East County Observer 2.24.22

EAST COUNTY

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FREE • THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2022

VOLUME 24, NO. 15

YOUR TOWN

Critical need for bus drivers Bus driver shortage causes challenges for Manatee County schools. SEE PAGE 3

Liz Ramos

Arya Roshka, 3, boards the ambulance for a lesson from her dad, Chris Roshka.

View from the driver’s seat Manatee County paramedic Chris Roshka thought he would bring his kids to work Feb. 22, but he had an important purpose in mind.

Roshka, who works out of the Manatee County EMS Lakewood Ranch station, wants his kids, 4-year-old Jace and 3-year-old Arya, to not be overwhelmed in case of an emergency when an ambulance might need to show up at the scene.

“Heaven forbid they ever need one, but hopefully they won’t be as nervous if they look back and remember being there with me,” Roshka said.

“Maybe they will want to one day follow and do what I do, but regardless, I wanted them to enjoy the experience and maybe see why I’ve had to miss holidays and events.”

Roshka let Jace and Arya sit in the driver’s seat.

“I hope they remember this as a good experience,” he said.

AN AWESOME EFFORT Beyong Hun An claims his first Korn Ferry Tour win in Lakewood Ranch.

SEE PAGE 16

Ryan Kohn

Eventual winner Byeong Hun An hits out of a sand trap on the No. 18 hole during the final round of the 2022 LECOM Suncoast Classic at Lakewood National Golf Club.

A+E Courtesy photo

Aubri Darpino

Love letters with class In the spirit of Valentine’s Day, Courtney Boswell, a third grade teacher at Robert E. Willis Elementary School, had her students write a love letter.

The love letter wasn’t to a friend, a family member or a loved one, but rather to Willis Elementary.

Third grader Aubri Darpino (above) sent love to her school because it keeps her friends safe.

“I remember I was scared of you until I knew I could trust you,” Darpino wrote in the letter.

Musical ideas of note.

INSIDE

Her effort a perfect 10 Heritage Harbour teen turns her attention toward helping gymnasts in the Bahamas. SEE PAGE 8 Liz Ramos

Heritage Harbour’s Rhegan Duncombe, a junior at The Out-of-Door Academy, started Gymnast to Gymnast to donate gymnastics clothing and new equipment to gymnasts in the Bahamas.

EAST COUNTY OBSERVER

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YourObserver.com

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2022

LEARN MORE

To make a donation or learn more about the Re-wilding the Quads project, visit SarasotaAudubon.org or ConservationFoundation.com/quads.

Courtesy rendering

A bird blind/observation platform is among the amenities proposed in concept drawings.

Vision for Quads grows Proposal calls for creation of a woodland habitat with the goal of fostering biodiversity.

ERIC GARWOOD MANAGING EDITOR

If all goes as envisioned on land just west of Celery Fields, snowbirds might one day be the only migratory creatures able to tell where the already established nature sanctuary ends and a new project to “re-wild” a trio of adjacent county-owned parcels begins.

That’s the goal of the Conservation Foundation of the Gulf Coast, Sarasota Audubon and county leaders in reimagining the future of the socalled Quads, a collection of properties once considered surplus land at the four corners of Palmer Boulevard and Apex Road, within sight of Interstate 75.

Although no approvals or permits

Eric Garwood

Christine Johnson of the Conservation Foundation and Jeanne Dubi of the Audubon Society

have been issued yet for construction — it could happen by September — and with fundraising just getting started, the two nonprofits held an open house Feb. 19-20 at Celery Fields to showcase concepts for the 33 acres and kick off public awareness of what they hope to accomplish.

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Foot traffic at the open house was brisk at the Audubon Society’s Nature Center as visitors stopped to chat with representatives of both organizations and look over several large-format illustrations and a map of proposed new features.

Envisioned improvements include extensive plantings, meadows, woodlands, trails, high and low points of terrain along a stream, shaded picnic areas, ADA-compliant walkways, a bird blind/observation platform, facilities, a discovery area for kids and more, a release said.

The northwest Quad will remain as is. There’s a new county fire station there now and room for more. The other three sections are the focus of conservation.

In 2019, as months of public sentiment swelled against the proposed sale and private development of the three parcels, Christine Johnson of the Conservation Foundation and Jeanne Dubi of the Audubon Society approached the Sarasota County Commission with the idea to set aside two of the four parcels for con-

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servation in perpetuity.

“The commission loved it so much, they threw in the third,” Johnson said.

In 2020, commissioners unanimously voted to place a conservation easement over the southwest, southeast and northeast parcels, and it’s also when Audubon and the foundation agreed on a partnership.

A rezoning in 2021 cemented longterm intentions for the land and its uses. Staff also requested any future buildings in the area be designed with elements of Florida architecture, similar to the design of Fire Station No. 8 and the Audubon Nature Center.

“We conserve it; Audubon is going to manage it,” Johnson said. “We’re fundraising together for this vision of re-wilding the Quads.”

Johnson said the project would take 12-14 months to build if fundraising is successful enough to avoid phased-in construction. Willis Smith Construction, Kimley-Horn Planning and Design, and Progressive Water Resources are also part of the effort. Under optimum fundraising and permitting circumstances, work could begin in roughly a year. Once finished, the Quads park would seamlessly link with facilities at Celery Fields, though the habitats, and the wildlife they attract, will be entirely different.

Dubi said Celery Field is low and swampy, conditions that have led the 440 acres to gain international acclaim with bird-watchers. The Quads land south of Palmer Boulevard lends itself to a higher-elevation woodland habitat that would lure an entirely different set of migratory visitors — both feathered and the kind who carry cameras and binoculars.

“One thing we do lack is forest and trees,” Dubi said. “The whole idea was to create that habitat to increase biodiversity.”

The retention pond on the north-

east corner will stay largely as it is now, though “more beautiful and natural,” Johnson said, adding that the soil scooped out to create the pond is the reason the surrounding topography is higher and drier than the Celery Fields land.

“It’s turned out the Celery Fields is nationally known and internationally known as a birding hot spot,” Dubi said. “What we hope to accomplish is attracting other birds that don’t normally come to the Celery Fields and to create a migratory stopover.”

She said birds all over the world are in decline because of factors like habitat loss, but that it’s encouraging to see so many species flock to New York’s Central Park. “We can do the same thing.”

Both Dubi and Johnson emphasized that it was grassroots opposition to a development proposal on the site in 2018 that launched the entire conservation effort, and it would be the same kind of community support that will fuel a successful fundraising campaign. Because the plans are not final, there is no fundraising goal, but Johnson said it would be “more than a few million dollars.”

“We need the grassroots people,” Dubi said. “The grassroots people started this all. They were the ones who said to the county, ‘Don’t sell that land. Save that land.’ And we were able to come up with a solution.”

The Conservation Foundation is also working with the city of Sarasota on its initiative to remake the Bobby Jones Golf Course. Groundbreaking is set for March 4 to begin not only restoring the closed municipal golf layout to its original design by famed architect Donald Ross but also set aside about 108 acres as a nature park in perpetuity.

At the same time the city approved plans, it approved a $20 million bond to finance golf course construction and the framework for the nature park’s wetlands. Johnson said she hopes to be finished fundraising for the Quads by the time her organization must gear up to raise money for the second phase of nature park construction, which would include more granular work and the nature park’s amenities.

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EAST COUNTY OBSERVER

Bus driver Allen Dickson says taking on more routes is just part of the job.

Driven to address shortage Manatee school district adds incentives to attract more bus drivers.

INCENTIVES

The school district is looking for different ways to recruit and retain school bus drivers, including: n Hiring a recruiter n Increasing hourly pay n $1,000 retention

bonus for those who have been working for the district since Jan. 1, 2021 n Uniform and shoe allowance n Sending out a quarterly newsletter n Bus driver and bus attendant recognitions n Special events, such as a family fun day

LIZ RAMOS STAFF WRITER

E

very weekday, Deanna Howell gets on a school bus to make sure School District of Manatee County students are transported in a safe and timely manner.

Howell became a bus driver so she could work while also having time off when her children were out of school.

Seventeen years later, Howell continues to drive students because she loves it.

Due to a bus driver shortage, Howell and other district drivers have had to expand their routes.

“It’s all in a day’s work, to be honest with you,” Howell said. “I do sympathize with the parents, especially ones that have to work. Our intent is to transport these children safely and to make sure they get (to school and home).”

The district needs 155 bus drivers to have a full staff. With a full staff, the district is able to run 155 routes, but with the driver shortage, the district is forced to consolidate routes.

Currently the district has 129 routes for its 118 drivers.

“It’s not ideal because now we have some pretty loaded buses that are going a little bit farther than what they would normally be doing,” said Jamie Warrington, the director of transportation for the School District of Manatee County. “The goal is if we were ever to get back to being fully staffed, we would start putting those routes back together. Our number of routes would increase as our number of drivers increases.”

The driver shortage is compounded by the COVID-19 pandemic because the district also has to deal with drivers calling in sick or testing positive.

“We don’t have ‘substitute drivers’ that are just sitting there waiting,” Warrington said.

Even if all drivers are available, the transportation department runs into issues, such as drivers being late, buses breaking down or getting stuck in traffic, parents being late to pick up their students and more.

“It’s a constant fluid situation every morning and every afternoon,” Warrington said.

The driver shortage has been impacting the school district for years. In the past, school districts didn’t have to pay for drivers’ retirement. Once the government decided school districts had to pay for retirement, it became difficult for districts to be able to provide a competitive salary with the new benefits, Warrington said.

In an attempt to make salaries more competitive with the private sector, the School Board of Manatee County approved salary increases for bus drivers. The starting wage for bus drivers in the 2020-2021 school year was $15.16 per hour. For the 20212022 school year, the starting wage

BY THE NUMBERS

37

Bus driver vacancies in the School District of Manatee County as of Feb. 11

155 drivers

Routes the district has with a full staff of

129

shortage

Routes the district has during the driver

16,000

ported every day

Students being trans-

$16.69

Starting hourly wage for a bus driver for the 20212022 school year

$15.16

Starting hourly wage for a bus driver for the 20202021 school year

$16.50

Minimum pay per hour for an Amazon driver in Sarasota

has increased to $16.69 per hour. A dollar of the $16.69 comes from the 1-mill ad valorem property tax referendum, which was last approved by voters in November 2021.

Warrington said the pay increase has made the district the fourthhighest paying district for bus drivers out of Florida’s 67 school districts.

Howell said the district’s biggest

competition for bus drivers in the area is Manatee School for the Arts and Team Success, which are charter schools. Charter schools are responsible for providing transportation to their students.

The district also faces competition from companies such as Amazon, which pays its starting drivers a minimum of $16.50.

Besides a pay increase, the district is trying other ways to recruit and retain drivers, including different ways to show drivers they’re appreciated. The department of transportation started a quarterly newsletter recognizing bus drivers and bus attendants, popcorn Fridays, gift card giveaways and special events such as a family fun day scheduled for May at G.T. Bray Park.

“I did meet with a group of folks a couple of weeks ago to brainstorm what we can do to try to help improve the monotony of coming to work,” Warrington said. “I want to acknowledge their hard work, and I want to acknowledge the sacrifices they’re making at home.”

Bus drivers Allen Dickson and Howell said the district needs to work on streamlining the hiring process to help get new drivers.

Warrington said the district hired a recruiter who has been trying to recruit drivers through websites such as Indeed.com. People who apply through websites like Indeed. com still need to apply through the School District of Manatee County. Warrington said the recruiter checks applications every day and sends applicants’ information to the department of transportation.

Within 24 hours the applicant is contacted and department of transportation staff can help applicants if they need help filling out applica-

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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2022

GET ON THE BUS

Once the School District of Manatee County hires a bus driver, the driver must work to obtain a commercial driver’s license.

To obtain a CDL, applicants are required to have an operator’s license as well as pass the vision requirements and knowledge and skills tests.

The district takes drivers through a three-week training course to learn safety and operations protocols.

Bus drivers also are required to drive a minimum of 40 hours before driving routes on their own. Jamie Warrington, the director of transportation for the School District of Manatee County, said the district’s drivers drive at least 70 hours.

tions or have questions.

After the applicant is cleared with a background check and fingerprinting, the department contacts the applicant within 24 hours to schedule an interview.

“If you take too long, they’re going to find something else and they’re going to go somewhere else,” Warrington said. “It’s in our best interest to get on it right off the bat, and that’s what we’ve been trying to do.”

The transportation department has a new class of drivers starting every two weeks, even if there is only one driver in the class.

Both Howell and Dickson said the district needs to recruit young people to become drivers.

Becoming a school bus driver is not as simple as grabbing the keys and driving. School District of Manatee County drivers are required to obtain a commercial driver’s license.

