The original purpose of the "fund" was to refloat and fix the boat. The person "managing" the fund has posted that he is giving the money to Jay to use for rent. When some people asked about reimbursing Steve Smith and others for their expenses he dismissed the idea wholeheartedly. Did you happen to ask him why Dreamer is in the condition he is in? How does he plan to pay for his care? Or does he assume that will just all be paid for by someone else too and when the dog is better and the boat is fixed, all with other people's money then he'll just sail off into the sunset?

Come on Cherlene it is time to ask the difficult questions!!

Thank you for the article, though the line "Smith says he's also concerned for Captain Jay's well being, citing possible issues with alcohol" to me was not needed. I do not believe this is anyones business but Jays and should not have been broadcasted to the reading community.

I need new sails too.......Can I have a donation page??

Most of the rest of us need to work to pay for our toys.

A few days ago, plans were underway for Dreamer to be bought from Burki and then be placed in a responsible home. I had actually put togther plans for a fundraiser to help defray some of the costs of the people that would become Dreamer's forever home. In fact I had started that before I knew of the impending purchase. I spoke with a number of people that were willing to assist, in fact were ready to donate money on the spot. I'm not an animal person, per se', but I can't stand when animals are not cared for since they have absolutely no voice. This latest turn of events just disgusts me and it also disgusts me to know that neither law enforcement nor the SPCA are not or maybe cannot do anything about it!! http://www.facebook.com/pages/Gulfport-Watchdogs/171592729587071

What a disapointing situation this has been. I don't believe Jay is about to admit he is powerless over alcohol. That is were his heart seems to be, not with his family, dog or boat. In my opinion he should be ignored, unless he asks for help with his drinking.

Cherlene - can you please find out from Jay and the caretaker how they plan to pay for Dreamer's care? or are they just assuming that there will be an endless flow of money coming from Gulfport? Please, can you also find out why the ASPCA hasn't issued a report or why the GPD removed itself from the issue. Most anybody with a set of eyes can see that the dog has been neglected and possibly tethered. Someone that knows Burki told me the other night that Burki only ever brought Dreamer ashore twice in the last year!!It disgusts me to know what is going to happen to this dog. Also do you know where teh cat is and what condition it is in?

Most of what I have read here seems like a shamless rant about a man who everyone already knew what he was like before this kind gesture of helping him. These comments taint this kind gesture and practically label all the people who helped Jay as ''enablers''. I agree that is the last thing an alcoholic needs, but don't fault the enablers for having a heart. I am sure most of us have a line drawn where we decide to not give him anymore help, but to trash what's already been done is plain wrong. Many of you here are being rather venomous towards Jay. There is no logical or complicated explanation for why this gesture of kindness was extended to Jay...other than it was simply a spontaneous opening of many peoples hearts. As someone who donated some money, I want to say I gave what I gave with no strings attached. If some of the money is used to pay his rent, then so what? It is still doing what it was supposed to do:help him. The help given to Jay is a typical example of how good many people in Gulfport are. Many of the comments here seem mean spirited and out of place in the midst and aftermath of this fine display of human compassion. I can see many of the negative points, but they were already known about Jay. Those of us who helped, helped him ''anyway''. It was the right thing to do. It did not have to make sense.

I Have known Captain Jay for shy of a year and have enjoyed many a meal and an evening aboard "Promise" I find no problem with his moderate drinking and rest assured Promise was always neat and clean nothing like what we found after the storm Debby. Those of you that are so critical of his stewardship might remember a cruise ship ashore in the med. and lost to a storm. Come on "Lets get real"
Katherine ( St. Petersburg)

Thank you Trace for bringing this back to what is important. The health and care of helpless neglected animals.

Thanks Trace.

CJ and Katherine, I find it incredulous that Burki never once suggested he might do something to earn some money to fix his boat rather he made sure we knew there was a place where people could donate money. Likewise, he and the caretaker person that lied about Dreamer's adoption just assumed there was going to be an endless flow of money to pay the vet bills telling one person I'll just keep bringing him to the Gulfport Vet.
CJ - your posts are usually very objective and I admire and applaud you for helping to refloat the boat. However, did you ever read any of Steve Smith's comments? Burki never made an attempt to do anything to help himself. IMO he is a freeloader, irresponsible boater and irresponsible pet owner.

