UCF Business Incubation Client Wins Award at Orlando Expo Mujer-Woman Conference

ORLANDO, Fla. – Pamela Rogan, president of Rogan Marketing and Communications, is one of eight females honored recently by the Orlando Expo Mujer-Woman Conference at the Wyndham Orlando Resort. Rogan and seven others were recognized by Orlando Expo Mujer-Woman for their “outstanding leadership, vision, professional development, and unwavering commitment” to their communities, according to the company website. Rogan, who has spent the past 29 years in marketing and communications, is president of the Orlando Chapter of the National Association of Women Business Owners (NAWBO), and a governing board member of Athena PowerLink. She brought Rogan Marketing and Communications to the UCF Business Incubation Program in 2012, according to Site Manager Melissa Wasserman. “Pamela has a wealth of experience that benefits her company, as well as the community,” Wasserman said. “She is a natural leader with great skills in helping develop people, as well as businesses.” With her volunteer heart, Rogan encourages the growth of women and young adults who have an entrepreneurial spirit. She seeks out educational opportunities for herself so that she may best help others. Since the beginning of this year Rogan has been successfully mentoring a candidate from Workforce Central Florida. Rogan Marketing and Communications is a client of the University of Central Florida Business Incubation program located at the site on Colonial Drive. Visit www.RoganMarketing.com.

Ninjaneer Studios in Winter Springs to Open Arts and Algorithms Festival in Titusville with Special 3D Projection Mapping Show

Winter Springs, Fla. --- Animation producer Ninjaneer Studios in Winter Springs will open the Arts and Algorithms Festival in Titusville Oct. 4 – 13 with a premier showing of an original animated larger-than-life 3D Projection Mapping show on the outside wall of the Playhouse Theater in downtown Titusville. Joe Rosa, director of Ninjaneer Studios, said the digital art show depicts the rebirth of Florida’s Space Coast. Projection mapping, a/k/a video mapping, is a projection technology used to turn objects of any shape into a display surface for video projection. Complex industrial landscapes, buildings and other two or three dimensional objects are spatially mapped on the virtual program that mimics the environment where the objects belong. The premier presentation will show on a giant screen that measures 88 feet by 35 feet, Rosa said. “We have created a very special presentation that reflects the creative energy that is producing the Arts and Algorithms Festival and the unique history and exciting future of Florida’s Space Coast,” Rosa said. Ninjaneer Studios is a client company of the University of Central Florida’s Business Incubation Program in Winter Springs, Fla.

Stirling Sotheby’s International Realty named exclusive broker to sell Mountain Lake, Fla. estate home of author Susan Butler

ORLANDO, Fla., --- Stirling Sotheby’s International Realty has been named exclusive sales and marketing representatives for the estate home of author Susan Butler in the historic resort community of Mountain Lake, Fla. near Lake Wales. Roger Soderstrom, founder and owner of Stirling Sotheby’s International Realty, said International Luxury Homes Specialist Michelle Hochfelder at the firm’s Heathrow Marketing Center is representing the property. Butler is a noted biographer whose “East to the Dawn, The Life of Amelia Earhart,” was made into a feature-length motion picture. The Butler property, on a landscaped, lakefront 4.35 acre site with large live oaks and citrus, offers unforgettable lake views. The estate home offers six bedrooms, six full baths and one half-bath and a two-story “Grand Room” with vaulted beam ceiling in 4,238 square feet of living space with oak plank hardwood floors, iron chandeliers, and a massive gas fireplace. Mountain Lake was developed in the early 1900s as a winter retreat. The community is on the National Register of Historic Places. The Butler estate at 47 Mountain Lake ranks as a 1920s architectural masterpiece. Mountain Lake is a private gated community with a private country club, golf course, tennis, and croquet overlooking the historic Bok Tower in Lake Wales. The Butler property is priced for immediate sale at $995,000.

