Patrice Rand (above), the associate provost of academic and faculty affairs for the State College of Florida, and Debbie Allish, the director of simulation for the college’s nursing program, held onto the giant scissors together.
Simultaneously, they used the scissors to cut the ribbon, celebrating the opening of the nursing program’s new debriefing area.
Allish said the debriefing space will give students an opportunity to reflect on their work during simulations with faculty.
“We believe strongly in psychological safety, so when they’re in simulation, if they make a mistake, the only people that really have to know about it are the faculty and the two people that are involved in it,” she said. “It’s hard to talk about some of the uncomfortable things when you’re out in the middle of everything.”
Wild party
Even political functions in Myakka City get a little wild.
Carol Felts, Republican nominee for the District 1 county commission seat, hosted a backyard bash on Sept. 21 to celebrate all the Republican nominees.
George Kruse, nominee for District 7, and Scott Farrington, nominee for Supervisor of Elections (pictured above with Felts) were in attendance, along with Fred the alligator.
Fred is Felt’s neighbor. She’s known him since he was an egg. In addition to selfies with Fred, nominees and voters were treated to live music, cowboy poetry, whip cracking and a bounce house for the kids.
Move to more transparency
Backyard Social adjusts closing time
LESLEY DWYER STAFF WRITER
Waterside Place residents made it clear when Wolverine Management first proposed Backyard Social on Professional Parkway to them in March that Lakewood Ranch is not a place for outdoor entertainment until 2 a.m.
Over the past six months, a sound study was conducted and a compromise on closing time was made.
“We’re only trying to extend the code for outdoor entertainment by one hour,” Wolverine President Mat Baum said. “We dialed it back to be 11 p.m. on weekdays and 12 a.m. on weekends.”
Sarasota County code states that outdoor dining and entertainment is only allowed until 10 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 11 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays. A “special exception” is required to operate outside of those hours.
The application for Backyard Social will go before the Sarasota Planning Commission on Oct. 3. If approved, food trucks will provide the dining. Games and live music will provide the entertainment.
As part of the application process, the proposal was presented to nearby residents and business owners during a neighborhood meeting in March.
Since hearing the new hours and visiting Backyard Social’s Fort Myers location, Neal said he supports the project.
“(The Fort Myers location) is very popular; people like it. It’s well managed and doesn’t seem to have any troublesome aspects,” he said. “I have confidence that they’re good operators, and it’ll be an amenity for Lakewood Ranch as a whole.”
However, the Waterside Neighborhood Alliance is not convinced.
The group submitted a legal memorandum to the Planning Commission and is launching an email campaign to inform board members of the opposition.
the Fort Myers location opened in October 2023 through August 2024. He said there were 92 incidents reported.
“Out of the 92, I would say 22 of them were significant in the sense that they were assault, battery, drunk and disorderly kind of behavior,” Morrow said. “There were a couple of hit and runs in the parking lot, where cars got hit.”
Baum remembered one car being accidentally hit in the parking lot but said it wasn’t a hit and run. He also remembered two incidents that would fall under the drunk and disorderly category.
music until 12 or 2 in the morning,” Morrow said. “How does the county commission stop it once they’ve approved another one?”
Baum said the alliance is only focused on the late hours, but Backyard Social has a lot more to offer the community. Some of the offerings in Lakewood Ranch will be a Yappy Hour for dog owners, a monthly market and yoga classes on the lawn. “Once in a while, we do events with bounce houses for kids, so we definitely have a wide demographic of the audience we’re going after,” Baum said. “We are not a ‘club,’ as we’re being labeled. We open at 11 a.m. to serve lunch.”
As for the noise, Baum insists that Backyard Social can’t be louder than any other establishment because there’s no special exception to exceed the noise level that’s stated in Sarasota County’s code.
The sound study was performed by Keane Acoustics in June. The tests accounted for prerecorded music playing inside and a full band of four or more musicians playing outside after 10 p.m.
The study found that noise coming from Backyard Social “will comply with the decibel levels stated in the Sarasota County Noise Ordinance and will be below ambient noise levels emitted from Interstate 75 and other local roads.”
Recommendations included positioning the stage away from neighboring communities and putting a screen or wall behind it, enclosing the subwoofers under the stage and orienting the loudspeakers to avoid a direct line of sight with adjacent properties.
Homebuilder Pat Neal dialed into the meeting to tell Baum and his team that 2 a.m. is too late for Sarasota, and he would form an opposition group if the hours weren’t changed. The Alcove at Waterside by Neal Signature Homes is located between 3,000 and 4,700 feet from the proposed site.
The alliance’s main points are that there’s no reason to make a special exception, the exception could start a trend of later hours in the area, the noise will carry to surrounding Waterside neighborhoods and the establishment could cause an increase in neighborhood crime.
“On the weekends, past 9 p.m., we have security and it’s 21 and up,” Baum said. “We’ve had tens of thousands of people coming through there, so you’re talking about .01%. I think we have a pretty good record.”
“Our intention is to be great neighbors to everybody because we’re counting on those same neighborhoods to frequent our space,” Baum said. A
Alliance member Stanley Morrow requested police records from when
Most concerning to members of the neighborhood alliance is that a special exception for Backyard Social could mean a special exception for everyone. Morrow fears the “cascad-
ing effect” that other businesses will feel a need to compete.
“A lot of the restaurants have those outdoor patios next to them, and they might want to start playing
Stipulations were made to Backyard Social’s application that comply with the sound study’s recommendations.
Manatee County acknowledges not being in compliance with Florida’s Public Records Act.
County settles public records lawsuit
The county acknowledged that it was not in compliance with the law.
LESLEY DWYER STAFF WRITER
The modern convenience of cell phones has become a costly complication for Manatee County in recent years because of lawsuits stemming from both alleged and acknowledged violations of Florida’s Public Records Act.
Most recently, commissioners agreed to pay the Florida Center for Government Accountability $75,000 on Sept. 10 to settle a lawsuit after Manatee County acknowledged it hadn’t been in compliance with the law, which requires public records be available in a timely manner.
The complaint names former County Administrator Scott Hopes, current County Administrator Charlie Bishop, who was a deputy county administrator at the time, and former Deputy County Administrator Robert Reinshuttle.
However, Manatee County was the named defendant because an overall operational issue was underlying any individual’s actions. The county didn’t have a system in place to capture and archive text messages on county-issued electronic devices.
“The many ways people can communicate presents a challenge to the Public Records Act,” said Michael Barfield, the public access director for the Florida Center for Government Accountability, which brought the suit. “Fortunately, the language
ACTIONS TAKEN
The Consent Final Judgment in the Florida Center for Government Accountability’s case lists the actions Manatee County took to remedy its violations of the Public Records Act.
■ Permanently discontinued use of the stipend policy that paid employees to use personal electronic devices to conduct official county business.
■ Implementation of Smarsh software system.
■ Disabling the use of texting applications on county-issued electronic devices that would circumvent the ability of Manatee County to archive text messages through the use of a mobile device management software system.
■ Adopted a written policy that prohibits employees from conducting official county business on any personal device.
■ Implementation of an audit process.
■ Providing ongoing training in the importance of compliance with the Public Records Act.
in the Public Records Act was always there that it doesn’t matter what form you send or receive a record in.”
Barfield has previously filed multiple lawsuits against municipalities and officials for violations of both the Public Records Act and the government in the Sunshine Act.
Barfield said there was a period of “dark times in Manatee County,” but he credits county staff for adopting Smarsh technology, which archives electronic records in the cloud. All electronic messages being sent or received on county-issued devices are now automatically captured with the software.
With legal fees totaling more than $100,000, financial compensation wasn’t the center’s end goal. Barfield said the non-monetary judgement from the 12th Judicial Circuit Court was much more important because citizens gained transparency from the county with an added layer of accountability.
Now, in addition to a system in place to track electronic records, the final judgement lays the groundwork for court-ordered compliance if there’s an issue in the future. The county is now legally bound to the final judgement that states it will comply with the Public Records Act.
THE LOOPHOLE
Hopes’ individual actions brought the issue of archiving to light when Barfield’s 2022 public records request uncovered that Hopes reset his phone to factory settings on his last day of work as the county administrator.
Hopes is currently facing criminal charges for the destruction of public records because of the alleged act. County staff were deposed in the matter on Sept. 23, including Deputy County Administrator Courtney De Pol and Commissioner Kevin Van Ostenbridge’s former assistant, Jorge Arana-Villar.
The Smarsh software now prevents purposeful or accidental destruction of records by individual employees because all data from phones is stored and retained in the cloud.
“Of course, it is always dependent on the good faith of an employee or an elected person to use their county-issued phone for county business and not their personal phone, so that’s a loophole there,” Barfield said. “But it’s one that the audit function, we think, will address, and we’ll certainly be keeping an eye on them.”
Another stipulation Manatee County agreed to in order to settle the case was to implement an audit process, where a third party audits the county’s information management system.
Lacy Pritchard, the records and information management manager for the county, said the audits will likely take place every two years.
“Basically, the auditor is going to make sure the vendor we’re using and the process we have in place is capturing everything as intended,” Pritchard said.
“I told each of the defendants that I had significant doubts about whether they had learned their lesson and that I would be watching them.”
Michael Barfield, the public access director for the Florida Center for Government Accountability
cards, which allow multiple phone numbers to dial into one device.
As part of the settlement, Bishop signed on Sept. 14 an amendment to the personnel policy that reads, “Conducting county business via text messaging (except Emergency Services Alerts), PIN messaging or instant messaging on a personal cellular device is strictly prohibited.”
Van Ostenbridge doesn’t believe Barfield is acting in the interest of the greater good.
“The problem that needs to be corrected lies with Florida statute,” he said. “There’s a loophole that allows unscrupulous folks like Michael Barfield to financially benefit by filing baseless lawsuits against local governments.”
COST OF DOING BUSINESS ON A PERSONAL CELL PHONE
BARFIELD VS. MANATEE COUNTY
This is not the first lawsuit Michael Barfield has been involved in against Manatee County.
DECEMBER 2020: Barfield sues commission members Kevin Van Ostenbridge, James Satcher and Vanessa Baugh for not producing records of text messages in a timely manner.
MAY 2021: Van Ostenbridge and Satcher settle with Barfield for a combined total of $6,000. The commission votes to pay for legal fees totalling $55,900.
JUNE 2021: Baugh settles with Barfield for $4,319.
AUGUST 2021: Commissioners vote to cover Baugh’s legal expenses of $68,000.
AUGUST 2022: The Florida Center for Government Accountability files a lawsuit against Manatee County for not responding to a public records request.
SEPTEMBER 2024: Manatee County settles with the Florida Center for Government Accountability for $75,000.
Smarsh software and third-party audits solve a major problem, but they don’t close the loophole.
Barfield requested a copy of Director of Public Safety Jodie Fiske’s text messages from her county-issued cell phone in the days surrounding Hurricane Debby.
Those records show that Bishop, Van Ostenbridge and Commissioner Mike Rahn used their personal cell phones to communicate with Fiske.
At the time, the county’s personnel policy did not have explicit guidance on the usage of personal cell phones for county matters.
Van Ostenbridge said regardless, commissioners and Bishop do not have to adhere to the county’s personnel policy.
Barfield argues that even with using a personal cell phone, all messages need to be recorded to abide by the Public Records Act. He said this can be done by using digital SIM
Barfield previously filed a lawsuit against Van Ostenbridge and former commissioners James Satcher and Vanessa Baugh in 2020 after they did not hand over their personal cell phones in a timely manner.
The commissioners settled with Barfield, costing the county $125,000 because the board voted to cover commissioners’ legal fees after their individual cases were settled in 2021.
Baugh paid him $4,319 to settle her suit. Van Ostenbridge and Satcher paid Barfield a total of $6,000. The commissioners did not admit to any wrongdoing then or now.
Commissioner George Kruse complied to the request from Barfield in a timely manner, and as a result, avoided a lawsuit.
Van Ostenbridge, Satcher and Baugh all said they complied with the order to produce their records, but it was less costly for taxpayers to settle with Barfield than to drag out the lawsuit any further.
Baugh said commissioners only had personal cell phones at the time, and unlike Kruse, she wasn’t willing then, and still wouldn’t be willing now, to hand over all her personal messages.
