East County Observer 12.01.22

EAST COUNTY

Fast times at Turkey Trot

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Lakewood Ranch’s weekly newspaper since 1998

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FREE • THURSDAY, DECEMBER 1, 2022

VOLUME 25, NO. 2

YOUR TOWN

East Manatee Fire plans to expand

Addition of 27 firefighters over five years highlights East Manatee Fire Rescue’s five-year plan.

SEE PAGE 3A

TEE OFF TIME

Liz Ramos

Nothing can beat a super gyro Tara’s Judy Strobhar usually orders the Greek gyro when she attends St. Barbara Greek Orthodox Church’s Greek Glendi.

But for her first time visiting the church’s Autumn Fest Nov. 19, Strobhar decided to try something different.

She ordered the sampler platter, which included stuffed grape leaves, meatballs, spanakopita, tyropita, olives, feta cheese, hummus spread and pita bread.

“I’m looking forward to trying all of it,” Strobhar said.

Tara’s Marge Palacio (above with Strobhar) decided to stick with her favorite Greek food, the gyro.

“I don’t understand a lot of the other food and this is my favorite,” Palacio said.

She couldn’t wait to have dessert. She was eager to have baklava and kourambiethes.

After a $2 million renovation, Heritage Harbour reopens with the hope of providing as much fun as possible. SEE PAGE 8A

Ian Swaby

A musical show for the ages The band Jack’D Up, which was performing Nov. 23 at Ranch Nite Wednesdays at Waterside Place, allowed some younger members of the audience to come on stage.

Among the children to join the band was Greenbrook’s 6-year-old Brielle Smith, who stood alongside Sarasota’s Julia Brown (above with Smith), one of the group’s two lead vocalists. Smith was on stage for much of the show and even was able to play the tambourine.

Smith said her favorite part of the experience was dancing.

Smith’s father, Brad Smith, said Brown’s performances provide a welcome family alternative to many of the tavern and bar acts.

“One of the coolest things about her shows, and why we love coming to them, is that she’s so interactive, and she gets the kids involved,” Brad Smith said. “It’s amazing that my daughter can feel so comfortable going up on stage.”

Jay Heater

Joe Poshepny of Wisconsin hits his drive off No. 1 at Heritage Harbour Golf Course, which is now open again after a $2 million renovation.

Commissioner seeks closure over pop-up clinic

A+E Circus career not a stretch.

INSIDE

Vanessa Baugh learns tough lessons after setting up a vaccination clinic during the pandemic. SEE PAGE 6A File photo

Manatee County Commissioner Vanessa Baugh was fined $8,000 in her settlement with the Florida Commission on Ethics.

2A

EAST COUNTY OBSERVER

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YourObserver.com

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 1, 2022

Volunteers needed for holiday season So much food has come into the nonprofit that more volunteers are needed to sort and deliver it.

IAN SWABY STAFF WRITER

T

he generosity of the community during the holiday season has created a slight problem for Meals on Wheels Plus Manatee.

President and Chief Executive Officer Maribeth Phillips said more volunteers are needed to help sort through all of the food donations, and to place them on shelves, ready for use by food pantries.

Phillips said that need is despite the fact with season comes many more volunteers to the nonprofit.

Even so, Meals on Wheels Plus could use even more.

Phillips said one important purpose volunteers serve is providing interaction when they drop off food for homebound seniors.

“It’s a friendly face, and some of our clients might not even see anybody else,” she said.

It’s a busy season for all the volunteers at Meals on Wheels Plus, both new and old.

The first big event of December is the 17th annual Holiday Shoebox Drive and Reception, which will be hosted Dec. 3 at the Lakewood Ranch Elk’s Club. The event is designed to provide homebound seniors with a boost during the holiday season.

Those who attend the event, which runs from 4-6 p.m., will either donate a shoebox with about 10 items inside or they will give a $20 donation. Each box is closed and secured with a rubber band and is identified as male, female or nongender specific. For more information, go to MealsonWheelsPlus.org.

For each box a guest brings, they

Courtesy photo

A Food Bank of Manatee volunteer helps provide Thanksgiving items from Meals on Wheels on Nov. 23.

Ian Swaby

Maribeth Phillips is president and CEO of Meals on Wheels Plus of Manatee.

will receive a raffle ticket or a free drink. “(The guests) enjoy a nice little reception, but they’re doing something good for people who are in need,” Phillips said. “A good majority of our clients live by themselves, so they don’t have family around, or they don’t have a spouse, and so this is just a little touch of joy during the holiday for them.”

Meals on Wheels has been planning Christmas dinners to be provided toi its clients along with its food distribution on Dec. 4 and Dec.

19, for the first 500 families in need.

“Hunger is 24-7 for some people, and so the needs are great, whether it’s Christmas, or it’s July Fourth,” she said. “Hunger doesn’t discriminate.”

Overall in the county, Phillips said the price of food and gas, along with the impact of Hurricane Ian, have left many more families in need of food.

She said her organization currently is serving 900 clients, while before the start of COVID-19, it served 550.

She said on Nov. 21, Meals on Wheels

Plus gave out 500 turkey dinners, and the nonprofit is on track to give out 3 million pounds of food this year.

She said the greater demand is evident through interactions with the 85 food pantries and other agencies serviced by Meals on Wheels Plus.

One major way the organization receives food donations in December is the delivery of barrels to businesses that fill up the barrels with food donations and then return them when full. Volunteers then check the dates on the donated food and sort out the donations.

Food and monetary donations always are welcome.

Another need in terms of volunteers include help to run arts, music, crafts, and other activities at the Daybreak Adult Day Care Center in Lakewood Ranch.

A list of critical food items is available on the organization’s website,

MealsOnWheelsPlus.org. These, she said, includes canned vegetables and canned fruit, cereal, and staples such as peanut butter and meat and proteins.

She said currently, the organization is on track with its holiday meal initiatives. although it has been a challenge to acquire turkeys for Christmas dinners, along with side dishes.

And while she continues to seek out donations, she said residents of the county are “very thoughtful and very generous,” especially with their time.

“We rely on volunteers to help us and they are an extension of our mission,” she said. “We are so grateful to the community and I always say Manatee County takes care of Manatee County.”

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EAST COUNTY OBSERVER

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THURSDAY, DECEMBER 1, 2022

Future set for East Manatee Fire Rescue More firefighters, expanded facilities highlight the fiveyear plan.

IAN SWABY STAFF WRITER

E

ast Manatee Fire Rescue commissioners passed a five-year plan Nov. 22 that focuses on the infrastructure needed to accommodate additional firefighters.

The department is planning for expansion of its personnel to deal with the area’s rapid growth.

The five-year plan also recommends adding an Advanced Life Support program.

“Chief (Lee Whitehurst) and staff did a heck of a job,” Fire Commissioner Derek Foss said of putting together the plan. “We’ve got a plan to expand, and hire more people, and (Advanced Life Support) is in there as well.”

Advanced Life Support refers to adding equipment and paramediccertified firefighters, who can offer care beyond what regular firefighters can provide.

Whitehurst was pleased that commissioners showed unanimous support of the plan. He noted the plan is not a fixed path for the department, but a guide which the board has the ability to revise moving forward, if needed.

After the Fire Commission unanimously approved the plan, some commissioners said they would like to see the plan to add a training officer position, which isn’t accommodated until the fifth year, accelerated.

INCREASED STAFFING

The five-year plan was designed to meet growth demands, with an additional $4,104,125 being spent per year by the final year of the plan after the addition of 27 firefighters and various non-firefighter personnel.

The plan calls for the addition of nine firefighters, who will act as floats (firefighters not attached to a specific East Manatee station). They will be hired three per year for the first three years of the plan. They can fill in at any site, at a total of $948,125 per year for salaries and benefits.

One fire inspector will be hired at a cost of $100,000 per year, and one emergency vehicle technician will be hired at a cost of $125,000 per year.

Staffing initiatives further ramp up during the fourth year with nine firefighters being hired to staff the upcoming Station 9 at $1,398,000 per year.

The final year includes nine firefighters for a heavy rescue team at Station 6, located along State Road 70 east of its intersection with I-75, for $1,112,000 per year.

Whitehurst said the fifth year of the plan included the hiring of a fire and EMS training officer, which was added after discussions with East Manatee Firefighters Local 4074.

Deputy Chief Paul Wren said this position would help facilitate the Advanced Life Support. As a certified paramedic, the training officer would be able to provide quality control for the Advanced Life Support program.

Fire Commissioner Bob Conley liked the idea and suggested this position be added sooner. He also said more than one such training officer might be needed.

“This should be aggressively looked at much earlier than in the plan,” Conley said. “I don’t know too many fire departments that have close to 120 firefighters and are adding (personnel) as aggressively as we are.”

File photos

The five-year plan includes a replacement of the current Station 11 along Wauchula Road.

BY THE NIMBERS FIVE-YEAR PLAN FOR FISCAL YEAR 2022-2023 TO FISCAL YEAR 2026-2027 Additional staffing costs: $4,104,125 (per year after staffing additions hired) Additional facilities costs: $30,400,000 Additional vehicle costs: $7,624,000 BUDGET FOR FISCAL YEAR 2023-2024 Total estimated revenues: $23,787,826 Total carryover: $14,431,234 Total reserve funds: $11,011,861 Total expenditures: $27,207,199 Ian Swaby

Fire Commissioner Derek Foss agreed the position should be prioritized. Foss said with a Heavy Rescue team planned for Station 6, more training would be needed in order to keep those firefighters up to date with their skills and equipment.

According to Wren, the Heavy Rescue team would aid in situations including rope rescues, structural collapse, and incidents involving trenches and confined spaces.

Whitehurst said the hiring of a training officer had been postponed to the fifth year due to a lack of space to house new personnel and programs until facility expansions were made.

Whitehurst also said two of three captains now in place are able to serve in the capacity of a shift training officer. However, he said responsibilities were growing cumbersome for those staff members.

Both Foss and Conley said the department must put a priority on training personnel who can serve as safety and medical officers.

“The growth is happening faster than we can develop people into those positions, and we’re doing the best we can to do that,” Whitehurst said.

Whitehurst said he has worked with the union to help him determine the ratios of staff to administrators.

“That added perspective,” he said.

IMPROVED FACILITIES

Whitehurst said due to East Manatee Fire Rescue’s planned increase in staffing, a corresponding increase in facilities and equipment also is needed. Renovation and new construction is a priority in the five-year plan.

Vehicles will be added in the five-year plan of the East Manatee Fire Rescue.

Fire Commissioners Derek Foss, Garry Lawson, and Bob Conley discuss the plan at the Nov. 21 commission meeting.

A financial outlay of $30.4 million is targeted toward facilities.

The 2022-2023 East Manatee Fire Rescue budget, approved Sept. 17, is $27,207,199 but doesn’t include the funding to replace Station 11 on Wauchula Road in Myakka City.

Funding for the project is included in the five-year plan with the thought that fire commissioners will reassess the project in mid-Fiscal Year in 2023.

Whitehurst said this project would provide a hurricane-rated facility that could more reliably serve the Myakka City area, the need of which Hurricane Ian had demonstrated even more thoroughly as the firefighters had to evacuate the current station.

Another planned facility expansion in the plan is Station 1, the fire department’s headquarters, which is located along Lakewood Ranch Boulevard.

Whitehurst said the master plan for the facility, created in 2007, allowed for the addition of further features. Past additions have included a training tower.

Included in the plan is a new building described as an administrative and logistics facility, which will receive and store materials related to new trucks and staff, with half of the facility devoted to office space.

When the building was built in 2008, Whitehurst said, it housed eight people including himself, the department’s former chief Byron Teates, a bookkeeper, a training officer, a fire marshal, two fire inspectors, and a receptionist. However, he said the space has since expanded to

“This should be aggressively looked at much earlier than in the plan. I don’t know too many fire departments that have close to 120 firefighters and are adding (personnel) as aggressively as we are.”

— Fire Commissioner Bob Conley

include twice that number.

Another major initiative is the construction of Station 9 on State Road 64 east of Lorraine Road to serve the area between that road and Bourneside Boulevard.

Work on the station begins in the third year of the plan, Fiscal Year 2024-2025, and finishes in the final year of Fiscal Year 2026-2027, totaling $3.6 million.

“That is the next corridor that is going to see an explosion of residential homes,” Wren said. He said the fire station would reduce the insurance premiums residents in the area must pay.

DRIVE FOR VEHICLES

The speed at which vehicles are added has slowed from previous years, Whitehurst said.

He said this was the result of supply chain issues changing the construction timeline of a fire truck from one to two years.

Nonetheless, he said at the same time, the flooding around the Myakka River caused by Hurricane Ian resulted in the fire department looking more proactively into vehicles.

The vehicle costs, which totals $7,624,000, include additional and replacement engines and other vehicles.

One vehicle currently included in the plan is a water rescue vehicle of approximately $250,000. The type will be decided by staff familiar with the area, he said.

The plan also includes a highwater vehicle. This replaces a truck that was ruined Oct. 1 in which a Levee broke in the Hidden River community.

3A

EAST COUNTY OBSERVER

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YourObserver.com

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 1, 2022

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One executive is stepping up his game plan to continue a brewery he said is important to the Southwest Florida region.

Leo “L.J.” Govoni, CEO and cofounder of Seaboard Craft Beer Holdings, has selected University Town Center for the next Fat Point Brewing location.

Although the brewery is named for its original location of Punta Gorda, which means “Fat Point” in Spanish, Govoni said successful craft beer establishments in Florida require multiple locations.

“Fat Point needs outposts,” he said, calling the UTC area a “fantastically managed and well plannedout shopping and hospitality center.”

The new 2,500-square-foot venue, which will be located along Cattlemen Road between Rocco’s Tacos and Tequila Bar and Ford’s Garage, has targeted a first quarter of 2023 opening, although he said he would open sooner if construction is finished.

Govoni said the site, which will offer beers brewed on location, will shift the company’s focus to small batch beers in order to allow “experimentation” with the brand.

The new location is expected to give to as many of 60 new beers a year.

Some of those will join the brewery’s signature lineup of coastal Florida-inspired beers.

The site will feature either a threebarrel or one-barrel brewing system, with four fermenters, in contrast to the 15-barrel system at Fat Point’s original Punta Gorda location.

“If you miss, you miss small,” he said.

He said the small size would also increase the ease of experimenta-

Courtesy photo

tion, as adding a small amount of ingredients impacts the final product “dramatically.”

Another reason he said he is expanding to Sarasota is the brewery’s Punta Gorda branch is currently closed and in the process of being moved across the street.

He said it was important for the company to keep the Fat Point brand present in Florida.

Fat Point Brewing was founded in 2014 by Bill Frazer and his brotherin-law Duncan Scarry, but Seaboard Craft Beer Holdings took over the struggling brewery in 2017. Govoni said in purchasing the brand, he wanted to keep craft beer relevant in the area.

“Buying the brand was important to what we’re doing, because it was important to Southwest Florida,” he said.

The majority of current flagship beers, he said, was inherited from the original owners.

Govoni strives for cleanliness and complexity.

He also said customers can expect bold flavors.

“I think if we’re going to brew a tangerine wheat, that means that tangerine needs to kick you in the face,” he said. “You need to have the aromatics as soon as you put that glass to your nose and mouth, the flavor needs to be there, and the finish needs to be perfect.”