Katherine- how'd you even get past all the junk on the boat to get on it and have a date? And you actually ate food on that filthy thing--hopefully it was takeout? Did you notice the boat had no motor, no sail and no bathroom facilities while you were on there? And you call that responsible? If that were a home on land it would have been deemed uninhabitable.

The following was posted on a Tampa Bay Times article by someone else that has know Burki for about a year. This person certainly has a different pwerspective than Katherine...
==================================================
The article of Wednesday, July 18, 2012 by Lane Degregory, chronicling John, 'Cap'n Jay', Burki's plight is unfortunately full of untruths, distortions & Cap'n Jay's own delusional beliefs. I have known Cap for over a year now, & in the beginning was taken in by his seemingly sad story & apparently needy situation. Without going into detail, I & many others here in & around Gulfport have gone out of our way to help him with both physical & monetary support. Occasionally the monetary support has been repaid, either completely or at least partially; many times it has not. He can be very charming & upon 1st hearing, his stories of bad luck, harassment by officials, unfair treatment at the hands of both civil & government organizations constitute the picture of an individual leading an undeservedly miserable existence. >>>

>>>>However, after hearing the same excuses over & again for varying trials & tribulations, after hearing him state that he hasn't the money to pay for gas for his boat, cigarettes, or even dog-food for the grown American Bulldog that he keeps sequestered on his boat & last year only brought ashore twice, it's a bit disheartening to watch him eat & pay for a steak dinner at his favorite watering hole, a restaurant across from Gulfport Beach, & afterward to bum cigarettes & wine off of the surrounding customers. And that is but one example of myriad discrepancies in his stories & his life. He is considered by many about town to fall into one or more of the following categories, joker, buffoon, charlatan, liar, beggar, psychopath, befuddled clown, fool and other less than savory descriptions. In the support of fairness, it must be said that he also has his supporters who consider him to be unfortunate, likable, a Gulfport institution & worthy of benefit of the doubt. These individuals tend to be those who have either just recently met him & have not yet been taken advantage of by him, or those who would continue to feed the same stray dog that bites them every time they give it a handout. But many of us are simply tired of his delusions, his using of people around him, his habit of running unassuming tourists out of Gulfport establishments with his outrageous behavior, & etc.

>>>>>>I have to believe that the article about him was written from material recounted totally by Cap'n Jay himself. The inaccuracies in it are so rampant as to render it impossible to correct them all in anything short of novella-length fashion. Consequently, I shall name but a few of them starting at the beginning of the article. Firstly, Cap'n Jay didn't decide to head for open water for safety's sake at the onset of Debby's high winds. According to Cap'n Jay, who told me the story himself, the anchor ropes which had held his boat in place for approximately 2 years, just a couple hundred yards off the beach in Gulfport broke free & the boat was set adrift. What happened next, also told to me by Cap'n Jay was that the boat washed ashore in Gulfport, at which time I believe it was the Coast Guard that he said towed him across the inter-coastal & tied him up to a bridge support along the Pinellas Bayway. Subsequently the boat broke free again & drifted back across to it's current location off Gulfport Beach. Next, the reason his engine didn't work was because it had been rusted into a mass of junk since the boat was sunk, prior to his acquisition of it. Also, the reason he couldn't raise the sail had nothing whatsoever to do with the wind's severity. His mast won't hold a sail because it had been snapped near half way through in a previous storm & has never been repaired. >>>>>

>>>The preceding discrepancies (all within the 1st paragraph) are but three of at least eleven untruths I counted in the article, & there may presumably be more of which I am unaware.
While I am sure Ms Degregory was not aware of these "misstatements"¬, it is unfortunate she didn't attempt a more balanced investigation of the truths in this matter before publication. Also, in reference to some comments made earlier to this article, no, Cap'n Jay did not possess a working toilet on his boat for over a year at least while it was anchored here. And yes, I have been aboard his boat...once for a few minutes & never again will I return. A dog (his dog) should not be allowed to live under the conditions I witnessed on that vessel, much less a human being.
Since this article's printing, many uninformed people have decided to come to Cap'n Jay's aid, & now Gulfport residents, along with it's visitors are confronted with the real possibility that an unwelcome situation that looked about to be solved shall once again continue for no one knows how long.

