TASTE OF FORT PIERCE
NO SHIRT, NO SHOES?
WELCOME TO ARCHIE’S
Pastor Dave Sheil, right, leads a Sunday morning church service at Archie’s Seabreeze, a South Beach landmark bar known for its casual atmosphere. Where
else can you both go to church and later order a beer?
48
A South Beach institution since 1947,
Archie’s is a home for everything casual —
even a Sunday worship service
BY JANIE GOULD
PHOTOS BY ED DRONDOSKI
Archie’s Seabreeze, the iconic beach bar and restaurant
on Fort Pierce’s South Beach, has been a popular
landmark, attracting beachgoers, bikers, and
business people since the late 1940s. For the past
few years, it’s also been packing ’em in on Sunday
mornings for an evangelical church service on the back deck.
On a recent sunny Sunday morning, the parking lot was
full and the deck was overflowing with people clapping,
singing and listening to a sermon by Dave Sheil, pastor of
Reach Community Church, which has called Archie’s its
home for six years.
“It’s joyful, accepting and lively — welcoming,” said
Madeline Gulliver, a seasonal resident of North Hutchinson
Island. “I’ve been coming for three years. I tell my friends:
‘Don’t get dressed up. You’re fine. Come as you are.’ “
Chuck Iwanicki said he comes to the service “for the
people, mostly for the people.”
“I’m not a really religious person, but it’s just a hell of a
gathering. It’s five years I’ve been coming here. It’s quite a
>>