Fat Point Brewing is targeted for an early 2023 opening at UTC in Sarasota.

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EAST COUNTY OBSERVER

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THURSDAY, DECEMBER 1, 2022

5A

Ian debris cleanup almost complete A spokesperson for the county said the amount of debris has been more than expected.

IAN SWABY STAFF WRITER

Although it has been two months since the impact of Hurricane Ian in Manatee County, some residents have wondered when they will see the last of the storm debris on their curb.

“We don’t have top priority,” said District 5 Commissioner Vanessa Baugh, who noted the process has been slowed by the fact many cleanup resources have been working in harder-hit places like Lee County.

However, she also noted the storm was unlike any other that has hit Manatee County in the last 100 years and therefore left lots of debris in its wake.

Manatee County spokesman Bill Logan said the county’s cleanup efforts, especially in the Lakewood Ranch, University Park and Myakka City areas, should be complete in December.

Logan sent an email that estimated cleanup costs in the county have now risen past $10 million.

Original estimates of the county needing to pick up 250,000 to 350,000 cubic yards of debris have been low. So far, more than 600,000 cubic yards has been collected.

The scope of the project has extended the time needed to pick up all the debris.

Some residents piled up multiple piles of debris over time so contractors have had to make additional trips to neighborhoods where they already had collected.

Schools were the county’s top pri-

ABOUT THE DEBRIS COLLECTION Contractors: DRC Emergency Services, Ceres Environmental Services, and Phillips & Jordan Estimated cost: In excess of $10 million Estimated completion (Lakwood Ranch, University Park, and Myakka City): December

ority so they could resume normal operations.

Vegetative debris has comprised the largest portion of the material, according to Logan, with some construction and demolition material present as well. The two different types of debris have been collected as best as possible with separate trucks.

According to Logan, the three contractors dealing with the debris since the storm are DRC Emergency Services, Ceres Environmental Services, and Phillips & Jordan.

Due to the volume of debris, the county has consolidated materials at various collection sites that would provide shorter trips so the trucks could empty quickly and get back to curbside removal.

Logan would not say where the consolidation sites are due to the county hoping to avoid residents dumping debris at the sites.

Some of the vegetative material will be used for agricultural purposes, but most will be hauled to a disposal site.

Despite debris in some areas awaiting pickup, residents interviewed by the Observer offered largely positive comments about the county’s efforts to clean up after the hurricane.

Edgewater’s Larisa Barreto said everything within her area was

Jay Heater

Myakka City area residents can expect all the debris to be picked up by the end of December.

A tree branch dangles toward the ground near the intersection of State Road 70 and Greenbrook Boulevard on Nov. 17.

File photo

picked up “fairly quickly,” within about a week.

Braden Woods’ Zory Tolstov said debris in her area was picked up about a month after the storm, with completion by the beginning of November, and said she felt the county had made a “very impressive” effort.

She said the vegetation-heavy nature of Braden Woods, which includes many tall oak and pine

trees, led to substantial amounts of debris in the streets, and what she estimated was hundreds of large trees down.

As soon as the storm had passed, she said, trucks were present in the area picking up debris.

She said the county’s efforts have improved since Hurricane Irma in 2017.

“We didn’t have problems (with Hurricane Ian cleanup),” said Green-

brook’s Stacy Moore. “Probably a little delay, but that was expected.”

Arbor Grande’s James Mangianiello said his debris was picked up within two weeks of the storm.

He also said an experience with Hurricane Sandy in his former home in the Rockaway Peninsula in New York in 2012, gave him perspective on the devastation that was possible from a hurricane.

His car ended up underwater, while his apartment complex saw deterioration due to the damage from saltwater, he said.

He also said he felt that Arbor Grande’s drainage system, which provided numerous hills to direct the water, offered an advantage in the neighborhood’s recovery from the storm.

Baugh said despite any annoyances from debris that residents may still face, the impacts of the storm could have been far worse.

“I tell everyone, as long as we have a home and a bed, we are blessed,” Baugh said.

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EAST COUNTY OBSERVER

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THURSDAY, DECEMBER 1, 2022

NEXT DAY

Commissioner speaks out after settlement

OR

WE’LL PAY!

Vanessa Baugh says she never had the chance to present her side of the vaccination clinic to the public.

*

JAY HEATER MANAGING EDITOR

M

Next Day Installation

anatee County Commissioner Vanessa Baugh wanted closure.

However, even though a settlement had been signed Oct. 31 by both Baugh and Advocate Elizabeth Miller, an assistant attorney general who represented the complainants before a scheduled hearing by the Florida Commission on Ethics, it didn’t give her a chance to address the community.

The third-term commissioner was accused of misusing her position to allow Lakewood Ranch to host a COVID-19 vaccination clinic in February 2021. Eighteen ethics complaints were filed against Baugh, who bypassed her fellow commissioners to set up the clinic and to limit it to two Lakewood Ranch and vicinity ZIP codes.

An administrative hearing was ordered by the Florida Commission on Ethics in September 2021.

Baugh, who was the chair of the commission at the time of the clinic, also had made a list of five individuals (herself, Lakewood Ranch’s Robert Keehn and Marie Keehn, SchroederManatee Ranch CEO and President Rex Jensen and Jensen’s father, Lawrence Jensen) to receive vaccinations at the clinic. Baugh never actually received a vaccination at the clinic.

The settlement stipulates, “Respondent admits Allegation

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II Respondent violated Section 112.313(6), Florida Statutes, by using or attempting to use her public position and/or resources to deviate from Manatee County’s COVID-19 vaccine distribution policy to serve specific individuals and Zip Codes at a state-operated pop-up vaccination site.”

Baugh was fined $8,000.

With three new members joining the Manatee County Commission last week following the election and its first meeting Nov. 29, Baugh wanted to answer questions about the pop-up clinic in what she hoped would for the final time.

How did this all start?

What happened was that Rex (Jensen) called me (Friday, Feb. 12, 2021) and said he needed my help. The governor (Ron DeSantis) had called him and wanted to have a vaccination

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EAST COUNTY OBSERVER

“I didn’t become a commissioner to make money. I wanted to make things better in Manatee County. I just wished I had done things differently. But I did things that I thought would keep this on track.”

clinic in Lakewood Ranch. He said, ‘I can’t do it by myself.’ I said, ‘What do you need?’ I told him I would call Elliott Falcione (executive director of the Bradenton Area Convention and Visitors Bureau who oversees Premier Sports Campus at Lakewood Ranch). I asked Rex if he had dates yet and he said ‘no.’ Premier had ample land. When I called Elliott, he asked me to find out the dates. I kept Rex in the loop and I knew we were going to have to act quickly.

Everything was happening so quickly and Gov. DeSantis wanted to deliver the 3,000 vaccinations the next week, did you think you could get it done?

I told Rex, ‘You tell the governor I will get it done this weekend.’ We (Vanessa and her husband Don Baugh) were going to New Port Richey in the RV. I sent an email to (Manatee County Public Safety Director) Jacob Saur to give him a heads up. Then I received a call from the Florida Division of Emergency Management. We’re in an RV going down the road and the state wants a tour of Premier. I called Elliott and he took care of it. Emergency Management thought the site was perfect and that we needed to do the clinic the next week (Feb. 17-19, although those dates had not yet been confirmed at that time). It didn’t help that Sunday was Valentine’s Day and Monday was Presidents’ Day, so the county was closed.

The state’s Emergency Management said it would bring it all. I had already called the Sheriff (Rick Wells) to make sure we had deputies, and no traffic jams. The governor was bringing in the highway patrol.

Why Lakewood Ranch?

The governor felt there was a high percentage of seniors who had not been able to get the vaccine. He wanted to get that percentage down so he could lower the age from 65 to 60. The two ZIP codes were chosen because they were the ZIP codes for Lakewood Ranch, River Club, part of Myakka, and as far north to 64, so I jumped on it. I was doing everything I could think of to prepare for “next week.” They said “next week” and that was all I really knew. I talked to Jacob Saur and he said we didn’t have enough time to put it together.

I asked if it was possible to use the

— Vanessa Baugh

the clinic organized). I should have sent the emails. When you are put in that situation, you are dealing with a pandemic that is killing people.

You do what you have to do. When 3,000 people are getting a vaccine, you have to make decisions. I should have kept the board more abreast of the situation. Looking back is easy.

Vanessa Baugh wanted to set the record straight about her actions during the Lakewood Ranch pop-up vaccination clinic in February 2021.

system (the county) had in place. I decided to use the two ZIP Codes.

I didn’t know how else to get 3,000 people lined up in a number of days.

I ask him if we could pull names from what we have. He said, ‘I will let you know.’ If not, I knew we would have cars lined up down State Road 70.

Jake called me. He said, ‘I have a list with 7,800 names in 34202 and 34211. We only had 3,000 vaccines.’

This was bigger than I thought. I was wondering if there was some way we could get more vaccines. People already were upset with the lottery system.

Why did you make up the VIP list?

There was no VIP list. There were names (Robert Keehn and Marie Keehn) that I could not find on the (ZIP codes) list sent to me, who I knew were registered for the lottery.

The people on the list had called me because they were upset with the lottery system. Everyone on the list lived in the two ZIP codes except for Rex and his father (Lawrence Jensen). I thought since had it not been for Rex, it wouldn’t be happening anyway. I thought it was the right thing to do. There was no mention of the VIP list in the settlement.

You moved ahead and organized the entire clinic, and pulled it off, without notifying your fellow commissioners. Didn’t that open you to criticism?

I may have handled things differently. I could have sent emails (to the commissioners) and I didn’t. I didn’t find out until Friday that it was going to happen on a Wednesday. Things already were very difficult between the commissioners. I didn’t want to mess anything up (with getting

The blowback from some county politicians and residents was immediate. How did that affect you?

I was on every national channel. I was being called a criminal on the dais by another commissioner.

It appeared at one time you might consider resigning. How bad did things get?

There was a time or two where I thought I should go ahead and resign. In my heart, I feel I tried to do the right things in the right way.

I had a lot of people in the public who thanked me. They said I stood up for them. But it was bad. Every (commission) meeting we had people coming before the board during public comment, asking me to resign. Some commissioners were criticizing me, asking me to resign. saying, ‘You’ve disgraced Manatee County.’ The hardest part was seeing what it was doing to my children, my grandchildren, my husband. ‘Grandma is being condemned.’ They didn’t understand it. My family paid a heavy price for what I did. Manatee County citizens have been going through a lot. I wanted it to stop for their sake.

I didn’t recall ever wishing I was not a county commissioner. You know,

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THURSDAY, DECEMBER 1, 2022

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you have to learn how to serve others. I didn’t become a commissioner to make money. I wanted to make things better in Manatee County. I just wished I had done things differently. But I did things that I thought would keep this on track.

How hard was hearing that the Florida Commission on Ethics found probable cause ‘to believe ‘Ms. Baugh violated the constitutional amendment prohibiting the abuse of office to obtain a disproportionate benefit by placing her own name at the top of a randomly selected list of recipients to receive a COVID-19 vaccination. In addition, probable cause was found to believe Ms. Baugh misused her position or public resources to assign vaccine distribution priority to serve specific individuals and zip codes, contrary to Manatee County’s COVID-19 vaccination policy.’

It was obvious that it was an orchestrated bottom line.

Why settle?

Finding probable cause was hurtful, but my attorney knew that we had the opportunity to get to the core of the situation, which we did. Basically the ethics commission found that I did not follow the lottery system designated by the county, which is very true. The BOCC had even discussed the fact that it was not working very well and that people from other states were coming here to get the vaccine. Also it was discovered that there was not an ordinance done to make that law, the only ordinance was the governor’s ordinance, which was followed. But it would have cost $100,000 (in legal fees) for a trial.

So, if you have put it behind you, are you excited about 2023 with three new commissioners and all Republicans on the Commission?

There was a political divide in Manatee County, but now we have a new board. It’s time for us to put all this behind us. I am totally excited to see seven strong, conservative Republicans on the commission. I am excited to see what their thoughts are, to see what they want to see done. I am excited to get started.

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THURSDAY, DECEMBER 1, 2022

EAST COUNTY

“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 Executive Editor and COO / Kat Hughes, KHughes@YourObserver.com Managing Editor / Jay Heater, JHeater@YourObserver.com Sports Editor / Ryan Kohn, RKohn@YourObserver.com Staff Writers / Liz Ramos, LRamos@YourObserver.com; Ian Swaby, ISwaby@YourObserver.com Digital & Engagement Editor / Kaelyn Adix, KAdix@YourObserver.com Copy Editor / Gina Reynolds Haskins, GRHaskins@YourObserver.com Senior Editorial Designer / Melissa Leduc, MLeduc@YourObserver.com Editorial Designer / José Valle, JValle@YourObserver.com A+E Editor / Spencer Fordin, SFordin@YourObserver.com Black Tie Editor / Harry Sayer, HSayer@YourObserver.com

High expectations for lower scores Photos by Jay Heater

The bunkers at Heritage Harbour now have collars of thick grass that add to the beauty of the course.

Local golfers say they love the kinder, friendly Heritage Harbour Golf Course.

JAY HEATER MANAGING EDITOR

W

hile words like risk, reward, options and playability were being tossed about, Country Meadows’ Grant Abrams said the renovation of the Heritage Harbour Golf Course comes down to one word.

“Fun.” Abrams, an avid golfer who belongs to Heritage Harbour’s Practice Plus program, said golfers of all levels will enjoy the upgrades to the course.

“It is more fun,” he said. “The condition is way better because they’ve done a lot of work. Everything is green and the course definitely has risen to another tier. It’s turned into a resort course.”

Mark Bruce, the golf club’s managing partner, said one goal of the renovation was to give those who play a sense of accomplishment instead of a sense of defeat.

Bruce said the number of sand bunkers on the course remains about the same as before the renovation, but he noted the total square footage of the bunkers is considerably less.

The smaller bunkers, he said, make it more efficient to maintain.

Many of the bunkers were moved to make their impact less penalizing, and in fact some actually were placed in spots to benefit the golfers.

“When this course first opened (as Stoneybrook in 2001), it was built to be dramatic,” Bruce said in a May interview. “It had big, deep bunkers that would penalize the golfer for a bad shot. That doesn’t bode well for common golfers.”

On hole No. 13, bunkers were placed in front of a water hazard that used to collect any balls hit in that direction due to the slope. Now instead of losing a ball, and a shot, golfers can get out their sand wedge.

On No. 15, two bunkers were again placed in front of a lake that would collect bad shots.

“We wanted to keep players away from the water hazards and wetlands,” Bruce said. “Keeping their ball in play makes for a better score.”

In some cases, bunkers were moved to give golfers easier access to the green they were protecting.

“No. 8 used to have six bunkers around it,” Bruce said. “Now it has two. You don’t need six bunkers guarding a par 3. And if you wrap six bunkers around it, every Tom, Dick and Harry can’t play it.”

The course was closed May 2 to begin the renovation. Golf course architect Nick Campanelli, who designed the renovation, said his focus was on strategy and playability.

“This is not going to be a punishing design,” he said in May. Local golfers agree.

Heritage Harbour’s Ken Apple said the more playable course would lead to faster play.