And there were also these comments by others that know him.... Realllyyyy20 days ago
I can't agree more. This man is a welfare con that "helps" people who will pony up to support him. There are few lower than that. He has taken advantage of everyone that has come in contact with him. There is a reason no one has tried to help get him out of the sand though there are several people that are fully capable of doing so, and have done so for no greater reward than "helping out someone in trouble". How do you suppose all the boats blown in during last years storm got back out. It wernt sea tow. The list of people goes on and on that would withhold urine that may be of benefit in extinguishing this mans hair if it were aflame.

Receipts that total 1000$ are held by one couple who tried to befriend him and buy a boat on a "gentleman's agreement" by making payments only to find he had no right to sell the boat to begin with. They decide it would be better to cut their losses than have to ever deal with him again. It is a shame Gulfport is getting grief for not doing more to help him when this city already is one of the most hospitable places in the area. People here all joined in to get the other boat out that was stuck on the beach, by hand, after the city said the owner couldn't bring in a crane that was offered to lift him out. Come on people wake up. >>

>>>Realllyyyy20 days ago
Oh yea what about the other boat he rammed on his way in the first time during this storm. They were doing fine even though they only have a couple years experience on the water till they had to cut their anchor lines to let Jay slide by so they wouldn't go with him. His last boat was known affectionately as "Rainbow Drifter" due to the number of times he broke loose, sometimes being saved by getting tangled in other peoples anchors.

And here are other well made popints---Burki obviously didn't give two flips about the environment either. (Thanks CJ for wading in that nasty water he created to help him) ======chiefwamego24 days ago
I'm in the marine industry and find there's a lot of crazy talk going on here. From what I've read the boat was not in very good condition prior to this incident. It was an accidnet waiting to happen even before the storm came. First it had a major leak that was somehow "patched" Unless it was done professionally it was just a matter of time before it sunk anyway and probably create more of an enviromental mess with leaking oil and whatever else he kept onboard (sewage). If he thinks $93 a day fine from Gulfport is bad, wait until he's charged for pollution cleanup, which can run thousands a day. Second, from the story it did not sound like the boat had had strong enough deck fittings to anchor or proper lines to withstand high winds including TS. He wasn't prepared which is his own fault. And third, salvage of a boat is not as easy as people are thinking on here. You cannot just drag it back into the water. You may cause more damage than you have now. You can rip the keel off. You can puncture a hole in the hull. And if you do get it back into the water, are you going to risk it sinking causing more damage to the boat and possible pollution because you dragged it back? The state or Coast Guard may require a Hull Survey prior to letting him keep his boat anchored there. >>>>

>>>>This is not a simple matter. it can be properly salvaged with money. I doubt any salvage company will risk doing a free salvage because of all the risks involved. Once a salvage company takes action they can be held liable. As it sits right now its an eyesore but not a pollution case which it could turn into. I feel sorry for the old guy but living on a boat and taking precautions take money and expereince. Also stop calling him a captain. Unless he's completed an approved merchant mariner course of instruction by the Coast Guard, retired as a Navy Captain, or graduated from a maritime academy, he's just another boater.

There is no need to item by item respond to all the mud you slung here, your own foot in your mouth can easily say enough about you. I have observed many comments over time by you and have almost always really liked your quick one liners you throw in. your comments have often been among my favorites. I have also noticed how many who obviously know you, pretty much distance themselves from your comments as if to imply they don't like you much. Not knowing you, I have even come to your defense and even complimented you...but not this time. You said something more or less describing Jay as someone who lures you in only to later regret meetting him. I feel you have done that to me, becasue it is clear now why many are offeneded by you. Lesson learned. ''One'' of the wickedest things you said (and there were plenty) was how you have been in his boat. What? Did you pretend to like him, just so you could get fuel for your fire against him, and to use to stab him in the back? Wow. Whatever bad traits Jay may have, you doing that to a person is way below anything Jay has probably ever done to anyone.