After Sailing the World for Work and Pleasure, John and Nicole Saban are Loving the Ground they Walk on at Del Webb Orlando

ORLANDO, Fla. – For vagabonds John and Nicole Saban, sailing from country to country aboard their 37-foot yacht Gannet has been a normal way of life for many of their 47 years of marriage. After living in cities like Geneva, Switzerland; Borneo and Jakarta, Indonesia; Singapore; Melbourne, Australia; and Jeddah, Saudi Arabia for work, the two spent the past three years living in Opua, New Zealand, after John retired as an engine and mining project manager for Caterpillar Inc. Now, the adventurous Captain and First Mate sweethearts – who met and discovered their shared thirst for travel while studying at Bradley University in Peoria, Illinois – are undertaking yet another big adventure…adjusting to life at Del Webb Orlando, while living in the United States for the first time since 1988. “Although it is an adjustment to relocate permanently in the U.S., we’ve found friends and activities that we enjoy and our new home is very comfortable,” said John, who grew up in Crystal Lake, IL. “Each month there is something entertaining to enjoy here, be it music, dancing, eating, or a combination.” After retiring, the Sabans had their choice of anywhere in the world to live but, because family came first, they decided to settle in Orlando [some 8,900 miles from New Zealand] to be near their two children and two grandchildren. Nicole, a Pittsburgh native, said they liked all of the Florida Del Webb communities, but chose Orlando because of its size, selection of homes and proximity to transportation and attractions. “We liked the idea of moving into a growing community where everyone is looking for new friends and activities, and Del Webb Orlando also appealed to us because it has a diverse community,” she said. Diverse indeed. The Sabans’ neighbors hail from Europe, Asia, India and Canada, as well as from throughout the U.S. Nicole recalled a comment their Swedish neighbor made about Del Webb Orlando’s multiplicity: “I have a lobster fisherman on one side, a wine merchant on the other and the weather is wonderful. Who would not love it here?" She and John, both 68, couldn’t agree more. With adventure in their blood, the couple already has been on the Central Florida roads exploring new places in their motor home, trading exotic locales like Gibraltar, Grenada and the Galapagos Islands for Gainesville, Green Cove Springs and St. Augustine. The move also has allowed the two to revisit some bygone hobbies and passions. John has been busy designing and building wooden kitchen stools and shelving systems, while Nicole recently unearthed her sewing machine and piano. With the myriad activities available at Del Webb Orlando, the Sabans wondered if they might have a difficult time choosing before getting involved in a recipe club and, you guessed it…the Wandering Webbs Travel Club. Nicole said they also plan to play golf and pickleball, and the former Sweet Adeline joined the DWO Chorus and loves singing again in a group. “The Broadway songs sung alone on night watch are a thing of the past,” she said, recalling time spent on the open seas. With so many travels to faraway places under their belts, one might think the Sabans’ lifestyle is unconventional. Not so, according to John. “We are not unique. A great many people enjoy a vagabond lifestyle either through work or hobbies. But, this just feels like the right situation for us at this stage of our lives.”

Celebration Golf Management hires top management at Eagle Creek Golf Course

ORLANDO, Fla. --- Celebration Golf Management, which owns and/or operates seven golf courses in the Central Florida region, recently named a new general manager at Eagle Creek Golf Course and a new superintendent. Kenny Nairn, chief operating officer for Celebration Golf Management said Edward Whalley was recently named general manager at Eagle Creek. Whalley who has more than 25 years of experience in the golf and hospitality industries, was formerly a director of operations for Kitson & Partners Clubs where he oversaw the day-to-day operations and sales management of multiple golf course properties in the Orlando, Jacksonville, and New Jersey markets. At the same time, Nairn said Jeff Clark was named Eagle Creek’s golf course superintendent. Clark earned his turf grass degree at Valencia State College and has 30 years of experience in the golfing industry. He formerly was the golf course superintendent at Frenchman’s Creek Country Club in Palm Beach Gardens.