TEE IT UP

What: Opening of Heritage Harbour Golf Course after a $2 million renovation Opening dates: Front nine on Nov. 3, back nine on Nov. 21 Closed for renovation: May 2 Then and now: The course now plays 6,700 yards from the back tees, about 300 yards shorter than before the renovation. It is a Par 72 as opposed to a Par 71 before the renovation Renovation architect: Nick Campanelli Original architect: Arthur Hills (died May 18, 2021) Cost: Twilight rates as low as $39 and regular rates as low as $49

“The sand traps had been unplayable for years,” he said. “I think that is the biggest difference.”

Raymond Rivest, who lives alongside No. 14, said he finds the renovated course to be a little bit easier.

“I think it will accelerate play,” he said.

East County’s Jay Romine, a 15-handicap golfer, said he likes that they made it a bit easier by moving many of the bunkers.

“The bottom line is to have fun,” he said. “You don’t want to play a course that beats your brains in.”

Romine is very pleased with the overall renovation.

“It gives you options, and it also speeds up the pace of play,” he said.

“From a playability standpoint, this course is as big a challenge as its original design, but it is more player friendly.”

— Mark Bruce

“I am amazed at how nice the fairways are. It nice to have a cushion under your ball.”

Abrams, who is a low handicap golfer, said he appreciates the job that was done around the greens.

“Every green used to be elevated,” he said. “If you missed on a lot of the greens, you would fall down into a waste area. Then you couldn’t get up and down. Now it’s more fair.

“And they did a great job of moving the bunkers. They put them in places where now they are risk/reward. The Par 5s are very gettable now, but you don’t want to miss into one of those bunkers.”

The fairways and greens on all 18 holes were redone. Bruce said crushed shell bunkers were added to the course to create character in the fairways. Tree trimming and removal provided proper sunlight and air circulation to keep the fairways and greens healthy.

The bunkers now have collars, another aesthetic touch.

“This was an intense 6 months,” Bruce said.

Scott McBroom’s Westscapes Golf Course Construction of St. Petersburg performed all the earth moving and construction on the course.

While the course is now open again, efforts to develop a 15-acre section of the course into a resort hotel and villas continues. The project runs basically where the No. 1 and No. 2 holes used to run along River Heritage Boulevard and Heritage Green Way. Bruce is negotiating with potential hotel and villa builders. He anticipates those amenities to begin construction as soon as late 2023 and to be open in 2025.

The approvals by Manatee County have been for a 100-room hotel and 74 villas.

Heritage Harbour Golf Club currently has approximately 100 members and Bruce said the goal is 300 members.

Bruce said the course is open to the public for a daily fee. Various memberships are available, including seasonal memberships for snowbirds.

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YourObserver.com Raymond Rivest of Heritage Harbour drives a ball down the No. 3 fairway of the newly renovated Heritage Harbour Golf Course.

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EAST COUNTY OBSERVER

SIDE OF RANCH

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THURSDAY, DECEMBER 1, 2022

9A

JAY HEATER

Real life trauma leads to local author’s fiction Former attorney Nancy Perpall hopes those who read her novels learn important lessons about relationships.

I

used to tell some journalists, “If you don’t have a sense of humor, you shouldn’t be writing jokes.”

It runs parallel to being an author.

If you can’t tell a story, well, don’t try to write one. The resulting book usually can be placed on a nightstand to be used as a sleep aid.

So I didn’t know what to expect when I went to the home of Lakewood Ranch’s Nancy Perpall, whose first novel, “Around Which All Things Bend,” was published

by Archway Self Publishing in August.

Perpall’s backstory is worthy itself of a documentary. A critical care nurse turned attorney turned author ... that’s interesting stuff.

But could she tell a story? Could she write one?

I had my answer quickly.

Perpall was spinning stories from her days as a divorce attorney, and we all know those can be juicy in themselves. We were crossing into territory about why she transitioned into an attorney, and she talked about the three years she spent driving between Allentown, Pennsylvania and Villanova University, just outside of Philadelphia, to attend law school.

“My son was in first grade and my daughter was in third, and I commuted,” she said. “It was a one hour and 15 minute ride because I have a lead foot. So in the first year I started commuting, I got pulled over (for speeding).”

She then told a side story about how the trooper who pulled her over remembered her from a time

Photos by Jay Heater

Lakewood Ranch’s Nancy Perpall has used many of her experiences as a lawyer to write her first novel with more on the way.

he had brought a man into the hospital’s trauma room with injuries from being hazed. The man’s injuries left the Trooper feeling nauseous, so she took control of the situation and allowed the trooper to go to the waiting room. “I helped him out,” she said of the trooper.

The trooper remembered her kindness.

“He said, ‘I owe you one, but you’ve got to slow down.’”

She didn’t.

A year later, she was pulled over a second time, making the same drive. At this point of telling the story, Perpall was sitting, but rocking a bit, a wide smile flashing, and her voice increasing in volume just a bit.

“I got pulled over a second time,” she said.

She related that embarrassing

incident, hinting at the fact the story wasn’t quite concluded. The trooper again let her go.

Then, of course, she talked about her final year of law school, when she crossed paths with the trooper one more time.

“He came up and leaned on my car,” Perpall said. “Then he said, ‘When do you graduate?’”

It was a fun story, and one that would be well received if it was crafted into a non-fiction novel.

While it didn’t make “Around Which All Things Bend,” it might make another of her novels, as she already is working on her second, with more, hopefully, on the way.

Her first book, however, does include much subject matter from her dealings with divorcing couples, which she has worked into her chapters. Besides being dramatic

fodder, she is hoping her stories carry lessons that can help her readers, either before the begin a relationship, or before they get out of one.

“I spent 32 years taking apart relationships,” she said. “They called me the Dragon Lady. I thought I would spend my retirement preventing that. People need to ask hard questions before they get married.”

She hopes some of those messages in her fictional stories are not so subtle.

“An autopsy, that’s what I did with the divorce cases that I handled,” she said. “I looked at my clients who were devastated. But I have helped a tremendous number of people. There comes a time in every relationship when you think you are going to break. Are you going to break it or fix it? People realize how fragile relationships are.”

She spun a few more fascinating story and then began to describe the nuts and bolts of “Around Which All Things Bend,” which you can buy at Amazon or at NancyPerpall. com.

“It’s about a veteran, who owns a huge ranch in Montana,” she said.

“His grandfather had struck a gold and silver vane and was fabulously wealthy. His grandmother is worried about his dynasty.”

Of course, then comes a woman, and what their relationship means to that dynasty, and a whole lot of twists and turns.

“I keep the chapters short,” Perpall said. “I don’t want people to get bored.”

While she isn’t sure how the book will sell, she said she is satisfied with her first effort.

“Can I do better?” she asked.

“Yes.” Perpall lives with her husband, David Mulligan, a psychologist.

She has been promoting her book,

although she suffers from “social media phobia” and has to step outside her comfort zone.

That wouldn’t seem possible the way she tells her stories.

To put an exclamation point on that ability, she went back to her childhood to described her first effort at writing. She was 5 years old, and she noted her father, Edward Perpall, was a man who worked his way from being an office boy at Bell Telephone to becoming a director. He taught her hard work can accomplish anything.

At 5, her hard work went into a story for Highlights magazine, which was holding a fiction writing contest. First place won a pony.

“I wrote a story about a little girl in a pasture,” she said. “There was a horse and a duck. And the horse would put the duck on his back.

They went looking for the duck’s real mother. And they eventually found the mother.

“But my mother (Francis Perpall) never mailed it in. No way did she want a pony.”

Day after day, little Nancy sat in the house, looking out the window and waiting for the pony to be delivered.

Finally, her dad told her to give it up, the pony wasn’t coming.

She didn’t find out until she was 50 that her mom never mailed in the entry.

And, perhaps, the time has come when he writing finally will earn her a pony.

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

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THURSDAY, DECEMBER 1, 2022

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Leah Lazarde, a sixth grader at Carlos E. Haile Middle School, watched the soccer ball like a hawk.

As students moved the ball down the field, Lazarde followed, calling out instructions like she was the teacher.

In this case, she was.

Lazarde played the role of physical education teacher Nov. 17 during Haile’s Teacher Shadow Day. “I love my job,” Lazarde said as play resumed.

She took over the responsibilities of P.E. teacher Bet Tracy, and she learned being a P.E teacher isn’t as easy as it seems.

Lazarde had to learn the signals to be able to be a referee for a game of “gator ball.” She had to learn how to diffuse any arguments while also learning how to encourage students to give it their all and display good sportsmanship.

Tracy loved the enthusiasm Lazarde displayed during her time as the P.E. teacher.

“It wasn’t just an opportunity to get out of class,” Tracy said. “She’s taking it seriously. It makes my heart smile.”

Tracy said Lazarde is perfect for being a P.E. teacher.

Lazarde wanted to shadow Tracy because gym class is one of her favorites. She wants to pursue a career in education with the goal of becoming a principal.

Tracy said the key to being a P.E. teacher is organization whether that involves the space where students will play or scheduling the games.

“I try to have fun games that everyone can participate in,” Tracy said.

She tries to find games that are fun for any type of student whether they like to play sports or dread partici-

Liz Ramos

pating in any type of sports-related activity.

She’ll incorporate the traditional sports into her lessons but also brings in different games such as gator ball.

“I’m not just a roll-out-the-ball teacher,” Tracy said. “I like to see them engage and have fun. I promote sportsmanship, too. I don’t allow any of my kids to trash talk. I try to promote a fun, healthy environment that’s not just for the athletes.”

Tracy stood on the sidelines and encouraged students to spread out during a game of gator ball and reminded Lazarde of the hand signals for different calls in the game.

Not only is gator ball a favorite of students, but Tracy enjoys seeing students play the game as well.

“It’s so engaging to everybody,” she said. “This game is easy to play and easy to learn for all skill levels.

Football players love it. Soccer players love it. Softball players love it. It’s definitely a game for everybody. I’ve been playing this game for 20 years.”

Her most rewarding teaching moments are when students who aren’t competitive have a little success.

“It’s when we do fitness testing and run the mile and kids shave a minute off their time,” Tracy said.

“It’s my kids encouraging each other to do better.”

P.E. teacher Bet Tracy and sixth grader Leah Lazarde watch students as they play gator ball.

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East County’s Linda Baker was busy making sure the costumes she had sewn for Evangel Baptist Church’s Drive-Thru Bethlehem were ready.

Baker, who lives in the Il Villaggio neighborhood, and other volunteers spent hours at the church checking measurements to ensure the costumes would fit the people playing the characters. Then came the ironing.

Meanwhile outside the church, Linda Baker’s husband Jerry Baker joined a dozen volunteers in putting together set pieces to convert the church’s driveway into Bethlehem for the Dec. 2-3 event.

The Drive-Thru Bethlehem represents the time of Jesus’s birth. Guests will travel through Bethlehem to visit the different shops, meeting a baker, a basket maker, a carpenter and a tax collector, among others.

All of the set pieces and most of the costumes were made by church members.

When Baker started making costumes four years ago, she researched what people wore in Bethlehem. She found those residents wore tunics, shawls or cloaks with more earthy tones such as tan, dark red, gray and more. Many of them also have head coverings.

She used patterns she found online to make the tunics.

She found sheets and fabric from Goodwill and other consignment shops to make costumes. She made a small, medium and large of the costumes so there’s one to fit anyone who plays that character, especially for the children who participate.

“It’s fun looking at fabric and thinking in your mind, ‘OK, this will be good for a shepherd, this might

Photos by Liz Ramos

work for a different character,’” Baker said.

She said Bethlehem was a poor town, so she didn’t worry about finding jewelry, gold or flashy pieces for the costumes. She also didn’t have to make costumes for kings and queens, which she said would have been more complicated because they would need to be more extravagant.

There are some costumes, such as those worn by soldiers, that were purchased online.

The first year she made costumes, Baker said it took days to create one costume. Although she knew how to sew, she had never made tunics before.

“When I first started this, I was so nervous because I didn’t know what I was doing,” she said.

Now, more than 100 costumes later, if she needs to make a costume, she’s able to create two or three in a day.

Her favorite costume she’s made is for the person playing Mary.

“It’s always sweet to see her come together,” she said. “The blue and the white always represent Mary.”

She said seeing her costumes on

Lakewood Ranch’s Sondra Twitty checks a costume in preparation for the Evangel Baptist Church’s Drive-Thru Bethlehem.

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To create the shops, church members build a frame and make the roof in fabric. They hang lights so everything can be seen at night.

Jerry Baker said most people who visit love the carpentry shop where children get to do hands-on activities.

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the amateur actors as they roam about Bethlehem or work in the shops is wonderful.

“It looks really beautiful after you get them together,” Baker said. “Once it all comes together and everybody’s dressed up and in their positions, everything looks nice.”

Jerry Baker takes charge of assembling all the shops, town gates and the manger.

“We want to give people an idea of what Bethlehem was like,” he said.

“We want the atmosphere of what was going on when Jesus was born in the stable.”

New this year is a set showing Jesus’s childhood home.

Jerry Baker said his daughter-inlaw’s mother, Joanne Hall, will work on the childhood home. Jerry Baker already has constructed the home, but Hall will paint and design it.

“She brings it to life,” Jerry Baker said. “She will paint and design the doors, windows and everything in there. I’m excited to see how she can bring the three dimensions of it out.

I see it in my head. The hard part is getting other people to see it.”

In other shops like the bakery and carpenter shop, the walls are painted to look like rocks.

The bakery will have a portable

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benefits of a tiny house.

On Nov. 18, they were able to tour their subject.

That should help as the students design and create their models based on a list of clients’ wants and needs.

The clients were school staff members including the school’s principal, assistant principal, a reading specialist, a support specialist and a paraprofessional.

Each of the clients had different goals when it came to buying a tiny house. It might have been to save money, or to be able to take it to other locations, or to protect the environment, or to simply scale down.

Students worked in groups to create a design draft that would meet those specific needs.

The lesson incorporated math as students needed to deal with perimeter measurements and square footage.

Working in groups, the students also sharpened their teamwork skills.

To even a Braden River Elementary third grader, the house that was towed into the school’s parking lot Nov. 18 was easy to size up.

“That’s such a tiny house,” one student said.

“That’s a dog house,” said another.

“There’s no way that’s a house.” said a third student.

It was, indeed, a miniature house from Tiny House Siesta.

Braden River third graders have been working on their own 3D tiny house models as part of a projectbased learning assignment. They have been learning about the various

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“I have just been blown away, even with just the blueprints,” Cramer said. “I’m super excited to see what these kids come up with for sure.

It’s amazing the fine details they’re thinking of that we didn’t even give them. I didn’t talk about pets and they were like, ‘Don’t you have a dog Mrs. Cramer?’ so they added a spot for my dog.”

Courtney Walker wanted her tiny house to have wheels so she could go across the country. She wanted to have two beds so a guest could stay with her on her travels, and she also wanted places to show off her souvenirs. She expected her tiny house to be between 400 and 600 square feet.

Cramer and Courtney Walker said students asked pointed questions about the client’s wants and needs for their tiny house ranging from how big they wanted the tiny house to the color of it.

“They were asking me if I wanted a skylight,” Courtney Walker said.

“That was really cool. I didn’t even bring that up, but they’re like, ‘Do you want a skylight so you can see the stars at night?’”