She spent hours sifting between what were personal messages and what was county business, she said. Satcher said Barfield has made a “cottage industry” out of lawsuits.
“Email is so easy — you just go in, search it and send it. No such luck with text messages, so he figured that out all over the state,” Satcher said. “The counties are still playing catch up, trying to figure out how to archive something that comes in on its own system.”
Barfield said the settlements rarely cover the legal fees, and the lawsuits are about maintaining transparency in government.
“I told each of the defendants that I had significant doubts about whether they had learned their lesson and that I would be watching them,” he said. “They went right back to doing what they were doing before (conducting county business on personal cell phones).”
Kruse said with new commissioners coming on the board, he thinks the commission “will be much more transparent and open with records.”
The county has implemented ongoing training for employees and held a training Sept. 11 for department heads. Every new hire will receive training, and an annual refresher training is also required.
Former County Administrator
Scott Hopes is facing charges for destruction of public records.
Courtesy images
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Securing safety enhancements for schools
School Board of Manatee County adds safety and security to 1-mill property tax referendum, which is on the ballot Nov. 5.
LIZ RAMOS SENIOR EDITOR
Braden River High School football fans were preparing to enter the stadium for the game Sept. 20.
But before they could get to the bleachers, each person walked through a weapons detection system, which is the latest security enhancement the district has made to improve safety and security in schools.
The Evolv Express Unit, which is similar to the security screeners seen at Disney World and the Tampa Bay Rays stadium, allowed each person to walk through with ease so they could cheer on their team. The only items attendees needed to give to the guardians, which are armed security hired by the district manning the screeners, were stadium chairs and umbrellas.
The guardians were there in case a weapon was detected during a screening.
If the 1-mill property tax referendum is approved by voters in November, the School District of Manatee County plans to use funds to provide guardians to man the security screeners at more after-school activities, events and programs, among other security enhancements.
School safety and security is a new allocation to the millage referendum, which has a budget of a little more than $75.5 million for 2024-2025.
In the 2024-2025 school year, the district has budgeted nearly $10.6 million for safety and security with nearly $5.1 million coming from the general fund for salaries and benefits of guardians and other safety and security personnel.
Currently, the Evolv Express Units
are used at high school football games. The district has 18 screeners, costing nearly $1.4 million for a fouryear lease, that are at each of the district’s seven high schools and are rotating through the middle schools.
Every day, all high school students must walk through the Evolv Express Unit to enter campus.
Kevin Chapman, the chief of staff for the school district, said the additional funding allocated from the referendum will allow the district to pay guardians to provide security at athletic events, concerts, plays and musicals as well as other wellattended after-school events.
The cost of obtaining off-duty officer services for after-school events has increased as security concerns have grown.
In the 2021-2022 school year, the district spent $102,840 on off-duty
File photo
Braxton McClelland, a student at Robert E. Willis Elementary School, shows the book he’s reading to Lenny Gutmann, the guardian at the school, after school has been dismissed.
officer services through the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office and the
In June, the School Board of Manatee County approved a purchase of
Sharon Scarbrough, the executive director of secondary schools, said the principal at each school will have discretion on which events will receive additional security.
“This additional millage dollars would help (principals) not have to discern between events and be more liberal with having (screeners) at more events to provide that layer of security for families,” she said. “It’s going to get to a point where I think our community is going to expect to see the (screeners) at everything we have.”
Chapman said the referendum also will fund projects that will make the district’s buildings more secure as well as provide funding for unfunded mandates coming from the state.
The latest is House Bill 1473, an unfunded mandate that requires all gates and campus access points be closed and locked when students are on campus. Those access points must have an attendant if open while students are on campus. When students occupy classrooms and other instructional spaces, the doors must be locked, except between classes.
The district has budgeted $300,000 in capital funds to comply with House Bill 1473.
Scarbrough said after upgrades, teachers and staff will be able to swipe a card to open the doors rather than using a simple lock and key.
She said simple enhancements such as scanning a card to open a door can help schools remain a place focused on educating students while also ensuring students, teachers and staff feel safe on campus with ease.
“When you have the traditional lock and key, it makes it a little more cumbersome, and we don’t want to take any learning time away from our students with having to do that,” Scarbrough said. “This helps to streamline the day, provide security and make the learning environment secure.”
BY THE NUMBERS
$10,557,069: Total budgeted for security in 2024-2025
21: Total School Resource Officers
65: Total guardians
$300,000: Annual cost of off-duty officer services from the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office and Bradenton Police from the 2024-2025 school year through the 2026-2027 school year
$102,840: Cost of off-duty officer services in the 2021-2022 school year
250: Tips the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office has received through FortifyFL since Sept. 5, a day after the school shooting in Georgia, through Sept. 19
60: Tips reported that were associated with the threats investigated Sept.
12-13
24: Cases of school threats confirmed Aug. 12 through Sept. 19
4: Students arrested this school year
12: Incidents of weapons (firearms, knives, pellet guns, etc.) found on campus in the 2023-2024 school year
2: Incidents of shootings on campus in the past 26 years
18: Evolv Express Units
4,000: People capable of being screened in an hour
$1.4 MILLION: Cost of express units for four-year lease
Resignations disrupt flow of utilities department
Manatee County Utilities Department works to fill the gap left after two deputy directors with a combined nearly 23 years of experience tender their resignations.
LESLEY DWYER STAFF WRITER
The Manatee County Utilities Department is undergoing a transition after two out of its three deputy directors tendered their resignations.
Director of Water Katherine Gilmore’s last day was Sept. 13, and Director of Wastewater Kevin Morris’ last day is Oct. 4. Gilmore would’ve hit her 20-year mark at the end of September, and Morris has been with the county since January 2021.
“Their contributions to the Utilities Department have been invaluable,” Utilities Director Patrick Shea said in an email. “Their leadership, hard work and dedication to public service will be greatly missed.”
Shea noted that Gilmore’s technical expertise and unwavering commitment to quality set her apart as a leader.
“Katie’s legacy is not just in the projects she led but in the example she set for others,” Shea said. “Similarly, Kevin’s colleagues consistently speak of his willingness to listen, collaborate and focus on creating the best possible outcomes for both the department, the county and its employees.”
While the exits came just weeks after Hurricane Debby and halfway through the six-month hurricane season, Shea is confident the positions will be filled quickly, and staff can handle operations in the meantime.
“The deputy director positions within the Manatee County Utilities Department will be highly sought after due to the exciting challenges and opportunities the department will face over the next decade,” Shea
said. “The utilities department is poised for growth and investments in new treatment technologies, and these roles offer a chance to help shape the future of essential services for our community.”
Shea said the goal is to fill the positions by the end of October, but the timeline will largely depend on whether the best candidate emerges from inside or outside of the county. Interviews haven’t been scheduled yet, but applications are being actively reviewed.
While Shea acknowledged that being down two deputy directors during hurricane season presents challenges, he said it’s not unmanageable.
Shea said the department is working together as a team, and leaders have also been identified to step into storm response roles. Plus, emergency response plans are in place to address any storm or infrastructure related issues.
Gilmore tendered her resignation on Aug. 23, and Morris tendered his on Aug. 26. They tendered their resignations due to family matters and personal reasons.
Shea commended Gilmore and Morris for the “remarkable commitment” they showed toward their community and colleagues and is grateful for the strong foundation they left behind.
File photo Kevin Morris is the director of wastewater for Manatee County.
The republic that’s failing
All the talk about ‘threats to democracy’ and ‘destroying democracy’ are totally off the mark. It’s mob-rule democracy that is destroying the republic and destroying Americans’ individual liberty.
Ican’t take it anymore. What follows below and next week in this space are the culmination of a constantly nagging frustration, sadness, anger, despair, disgust and fear — fear for my children and grandchildren — all of which has been building since Barack Obama vowed 16 years ago to transform America.
Through eight years of “you didn’t build that,” apologies for America and telling me I’m a racist; eight years of diabolical, evil lying and efforts to destroy Donald Trump; and nearly four years now of watching — daily — the nation’s ruling elites abuse and destroy the middle class economically, socially and culturally … all of that has reached a crescendo — especially now with the general and presidential elections 42 days away.
The teapot is screeching, its steam billowing. I need to lift the lid before it blows to smithereens.
In this space this week and next, if you are compelled enough to stick with me, I’ll be taking you on a journey — from 200 B.C. to now — that I hope will have the following results:
■ 1) Make you go sit in a quiet place, stare at the sky or the Gulf of Mexico and think deeply about what is happening to this once great nation and about how you and, more importantly, how your children and grandchildren are being affected and will be affected if our decline isn’t reversed.
(First, of course, you must accept and admit the obvious: The United States isn’t ascending, it’s declining — fast. I heard Dr. Casey Means, author of “Good Energy,” say two weeks ago Americans’ life expectancy for our newest generation of children is not rising; it’s falling. It has declined recently by 600 days. Declined by nearly two years.) Think about what that means. We are deteriorating; not just in life expectancy, but seemingly in every way — culturally, economically, physically, socially.
■ 2) Help you see how democracy — rule by mob — unavoidably has brought and continues to bring increasing amounts of cultural, social and economic disintegration.
■ 3) Help you realize that you are not free. Today, all of us are slaves — slaves to the State. Our democratic republic has devolved into Statism and its relatives of fascism, collectivism and rule by authoritarian elites. The State and the “collective,” the democratic mob, have crushed your liberty. If you think you own your property, your house, the lightbulbs you want, your gas
stove — you don’t. The State controls them.
I will show you how we are nothing close to a free-market economy; we are living under destructive, State-controlled economic and cultural fascism.
We have sacrificed every aspect of our lives to the State.
■ 4) Help you see that neither Donald Trump nor Kamala Harris can rescue us, but that a Harris administration and Democratic Congress would take us further than we already are into the depths of communist and fascist rule.
■ 5) Spur you to stand up for our Founding Fathers’ beliefs and vision: That our government’s No. 1 job is not to rule us, not to sacrifice each of us to the collective mob and the State. Our government’s No. 1 job is to protect your INDIVIDUAL rights.
The individual is superior to the collective. That principle must be revived. To do otherwise will sentence your heirs to total slavery and despair — except for a few.
IT BEGINS WITH ROME
Among my list of favorite books is a recent addition: “Empires of Trust: How Rome Built — and America Is Building — a New World,” (2008) by Thomas F. Madden, a history professor at St. Louis University.
Ed Tiesenga, an Oak Brook, Ill., lawyer and longtime Longboat Key snowbird, recommended it.
For a dozen years or more, Tiesenga frequently has commented on my editorial ramblings — mostly favorably because we share the same politico-economic philosophies: for individual liberty and laissez-faire capitalism. Two odd ducks these days.
At lunch months ago, while I lamented the U.S. being on its way to repeating the “Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire,” Tiesenga said I should read “Empires of Trust.” You should, too.
“Empires” factually debunks the common belief that Rome fell because of the moral decay of civil and cultural society — in Rome’s case, the orgies, debauchery, gladiator fights, “drunk on hedonism” and fiscal irresponsibility. Many see the U.S. on a similar track.
But Madden’s historical documentation shows that the fall of Rome “is complicated.” In fact, records show there were three falls of the Roman Empire:
“The first was the fall of the Roman Republic in 27 B.C. … The old republican government was largely abolished in favor of the direct rule of one man — an emperor. … The second fall occurred in A.D. 476 when the last Roman emperor in Italy was deposed and the Germanic barbarians … took over. The third and final fall was the conquest of Constantinople in 1453, when the last remnant of the Roman Empire was conquered by the Turks.”
The factors contributing to each fall were different. Yes, the Romans had their periods of moral decay and fiscal mismanagement; they
also had multiple civil wars. But as Madden emphasizes, when discussing the Roman Empire, you must remember it lasted 2,000 years. A lot happens in 2,000 years.
The United States, by contrast, is only 248 years old. Madden: “The young United States has nothing at all in common with the aged imperial Rome.” Instead, much of the first half of Madden’s book focuses on how the Roman Empire came about and the many striking similarities in culture, national character, core values and moral codes of early Romans and early Americans. What many of us believe to be what it means to be an American actually came to us from the Romans. And when I share some of those traits below, you cannot help but say: “Somehow, we need to go back to that.”
