It's time for tea on Longboat Key

The Paradise Center helped residents embrace the easygoing pace of summer with a relaxing social afternoon of tea and coloring.

By Dana Kampa
| 12:00 p.m. May 17, 2026

Debby Debile joins fellow Longboaters in enjoying a relaxing afternoon at The Paradise Center, where a summer kick-off event featured tea and coloring.

Longboat Key
Neighbors

Longboaters are getting into the swing of summer, and they got into the mellow mindset with an afternoon of tea, finger foods, meditative music and coloring.

The Paradise Center held a free social hour on May 11, inviting the public to join the afternoon tea-themed gathering.

Executive Director Amy Steinhauser often highlights the psychological benefits of staying socially engaged through the center's programs, and lowering stress comes with a bevy of physical benefits as well.

The Mayo Clinic suggests coloring, cuddling a pet, and massaging pressure points on the earlobes as effective stress relievers.

Hard-working individuals are likely familiar with the immediate effects of high stress levels on the body, from disrupted sleep rhythms to headaches. But the Mayo Clinic notes that prolonged untreated stress can lead to health problems, including high blood pressure, heart disease, stroke, obesity and diabetes.

However, the clinic also points to activities like coloring as effective stress relievers. Other activities it recommends are spending quality time with a pet or volunteering at an animal shelter, trying deep breathing exercises, unplugging by reading a book, or even massaging pressure points in the earlobe.

Inspired by English afternoon tea, The Paradise Center's latest social included organic tea, finger foods and coloring for adults.

That afternoon, attendees quickly fell into a quiet rhythm as they filled in pages of flowers, bamboo and birds, all while swapping end-of-season updates and noshing on mini scones with cream.

Steinhauser notes that The Paradise Center will be open throughout the summer and offering programs such as yoga and meditative sound bath. Visit TheParadiseCenter.org for the full schedule.

author

Dana Kampa

Dana Kampa is the Longboat Key neighbors reporter for the Observer. She first ventured into journalism in her home state of Wisconsin, going on to report community stories everywhere from the snowy mountains of Washington State to the sunny shores of the Caribbean. She has been a writer and photographer for more than a decade, covering what matters most to readers.