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“Sometimes they have to learn to compromise and give up their idea to someone else’s idea or they have to vote and the majority wins that vote,” said third-grade teacher Amber Walker. “This is trying to push social skills with them, such as listening to other people. It’s making sure everyone’s doing their part in the group.”

Third grader Channing Barker was excited to design a tiny house with his team.

“I love building stuff, and I’m great at it,” Barker said.

When Barker and third grader Raelynn Wilson went inside Tiny House Siesta’s tiny house Nov. 18, he was surprised to find what was inside.

In such a small house, they didn’t expect to see a queen size bed, a kitchen and a storage area that could fit a couch that would pull out into another queen size bed.

They started to think about changes they could make to their own designs. For example, Barker loved the idea of having a fold out couch that turns into a bed underneath a lofted bed. He also learned that the walls of a tiny house are made of steel, making them magnetic, so he can have curtains hanging from the windows using magnets.

Barker’s team has designed a twostory tiny house with a bathroom, living room and a bedroom on the second floor. A special feature of the tiny house is a balcony so the client can get fresh air in a comfortable area because the client likes nature.

Wilson and her team’s tiny house is made to be accepted by campgrounds. She said it will be yellow on the outside, and they hope to have two TVs, a kitchen area, a living area and a pullout couch under a lofted bed.

After students completed their initial designs, they presented them to their clients to receive feedback.

They the proceeded to building their 3D models.

Michelle Cramer, a paraprofessional, and Courtney Walker, a curriculum coach, both posed as clients and were thrilled to see the innovative ideas.

Cramer wanted her tiny house to be more environmentally friendly.

She wanted the roof of her tiny house to be covered in solar panels for power. Cramer wanted a compost-

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DECEMBER 1, 2022

SPORTS

“I like that soccer allows me to be creative, especially on the ball. I have the freedom to do whatever I want.”

— Lakewood Ranch High’s Robert Lloyd SEE PAGE 19A

Fast

Lakewood Ranch junior wrestler Nate “Oklahoma” Smith wants more after reaching the FHSAA Class 3A state tournament in 2022, his first year in the sport.

Break

File photo

Pirates head Coach Curt Bradley wanted players to bulk up at the Thanksgiving table.

N

ow that the high school football season is over, teams have time for jokes. While wishing its players a happy Thanksgiving last week, the Braden River High program Tweeted a reminder that it’s now “bulking season” and instructed its players to have a “three-plate minimum.” … The high school boys basketball season technically began last week for most teams, but no one in our area played.

This week is the “real” beginning. A game to watch is when Lakewood Ranch High travels to Sarasota’s Cardinal Mooney at 7 p.m. Dec. 8. … Putting out another call — If you know of any area athletes doing something charitable during this holiday season, let us know by sending an email to RKohn@YourObserver.com. We love to feature athletes doing right by their community. … Former Braden River star Taylor Upshaw, in his graduate student year at the University of Michigan, made a massive play in the Wolverines’ 45-23 win over Ohio State University on Nov. 26. Upshaw intercepted Buckeyes quarterback CJ Stroud at Michigan’s 9-yard line when the score was 38-23 to prevent a potential comeback effort. … Jeff Klotz sank a hole-inone Nov. 17 on the No. 15 hole at The River Club. Klotz used a 9-iron on the 104-yard hole, on a windy, chilly day, according to friend Alan Anderson. Impressive stuff.

CUP COVERAGE PAGE 18A

Pedal to the medal Mustang junior Nate Smith reached the state tournament in his first season wrestling. Now he wants to earn a medal.

RYAN KOHN SPORTS EDITOR

Nate Smith made an immediate impact.

Now a junior at Lakewood Ranch High, Smith joined the wrestling team a year ago as a sophomore after Head Coach Pat Ancil told him he didn’t have a choice.

One look at Smith reveals why Ancil wanted to give him a big push toward the mat. Smith is 6-foot-1 and wrestles at 285 pounds. He plays on the defensive line for the school’s football team, and recorded 29 tackles this past season.

It’s the background that led to former Braden River High wrestler and offensive linemen Brendan Bengtsson winning the Florida High School Athletic Association Class 2018 state title as a senior in the 285-pound heavyweight division.

Smith did not win a title in his inaugural wrestling season, but he did make the state tournament, bowing out after losing his first two matches. It was the first time a Mustangs wrestler went to state meet his first season.

Smith said he spent last season relying on his physical gifts to get him through most matches. When he got to the state tournament, he ran into more technical wrestlers, and he struggled.

“I did not have enough tools in my belt,” Smith said. “I saw things I didn’t see at the district or regional tournaments. This season, my focus is adding moves and getting out of stuff that I saw at states.”

That includes learning the “spladle,” a defensive move designed as a counter to single-leg takedowns.

Smith said he’s also working on improving his riding time.

Smith is known to coaches and teammates as “Oklahoma,” as he’s from Sallisaw Central, Oklahoma.

His family moved to Lakewood Ranch in August 2021. It’s a nickname as simple and old school as the town where he was born, Smith said.

That’s why he likes it.

It’s appropriate the Sooner state native became a state-level wrestler faster than most first-time wresters. Smith, like many athletes who go from the gridiron to the mat, said he expected wrestling to be easier on his body and mind than football. Smith was wrong, he said.

“After the first day, I thought to myself, ‘Oh, these guys are a different breed,’” Smith said. “I was so sore. You use a lot more of your shoulders and hips in wrestling. You have to be flexible enough to move around the mat. It was hard, which is why I fell in love with it.”

Though the sport requires overall strength, Smith still believes his football background helped him get up to speed in wrestling. Being a defensive linemen in football, Smith’s job in both sports is to move an opponent’s body where he wants it to go.

It is also why Smith appreciates the team aspects of wrestling. He said his favorite moment from his first season was the team’s district meet, which the Mustangs won. Smith said Lakewood Ranch needed three wins — one each from Smith, 220-pound Will Moran and 106-pound Andres Anastasi in their respective brackets — to clinch the team title, and all three won.

Ryan Kohn

Smith was one of 15 wrestlers who traveled to Columbus, Ohio, in July for a four-day camp at Ohio State University. Under Coach Jim Ryan, the Buckeyes perennially have one of the top wrestling programs in the country. They finished 13th at the 2022 NCAA Championships in March. Smith said getting to practice his newly learned moves on elitelevel wrestlers was an eye-opening experience, as was seeing the Buckeyes’ dedication to conditioning and pushing themselves to — and past — their limits.

“There was no stopping,” Smith said. “In a three-hour session we had one water break. It gave us the feeling of what it takes to be a college wrestler at that level.”

Smith has continued the hard work since returning from the trip. In lieu of going to the gym, Smith prefers to train at his home, doing mountain climbers, push-ups and other body weight workouts, plus lifting dumbbells. His focus is on his upper body; Smith said he feels like he has enough strength in his legs already.

Smith is confident the 2022 season, which officially began Nov. 28, will be a successful one for himself and his teammates.

Other East County wrestlers are expected to have big seasons as well.

Braden River’s Jessey Colas, now a senior, finished seventh at the FHSAA Class 2A tournament in March, wrestling in the 160-pound division. The Pirates’ Grady Murphy, now a junior, finished seventh in Class 2A’s 106-pound division.

On the girls wrestling side, Braden River’s Giovanna Coppola, now a junior, was eliminated in the second consolation round in the girls tournament’s 125-pound division.

Lakewood Ranch junior Nate Smith trained with Ohio State Coach Jim Ryan at a Buckeyes camp in July.

Courtesy photo

18A

EAST COUNTY OBSERVER

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THURSDAY, DECEMBER 1, 2022

PROSE AND KOHN

RYAN KOHN

Local journalist realizes World Cup goal “Soccer and me, we have a great connection. Since watching that game, I have wanted to attend one, and now I am.”

His desire to cover the game he loves also started early. Valencia said he began writing his blog, El Reportero del Gol (“The Goal Reporter”), at 12 years old. It stemmed from Valenica wanting to always be involved in the game he loved in some capacity, which wasn’t always easy, as Valencia’s road to the World Cup hasn’t been a linear one.

In fact, it has been peppered with challenges of varying degrees from the start. Valencia was born with cerebral palsy, a motor disorder caused by damage to the body’s central nervous system. While Valencia said the disorder has caused some issues in his personal life, like being able to walk long distances without needing to rest — as well as play soccer himself, at least at a competitive level — it has not affected his ability to read, write, speak or any other actions necessary to report on sports.

More difficult to deal with, Valencia said, was the ongoing effect of something that happened in 2007. While living in Bradenton, Valencia’s family had issues with its individual visas and was deported back to Colombia. Valencia said he does not remember much of the ordeal, or has blocked it out, and felt like Colombia was his home as he grew up. It is where he made his best friends and deepened his love of soccer alongside the Colombia National Team’s many supporters there.

Valencia and his family moved back to the United States in 2017 after getting everyone’s visas confirmed. For Valencia, the move meant he had to miss his final year of high school in Colombia. After arriving back in Bradenton, Valen-

THE

$

Courtesy photo

Santiago Valencia, 21, is headed to Qatar to report live from the 2022 FIFA World Cup for MTC Radio.

cia took online classes to get his high school degree, which he said was difficult. He missed his friends, he said. Mentally, he was feeling worn down.

“I didn’t get to enjoy my last year with my classmates,” Valencia said.

“It was hard to move on here.”

The move did have one silver lining. In October 2018, Valencia was able to see his beloved Colombian team play a friendly against the

United States at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, something he was never previously able to do.

Colombia won the match 4-2.

Valencia said being able to see his previous home country play on U.S. soil — and being surrounded by passionate soccer people — reinvigorated his love for the game and inspired him to keep pursuing his dream, despite the tough time he was having.

The next year, Valencia enrolled in English classes at MTC. He finished the classes in six months, then began taking video and technology classes at the school, in which Valencia learned to use a camera to record himself and upload said video to sites like YouTube. These are skills Valencia now uses in his sports journalism career. He records soccer analysis vlogs for the “Mas Allá del Deporte” (“Beyond Sport”) YouTube channel.

It was also through these classes that Valencia earned the opportunity to host his Zona Fútbol radio reports.

Valencia will return from Qatar before the World Cup is over, but even before he arrived, he had thoughts on who will come out victorious. Valencia said Argentina has a great shot in what will be all-world player Lionel Messi’s final chance at a World Cup win. Valencia also said Portugal has a shot, thanks to the tremendous talents of Cristiano Ronaldo. Valencia will see both teams in person in Qatar to get a better feel for their strengths and weaknesses.

In the end, the on-field results matter less to Valencia than the fact that he’s going at all. After what he’s been through to get where he is, Valencia believes the experience will be beyond words.

“This will be my first (World Cup), but I hope it is the first of many,” Valencia said. “This is what I have always wanted.”

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

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T

he most-watched sporting event globally happens once every four years, and this time, it will have a new voice bringing its action to the masses.

Manatee Technical College’s Santiago Valencia, an aspiring sports journalist, traveled to Qatar for five days, from Nov. 27 to Dec. 1, to cover the 2022 FIFA World Cup. Valencia gave his reports live on MTC Radio (101.1FM), in Spanish, during his recurring Zona Fútbol shows on the station. Valencia, 21, said he paid for his own airfare and lodging, but that he was able to get a press pass for the seven matches he was seeing during his trip.

His dream of becoming a journalist is no longer a dream, it is a reality.

“This is something I have always wanted to do,” Valencia said. “It feels amazing to accomplish it.”

Without the World Cup, Valencia might not be going down his chosen path. His love of soccer bloomed during the World Cup’s 2006 iteration, hosted by Germany. Valencia’s family hails from Colombia, but Colombia’s soccer team did not qualify for the Cup that year, so Valencia found himself rooting for the host country as well as Brazil, as that team featured Ricardo Kaká and Ronaldo Nazário, two of the most famous players in the world at the time.

He has since developed a love for Colombia’s team, but he still follows Germany and Brazil closely.

The impact his first Cup had on the budding soccer fan was profound.

“I remember the opening match between Germany and Costa Rica,” Valencia said. “What I remember is the passion of the people there, the players and the fans. You could see it. The game was entertaining (Germany won 4-2) and it produced special emotions. It meant so much to everyone there.

EAST COUNTY OBSERVER

When did you start playing soccer?

I started playing when I was 5 years old. I lived in South Africa then. My family moved to the United States about four years ago. We went to Chicago first and then moved to Lakewood Ranch just before this school year began.

What is the appeal to you?

I like that soccer allows me to be creative, especially on the ball. I have the freedom to do whatever I want.

I also like the team dynamic and the competitiveness and all that stuff.

What is your best skill?

I have a lot of determination and my technical ability is strong. I can read the game. I understand the game.

My footwork is good as well.

What have you been working to improve?

I have been improving my weak foot (left foot), obviously, because you can always improve that.

What are your hobbies?

When I have free time I just hang out with friends or listen to music. Most of my time is spent playing soccer or doing homework, though.

What is your favorite subject?

I’m taking applied engineering right now and I like that. I want to be an architect someday.

Which superpower would you pick?

Teleportation. I want to get places faster.

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What is the best advice you have received?

My dad (Gareth Lloyd-Jones) tells me to never give up and follow my dreams. Go for what you believe in.

Now is the time...

Finish this sentence: “Robert Lloyd Jones is ...” … Caring. I care a lot about my family and friends and people close to me.

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What is your favorite soccer memory?

I think all of my favorite memories are from when I played with Sunnydale, my team in South Africa. I had all my best friends on the team, so playing with them was a blast.

^

Robert Lloyd-Jones is a junior midfielder on the Lakewood Ranch High boys soccer team. Lloyd-Jones scored a goal in the team’s 3-1 home win over Braden River High Nov. 28.

BUSY BEE TUTORING

ATHLETE OF THE WEEK

Robert Lloyd

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.

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What are your goals for this season?

As a team we want to take things one step at a time. We want to go to states. In this program, from what I hear, that seems to always be the goal.

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DECEMBER 1, 2022

YOUR NEIGHBORS Dressing up for Turkey Trot L

akewood Ranch’s Shami Bhullar was about to run the fifth annual Florida Turkey Trot at Nathan Benderson Park on Thanksgiving morning dressed from head-to-toe as a turkey.

The pajama-looking outfit certainly looked hot.

“It’s my Halloween costume,” Bhullar said. “We’ll see how hot it is. You might find it on a bridge somewhere.”

The Florida Turkey Trot, presented by Publix, drew a sellout of 3,400 runners to raise funds for the Nathan Benderson Park Conservancy and the Big Bill Foundation, which was named for former Nathan Benderson Park

Photos by Jay Heater

Lakewood Ranch’s Shami Bhullar and his 3-year-old daughter, Sophie, have the Turkey Trot spirit.

Conservancy Board Chairman Bill Robinson, who died in 2020.

The race quickly has become a family tradition with many participants dressing the part.

Pittsburgh’s Josh Nichols finished the race wearing a complete turkey suit and looked like he was about to be served for dinner.

“I am a fried turkey,” Nichols said. “Extra crisp.”

Sarasota’s Roy Hobson won the race in 15:36. Venice’s Katherine O’Sullivan-Sams was the first female finisher.

The event also included a Turkey Row for the first time.