Warrington, Howell and Dickson said the exam to obtain a CDL is not easy. All of them failed the first time they took the test.

Dickson said drivers have to study for the CDL exam.

Drivers also go through a threeweek training course, learning safety and operation protocols on top of at least 70 hours of pre-service driving in which they drive with a trainer.

Even after drivers are doing routes on their own, Warrington said there is ongoing training.

“There’s physicals, dexterity tests, random drug and alcohol testing and ongoing training requirements that are all mandated by state law,” Warrington said.

Warrington said drivers are not in their jobs for the money but for the students.

“When I came, I needed money, of course… . That for a lot of our people is an issue, but the love for the job keeps them here,” Howell said. “Yes, we can go to Walmart or Amazon, but you don’t have a heart for it. (As a bus driver) no two days are the same. I love children.”

Dickson became a driver after selling the company he owned for 32 years last March. He’s been with the district for only eight months, but it gives him something to do every day.

“It’s keeping me working; it’s keeping me focused, and it’s giving me a purpose in life,” Dickson said. “It’s giving something back to the community. It’s also basically achieving something. Every day you’re out there, you get all your routes, and you get the kids to school.”

Photos by Liz Ramos

Jamie Warrington, the director of transportation for the School District of Manatee County, says the COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated the bus driver shortage.

3

EAST COUNTY OBSERVER

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YourObserver.com

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2022

In charitable terms, he’s still the man

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IAN SWABY STAFF WRITER

I

t started when Bob Smith sent a simple email request to nine golfing buddies at the Lakewood Ranch Golf and Country Club.

Waterside’s Smith had been told that people wouldn’t appreciate an out-of-the-blue request for a charitable donation, especially coming from a friend. But the desperation he had witnessed while volunteering at the Stillpoint Mission made him determined to try his luck.

“I went to Catholic Memorial High School in (Waukesha) Wisconsin, where the motto was ‘caritas in omnibus,’” Smith said. “It means charity in all things. The Lord has blessed me with this. I don’t have to work, and I’ve got this house on the lake. If somebody is going to give me all this, then it just would not be fair without trying to help when people have to stand in line for three cans of food.”

Smith raised $1,500 after that first request and went on to repeat it each year over the next 11 years to produce a total of $173,950, with the email list and the donations growing every time.

“I didn’t do anything more than send out emails ... to nine people, and then 35 people, going to 60, to 85,” he said. “These are very, very generous golfers.”

Last year, Smith collected $40,950 for Stillpoint Million, and this year he expects the figure to exceed that amount, since the Louis & Gloria Flanzer Philanthropic Trust has agreed to offer matching donations up to $500 per person, per month.

Smith said he is optimistic the trust’s contribution will “blow $41,000 out of the water.”

Gene Tischer, the president of Stillpoint Mission, said Smith is responsible for 20% to 25% of the organization’s yearly funding.

“There are people out there who do a lot of wonderful things on their own,” Tischer said. “They just pick up the ball and run with it without anybody asking them to. It helps restore your faith in humankind. I’m

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sure there are a lot of Bob Smiths out there. And I know one for sure.”

Diane Brune is one of the people who Smith calls a “captain.” He said “captains” are his most committed supporters who forward his message to their own contacts.

Brune said Smith’s “authenticity” is behind his success in collecting funds.

She said he has taken the time to volunteer at Stillpoint Mission for many years. She said his shoe giveaway held each year is important to the community as well.

“People really see him as living up to his values,” Brune said. “Plus, he’s a lot of fun and quite determined.”

Bob Smith, Stillpoint Mission Treasurer James Keiner and Stillpoint Mission President Gene Tischer​ celebrate another successful fundraiser

by Smith in 2021.

HOW TO HELP

Those who would like to double a donation to Stillpoint Mission can do so by paying through the Louis & Gloria Flanzer Philanthropic Trust, which is currently matching one donation up to $500, per person, per month. Go to FlanzerTrust.org and click the red “donate now” button. Select Stillpoint Mission from the dropdown menu.

A check also can be written, payable to the Louis & Gloria Flanzer Philanthropic Trust, with “Stillpoint Mission” in the memo line. Mail the check to the Louis & Gloria Flanzer Philanthropic Trust, 1843 Floyd Street, Sarasota, FL 34239.

Donations also can be sent, through Feb. 26, to Bob Smith at 764 Sigsbee Loop Sarasota, FL 34240.

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Monday, Febuary 28

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PUBLIC NOTICES The Sarasota/Siesta Key, East County and Longboat Observers meet the legal requirements to publish legal and public notices in Sarasota & Manatee counties, per F.S. 50.011.

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Aftermath of the January 6 Capitol Attack Lt. Gen. Russel Honoré (Ret.)

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YourObserver.com

EAST COUNTY OBSERVER

Johnson Preserve improvements back on track The piece of ‘Old Florida’ in East County adds minor amenities that should be completed by summer.

IAN SWABY STAFF WRITER

T

Ian Swaby

The Johnson Preserve – Carl Bergstresser’s “little slice of heaven” – will get upgrades by this summer, including shell paths and picnic tables.

Michael Elswick, division manager of the Natural Resources Division in the county’s Parks and Natural Resources Department, said he expects construction to be underway in April or May and complete by early summer.

Elswick said that while he cannot speak on the topic of delays at the procedural level, it’s normal for environmental projects such as this to take two or more years to complete, and there have been issues with stormwater management, tree conservation, and plans to offer a sidewalk system better integrated with that of the neighborhood.

While the project obtained a state permit several months ago, Elswick’s division is still working with the Building and Development Services Department to obtain permits at the county level.

He said tech consultants are more directly involved in the permit process this time, which is “just another layer of safeguards.”

“They might ask different ques-

THE

tions and have different procedural elements that are more important to them,” he said. “But it’s all the same plans that are being presented. We love to see them do their job. Whether it’s us building a reserve park or whether somebody’s building a Kmart, we’re glad they apply the same level of scrutiny and thoughtfulness.”

Elswick had hoped construction on the shell parking lot would follow a path similar to the one at Perico Preserve. Since piles of shell are pervious, meaning they can hold and release water, at Perico, a vegetative buffer was used to contain stormwater runoff. At the Johnson Preserve, the process required the creation of swales, small depressions in the ground to contain rainwater while it percolates into the soil.

Elswick said his team was “surprised” by this requirement. “That kind of sent us back to the drawing board in terms of having to redesign and resubmit the permit applications. I don’t know if there was a rule

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2022

5

JOHNSON PRESERVE AT BRADEN RIVER The preserve was the dream of Carl Bergstresser, whose grandparents founded the popular RV campground Linger Lodge, located off State Road 70 and east of Interstate 75, not far from the preserve.

Bergstresser grew up exploring the forests that would become the Johnson Preserve, sitting on his porch at nights to watch the dear, wild boar and other wildlife.

The family property was gradually sold off, leaving Bergstresser with a 11.6-acre parcel.

He bequeathed his land to the Conservation Foundation of the Gulf Coast, but he was afraid that his mere 12 acres were not enough for a preserve. In 2016, he died.

Brenda Russell of the grassroots organization Keep Woods said a partnership with the Conservation Foundation of the Gulf Coast raised $1,029,000 toward preserving the land, while the Floyd C. Johnson & Flo Singer Johnson Foundation contributed a challenge donation of $500,000, with the county covering the remaining funds to acquire the preserve for $3 million from the Myarra Property Joint Venture, which was planning to develop the parcel.

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ucked away in a corner of The River Club subdivision, the Floyd C. Johnson and Flo Singer Johnson Preserve at Braden River will become more accessible to the general public after construction on some long-awaited improvements begin as early as April.

The preserve was acquired by Manatee County in 2018 for $3 million. Included in that amount was a $1,029,000 donation from the Conservation Foundation of the Gulf Coast and a $500,000 donation by the Floyd C. Johnson & Flo Singer Johnson Foundation.

The preserve consists of almost 44 acres of natural landscapes, with 32.9 acres being the county’s purchase from Myarra Property Joint Venture and 11.6 acres being a donation from Carl Bergstresser.

It is home to such fixtures of wild Florida as the longleaf pine and the gopher tortoise.

At the time of the preserve’s purchase to stop the area from behing developed, plans for additional features were announced, including shell paths, a shell parking lot, picnic tables and an information kiosk.

“People are pleased that the land was saved, but also the habitat for the animals and the river,” said Brenda Russell, a member of Keep Woods, which worked hard to save the area from development. “We’re happy, but we would still like to see it finished.”

After no visible progress between 2018 and 2022, residents began to wonder why these seemingly simple additions were so long in the works.

change or if it was interpreted differently,” he said.

Although the parking lot will be small — only eight spaces — Elswick noted, “We could easily impact a neighbor. We could send a lot of rainwater into their yard that was never going into their yard before. So, they would look at and review and do some calculations and see how much water we’re intercepting.”

Additionally, the division must follow the construction boundaries agreed upon with the Conservation Foundation of the Gulf Coast. Once the division had completed a survey of the trees in the area, they realized that to avoid cutting down too many long-leaf pines, they would need to readjust the shape of the parking lot and the orientation of the pavilions, and they sent a new legal sketch to the board for approval.

“It’s kind of a boring process, nothing particularly exciting,” said Elswick. “Just more hoops. More steps in the process than we originally anticipated,” Finally, the sidewalk system needed to be updated to include further connectivity with the neighborhood sidewalks.

The county has been able to perform some tasks that don’t require permits, including establishing safe fire lines and executing three successful controlled burns in the area.

While acknowledging that the kayak launch, at 100 to 150 yards from the preserve entrance, does require visitors to carry their kayaks, he said there are no plans to add an additional kayak launch.

Gary Hebert, president of Keep Woods, said “I think most of us are just happy that the property was saved and wasn’t made into a gated community.”

“I’m happy with what the county decided to do,” he said emphatically.

“I understand we’re not in a big rush to have anything done there.”

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YourObserver.com

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2022

Fourth graders study first impressions

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LIZ RAMOS STAFF WRITER

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tu Henderson received some interesting answers when he asked a class of Blackburn Elementary (Palmetto) fourth graders to guess what he does for a Wallcoverings & Blinds, Inc. Since 1989 4801 S. Tamiami Trail, Sarasota living.

Across from The Landings Students guessed that Henderson, the owner and director of design at Duette® Duolite™ PowerView® Motorization Fawley Bryant Architecture of Lakewood Ranch, was a teacher, a YouTuber, a sports person and an artist.

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Modifieds Henderson went on to explain his Built-Up job as a part of Project TEACH. #1 in Customer Service “It was a lot of fun,” Henderson Single Plysaid. “It was a little challenging CCC 016 171 CCC 014 711 Membranebecause people immediately think Building Shingles Roofing CCC 016 171 CCC 0140711 that if you do architecture, you build Aluminum the building. So I had to clarify that Contractor Contractor Tile • Metal Building Roofing a little bit and let them know I draw Fascia • Soffit Modifieds Contractor Contractor the buildings, and we work with great contractors to actually build Siding Built-Up the buildings.”

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started more than 30 years ago.

Jacki Dezelski, the president of the Manatee Chamber of Commerce, said Project TEACH will reach more than 2,800 fourth graders in 29 elementary schools.

Volunteers represent several industries and occupations, from small-business owners, bankers and financiers to contractors, law enforcement officials and doctors.

“The goal is for business volunteers to connect with students in the classroom,” Dezelski said. “The curriculum is designed to stress the importance of first impressions as well as help students learn about careers that are located right here in our region.”

Dezelski said that some of the benefits of Project TEACH include exposing students to careers they might not be familiar with and providing an opportunity for the business community to become more familiar with the School District of Manatee County.

“For many of us, it’s been a long time since we’ve stepped foot in a classroom, much less a fourth-grade classroom,” Dezelski said. “I think it gives a great amount of appreciation and perspective for our business community to be in a classroom, to work side by side with a teacher and

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EAST COUNTY OBSERVER

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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2022

7

We are so proud to be part of this incredible event!

SARASOTA’S 5-STAR MED SPA

Beauty is our Business

Courtesy photo

File photo

Stokely Browne, a fourth grader at Gilbert W. McNeal Elementary School, talks to Doug Wagner, the deputy superintendent of operations for the School District of Manatee County, about becoming a neurosurgeon.

to have that experience connecting with students.”

Before heading to the classroom, volunteers will have an orientation breakfast at the Bishop Museum of Science and Nature in Bradenton, where they will learn about the curriculum and hands-on activity they’ll be doing with students.

When volunteers first arrive, they’ll ask students questions, such as, “How old am I?” “What kind of car do I drive?” “What is my educational background?” and “What’s my favorite fast food?”

The final question always is, “What do I do for a living?”