OUR ROOTS: THE ROMANS’ VIRTUOUS CHARACTER
“The earliest Romans were farmers, living in a frontier world in which each family looked after its own interests and well-being,” Madden writes.
That was the exact story of early Americans as well. When you read Madden’s description of the early Romans, in almost every instance where the word “Romans” appears, you can substitute the word “Americans.”
“For early Romans, the family, living in its traditional round hutlike house, was the place to raise children, to make a living and to worship. Hard work and calloused hands were not shameful things, as they were in the sophisticated eastern cultures, but badges of honor for Romans.
“Every family was led by the father, who had final say in everything … The father’s word — not the state’s — was the law in those days. … Romans believed that the father’s guiding spirit, called a genius, was responsible for watching over the household.
“Powerful Roman fathers, however, did not mean weak and subservient Roman mothers. Quite the contrary. The Roman wife … was a sturdy and hardworking woman. She was responsible for looking after the young children, going to local markets, taking care of the
EMINENT BOOKS ON LIBERTY, CAPITALISM, INDIVIDUALISM
“Interventionism,” Ludwig von Mises
“Human Action,” Ludwig von Mises
“Selected Essays on Political Economy,” Frederic Bastiat
“The Road to Serfdom,” F.A. Hayek
“The God of the Machine,” Isabel Paterson
“The Fountainhead,” Ayn Rand
“Atlas Shrugged,” Ayn Rand
“We the Living,” Ayn Rand
“Anthem,” Ayn Rand
“Letters of Ayn Rand,” Michael S. Berliner
“Capitalism: The Unknown Ideal,” Ayn Rand
“The Virtue of Selfishness,” Ayn Rand
“Democracy: The God That Failed,”
Hans-Hermann Hoppe
“Liberty in Peril: Democracy and Power in American History,” Randall Holcombe
Sowell
“The Vision of the Anointed,” Thomas Sowell
“Wealth, Poverty & Politics,” Thomas Sowell
“Free to Choose,” Milton Friedman
“Economics in One Lesson,” Henry Hazlitt
“Anything That’s Peaceful: The Case for the Free Market” Leonard Read
“I, Pencil,” Leonard Read
“Our Enemy, the State,” Albert Jay Nock
“Memoirs of a Superfluous Man,” Albert Jay Nock
house, baking and, of course, spinning wool, sewing and other crafts.
“Roman women would pursue their own interests and could even own property … All in all, they were rugged and independent, much like their husbands.”
For Romans, homeschooling was the norm. Both parents were teachers, paying particular attention to their children’s moral character.
Boys were grounded in the most important Roman traits: dignity, self-control, diligence, goodwill, loyalty, a sense of duty, candor and, above all, courageous manliness.
(Sadly, where is that today?)
Religion and worship were also foundational for the Roman family.
Roman families would pray together every morning, asking the spirits “to give them a good, safe and productive day.” Each family worshipped as it saw fit, and “held fast to the idea of maximum personal freedom — an idea born on their family farms.”
This image of the Romans and their cultural traits are identical to those of early Americans — as Madden put it: “a self-sufficient family, hardworking, honest, courageous, friendly and pious.
“The history of American culture begins on the frontier and the family farm, and despite modern affluence, wealth and power, those agrarian values are still held up as quintessentially American. No American today, no matter how rich or cultured, wants to be called ‘an elite.’ Yet, conversely, describing someone as ‘down-to-earth’ is always considered to be quite a compliment.”
Romans also expected their family traits and values to carry over into public life. They regarded the ideal Roman as strong, patriotic, efficient, honest, hardworking and “first and foremost” a man with religious and moral principles.
Madden cites the Greek writer, Polybius, who lived in Rome after 167 B.C., and said of the Romans: “The quality in which the Roman republic is most distinctly superior is in my opinion the nature of its religious convictions.”
Polybius wrote that in spite of many layers of “copyists” and witnesses in Greek government, its public officials “cannot remain honest.” “Whereas elsewhere it is a rare thing to find a man who keeps his hands off public money, and whose record is clean, among the Romans one rarely comes across a man who has been discovered in such conduct.”
Yeah, well, many of our public officials today are nowhere near as virtuous with other people’s money (E.G. the national debt). Nonetheless, the Romans’ characteristics had a profound effect on America’s Founding Fathers. When they were creating the Constitution, they were convinced the stability and strength of the republic required American citizens’ belief in God.
Madden quotes John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson and George Washington affirming that.
Jefferson: “God who gave us life gave us liberty. And can the liberties of a nation be thought secure when we have removed their only firm basis, a conviction in the minds of people that these liberties are a gift from God?”
Washington, in his farewell address: “Reason and experience both forbid us to expect that national morality can prevail in exclusion of religious principle.”
WHERE DID WE GO WRONG?
For American Baby Boomers and those in the Silent Generation (1928-1945), the descriptions above of early Roman and American life should bring to mind visions of the way it was in the United States up through the mid-1960s.
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“Empires of Trust: How Rome Built — and America Is Building — a New World
“The Incredible Bread Machine — A Study of Capitalism, Freedom and the State,” R.W. Grant ELECTION ’24
“Dismantling America,” Thomas
You can say that for our first 175 years, even though most Americans likely had no idea, the nation’s cultural ethos and values indeed were rooted in the early Roman way of life — that of a self-sufficient, religious nuclear family; hardworking, honest, independent, friendly and pious.
But what happened?
Of course, we know we have
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MATT WALSH
never been perfect, just as the Romans were not. We know the list: Slavery; Civil War; the treatment of Americans Indians; Great Depression; 1960s race riots and Vietnam War strife, George Floyd-BLM. But even so, the overall trajectory of the United States over, say, the first 225 years has been mostly that of a nation on the ascendancy, similar to the way it was for the early Roman Empire. But then … Always simmering underneath the United States’ increasing prowess and progress, rarely detected except by a few, there was what the Founders feared — and summarily and decisively rejected: democracy. A government whereby decisions are made according to the collective will of the majority.
The Founders totally opposed a democracy of majority rule. As James Madison, father of the Constitution, pointed out in his famous Federalist essay No. 10, once a faction of citizens becomes a majority, “tyranny threatens. … A democratic tyranny may seem a contradiction in terms, but it can be all too real.”
In a letter to a friend in 1798, John Adams said democracy would ultimately evolve into despotism.
And that is exactly what has occurred over the past 248 years. The frog floating at the top of the pot, unaware that the water’s temperature is slowly, slowly rising, ultimately boiling it to death.
When the Founders created the Constitution, instead of democracy, they created a republic, which, as Madison envisioned, would delegate power to “a small number of citizens elected by the rest.”
Madison had an idealistic view and pragmatic view of these representatives.
Idealistically, he thought the selection process would produce representatives “whose wisdom may best discern the true interest of their country, and whose patriotism and love of justice, will be least likely to sacrifice it to temporary or partial considerations.” In other words, he envisioned legislators who would not put their political ambitions first. (Ha!)
Pragmatically, he thought that electing few representatives who came from all over the country to legislate in the capital would bring
“a greater variety of parties and interests; you make it less probable that a majority of the whole will have a common motive to invade the rights of other citizens.” In other words, there would be little chance of majority-mob rule by factions, or special interests. (Ha!)
Finally, in their boldest measure to protect individuals from an overpowering government, the Founders adopted the Bill of Rights.
All of it was genius: a government of few representatives; a balance of power with three equal branches; a government with limited powers; and a government whose first and foremost role was to protect the rights of individuals.
The Founders knew a powerful government, a majority-rule democracy, was the biggest threat to individual liberty.
DEMOCRACY: RESULTS ARE IN
Today, Madison undoubtedly would be manically despondent at how his grand vision has turned out. Take the assessment of Hans-Hermann Hoppe, an Austrian economic libertarian and anarcho-capitalist, who authored the 2001 book:
“Democracy: The God That Failed”:
“The results are before our very eyes. The tax load imposed on property owners and producers makes the economic burden even of slaves and serfs seem moderate in comparison. Government debt has risen to breathtaking heights. Gold has been replaced by government manufactured paper money, and its value has continually dwindled.
“Every detail of private life, property, trade and contract is regulated by ever higher mountains of paper laws. In the name of social, public or national security, our caretakers ‘protect’ us from global warming and cooling and the extinction of animals and plants, from husbands and wives, parents and employers, poverty, disease, disaster, ignorance, prejudice, racism, sexism, homophobia and countless other public enemies and dangers.
“The only task a government was ever supposed to assume — of protecting our life and property — our caretakers do not perform. To the contrary, the higher the expenditures on social, public and national security have risen, the more our
U.S. DEBT: DEMOCRACY AT WORK
Here is one result of majority rule: U.S. debt as a percentage of gross domestic product is at its highest point in history. The World Bank says when debt exceeds 77% of GDP, the debt inhibits economic growth. To see the entire chart, each year from 1929 to 2024, go to: balancemoney.com. $ in billions.
private property rights have been eroded, the more our property has been expropriated, confiscated, destroyed and depreciated, and the more we have been deprived of the very foundation of all protection: of personal independence, economic strength and private wealth.”
Hoppe pretty much sums up the state of the U.S.
We were warned. Continuously.
Going back to the 1880s and up to today, scores of authors, historians, journalists and economists warned and showed that what the Founders feared was occurring and has — the rise of the State overtaking individual liberty, the rise of democratic rule subverting individual liberty, the slow boiling frog.
n 1884: Englishman Herbert Spencer, “Man Versus the State”: He warned of “the coming slavery” as governments grew.
n 1926: H.L. Mencken: “[The State] has taken on a vast mass of new duties and responsibilities; it has spread out its powers until they penetrate to every act of the citizen, however secret; it has begun to throw around its operations the high dignity and impeccability of a State religion; its agents become a separate and superior caste, with authority to bind and loose, and their thumbs in every pot.”
n 1935: Albert Jay Nock, “Our
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I chose Paradise Dental because I heard of Dr. Jeffrey Martins’ work and his passion for reconstructive dentistry - and that’s what I experienced. The result was like night and day! I had no idea my teeth would look this good!
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Enemy, the State”: “[T]he rate of America’s approach to [the collapse of social power and rise of rhe State] is being prodigiously accelerated; and there is no evidence of any disposition to retard it, or any intelligent apprehension of the danger which that acceleration betokens.”
• 1945: Isabel Paterson, “The God of the Machine”: “It is not liberty and equality that are incompatible, but liberty and democracy. … Such is the inherent contradiction in the theory of democracy: Personal liberty is wiped out at the very beginning. No matter how often a democracy might be tried, it must shortly collapse into despotism.”
n 1964: Ayn Rand, “The Virtue of Selfishness”: “Instead of being a protector of man’s rights, the government is becoming their most dangerous violator; instead of guarding freedom, the government is establishing slavery; instead of protecting men from the initiators of physical force, the government is initiating physical force and coercion in any manner and issue it pleases; instead of serving as the instrument of objectivity in human relationships, the government is creating a deadly, subterranean reign of uncertainty and fear, by means of non-objective laws whose interpretation is left the arbitrary decisions of random bureaucrats;
instead of protecting men from injury by whim, the government is arrogating itself the power of unlimited whim so that we are fast approaching the stage of the ultimate inversion: The stage where the government is free to do anything it pleases, while the citizens may act only by permission; which is the stage of the darkest periods of human history, the stage of rule by brute force.”
n 2019: Randall Holcombe, “Liberty in Peril: Democracy and Power in American History”: “The principle of liberty suggests that first and foremost, the government’s role is to protect the rights of individuals. The principle of democracy suggests that collective decisions are made according to the will of the majority…The greater the allowable scope of democracy in government, the greater the threat to liberty … Unfortunately, many Americans do not appear to fully understand these dangers as they continue to push the foundations of their government away from liberty and toward democracy.”
And so it continues, unabated — the destruction of liberty and individual rights and the expanding power of the ruling class and majority mob. Holcombe is being diplomatic when he says the more democracy there is “the greater the threat to liberty” and when he says “many Americans do not appear to fully understand.”
It is more than a threat; it is real. And it is overwhelmingly clear the majority of Americans do not understand.
They do not know the difference between a republic and democracy, so they go along, like the brainless frog in the pot. That is why I urged you in the beginning to think deeply of what has been and is happening — and imagine, if these trends continue, what that will mean for your children and grandchildren.