— JAY HEATER

The Meadows’ Christine Barro, Patricia Schultz, Luanne King, Donna Krusenoski, Jessie Maciel, Rosana Grillo and Marilyn Reed were color coordinated to run in the Turkey Trot.

Lakewood Ranch 11-year-old Kate Toscano, her mom, Leslie Toscano, and brother, 9-year-old Anthony Toscano, get ready to run the Turkey Trot.

Pittsburgh’s John Nichols flies across the finish line in a complete turkey suit.

“I am a fried turkey,” he said. “Extra crisp.”

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Parks Robinson, the Fit2Run owner, starts the fifth annual Turkey Run, a fundraiser for the Big Bill Foundation, which was started to honor his dad, the late Bill Robinson.

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THURSDAY, DECEMBER 1, 2022

No job too BIG or too SMALL.

Cornering the market on holiday cheer

Quick Response & Timely Job Completion!

T

he idea of running the Main Street Market in Lakewood Ranch was to give local small businesses the chance to bring in some extra sales.

Judging from the crowded Lakewood Main Street on Saturday, it worked.

Lindsay Wood and Niki Dalsing, who are managing Main Street Market, said the turnout at the event was impressive.

“Everybody’s so excited,” Dalsing said.

“I know a lot of shoppers were purposely coming out to support local businesses, which is awesome to see.”

Some of the vendors decorated their booths for the holidays and with holiday music playing in the street, it was a festive atmosphere.

Mallory Park’s Melissa Ariza said she has gained exposure for her business, PD Balloons, since the the market began in 2020.

“It’s exciting to see the growth in the community and everyone supporting small businesses,” she said.

The market keeps attracting new clients, such as Lakewood Ranch’s Carlee Smith, the owner of Wally’s plant shop.

She was introduced to the market as a shopper.

“I loved to shop it, then said, ‘Oh, my gosh, we could do this,’” she said.

Other business owners felt the same way.

“I love the energy of this area, and I love the community aspect to it,” said Morgan Yekaitis, an Ellenton artist who owns Morlee Art, which she operates in Lakewood Ranch.

The event was the second Main Street Market hosted this season, with the first having taken place in October and the third set for Dec. 17.

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THURSDAY, DECEMBER 1, 2022

YOUR CALENDAR

EAST COUNTY OBSERVER

COMMUNITY THURSDAY, DEC. 1 THROUGH JAN. 2

HOLIDAY ICE SKATING Runs from 4-10 p.m. in the East District at UTC, next to PopStroke.

Tickets for holiday ice skating at the Rink at UTC are $17 per skater and includes skate rental. Ice skating continues through Jan. 2. From Nov. 25-Dec. 22, the rink will be open 4 p.m. to 10 p.m. From Dec. 23 to Jan. 2, the rink will be open 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. For more information, go to MallatUTC.com.

FRIDAY, DEC. 2

MUSIC ON MAIN Runs from 6-9 p.m. at Main Street at Lakewood Ranch. Juicy Purple, which specializes in R&B, soul and dance music, will provide the live music at the monthly free concert and block party series. A DJ also will be spinning top 100 hits during the event that will sponsor Southeastern Guide Dogs. The event also features food vendors, beer trucks, sponsor booths, and games and activities for children (presented by Grace Community Church).

The Perfect Gift There is no better gift than a membership to The Pickleball Club

MUSIC AT THE PLAZA Runs from 6-9 p.m. at Waterside Place, 1561 Lakefront Drive, Lakewood Ranch. Singer/musician Kim Tortuga will provide the live music as those who visit Waterside Place enjoy sunset views of Kingfisher Lake, fun at the hub’s small parks, or dining at the various restaurants.

For more information, go to WatersidePlace.com.

Gift of healthy lifestyle

FRIDAY, DEC. 2 AND SATURDAY, DEC. 3

Gift of membership

MOVIES UNDER THE STARS Begins at 7 p.m. at the Mall at UTC, in the west district (The Green) near Ford’s Garage. The Mall at UTC presents its annual Holiday Movies Under the Stars series with “Home Alone” on Friday and “Home Alone 2” on Saturday. Bring lawn chairs and blankets. For more information, go to MallatUTC.com. The event continues every Friday and Saturday through the end of December.

Gift of improved play Gift of new friends

SATURDAY, DEC. 3

Build It and They Will Come.

SHOEBOX DRIVE Runs from 4-6 p.m. at the Lakewood

Ranch Elks Club, 4602 Lena Road, Bradenton. Meals on Wheels Plus Manatee is hosting its 17th annual Community Shoebox Drive and Reception at the Elks Club. The event benefits homebound seniors in Manatee County. Those who attend are asked to bring a wrapped and filled shoebox for a senior or give a $20 donation at the door. The goal is to collect 1,000 shoeboxes.

Shoeboxes typically contain about 10 items and each shoebox should be wrapped with the top and box separately. Each box is closed and secured with a rubber band and is identified as male, female or nongender specific. Items such as Chapstick, flashlights, batteries, hand lotion, Kleenex, mechanical pencils, notepads, pens, paperback puzzle books, shampoo, slipper socks with grips, toothbrushes, and toothpaste are much appreciated. Please, no razors, candy, candles, breakables or gift cards. For more information, go to MealsonWheelsPlus.org.

JINGLE AND JOG Begins at 8 a.m. at The Haven, 4405 Desoto Road, Sarasota. The Haven is hosting its 25th annual Jingle and Jog 5K race/walk. There is no day of registration so please enter by going to RunSignup.com/Race/FL/ Sarasota/JingleandJog5k. Registration costs $35 before Dec. 1 and $40 afterward. Registration includes a race T-shirt, food and refreshments and a swag bag. All funds raised by the event benefit the mission of The Haven, a nonprofit with a 68-year legacy of providing programs and services for children and adults with disabilities. For more information, send an email to HSHoup@theHavenSRQ.org.

SUNDAY, DEC. 4

FARMERS MARKET Runs from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Lakefront Drive in Waterside Place, Lakewood Ranch. The Farmers Market at Lakewood Ranch will run year round every Sunday. Vendors will be offering seafood, eggs, meats, dairy products, pastas, bakery goods, jams and pickles among other items. Other features are children’s activities and live music. For more information, go to MyLWR.com.

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EAST COUNTY OBSERVER

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THURSDAY, DECEMBER 1, 2022

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BEST BET FRIDAY, DEC. 2

HOLIDAY TREE LIGHTING Runs from 5:30-6 p.m. at Main Street at Lakewood Ranch. Join the crowd before Music on Main for the annual Main Street Christmas tree lighting along with music provided by the Lakewood Ranch Communities Activities’ Club Aloha Ukulele. Santa will be at the Christmas tree through 9 p.m., posing for photos with children. For more information, go to MyLWR.com.

YOGA IN THE PARK Begins at 9 a.m. at Waterside Place Park, 7500 Island Cove Terrace, Lakewood Ranch. Lakewood Ranch Community Activities offers yoga that is free to residents; $10 for nonresidents. For more information, go to MyLWR.com.

WEDNESDAY, DEC. 7 RANCH NIGHT WEDNESDAYS Runs from 6-9 p.m. at Lakefront Drive in Waterside Place, Lakewood Ranch. Live music, food trucks, a market with rotating vendors, a mobile bar and a recreational cornhole league highlight this crowd favorite event. Pets are welcome but no coolers or outside food or beverage allowed. For more information, go to WatersidePlace.com.

Give Children Hope This Year

Place, Lakewood Ranch. Lakewood Ranch Community Activities hosts Bingo. For more information, go to MyLWR.com.

REC DAY Runs from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Nathan Benderson Park, 5851 Nathan Benderson Circle, Sarasota. Nathan Benderson Park hosts Rec Day, which offers participants the chance to try stand-up paddle boarding, kayaking, canoes, fishing and more.

Meet at the base of the finish tower.

For more information, go to www.

NathanBendersonPark.org. The fee is $10 per person; $5 for an adult who brings a child; free for children 6 and younger. Fishing licenses are required for all participants who choose to fish.

Did you know that a local nonprofit organization served more than 9,000 children in the past year? Safe Children Coalition helps any child entering the child welfare system – no matter the circumstances – who needs assistance in Sarasota, Manatee and DeSoto counties.

“Even in this expanse of all the children that we serve, there’s hope,” says Jacqueline House, the organization’s Vice President of Communications and Community Engagement.

“I see us as the keepers of the hope. Children and families who meet us on the worst day of their lives can depend on us to have hope when things are not looking so good and we can hold that hope until they can catch onto it and have that hope for themselves.”

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It can be found in the most dire of situations. When Hurricane Ian passed through, it affected many of us but families who already had limited finances were hit hardest. “It was really important for us before the storm, during the storm, and after the storm to make sure we provided as many resources as possible to keep kids from coming into the child welfare system,” House says.

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“Our staff were actually out on boats the day after the hurricane taking supplies (to impacted families),” says President and CEO Brena Slater.

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House adds that while the hurricane was a big hurdle to overcome, it’s also a point of pride for the community and their staff who came together.

“We’re very grateful for the community support,” she says.

Safe Children Coalition is the lead community-basedcare agency for Foster Care and Adoptions in Circuit 12

Thursday, December 8, 2022 1:30–3:30 pm Sarasota Yacht Club, 1100 John Ringling Boulevard, Sarasota, FL 34236

covering Sarasota, Manatee, and Desoto counties. Recently two young children had a surprise happy ending when they found a permanent home with their grandparents. “The little boy was so overcome with emotion that he couldn’t speak,” House says. “All he could do was cry tears of joy that they were actually going to be home now.”

While the organization does receive government funds - and just achieved a boost in the last legislative session - with thousands of children and families under their care, Safe Children Coalition also relies on donations.

“The myth is that 100% of our funding comes from the state and we can do whatever we want with that – and we can’t,” House says. “But I think the upside is that this is a great public/private partnership.

Each entity is doing their part to take care of children in our community.”

Safe Children Coalition will honor some of their biggest champions during their Giving Breakfast, on March 23, 2023.

“We really want to recognize the community for being big supporters of us,” Slater says.

Anyone who wants to join their cause can do so by sponsoring or attending the breakfast event. At this time of year in particular, monetary contributions are greatly appreciated. Visit www.sccfl. org/donate to help them ensure all their children have presents – and hope.

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THURSDAY, DECEMBER 1, 2022

BRADENTON 8435 Lindrick Lane 3 Beds 3/1 Baths 4,893 Sq. Ft. Stacy Haas 941-587-4359 A4539533 $3,375,000

LAKEWOOD RANCH 7504 Coventry Court 4 Beds 3/1 Baths 3,870 Sq. Ft. Jamie Van Vliet & Christopher Van Vliet 941-993-8996 A4544241 $1,350,000

LAKEWOOD RANCH 13329 Sorrento Way 3 Beds 3 Baths 2,400 Sq. Ft. Brian Loebker 941-735-4393 A4550894 $1,250,000

LAKEWOOD RANCH 15509 Leven Links Place 3 Beds 3 Baths 2,428 Sq. Ft. Ray Rausa 941-228-7614 A4550879 $1,050,000

LAKEWOOD RANCH 14710 Leopard Creek Place 3 Beds 2/1 Baths 2,559 Sq. Ft. Heather Sniffen 941-720-1526 A4541963 $999,000

BRADENTON 13631 Swiftwater Way 4 Beds 3/1 Baths 3,095 Sq. Ft. Jody Shinn 941-705-5704 A4550869 $950,000

LAKEWOOD RANCH 13651 American Prairie Place 4 Beds 3 Baths 3,017 Sq. Ft. Stacy Haas 941-587-4359 A4541881 $925,000

BRADENTON 3911 Plumosa Terrace 3 Beds 2 Baths 1,820 Sq. Ft. Jody Shinn & Jody Shinn 941-705-5701 A4538211 $890,000

LAKEWOOD RANCH 6329 Royal Tern Circle 4 Beds 3 Baths 2,387 Sq. Ft. Stacy Haas 941-587-4359 A4551882 $879,000

LAKEWOOD RANCH 7806 Troon Court 3 Beds 2 Baths 1,956 Sq. Ft. Stacy Haas 941-587-4359 A4541261 $799,000

LAKEWOOD RANCH 7245 Orchid Island Place 3 Beds 2 Baths 2,195 Sq. Ft. Beth Ann Boyer 941-780-6606 A4550231 $750,000

LAKEWOOD RANCH 6360 Watercrest Way 403 3 Beds 2 Baths 1,916 Sq. Ft. Beth Ann Boyer 941-780-6606 A4549533 $729,000

BRADENTON 13034 Peregrin Circle 4 Beds 3 Baths 2,484 Sq. Ft. Debbie Vogler 941-705-3328 A4548765 $699,999

LAKEWOOD RANCH 10530 Boardwalk Loop 503 2 Beds 2 Baths 1,353 Sq. Ft. Nicole DeSantis & Diane Fogo Harter 941-725-3538 A4548465 $699,000

MYAKKA CITY 7066 Verna Bethany Road 3 Beds 2 Baths 1,814 Sq. Ft. Lori Bollinger 941-524-7034 A4549523 $699,000

LAKEWOOD RANCH 6406 Watercrest Way 302 3 Beds 2 Baths 1,917 Sq. Ft. Stuart Lawrence & Laura Lawrence 941-894-4001 A4538694 $674,995

UNIVERSITY PARK 7435 Sea Island Lane 4 Beds 2 Baths 2,116 Sq. Ft. Nicole Ryskamp 941-807-1766 A4551316 $647,900

TAMPA 933 Normandy Trace Road 933 3 Beds 2 Baths 1,481 Sq. Ft. Laura Navratil & Timothy Carney 941-806-7436 A4538486 $599,000

LAKEWOOD RANCH 8483 Frangipani Terrace 2 Beds 2 Baths 1,524 Sq. Ft. Tina Ciaccio 941-685-8420 A4541270 $579,000

LAKEWOOD RANCH 20307 74th Avenue E Kim Ogilvie 941-376-1717 A4513257 $575,000

SARASOTA 4513 Friar Tuck Lane 3 Beds 2 Baths 1,746 Sq. Ft. Terri Thacker 941-376-1955 A4551632 $549,000

PARRISH 9011 39th Street Circle E 4 Beds 3 Baths 3,009 Sq. Ft. Heather Sniffen 941-720-1526 A4545759 $525,000

BRADENTON 17704 Gawthrop Drive 307 2 Beds 2 Baths 1,142 Sq. Ft. Laura Lawrence & Stuart Lawrence 941-737-3808 A4552690 $457,500

LAKEWOOD RANCH 4506 Bedford Court E 3 Beds 2 Baths 1,706 Sq. Ft. Sharon Ingram 941-224-6447 A4545255 $439,000

BRADENTON 7803 Grand Estuary Trail 203 2 Beds 2 Baths 1,156 Sq. Ft. Natalia Armonda 941-373-5743 A4552296 $334,000

LAKEWOOD RANCH 13315 Palmers Creek Terrace 4 Beds 4/2 Baths 6,171 Sq. Ft. Mark McCann 941-685-7624 A4550835 $3,295,000

LAKEWOOD RANCH 16508 Kendleshire Terrace 3 Beds 4 Baths 3,244 Sq. Ft. Deborah Angelo O'Mara 941-730-0777 A4547956 $2,350,000

BRADENTON 19007 65th Avenue E 4 Beds 5/1 Baths 4,095 Sq. Ft. Aaron Corr & Leslie Emery 941-840-2346 A4549287 $2,350,000

888.552.5228 | MICHAELSAUNDERS.COM

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EAST COUNTY OBSERVER

RESEARCH EDITOR

A

home in Lake Club topped all transactions in this week’s real estate. Kathleen Oster sold the home at 16219 Daysailor Trail to Peter and Jaqueline Borden, of Boca Grande, for $1,675,000.

