An Early Christmas Gift- Two Special Little Girls Lit Up the Swordfish Grill & Tiki

Christmas came early this year at the Swordfish Grill & Tiki in Cortez, Florida.  It’s been over a month since a drunk driver tragically killed Sara Holmes.  As many of you know, she left behind two beautiful daughters, Nova, and Charlee.  Last Saturday, I invited “Gammy” Leesa, Cousin Logan, and the girls to lunch at the Swordfish.  What took place that afternoon was truly amazing.  From the minute the girls walked in they just lit up the place. 

Nova immediately grabbed Mookie’s leash and was showing him off to everyone!  Both girls met Tim Chandler, and I saw a tear or two from Tim’s eyes.  It’s hard not to fall in love with these kids.  One by one, the Swordfish staff members stopped by our table to say “hello” to the girls.  It was magical.

Mookie brought some early presents from Santa for the girls, Cousin Logan, and Gammy!  Nova proudly walked around with one of the dinosaurs that she got, and Charlee loved her “paw patrol” car.  They loved the alligator toys that Heidi Banyas found for them. 

My heart just melted watching these two beautiful children laughing, smiling, running around and just having fun.  They ran Mookie around so much that when he got home, he took a two-hour nap!  It’s been an exceedingly difficult time for the family and the couple of hours that we spent at the Swordfish certainly were needed for everyone.

Thank you, Swordfish team for helping to put big smiles on the faces of these two wonderful kids.  A special thank you to “Arizona” our server.  You did an excellent job.  Your service fabulous. They loved their Chicken, Fries, and Lemonade.

There will be lots of challenges ahead for this family. I know that our Cortez Family will be there for them.

Oh, and as we were getting ready to leave, Charlee said, “We Have To Say Good-Bye to Tim! (Chandler)  How special is that.

It’s such a bitter-sweet time of the year, this year. Getting to know Gammy, Logan and the girls is just so special for me. 

Merry Christmas to all.

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