bserver O LONGBOAT
You. Your neighbors. Your neighborhood.
free • Thursday, AUGUST 16, 2012
NEWS
DIVERSIONS Magida Diouri exposes ‘reel’ life in Sarasota. PAGE 15
OUR TOWN
PRIMARY ELECTION 2012 Go to YourObserver.com for complete local results.
next-door nuisance
Volunteers dive in for annual scallop search. PAGE 21
by Robin Hartill | City Editor
Colony neighbors oppose extension The board at the Aquarius Club wants the commission to deny a Colony Association request to extend a re-opening deadline. It seeks support from residents of other neighboring properties.
Photo courtesy of Johnna Brynn
Tim and Heather Roberts
+ Hollywood Haunt Orchid Beach Club resident Heather Roberts celebrated her 50th birthday Thursday Aug 9., with a ‘40s supper club-themed surprise party at Crosley Mansion. It was a scene out of golden-age Hollywood as a band played crooner-style tunes while guests sipped champagne and noshed on apps before dinner. The night was hosted by Heather’s father, Roy Palmer. Susan Palmer, Marilyn Paderewski and Beverly Underwood facilitated the ambiance.
+ Synagogue Open House Are you looking for a temple to call your own? On Sunday, Aug. 26 there will be a community-wide synagogue open house. Ten congregations will open their doors for a tour and to meet the leadership. Temple Beth Israel, 567 Bay Isles Road, will open its doors from 1 to 4 p.m. Call 383-3428 for more information.
+ Taste of the World Foodies unite at 6:30 p.m. Aug. 17 at Pattigeorge’s, 4120 Gulf of Mexico Drive. Cook along with Proprietor and Chef Tommy Klauber, who will lead an interactive dinner to teach how to create dishes from India, Greece, Thailand and France. Call 383-5111 for reservations and more information.
Turtle tracks
When Greg Van Howe bought his unit at the Aquarius Club in 2003, he thought its location next to the Colony Beach & Tennis Resort was an asset. Back then, it was a vibrant resort with restaurants and shops within walking distance.
ing that is falling down are visible. “It looks like a broken-down, burned-down slum,” said Van Howe, one of two vice presidents on the condominium’s fivemember board. Most board members are out of town for the summer.
A STORY OF HEROISM
Aug. 19, 1942:
But after the Colony Beach & Tennis Resort Association sent a letter stating its intent to ask the Longboat Key Town Commission to grant an 18-month extension of the Dec. 31 deadline for re-
SEE COLONY / PAGE 2
by Matt Walsh | Editor
The late Gen. James Edmundson flew one of his most heroic missions 70 years ago. Fifty-five years later, he met, via letters, the men he saved.
‘Tell it to the Marines’ For the late Lt. Gen. James V. Edmundson, Longboat Key’s most decorated veteran, this coming Sunday, Aug. 19, 70 years ago, was one of his most heroic missions. He earned the Distinguished Flying Cross for sinking a Japanese warship and saving the lives of hundreds of outgunned Marines who were pinned down and helpless on the beach of Lungo Point on Guadalcanal Island in the South Pacific. The odds that he and his crew would survive and be victorious were not in their favor. And it wasn’t until 54 years later, in 1996, that Gen. Edmundson would finally converse, by letter, with some of the Marines who lived because, as the late Admiral C.W. Nimitz put it, of Edmundson and his crew’s “extraordinary achievement.”
... Gen. Edmundson and his wife, Lee, settled on Longboat Key, in a home on the tip of Marbury Lane on north end of the Key after 36 years of extraordinary achievements in three wars (World War II, the Korean War and Vietnam War): 181 combat missions, 24 medals, including the Purple Heart, Bronze Star, Silver Star, three Legions of Merit and seven Distin-
guished Flying Crosses. Even post-military, Gen. Edmundson distinguished himself as a leader on Longboat Key, becoming a commissioner and serving two terms as mayor. The Longboat Post Office bears his name. Gen. Edmundson also was the bedrock of the Longboat Key Kiwanis Club, holding court in his home to initiate new members into the expectations of being a Kiwanian. Those who personally remember the general always speak of him in awe. Like many World War II heroes, he was humble. But there was something about him, even when he wore a guyabera shirt at the Thursday Kiwanis breakfasts. Just by looking at Gen. Edmundson, you could feel and sense something special and important. Fellow Kiwanian and retired Army Col. Al Bagot said of Edmundson shortly after he died in June 2001: “Even as a civilian, the general had a military bearing. He was always erect, always polite. He carried himself as if there was this inborn thing about loyalty to country and flag.” But you wouldn’t get a sense of the depths of his heroism un-
SEE EDMUNDSON / 8
File photo
Gen. James Edmundson earned 24 medals for his bravery fighting in three U.S. wars. But letters from those he helped save reflect the true depth of his service.
Without you, we would never have survived ... It is nice to know who was flying the fortress.
Week of Aug. 5 through Aug. 11
Nests.................................4 False crawls.......................6 2012 2011 Nests 623 266 False crawls 466 247
Fast-forward nine years. The resort has been shuttered since 2010. Units that overlook the property can see the deterioration of the wooden buildings. From the beach outside the property, buildings with boarded windows, holes in the wood and sid-
— John W. Burke of Wilmington, Del., wrote to Edmundson
INDEX Bridge Bites..........28 Briefs......................4
Classifieds ...........30 Cops Corner............7
Crossword.............29 Letters....................9
Real Estate...........24 Weather................29
Vol. 35, No. 4 | One section YourObserver.com