Obituaries – 11-25-2015

Mary Villadonga Rodriguez Bear

Mary Villadonga Rodriguez Bear, 100, died at home Nov. 4.

She was born in Santa Fe, Argentina, and arrived in Tampa with her parents and siblings in March 1921. She lived in Florida for the rest of her life.

Mary and her first husband, Florencio Rodriguez owned Rex Feed Co. in Tampa from 1945 to 1970. She moved to Holmes Beach in 1984 and resided there until 2004, when she moved to Valrico.

Services were held Nov. 7 in Tampa. Donations may be made to the Children’s Home of Tampa, 10909 Memorial Hwy, Tampa, FL 33615.

She is survived by son, Rex Rodriguez and wife Mirta of Tampa; daughter Leah Pollock and husband George of Valrico; stepson Charles E. Bear of Jacksonville; stepdaughter Betty Bear of Charleston, South Carolina; grandchildren George Pollock Jr. and wife Jane of Lithia, Greg Pollock of Temple Terrace, Glen Pollock and wife Jennifer of Raleigh, North Carolina, Ian Rodriguez of Port St. Lucie, Erik Rodriguez and wife Jaime of Basin, Montana, Athena Rodriguez and husband Marshall Hurd of Boston; also step-granddaughters Donna Hull and Andrea Bear of Jacksonville; step-grandson Gianmarco; great-grandchildren Emily, Jacob, Helen Pollock and Alexandria Hurd and many nieces and nephews.

 

Island artist ‘Woody’ dies, leaves prolific legacyobit-1woody

      Paul “Woody” Candish, 69, of Bradenton and formerly of Anna Maria, died Nov. 16.

He was born in Washington, D.C., on Valentine’s Day and raised at Sparrows Point, Maryland, at Fort Henry.

“Woody Candish was a man who embraced many different endeavors in life,” son Jessie wrote for his father’s notice.

In his adolescence, Mr. Candish enjoyed trapping and shooting guns. He won many marksmanship trophies and spent an immense amount of time in the woods — so much so that his parents nicknamed him “Woody.”

He developed a passion for hot-rod street-racing, which led to building and riding chopper motorcycles. He became a member of the Goose Motorcycle Club and Hells Angels were among his friends.

When the hippie era arrived, Mr. Candish was on board and lived in San Francisco’s Haight-Ashbury district for several years.

His next adventure was in Provincetown, Massachusetts, where he owned a store and carved intricate designs on leather products. This led him to move to St. Thomas to create jewelry.

He also took up sailing catamarans and a competitive nature led him to excel on the racing circuit.

In 1975, he moved to Anna Maria, where he worked in various positions for the Anna Maria Island Community Center for about 15 years. During this time, he coached children’s sports — soccer, baseball and softball — and devoted much time to youth causes.

After he parted ways with the center, he channeled his energy into art and became an independent artist. He worked in different mediums but his real love was metal sculpture.

From his studio/home on North Bay Boulevard, he started a holiday sale for his artist friends, which grew to such success it was halted by a complaint that it should be a permitted event. Undaunted, Candish brought his Christmas sale to The Islander office and, although he seldom took part, it was known as Woody’s Art Sale and many friends, including Linda Molto and Mark Alonso, took part every year.

He was extremely generous with his work, donating often to benefits and island events for nonprofits.

He once painted a car and shared a sledge hammer to smash it to raise funds for the Artists’ Guild.

In his final years, his passion was spiritual and his prayers and meditation were frequent.

“Woody, you are loved and missed by many,” son Jessie wrote. “Happy trails, Dad.”

A gathering of friends and family will be held 1-3 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 28, at Bayfront Park in Anna Maria.

He is survived by son Jessie; daughter Lisa; grandson David; and good friends Gina Johnson, Donna Zacharias and Richard Thomas.

 

Lila C. St. Leon

      Lila C. St. Leon, 83, of Bradenton, died Nov. 13.

She was born Aug. 19, 1932, in Del’ Aqua, Italy, and came to Manatee County with husband Clyde W. St. Leon 65 years ago.

During her earlier years, she was a performer with Ringling Brothers Circus, where she met her husband. After settling in Bradenton, she performed in local theater in Sarasota. She also became a thoroughbred horse owner along with her husband,

Later in life they owned The Magic Mile Plaza in Bradenton and The Sandcastle Cove Beach Apartments on Anna Maria Island.

A gathering was held Nov. 22 at the Toale Brothers Bradenton Chapel.

Survivors include her daughters Laura Kent of Winter Haven and Jacqueline Gleber of Bradenton; sons Les of New York City and Clyde J of Bradenton; brother Raul of Bradenton and sister, Sonya of Hollywood; five grandchildren and two great grandchildren.

 

Linda Ann Kelly Reevesobit-reeves-112515

Linda Ann Kelly Reeves, born June 8, 1943 in Grove City, Pennsylvania, of Anna Maria Island, died on Nov. 16.

She lived for two decades on the island and volunteered for many community groups, including Anna Maria Island Art League, Artists’ Guild of Anna Maria Island, The Center of Anna Maria Island, Anna Maria Island Historical Society, Anna Maria Island Turtle Watch, the Island Library, Annie Silver Community Center, Anna Maria Elementary School, Girl Scout Troop #316 and the Island Singles Club.

She also was active in the regional MS Society, as well as a volunteer for a women’s crisis center and Meals on Wheels.

She was an honorary member of the Roser Women’s Guild and worked at the Roser Thrift Shop for more than a decade. She was not an official member of the church, but her experience with the church restored her spiritual beliefs.

She loved animals, too. She volunteered to pet the cats and dogs at the Bradenton Humane Society. She adopted an older blind, almost deaf cocker spaniel, the most recent of her “hard to place” adoptions. She had a big heart and a big collection of pets to match.

She had a VW pop-up van and loved to make macramé owls. But, despite owning a craft shop and selling art and antiques at flea markets, she wasn’t a hippie. She loved to travel and was always on the go.

She was a gifted writer, voracious reader and, blessed with an incredible vocabulary, she excelled at crossword puzzles and Scrabble.

She studied at Slippery Rock State College and the University of Miami, where she majored in political science and was a member of the Alpha Chi Omega sorority. And she attended New Hampshire Vo-Tech College, where she was the only woman in her class and studied electrical engineering.

She married into a prominent Hyannisport family and eventually moved to Vermont with her three children, living on an old house in the country and turning the horse barn into an art studio. She opened The Grapes of Craft, an arts and crafts store, in New Hampshire.

She loved New England, especially in the fall.

She moved to Florida after her first marriage ended, found the love of her life, the late Lloyd Reeves Jr., and returned to her second home in Vermont.

A service will be at Roser Memorial Community, 512 Pine Ave., Anna Maria, at 3 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 26. Canned food donations for the Roser pantry would be appreciated and a reception will follow.

She is survived by her daughters Laurie Jo Higgins and husband David of Anna Maria, Kelly Ann Thomas of San Juan del Sur, Nicaragua, and Kerry Lynn Kelley and husband Bruce of Swanzey, New Hampshire; sisters Nancy Hilland of Albuquerque, New Mexico and Joanne McDaniel of Atlanta; grandchildren Savannah Higgins, Bryce Higgins, Max Higgins, Dillan Higgins, Desmond Kelley, Kiara Kelley and Jordan Kelley, and numerous aunts, uncles and cousins.

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