five-star meal other residentsenjoy. “It’s gourmet dining made in away that guests can eat with dignity,”said Lauletta.

In 2014, Arbor Terrace’s DiningWith Dignity dining program receivedNational recognition, becoming thenewest winner of the Best of the BestAwards at the annual Assisted Living

Federation of America conference. Besides many planned activities

within the facility, like indoor bowling,baking and cooking, residents can par-ticipate in many diverse types of out-ings, from luncheons called the LunchBunch to Mystery Rides. “We havemystery rides where it’s not a plannedexcursion,” said Lauletta. “We’ll go tothe Causeway and watch the dolphins.We try to keep our residents busy –physically and mentally.

“The emphasis here is on the resi-dent, not on the marketing aspect offilling the community. Other commu-

nities will spend hundreds of dollars toget someone in and then ten dollars tokeep them in,” explained Lauletta.“Our philosophy is let’s take care ofthe residents that are here. This is theirhome. They don’t live where we work,we work where they live.”

Arbor Terrace of Citrus Park islocated south of Sickles HighSchool at 13810 Sheldon Road inTampa. For more information or toreserve a suite please call (813)333-9996 or visitwww.at-citruspark.com.

Engagement DirectorMichelle Lauletta


are looking for a pediatric dentistwho will take exceptional care of youand your child, give Dr. Makram acall today at (813) 854- 5800 andschedule a consultation.

Two and a half years after open-ing Pediatric Dentistry of Westchase,Dr. Makram welcomed a little one ofher own – which has allowed her toassist parents with an even higher levelof understanding, as they navigate thisdetrimental stage of their child’s life.She says, “Being a mom has reallyhelped me become a better dentist be-cause I’m able to understand more ofwhat the challenges are at home. NowI am able to discuss these challengesfrom a different perspective – that’s abig thing.”

At her practice, Pediatric Den-tistry of Westchase, Dr. Makram doesa great job of making her patients feelcomfortable and relaxed, and herhighly trained staff – many of whichhave been with her from the very be-ginning – create a warm, friendly envi-ronment that promotes the healthygrowth of each child as a whole. Con-veniently located inside the Westchase

Commons Office Park, at 13027 W.Linebaugh Ave., Suite 102, PediatricDentistry of Westchase provides gentledental care to children ages 1 to 16years old.

For parents with young babies,Dr. Makram recommends that theycome in for their first visit at aroundthe one-year mark, or more specifically6 months after the eruption of theirfirst baby tooth. This is not only forthe child, but more significantly to ed-ucate the parents and familiarize themwith proper brushing techniques andexactly what they should be teachingtheir children, as well as what to ex-pect as their children’s teeth continueto form.

“The most important aspect ofthe first visit is to not only introducethe children to the dental environ-ment so they become comfortablewith coming into the office but alsothe informative session with the par-ents so I can answer any questionsthey might have, such as what kind oftoothpaste to use, what to expect witha teething baby, and how to brushtheir child’s teeth,” says Dr. Makram.“I am very big on educating the par-ents. We have seen cavities in kids asearly as two years old because ofhabits that are occurring at home.

Dental health is really all about pre-vention and education and the parentsare a big part of that. We need tomake sure we get our kids on theright track from the very beginning.”

Dr. Makram not only enjoys get-ting to know the children, but theparents and families as well. She says,“It’s so nice to have that relationship

with the families; to have that close-ness and get to know the moms anddads, as well as the kids. Building re-lationships with families has been keyand I’m really fortunate for the op-portunity to continue developing thefriendships with the families as theymature and grow.”

Dr. Makram’s passion and love of

“Pediatric Dentist”Continued from page 1

Dr. Makram and her staff do an exceptional job of creating a warm,welcoming environment that is family friendly.


dentistry extends outside of her prac-tice as well, and she and her staff atPediatric Dentistry of Westchase arehighly involved in the community andhave business partnerships with severallocal elementary schools. Throughoutthe year Dr. Makram also hosts DentalHealth Presentations at preschoolsand elementary schools in the area,where she teaches students the impor-tance of good dental hygiene andhealthy dental habits. Dr. Makramtruly cares about the community anddoes all she can to ensure children inthe area receive the best knowledge re-garding dental health.

As Pediatric Dentistry ofWestchase continues to grow, due toword of mouth and referrals fromhappy patients, no matter how busyshe gets, Dr. Makram promises to al-ways provide the same level of qualitydental care, and personalized attentionto each and every child.

She says, “Over the years ourpractice has been getting busier and isbeginning to flourish, but no matterhow busy we get I don’t ever want tolose those one-on-one interactionswith the children and their parents,because that’s what makes us unique.It’s always a hard balance, and a lot ofpractices, as they expand, lose that per-

sonal touch and feel. My main goal aswe grow is to maintain that personalrelationship with the families and pro-vide them with the quality dental carethat they deserve!”