Next week: How democracy leads to the worst being elected; the destructive social and economic consequences of redistribution; which presidential candidate and party will take us faster to the Road to Serfdom; and what you can do to stop the decline.
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Roy S. SMILE MAKEOVER PATIENT
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Plan a Field Trip
Fire Rescue ready for anything
The fire district purchased a trailer stocked full of specialty equipment to handle the most complicated calls.
LESLEY DWYER STAFF WRITER
When a subcontractor was trapped in a trench off Moccasin Wallow Road in February 2023, the Hillsborough County Fire Rescue was called in for its specialty equipment.
Those calls no longer have to be outsourced to other counties’ emergency services because the East Manatee Fire Rescue purchased a 20-foot trailer stocked with tools for its Technical Rescue Team.
The trailer and equipment cost approximately $380,000 and were put into service in mid-August.
“East Manatee is a very large fire district compared to everywhere else in Manatee County,” Capt. Josh Dillard said. “We’re able to provide a different level of service now. We could possibly perform a rescue by the time the equipment would have gotten there before.”
Before the trailer arrived, Dillard said response times for advanced calls in East County could run up to two hours because specialized equipment had to be borrowed from fire districts outside of or in other parts of Manatee County.
EMFR’s Technical Rescue Team has 23 members now, but new members are added regularly. They work on the ladder trucks, which hasn’t changed.
“The trailer is supplemental in case they run into more intense or complex situations where they need additional equipment,” Administrative Officer Stephen Beecher said.
The equipment covers five core
trailer and specialized equipment
the East Manatee Fire Rescue approximately $380,000.
specialties: aerial operations, rope operations, vehicle and machinery extrications, confined spaces and structural collapses.
A fire truck’s ladder can be used to rig the equipment for a rope rescue if someone is trapped underground, but sometimes the ladders can’t get close enough to hang over the access point, whether it be a trench or a manhole.
The trailer has a tripod that can create an artificial high spot to rig the ropes to and stabilize the rescuer as they drop in and out of the ground.
The trailer can haul up to 14,000 pounds of equipment. The tools range from basic to high-tech. A sheet of plywood is as necessary as a $19,439 Rescue Guardian during a structural collapse because they work together.
The Rescue Guardian is the most expensive piece of equipment inside the trailer. It can detect motion and knows how much weight a strut can hold. Struts work like columns that support the roof of a building.
All together, those items allow rescue workers to enter a collapsed structure and build tunnels and safe spaces in which to work.
Dillard said structural collapses and trench calls are emergencies that usually only happen once or twice during the course of a career in rescue operations. Extrications are the most common reason the trailer is likely to be hauled to a scene.
While the equipment is new, Dillard said staff have been training and working toward this transition for about a decade.
Amber Creek at Lakewood Ranch
Reimagining school vision
Ashley Allen, the principal, institutes a new character development program.
LIZ RAMOS SENIOR EDITOR
Ashley Allen, the principal of Imagine School at Lakewood Ranch, entered the indoor recess area to see students playing with a parachute and rolling around on scooters.
“Sharks to the shore,” Allen yelled. Students, hearing the call, responded with, “Fins up,” as they brought their hands together above their heads to look like a fin.
The callout not only works to capture students’ attention, but it also serves as a reminder for the school’s values, which are new this school year.
Shor, without the ‘e,’ stands for self discipline, honesty, open mindedness and respect.
Allen became principal of Imagine School at Lakewood Ranch in July 2023, but after listening and observing for a year, Allen said she wanted to implement positive changes that would continue the school’s success while rebuilding its culture.
She worked with teachers, staff and families to determine the school’s new vision, mission statement and core values.
First, Allen met with teachers and staff over the summer to begin soliciting their ideas of core values.
“I wanted to provide an opportunity for the staff that was here to get to know me and for me to get to know them so we could reconnect with what was important to us for education,” Allen said.
LWR Wind Ensemble & Choral Artists
Friday, September 27th @ 6pm
Asolo Rep on Tour, “Much AdO About Nothing” Thursday, October 10th @ 6pm
Strings Con Brio: Salute to Veterans Thursday, November 7th @ 7pm
Teachers then presented the narrowed down list of eight core values to students through character lessons, and students further narrowed the list to six. Lastly, parents were involved to create the school’s four core values: self discipline, honesty, open mindedness and respect.
The school uses the Positivity
Project, which is a character development program, to assist with teaching students about their core values by focusing weekly on a character trait that fits into a core value. They rotate through the values weekly.
The school is working toward becoming a State School of Character, which would mean the school fosters in students a “commitment to be honest and trustworthy and to volunteer their time and talents to the common good,” according to Character.org, the nonprofit that provides the designation.
Allen said it’ll take about three years to become a State School of Character.
Allen said character development is integral to education as schools have become places no longer solely focused on reading, writing and arithmetic but educating the whole student, including social and emotional learning, wellness and development and conflict resolution.
“We’re hoping at the end of the day that what we can do here is still provide some wholesome learning experiences and help our kiddos be productive community members who know how to navigate the struggles the changes every day really bring out,” Allen said.
The stage is set
Sights + Sounds is an outdoor showcase of the best instrumental, visual and performing arts the Sarasota region has to offer. Come out for dinner at the town center and stay to enjoy the show!
Check out all of the events happening around The Ranch!
Liz Ramos Now in her second year as principal at Imagine School at Lakewood Ranch, Ashley Allen works to implement positive changes to continue the school’s success.
Beyond First Class™
ARTS + ENTERTAINMENT
STORE
OF
DREAMS
Sarasota Art Museum showcases Galloway’s Furniture Showroom’s past and possible future.
MONICA ROMAN GAGNIER ARTS + ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR
In New York, the Metropolitan Museum has the 15 BC Temple of Dendur honoring the Roman goddess Isis. The Sarasota Art Museum has a temple of its own — Galloway’s Furniture Showroom.
Designed by Victor Lundy, the mid-century modern pavilion is to retail what “Notre Dame is to cathedrals,” the Wall Street Journal recently declared. With such an endorsement, it’s as if the gods themselves looked down from on high and bestowed their blessing on “Modern Masterpiece: Galloway’s Furniture Showroom by Victor Lundy.” The exhibition runs through Oct. 27 at SAM, a contemporary art museum that is part of Ringling College of Art and Design.
Curated by a team led by Architecture Sarasota President Morris (Marty) Hylton III, the exhibition celebrates Lundy’s bold design and reimagines new uses for the onceiconic circular structure of wood and glass.
Lundy, who turned 101 on Feb. 1, was one of the leaders of the Sarasota School of Architecture, along with Philip Hiss, Paul Rudolph and Ralph Twitchell.
FROM OPTICAL STORE TO EYESORE
There are probably some who have been in Sarasota long enough to remember Galloway’s, which was built in 1959 and closed five years later. But even longtime residents are more familiar with its incarnation as an optical store in the 1980s.
If you’re a newcomer to Sarasota or haven’t been paying attention, you may be surprised to learn this temple of Florida architecture still stands. In fact, if you look out the window of the B. Claire Rusen Gallery, where the Galloway’s Furniture Showroom show is on display, you can see the original building on the grounds of SAM, which is housed in the old Sarasota High School building. Its sparkling glass is long gone, covered by a stucco facade. The once magnificent building is surrounded by a prosaic chainlink fence and a parking lot used by SAM employees. It’s as if a once-great beauty
has been confined to an institution of some kind and is covered with mummy-like bandages.
If you’re driving past the building, you probably wouldn’t notice it except for a mural that was recently painted on the exterior.
But visitors to the SAM exhibition can get a glimpse of the showroom’s former glory.
Or maybe we should say “morning glory,” because Lundy said his design was inspired by the flower that opens in the morning and closes up at night. According to a full-page ad in the Jan. 25, 1959, edition of The Tampa Tribune, the building’s “laminated arches simulate the stems and the redwood decking the petals of the flowers.”
Other features of the showroom included 290 feet of charcoal glass that was 20 feet high to protect the
IF YOU GO ‘MODERN MASTERPIECE: GALLOWAY’S FURNITURE SHOWROOM BY VICTOR LUNDY’
When: Runs through Oct. 27
Where: Sarasota Art Museum, 1001 S. Tamiami Trail, Sarasota Tickets: Free with $15 admission.
Info: Visit SarasotaArtMuseum.org.
Courtesy images Architecture Sarasota President Marty Hylton and SAM Executive Director Virginia Shearer.
An artist’s rendering of Galloway’s Furniture Showroom.
Galloway’s Signature chair and ottoman at SAM.
interior from the sun, and a “floating” mezzanine encircling a “trunk” of redwood in the center of the building.
Some of this grandeur is conveyed on one wall of the SAM exhibition with architect Damien Blumetti’s digital reconstruction of the interior of Galloway’s.
USING SARASOTA AS A LAB
Another wall is filled with photographs, news clippings and advertisements for the fabulous furniture showroom. The wall opposing this collage is devoted to the possible future uses of the building that were envisioned by students at Hampton University in Virginia.
The exploration of potential restoration and repurposing of the Galloway’s Furniture Showroom by students at Hampton University, a historically Black college, took place through Architecture Sarasota’s Hub initiative. The Hub encourages research and design institutions to use Sarasota and Florida’s Southern Gulf Coast region as a lab for problem solving.
Of course, in the end, the fate of Victor Lundy’s creation depends on its owner, Ringling College. But the Hampton University student designs are sure to spark a dialogue within the community about the future of the building.
Those kind of conversations have been taking place more frequently under Architecture Sarasota’s auspices. In addition to preserving the annual tradition of Modernism Weekend, Architecture Sarasota has been engaged in lively discussions about the future of downtown and other design and planning issues since Hylton’s arrival in January 2023.
Under his stewardship, Architecture Sarasota polled the community and compiled a comprehensive list of significant buildings in town called “Moderns That Matter.” The list of 100 “places and spaces that give Sarasota its sense of place and character” is organized chronologically across 10 categories.
WHEN DESIGN WAS EVERYTHING Even though it isn’t a Modern per se, No. 1 on the list is the CaplesRingling Estates Historic District,
including the John and Mable Ringling Museum and the Ca’ d’Zan because of its innovative designs that adapted to Florida’s pre-air conditioning environment.
Coming in at No. 91 on the “Moderns That Matter” ranking (remember, it’s listed chronologically, not by popularity or significance) is Galloway’s Furniture Showroom.
Galloway’s was founded in Tampa by entrepreneur Ralph Galloway in 1948 and expanded to seven locations in Florida. In addition to personally inspecting its Signature Group line of modern furniture, Galloway commissioned cutting-edge architects such as Lundy and Mark Hampton to design its showrooms.
Back in its heyday, the furniture on display was made in Florida. No, this was not the era of made-in-China pieces ordered online from Wayfair and delivered to your door without you ever touching the material or sitting in the chair.
Standing as testament to the reallife shopping experience is a Galloway lounge chair and ottoman in the middle of the gallery floor, not far from a scale model of the showroom where it was once sold.
Hylton has extensive experience in both the academic and historic preservation worlds. Before joining Architecture Sarasota, he spent more than a decade at the University of Florida as director of its Historic Preservation Program.
Prior to that role, he served as a strategic initiatives manager at the World Monuments Fund. A native of Kentucky, Hylton earned his bachelor’s degree at the University of Kentucky and a master’s at Columbia University.
WON’T GET FOOLED AGAIN
Hylton’s role in an initiative exploring future uses for Galloway’s Furniture Showroom isn’t the first time he’s been involved in trying to save a historic building in Sarasota. While at the University of Florida, Hylton was part of an effort to preserve Rudolph’s Riverview High School building, constructed in 1958 and demolished in 2009.
A walkthrough of the Galloway’s exhibition with Hylton and Virginia Shearer, SAM’s executive director, makes it abundantly clear that fate
Visitors to the SAM exhibition can get glimpses of the showroom’s former glory. Or maybe we should say “morning glory,” since Lundy said his design was inspired by the flower that opens in the morning and closes at night.
will never befall the landmark building in SAM’s backyard.
“The restoration and repurposing of the pavilion to serve Sarasota Art Museum and the community would be one of the most important projects to preserve and reimagine a Sarasota School resource,” Hylton says.