Built in 2018, it has three bedrooms, three-anda-half baths, a pool and 2,803 square feet of living area. It previously sold for $765,000 in 2019.

LAKEHOUSE COVE AT WATERSIDE

Matthew Facciolla, of Bradenton, and Elizabeth Ann Dehaven, of Sarasota, sold their home at 8133 Grande Shores Drive to Wendy Ellis, of Bradenton, for $1,425,000. Built in 2019, it has four bedrooms, four baths, a pool and 3,547 square feet of living area. It sold for $788,000 in 2019.

Chad Bobik and Laura Bobik, of Apollo Beach, sold their home at 1015 Whimbrel Run to Jeffery and Patricia Andrist, of Bradenton, for $670,000. Built in 2019, it has four bedrooms, three baths and 2,595 square feet of living area. It sold for $395,000 in 2019.

GREYHAWK LANDING

Andrew and Bridget Myerscough, of Grove City, Ohio, sold their home at 364 Snapdragon Loop to Katy and Theodore Painter, of Bradenton, for $665,000. Built in 2004, it has four bedrooms, three baths, a pool and 2,208 square feet of living area. It sold for $382,500 in 2017.

Dawn Lynn Kyte, of Bradenton, sold her home at 12019 Aster Ave. to Michael Patrick McCormick and Leslie Ann McCormick, of La Quinta, California, for $575,000. Built in 2006, it has three bedrooms, three baths and 2,446 square feet of living area. It sold for $289,900 in 2008.

THE MOORINGS AT EDGEWATER

COUNTRY CLUB

SUMMERFIELD

WATER OAK

Steven and Teresa Ayers, trustees, of Lexington, South Carolina, sold the home at 6603 63rd Terrace E. to Angela Ruddy, of Bradenton, for $965,000. Built in 2004, it has four bedrooms, three baths, a pool and 2,349 square feet of living area. It sold for $360,000 in 2013.

POLO RUN

Brian Derek Ellison and Nicole Ann Ellison sold their home at 17339 Polo Trail to David and Ruth Fisher, of Bradenton, for $875,000. Built in 2021, it has three bedrooms, three baths, a pool and 2,616 square feet of living area. It sold for $556,000 in 2021.

EATON PLACE

Bernard and Lois Watson, of Suwanee, Georgia, sold their home at 7428 Eaton Court to Joel Barnett and Monique Delapenha, of Bradenton, for $840,000. Built in 1994, it has three bedrooms, three baths, a pool and 3,312 square feet of living area.

RIVERDALE REVISED

Thomas and Carole Kelley, of Bradenton, sold their home at 4612 Barracuda Drive to Zachary Butler, of Bradenton, for $839,000. Built in 1998, it has three bedrooms, twoand-a-half baths, a pool and 2,433 square feet of living area.

ASHLEY TRACE AT UNIVERSITY PLACE

Amy Christine Oliver, of New Orleans, sold her home at 7605 Alston Court to Michael and Natalie Milliron, of Bradenton, for $781,000. Built in 2004, it has three bedrooms, three baths, a pool and 2,514 square feet of living area. It sold for $486,200 in 2019.

HERITAGE HARBOUR

Kurt Evans Dunshee, trustee, of Incline Village, Nevada, sold the home at 514 River Crane St. to Matthew and Polly Judson, of Bradenton, for $670,000. Built in 2007, it has four bedrooms, three baths and 2,304 square feet of living area. It sold for $359,000 in 2018.

Catherine Ionescu, of Lakeland, sold her home at 6818 Willowshire

NOV. 14-18

RIVERSIDE PRESERVE

Anthony and Donna Brescia, of Auburndale, sold their home at 17807 Eastbrook Terrace to Coby and Barbara Gaulien, of Bradenton, for $1.4 million. Built in 2019, it has three bedrooms, three baths, a pool and 2,823 square feet of living area.

It sold for $631,500 in 2019.

Stephen and Joan Shuster, of Lakewood Ranch, sold their home at 13413 Montclair Place to Ralph and Donna Coppola, of Middlefield, Connecticut, for $1,115,000. Built in 2003, it has three bedrooms, threeand-a-half baths, a pool and 3,064 square feet of living area. It previously sold for $730,000 in 2013.

RESIDENTIAL REAL ESTATE TRANSACTIONS

Way to Jeffrey and Lisa Jacobson, of Bradenton, for $470,000. Built in 2015, it has three bedrooms, two baths and 1,649 square feet of living area. It sold for $270,300 in 2015.

Olaf Allan Takvam and Kathleen Elizabeth Takvam, of Charlotte, North Carolina, sold their Unit 202 condominium at 6434 Moorings Point Circle to JoAnn Snedeker, of Lakewood Ranch, for $649,000.

Built in 2005, it has three bedrooms, three baths and 2,344 square feet of living area. It sold for $315,000 in 2019.

DEL WEBB

7B

Katharine Markella Paradissis sold her home at 11210 Pine Lilly Place to Ashish Dave and Bhavika Prabhoobhai, of Lakewood Ranch, for $621,000. Built in 1999, it has four bedrooms, three baths, a pool and 2,575 square feet of living area. It sold for $242,500 in 1999.

GREENBROOK

Michael McNaught, of Lakewood Ranch, sold the home at 6250 Willet Court to Maylinda Verscharen, trustee, of Winter Park, for $578,000. Built in 2002, it has two bedrooms, two baths and 1,990 square feet of living area. It sold for $285,000 in 2018.

Courtesy photo

This home at 16219 Daysailor Trail in the Lake Club sold for $1,675,000. Built in 2018, it has three bedrooms, three-and-a-half baths, a pool and 2,803 square feet of living area.

square feet of living area. It sold for $425,000 in 2021.

WOODBROOK

David and Lori Mason, of Ligonier, Pennsylvania, sold their home at 4736 Silvermoss Drive to Rosemarie Armstrong and Robert John Dibraccio, of Sarasota, for $537,500. Built in 2013, it has three bedrooms, two baths and 1,782 square feet of living area. It sold for $283,500 in 2014.

SABAL HARBOUR

Kristi Mellin, of Bradenton, sold the home at 4592 Runabout Way to Charles and Jeanette Mussa, of Bradenton, for $535,000. Built in 2001, it has four bedrooms, two baths, a pool and 1,685 square feet of living area. It sold for $270,000 in 2017.

BACCIANO AT ESPLANADE

Andrew and Shannon Oleferchik, of Poplar Grove, Illinois, sold their Unit 203 condominium at 13710 Messina Loop to Howard Allen Wilton, of Ontario, Canada, for $502,000. Built in 2019, it has two bedrooms, two baths and 1,528 square feet of living area. It sold for $250,000 in 2020.

ROSEDALE ADDITION

Marjorie Ostermeyer, trustee, of Bradenton, sold the home at 10608 Glencorse Terrace to Victor Steven Anderes, of Bradenton, for $475,000. Built in 2013, it has two bedrooms, two baths and 1,658 square feet of living area. It sold for $320,000 in 2014.

In with the new NOW UNDER CONSTRUCTION

Irina Bakman sold her home at 15118 Searobbin Drive to Ebony Phillips, of Lakewood Ranch, for $400,000.

Built in 2005, it has four bedrooms, two-and-a-half baths and 2,012 square feet of living area. It sold for $283,800 in 2005.

Downtown St. Petersburg

BRADEN RIVER LAKES

Ryan Brown, trustee, of Goochland, Virginia, sold the home at 4302 14th Ave. E. to Timothy and Marjorie Bruno, of Bradenton, for $565,000.

Built in 1992, it has three bedrooms, two baths, a pool and 2,017 square feet of living area. It sold for $134,400 in 1992.

Mark Howard, of Kodak, Tennessee, sold the home at 702 49th St. E. to Frank and Stefanie Baltussen, of Heilbronn, Germany, for $470,000.

Built in 1989, it has three bedrooms, two baths and 1,586 square feet of living area. It sold for $469,000 in July.

RIVER LANDINGS BLUFFS

Timothy and Tracy Dodd, of Pinellas Park, sold their home at 5513 61st Lane E. to Roy and Susan Ford, of Bradenton, for $565,000. Built in 1997, it has three bedrooms, two baths and 1,944 square feet of living area. It sold for $575,000 in March.

400 Central | 727.209.7848 | From the $1MM’s | Call for appointment. | Residences400central.com SOLD OUT

Longboat Key

The Residences at the St. Regis | 941.213.3300 | From $2.4MM to $10.9MM | Call for appointment | SRResidencesLongboatKey.com SOLD OUT

Downtown Sarasota

TARA

Richard and Elizabeth Raucci, of Parrish, sold their home at 6372 Rookery Circle to Maria and Linh Duckett, of Towson, Maryland, for $565,000. Built in 2002, it has three bedrooms, two baths, a pool and 1,856 square feet of living area. It sold for $325,000 in 2017.

LAKE VISTA RESIDENCES

Raymond Jurgens Jr. sold his Unit E-407 condominium at 7612 Lake Vista Court to Ernest Michael Pihl Jr. and Mary Pat Pihl, of Bradenton, for $555,000. Built in 2007, it has two bedrooms, two baths and 1,762

The Collection | 941.232.2868 | thecollection1335.com

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

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

mscdeveloperservices.com | 844.591.4333 | Sarasota, Florida Prices as of October 2022

Licensed Real Estate Broker

373617-1

ADAM HUGHES

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 1, 2022

REAL ESTATE

Lake Club home tops area sales at $1,675,000

|

EAST COUNTY OBSERVER

|

YourObserver.com

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 1, 2022

Dash of color

V

olunteer Lauren Mancusi sprayed Jaiden Vega, a fifth grader at William H. Bashaw Elementary School, with orange powder as he ran past her.

Vega’s white color run shirt already had hints of purple, green and yellow.

A few more laps around the Bashaw Elementary Super Hero Color Run course Nov. 18 and Vega’s white shirt was splattered with every color of the rainbow.

“I liked having all the colors on me,” Vega said.

About 680 students participated in the Super Hero Color run, a fundraiser for the school.

The 229 students who participated in fundraising raised more than $10,000.

Price Improvement

— LIZ RAMOS

Photos by Liz Ramos

Joy Maria Sanchez, who is in pre-K, is excited to have her mother, Xiomara Sanchez, participate in the Super Hero Color Run with her.

Del Webb | Lakewood Ranch 7117 WOODVILLE COVE $765,000 | 2 BR PLUS DEN, 2 BA, 1,930 SF

Just Sold

Kindergartner Jalaysia Blackman has fun at the Super Hero Color Run with third graders Kaliyah Pontoon and Kylie Burton.

A Coronary Artery Calcium Score Test Could Save Your Life If you are at risk for heart disease, Bradenton Cardiology Center has a screening test that can help detect the amount of calcium deposits, or plaque, in coronary arteries.

Country Club East | Lakewood Ranch 16112 KENDLESHIRE TERRACE SOLD $2,215,000 | 3 BR PLUS DEN, 4.5 BA, 3,108 SF

Risk factors include: • Family history of heart disease • High blood pressure • High cholesterol • Being overweight

• Having diabetes • Being a smoker • Living an inactive or stressful lifestyle

“We have bought four homes with Gloria. All but one home was not in person! Even from afar, Gloria FaceTimed with us, got to know us so well, and she understood what we were looking for.

Gloria knows the local real estate market well and makes the process easy!”

– Ron and Teri G.

Even without any known risk factors, women aged 55 and older and men aged 45 and older may also want to consider getting tested.

Providing concierge service and extensive knowledge of the Suncoast

CT Heart Score tests are self-pay and cost only $50. Ask your primary care doctor about this test.

This noninvasive test takes approximately 15 minutes. There are no needles, dyes or liquids to swallow.

To learn more, visit bradentoncardiology.com Call me today for a complimentary consultation.

Gloria Bracciano Global Real Estate Advisor 941.229.4000 Gloria.Bracciano@PremierSIR.com 316 Manatee Avenue West Bradenton, FL 34205 8340 Lakewood Ranch Blvd, Ste 210 Lakewood Ranch, FL 34202

PremierSothebysRealty.com

For language assistance, disability accommodations and the nondiscrimination notice, visit our website. 22681583-1242203 11/22 374597-1

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 and neither suggests nor infers that Sotheby’s International Realty participated as either the listing or cooperating agent or broker in the sale or purchase of the properties depicted.

941.748.2277 bradentoncardiology.com

381640-1

8B

YourObserver.com

EAST COUNTY OBSERVER

PET PICS

|

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 1, 2022

9B

Unique Realtors

Have photos of your four-legged family members? We want to see them!

Share them at YourObserver.com/contests/pet-pics to be published online and for a chance to see them in print!

U N I Q U E R E A L E S TAT E F I R M

AFTERNOON SNOOZE: Duke, whose home is in Central Park in Lakewood Ranch, rests in mom’s chair with his favorite blanket.

LET AGE AND EXPERIENCE HELP YO U S E L L YO U R H O M E !

Questions or Concerns? We Have Answers!

Over 55+ years combined experience in Real Estate Over 50+ years living in Manatee/Sarasota County

A R C T EA M A L IC E BOZZA 941-5 18 -390 6 RO BIN GRUT ERS 941-320 -10 71 C H ARL ES R AT LIFF 732-735 -0 738

LIVIN G VO GUE R EAL ESTATE

UTC MA L L - L A KEWOOD RA NCH MA I N STREET - DOW NTOW N SA RA SOTA

Bradenton East Integrative Medicine

Family Practice with an Integrative Approach When choosing your healthcare provider, consider a physician who sees YOU as a Whole Person, NOT A SET OF SYMPTOMS. Integrative medicine practitioners

spend time with their patients, listening to their histories and looking at the interactions among genetic, environmental, and lifestyle factors that can influence long-term health and complex, chronic disease.

Offering Bioidentical Hormones

MEET & GREET

DEC 8 • 12PM -2PM

LWR GOLF & COUNTRY CLUB 7650 Legacy Boulevard, Lakewood Ranch, 34202 Join us for a complementary lunch & short presentation about her experience writing and publishing her book.

RSVP: Nap@nancyperpall.com www.NancyPerpall.com Books available for purchase on Amazon, Barnes & Noble and anywhere books are sold.

as a natural approach to Hormone balance without the risks associated with synthetic hormone replacement.

ASK US ABOUT BHRT PELLET THERAPY AND HOW WE CAN MATCH YOUR NEEDS.

Our Practitioners: Showcasing her new book,

Karen O. Brainard, M.D. Samantha L. Notman, D.O. Carol Lewis, APRN

AROUND WHICH ALL THINGS BEND

In this tale of passion, and hope, a Montana cowboy, Alex Whitgate, deals with the consequences of breaking his engagement to Gwynn O’Brien, an entitled young women who becomes obsessed with revenge. When Alex travels to Charleston, SC, a city steeped in history from the Civil War to pirates and antebellum romance, he meets and falls in love with a beautiful graduate student, Brooke Bryant. But can their relationship survive the distance and an ex-fiancé whose sights are set on a romantic reunion or are there certain love stories that are not meant to be?