“My favorite part is hearing the

answers to the first-impression questions from the students,” Dezelski said. “You have to have a little bit of a thick skin at times because they will have some really funny answers to what they think you do or how old you are.”

Henderson was nervous about going into the classroom at first, but he said the questions helped ease the pressure and helped him engage more with the students.

“This year I won’t be as nervous going in because they’re adorable, they’re smart and they’re funny,” Henderson said. “We have a great time in the classroom. I love seeing the bright-eyed kids that are just full of hope and who are looking forward to hearing a little bit about a guest in the classroom.”

After the first-impression questions, volunteers will reveal their occupation and explain to students what they do, how they entered that industry and what it took to get where they are now.

“It’s such an important opportunity for the business community to help those students envision a career path that’s something they’ve never even heard of before,” Dezelski said.

The class will end with students designing business cards for what they want to be when they grow up.

Dezelski said volunteers usually take the time when students are designing business cards to talk to them individually about what they’re thinking about for their future.

Cynthia Saunders, the superintendent of the School District of Manatee County, volunteers for Project TEACH at Tillman Elementary School in 2019.

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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2022

EAST COUNTY

FORMER GYMNAST

VAULTS FORWARD Heritage Harbour teen turns her attention toward helping gymnasts in the Bahamas.

LIZ RAMOS STAFF WRITER

W

hen Heritage Harbour’s Rhegan Duncombe was told she should quit gymnastics in 2018 after dedicating eight years to it, she was heartbroken.

She had suffered ankle sprains, broken and bruised bones in her feet, detached ribs, wrist injuries and more. Despite surgery, the persistent foot and ankle injuries continued. She was 13, and her athletics career was finished.

When she stopped competing, at least at first, The Out-of-Door Academy junior was happy to have more time to spend with friends and family. But she still missed her sport.

Then in 2019, Duncombe was thinking about what she could do for her Girl Scout Gold Award project. The Gold Award is the organization’s highest award and requires a member to develop a project that would impact a community.

Duncombe recalled a trip she took to the Bahamas to visit the family of her dad, Adrian Duncombe, when she was 11 years old. The Duncombes visited the Nassau Nastics gym and the gymnasts there. She was surprised to see the tiny room and wondered whether all of the gymnastics equipment would fit safely.

The gym’s floor didn’t have any bounce to help the competitors get the proper height for stunts. It didn’t have a pit filled with foam blocks for gymnasts to safely practice new tumbles and flips.

“I was a bit taken aback at the gym’s equipment,” Duncombe said.

“I realized I was fortunate to have the equipment I had.”

The trip inspired Duncombe to start Gymnast to Gymnast in 2021.

The nonprofit has a goal of partnering with gyms and gymnastic meets across the country to collect donated leotards, spandex, sports bras and more, while also accepting financial donations. The donations will go toward helping the athletes at Nassau Nastics, Bahamas Star and Paradise Gymnastics, all of which are gyms in Nassau, Bahamas.

“I wanted to see if there’s any way possible I could help out the gyms and these girls because I knew the impact gymnastics had on my life,” Duncombe said. “If I could improve anything there or help them out in any way, maybe I could impact their life.”

Duncombe’s gymnastics career began when she was in pre-K. She was a part of an after-school program in St. Louis that allowed her to learn the basics of gymnastics.

Duncombe will be the first to say she was not a natural when it came to gymnastics.

“I was not good at all,” she said with a laugh.

But she had fun, and that’s all that mattered to her.

She joined a gym in St. Louis and

HARD LANDING

Heritage Harbour’s Rhegan Duncombe began gymnastics when she was 5 years old but had to quit in 2018 after eight years due to constant foot and ankle injuries.

“If we are to build a better world, we must remember that the guiding principle is this — a policy of freedom for the individual is the only truly progressive policy.”

Friedrich Hayek

“Road to Serfdom,” 1944 Publisher and President / Emily Walsh, EWalsh@YourObserver.com Associate Publisher — East County Observer / Lori Ruth, LRuth@YourObserver.com

RHEGAN DUNCOMBE Residence: Heritage Harbour Title: Founder of Gymnast to Gymnast Age: 17 School: The Out-of-Door Academy Years in gymnastics: 8 Favorite gymnastics event: Floor routines Favorite Girl Scout activity: Camping Liz Ramos

Courtesy photos

began to advance her skill level.

“I loved going there after school and having almost a separate life,” Duncombe said. “At first, it was just a way to get out my energy. It was something my parents didn’t think I’d be doing for long because I was really bad.”

As she advanced through the different levels in gymnastics, Duncombe continued to improve. She was solid in all the events, so she began to place high in the all-around at local and state levels.

Eventually, she hoped to compete in gymnastics at the collegiate level — targeting UCLA — but her gym didn’t provide the instruction necessary to help her achieve that goal. Her family started to look into gyms across the country and saw that Aimee Boorman, who coached Olympic gymnast Simone Biles, was coaching gymnasts in Sarasota.

In the summer of 2017, the Duncombes traveled to Sarasota to visit Boorman at EVO Athletics. Boorman agreed to train her, so the family moved to Heritage Harbour.

In the year she spent at EVO Athletics, Duncombe competed in Level 9 competitions (only Level 10 and Elite are higher), including a firstplace all-around finish in a Fort Lauderdale competition in 2018. She placed first despite her constant foot and ankle injuries.

“There were definitely painful practices leading up to (the state competition),” Duncombe said. “My coaches had to be strategic with how many reps I was doing, which definitely made it tough. When I got first, I was proud of myself because, despite everything, I was still going to do this, and I had fun out there.”

Duncombe said she never became

a gymnast who cared only about scores. She said that would have taken all of the fun out of the sport.

Now she is focused on her nonprofit, and through that effort she still is involved in gymnastics. Her first goal was to partner with the established Atlantis Crown Invitational in the Bahamas for its meet last December. Michigan’s Branch Gymnastics was a sponsor of the Atlantis Crown Invitational and also partnered with Gymnast to Gymnast to collect clothing and donations for the cause.

Duncombe traveled to Nassau in December to donate more than 140 leotards, leggings, sports bras and other apparel to Nassau Nastics.

“It was absolutely amazing to see how excited they were,” said Duncombe, who stayed to watch the gymnastics compete in their new apparel.

Attending the Atlantis Crown Invitational was the first time Duncombe had been in a gym since she quit gymnastics in 2018.

“It was a little nostalgic because I remember the nerves, and I had nerves for some of the girls,” Duncombe said. “I know how hard it is being a gymnast, but in their training facilities, I know how much harder they have to work. To see them accomplish what they did, I was just so happy for them.”

Duncombe’s goal is to have 20 partners from across the country by the end of 2022. She hopes to collect between $15,000 and $30,000 to replace the Nassau Nastics gym floor, which is at least 25 years old.

“The biggest impression when I was there was the floor,” Duncombe said. “(Bad) equipment can throw off your skills so much. My goal is to eventually be able to buy different equipment for their gym, so when they go to competitions, it’s not this huge transition.”

Duncombe said the new equipment and clothing will give the gymnasts confidence in themselves and ensure their safety. She said the proper attire not only is safer, but also allows a coach to see body position easily.

“Positions are so important in gymnastics,” she said. “Every part of your body has to be in a certain position at the exact time or else you could end up getting injured.”

Whenever Duncombe wore a new leotard, she said it made her feel like royalty and the boss of the gym.

“Confidence is so important in gymnastics,” she said.

Above: Heritage Harbour’s Rhegan Duncombe, a junior at The Out-of-Door Academy, started Gymnast to Gymnast to donate gymnastics clothing and new equipment to gymnasts in the Bahamas.

Left: Al Scharns and Cindy Scharns, who coordinate the Atlantis Crown Invitational in Nassau, Bahamas, have partnered with Rhegan Duncombe (center), the founder of Gymnast to Gymnast, to collect donations for gymnasts in the Bahamas.

Below: Heritage Harbor’s Rhegan Duncombe has always loved gymnastics.

She started when she was 5 years old but had to quit in 2018 due to injuries.

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EAST COUNTY OBSERVER

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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2022

JAY HEATER

Put fishing lessons in your pocket

I

had a rather strange introduction to Ron Popeil’s Pocket Fisherman.

For those who haven’t lived a little, Ron Popiel was a famous television pitchman beginning in the 1960s who was peddling somewhat odd items like the Veg-O-Matic and the Inside the Shell Egg Scrambler.

This is the guy who gets credit for inventing the late-night informercial.

He made “But wait, there’s more,” a household saying.

Such was his power that he had a connection with my ex-Marine father who was as old school as they come. If you were advertising it on late-night TV, it had to be a scam, according to my dad. To Bill Heater, those items ranked right up there with a $10 Rolex on a New York City street corner.

Except for the Ronco Pocket Fisherman.

This was a fishing pole that you literally could fold up and put in your pocket. It intrigued my dad, who never made more than $12,000 in a year in his life. He wasn’t easily going to part with his money.

Then he saw the Pocket Fisherman, and the wheels got turning.

Understand that my dad lived his life as a dairy farmer, a gas man, and a heavy-equipment operator.

When he wasn’t busting his butt to provide a nice home for his family — he was a single father of three — he was spending his time camping and fishing.

Fishing was an indication of integrity for my dad — kind of like today’s version of golf where you find out whether your friends would be willing to kick an errant shot out from behind a tree without telling anyone about it. There was a right way to fish and a wrong way.

From the time I was old enough to hold a fishing rod, I was taught the right way to fish.

We used a bark canoe that

River Club’s Arete Khorshid, 8, and his 10-year-old sister, Athena, have a ball at the Youth Fishing Seminar at Summerfield Park.

Lakewood Ranch’s Rob Nielsen brought his granddaughter, Josephine Stone, to the Youth Fishing Seminar at Summerfield Park.

weighed 10 times more than the new aluminum version because it was old school. Worms and bait fish were the choice over all those fancy artificial lures at Woolworth’s. You began fishing at dawn and were finished by 9 a.m. You ate what you caught.

We always were the first ones to launch our rowboat, and we watched the first ripple of waves break the glass of a Catskills Mountains lake.

When you spent four hours without a bite, you simply appreciated nature and never uttered a discouraging word. All the lessons I needed to know about life could be learned on the lake or the stream.

And then my dad ordered the Pocket Fisherman, which was

So on a crystal clear summer night in the Catskill Mountains, my day loaded me into the car along with the Pocket Fisherman. It was midnight in a part of the woods where you hardly saw any humans in the daylight, let alone after dark.

We pulled the truck up along a bank of the stream, right in front of a posted sign, with only the occasional deer as a witness. My dad told me to tuck the Pocket Fisherman into my pocket before I slid down the riverbank to the stream.

I could actually see huge trout in the moonlight as I prepared to make my first cast. A fish hit immediately, and I had a nice fish on only one try.

Unfortunately, the Pocket Fisherman was indeed junk. The line

Photos by Jay Heater

invented in 1963 by Popiel’s dad, Samuel Popiel.

When my dad bought one in the 1970s, I was 16 and even I knew this was plastic garbage.

My dad, however, had an idea.

We used to spend time in the Catskill Mountains, fishing the Beaver Kill. Unfortunately, the area near the origin of the river — the part that had incredible fishing — was private. It seemed that at every 100 yards was a posted sign telling of the penalties for trespassing. The common man had no access to the nation’s best stream fishing.

For years, my dad wanted access to that part of the river that was hogged by rich folk from New York City who had no idea about real fishing. It irked him.

bound all up inside the reel, and with no light to straighten the line, I ended up with it tangled around my body. Hogtied, I tried to climb back up the bank with my trophy fish and slipped back down in the darkness, cracking the reel in half.

Eventually, I climbed up the bank, fish in one hand and the prized Pocket Fisherman abandoned below.

My dad never said a word, contemplating whether one fish was worth his fishing soul.

My lesson that night wasn’t about the integrity of fishing but rather about conscience and remorse.

Since none of us are perfect, those were important lessons I would never forget.

When I see the Lakewood Ranch Anglers Club, led by longtime members Larry Maddeo and Jeanette Wirz, host the annual Youth Fishing Seminar Feb. 19 and the Youth Fishing Tournament Feb. 26, I wonder what lessons will be shared between those parents and kids. These events are all about respecting nature, acquiring patience and celebrating life.

You can still sign up for the tournament, for kids 5-12, at MyLWR. com.

There will be no TV, no cell phones, no personal devices.

You will have a rod and reel and the great outdoors and a bunch of very nice Anglers Club members.

But wait, there’s more!

Jay Heater is the managing editor for the East County Observer. Contact him at JHeater@ YourObserver.com.

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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2022

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K

ari Keech-Babcock, a guidance clerk at Lakewood Ranch High School, was in disbelief when her named was called.