SAM was formed by 13 founding members in 2004 in concert with Ringling College. However, it didn’t formally open until 2019.
Shearer explains that Ringling College bought the former furniture showroom in 2009 to gain control over the neighboring property to SAM, which has a 99-year lease with the Sarasota County school district.
“It was understood that it could be a beacon, but it was also an exposure. It could be turned into something that didn’t align with the museum or it could be torn down,” she says.
There are a few cultural projects
in the area looking for donors. Sarasota Orchestra’s new Music Center on Fruitville Road, Florida Studio Theatre’s new Mulva Arts Plaza and Venice Theatre’s reconstruction of its Jervey Theatre in the wake of Hurricane Ian are just three of them.
But maybe there’s an architectureminded donor who wants to help make Lundy’s mid-century modern masterpiece a meeting place for the in crowd once again. There’s no plan yet, but the space clearly deserves a more lofty purpose than storage.
Hylton notes there have been innovations in heat-resistant windows since the building’s original construction. If it is renovated with state-of-the-art materials, the glass pavilion could become yet another example of how Sarasota architecture is at the forefront of meeting environmental demands.
Visitors to the Sarasota Art Museum contemplate a digital re-creation of the interior of Galloway’s Furniture Showroom.
Image courtesy of Ryan Lester
Where Your Child Will Thrive
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Season 29 |
From Bach to Bluegrass
Kayla Williams, viola with Chris McCarthy, piano
October 15, 5:30 pm performance followed by dinner Plantation Golf & Country Club
From bluegrass to classical, jazz and gospel, Kayla Williams crosses genres and styles effortlessly. Her performance includes instrumental and vocal music. She will be accompanied by jazz pianist Chris McCarthy, who has been hailed as “one of the most imaginative and impressive voices on the New York jazz scene.”
Yamazalde Trio
Sandy Yamamoto, violin; Matthew Zalkind, cello; Julio Elizalde, piano
November 2, 4:00 pm • Church of the Palms Sandy Yamamoto has dazzled audiences in concert performances around the globe as a soloist and as a member of the award-winning Miró Quartet. Matthew Zalkind is a top-prize winner in multiple international competitions, and Julio Elizalde is one of the most sought-after recital partners in the country. This program includes music by Haydn, Mendelssohn, and Paul Schoenfeld.
Jamie Lissow is a regular on Fox’s talk show “Gutfeld!” and starred on Netflix’s “Real Rob” alongside “Saturday Night Live” veterans. Runs through Sept. 28.
‘THE FANTASTICKS’
7 p.m. at Manatee Performing Arts Center, 502 Third Ave. W., Bradenton $29 Visit ManateePerformingArtsCenter. com.
You don’t have to try to remember “the kind of September when life was slow and oh so mellow.” Experience firsthand the magic of “The Fantasticks,” the world’s longest running musical, at the Manatee Performing Arts Center. Runs through Sept. 29.
‘THE FOUR C NOTES’
8 p.m. at FST’s Goldstein Cabaret, 1239 N. Palm Ave. $18-$42 Visit FloridaStudioTheatre.org.
DON’T MISS
‘STRUTTIN’ WITH THE STILETTO BRASS’
The all-female Stiletto Brass quintet will be joined by Bradenton virtuoso trumpeter Vince DiMartino for a rollickin’ program featuring“Struttin’ with Some BBQ” by Kenneth Abeling and George Gershwin’s “Summertime” and “Someone to Watch Over Me.”
IF YOU GO When: 7:30 p.m. Friday, Sept. 27
Where: Holley Hall, 709 N. Tamiami Trail Tickets: $35 and up Info: Visit ThePopsOrchestra.org.
OUR PICK
‘THE TORCH BEARERS’
The Venice Theatre celebrates its 75th anniversary by reviving its first show. Written by George Kelly in 1922, “The Torch Bearers” is a play within a play about a community theater. The Venice Theatre’s “origin story” features an ensemble cast, including Kevin Fewell, Paul Hutchison, Tan Selby, Nancy Denton, Colette Wheeler and other local thespians.
IF YOU GO
When: Runs through Oct. 13
Where: Venice Theatre’s Raymond Center, 140 Tampa Ave. W., Venice
Tickets: $15-$35 Info: Visit VeniceTheatre.org.
With “The Four C Notes,” Florida Studio Theatre continues its tradition of presenting Four Seasons tribute shows inspired by “Jersey Boys” and starring performers from the Broadway smash hit’s touring production. Runs through Oct. 13.
SATURDAY
‘PALETTE OF SOUNDS’
6 p.m. at Fogartyville, 525 Kumquat Court Free Visit MosaicMovements.org.
The Creative Nexus series kicks off with “Palette of Sounds,” featuring indigenous musician Lyla June, guitarist David Munoz and reggae band Jah Movement.
SUNDAY
CHAMBER SOIRÉE: BAROQUE BANQUET
4 p.m. at Holley Hall, 709 N. Tamiami Trail $42-$52 Visit SarasotaOrchestra.org.
Sarasota Orchestra opens its Chamber Soiree season with Bach’s “Brandenburg Concerto No. 3” for strings, Philidor’s “March for Two Pairs of Timpani” and Stravinsky’s Neo-Baroque “Pulcinella.” Among the performers will be the orchestra’s principal timpani player, Yoko Kita.
MONDAY
ENDURING LIGHT: PHOTOGRAPHS BY ROY DECARAVA AND DANNY LYON
10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at The Ringling Museum of Art, 5401 Bay Shore Road $30; free on Mondays Visit Ringling.org.
This exhibition showcases works from two complementary portfolios of the U.S. civil rights movement. The photographs by Roy DeCarava and Danny Lyon are part of a collection recently donated to The Ringling by Richard and Ellen Sandor. Runs through Feb. 9.
Courtesy image
“The Torch Bearers” runs through Oct. 13 at Venice Theatre’s Raymond Center.
Egg-cellent sandwiches
from cinnamon raisin, everything, plain, poppy, pumpernickel, rainbow, sesame or a bialy. Personally, I can’t wait to bite into the egg salad sandwich ($6.50).
The captain
the
team and his girlfriend were crowned cutest couple. That wasn’t something I aspired to, but I thought maybe — just maybe — one day I’d be nominated for something like “Best Eyes.” Still, as long as I wasn’t a contender for “Most Likely to Never Leave Connecticut,” I knew I was a winner.
Fast forward to when the yearbooks came out my senior year. I was shocked to see that I and my 13 gal pals had been named “Best Clique.” We donned T-shirts proclaiming ourselves “The Senior Biddys,” while the cool kids tried to make a mockery of our group.
You know what’s funny about high school? In the end, it doesn’t matter. Nearly 20 years later, I’d be happy to have been voted most resilient, most likely to marry an incredible human and best person to ask about breakfast sandwiches. In honor of National Better Breakfast Month, I’m going to pass along some of my local favorites.
99 BOTTLES TAPROOM & BOTTLE SHOP
1445 Second St., Sarasota; 487-7874; 99Bottles.net
A Toast To: Most likely to get you boozy with a side of bagels at brunch.
Egg-Cellent Choice: 99 Bottles hosts brunch every Friday, Saturday and Sunday. From 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., you can get “real deal NY bagels.” Choose from a bagel with hummus, lettuce, tomato, cucumber and pickled red onion ($9.50) or the bagel BLT ($11.50) with bacon, iceberg lettuce, tomato and aioli. If you’d rather stick to basics, choose
A Toast To: Best biscuit of dreams. Egg-Cellent Choice: I shouldn’t admit this, but the first biscuit I ever had was when I moved down here eight years ago — and I’ve never looked back. Buttermilk — an ingredient of all things flaky and fluffy — led me to Benton’s bacon, baked egg and pimento cheese ($9.95) on a biscuit. Another breakfast sandwich in my rotation? The Benton’s bacon, jam and baked egg ($7.75).
BONANNO’S BAGELS
Food truck locations available online; 724-0798; BonannosBagels.com
A Toast To: Most likely to dish out delicious lox on wheels.
Egg-Cellent Choice: Welcome the newest foodie stop on my never-ending search for the best local flavor. Like this foodie, owner Monique is bringing smiles to people’s faces in honor of her late father through food. For lox lovers, the Fifth Avenue ($10.75) is made with thinly sliced salmon, plain cream cheese, thinly sliced red onions, capers and fresh dill. Nostalgia swept over me when I saw the rainbow bagel ($3.50). I had to order it with the honey walnut schmear ($1.75).
COFFEE CARROUSEL
1644 Main St., Sarasota; 365-2826; Facebook.com/CoffeeCarrousel
A Toast To: Best Sarasota staple
serving a sausage sandwich.
Egg-Cellent Choice: Anytime you drive down Main Street, you are certain to see the signature window paintings of a carrousel and immediately smell the aromas of specials that have been cooking up since 1987. Belly up to the bar and order an egg, meat and cheese on toast ($3.75). If you were me, you’d order the sausage on a croissant for an extra 70 cents.
JERSEY GIRL BAGELS
5257 University Parkway, Unit No.103, Bradenton; 388-8910; JerseyGirlBagels.net
A Toast To: Tasty, top-notch, tristate area bagels ready to tempt you. Egg-Cellent Choice: I will forever shout out JGB because they continue to wrap me in a home away from home full of gluten, and I never want them to let go. Go pick up
Check out these breakfast bites found in Sarasota, Siesta Key, Lakewood Ranch and Bradenton.
a croissant with bacon, tomato, sprouts and avocado — perfect for a Starman or woman.
A Toast To: Most likely to create cheese chaos in the most delicious way imaginable.
Egg-Cellent Choice: One bit of advice for this stop on our quest for the best breakfast sandwich: Come hungry! And if you’re thirsty, this Lakewood Ranch eatery showcases a well-stocked bar full of wines, champagne and draft beers. However, it’s the breakfast grilled cheese ($13.59) that will open up your morning eyes. Scrambled eggs with tomato and onion, topped with cheddar jack, Havarti and swiss with a side of ham sausage or bacon is just what the foodie ordered.
(or order by UberEats) an egg and cheese with your choice of bacon, sausage or Taylor ham ($8.99) and turn any lazy Sunday into the ideal rot on the couch day. What could be better than you in your sweats, your cats and whatever Netflix show you are currently bingeing on?
A Toast To: Most creative croissants combos on the Key.
Egg-Cellent Choice: This garden oasis is a must-stop with out-oftown guests or to simply pretend you’re the one on vacation. With names on the menu summoning up decades past, the well-known beach town eatery serves up classic favorites with a serious ’70s vibe. The Ziggy Stardust ($15.95) rocks out with two scrambled eggs on
URBAN FRESH SANDWICH COMPANY 719 Cattlemen Road, Sarasota; 740-624-6445; UrbanFreshSandwich.com
A Toast To: Most wonderful, warm and wildly flavorful breakfast wraps.
Egg-Cellent Choice: This food truck is whipping up breakfast and lunch sandwiches with a side of fries right on Cattlemen Road. Choose from 10 breakfast sandwiches (and a breakfast bowl!) from 7-10:30 a.m. While the Carpe Diem wrap is astonishingly addictive, it’s the Mama’s Choice ($10.50) that leaves me wanting more — and a water chaser. It’s packed with bacon, American and hot pepper cheese, avocado, tomato, onion, jalapeños and deli sauce plus truffle sauce.
Courtesy image
Sun Garden Cafe’s Ziggy Stardust ($15.95) sprouts joy on Siesta Key.
Temple Beth Sholom
Sarasota’s Only Conservative Synagogue invites you to our High Holiday services and to join our warm and embracing community.
BRIEFS
Special Offer!
If you or your spouse are 40 OR UNDER, YOUR WHOLE FAMILY CAN JOIN THE SYNAGOGUE FOR JUST $118, this includes High Holiday tickets.
Following its five-day Modern Works Festival for female playwrights, Urbanite Theatre announced that the winner of its 2024 competition is Lia Romeo, for her play “A Nice Motherly Person.”
Romeo takes home $3,200 to help develop her new work.
Romeo’s play was one of three finalists out of more than 300 works submitted. The other two were “I’m Saving You a Seat” by Sarah Elizabeth Grace and “In the Mouth of the Beast” by Baylee Shlichtman.