CJ - with all due respect I believe you have misunderstood my posts. Most of what I posted are comments made by others in response to articles in the Tampa Bay Times.The point of doing that was to show that there are others that have also expressed similar concerns. Also, no where did I say that I ever went on Mr. Burki's boat. Please read the posts again. Thanks.

I can't even begin to tell you how many people over the years I have seen that have a dog and have never managed to completely housetrain it. These people will simply put up with it because the love for the dog far outweighs it's bad habits. Many people have elderly that require much unpleasant personal care to perform on them for what sometimes is very many remaining years. Again, it's about love. His dog seems to be getting better care now. Why not let it ride about the dog? You are refusing to shut down on this. Do you ever have regrets on what you say? Enough to even apologize? I think I know the answer to that, and it says something sad about you. It is appareant you are right. You are right about everything, all the time, aren't you? You are painfully right. but you are right about many things that everyone else knew about Jay. You just don't get it. This was a spontaneous gesture. Virtually all of us know this was going to be a thankless job and futile effort. We simply did it to be nice. Just like occasionally giving money to the beggar on a corner, not knowing if he was actually doing quite well and at the end of the day walking over to his car to go home to his wife and kids in suburbia. It doesn't matter if we give help without knowing what the real need is. God sorts those things out. Small efforts are very meaningful in this world. There is zero good to come out of what you are doing. Brings to mind the saying, 'The road to 'hail' is paved with good intentions'.

I don't think we can say ''hell'' here...lol...out of respect to Cherlene! Oops...guess I was just bad...

''Look''... mtober, trace, etc...I don't like where I have let myself go on this. My comments and replies have gotten mean also. I apologize. If you have not noticed...even though ''The Patch'' is part of Huffington Press...which I read all the time even though I am not a real fan of HP....the ''Patch'' posts throughout the country are much kinder in nature. Cherlene and the other local Patch editors are very good at throwing out light hearted stories that are usually of the ''feel good'' variety. This story by Cherlene was one of those...and like all too often the story somehow takes on a life of it's own and headed off in a less than kind direction. I think that is why I have reacted the way I have...because some of you have taken this great story and are tainting it. There are enough elements of society in the Pinellas County area that we should concentrate on trying to rid the area of. Jay is simply not worthy of the degree of hurt that has befallen him. If anyting, he is just another charater of the area that makes this area appeal to me. He is a scallywag? OK...so what. The love of scallywags is why a lot of us live here. I am a horse of a diferent kind brand of one myself. If we are going to trash someone, then how about doing it to the sob who broke Jays jaw? ''That's'' the kind of person I don't like seeing here. Jay is welcome, but that guy is not.

Both those comments were about as uncomprehendable as any I have ever read on any Patch blog. I am interested in what you say, but I am not sure what you are saying. If you are trying to insinuate you love animals more than me, then your insulting nature evidently has no bounds. You evidently have yourself on a high pedastal in regard to animals. I would even venture to say your post here sounds like it was sent by someone who is hitting the bottle. I would bet money that there has been dog crap and pee a time or two left uncleaned up in the days your alcoholism was rampant. That would be a failry normal site at the home of an alcoholic. Considering ou claim to be a recovering alcoholic, and it makes your comments towards Jay seem surprisingly hostile. What ...Jay is underserving of compassion...and you are? I choose to offer support and friendship to ''both'' of you...even if there are some animal care issues that differ from my own. I see no point in this back and forth anger. I tried to soften you up on this , but I failed. The irony here is that all dogs walk on stuff that is disgusting just by the nature of what they are..a dog. They don't wear shoes and take them off at the door before they come in. Do you think when you let your dog outside to go and then let him back in that his feet missed all the piles in your yard? ''You'' are the self centered one here...not me. You think everyone should do as you think. Jay does not have to do that to be a good guy.

