The Flowers Family
Family Creates a Lifetime of Memories as Key Biscayne Residents and Businessowners
It was February 1954, and the Flowers family had just arrived in Miami from McAllen, Texas, where my dad was a pilot for California.
He had applied for a position with Eastern Airlines in Miami. We spent the first few days in a motel in Hialeah, but then it was off to find a permanent place to live. Dad was in training, so it was mom, my sister Olivia (Scottie), and myself off to scout out a home.
We ventured to a place called Pinecrest. We all loved it; the houses were big and new. We were all excited. When dad arrived home that evening, we told him about the wonderful place in South Miami. He then said he had been talking to some of the other trainees who told him about this great place called Key Biscayne. They told him there were lots of pilots living there and that it was a great place for kids. So we got back in the car for another adventure.
As we got close to Key Biscayne, I remember seeing a twirling shark in a cage that said “Seaquarium.” Within a few hours, we knew we were home. A day or so later we had rented a house at 400 Ridgewood Road. By chance, the rent was also $400, a lot more than dad and mom were prepared to pay, but we had fallen in love with the island. The school was close by, and there were kids right down the street. We were home.
By the time summer came around I had made lots of friends, and we would all get together to play in Sherwood Forest (now the Village Green). Most parents felt the Key was such a safe place for kids that they really let us roam on our own; of course, we had to be home at a certain time. You could go to the Howard Johnson’s for an ice cream, or Mrs. Happy’s bakery for crumb cake. We even had an appliance store, Thompson’s, which carried 45 records to browse through.
Key Biscayne Elementary was the school of choice, and from our new house it was less than a block to walk or ride a bike. It was an easy trip, except on rainy days – then it was a mess, water up to your knees, cars stranded everywhere. The cars that did work made water wakes into the homes and businesses. After Key Biscayne Elementary, most of the kids were bused to schools on the mainland. For me, 7th grade was Ponce De Leon Jr. High, 8th was Ada Merritt (we called it blackboard jungle), and 9th was South Miami Jr. High. The worst part about the mainland schools was arriving at the bus stop in the dark – my pickup time was 5:45 a.m.
Mom and dad at some point bought a small boat. The whole family was into waterskiing, and what better place than Biscayne Bay? We skied off Carter’s Beach. Yes, there was a beach on what is now known as Nixon’s helipad, long since gone. Soon after getting the boat my mom and Doris Pope started a program through the Key Biscayne Yacht Club that taught many kids on the Key to ski. Summers were great.
Except for one thing…it was also hurricane season. I think we had a few tropical storms, but not a real hurricane. That would all change with Hurricane Donna in 1960. The Key flooded, trees were down, there was no power, it was hot and humid, and our island was ruined. But we bounced back, better than ever.
Around that time my mom went to work for the Marzaines, who owned The Villager at 614 Crandon Boulevard. A year or so later the shop was sold to Momi and Adalina Rionda and it became The Village Place. It was 1964 when my mom and dad bought the store, renaming it Scott’s Village. The island managed to support quite a few businesses. There were three clothing stores, Vacation Vogues (Key Bana Women’s), Fiesta, and Scott’s; two men’s stores, Key Bana Men’s and Burn’s Ltd.; a shoe store, The Bootery (Krell family); Krest 5 & 10; Bristol’s toy store; Key Rendezvous; The Island Shop; and more. Not long after we purchased Scott’s we had another monster hurricane: Miss Betsy showed up on the Key in 1965. Most every home and business on the Key was under water. Again we built back better.
My daughter Kelli Scott White was born in 1967, and she lived most of her life on the Key. By the time she got to Key Biscayne Elementary there were so many kids on the island and so many things for them to do. They played soccer and tennis and took swimming lessons at the Silver Sands. Kelli now lives in Coral Gables with my two grandchildren, Max and Francesca. It is wonderful to have them so close.
By 1980 Scott’s had outgrown the space at 614 Crandon, so we purchased the Key Bana Women’s shop, which is now AT&T. It was called The Other Place, and we specialized in swimwear and athletic clothing for the family. The Other Place closed in 2004 as the shopping center changed to condo ownership. All in all, Scott’s had a 40-year run on the Key. Thank you to all the islanders who supported not only me but every other merchant.
Every other Wednesday Scott’s would gather six or seven of the beautiful women on the Key to do fashion shows at the Key Biscayne Hotel and Villas. The women would parade around the pool deck showing the latest in fashion, and answer questions from the tourists. Mother’s Day at the Key Biscayne Yacht Club was a great show, as was the Christmas Fashion Show. Christmas was fun at Scott’s. On the two Friday evenings before Christmas we would keep the shop open late so the husbands on the Key could come to shop for their wives. Of course, the fact that we served Manhattans and martinis made “shopping a little easier.” Most of the wives could come into the store weeks earlier to pick out what they wanted, and we would hold it in the back until the husband came in to shop. We had very few returns.
Scott’s and The Other Place had an extended family of employees. Celina Framil had been with the store for 40 years, since the day it opened. Terry Panaugia was with us for 30 years. Marisol Arcacha did alterations for close to 20 years, and Consuelo Casas for 15 years. They were never like employees. They were just as much a part of the business as me and Scottie. Everyone knew when they walked in the shop that they would see a familiar face. We even had a store mascot; Pumpkin was Scottie’s miniature poodle. Customers would sometimes just come in to see the dog. Most of the girls have since passed away, including Scottie in 2012.
The closing of The Other Place was a sad day, and people came by to say how much they would miss the store and staff. We cried, laughed, and told old stories, and then it was time to lock the doors for the last time.
As for me, I am still here and will celebrate 70 years on Key Biscayne in February 2024. I have lived with my husband Wayne in the same house for 38 years. I have a craft/sewing studio where I do what I enjoy – creating things. Thank you, Key Biscayne, for a lifetime of memories.