She held back tears as she walked up to the stage at Manatee Technical College Feb. 16 to receive the award for the School District of Manatee County’s 2022 Excellence in Education Awards’ Support Employee of the Year.

“I’m a little bit in shock,” KeechBabcock said. “I’m very excited and extremely honored. It’s crazy.”

Keech-Babcock has been working for the School District of Manatee County for four years, calling Lakewood Ranch High School her home.

She said the award means everything to her.

“It tells me that I’m doing everything I can to build communities,” Keech-Babcock said. “It’s showing me that what I’m doing right now is good, and I should keep chugging along. It can only go up from here.”

In her four years at Lakewood Ranch High, Keech-Babcock has worn many hats, including attendance clerk, guidance clerk and working at the front desk. She’s one of the first faces people see when entering the high school.

She prides herself on building relationships with the students and their families and the faculty and staff.

This year, Keech-Babcock also has taken on the role of the school’s esports coach.

Kristine Dittman, a secretary at Lakewood Ranch High School, nominated Keech-Babcock for the award. Dittman and Keech-Babcock were hired at Lakewood Ranch High School in 2017. They’ve been working together at the front desk of the school’s main office since the 2019-

Liz Ramos

KARI KEECHBABCOCK What: Finalist for School District of Manatee County’s 2022 Excellence in Education Awards Support Employee of the Year Residence: Greenbrook School: Lakewood Ranch High School Position: Guidance clerk Family: Son Noah Babcock and husband Jordan Babcock Favorite animal: Elephant Video games she’s currently playing: Sea of Thieves, Back for Blood and Don’t Starve Favorite video games: World of Warcraft

Back: Robert Keech, his daughter Kari KeechBabcock, and Kari’s husband, Jordan Babcock.

Front: Kari’s mom, Brenda Keech, and Kari’s son Noah Babcock.

They all were celebrating Kari’s Support Employee of the Year award.

2020 school year.

“She’s so amazing,” Dittman said.

“She is the beacon on the hill. Light shines through her. She’s so good at what she does. Even if someone comes in and flusters her or gets her upset, you would never know it. Her customer service skills are just so amazing.”

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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2022

TRIBUTES

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Bassem F. Philip, MD

Blanca Di Cecco, loving wife, mother, grandmother, great grandmother, sister, dear friend to many and, dedicated volunteer, passed away peacefully on February 8, 2022 at the age of 92.

We are pleased to welcome a new internal medicine specialist to the First Physicians Group (FPG) network. As a board-certified specialist in internal medicine, Dr. Philip provides patient-centered, comprehensive care for adults that includes yearly physicals and screenings to promote a healthy lifestyle in addition to the management of chronic conditions and complex disease processes. His expertise and experience ranges from treating hospital inpatients to providing outpatient primary care.

A resident of Longboat Key, Florida for 33 years, Blanca was born August 30, 1929 in Trujillo Alto, Puerto Rico. Blanca also lived in Santurce, Puerto Rico, New York City and Bay Shore, Long Island. Blanca will always be remembered for her kindness, generosity, strength, and undeniable love for her family. Blanca is survived by her three children, Joseph R. Seda, Samuel Cohen and Fanny Cohen Younger, son-in-law, Phillip Younger, daughters-inlaw, Rita Cohen and Bertha Seda, six grandchildren, Joe Seda, Eric Cohen, Dan Seda, Vanessa Cohen Thayer, Rosemary Younger Spinelle, Victoria Seda Carroll and nine great grandchildren, Jayden, Genevieve, Mikayla, William, Toby, Jack, Lucas, Miles and Liam.

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90’s. Blanca gave back to the community having volunteered for the Sarasota Ballet, the American Red Cross, Meals On Wheels and Sarasota Memorial Hospital for 30 years.

A memorial mass will be held at St. Martha Catholic Church, 200 N. Orange Avenue, Sarasota on Saturday, March 26, 2022 at 10 am.

Blanca will always be remembered for her kindness, generosity, strength, and undeniable love for her family.

MEMORIAL MASS: Saturday, March 26, 2022 10AM St. Martha Catholic Church 200 N. Orange Avenue DONATIONS: In lieu of flowers, please donate to Tidewell Hospice.

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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2022

Trip with a hitch

W

ith an early-afternoon event Feb. 19 at CoolToday Park in North Port as part of the Atlanta Braves fan experience, the Budweiser Clydesdales had a busy schedule early in the morning at the Sarasota Polo Club.

They needed to complete all of their primping early so they would look fantastic while pulling the famous wagon at CoolToday Park.

The seven-person team was busy attending to the massive

horses on the polo field grounds.

It was the final event on the leg of their trip that began with a stroll down Main Street at Lakewood Ranch on Wednesday evening, then went to UTC on Thursday before making an appearance Friday at Thunder by the Bay at the Sarasota Fairgrounds.

The Clydesdales are scheduled for an off day Feb. 20 before hitting the road on Feb. 21. The team is based in St. Louis.

— JAY HEATER

Above: Lauren Lambeth finishes grooming Rocco before moving to the next Clydesdale. The team is made up of 10 horses, with two sitting out each event because an eighthorse team is needed to pull the wagon.

Right: The Dalmatian became the Budweiser Clydesdale mascot in 1950. This one is checking out the Sarasota Polo Fields from the stable.

This Budweiser team, or “hitch,” is based at the Anheuser-Busch brewery complex in St. Louis.

Photos by Jay Heater

The Clydesdales stand in the grooming area Saturday morning with the team’s three tractor-trailers in the background at the Sarasota Polo Club.

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The Most Beautiful Jewels in Lakewood Ranch Above: Purina buckets are everywhere on a Budweiser Clydesdale road trip.

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— ODA senior lacrosse player Megan Dowdell SEE PAGE 18

HIGH

SPORTS

“I have realized I don’t have to work on my game every single day if it is not making me happy. I want to keep enjoying it.”

Eventual winner Byeong Hun An walks the No. 18 fairway during the final round of the 2022 LECOM Suncoast Classic at Lakewood National Golf Club.

5

Photos by Ryan Kohn

1

Former Lakewood Ranch High softball player Jillian Herbst, a freshman at Colgate, was named the Patriot League Rookie of the Week Feb. 15. Herbst went eight for 17 with two doubles, a triple, an RBI and four runs scored in Colgate’s first four games.

Can’t putt it away Byeong Hun An survives a final hole bogey to win the LECOM Suncoast Classic.

RYAN KOHN SPORTS EDITOR

T 2

Lakewood Ranch High boys lacrosse sophomore Lucas Anthony had six goals and three assists Feb. 18 in the Mustangs’ 13-4 road win against Venice High.

3

The Lakewood Ranch High wrestling team won the Florida High School Athletic Association Class 3A District 7 tournament, held Feb. 18 at Lennard High. Mustangs senior Ranson Coons won the 182-pound division and sophomore Wyatt Loynd won the 126-pound division. The Mustangs will send 10 wrestlers to their 3A regional meet Feb. 25 at Osceola High.

4

Judy Atkins sank a holein-one Feb. 17 on the No. 4 hole at Lakewood Ranch Country Club’s Royal Lakes course. Atkins used a 9-iron on the 107-yard hole.

5

Mel Siler sank a hole-inone Feb. 15 on the No. 17 hole at Lakewood Ranch Country Club’s Royal Lakes course. Siler used a 6-iron on the 155-yard hole.

AN EARLY EXIT PAGE 17

he first three editions of the Korn Ferry Tour’s LECOM Suncoast Classic came down to a final dramatic putt for victory.

The 2022 Classic, again held at Lakewood National Golf Club, offered something completely different: missed putts that led to heartbreak.

On the 18th hole of Feb. 20’s final round, Michael Gellerman was tied with eventual winner Byeong Hun An at 17 under par as he stood in the fairway and An lined up his 10-foot par putt on the green. Alongside Gellerman was MJ Daffue, who was a shot back.

An missed his par putt on No. 18, which appeared likely to cost him the tournament.

But An’s missed putt was an omen of events to come.

Gellerman left his approach shot 30 feet from the hole and then raced his potential tournament-winning putt 8 feet past. Daffue burned the edge of the cup with his potential tying putt to finish a shot back.

Gellerman still had a chance to tie An, but he missed his par putt before lipping out the tap-in for a four-putt that dropped him to an eight-way tie for sixth place.

At 17 under, An (65-66-67-69— 267) was handed the trophy and the $135,000 winner’s check.

“I feel a little relieved,” An said. “It was a long day. It was a grind all day.

That was not my best golf, but there was enough there, enough grinding, to keep it steady until the end. The last hole was a bit unlucky and a bit lucky at the same time. But I got the job done.”

An said Lakewood National’s Commander course played to his strengths. The width of the fairways gave him an advantage with his length, especially on the four par 5s.

He birdied three of the four par 5s in the final round and made par on the other (No. 10).

The 30-year-old from Seoul, South Korea, is now fifth in the Korn Ferry Tour’s rankings. It is his first professional win since 2015, when he won the Shinhan Donghae Open on the Korean Tour. However, An has since finished in the top five of eight PGA Tour events, most recently a third-place finish at the 2019 Sanderson Farms Championship.

“I came close a lot of times on PGA Tour, and people still think, ‘Why are you here (on the Korn Ferry Tour level)?’” An said. “Well, I didn’t have a good year (in 2021). To have this win early in the season, I think that helps a lot. My goal is to get my (PGA Tour) card, but my whole team – my coach, my manager and my wife –

Michael Gellerman lines up a birdie putt on the No. 18 hole during the final round of the 2022 LECOM Suncoast Classic at Lakewood National Golf Club. The putt would have won the tournament. Gellerman missed the putt, and the next, and the next.

CLASSIC FINISH

1 T2

Byeong Hun An, 17 under par (65-66-67-69—267)

Seonghyeon Kim, 16 under par (67-66-6966—268)

T2

Scott Harrington, 16 under par (65-69-6767—268)

T2 T2

Ben Griffin, 16 under par (69-64-65-70—268) MJ Daffue, 16 under par (68-65-64-71—268)

all believe I’m capable of doing a lot better things.”

Four golfers — Daffue, Ben Griffin, Scott Harrington and Seonghyeon Kim — tied for second at 16 under par. Thanks to his missed putts on 18, Gellerman slipped to 15 under par and tied for fifth with seven other golfers, including 2019 champion Mark Hubbard.

“It was a tough sleep last night,” Gellerman tweeted on Feb. 21. “That one hurt to let slip away. I was simply not good enough.”

There were more misses than makes at the end, but the crowd at the Suncoast Classic enjoyed low scores all week. Tournament director Justin Kristich did not have final attendance numbers as of Feb. 20 but estimated that 25,000 fans attended the event. That is a sizable step up from the tournament’s previous high of 19,000 attendees in 2020.

“It was very exciting,” Kristich said. “We were coming out of something of a COVID year in 2021. It was a dialed-back tournament in some ways. It was nice to be back to normal this year and have big crowds again. Even Thursday morning, when the gates opened at 6:55 a.m., we had trolleys already dropping fans off. Honestly, Thursday is usually a

Byeong Hun An holds up the 2022 LECOM Suncoast Classic trophy after winning the tournament at 17 under par (65-66-67-69—267).

slower day, and you usually don’t see a soul on the course until 8:30 a.m. or 9 a.m., so that was great to see. That was an indication it would be a great week from a spectator standpoint.”

Kristich said sponsors and attendees alike were happy with the builtup suites encircling the green on hole No. 18 at Lakewood National. There isn’t much else they can do there, Kristich said, though he does plan on adding more amenities to holes No. 9 and 17. Kristich said that An’s win will provide the tournament with good name recognition for the future since he has played in many PGA Tour events. Next year’s event will also have an increased purse of $1 million, up from this year’s purse of $750,000.

The Korn Ferry Tour and LECOM announced a three-year title sponsorship extension Jan. 25, ensuring that the tournament runs through at least 2026.

YourObserver.com

EAST COUNTY OBSERVER

PROSE AND KOHN

|

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2022

17

RYAN KOHN

Mustangs’ soccer season ends with a thud T he expected tears never came for the Lakewood Ranch High boys soccer players, probably because they were in shock.

Rather than tears, it was blank stares as the Mustangs listened to the final postgame talk of the season by Coach Vito Bavaro, who was trying his best to make his players feel good about their achievements in an 18-2-1 season.

They certainly had the horses to make it to the Final Four of the Florida High School Athletic Association Class 7A state tournament.

But a 3-1 overtime loss to visiting Plant High on Feb. 16 in the regional finals meant an earlier exit than expected.

Plant High sports a 22-3-1 record and has made it to the state title game, so Lakewood Ranch’s loss shouldn’t be termed a major upset, but it was an upset nonetheless.