Pediatric Dentistry ofWestchase is located at 13027 W.Linebaugh Ave, Suite 102 inWestchase, inside the WestchaseCommons Office Park. They areopen Mon. – Thurs. 8:30 a.m. - 5p.m. For more information or toschedule an appointment please call(813) 854- 5800, or visitwww.WestchasePedo.com.


Notter School of Pastry Arts in Or-lando, to come up with a variety of de-licious desserts to showcase at her caféand bakery.

Family owned and operated,Mili’s mother, husband and brother’swife all work at the bakery and herdaughter assisted before she beganworking on her Master’s degree.

“Since I was a kid I have alwaysbaked for my grandmother and mymother,” explained chef Mili. “I loveto make cakes. We have a specialtycake that I created myself calledHouse Cake that is so different thanthe ones you eat here (in America). Ithas pastry cream, strawberry home-made marmalade that my mothermakes here, homemade dulce de lecheand Chantilly cream on top.”

Besides a delicious dessert menu,chef Mili recently increased her hoursdue to breakfast requests from herlunchtime customers. “We havehomemade croissants, real eggs (notthe packaged kind), bacon, cheese,ham and turkey, and bagels,” she said.

Lunch features your choice of

croissants: plain, cheese, ham andcheese, tuna or chicken salad.

But, if you have ever wonderedwhat heaven tastes like, press your forkinto the blonde and chocolate fourlayers of the House Cake. Savor thecreamy dulce de leche and the moist-ness of the cake and the lightness ofthe icing. Know somewhere angelsmust be singing this cake praises.

Another item Sweeties by Mili isknown for is their signature family-recipe, Alfajor, a light, crumbly andtender cookie filled with dense dulcede leche and pressed together. Thecookies truly are the ying to thecaramel’s yang.

Moving into chocolate confec-tions, chef’s Mili’s choice to con-tinue using the Swiss chocolate she

grew comfortable with in pastryschool has made the difference be-tween a great truffle and an extraor-dinary one. Handcrafted andabsolutely decadent, the chocolate ismouth-watering and the rum in theSwiss chocolate rum truffles is subtleand not overpowering. “The Swisschocolate is more expensive for me,but you can taste that it is really

“Sweeties”Continued from page 1

A quick look among their alluring selection of sweets and your mouth isguaranteed to start watering with anticipation. Everything on their menu is

made from scratch using the finest quality ingredients.


good quality,” said chef Mili.Chef Mili’s chocolate croissant is

another fabulous selection, with but-tery, flaky goodness filled with richSwiss chocolate – any chocoholic’sdream. Or, if you are in the mood fora cookie, even the butter cookies witha zigzag pattern of Swiss chocolatesevoke a reaction of “oh my God”upon first bite.

First time guest Beatrice Rose,was invited to Sweeties by Mili by caféregular Marcy Rey. Beatrice says, “I

think it is a great place to bring yourfamily. The food is delicious. Myfriend has been here more than a cou-ple of times and her husband had or-dered a birthday cake and that’s whatI’m going to buy today. Everythingthey make is homemade. It’s in a greatplace and the atmosphere is very nice– beautiful, clean, sophisticated – so Iwould recommend it to anyone.”

Chef Mili prides herself on amenu display of customer favoritesand offers a cozy environment that in-

vites guests to eat and socialize. But, ifthere is a special treat that you don’tsee it on the menu, it’s more thanlikely Chef Mili can research a recipeand make you a custom order. “I lovethat,” she said. “By order, I can makeanything. I get orders for dessertsfrom other countries that I have nevermade before. I love when I have tolook the recipe up and just make it.”

Sweeties by Mili carries gluten-free cupcakes every day and can makesugar-free and gluten-free desserts byorder.

“I want everyone to know that

this is a family business,” said chefMili, “Everything we make is reallycompletely homemade and you seeand taste the difference.”

Sweeties by Mili is located at11961 Sheldon Road in Tampa.They are open 7am – 8pm, withbreakfast served 7am – 11am, Mon-day through Friday; 10am to 7pmwith breakfast available until 1pmon Saturday. They are closed onSunday. For more information,please call (813) 298-0492, visitwww.SweetiesByMili.com orFacebook.com/SweetiesTampa.

Neighborhood News & LifestylesFor Ad Info 813-928-6124 • NNLFlorida.com22 JUNE 2015

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Neighborhood News & LifestylesFor Ad Info 813-928-6124 • NNLFlorida.com24 JUNE 2015

Westchase - Vol. 4, Issue 6, June 2015

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