A scary close call
Swimming has affected her life in many different ways and not
all of the experiences were positive.
A few years ago, Julie was at the beach with some friends,
just relaxing in the water when she noticed a young boy
drifting into deeper water. The surf was extremely rough
that day.
Guided by intuition, she stayed near the boy and kept
an eye on him.
Minutes later, he was yelling for help. Julie was there
within seconds. As she scooped him up, she realized his
younger sister was underwater beneath him, so she
grabbed them both and swam them safely to the shore.
Later that afternoon when she was getting ready to leave
the beach, the children’s mother came up and hugged Julie.
“If you’re able to call for help, you are in aquatic distress …
when you’re drowning you don’t have the strength to call for help
and you’re in full panic mode,” she said. “It’s so preventable. Drownings
are senseless deaths – they don’t need to happen.”
Precious pearls
Raised in the culturally rich community
of New Orleans, Julie moved to Key West
in the 1980s and began her jewelry design
company. She is a registered gemologist
and jewelry appraiser with the
International School of Gemology, and has
studied extensively with the Gemological
Institute of America.
“My specialty is working with fine
cultured pearls of all varieties,” she said.
“Most notable are the distinctive South
Sea pearls from the golden lipped and
silver lipped oysters, the Akoya Blue pearls
from Japan and Vietnam, Tahitian Black
pearls, the remarkable Chinese freshwater
pearls and the incomparable Australian
Keshi pearls.”
Julie participates in several art shows
that are held in Boca Grande each year, as
well as many others throughout Florida.
For more information, search for Julie
Salvetti on Facebook.
G
M
Julie with some of her pearl
art at a recent art show in
Boca Grande.
52 GASPARILLA ISLAND May/June 2018