“I told the players that we needed to score two goals on this team because they are a good team,” Bavaro said. “We had one, which was a great goal. And then we had a couple chances to put in a couple more goals, and we just did not do it, you know?”

Since the Mustangs didn’t pad their lead when they had the opportunities, they put themselves in the situation of needing to play perfect defense. Bavaro said their inability to take advantage of their offensive opportunities left them vulnerable to making one bad mistake.

They made that one bad mistake.

Plant senior Joe Anderson was given the room to feed a perfect cross into the box for junior Hayden Judge, who had worked his way free. Judge headed the ball past Mustangs senior goalkeeper Josh McManis to tie the game with nine minutes remaining.

“We gave them a chance to get back in the game,” Bavaro. “I told the kids it was going to come down to one mistake, a lapse in judgment

Lakewood Ranch senior Drew Clark listens to head Coach Vito Bavaro’s postgame speech after a 3-1 overtime loss to Plant High.

Photos by Ryan Kohn

Lakewood Ranch High senior Johnathan Kline (14) gets dragged down by Plant junior Will Anderson (24).

or not finishing (a goal). Whoever doesn’t make that mistake is going to win the game. That’s exactly what happened.”

The Mustangs appeared to have the talent to be back in the state championship game for the first time since 2016-2017. The players had the confidence as well.

But after the Mustangs failed to take advantage of their opportunities, they continued to attack, which opened up scoring chances at the other end for Plant. Obviously, Bavaro thought Plant eventually would score, so he wanted his team to remain aggressive chasing that second goal.

Would it have been a better

strategic move to go into a defensive shell? Hindsight says yes.

“My instinct was to play everybody back and hold on for dear life,” Bavaro said. “We have done that in the past, and it has worked. But it is a hard thing to tell the kids to do. Nobody wants to do it. In the Premier League, a 1-0 game is great.

They sit back, and no one scores, and it works. But it’s hard to tell high schoolers to play that way.”

I get it. If I was a high-schooler, I’d want to play my team’s usual style. Sitting back and playing a shutdown game can feel a little cheap, like a football team opting to control the ball and run out the clock with half of the fourth quarter

remaining.

But if my team’s season was on the line — with a trip to the Final Four in the grasp — perhaps the conservative move would have been the right play.

Clark demurred when asked if he thought the team should have been more focused on defense, saying he thought the team’s plan was solid.

The Mustangs just didn’t get it done.

Some fans will see the 3-1 score and think the game wasn’t close. Unless you were there, you wouldn’t realize the Mustangs scored seven minutes into the game off a rocket of a free kick from senior Sam Leavy and then seemed to be in control until Plant’s lategame goal.

When the game went into overtime, Plant took control with a goal on its first possession. Plant senior Justin Tiller scored to put the

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“It was a tough loss, especially the last few minutes,” Mustangs senior Drew Clark said. “A few people played through injuries, and I think a few people were nervous.

Together, it was a tough combination. It took a toll. The goal at the beginning inspired us and gave us hope and helped us be aggressive.

But as the game went on, those things dropped off.”

Clark said his senior season was one of his favorites despite how it ended. After several of the players contracted COVID-19 in 2020-2021 and wrecked their chances at a deep run, the upperclassmen wanted the chance to lead their team deep into the playoffs. Clark said he believes they accomplished that much. As fun as the games were, Clark said he will remember the off-field hijinks with equal fondness, like the team golf outings and freshman initiations.

This loss will sting for a while, but the Mustangs should remain a state power. They do lose Clark, Leavy and leading scorer Felipe DeSouza, among others, but freshman defender Cody Conway became an anchor of the defense and sophomore goalkeeper Noah Rueping impressed while splitting time with senior Josh McManis.

But it will seem like a long wait for another chance.

Ryan Kohn is the sports editor for the East County Observer. Contact him at RKohn@ YourObserver.com.

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Megan Dowdell Megan Dowdell is a senior girls lacrosse player at The Out-of-Door Academy. Dowdell has 10 goals and seven assists through the Thunder’s first three games of the season, held Feb. 15-18.

When did you start playing lacrosse?

I started playing lacrosse in seventh grade. My little sister (Savannah Dowdell) had been playing club lacrosse, and I had gone to one of her practices. I was like, “What is this thing?” It looked fun.

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.

What are your goals?

We are just thinking that whatever (work) we put into the sport will be given back to us.

Which superpower would you pick?

I would pick the ability to speak all languages, including pet languages.

What is the appeal to you?

Well, I am a big hockey fan. I love going to Tampa Bay Lightning games.

But we don’t have a hockey team or a field hockey team here at ODA. Lacrosse is the most similar sport to that in its rules. It’s super fun.

What are your hobbies?

I actually spent all day (Feb. 19) in Orlando at the BMW Invasion, which is a huge car show. People are surprised by that, but then I’ll ask, “Is that a (Subaru) STI driving by?” because I can tell just from how it sounds.

What is your best skill?

I have worked a lot on my stick skills. In lacrosse you want the stick to feel like part of your hand, and I think I have done that.

What is your favorite TV show?

I am watching “Inventing Anna” on Netflix, and I like it. I usually just end up watching whatever is on my YouTube “Recommended” playlist.

What have you been working to improve?

It’s been mostly the mental side of things. I have realized I don’t have to work on my game every single day if it is not making me happy. I want to keep enjoying it.

Finish this sentence: Megan Dowdell is … … Honest.

What is your favorite memory?

It was probably (Feb. 18). We played at the Community School of Naples, and it was the most fun game I have played in my life. We won 19-11, and we had these natural celebrations after each goal. We had talked before about planning out our celebrations, but we decided that was too tacky. So we were just running and jumping into each other’s arms.

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FEBRUARY 24, 2022

YOUR NEIGHBORS

Photos by Liz Ramos

A group of Hellenic dancers performs for the crowd.

A TASTE OF GREECE T

ara’s Becky Emmett has visited Greece only once, but she makes up for it every year by attending the St. Barbara Greek Orthodox Church’s annual Greek Glendi.

“I love Greek food, Greek people, Greek music,” Emmett said.

“I’ve been to Greece. To pay homage since I can’t go there every year, I come here.”

The Greek Glendi once again gave attendees a taste of traditional Greek food, music and dancing Feb. 18-20.

Lakewood Ranch High School junior Jasmine Burden and senior Samantha Greenfield said they couldn’t wait to try some dishes and pastries after they finished volunteering for the festival.

“The food here is so good,” said Greenfield, who attends the Greek Glendi every year. “I love the coconut macaroons and the ones with the chocolate drizzle.”

— LIZ RAMOS

Greek Glendi volunteer Dina Hobson serves a plate of moussaka with rice and potatoes.

A lamb gyro is a favorite at the Greek Glendi festival.

John Demas with the Omega Project plays to Sarasota’s Suzanne Chastenay.

Above: Lakewood Ranch High junior Jasmine Burden and senior Samantha Greenfield are volunteers. Left: Bradenton’s Mike Yugovich and Linda Nowack have attended the Greek Glendi several times. They decided to bring their friends Christa Mudd and John Mudd this year.

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Greek Glendi volunteers George Pandis, Jean Rebel, Merryl Coven and Joan Alexander encourage people to buy raffle tickets in hopes of winning a Mercedes-Benz.

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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2022

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ometimes, it’s best to go camping to meet the neighbors.

Many of those who pitched a tent Feb. 19-20 at the annual Lakewood Ranch Community Campout at Greenbrook Adventure Park said pitching a tent makes for the perfect setting to engage with other members of the community.

Inside a ring of tents, which lined the edges of a baseball field, parents and children chatted around the campfire, tossed Frisbees and played tag.

Lakewood Ranch’s Kate Swinkels said her 8-year-old daughter, Emma, loved being outside while learning about the universe and nature with the event’s telescope and nature walks. Emma also loved watching the outdoor movie with her friends.

“It’s a combination of camping and community,” Kate Swinkels said. “It lets kids have fun in a safe environment, while we get to enjoy one of the key parts of Lakewood Ranch.”

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As the coolness of a February night sets in, the campfire becomes the centerpiece of the evening.

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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2022

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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2022

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To Ellise Elmore, the Palm Aire Art Association’s 39th annual art show provided something vital to its members.

Validation.

Elmore, the co-president of the association and a former interior decorator who has painted for 18 years, said the country club event, held this year Feb. 14-20, showcases the members and, importantly, their improvement as artists.

Take Cheryl Zaccagnino, for instance. Zaccagnino had exceptional sketching ability when she decided to venture into another medium by taking co-President Joy Pendergast’s watercolor class. Her results as a painter didn’t initially

​ BOUT THE PALM AIRE A ART ASSOCIATION The Art Association of Palm Aire has been a fixture of the Palm Aire Country Club since 1983. Founded by Ruth Levin, the club began with an outdoor exhibition in 1983 before the building of the clubhouse itself, with the association officially forming in 1989.

The group is open to members of the Palm Aire Country Club whether they have an artistic background or are just interested in art.

Those interested in joining The Palm Aire Art Association can email Sandy Heerman at smheerman@aol.com

rival her talent as a sketch artist, but after multiple attempts, she created artwork that she entered in the show.

Zaccagnino had been working on a “value study,” a painting with only one pigment mixed into water to create different shades. Her sketching talent served her well and she had no problem establishing the outline for

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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2022

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UNDER CONTRACT

Photos by Ian Swaby

to compete with. I gave it up because she was too quick and made it look too easy.”

Photography is one area where June feels she can contribute. “I just display something so I can go to the reception,” she said cheekily. “You can’t attend the reception if you don’t have work on display. I like doing it. I look forward to having them on display.”

Pat Hanly stood beside a colorful array of beaded jewelry, adorned with a necklace she made herself based on the design “Until I Can Breathe Again” by Shelley Nybakke, an array of strands that twist and curl and intertwine. “My husband says ‘fun for the feeble-minded,” said Hanly, but she wants viewers to know about the hours of work and the expense that go into creating her items.

Hanly begins a piece by plotting the design on graph paper, then threads Fireline fishing line through the crystals, interlocking strands by weaving the threads together.

When her eyes grow tired from the extremely micro scale of the work, she uses 400% magnifiers.

All of the crystals are by Swarovski, meaning the items are costly to produce, and she said she doesn’t sell as many at Palm Aire as she did at the yacht clubs when she was a member.

But she loves the show.

“People see another side of you,” she said. “It’s been fun trying to organize the display.”

Patricia Hanly complements her display with the Swarovski crystal jewelry she is wearing.

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her work. But then she struggled for the right consistency of water and pigment.

Determined to improve, she practiced repeatedly, and it wasn’t long before her practice made a difference. “Initially it’s a little frustrating,” she said. “I think eventually it will be a lot more fun.”

Elmore said the collaboration between budding talents like Zaccagnino and those with experience makes the art show important for the association members.

“As an artist, you get to show what you’ve worked on and created, and some of the artists are just getting started,” Elmore said. “This is something they had wanted to do but never had the time. Once they start, it leads to validation. It just prompts them to keep on going.”

At the art show, there are no requirements for skill, medium, style or subject. The only rule is that artists must be members of the Art Association of Palm Aire or employees of The Palm Aire Country Club.

A variety of pieces line the walls of the makeshift art gallery that’s been set up in the lobby of the Palm Aire Country Club. Visitors will find paintings of Florida scenery, wood carvings, a motorcycle fender painted with a dragon and a fish design.

“I don’t think we’ve ever turned a piece down,” Elmore said.

Marcia Knight has loved painting since the fourth grade, but with a career in marketing and later interior design, she never found the opportunity to explore her passion until retirement. She is currently taking art classes at the State College of Florida, and her husband, Bruce Knight, has even built her a studio.

“It’s fun to have a studio that I can just mess up and stay in,” she said.

Visitors to the show will find her vibrant nature scenes, including “A Quiet Place,” which features a lone snowy egret with white feathers distinct against the green of a swamp setting.

June Paton is the organizer of the art show, but unlike her sister Joy Pendergast, she isn’t a professional artist. A former legal secretary, travel manager and corporate conference planner, she said her talent lies in making things run.

“She’s quite a talented girl,” Paton said of her sister. “Too much for me

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SARASOTA 2203 Hillview Street Tim Koons-McGee 941-320-7073 A4518090 $1,250,000

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YourObserver.com

EAST COUNTY OBSERVER

RESEARCH EDITOR

A

home in Lakewood National topped all transactions in this week’s real estate. Jason and Angela Kranz, of Bradenton, sold their home at 5544 Mulligan Way to George Irvin, of Bradenton, for $1.15 million. Built in 2020, it has four bedrooms, three-and-a-half baths, a pool and 3,117 square feet of living area. It sold for $625,000 in 2020.

