My first brick order was in memory of my husband, Col. CE Zakszeski (Col “Zak”). He was commander at Sunny Point from 1991-1993. We, as a family, were fortunate enough to have the opportunity to reside in the Garrison House during his command.

My second brick was in memory of our Special son, Charles E. Zakszeski, Jr, known as “CJ”. CJ was a quadriplegic with cerebral palsy. The Garrison had 3 bedrooms and 2 baths, which were upstairs. (only a half bath downstairs). Zak was the legal guardian of his mom and to include our other son, Stephen, we needed 4 bedrooms and one had to be downstairs as well as a bathroom.

The East wing of the house was only entered from the outside. Previous commanders had asked to have it opened up to be part of the living part of the house, but the answer was always “no”. Our reason to open up the east wing was truly a legitimate one.

Anna Swan Rogers is the pen name of a woman who is a Southport native, and a Lifetime Member of the Southport Historical Society since 2004. With the exception of time away at college, Anna has lived and worked in Southport all her life.

“Salubrious Breezes” and “Sophie’s Bluff” were written during a time in Anna’s life when she had to retire suddenly from working as a letter carrier, due to a diagnosis of aggressive, late-stage breast cancer. During this time of cancer treatment and surgery, and adjustment to sudden retirement, she began writing down childhood memories. From this writing came the development of a story that incorporates childhood memories and stories into this work of fiction.