February 2019   |   XX  

and foyer was preserved, having been 

imported from Barcelona by the original 

owners and still possessing too great a 

beauty to tear out—and it fits well with 

the aesthetic of the newly worked space, 

complimented by the kitchen’s recently 

added black porcelain tile flooring and 

empire chandelier. “We wanted to leave as 

much of the house as it originally was to 

preserve the history of the home,” Sylvia 

explains. More work is being planned over 

the next months, but even its completion 

will hardly compromise what the home 

was always meant to be.

And while they take some time off from 

further renovations to ready their home 

to host the Destin Charity Wine Auction 

patron’s dinner benefiting Food For 

Thought Outreach, Sylvia and Joel—an 

entrepreneur and developer whose own 

personal history makes him a passionate 

advocate for children in need—enjoy 

their time at the estate that is now fully 

theirs, savoring the view of the bay from 

their dock as dolphins play and birds fly 

tranquilly on the breeze, at home amidst 

breathtaking treasures made both by 

nature and by man. 

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3/5/19   7:33 PM