Hi CJ,
I dont want to argue about semantics with you, so we can agree to disagree (as my mom would say) about donations and help for Captain Jay. That being said, the issue of the dog is a something that I can not let go. That dog is in terrible condition, and I have seen this first hand. It is underweight, has various infections, worms, flees, and a few more minor issues that can be fixed with proper care. These problems with the dog DO NOT happen over night, and some need months to develop to the severity that they are present on Dreamer. Caring for another living creature takes a commitment that just is not being done by the captain. There is a very high probability that this dog will not have a long life expectancy if the care continues the way it has, and there is no indication otherwise.

Boy...thanks fellow shipwreck volunteers for leaving me out to dry here...where are all these kind hearted souls at now? Am I the only one other than Kathren that wants to stand up for Jay?

CJ - Who has said anything bad about the volunteer effort? Seems to me most everyone has extended their thanks for what was done. I sent a letter to the Gulfport City Council last week asking that they give Steve Smith the "Spirit of Gulfport" award for his efforts in pulling the entire thing together and making it happen! So please stop spewing about that! Thanks.

Whatever...........

This may not sound relative, but I hope someone gets it. I was coming back from downtown today on Central and the John Lennon song, ''Imagine'', was playing. They also played it during the closing ceromonies for The Oympics...and even had a video of John's face. I love that song and it get's to me sometimes. As I was listening to it, I thought it was cool that I drove by a schooll along Central (near The Trop) called ''Imagine School''. Of course, that song also says the word ''Dreamer'' in it...and I could not help but think of Jay's dog. I am disturbed that some of you may think I am not as big of an animal lover as anyone is. Just because some of you have taken up Dreamer's battle on a different level than me, it does not mean you care any more about the dog than I do. But, as I said..I put people first. I ''always'' do that...''and''...I have a line drawn in a different place where it crosses a man's personal and provate affairs. I can see I am the minority here, and I conceed defeat to you and Trace. I am also glad dogs have people like you guys on their team, but don't think so harshly of people who differ slightly from your stances on this. We are all on the same side. I don't mind saying that I am sure Dreamer and Jay are made for each other. Just like there are men who are skallywags, there are dogs like that also...and may well be part of the reason men are often called ''dogs''. Some of us proudly admit it. It takes all kinds to make the world go round.

If Jay were to die and be buried here, his tombstone might say:

Here Lies Jay
His Dog Dreamer Would Say
He Was OK

CJ please get over yourself.

Margarete, Trace, and Nancy...thanks for telling it like it is!

I have lostly stayed out of this mess, but it is obvious to me that Cap'n Leather Shorts is an irresponsible boater and pet owner. I say leave him to his own concequences, exfept when it affects other and innocent animals....

Have you seen the photos of the raw neck on the dog? Have you seen where the tether cut into that poor dog's neck? THAT, in itself, is abuse in my book. How anyone can defend this perpetual irresponsible behavior, is beyond me.

Oh, and a big THANKS to my good friend Margarete Tober...We don't always agree, but she is one of the few in this town willing to take a stand on hot-topic issues. Just because we don't post our support doesnt mean that we do not support her comments.

I think certain parties here should start communicating with one another using private email.

I can see I am outnumbered here. No problem, and I will respecfully back off...but I knew what the reaction was going to be before I ever wrote anything in defense of Jay and his Dog...but I did it anyway. I read the new article out today on this topic and saw the list of things wrong with the dog, and I have to admit it really bothered me to hear what the dog had wrong with it. I hope if Jay gets his dog back, that he takes better care of it now. I also saw Cherlenes pictures in that new Patch article, and I ask any of you how you can look at those pictures and not be hurt by the thought of taking Jay's pets from him. Maybe the good that come out of this is if Jay has read any of these comments and may be positively effected by it in a way that will help the man rise above this and better for it. If people think I took up the wrong battle, then maybe I did. I have not been able to quite put it into words what bugs me about all this. Maybe I just am upset to see Jay, a fellow veteran, ''forced'' to be separated from his pets and can't get past that mental block for the sake of Dreamer. It obviously is an easy delima for many here, but not for me. When you start taking peoples pets away from them, where do you stop in that decision process? Do you leave it in the hands of mean spirited people with mixed and questionable motives? Honestly, would any of you want to be a dog owned by Trace? mtober...yes....Trace...no.