{"id":261579,"date":"2026-05-07T03:53:11","date_gmt":"2026-05-07T03:53:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/261579\/"},"modified":"2026-05-07T03:53:11","modified_gmt":"2026-05-07T03:53:11","slug":"floridas-famous-pomeranian-koda-the-fluff-surprises-three-families-in-need-with-three-day-vip-getaway","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/261579\/","title":{"rendered":"Florida\u2019s famous Pomeranian Koda the Fluff surprises three families in need with three-day, VIP getaway"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

TAMPA, Fla. – Koda the Fluff, Florida<\/a>\u2019s famous Pomeranian, is turning her social media stardom into a lifeline for children in need.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Through her nonprofit, Smiles Fur Miles, owner Jena McKinstry has organized the Dreamhouse Adventure for families nominated by their communities.<\/p>\n

\"\" <\/p>\n

The backstory:<\/p>\n

The kids \u2014 Edward, Luis and the Whittington siblings \u2014 will be treated to a stay at a Clermont mansion that features a personal chef, spa treatments, a game room and even a drone show.<\/p>\n

The selection process highlights children who have endured unimaginable challenges:<\/p>\n

Edward from Tampa<\/a> was nominated by a School Resource Officer. He battles Duchenne\u2019s muscular dystrophy and recently witnessed a tragic incident of domestic violence in his home.Luis is also from Tampa. He was nominated by his mother’s boss. The 13-year-old was the victim of relentless bullying at school.The Whittingtons are from Windermere. The parents, Christopher and Yaina, are raising three children who manage a range of conditions, including autism, epilepsy, and heart disease. <\/p>\n

Dig deeper:<\/p>\n

Luis’ mom, Isabelle Martinez, explained that she noticed a change in her son, going from a happy, energetic kid, to sad and sleeping all the time.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“Sometimes he told me he’s sick, and he’s not sick,” Martinez added. “He just don’t want to go to school.”<\/p>\n

Then one day, Martinez got a phone call from the school.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“They told me they’re going to take my son to the hospital. The kids threw him down the stairs and broke his arm,” Martinez said.<\/p>\n

The surprise <\/p>\n

That all changed when he was surprised with his Dreamhouse adventure.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The family was surprised with their “golden ticket” at the hotel Martinez worked at, the Hampton Inn in Odessa.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"\" <\/p>\n

And of course, Koda was in her iconic car to celebrate the happy news.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Luis and his mom will enjoy a free, three-day stay at Koda the Fluff’s Dreamhouse Adventure.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The mansion is filled with everything a kid could want.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"\" <\/p>\n

“It’s all candy themed,” Omar Elkalyoubie, the Dreamhouse butler, said. “It’s all the things that kids love.”<\/p>\n

Big picture view:<\/p>\n

Isabelle Martinez said that this surprise means so much to her and her family.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“Everything is like a dream, like I\u2019m still sleeping,” Martinez said.<\/p>\n

\"\" <\/p>\n

Martinez’s son also shared his gratitude for the Pomeranian celebrity and explained what he’s most excited to experience.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“I am most excited for the game room,” Luis said.<\/p>\n

Jena McKinstry, the mastermind behind the magic, said that her mission is simple.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“Koda finds a really cool mansion and rents it out for three or four days and finds three families nominated from people all over,” McKinstry said.<\/p>\n

What’s next:<\/p>\n

The big weekend is scheduled for May 26 through May 29.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"\" <\/p>\n

While the mansion and basic amenities are secured, Koda the Fluff is still seeking community donations to ensure the experience is as “indulgent” as possible for these families who have been through so much.<\/p>\n

Those interested in supporting the mission can find more information at Koda’s website<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The Source: Information for this story was gathered from the organizers of Koda the Fluff’s Dreamhouse as well as the family chosen to go to the mansion.<\/p>\n

Tampa<\/a> <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"TAMPA, Fla. – Koda the Fluff, Florida\u2019s famous Pomeranian, is turning her social media stardom into a lifeline…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":261580,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[47,28,30,29,629,115,135,628],"class_list":["post-261579","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-florida","tag-fl","tag-florida","tag-florida-headlines","tag-florida-news","tag-hillsborough","tag-news","tag-tampa","tag-us"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/261579","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=261579"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/261579\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/261580"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=261579"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=261579"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=261579"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}