“Each of the finalists’ plays was unique in style, contained fantastic writing, and made it nearly impossible to choose a winner,” said Urbanite Producing Artistic Director Summer Wallace in a statement.
“All three of our finalists deserved to take home top honors.”
Sponsored by the Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation and Carole & Malcolm Schwartz, Urbanite’s Modern Works Festival drew soldout audiences from Sept. 4-8 for staged readings of the three finalists, talkbacks, parties and a keynote presentation by playwright Lauren Gunderson.
“A Nice Motherly Person” explores the challenges of new motherhood and riffed on characters familiar to fans of Peter Pan.
A recent graduate of the Juilliard playwriting program, Romeo teaches creative writing at Fairleigh Dickinson University in New Jersey. Her plays have been developed at institutions such as the O’Neill, La Jolla Playhouse and the Lark, and have been produced at companies including Laguna Playhouse, Unicorn Theatre, Project Y Theatre and New Jersey Repertory Theatre.
Reynardus de Villanueva joins board at Art Center Sarasota
Clara Reynardus de Villanueva, director of development for the University of South Florida Foundation’s Sarasota-Manatee campus, has been named to Art Center Sarasota’s board of directors.
Founded in 1926, Art Center Sara-
sota is the oldest visual arts organization in Sarasota. It doesn’t charge admission for its juried regional art exhibitions and solo shows that allow artists to sell their works, relying instead on donations and membership fees to fund its operations.
A first-generation Cuban American mostly raised in Puerto Rico, Reynardus de Villanueva is an ardent advocate for expanding access to the arts, education and social services for underserved communities.
“We are excited to welcome Clara to our board,” says Ramsey Frangie, Art Center Sarasota board president. “Her dedication to community arts advocacy, coupled with her extensive nonprofit experience, will be instrumental in advancing Art Center Sarasota’s mission and ensuring its continued impact on Sarasota’s vibrant cultural landscape.”
Reynardus de Villanueva is the board chair for CreArte Latino Cultural Center, serves as an advisory board member for the Sarasota Ballet and is a volunteer with the Child Protection Center.
She is pursuing an MBA and a graduate degree in nonprofit management, both from USF, and has been recognized with several leadership awards.
“I’m honored to join the board of Art Center Sarasota, an organization integral to our community’s cultural development,” said Reynardus de Villanueva in a statement. “I look forward to collaborating with a talented team to help the center maintain its leadership in the arts, inspire creativity, and support artists from all backgrounds.”
Schaufuss in Johan Kobborg’s Napoli Act III
Photo by Frank Atura
Image courtesy of Matthew Holler Clara Reynardus de Villanueva has been appointed to the board of Art Center Sarasota.
YOUR NEIGHBORS
Positivity, faith prevails
LIZ RAMOS SENIOR EDITOR
Surrounded by nurses at Saraso-
ta Memorial Radiation Oncology Center, Lakewood Ranch’s Dick Vitale was ready.
“Let’s get this last one done,” Vitale said.
The nurses helped him settle onto the radiation therapy table for his final treatment Sept. 20.
From the moment Vitale walked into the center, he was all smiles. Tina Hall, the radiation oncology manager, greeted him and said, “It’s a big day.”
In July, after being told one of the 24 lymph nodes that were removed during a neck dissection still had cancerous features, Vitale had to fight once again. He would need more radiation treatments.
Vitale had already undergone treatment for melanoma, lymphoma and vocal cord cancer.
On Sept. 20, the 85-year-old college broadcaster, used the voice he regained to express his gratitude for all those who stood by his side during his latest battle.
He said the support of his wife, Lorraine, and daughters, Sherri Vitale Krug and Terri Vitale, as well as his fans has been incredible.
With tears in his eyes, Vitale recalled sitting in a hospital room at Sarasota Memorial Hospital alone
Dick Vitale hopes to hear he is cancer-free in two months.
while his wife and daughters had to step away.
He said it was a dark time as he questioned whether it would be the last time he would see his family. The chemotherapy was knocking him down.
All of a sudden, he received messages from basketball coaches Rick Barnes and John Calipari telling him to keep fighting.
It reminded him of late college basketball coach and broadcaster Jim Valvano’s message: “Don’t give up. Don’t ever give up.”
HOW TO DONATE
Dick Vitale said his goal for the V Foundation for Cancer Research to reach $100 million raised. So far, the foundation already has raised $92.9 million. To donate: Visit V.org. or DickVitale.com.
So Vitale didn’t.
Every day, no matter the type cancer, Vitale has chosen to live by the motto of “think positive and have faith.”
When staff from the cancer center presented Vitale with a rock to take home as a celebration of his final radiation treatment, he smiled as he read it.
The rock, painted in blue with a silver broadcaster microphone, read
“I feel, more than ever, inspired to raise money for kids battling cancer because no child should have to go through these scans, radiation and chemotherapy.”
Dick Vitale
“Think positive and have faith.”
Vitale said this round of treatment has tested his positivity and faith as it has been tougher than past treatments. He said the radiation was more intense than previous times and caused more side effects including exhaustion, loss of taste, aches and skin irritation.
“The radiation and chemotherapy just beat me up, but I’m getting stronger,” he said.
After every radiation treatment, Vitale said he would have breakfast, sleep for three to four hours, exercise and get out of the house by going to dinner with his wife.
Going out helped keep his mind off the cancer.
Vitale said his final radiation treatment being less than a week before the Broadcasting & Cable Hall of Fame awards ceremony in New York, where he will be honored, made him unsure whether he’d be able to attend.
He said he’s ready to put a bandaid on the skin irritations on his neck and put on his suit to appear at the awards Sept. 26.
Although he underwent his final treatment, Vitale said he won’t be able to have a scan done to determine whether he is cancer-free for another two months as the inflammation from the radiation will need to reduce.
“I’m hoping, I’m praying for the words that every cancer patient wants to hear and for the doctor to look me in the eye and say, ‘You are cancer-free,’” Vitale said. “To me, that would be like winning a national championship, cutting down the nets, winning a Super Bowl.”
Matthew Biagioli, Vitale’s radiation oncologist, said Vitale’s “outlook looks really good” and the positron emission tomography scan is expected to be clean.
Finishing his latest treatment has left Vitale feeling empowered to continue raising money for pediatric cancer, especially as September is Childhood Cancer Awareness Month.
Vitale and the V Foundation for Cancer Research have raised $92.9 million for pediatric cancer research.
He said his goal is to reach $100 million this year, and he has no doubts it’ll be reached.
“I’m 85 years old, and I’ve lived a blessed life,” he said. “I feel, more than ever, inspired to raise money for kids battling cancer because no child should have to go through these scans, radiation and chemotherapy.”
Photos by Liz Ramos
Lakewood Ranch’s Dick Vitale says he’s grateful for the staff at Sarasota Memorial Radiation Oncology Center.
Lakewood Ranch’s Dick Vitale undergoes his final cancer treatment.
“Catch and release is an extremely important part of what we do,” Van Stedum said. “It’s the right thing to do to teach the children about not only catching but giving the fish a chance to grow some more so they can be caught again in the future.”
The tournament and volunteers are two reasons Van Stedum is proud to be the president of the club. He said the rangers are from all over the “melting pot” of Lakewood Ranch, so they have fishing experience from all over the country.
“The tournament is well organized. The kids have fun. It’s our highlight event of the year,” Van Stedum said.
More than 50 kids are currently registered, but the club expects more toward 100 will be registered by Oct. 5. The kids will be divided by age into three groups: 5 to 9, 10 to 14 and 15 to 19. The top three finishers in each age group wins a trophy.
The winners are determined by the total number of inches of fish caught. If an angler catches four 5-inch fish, the total for the day is 20 inches.
in smiles
LESLEY DWYER STAFF WRITER
The Lakewood Ranch Anglers Club has lunch, trophies and the Texas rigs covered. Now, they just need anglers
from ages 5 to 19 for the club’s annual Youth and Teen Fishing Tournament, which is scheduled for Oct. 5 at Lake Uihlein. Club President Ed Van Stedum said young anglers have a chance to catch bream, tilapia and catfish in
Lake Uihlein, but 90% of the fish caught will be largemouth bass.
There’s also a healthy amount of grass and weeds in the lake, so volunteer rangers will be on hand to help rig up the participants’ fishing poles with Texas rigs, which hide the hooks inside artificial worms.
The fish still get hooked, but the rigs are able to slide through the water without dragging a salad full of weeds back to shore.
“Premier Tackle donates all the artificial bait we use, so we’ll have plenty of that,” Van Stedum said.
“We have found it’s easiest to use artificial bait, and quite frankly, it’s a very effective way of catching fish.”
However, there are no restrictions on what kind of bait can be used. Participants are welcome to bring their own bait, live or artificial.
The club, along with Lakewood Ranch Community Activities and Grace Church, provide everything the kids could need. PDQ Chicken donates lunch, and if a child doesn’t have a fishing pole, the club will provide a loaner if participants contact info@lwrca.com after registering.
The club rangers will weigh, measure and help release the fish back into the lake, too.
Julian Hittle caught a 17.5-inch bass during last year’s tournament. Van Stedum said the typical range is between 4 inches and 16 inches long. The biggest catch he can remember weighed about four pounds.
The tournament is for all skill levels. Not only does Premier Tackle provide the bait, the shop also provides its expert staff, so even firsttime anglers can participate in the tournament. Between the staff and club rangers, there’s plenty of help available.
Blue-green algae in Lake Uihlein delayed the tournament from April to October, and now it’s going to stay that way because it works out better for the club, which holds two big events each year — the fishing tournament and a Learn to Fish seminar, Van Stedum said.
Both events were held between March and April. The new schedule leaves more space between the two. Van Stedum called the delay “a blessing in disguise” and said the lake is in perfect shape, free of algae. “We’ve helped hundreds, probably thousands of children over the years, and they always seem to leave with a smile on their face and are happy for the opportunity,” he said.
File photo
Bradenton’s Vincent Wang gets some tips from Robert LaVopa of the Lakewood Ranch Anglers Club during the annual Youth and Teen Fishing Tournament in 2023 at Lake Uihlein.
Courtesy image
Jullian Hittle shows off the 17.5-inch bass he caught during the Youth and Teen Fishing Tournament at Lake Uihlein in Lakewood Ranch.
YOUR CALENDAR
COMMUNITY
FRIDAY, SEPT. 27 THROUGH
SUNDAY, SEPT. 29
LIVE MUSIC AT JIGGS LANDING
Runs from 4:30-7:30 p.m. each day at Jiggs Landing, 6106 63rd St. E., Bradenton. The live music lineup at Jiggs Landing includes Zooey (Friday), Zooey (Saturday) and Al Fuller (Sunday). All the concerts are free. For more information, go to JiggsLanding.com.
FRIDAY, SEPT. 27 AND
SATURDAY, SEPT. 28
MUSIC AT THE PLAZA
Runs 6-9 p.m. at Waterside Place, 1560 Lakefront Drive, Lakewood Ranch. Singer/songwriter Danielle Mohr will entertain those strolling through Waterside Place on Friday night while acoustic rock/ pop entertainer Frankie Lombardi performs on Saturday. For more information, go to WatersidePlace. com.
SATURDAY, SEPT. 28
BENEFIT 5K/10K RUN
Runs from 8 a.m. to noon at Nathan Benderson Park, 5851 Nathan Benderson Circle, Sarasota. Centerstone’s 22nd annual Life;Story 5K/10K Run and Walk for Suicide Prevention follows a scenic route around the lake and back. Help spread the message that every life is valued and suicide might be prevented. Registration is $50 and $25 for those ages 5-18. For more information, go to NathanBendersonPark.org.
SUNDAY, SEPT. 29
FARMERS MARKET
Runs from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Lakefront Drive in Waterside Place, Lakewood Ranch. The Farmers Market at Lakewood Ranch, which was just voted as the top farmers market in Florida for the second year in a row, will run year-round every Sunday. Vendors will be offering seafood, eggs, meats, dairy products, pastas, bakery goods, jams and pickles, among other items. Other features are children’s activities and live music. For more information, visit MyLWR.com.