COUNTRY CLUB EAST

Susan Sloan and Deborah Taylor, of Osprey, sold their home at 7718 Hazeltine Glen to Darrell and Joan Drury, of Lakewood Ranch, for $1,003,500. Built in 2012, it has three bedrooms, two-and-a-half baths, a pool and 2,802 square feet of living area.

STONEYBROOK AT HERITAGE HARBOUR

Brian and Evelyn Bennett, of Reno, Nevada, sold their home at 7534 Camden Harbour Drive to Douglas Ruby and Jacqueline Holland-Ruby, of Bradenton, for $929,500. Built in 2003, it has four bedrooms, three baths, a pool and 3,992 square feet of living area. It sold for $853,000 in 2021.

TREYMORE AT PALM AIRE

William and Nancy Lavelle, of Wake Forest, North Carolina, sold their home at 4885 Carrington Circle to Eugene and Danielle Allen, of Sarasota, for $845,000. Built in 2000, it has three bedrooms, two baths, a pool and 2,838 square feet of living area.

Donald Goodman, trustee, of Sarasota, sold the home at 4843 Carrington Circle to Bonnie Heller and Eileen Ricci, of Sarasota, for $680,000. Built in 2002, it has three bedrooms, three baths, a pool and 2,364 square feet of living area.

It sold for $351,600 in 2002.

MOTE RANCH

Don and Mary Christensen, of Bradenton, sold their home at 6108 Stillwater Court to Konstantin Vyshetsky, of Sula Koo, of Campbell, California, for $836,000. Built in 2000, it has four bedrooms, three baths, a pool and 3,039 square feet of living area. It sold for $320,000 in 2001.

BRIDGEWATER

FL Property Management 6 LLC sold the home at 13404 Ramblewood Trail to Kathryn De Young and John Scott De Young, of Lakewood Ranch, for $830,000.

Built in 2015, it has six bedrooms, four-and-a-half baths and 4,009 square feet of living area. It sold for $459,000 in 2015.

Anja Hoffmann and Jean Meyer, trustees, of Lakewood Ranch, sold the home at 13117 Ramblewood Trail to Susan Alberson, of Bradenton, for $725,000. Built in 2014, it has four bedrooms, three baths, a pool and 2,287 square feet of living area.

It sold for $384,800 in 2014.

MALLORY PARK

DiVosta Homes LP sold the home at 11803 Blue Hill Trail to David Hershorin and Lori Hershorin, trustees, of Bradenton, for $780,400. Built in 2021, it has four bedrooms, threeand-a-half baths, a pool and 2,859 square feet of living area.

MANDALAY

FANOMO LLC sold the home at 6171 46th St. E. to Vadim Kligman and Rano Umarova, of Voorhees, New Jersey, for $763,000. Built in 2004, it has five bedrooms, three baths, a pool and 3,568 square feet of living area. It sold for $354,000 in 2018.

RESIDENTIAL REAL ESTATE TRANSACTIONS

FEB. 7-11

SAVANNA

Robert and Erika Carter, of Panama City Beach, sold their home at 3615 Scrub Creek Run to Robert Searfoss Jr. and Gail Searfoss, trustees, of Bradenton, for $759,900. Built in 2018, it has four bedrooms, two baths, a pool and 2,251 square feet of living area. It sold for $415,000 in 2020.

SUMMERFIELD

Ann and Jason MacClellan, of Grand Island, New York, sold their home at 12009 Summer Meadow Drive to Keith Joseph Samuels, and Christy Myasha Samuels, of Springfield, Virginia, for $750,000.

Built in 2000, it has four bedrooms, three baths, a pool and 2,366 square feet of living area. It sold for $489,900 in 2021.

WATERCREST

Eugene and Sheila Seashore, trustees, of Lakewood Ranch, sold the Unit 201 condominium at 6414 Watercrest Way to John Uttero and Karen Manger, trustees, of Lakewood Ranch, for $740,000. Built in 2005, it has three bedrooms, three baths and 2,376 square feet of living area. It sold for $495,000 in 2017.

COACH HOMES AT LAKEWOOD NATIONAL

Bill and Linda Favors, of Bradenton, sold their Unit 1221 condominium at 5844 Wake Forest Run to Timothy Frances Doreen Jr. and Ellen Doreen, of Middletown, Maryland, for $735,000. Built in 2018, it has three bedrooms, two baths and 2,108 square feet of living area. It sold for $335,000 in 2018.

Malcolm Baker, trustee, of Lakewood Ranch, sold the Unit 921 condominium at 5836 Wake Forest Run to Timothy and Ellen Doreen, of Middletown, Maryland, for $615,000. Built in 2018, it has three bedrooms, two baths and 2,108 square feet of living area. It sold for $328,000 in 2018.

Courtesy photo

This Stoneybrook at Heritage Harbour home at 7534 Camden Harbour Drive sold for $929,500. It has four bedrooms, three baths, a pool and 3,992 square feet of living area.

858 Rosemary Circle to David and Sarah Sidnam, of Bradenton, for $690,000. Built in 2015, it has five bedrooms, three-and-a-half baths and 2,822 square feet of living area.

It sold for $399,500 in 2015.

LAKEWOOD NATIONAL

Keith and Laraine Beck, trustees, of Lincoln, Rhode Island, sold the home at 5642 Arnie Loop to Stephen and Tanya Slater, of Bradenton, for $660,000. Built in 2018, it has three bedrooms, three-and-ahalf baths and 3,074 square feet of living area. It sold for $565,000 in 2018.

ROSEDALE

Dale and Michele Asplund sold their home at 8737 54th Ave. E. to Alameg Holdings Inc. for $660,000. Built in 1994, it has two bedrooms, two baths and 1,971 square feet of living area. It sold for $435,000 in 2018.

Annette Paige and Donna Paige, trustees, of Sarasota, sold the home at 8719 51st Terrace E. to Patrice and Kimberly Femenia, of Bradenton, for $525,000. Built in 1998, it has three bedrooms, two baths and 2,232 square feet of living area.

SEE REAL ESTATE, PAGE 26

In with the new

GREENBROOK

Sheldon and Michelle Ellis, of Montgomery, Ohio, sold their home at 6349 Royal Tern Circle to Hien Vu and Huong Cao, of Falls Church, Virginia, for $710,000. Built in 2004, it has four bedrooms, three baths, a pool and 2,665 square feet of living area. It sold for $560,000 in 2005.

NOW UNDER CONSTRUCTION

John Mantone and Carolyn Mantone, trustees, of Bradenton, sold the home at 6214 Warbler Lane to Carol and Karin Barrett, of Canton, Michigan, for $699,000. Built in 2002, it has four bedrooms, three baths, a pool and 2,364 square feet of living area. It sold for $265,400 in 2002.

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Jason and Amanda DeFoor, of Bradenton, sold their home at 15652 Lemon Fish Drive to Shea Leary, of Lakewood Ranch, for $675,000.

Built in 2006, it has four bedrooms, three-and-a-half baths, a pool and 2,572 square feet of living area. It sold for $370,000 in 2016.

Downtown St. Petersburg

MAGNOLIA MANOR

David Ted Johnson, of Bradenton, sold his home at 1402 64th St. Court E. to James Carlo Iovino and Chau Ngoc Nguyen, of Miami, for $705,000. Built in 2006, it has four bedrooms, three baths and 2,412 square feet of living area. It sold for $325,000 in 2014.

400 Central | 727.209.7848 | From the $1MM’s | Call for appointment. | Residences400central.com 2 UNITS LEFT

SERENITY CREEK

Gervasios and Maria Koukouvas, of Bradenton, sold their home at 13019 Utopia Loop to Vassilios Lazaridis and Ludmila Boritchi, of Northbrook, Illinois, for $700,000.

Built in 2018, it has four bedrooms, three-and-a-half baths and 2,671 square feet of living area. It sold for $383,000 in 2019.

Downtown Sarasota

The Collection | 941.232.2868 | From the $2MM’s | Call for appointment. | thecollection1335.com

GREYHAWK LANDING

Juergen Kreis, of Germany, sold his home at 12072 Aster Ave. to George and Susan Atwell, of Anniston, Alabama, for $695,100. Built in 2004, it has four bedrooms, three baths, a pool and 2,285 square feet of living area. It sold for $388,000 in 2017.

Sales galleries open and available for virtual or in-person presentations.

Virtual home tours | OnDemand local experts | Interactive site and floorplans

GREYHAWK LANDING WEST

Richard and Heidi Johnson, of Bradenton, sold their home at

373396-1

ADAM HUGHES

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2022

REAL ESTATE

Lakewood National home tops sales at $1.15 million

|

MichaelSaunders.com/New-Homes | 844.591.4333 | Sarasota, Florida Prices as of February 2022.

Licensed Real Estate Broker

25

26

EAST COUNTY OBSERVER

|

YourObserver.com

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2022

only OPHTHALMOLOGY

Real estate

The

FROM PAGE 25

PRACTICE

CENTRAL PARK

Tracy Padeni, of Augusta, Georgia, and David Padeni, of Jaffrey, New Hampshire, trustees, sold the home at 8727 52nd Drive E. to Gary Potempa and Mary Pat Potempa, of Libertyville, Illinois, for $425,000.

Built in 1995, it has two bedrooms, two baths and 1,564 square feet of living area. It sold for $40,000 in 1998.

in Lakewood Ranch.

HERITAGE HARBOUR

Kelly Lynn Hamm, of Glastonbury, Connecticut, sold the home at 313 Heritage Preserve Run to Geraldine Naeyaert, of Sarasota, for $652,000.

Built in 2014, it has three bedrooms, two baths, a pool and 1,812 square feet of living area. It sold for $360,700 in 2014.

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Stuart and Beth Katz sold their Unit 1-305 condominium at 10530 Boardwalk Loop to Hongmo and Jaeeun Moon, of Bradenton, for $600,000. Built in 2017, it has three bedrooms, two baths and 1,467 square feet of living area. It sold for $453,900 in 2018.

LASIK Surgery

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Pediatric Eye Care

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Neuro-Ophthalmology

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Garry Condon, M.D.

Oculoplastic Surgery

Philip Ames, M.D.

WATERFRONT AT MAIN STREET

Macular Degeneration

Pooja Khator, M.D.

Selina Lin, M.D.

Lido Key Management Consultants LLC sold the home at 9004 Hammock Edge Place to Kevin Roberts and Amanda Matsumoto-Roberts, of Bradenton, for $425,000. Built in 2010, it has three bedrooms, two baths and 1,834 square feet of living area. It sold for $210,000 in 2012.

COUNTRY CLUB

6310 Health Pkwy., Ste. 340 • Lakewood Ranch 217 Manatee Ave. E. • Bradenton 1427 S. Tamiami Trail • Sarasota

Christopher David Darling and Rachel Rhoads Darling, of Bradenton, sold their home at 7319 Wexford Court to Michelle and Howard Cohen, of Lakewood Ranch, for $585,000. Built in 2006, it has two bedrooms, two baths, a pool and 1,748 square feet of living area. It sold for $369,000 in 2020.

370703-1

Murray Friedberg, M.D.

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two bedrooms, two baths, a pool and 1,557 square feet of living area.

It sold for $300,000 in 2005.

Ann Tu Hoa Bui, of Lakewood Ranch, sold her home at 7052 Woodmore Terrace to Richard and Linda Pinter, of Lakewood Ranch, for $460,000. Built in 2001, it has

Amit and Aditi Goswami sold their home at 4804 Claremont Park Drive to Allisson Kira Torres, of Corona, California, for $540,000.

Built in 2011, it has three bedrooms, two baths and 2,148 square feet of living area. It sold for $239,000 in 2011.

Joseph and Michelle Worden, of Venice, sold their home at 11766 Forest Park Circle to Todd and Pamela Nass, of Bradenton, for $520,000. Built in 2010, it has three bedrooms, two baths, a pool and 1,744 square feet of living area. It sold for $335,000 in 2019.

HAMPTON GREEN

David and Joyce Johnson sold their home at 6426 Addington Place to Richard and Nancy Allen, of Mifflinburg, Pennsylvania, for $525,000. Built in 1993, it has three bedrooms, two baths, a pool and 1,929 square feet of living area.

RIVER CLUB SOUTH

John Patton, of Davidson, North Carolina, sold the home at 10283 Silverado Circle to GKRE LLC for $525,000. Built in 1996, it has three bedrooms, three baths, a pool and 2,493 square feet of living area. It sold for $313,000 in 2015.

DEL TIERRA

Jeffrey and Ann Wall, of Bradenton, sold their home at 15622 Rose Grove Drive to Robert Anthony Farias and Johana Farias, of Bradenton, for $518,900. Built in 2016, it has five bedrooms, two-and-a-half baths and 2,910 square feet of living area.

