Key Lime Tree owner Violet Wahba wasn’t going to sit on the sidelines as the coronavirus pandemic created what’s been immense hardship for many in the Keys who await a return to work. 

Instead, she stepped up to help hand out some 300 meals daily at her MM 95, oceanside, business in coordination with Harriette’s Restaurant in Key Largo and Mangrove Mike’s Endeavors, which have been key in bringing it all to fruition. 

Outside Wahba’s MM 95, oceanside, business, volunteers donning masks and gloves prepare meals into containers underneath a tent for distribution to residents who stop by between noon and 2 p.m. Monday through Friday. Initially, Wahba says they were handing out 200 meals a day. But it’s grown to 300 now that the word has spread. And it might grow to 350. 

Wahba said she loves the community and really wanted to help out in any way she could. With help from volunteers who are generously donating their time, Wahba said “we’re all in this together.”

“None of this is really possible without the help from volunteers,” Wahba said as bags of meals were handed off into the windows of cars. “Community members are coming together and it’s been amazing to see.”

Meals will continue to be handed out so long as the need is still there, Wahba says.

Jim McCarthy is one of the many Western New Yorkers who escaped the snow and frigid temperatures for warm living by the water. A former crime & court reporter and city editor for two Western New York newspapers, Jim has been honing his craft since he graduated from St. Bonaventure University in 2014. In his 4-plus years in the Keys, Jim has enjoyed connecting with the community. “One of my college professors would always preach to be curious,” he said. “Behind every person is a story that’s unique to them, and one worth telling. As writers, we are the ones who paint the pictures in the readers minds of the emotions, the struggles and the triumphs.” Jim is past president of the Key Largo Sunset Rotary Club, which is composed of energetic members who serve the community’s youth and older populations. Jim is a sports fanatic who loves to watch football, hockey, mixed martial arts and golf. He also enjoys time with family and his new baby boy, Lucas, who arrived Oct. 4, 2022.