BEST BET
FRIDAY, SEPT. 27
SIGHTS & SOUNDS AT WATERSIDE
PLACE: LAKEWOOD RANCH WIND
ENSEMBLE AND CHORAL ARTISTS OF SARASOTA
Runs from 6-7 p.m. at Waterside Place, 1560 Lakefront Drive, Sarasota. The Choral Artists of Sarasota and the Lakewood Ranch Wind Ensemble will perform “Autumn Serenade,” which is a celebration of the arrival of fall. Bring a lawn chair. Outside food and drinks are not permitted. For more information, go to LakewoodRanch.com.
YOGA IN THE PARK Runs 9-10 a.m. at Waterside Park, 7301 Island Cove Terrace, Sarasota. Start the morning off with gentle yoga with lake views. For more information, go to LakewoodRanch. com.
WEDNESDAY, OCT. 2
RANCH NIGHT WEDNESDAYS Runs from 6-9 p.m. at 1561 Lakefront Drive, Waterside Place, Lakewood Ranch. The weekly event includes food trucks, live music, a night market, a vintage mobile bar and a recreational cornhole league. No outside food or beverage is allowed. For more information, visit LakewoodRanch.com.
File photo
Joe Martinez conducts the Lakewood Ranch Wind Ensemble on March 24, 2023.
Cultivating peace
Each sign had the word “peace” translated into a different language.
The walkway was lined with student artwork with messages of peace.
That was just the start of McNeal Elementary School’s annual Peace Day on Sept. 20. The theme for International Peace Day this year was “cultivating a culture of peace.”
In class, students used strips of paper to write their hopes and commitments to peace. The strips were then attached to create a peace chain that will hang in the cafeteria for the rest of the school year.
Lillian Matazinski, a student support specialist, said it’s “more important now than ever” for students to know although they can’t control everything, they can control how they act, how they treat others and how they can make the world a better place.
LIZ RAMOS
Photos by Liz Ramos Student support specialist Lillian Matazinski and media specialist Lora Sevarino say “The First Day of Peace” was read aloud to students. The book taught students about the importance of working together for a greater cause.
Gilbert W. McNeal Elementary School kindergartners give a sign of peace.
Insight & Innovation: A New Day In Cancer Treatment
The world of cancer care is ever evolving, which means that the treatment offered by the physicians and surgeons of the Brian D. Jellison Cancer Institute is always evolving too. During this free lecture series, hear directly from the doctors about how new therapies and advanced technologies are shaping the future of cancer care. A brief Q&A follows each presentation.
Thursday, October 10, 4:30-5:30pm
} Peter S. Vosler, MD, PhD, FACS – Head and Neck Surgical Oncologist
} Wesley McIlwain, MD, FACS – Head and Neck Surgical Oncologist Advanced Head and Neck Cancer Care at Sarasota Memorial Hospital
Tuesday, October 15, 4:30-5:30pm
} Richard H. Brown, MD – Medical Oncologist and Hematologist: Oncology 101 - Understanding Systemic Treatment and Future Directions
Wednesday, October 16, 4:30-5:30pm
} Jennifer S. Holl, MD – Colon and Rectal Surgeon: Colorectal Cancer Care in 2024 - Screening, Risk Factors, What Can You Do?
Wednesday, October 23, 4:30-5:30pm
} M. Blair Marshall, MD, FACS – Thoracic Surgical Oncologist: Surgery for Lung Cancer Today - Not What it Used to be
} Omar Sheriff, MD – Pulmonologist: Lung Cancer Awareness -
Omar Sheriff, MD
Peter S. Vosler, MD, PhD, FACS
Wesley McIlwain, MD, FACS
Richard H. Brown, MD
Jennifer S. Holl, MD
M. Blair Marshall, MD, FACS
Courtesy image
Lily Ward, Olivia Kawcak and McKenzie Kawcak share how “peace” is said in Mexico, India and France. The students held up the signs to greet their classmates as students arrived on campus.
Students create artwork with a message of peace that lines the walkway to the main entrance of the school.
Maia Vergnais greets students by holding up a sign that shares how people in Russia say “peace.”
A Lake Club home tops the
week’s sales at $2,425,000
ADAM HUGHES RESEARCH EDITOR
Ahome in Lake Club tops all transactions in this week’s real estate. Charles David Clarke and Anna Bonner Dunaway Clarke, trustees, sold the home at 8433 Pavia Way to Gordon and Sandra Ann Oliver, of Lakewood Ranch, for $2,425,000. Built in 2022, it has four bedrooms, four baths, a pool and 3,690 square feet of living area. It sold for $1,553,400 in 2022.
AZARIO ESPLANADE
Steven Barr and Patricia FlanniganBarr, trustees, of Bradenton, sold the home at 15228 Derna Terrace to Frederick and Elizabeth Brohm, of Lakewood Ranch, for $2,125,000. Built in 2020, it has three bedrooms, three-and-a-half baths, a pool and 3,656 square feet of living area. It sold for $909,500 in 2020.
COUNTRY CLUB EAST
Thomas Wozniak and Nancy Wozniak sold their home at 14711 Camargo Place to John and Nancy Duggins, of Lakewood Ranch, for $1.95 million. Built in 2013, it has four bedrooms, three baths, a pool and 3,722 square feet of living area.
PELICAN HARBOUR AND BEACH CLUB
Ronald Shugar and Donda Mullis, of Sarasota, sold their Unit 502 condominium at 4241 Gulf of Mexico Drive to Rhea Reserves LLC for $1.8 million. Built in 1980, it has three bedrooms, two-and-a-half baths and 1,660 square feet of living area. It sold for $735,000 in 2001.
DEL WEBB
James and Carol Patenge, trustees, of Loudon, Tennessee, sold the home at 17816 Northwood Place to James Vasquez, of Lakewood Ranch, for $1,625,000. Built in 2022, it has four bedrooms, four baths, a pool and 3,489 square feet of living area. It sold for $1,215,500 in 2022.
BRIDGEWATER
Christopher and Christina Jagel, of Niantic, Connecticut, sold their home at 5664 Cloverleaf Run to Argyle and Barbara Nelson, of Bradenton, for $1.1 million. Built in 2015, it has four bedrooms, threeand-a-half baths, a pool and 3,101 square feet of living area. It sold for $1.01 million in 2022.
RIVERDALE
Jimmy Nguyen and Thu Ngo, of Palmetto, sold their home at 3819 Fifth Ave. N.E. to Troy Barnett, trustee, of Bradenton, for $1.01 million. Built in 2004, it has three bedrooms, three baths, a pool and 2,780 square feet of living area. It sold for $470,000 in 2014.
COUNTRY CLUB
Martha Rose Kozlowski, trustee, sold the home at 7149 Whitemarsh Circle to Robert Ferris Janson and Sophia Pauline Janson, of Lakewood Ranch, for $960,000. Built in 2002, it has three bedrooms, three baths, a pool and 2,705 square feet of living area. It sold for $520,000 in 2019. $595,000.
GREYHAWK LANDING
Erna Giles Smith and Ronald Smith, Covington, Georgia, sold their home at 12703 Kite Drive to Scott Christopher Anderson and Tanya Elise Anderson, of Bradenton, for $839,000. Built in 2010, it has four bedrooms, three baths, a pool and 2,931 square feet of living area. It sold for $331,200 in 2010.
POLO RUN
Carissa Pelczynski, of Bradenton, sold the home at 17237 Blue Ridge Place to Ernesto and Carley Flores, of Bradenton, for $785,000. Built
in 2019, it has five bedrooms, three baths, a pool and 3,364 square feet of living area. It sold for $380,000 in 2019.
85TH STREET COURT
Thomas and Mary Byron, trustees, of Valrico, sold the home at 7039 85th St. Court E. to George and Audra Rainey, of Braden River, for $760,000. Built in 1976, it has four bedrooms, three baths, a pool and 3,293 square feet of living area. It sold for $298,800 in 2008.
WINDWARD
Gavin Killen and Claire Evans Killen, of Caledon, sold their home at 2787 Butterfly Jasmine Trail to Jordan Lyle Bick and Carla Stern Bick, of Sarasota, for $715,000. Built in 2023, it has four bedrooms, two-and-a-half baths and 2,483 square feet of living area. It sold for $708,700 in 2023.
STONEYBROOK
Samuel Samanowitz and Leigh Frances Samanowitz, of Sarasota, sold their home at 7816 Haven Harbour Way to Gary Meskil Jr. and Jessica Collins, of Bradenton, for $700,000. Built in 2004, it has four bedrooms, two-and-a-half baths, a pool and 2,565 square feet of living area. It sold for $225,000 in 2010.
Patricia Lekso sold the home at 8209 Haven Harbour Way to Troast Realty LLC for $500,000. Built in 2003, it has three bedrooms, two baths, a pool and 1,895 square feet of living area. It sold for $255,300 in 2003.
HERITAGE HARBOUR
Steven Kriegshaber and Annette Aldridge, of Salem, South Carolina, sold their home at 406 River Enclave Court to Brian Davis and Alexandra Davis, of Alexandria, Virginia, for $616,000. Built in 2009, it has three bedrooms, two baths, a pool and 1,840 square feet of living area. It sold for $331,500 in 2019.
7136 Marsh View Terrace Land Trust sold the home at 7136 Marsh View Terrace to Roger Baxter, of Canton, Ohio, for $582,000. Built in 2016, it has three bedrooms, two baths, a pool and 1,649 square feet of living area. It sold for $325,000 in April.
SOLERA Mondoe Ramone Davis and Lisa Darice Davis, of Denton, Texas, sold their home at 17656 Cantarina Cove to Samuel Alfredo Goria and Narineh Dumont Goria, of Riviera Beach, for $560,000. Built in 2023, it has five bedrooms, three baths and 2,987 square feet of living area. It sold for $580,000 in 2023.
Jeffrey James Extor, of Media, Pennsylvania, sold his home at 17616 Cantarina Cove to Andres and Astrid Ward, of Bradenton, for $540,000. Built in 2022, it has four bedrooms, three baths and 2,750 square feet of living area. It sold for $580,200 in 2022.
COPPERLEFE
Gretchen Lindelof, trustee, of Chandler, Arizona, sold the home at 11420 Sweetgrass Drive to Zachary Hone and Maria Isabel Lima, of Bradenton, for $465,000. Built in 2019, it has four bedrooms, three baths and 2,006 square feet of living area. It sold for $298,700 in 2019.
WOODBROOK Richard Knab, of Bradenton, sold his home at 6452 Autumn Woods Way to Brian and Rose Schaffer, of Manalapan, of New Jersey, $430,000. Built in 2014, it has three bedrooms, two-and-a-half baths and 1,680 square feet of living area. It sold for $259,100 in 2014.
BRADEN RIVER LAKES
Kenneth and Donna Thompson, trustees, of Bradenton, sold the home at 4606 Ninth Ave. E. to Ryan and Lisa Morin, of Bradenton, for $425,000. Built in 1995, it has three bedrooms, two baths and 1,959 square feet of living area. It sold for $205,000 in 2009.
GREENBROOK Christopher Benevento, of Lakewood Ranch, sold his home at 15383
9-13
Blue Fish Circle to Carlos Cruz Rivera and Bluett Caceres, of Sarasota, for $425,000. Built in 2005, it has three bedrooms, two baths and 2,656 square feet of living area. It sold for $243,000 in 2013.
DESOTO LAKES COUNTRY CLUB COLONY
Gary Janko and Andrea Zucker, of Sarasota, sold their home at 4912 W. Country Club Drive to Rohan Jemmott, of Sarasota, for $410,000. Built in 1974, it has three bedrooms, two baths and 1,662 square feet of living area. It sold for $145,000 in 2002.
LAKE VISTA RESIDENCES
Taylor Gray sold his Unit D-404 condominium at 7702 Lake Vista Court to Anthony Varga, of Bradenton, for $335,000. Built in 2007, it has two bedrooms, two-and-a-half
baths and 1,762 square feet of living area. It sold for $335,000 in 2021.
TERRACE AT LAKEWOOD NATIONAL
Thomas Andrew Delong and Waraluck Delong, of Bradenton, sold their Unit 118 condominium at 16706 Vardon Terrace to Chris and Beth Kaminski, of Oakmont, Pennsylvania, for $320,500. Built in 2017, it has three bedrooms, two baths and 1,286 square feet of living area. It sold for $190,000 in 2017.