385952-1

NANCY PERPALL

Nancy Perpall is a former critical care nurse who became a a divorce lawyer.

She practiced Family Law for 34 years and saw many of her clients go through heart wrenching divorces. Those experiences have inspired her write a story that will educate the reader about the issues couples face in marriage.

392881-1

MEET THE AUTHOR!

Bridgett Edwards, APRN Deborah Howard-Patton, APRN Camille Kasten, APRN

check us out at beimonline.com 8614 State Rd. 70 E., Ste. 200, Bradenton, FL 34202 | (941) 727-1243

384102-1

C U R RENT LY T WO LOC AT IONS TO S ER VE YOU

10B

WEATHER

EAST COUNTY OBSERVER

|

YourObserver.com

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 1, 2022

NATURE’S BEAUTY WITH

FORECAST THURSDAY, DEC. 1 High: 79 Low: 66 Chance of rain: 7%

FRIDAY, DEC. 2 High: 80 Low: 61 Chance of rain: 5%

SUNRISE / SUNSET Sunrise Sunset Thursday, Dec. 1

7:02a

5:34p

Friday, Dec. 2

7:03a

5:34p

Saturday, Dec. 3

7:03a

5:34p

Sunday, Dec. 4

7:04a

5:34p

Monday, Dec. 5

7:05a

5:34p

Tuesday, Dec. 6

7:06a

5:34p

Wednesday, Dec. 7

7:06a

5:35p

MOON PHASES

SATURDAY, DEC. 3 High: 82 Low: 62 Chance of rain: 7%

SUNDAY, DEC. 4

Paddi Juliano took a photo of this unique cloud formation near Lakewood Ranch High School.

High: 82 Low: 63 Chance of rain: 7%

Dec. 16 Last

Dec. 23 New

Dec. 29 First

Jan. 6 Full

RAINFALL Monday, Nov. 21

0.2

Tuesday, Nov. 22

0

Wednesday, Nov. 23

0

Thursday, Nov. 24

0

Friday, Nov. 25

0

Saturday, Nov. 26

0.01

Sunday, Nov. 27

0

*Rainfall totals from Sarasota-Bradenton International Airport

Submit your photos at YourObserver.com/Weather. All submissions will be entered for the 2022-23 Weather and Nature photo contest. In February 2023, you will vote for your favorite photo, and the submission with the most votes will win a $500 gift card.

YEAR TO DATE: 2022 51.66 in.

2021 45.79 in.

MONTH TO DATE: 2022 2.64 in.

2021 1.44 in.

The Observer’s

Weather ENTER: &Nature

Sponsored by

YourObserver.com/contests KITCHEN | CABINETRY OUTDOOR PAVERS

393510-1

2022-23 PHOTO CONTEST

A REFLECTION OF NATURE’S BEAUTY

celebrity cipher “RTC’V MPV XFKMOV KY NCVT VOP VWFY TD XOFCMNCM STKWBPJD VT DNV VOP ETWJR. VOP ETWJR OFB VT XOFCMP VT DNV STK.”

IPWWS MTWRS

“YOJZYPM CDGP XTYWIPMO. ... CDGP NYIJ SYWW VTYON CDG’PM XDDW YL CDG ID VTYJ. ... VTMC’WW VTBON CDG WBVMP YO WYLM.”

WBGPB HBPBOD

“D’U RPFZHUBFOHSSE H VCXDODWB VBNXCF. COYBNMDXB, D MCPSZF’O TB ZCDFL XCUB CR OYB DFXHFB UCWDBX OYHO D ZC.”

NDZSBE XACOO

Puzzle Three Clue: T equals B © 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

391426-1

57 Like all leap years 60 Half and half?

61 Canoe and catamaran DOWN 62 Triceps’ limbs 1 Like Scar and Jafar 63 Electronics brand once 2 Lead singer for U2 owned by GE 3 Eighths of bytes 66 Phone notification 4 “Get on it now!”

67 Covered in gold leaf 5 Hairy primate 68 Envelope part 6 Scarlet Knights’ New 69 Red and Black but Jersey school strangely not Blue 7 Give a guarantee 70 10% church donation 8 Biblical poem 71 Fire remnants 9 Salty part of a margarita 72 Receptacle that might glass catch bacon fat 10 Little demon 76 Fragrant bud in cooking 11 Tousle 77 “Iliad” poet 12 Elusive Golden Arches 78 Last Greek letter sandwiches 80 Judge of the Yankees 13 Rock concert venue, 81 F on a test? perhaps 82 Gatherings of traders 14 Sales agent, for short 83 “In what way?”

15 “Oh, yeah!” drink mascot 85 Decide to join 16 “Frozen” queen 86 Enemy 17 Ready to be hit, in golf 87 Home before birth 19 Owner’s document 88 No ___ Traffic 24 ___ de Janeiro 91 Bakeware item for angel 25 Dressed (in) food cake 30 Dead-tree medium 94 Alpine athletes 33 Like an overcast sky in 95 Golden State sch. where ©2022 Universal Uclick 95 Take illegally, as a throne London?

64 Org. with Flames and 38 Choose, as a wedding ACROSS Reggie Miller played 97 Important time period Lightning date 34 Skirt fold 1 Flow backward 96 “Olde” store 98 Mushroom in miso soup, 35 Come across as 65 Tool for grabbing iron 4 Former Olympic swimmer 41 Screwed up 99 Potential maybe filings?

42 Big bounds 37 Prickly shrub Torres buyer’s submission 100 Sand dunes, say?

70 “You’re it!” game 44 Bike trip 38 Unable to escape 8 Overly formal 101 “Take ___ on the 104 Ctrl-___-Delete 73 Property claims 47 Road crew’s goo 39 Before the deadline 12 Bazaar, for one couch” 106 OK, or gorgeous 74 Camelid that spits 48 Bitter brews 40 More loyal 18 There’s nothing there!

102 Golf standard 108 Fruit that might flavor 75 Where to hear Alexa 49 Gabrielle of volleyball 43 Versatile blackjack card 103 Remainder of a ticket 20 Musical work 50 More-played part of a 45 79 Country with the Star of gin 45 Intellectual substance 21 Actor Liu who played 104 Two-way, as an outlet 109 Patronize a restaurant 46 Gallery stand David on its flag 51 Southern neighbor of Shang-Chi 105 “Doctor Zhivago” 113 Flask for serving wine 81 Amazing actions 48 Summer mo. with no 22 Louisiana cooking style Brazil heroine 115 Bottoms of tropical 82 “Hello” in 79-Across 53 Fasteners for a big federal holidays 23 Online rascals?

107 “Doctor Zhivago,” for 84 Traveler’s skill in sci-fi? fruits? trunk?

49 People who put trash to one 26 Restful state 119 One may collect junk 88 Duo 56 Ordained group good use 27 Go bananas 110 Sign of what’s coming 120 Concept 89 Valentine candy shape 57 Choose, as a senator 50 Go undercover?

28 Beach bird 111 No more than 90 YMCA lifeguards’ spots 121 Formal agreement 58 Fill with bubbles 52 Metric weight 29 Turn rapidly 112Old Russian ruler 122 Buggy code phase 59 Sedgwick of “Phenom- 91 Take out of the freezer 53 Bed supports 31 Wee boy 114Sheer wonder 123 Pungent buds in 92 Chill, with “out” enon” 54 Hatcher of “Desperate 116 Altar answer, one hopes 32 Avoid highway encooking 93 Gas brand in Canada 60 Egg-bearing organ Housewives” trances?

117 “Duck Hunt” console 124 Out-of-pocket amount 94 Bouquet bottoms 61 Ballet support 55 Give a hoot 36 Addis ___, Ethiopia 118 TV type 125 Finishes up 126 Negative conjunction

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: Z equals P

POSTSCRIPTS by Stella Zawistowski. Edited by Ross Trudeau

Puzzle One Clue: E equals W

crossword

12-01-22

YourObserver.com

EAST COUNTY OBSERVER

|

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 1, 2022

11B

FDA APPROVES OTC’S (OVER-THE-COUNTER HEARING AIDS)

NO PRESCRIPTION NECESSARY! AS SEEN ON

“A ‘GAME-CHANGER’ FOR MILLIONS OF AMERICANS” - CNN*

SELF-FITTING OTC HEARING AIDS

SAVE

THOUSANDS!

* Christensen, Jen. “A 'Game-Changer' for Millions of Americans: You Can Now Buy Hearing Aids over the Counter.”

CNN, Cable News Network, 17 Oct. 2022, https://www.cnn.com/2022/10/17/health/over-the-counter-hearing-aids-available.

393304-1

ENHANCE PLUS™ SELF-FITTING OTC HEARING AIDS

12B

EAST COUNTY OBSERVER

|

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 1, 2022

YourObserver.com

SELF-FITTING OTC HEARING AIDS

A TRUSTED NAME IN AUDIO SOLUTIONS! Long Battery Life Up to 70 hours of continuous use.1

Personalized to Your Hearing Easily set up and personalize your hearing aids with the Sony | Hearing control app2.

Prescription-grade Sound Quality Sony’s technology offers excellent sound quality similar to traditional hearing aids.

Comfortable Fit to Your Ears Comes with four soft ear tip sizes specially designed to maximize comfort and ease.

High-quality Noise Reduction Earbuds are linked wirelessly to deliver effective noise reduction for your environment.

Adjusts to Your Environment

393305-1

Automatically analyzes, adjusts, and optimizes sound based on your surroundings.

Actual performance varies based on settings, environmental conditions, and usage. 2Sony | Hearing control app – Use app on smartphone to personalize settings. Download app at Google Play and the App Store. Network services, content, operating system and software subject to terms and conditions and may be changed, interrupted or discontinued at any time and may require registration.

1

YourObserver.com

EAST COUNTY OBSERVER

|

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 1, 2022

13B

ENHANCE PLUS SELF-FITTING OTC HEARING AIDS ™

3-IN-1 EARBUDS FOR HEARING ENHANCEMENT, MUSIC AND CALLS These pioneering hearing-enhancing earbuds have been specifically engineered with advanced medicalgrade technology, to help you focus on what you want to listen to, without just turning up the volume.

Innovative design uses 4 dedicated microphones to reduce background noise and improve speech clarity, so whether you’re chatting with your partner in a busy café or catching up with friends over dinner, the sounds that matter will be crystal-clear.

Small Buds, Big Difference Medical-grade hearing enhancement that fits seamlessly into your life.

Enhanced Audibility Powerful, world-class hearing enhancement.

Fully Rechargeable Lasts 24 hours on a single charge.

Advanced Technology State-of-the-art signal processing for incredible audio clarity.

Elite Hearing Centers of America

Rated by top hearing care professionals at Elite Hearing Centers of America.

393306-1

O T C H E A R I N G A I D R AT I N G S

EAST COUNTY OBSERVER

|

YourObserver.com

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 1, 2022

YOUR OTC EXPERTS Elite Hearing Centers of America

Rated

WALK IN & WALK OUT WITH YOUR NEW HEARING AIDS THE SAME DAY! E SAV ANDS!

THOUS

UP TO 45-DAY 100% MONEY BACK GUARANTEE!*

WE ALWAYS PROVIDE THESE SERVICES FREE!

Reprogram your current hearing aids with your new hearing prescription and up-to-date software improvements at no charge.

FREE

HEARING AID CHECK UP

It is important to have your hearing checked at least once a year.

Our Video Otoscope can detect if ear wax may be the reason you are experiencing hearing difficulty.

FREE

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HEARING EXAM & CONSULTATION! NO OBLIGATION!

VIDEO EAR SCAN MAKES SURE IT’S NOT EAR WAX

OTHER DIGITAL SPECIALS 100% Digital Open-Fit BTE (Open Fit Behind-the-Ear)

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100% Digital CIC (Completely -in-Canal)

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WAS $795

WAS $995

WAS $995

WAS $1995

NOW 395 $

each

(Up to 40 db Loss)

NOW 395 $

each

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Elite Hearing Centers

NOW 495 $

each

(Up to 40 db Loss)

OVER 50 LOCATION NATIONW S IDE

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OPEN NOW: 2807 University Pkwy In Publix Plaza at University Walk

each

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OUR PROFESSIONAL STAFF OF DOCTORS OF AUDIOLOGY & LICENSED HEARING AID SPECIALISTS

of America

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BRADENTON 941-201-6076

DELRAY BEACH 561-501-4392 4900 Linton Blvd #3 (In between Poppies Restaurant and Kristi Cleaners)

ROYAL PALM BEACH 561-631-8757 11985 Southern Blvd (Publix at Crestwood Square - next to Carter Healthcare)

(Bradenton Pain and Wellness Center)

BOYNTON BEACH 561-619-9274 4739 N Congress Ave (In between Dollar Tree and Fon Shan Chinese)

JUPITER 561-529-3011 6725 West Indiantown Rd Bay 39 (In Jupiter West Plaza)

2001 Manatee Avenue E. Ste 104

*Return period varies by device. Contact us to find out more about the device you are interested in.

SOUTH CAROLINA LICENSE NUMBERS: HTP-1029, HTP-1024, HTP-1031, HTP-1023, HAS-0573, HAS-0642, HAS-0637, HAS- 0638, HAS-0633

GEORGIA LICENSE NUMBERS: HADS000995, HADS000996, HADS001001, HADS001003

393307-1

14B

Made for where you live. Here!

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 1, 2022

RED PAGES DEADLINES: Classifieds - Monday at Noon 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..

Garage/ Moving/ Estate Sales

7 LARGE plastic storange containers w/ lids, $6 each.

941-932-1172 CANDLELIGHT TEA CUPS and sauces service for 12. Exc condition $15 per set OBO. Photos available. 203-650-0070 MEN’S 26” bicycle, good condition. Schwinn Sidewinder.

New 198. Sell $50.

941-413-6097

Merchandise Wanted SENIOR LOOKING to purchase precious metals, diamonds, time pieces, coins, jewelry, antique and estate jewelry, and some collectors plates. Personal and confidential.

Please call Marc: 941-321-0707 WANTED: TOY TRAINS, old toys, cast iron banks, old guns, whathaveyou? Cash buyer.

941-374-2288 dwilsen@hotmail.com

CALL 941-955-4888 SHOWER CHAIR-$30, fertilizer spreader-$25, pool towel holder$30, metal crane 2ft tall-$50, patio serving cart waterproof-$50.

941-359-8460 UGREEN T3 Active NoiseCanceling Earbuds, $25. (Retail $39.95) UGREEN X6 Hybrid Active Noise-Canceling Earbuds, $35. (Retail $49.95) 941-321-9138

Autos Wanted CASH FOR YOUR CAR We come to you!

Ho Ho Buys cars.

941-270-4400.

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

941809-3660, 941-809-3662.

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

Call Hawley Motors: 941-923-3421.

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

SELL IT NOW!

15% DISCOUNT FOR 4-WEEK RUN PLACE YOUR AD: Call: 941-955-4888 Email: RedPages@ YourObserver.com

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!