It sold for $268,500 in 2016.

ONLINE See more transactions at YourObserver.com

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376910-1

OUTDOOR KITCHENS 4 Great Services for all your Outdoor Needs CHECK OUT OUR WEBSITE

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EAST COUNTY OBSERVER

BEST BET

SATURDAY, FEB. 26

THURSDAY, FEB. 24, TO SUNDAY, MARCH 6

YOUTH FISHING TOURNAMENT Runs from 9 a.m. to noon at Lake Uihlein (meet in the parking lot next to Town Hall), Lakewood Ranch.

Lakewood Ranch Community Activities hosts the annual Youth Fishing Tournament for ages 5-12. The event is limited to the first 100 anglers to sign up. Equipment is provided by Premier Tackle. Live bait is provided

by DMF Bait Co. Must register at MyLWR.com.

CIRCUS SARASOTA Runs 7 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday; 2 p.m. matinee Wednesdays and Saturdays; 1 p.m. and 5 p.m. Sundays and Feb. 21 (Presidents Day) at Nathan Benderson Park, 5851 Nathan Benderson Circle, Sarasota. Circus Sarasota features international circus artists.

Admission prices run from $20 to $60, with children under 2 years old free. For more information, visit CircusArts.org or call 355-9805.

SUNDAY, FEB 27

FARMERS MARKET Runs from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Lakefront Drive in Waterside Place at Lakewood Ranch. The Farmers Market at Lakewood Ranch will run year-round every Sunday. Vendors will offer 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, go to MyLWR.com.

POLO Begins at 1 p.m. at the Sarasota Polo Club, 8201 Polo Club Lane, Lakewood Ranch. The 2021-22 Sarasota Polo Club season runs every Sunday through April 24. Gates open at 10 a.m. Enjoy polo, the opening parade, halftime entertainment, divot stomping, food, drinks and more. For more information and tickets (which begin at $15), go to SarasotaPolo. com.

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 2

RANCH NIGHT WEDNESDAYS Runs from 6-9 p.m. at 1561 Lakefront Drive, Waterside Place in Lakewood Ranch. Ranch Night Wednesdays is a free event that includes food trucks, live music, a market, an outdoor bar and a cornhole league.

It runs every week through May. For more information, go to MyLWR. com.

SATURDAY, MARCH 5

BENEFIT WALKATHON Begins at 9 a.m. at Nathan Benderson Park, 5851 Nathan Benderson Circle, Sarasota. The Suncoast 3K Walkathon to benefit Southeastern Guide Dogs is a dog-friendly walk (non-retractable leashes) with tasty

YOUR CALENDAR

COMMUNITY

|

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2022

THE FUTURE, STARRING

You

File photo

food options, live music, vendors and fun activities. Admission is free, but fundraising is encouraged. A $5 parking donation is requested. Go to GuideDogsWalkathon.org for more information.

SATURDAY, MARCH 5, TO SUNDAY, MARCH 6 ART IN THE PARK Runs from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at University Park Country Club, 7671 The Park Boulevard, University Park.

The 22nd annual Art in the Park, a fine arts exhibit and sale, is open to the public and features work from 57 artists, both professional and nonprofessional. Works include paintings, mixed media, photography, sculpture and more. Admission is free, and food and drink will be available. For more information, go to ArtintheParkUPCC.com.

For 92 years, The Players Centre for Performing Arts has served as the region’s creative anchor and community theatre. Each stakeholder who believes in our mission has played a vital role in our theatre’s history, from children to college students, professional performers to patrons and countless volunteers who live across Florida’s “Cultural Coast.”

Now, we invite you to play a lead role in continuing our legacy. As we work to break ground on our new theatre facility in Waterside Place at Lakewood Ranch, your donation will help us continue to entertain, educate and engage more than 60,000 local and regional visitors annually. Your support and participation will help us enhance classes for students of all ages, hold workshops, present shows and expand the impact of the arts on the Suncoast.

Help The Players Centre set the stage in Lakewood Ranch. Visit theplayers.org to learn more.

JOIN THE CENTER STAGE CAPITAL CAMPAIGN

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373454-1

theplayers.org 375578-1

FloridaPublicNotices.com To learn more, visit floridapublicnotices.com

27

28

WEATHER

EAST COUNTY OBSERVER

|

YourObserver.com

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2022

NATURE’S BEAUTY WITH

FORECAST THURSDAY, FEB. 24 High: 85 Low: 62 Chance of rain: 11%

FRIDAY, FEB. 25 High: 81 Low: 62 Chance of rain: 9%

SUNRISE / SUNSET Sunrise

Sunset

Thursday, Feb. 24

6:59a

6:28p

Friday, Feb. 25

6:58a

6:28p

Saturday, Feb. 26

6:57a

6:29p

Sunday, Feb. 27

6:56a

6:29p

Monday, Feb. 28

6:55a

6:30p

Tuesday, March 1

6:54a

6:31p

Wednesday, March 2 6:53a

6:31p

MOON PHASES

SATURDAY, FEB. 26 High: 82 Low: 61 Chance of rain: 8%

SUNDAY, FEB. 27

Gordon Silver captured this bald eagle protecting territory near its nest from an osprey on White Eagle Boulevard in Lakewood Ranch.

High: 82 Low: 60 Chance of rain: 8%

March 24 Last

March 31 New

April 8 First

April 16 Full

RAINFALL Monday, Feb. 14

0.03

Tuesday, Feb. 15

0

Wednesday, Feb. 16

0

Thursday, Feb. 17

0

Friday, Feb. 18

0

Saturday, Feb. 19

0

Sunday, Feb. 20

0

*Rainfall totals from Sarasota-Bradenton International Airport

YEAR TO DATE: 2022 1.15 in.

2021 2.89 in.

The Observer’s

IT’S TIME TO VOTE IN Weather

&Nature

NOW THROUGH FEBRUARY 28

2021-22 PHOTO CONTEST

Vote once per hour until 2/28/22 11:59pm. | YourObserver.com/contests

67 Pat with four Grammys 68 Protest singer Seeger 69 Unclothed 70 Harshly criticize 71 Inflate, as a resume 72 Elizabethan collar’s shape 73 “House” actor Omar 77 How some NBA games end 78 Honda SUV used in a commercial?

82 Web portal since 1995 83 Creamy breakfast dish 85 “Include me!”

86 Spanish for “madame” 87 Noble below a viscount 89 ___-garde 90 Last word of many fairy tales 91 Exits a Subaru sedan?

95 Joyce ___ Oates 97 Bring into a conversation 98 End of Reed College’s address 99 Chunk of cash 100 “___ been thinking ...”

103 Mid-March date 104 Own a Dodge SUV that excels in crash tests?

111 Boston NBA player, briefly 112 Shiraz’s country 113 Candy heart sentiment 114 “Silly” birds 115 Free app annoyances 116 According to 117 Enchanting singer of myth 118 Party throwers

“J’ND KDNDB GDDK OGXD PR WXOK VA XJED. J CTUP XTBYZ EBRV JKLDYJUJRK PR JKLDYJUJRK.”

– OXOK BJYFVOK

“N VLJFLUC GUJFRNRO GUVVTRV JATDL AUNRO J OTTC HUFVTR GTRO AUPTFU N UEUF IRUM MBJL AJVIULAJGG MJV.” – KDGNDV UFENRO

“BPBAXTWB VW WBG XTAI VN PBAX NBSZ-VWPTSPBL. ... SVIB GOSIVWD LTGW JMB NJABBJ, YBTYSB OAB VW JMBVA TGW UTWB.” – LOITJO ZOWWVWD Puzzle Three Clue: C equals J

©2022 Universal Uclick

1 Insects in underpants, in a phonics book 2 When doubled, a Hawaiian fish 3 Miss the alarm, maybe 4 Soccer official 5 Director Roth 6 Reproduce like salmon 7 Nat King ___ 8 Alien of ‘80s TV 9 Setting for many jokes 10 Full show letters 11 Longest river in France 12 “Kind of an ___ to Duty” (Nash poem) 13 “Oh, fun” in response to a chore, e.g.

14 Inspiration for a spotted print 15 Red emotion in “Inside Out” 16 Birth bird 19 “On the double!”

20 Incline 22 Lead-in to “classical” 23 Orderly 29 Workers’ protection org.

31 Seasoning in a grinder 32 Regarding 33 Singer Oberst 34 Communion, e.g.

35 Name within “on the nose” 36 “Why not?!”

37 Shanghai or Bangkok 38 Surprised greeting 39 Animals many children want 42 Sony’s portable CD player 44 2021 Bachelorette Thurston 45 “Great” animal 47 Employing 48 “Fudge!”

50 Turn the wheel 51 Blessing’s opposite 52 Hot tips and such 56 Nauseates 57 Tennis great Arthur

59 “Hello ___” (classic cellphone tagline) 60 “Blue ___ Shoes” 61 Modifier key on a PC 62 Clog-clearing product 63 ___ list (scholarly award) 64 Pungent rolls with holes 65 Australian gems 66 Rub with oil 67 Fedora feature 71 Sweetie, in the U.K. 72 2004-13 forensic spinoff 74 People follow them in movies 75 Study, with “over” 76 Twinkling thing 78 “Bossypants” author Fey 79 Paper towel brand 80 Green Apple product, perhaps 81 Fruit that may grow inside a brandy bottle 83 “Cousin” on “Succession” 84 Fruit on a thorny bush 88 “Stop!” on a ship 89 ___ de Jamaica (hibiscus iced tea) 91 German camera company 92 Concluded 93 Burton who will host “Trivial Pursuit” 94 Where Eve lived 95 Jambalaya cuisine 96 Hurly-burly 99 Contraction that sounds like a hair extension 101 Sleeveless garment 102 <O> <O> 105 “___ you free?”

106 Bro’s sib, maybe 107 Comedian Wong 108 Fox’s coat 109 Disgusted exclamation 110 ___ Speedwagon

By Luis Campos Celebrity Cipher cryptograms are created from quotations by famous people, past and present.

Each letter in the cipher stands for another.

Puzzle Two Clue: A equals B

DOWN

37 Mark with two dots 39 Purpose 1 Love, in Lombardy 40 Wedding seater 6 Line crossers?

41 “Someone told me ...”

11 Part of UCLA 43 Not taken in by 14 Part of UNLV 17 Button inside a blouse? 44 Cosmic fate 46 Faulty firework 18 ___ opposites 49 “We’re all out of that 19 Fizzy drink Ford SUV”?

20 Shipped 52 Rae of “The Lovebirds” 21 Last Nissan pickup at 53 Jitters while putting the dealership?

24 82-Across’s features a 54 Recipe verb after “combine” butterfly 55 Western native 25 Peppermint Patty, to 56 Finally registered Marcie 58 Wedding runner 26 She has a wool coat 60 “Strip of cloth” in 27 Place for a piercing Sanskrit 28 Anderson on CNN 62 Criticizing 30 Descendant 63 Look for your Kia hatch33 Makes a compact back in a crowded lot?

Chevy?

KITCHEN | CABINETRY OUTDOOR PAVERS

celebrity cipher

A MODEL THEME by Christina Iverson. Edited by David Steinberg

ACROSS

Sponsored by

Puzzle One Clue: L equals D

crossword

MONTH TO DATE: 2022 0.71 in.

2021 2.19 in.

© 2022 NEA, Inc.

sudoku Complete the grid so that every row, column and 3x3 box contains every digit from 1 to 9 inclusively.

©2022 Andrews McMeel Syndicate

2-24-22

371162-1

Submit your photos at YourObserver.com/Weather. All submissions will be entered for the 2021-22 Weather and Nature photo contest. In February 2022, you will vote for your favorite photo, and the submission with the most votes will win a $500 gift card.

Made for where you live. Here!

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2022

DEADLINES: Classifieds - Monday at Noon

WE BUY cars. top $$ paid for your vehicles.

Call Hawley Motors: 941-923-3421.

Service Directory - Friday at 3PM • PAYMENT: Cash, Check or Credit Card The East County Observer reserves the right to classify and edit copy, or to reject or cancel an advertisement at any time. Corrections after first insertion only. *All ads are subject to the approval of the Publisher. *It is the responsibility of the party placing any ad for publication in the East County Observer to meet all applicable legal requirements in connection with the ad such as compliance with towncodes in first obtaining an occupational license for business, permitted home occupation, or residential rental property Notice: All real estate advertised herein is subject to the Federal Fair Housing Act, which makes it illegal to advertise any preference, limitation, or discrimination because of race, color, religion, sex, handicap, familial status, or national origin, or intention to make any such preference, limitation or discrimination. All persons are hereby informed that all dwellings advertised are available on an equal opportunity basis..