Courtesy image
This Lake Club home at 8433 Pavia Way sold for $2,425,000. It has four bedrooms, four baths, a pool and 3,690 square feet of living area.
SPORTS
Fast Break
Lakewood Ranch High senior boys golfer Parker Severs is ranked No. 1 in the Florida High School Athletic Association in all classifications by iWanamaker as of Sept. 23. Severs is committed to the University of Florida. Lakewood Ranch senior Henry Burbee is ranked fifth in the FHSAA, all classifications.
… Lakewood Ranch High junior volleyball player Ava Collins had 19 kills, 13 digs and two serving aces Sept. 17 in the Mustangs’ 3-0 home win over Lemon Bay High. The Mustangs are 12-6 as of Sept. 23.
Parrish Community High senior football running back Jermaine Edwards had 209 rushing yards and four touchdowns in the Bulls’ 35-0 road win over Braden River High on Sept. 20. The win improved the Bulls’ record to 4-1.
The Lakewood Ranch High boys cross country team finished fifth out of 30 teams in the Boys Elite race at the 2024 North Port Invitational, held Sept. 20-21 at North Port High. Senior Derek Robinson led the Mustangs with a 12th-place individual finish (05:08.6).
Former Lakewood Ranch High baseball outfielder Grant McCray, now with the San Francisco Giants, had an RBI triple in the Giants’ 2-0 road win over the Kansas City Royals on Sept. 22. McCray is hitting .212 with five home runs, 10 RBIs and five steals since his Aug. 14 call-up.
Former The Out-of-Door Academy cross country runner Tristan McWilliam, a junior at Embry-Riddle University, finished 29th out of 147 runners (28:20.0) at the Embry-Riddle Cross Country Classic in Daytona Beach on Sept. 21.
“People want to win. We want to change everything around the program and do better things around here.”
ODA football survives first test
The Thunder was pushed to the limit by Sarasota Christian on Sept. 20 but earned a 36-31 win.
RYAN KOHN SPORTS EDITOR
For the first time in 2024, The Out-of-Door Academy football team was forced to sweat.
The defending Sunshine State Athletic Association Class 4A state champion Thunder led Sarasota
Christian 36-31 in the fourth quarter on Sept. 20, but after a failed fourth-down attempt from its own 37 yard line, ODA handed the Blazers a chance to win. Sarasota Christian had moved the ball on ODA all game and did so again, getting into the red zone.
But with 3:24 left in the game, the Blazers made a mistake: junior quarterback Ben Milliken rolled to his right without first securing a shotgun snap. The ball fell to the ground, and ODA recovered. Behind junior running back Allen Clark and others, the Thunder was able to run out the clock.
The win moved ODA to 5-0, but it also gave the Thunder plenty to discuss in practice. In its first four games, ODA allowed a single touchdown, a late-game score by Central Florida Christian Academy in a game that had long been decided (52-7).
Even when its offense had challenges, like in a 12-2 win over Saint Stephen’s Episcopal on Sept. 6, the defense was stout.
Sarasota Christian (3-3), bringing with it a high-flying passing attack, picked apart open holes in the Thunder secondary; Milliken threw four touchdown passes and had chances at a game-winning fifth before the late fumble. The offense brings remnants of 8-on-8 football, which Sarasota Christian played for two seasons before moving to 11-on-11 football this season.
ODA Head Coach Rob Hollway — whose win was his 20th with the Thunder since taking control of the program in 2022 — was complimentary of Milliken and the Sarasota Christian offense while acknowledging the work his team still needs to do.
“I feel like they neutralized our big defensive line with quick throws,” Hollway said. “They have a good scheme. They’re a tough team. This
was as good a test as we are going to have against an air raid team. Hopefully we learn from this and grow and get better.”
It was not all bad for the defense. ODA was able to intercept two Milliken passes and had a third called back on a penalty, and when the defensive line was able to get pressure, the passing game was less effective.
For all of the struggles of its defense, the Thunder was able to remain undefeated anyway. That is largely because of its offensive running game, which was operating at full force against the Blazers. Star junior running back Allen Clark ran for 236 yards and three touchdowns while junior fullback Aengus Doody scored on a goal line run and several times helped to move the chains on third down. Left, right or up the middle, it did not seem to matter where ODA ran; when the Thunder
ALLEN CLARK AT A GLANCE
School: ODA
Position: Running back
Grade: Junior
Rushing yards: 841
Rushing yards per game: 168.2
Rushing yards per carry: 9.0
Rushing touchdowns: 10
Passing touchdowns: 1
needed yards, Clark and his offensive line teammates got them.
Clark also threw a 15-yard touchdown pass to senior Carson Fisher in the first quarter, catching the Blazers off-guard.
“He’s a heck of a player,” Hollway said of Clark. “We go as Allen goes. He’s a multidimensional player. He plays offense and defense (at linebacker). I think he’s one of the best players in the area.”
The Thunder is still looking to complement its ground game with a passing attack, but that area remains a work in progress. Against Sarasota Christian, ODA had several players attempt passes, but only Clark completed passes of note. Senior starting quarterback Josey Rubinstein was primarily used as a runner, and freshman backup quarterback Gage Fisher attempted two passes, one that was dropped and one that just missed a deep connection up the left sideline.
There are areas to improve, but ODA has the time to improve them. Only one team on the Thunder’s remaining schedule has a winning record: Seffner Christian (4-0), who ODA will play on the road Oct. 18. ODA will next play at Santa Fe Catholic
at 7 p.m. Sept. 27.
“He’s a heck of a player. We go as Allen goes. He’s a multidimensional player. He plays offense and defense (at linebacker). I think he’s one of the best players in the area.”
Lakewood Ranch High’s Richard De Paula SEE PAGE 30
photo
Lakewood Ranch High senior boys
golfer Parker Severs is ranked No. 1 in the FHSAA by iWanamaker.
(2-3)
Photos by Ryan Kohn
ODA junior running back Allen Clark carries Sarasota Christian defenders down the field for a big gain.
Sarasota Christian’s Justin Brock gets tackled by ODA senior Thomas Perez.
ODA junior tight end Winston Crisci (6) turns upfield after catching a pass.
ODA Head Coach Rob Hollway
Sports editor says goodbye to East County
ously walk around in this humidity all the time?
Afootball game between Braden River High and Venice High convinced me I was in the right place.
It was Oct. 14, 2016. Three weeks earlier, I had started on the Observer sports beat. It was my first real job after graduating from the University of Missouri. In those three weeks, I had some questions about where I had elected to live. It was far from my family’s home base in Maryland; was I OK with that? Everyone at the paper seems kind and talented; will that last? And most importantly: Do people seri-
The answer to all three turned out to be yes. It was Braden River’s football game that gave me the first dose of comfort. The Pirates would lose the game 42-35, snapping the program’s regular-season winning streak at 25 games. But man, was it thrilling. That Pirates team was loaded: running back Deshaun Fenwick and defensive end Taylor Upshaw would go on to excel in the college ranks at Oregon State University and the University of Michigan/University of Arizona, respectively, and both got a look in NFL training camps this fall, though neither is currently on a roster. Quarterback Louis Colosimo played at Davidson College and has
spent his post-graduation days playing professionally in Europe. There were other great players, too, like defensive lineman Deqwunn McCobb, who used his massive 6-foot-3, 315-pound frame to dominate smaller offensive linemen, a pit bull taking on a bunch of French poodles.
I got into journalism to see great athletes and tell great stories. The Pirates breaking their winning streak against an up-and-coming rival was not a happy story for them, but it was a compelling one: Braden River had a chance to tie the game after recovering an onside kick with 18 seconds to go but could not put together one last touchdown drive. The narrative became even more compelling when Braden
“This is a vibrant sports community, one that is growing, and I’ll cherish my time spent in it.”
Ryan Kohn
River lost to Venice again in that year’s postseason. I saw swells of emotions on the faces of seniors. Football meant everything to them, and it broke their heart that day.
To write stories about things that mean something to people, that’s reaching the mountaintop for a reporter. That’s when you feel like you made a difference. I felt it after those Braden River and Venice football games, and I’ve felt it several times since.
But after eight years of climbing that mountain, I’m making my descent.
I have accepted a non-journalism job in Richmond, Virginia. The high school football games held Sept. 20 were the last games I covered. My new job will not be as publicfacing, but it will involve a lot of the same tenets that the Observer holds high. Namely, a dedication to its hyperlocal communities, telling the stories of each one in the truest way possible.
I have learned how to do that only because of the kindness I have received from the East County sports community along the way. There are too many individual athletes and coaches to name, but I thank all of you for taking time out of your days to talk to me for stories. Athletic directors, thank you for connecting me with your programs and for letting me romp up and down the sidelines at your sporting events to get in the best position for action photos. (And for answering my annoying questions whenever I called.)
To East County parents, thanks for letting me know what you thought of my stories, even when you disagreed with something I said in a column. What are sports with-
out debate? As long as you actually read the story — not everyone did — I thank you for expressing your feelings in a (usually) respectful way.
Outside of the high school ranks, thank you to all of the communication and PR professionals at area organizations for alerting me whenever you had a good story idea come across your desk. I was a oneperson sports department at the Observer, so that type of assistance was always appreciated.
Lastly, thank you for reading, no matter who you are. To serve the sports community, I tried to write as many types of stories about as many niche sports subjects as I could. Sometimes that ethos resulted in things like the story of two young soccer players’ fight against cancer. Other times it led me to follow a high school mascot around for an entire football game. I even got to cover professional sports. I saw legends of golf compete at the inaugural World Champions Cup at The Concession Golf Club and I saw some of Earth’s best athletes compete at the World Rowing Championships at Nathan Benderson Park. I talked with former Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Chad Johnson, a.k.a. Ochocinco, at Premier Sports Campus. I covered the Dick Vitale Gala every year, and it never stopped being inspiring.
This is a vibrant sports community, one that is growing, and I’ll cherish my time spent in it. I have no doubt that great stories will continue to be written on athletic fields here long after I’m gone, and I can’t wait to take them in — only this time, as a spectator from afar.
FIVE DECADES OF STAYING STYLISH
Ryan Kohn is the sports editor for the East County Observer. Contact him at RKohn@ YourObserver.com.
Staff photo
Ryan Kohn is leaving the East County Observer sports beat after eight years.
Stories from the beat will stick with Ryan Kohn along his journey.
ATHLETE
Richard De Paula
Richard De Paula is a senior linebacker on the Lakewood Ranch High football team. De Paula is a leader on defense and had eight total tackles in the Mustangs’ 41-3 win over Braden River High on Sept. 6, which was Lakewood Ranch’s first win in the rivalry series since 2013. The Mustangs are 3-1 and will host Lennard High (5-0) at 7:30 p.m. Sept. 27.
When did you start playing football?
I started youth football in sixth grade. In high school, I played as a sophomore at Winter Springs High in Orlando. Then I moved here. I didn’t play a lot (on the field) last year because I was a new transfer, but I have played a lot more this year.
What is the appeal to you? Football is a way out, to me. It’s a chance at better opportunities in life. But it is also what I love to do. I just love to play.
What is your best skill?
I feel like I am a sideline-to-sideline linebacker. I am around the ball at all times, and I love to make big hits.
What have you been working to improve?
My strength and my speed, as well as becoming more versatile. I have been working on my footwork, as well.
What is your favorite memory?
It has to be beating Braden River a few weeks ago. We had not beaten them in so long. Getting that win was the best thing for our program.
What is the difference in the program this season?
I think we are more focused at practice. Of course we still play around a
If you would like to make a recommendation for the East County Observer’s Athlete of the Week feature, send it to Ryan Kohn at RKohn@ YourObserver.com.
hobbies? When I have downtime I usually spend it with family, because during school hours and football hours, I don’t get to be with them too much.
What is your favorite TV show? I like ‘Outer Banks’ on Netflix. That’s a good one.
What is the best advice you have received?
Work hard and give it your all. If you do, you are going to get something in return.
Finish this sentence: “Richard De Paula is … ” Funny. Whoever I’m around, I can always make them laugh.
NATURE’S BEAUTY WITH
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MUSICAL ARRANGEMENTS by Dana Edwards, edited by Jeff Chen
By Luis Campos
Hope Owens took this photo of hibiscus in full bloom in Lakewood Ranch.