13 models available.

Daily and weekly rentals available We also repair other Brands Open 10 to 5 daily except Sundays and holidays 12208 Cortez Road Cortez, FL

ZILDJIAN CYMBALS polished bronze, 20” gen 16, ride cymbal $120 OBO. (941)928-7708

941-955-4888

YourObserver.com/RedPages

HEROES found here.

Relax. You’ve got better things to do. Find a professional here in the Red Pages.

RED PAGES Made for where you live. Here!

Call 941-955-4888 or visit YourObserver.com/redpages

PERSONAL CARE GIVERPrivate 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.

COVID Negative.

Call Kati: 941-536-7706.

Auto Transport

RED PAGES AD RATES

SANYO DORM refrigerator, like new. $60. Waterford 13" footed vase $125. Art work Trevi fountain framed $15. 941 727 5924

Use the RED PAGES to clean out your garage

auto

CARRIER AC HEAT pump. $4,000 OBO. 2 years old, good condition. Call 248-634-3623

ST ARMAND'S CIRCLE 5000 sq. ft. Corner with three faces, first floor 5000 square-foot roughly,192 chairs inside, 94 outside (around 1500 square-foot more outside) 362 parking spots close to the property, Direct deal with the owners. Contract Starting in January 2023. $37,000 (561) 931-9727

Adult Care Services

FIND BUYERS & SELLERS HERE! 941-955-4888 YourObserver.com/RedPages

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

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

SELL YOUR STUFF HERE! Cleaning BRAZILIAN CLEANING Service

by Maria. Residential. Meticulous Cleaning. Excellent References.

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

YOUR HOME DESERVES VIP TREATMENT Edla’s VIP Cleaning is a local cleaning company that has been in business for over 24 years.

We are very committed to quality housecleaning and highly recommended. 5 star reviews.

941-400-2866

This week’s Crossword answers

Advertise your business or service in the Observer

RED PAGES CALL TODAY 941-955-4888 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.

35+ years experience.

This week’s Celebrity Cipher answers Puzzle One Solution: “Don’t get caught up into the trap of changing yourself to fit the world. The world has to change to fit you.”

Berry Gordy Puzzle Two Solution: “Inspire your children. ... Your kids will think you’re cool if you do this. ... They’ll thank you later in life.”

Laura Marano Puzzle Three Solution: “I’m fundamentally a positive person.

Otherwise, I wouldn’t be doing some of the insane movies that I do.”

Ridley Scott

This week’s Sudoku answers

©2022 Universal Uclick

©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

General Merchandise

You’re only cheating yourself.

Items Under $200

GARAGE SALE 16411 County Road 675, Parrish 12/3 & 12/4 - 8:00 am - 3:00 pm Household, costume jewelry and collectibles.

Commercial Property for Rent

peekers’ place

stuff

ESTATE SALE Sat. 12/3 and Sun. 12/4. 8 to 12 4435 Beauchamp Ct, 34243.

Artwork, LR furniture, mirrors, queen bed set, patio set, Christmas decor, tools, men's designer shirts

real estate

Service Directory - Friday at 3PM • PAYMENT: Cash, Check or Credit Card

MOW OVER the competition!

redpages@yourobserver.com • yourobserver.com/redpages

home services

INFORMATION & RATES: 941-955-4888

YourObserver.com

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 1, 2022

Aluminum

Computer

Handyman

KEENS HANDYMAN SERVICES

Pegatronics Computer Instruction and Repair It’s Easier Than You Think!

Hardware Repair Virus / Malware Cleanup Software & Printer Install New Computer Setups New Purchase Consults Seniors & Beginners

“Specializing inin6” Gutters” “Specializing 6” Seamless Seamless Gutters” Dustin Yoder

Dustin Owner Yoder/ Operator

TEXT OR CALL 574-354-7772 KEENS HANDYMAN SERVICES

Health

GET YOUR LIFE BACK!

941-735-3362

393469

393467

Learn Computer Basics Phones/Tablet Help Apple & Microsoft Problems Solved On-Site and Off Much More! Call Today!

Pegatronics.com

941.650.9790 941.650.9790 YoderAluminum.com

Owner /Insured Operator Insured

INTERIOR RENOVATIONS & ANYTHING FROM THE GROUND UP

YoderAluminum.com

Auto Service

Do You Have Neck or Low Back Pain?

Do You Want To Avoid Surgery?

Concrete

BOLAS

SELL YOUR CAR! FAST • EASY • SAFE

WE COME TO YOU

941.270.4400

Give Us a Call - We Can Help

• Driveways CALL TODAY • Sidewalks FOR AN • Patios ESTIMATE! • Stamped Concrete • Slabs RESIDENTIAL & COMMERCIAL • Foundations LICENSED & INSURED

CONCRETE UNLIMITED

FREE CONSULTATION 941.358.2224 Recognized Among the Best Non-Surgical Spinal Decompression Physicians in America

813-417-0981

Board Certified in the specialty of non-surgical spinal decompression

Doors

5-Star Rated

Sliding Glass Door Repair

DR. DAVID CIFRA, DC

“FIX IT - DON’T REPLACE”

www.SarasotaDiscCenter.com DrCifra@SarasotaDiscCenter.com

Midtown Medical Park 1215 S. East Ave. Suite 210 Sarasota, FL 34239

392005

HoHoBuysCars.com Beauty

Home Services

Estate Sales

AMANDA 424.333.0713

Gulf Coast EstatE auCtions

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

Let Gulf Coast Estate Auctions organize & hold an estate sale for you.

Specializing in Cleaning Exterior Home, Windows, Roofs, Solar Panels, Driveways, Sidewalks, Garbage Cans and Gutters. Paver Sanding and Sealing.

Mobile Concierge Services Available

Cleaning

AM Art of Cleaning

Residential

gulfcoastestateauctions.com • Free Consultations 941-274-6537

Patio Furniture Repairs.com

amartcleaning@gmail.com

941-504-0903

FREE PICKUP / DELIVERY • FREE ONSITE QUOTES

Call or text: 941-900-8111 | Email: Newparrishfl@gmail.com

Golf 392915

Christo’s Clock Repair

392010

Don Christo, Sr., Horologist

Too busy to chat?

Get Virtual Health Insurance Quotes, Quickly and Direct To You!

CHASE COURNAN (941) 704 - 7512

Individual/Family • Medicare • Group 392474

2007 Whitfield Park Ave. Sarasota, FL 34243 | cwccustomscarts@gmail.com

CALL FOR AN APPOINTMENT

941-773-0875 • 941-932-5505

Insurance

Golf Cart Repair Lithium Battery Conversion Lift Kits Blue Tooth Speakers General Repair

Clock Repair

“IF IT DOESN’T TIC, TOC TO ME.”

392496

Find anything in the RED PAGES

941-955-4888

FULLY INSURED

RESIDENTIAL COMMERCIAL

Furniture Sales & Repairs Cushions • Slings • Re-powdercoating

(941) 822-3036

4630 5TH ST W BRADENTON

Commercial

Furniture Repair

RESIDENTIAL & COMMERCIAL

• Residential & Commercial • Post-Construction • Move In / Move Out • AIRBNB

941-705-5468

393473

rockstarmobilehair@gmail.com www.rockstarmobilehairsalon.com

Are You Having Dryer Difficulties?

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

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

ESTATE SALES • DOWNSIZING SENIOR TRANSITIONS • ONLINE AUCTIONS

392593

392921

The Only Thing You Have To Lose ... Is The Pain!!

393471

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

Located in salons by jc 200 Central Ave. Suite 15, Sarasota

391991

|

393474

EAST COUNTY OBSERVER

392916

16B

ü WIDE RANGE OF DEDUCTIBLES & COPAYS ü NATIONWIDE PPO NETWORKS ü 12, 24 OR 36 MONTHS POLICIES ü CUSTOMIZE YOUR AFFORDABLE QUOTES FROM:

Doors

Window Repairs • Sliding Glass Door Repairs Sliding Glass Door Deadbolts

Call us today! 941.628.8579 392495

www.ezslider.com

FREE IN-HOM ESTIMATEE S

392927

Of course, you can call me anytime!

Irrigation

ED’S RAIN MAKER IRRIGATION IRRIGATION (941) 725-8100 REPAIR edsrainmakerirrigation@gmail.com MAINTENANCE Insured Servicing LWR, Parrish and NE Bradenton Find anything in the RED PAGES

941-955-4888

392917

DON’T let your PATIO DOORS be a DRAG or your WINDOWS be a PANE!!

TEXT 941-993-4137 EMAIL steve@setohealthgroup.com VISIT Setohealthgroup.com

YourObserver.com

EAST COUNTY OBSERVER

Painting

• Pool Cage Restoration • Rescreening Specialists • Specialty Screens • Paint • Doors and more!

Satisfaction guarantee Satisfaction Guarantee Pool cage Restoration/ Rescreening specialists Manufacture and Workmanship Warranties

392490

941-345-5264

High-End Interior Painting Services

CustomGraniteServicesLLC@gmail.com

FULLY INSURED • OWNER OPERATED

CJ COOLEY OWNER/OPERATOR

CALL OR TEXT 941-900-9398 TODAY! OWNER: DON HUBIAK

specialty screens / screw replacement / paint Doors and more!

Roofing

Manufacture and workmanship Warranties

We only use the finest quality Benjamin Moore paints!

Complete Interior & Exterior Painting

Homes - Driveways - Sidewalks - Tile & Shingle Roofs - Pool Cages & Decks

COMPLETE INSTALLATION PACKAGE

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

INCLUDES22MOEN MOEN STAINLESS INCLUDES STAINLESS STEEL STEELANTI ANTISLIP SLIP CONCEALED PEEN CONCEALED SCREW SCREW GRAB GRAB BARS (16”BARS & 24”)(16” & 24”)

392012

249 235

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

941-626-3194

Licensed & Insured CCC - 058059 CBC - 1253936

Plumbing 364556 392497

Small plumbing repairs. Replace toilets, faucets, water filters, water softeners and repair leaks.

DRGRABBARS.COM

*DRILLING CHARGES MAY APPLY FOR MARBLE, GRANITE OR PORCELAIN. COUPON REQUIRED.

SHOWER & BATH MAKEOVERS 392011

Cleaned - Regrouted - Caulked - Sealed

Call John 941.377.2940

Free Estimates • Sarasota Resident Since 1974

www.showerandbathsarasota.com

BOOST YOUR BUSINESS Showcase your products or services.

CALL 941-955-4888

Landscaping & Lawn

392918 392019

Call TODAY For a Free Quote • Florida Owned & Operated

Call TODAY For a Free Quote · Florida Owned & Operated

$100 COUPON

$100 COUPON $100 COUPON

Licensed & Insured

Pressure Washing Paver PrSealing essure Washing Painting & Staining Paver Sealing Tile & Grout PaCleaning inting & Staining Window TileCleaning & Grout Cleaning Rescreening Window Cleaning

WE ARE THE SOFT WASH PRESSURE WASHING PROS

$100 COUPON

SOFT WASH

PRESSURE WASHING

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

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

RED PAGES Made for where you live. Here!

Call 941-955-4888 or visit YourObserver.com/redpages

392500

25

UP TO

STANDARD WINDOWS

ws

150

$

senior citizen discount. www.sunsetwindowcleaningsrq.com

Purified water window cleaning available!!

392919

Personal Gardening Services | Designer

The Red Pages is the perfect store to buy and sell locally! You’ll find a wide selection from antiques to furniture to condos!

Serving Longboat Key Since 2005

5

Allison J. Abizaid, M.A.

found here.

For

$

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

STUFF

Lic./Ins.

& Pressure C Window lean t e s i Sun merly known as Sunrise Windo ng

SPECIAL 00

No Job is too Small!

gbyallison@yahoo.com gardensbyallison.com

Res./Com.

INCLUDING SCREENS, TRACKS, MIRRORS & FANS

Rescreening & Repairs

941.400.0431

Windows

$100 COUPON

$100 COUPON $100 COUPON

392499

954-1878 (cell) 780-3346

Power Washing

392302

GLENN KROECKER

941-920-8221

$100 COUPON

THE GRAB BAR GUY

RELIABLE • INSURED

393476

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

Screening

Mark’s Plumbing Service

$100 COUPON $100 COUPON

941.966.0333

Call Tibor for FREE ESTIMATES | 941- 284 - 5880

CREATE BUZZ!

392491

GRAB BARS GRAB BARS * $ $235

Building & Roofing Contractor

UNIQUE PAINTING & PRESSURE WASHING SERVICES

CALL BEFOREYOU YOU FALL CALL BEFORE FALL

$

Kenneth Fuhlman Inc. (941) 345-5264

393475

941-400-4912

392498

Rescreening & Repairs

SARASOTA INTERIOR PAINTING, LLC

Custom Granite Services, llc

17B

393464

Kitchen/Bath Remodeling

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 1, 2022

|

Advertise your business in the Red Pages. Call 941-955-4888

EAST COUNTY OBSERVER

|

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 1, 2022

YourObserver.com

The natural choice for luxury coastal living.

Wild Blue at Waterside in Lakewood Ranch by Stock Development is a natural choice for those who appreciate luxury living, a connected and relaxed coastal vibe and an array of social and active lifestyle amenities. Here, a verdant waterfront setting, along with quality design and construction, blend seamlessly to create a naturally beautiful community. Featuring a collection of single-family homes by some of the region’s most acclaimed builders.

Sales Center Now Open: 8307 Lake Club Blvd., Lakewood Ranch, FL 34202 941.313.3852 Join our VIP Priority list at WildBluelwr.com Coming early 2023 ANCHOR BUILDERS • ARTHUR RUTENBERG HOMES • JOHN CANNON HOMES LEE WETHERINGTON HOMES • STOCK LUXURY HOMES • STOCK CUSTOM HOMES

ORAL REPRESENTATIONS CANNOT BE RELIED UPON AS CORRECTLY STATING THE REPRESENTATIONS OF THE DEVELOPER. FOR CORRECT REPRESENTATIONS REFERENCE SHOULD BE MADE TO THE DOCUMENTS REQUIRED BY SECTION 718.503, FLORIDA STATUTES, TO BE FURNISHED BY A DEVELOPER TO A BUYER OR LESSEE. ALL RENDERINGS AND PLANS ARE PROPOSED CONCEPTS SHOWN ONLY FOR MARKETING PURPOSES AND ARE BASED ON THE DEVELOPER’S CURRENT PRELIMINARY DEVELOPMENT PLAN. DEVELOPER RESERVES THE RIGHT TO MODIFY, REVISE OR WITHDRAW THE PROPOSED DEVELOPMENT PLAN IN DEVELOPER’S SOLE DISCRETION WITHOUT NOTICE. NOTHING Proudly presented by HEREIN OR IN ANY OTHER COMMUNICATION SHALL BE DEEMED TO OBLIGATE THE DEVELOPER, OR ANY AFFILIATE OF DEVELOPER, TO CONSTRUCT THE PROJECT OR OFFER ANY OF THE PROJECT FOR SALE, AND NOTHING HEREIN SHALL BE DEEMED A GUARANTY OF ANY KIND. THIS IS NOT AN OFFER TO SALE OR SOLICITATION OF OFFERS TO BUY. 392219-1

18B