Appliances GE Washer/Dryer, electric, front loader, oversized, nearly new, dark grey. $1,100 pair (813)748-5515

21 CU.FT Freezer bought new Paper 2001- 32 degrees Key $200+ (941) 879-7884 ANTIQUE ARMOIRE Cherry wood, late 1800’s, very good condition. 9ft H x 53” W, 3 shelves and 1 drawer. $199 941-201-5001

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JAPANESE PAGODA CEMENT 2 foot tall $150, keurig coffee maker $25, plant stand metal 2 ft tall $25 941-359-8460

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Sporting Goods

Beach’ N Rides Electric Bike Shop eBike Sales and Rentals Ride easy on an eBike with as much exercise or assistance as you want. Leave traffic and parking problems behind!

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STORAGE FACILITY Boat/ RV/ Trailer. Secure facility, low monthly rentals, Clark Rd area.

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Auto Transport SHIP YOUR car, truck or SUV anywhere in the United States.

Great rates, fast quotes. Call Hawley Motors: 941-923-3421.

Longboat Key Beach House: on Canal, 2BED-2BATH, Dock.

Owner/agent $530,000.

Cleaning

Buy or Sell with Brooke O’Malley as your Realtor, and CLUB REALTY will Pay your title insurance.

Call 941-726-2677.

FAMILY SECURITY DRIVER 941-735-4732.

Ask for Eddie.

Many years experience with rock stars, wild teens, children, elderly, and foreign families.

Feel safe, Be safe 24/7 Licensed and Legal.

PERSONAL CARE GIVER- Private care: Meal preparation, errands, shopping, and more.

Affordable hourly rates, available weekdays, weekends, and holidays.

Minimal shift 5 hours can also provide overnight care.

Temporary or long term care.

Over 10+ years experience.

References available. No new faces, one consistent caregiver.

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Call Kati: 941-536-7706.

Stroll to Siesta Key Beach 4 Bed 2 Bath Heated Pool, 2 Car Garage $799,000

Call for coming soon listings.

Color background: $ 5 per week Ad border: as low as $3 per week

LOCK BOX, fire proof with key, 13X8X7. $15. Movie posters 1984-85 (44 total), $45 for all.

941-741-9727 SOFA BED – queen size, great condition, very comfortable mattress, light brown, only $149.

Call 516-528-5876

Sorrento Shores Waterfront 3 Bed 2 Bath Fantastic Views, New Dock $995,000

15% DISCOUNT FOR 4-WEEK RUN

COCKTAIL/OCCASIONAL TABLE 48” square X 17’ high.

Contemporary lines, brown inlays. $70. (941)355-9057

GRANDMOTHER CLOCK, $95, Antique globe, $50, Boat steering wheel, $50. 941-807-1884

Luxurious Lake Club 4 Bed 4 Bath Built in 2019 Lakefront Lakewood Ranch $2,500,000

First 15 words ................... $ 17.50 per week Each Add’l word .........50¢

CLUB CHAIR drexel heritage oversized, pale red color and matching ottoman $75 941-351-3166

GOLF CLUBS, Womens set by Ram, Driver, 3W 4I-SW, Putter and bag. Good condition. $50 phone 315-720-7966.

auto

SENIOR LOOKING to purchase precious metals, diamonds, time pieces, coins, jewelry, antique and estate jewelry, and collectors plates. Personal and confidential. Please call Marc: 941-321-0707.

Homes for Sale

Adult Care Services

SELL YOUR STUFF

GARAGE

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Real Estate Wanted Single Male wants to rent small office with efficency. In Port Charlotte, Punta Gorda, Bradenton, North Port, or around Sarasota.

Contact Tom 678-755-3804 tomlarsen559@gmail.com

BRAZILIAN CLEANING Service

by Maria. Residential. Meticulous Cleaning. Excellent References.

Free Estimates. Reliable. Lic./Ins. 941-400-3342. www.braziliancleaningbymk.com

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Painting CARLO DATTILO Painting Licensed & insured. Interior/ Exterior painting including drywall repair and retexturing.

Wallpaper installation & removal, pressure washing. Residential & commercial, condos. Honest & reliable.

Free estimates. 941-744-1020.

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This week’s Crossword answers

Advertise your business or service in the Observer

RED PAGES CALL TODAY 941-955-4888

SELL IT FAST HERE! POST YOUR AD WITH EASE YourObserver.com/RedPages

This week’s Celebrity Cipher answers Puzzle One Solution: “I’ve never been able to plan my life. I just lurch from indecision to indecision.”

Alan Rickman Puzzle Two Solution: “I started learning lessons about being a good person long before I ever knew what basketball was.”

Julius Erving Puzzle Three Solution: “Everyone in New York is very self-involved. ...

Like walking down the street, people are in their own zone.”

Dakota Fanning

This week’s Sudoku answers

©2022 NEA, Inc.

ADVERTISE YOUR MERCHANDISE with the total value of all items $200 or less in this section for FREE! Limit 1 ad per month,15 words or less. Price must be included next to each item. No commercial advertising.

Ad runs 2 consecutive weeks in 1 Observer.

Call 941-955-4888 Or Email ad to: classified@yourobserver.com (Please provide your name and address) Or Online at: www.yourobserver.com Or mail to: The Observer Group 1970 Main St. - 3rd Floor Sarasota, Fl 34236

Merchandise Wanted

You’re only cheating yourself.

Items Under $200

CRAFT & RUMMAGE SALE Saturday March 05, 8:00 AM-12:00 PM - 6633 53rd Ave. E, Bradenton, Fl.,34203 AT PLEASANT LAKE R.V. RESORT

peekers’ place

stuff

Garage/ Moving/ Estate Sales

The CRYSTAL CLEAR choice!

Autos Wanted

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INFORMATION & RATES: 941-955-4888

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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2022

Aluminum

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Home Services

Call Bobby • FREE Estimates 319-693-8800 or 941-374-7670

374672

374135

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Pegatronics.com

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Owner /Insured Operator Insured

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Do You Want To Avoid Surgery?

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Doors

Beauty

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• Dryer hot but clothes still wet after (1) drying cycle?

• Dryer gets hot to the touch or doesn’t heat up at all?

Sliding Glass Door Repair

Take a simple test to see if your vent is clogged. Unhook your dryer vent & compare drying time.

Residential

941-705-5468

Commercial

374689

Irrigation

375170

SERVING YOU IN THE COMFORT OF YOUR HOME

376688

EAST COUNTY OBSERVER

“FIX IT - DON’T REPLACE” AMANDA 424-333-0713 | rockstarmobilehair@gmail.com www.rockstarmobilehairsalon.com

ED’S RAIN MAKER IRRIGATION

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New Deluxe Rollers Will Make Your Doors Roll Better Than Ever Call Mark 928-2263 proslidingglassdoorrepair.com

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Furniture Repair

Cleaning

Patio Furniture Repairs.com

Servicing LWR, Parrish and NE Bradenton

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Kitchen/Bath Remodeling

375171

941-504-0903

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374692

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Clock Repair

375186

30

CJ COOLEY OWNER/OPERATOR

Christo’s Clock Repair CALL BEFOREYOU YOU FALL CALL BEFORE FALL

4630 5TH ST W BRADENTON

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941.966.0333

Doors

LIFETIME GUARANTEE • LICENSED • BONDED • INSURED COVERAGE AREA: LAKEWOOD RANCH TO S. VENICE

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954-1878 (cell) 780-3346 374690

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374146

FREE IN-HOM ESTIMATEE S

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235

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374691 364556

375178

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$ 235

Call John 941.377.2940

Free Estimates • Sarasota Resident Since 1974

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YourObserver.com

EAST COUNTY OBSERVER

Landscaping & Lawn

Rescreening & Repairs

Building & Roofing Contractor

Design • Garden Beds Landscape • Courtyards Clean-Up • Makeovers Weeds • Trimming

• Aluminum, Vinyl, & Wood Soffit & Fascia Repair & Installation • Roofing Repair & Installation • Metal Roofing & Tile Roof Repair Specialists

Allison J. Abizaid, M.A.

375206

Personal Gardening Services | Designer

Eldridge Re-Screen

374148

FREE ESTIMATES - Call Joel, Owner 30 Years Exp. Cell 619-405-7650 Home/Office 941-758-4840

Licensed

Personal Services

“No Job Too Small”

Insured

374733

376704

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941-345-5264

specialty screens / screw replacement / paint

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Bisson Roofing Inc. (941) 345-5264

941-CLEAN IT 2 5 3 - 2 6 4 8 FREE INSTANT ESTIMATES when you Call RICK for SCHEDULING

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25

ows

140

$

INCLUDING SCREENS, TRACKS, MIRRORS & FANS

941 - 748 - 7400 RC0067420 • Lic. & Ins.

Lic./Ins.

& Pressure C Window lean t e s ing n s a S u n u n w r o i s n e Wind S erly k

STANDARD WINDOWS

374696

House Washing, Roofs, Screen Cages, Pavers, Driveways and Walkways.

Res./Com.

UP TO

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373769

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Windows

Form Serving Longboat Key Since 2005

Doors and more!

Roofing

Power Washing

376705

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SPECIAL 00 5

$

senior citizen discount. www.sunsetwindowcleaningsrq.com

Purified water window cleaning available!!

Call Tibor for FREE ESTIMATES | 941- 284 - 5880

374675

UNIQUE PAINTING & PRESSURE WASHING SERVICES

Screening

374674

374694

Painting

941-626-3194

Licensed & Insured CCC - 058059 CBC - 1253936

376690

941.400.0431

gbyallison@yahoo.com gardensbyallison.com

SOFT WASH

31

Kenneth Fuhlman Inc.

No Job is too Small!

$100 COUPON

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2022

Roofing

GARDENS BY ALLISON

$100 COUPON

|

32

EAST COUNTY OBSERVER

|

YourObserver.com

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2022

AUCTION HOUSE

C A R S A R T

Established in 1744, Sotheby’s is the world’s largest, most trusted and dynamic marketplace for art and luxury.

D I A M O N D S

Exceptional Diamonds. Curated by Sotheby’s.

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W I N E

THE CHOICE WHEN SELLING PRECIOUS ASSETS—INCLUDING YOUR HOME

SARASOTA 3736 Meridale Road Joel Schemmel

SARASOTA 4998 Antiquity Way Lori Carey

6963 Westchester Circle Laura Stavola

$2,575,000 941.447.4875

5308 Hunt Club Way Vittoria Rutigliano

$1,667,000 941.447.4875

40 Grande Fairway Bob Linthicum

PRESTANCIA

$3,850,000 941.757.7550

3944 Losillias Drive Joel Schemmel & Sharon Chiodi

$2,995,000 941.587.4894

$2,375,000 941.962.5867

BOCA ROYALE

SANDHILL PRESERVE 11234 Sandhill Preserve Drive Robyn Sadlo

6370 Manasota Key Road J. Walter Almeida

$5,999,999 941.447.1466

SILVER OAK

LAKEWOOD RANCH 12547 Highfield Circle Laura Stavola

7108 Trout Lane Amee Sams & Beth Sargent

MANASOTA KEY BEACHES $1,450,000 941.780.3427

LAKEWOOD RANCH

ENGLEWOOD $12,000,000 941.587.4894

$949,000 941.812.4219

SARASOTA $1,550,900 941.228.9206

LAKEWOOD RANCH 7241 Lake Forest Glen Laura Stavola

4976 Hubner Circle Tamara & Todd Currey

$1,350,000 941.587.1776

LONGWOOD VILLAS $875,000 941.447.4875

4732 Tivoli Avenue Jo Rutstein

$525,000 941.587.9156

View a rea list ings

23 CONTEMPORARY TOWNHOMES

It’s Better

uptown

Situated in Sarasota’s uptown, Premier on Main boasts 23 contemporary townhomes.

Priced from $1,195,000, these four-level residences offer a sophisticated, modern sanctuary near the city’s captivating arts and cultural district.

2191 Main Street, Sarasota, FL 34237 | 941.920.1500 | TheFrankLambertTeam.com Sotheby’s International Realty® and the Sotheby’s International Realty logo are registered service marks used with permission. Each office is independently owned and operated. Equal Housing Opportunity. Property information herein is derived from various sources including, but not limited to, county records and multiple listing services, and may include approximations. All information is deemed accurate.Source:MLS.

WORTH MORE

SARASOTA - DOWNTOWN | 941.364.4000

VENICE | 941.412.3323

LAKEWOOD RANCH | 941.907.9541

Contact us for a confidential consultation PremierSothebysRealty.com LONGBOAT KEY | 941.383.2500

RENTALS | 941.203.3433

370657-1

your home has never been