East County Observer 3.23.23

Observer

YOU YOUR NEIGHBORS. YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD.

YOUR TOWN

Lakewood Main Street celebrates a wee bit

Main Street at Lakewood Ranch was flooded with a sea of green as people came to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day on March 17.

People enjoyed Irish food and beer, live music, dance performances and kids games.

East County’s Ronda O’Keefe and Tara’s Debra Smith (above) dressed for the occasion.

“I love to see everybody getting together for St. Patty’s Day to celebrate their Irish roots,” O’Keefe said.

While O’Keefe comes from an Irish heritage, Smith said she’s only a “wee bit” Irish.

“But (on St. Patrick’s Day), everybody’s Irish,” Smith said.

Dual-purpose art

Barbara Kaplan of Rye Wilderness makes pottery that serves two purposes.

She sees her pieces as not only a spot of bright color in someone’s home but each piece also has a practical use.

Kaplan, who started making pottery 10 years ago, makes omelet dishes, brie bakers, spoon rests, egg separators and more.

“I want to make something functional and things that people will actually use,” Kaplan said. “They can put it out anywhere to add some color to the place, but it could also be used.”

Kaplan (above) showed her pottery work at the Creative Arts Association of Lakewood Ranch’s Spring Show and Sale.

“I’m not going to end up in the Smithsonian,” Kaplan said with a laugh. “Picasso doesn’t have to worry about me. Making pottery is just a way for me to relax.”

Hooked on fishing PAGE 12

Ranch joins rush for plush

John Cannon fires off his new designs for two exclusive neighborhoods in Lakewood Ranch. SEE PAGE 3

Tropical Nights turns up the fundraising heat

The annual event is the leading fundraiser for Meals on Wheels Plus-Manatee.

SEE PAGE 18

YOGA WITH A TWIST

Myakka’s Corinn Smith hopes her goat yoga classes can be a healing and relaxing experience with plenty of goat snuggles. SEE PAGE 8

Liz Ramos

Corinn Smith, owner of Blissful Goat Yoga, says she’s found a piece of paradise in Myakka City.

File photo Myakka City’s Danny Cacchiotti meets Queen Elizabeth II, who is being portrayed by Lakewood Ranch’s Sylvia Day, during the Meals on Wheels Plus-Manatee’s Tropical Nights in 2022.

Liz Ramos Liz Ramos

Friendships bloom at garden event

IAN SWABY STAFF WRITER

Lakewood Ranch’s Pam Glenn left a Gardeners Out East presentation on March 13 with a new base of knowledge of orchids, as well as a new friend.

Glenn and Sarasota’s Joanne Kinsey struck up a conversation at the orchid event and now plan to meet for lunch soon to discuss their interests.

Both ladies received pointers in case they decide to add orchids to their home gardens.

“Everything I know about orchids, I learned today,” Glenn said. “And I just found this to be a very welcoming group.”

Carolyn Lowry-Nation founded Gardeners Out East in 2014 as a way that people could make friends while they enhanced their green thumbs.

Lowry-Nation said as a child, she saw the friendships her mother Marie Haynes made through her own gardening club.

“It meant all the world to her,” she said.

She felt that the presentation, hosted by Manatee County Orchid Society President Julie McClure, offered an experience that would be interesting to club members and to those in the community who might want to join the club.

The event was held at Robert Toale and Sons Celebration of Life Center in Lakewood Ranch.

“I don’t know one of us who hasn’t bought and killed an orchid,” Lowry-Nation said. “When you come to Florida, that’s what you do.”

She said every little bit of information counts.

McClure said there were no hard and fast rules when it comes to growing orchids.

“Every genus is different,” McClure said.

She said orchid growers often specialize in one particular type of orchid.

McClure also gave some helpful pointers.

One example of a tip from McClure involved orchids that suffer during the cold of the Christmas season.

She said a strand of Christmas lights, along with a covering, could provide warmth.

She said Phalaenopsis orchids are a type of orchid that benefits from a transparent pot, or a pot with holes,

ABOUT GARDENERS OUT EAST

Mission statement:

through which light can reach the roots of the plant. This simulates the conditions on a tree, where orchids grow, she said. She said over watering is the main reason orchids die.

“Like everything else, too much water is as bad as too little water. Too much water rots orchids,” she said.

She said one genus of orchid, the dendrobium, needs to dry before it can bloom. If it is watered excessively, she said, it will grow keikis, which are small offshoots that hinder the growth of the orchid.

McClure said she was glad to be able to provide advice.

“People get discouraged when they lose their orchids all the time,

“Gardeners Out East provides education, resources and networking opportunities for our members to promote the love of Florida gardening as well as civic and environmental responsibility.”

Meeting times: 1 p.m., second Monday of each month, December to May

For more information: GardenersOutEast.com

because they don’t know why. So it’s nice to be able to tell them what they’re doing wrong and encourage them to try some different things.”

Members said they loved the little tidbits of information.

Glenn said she found the advice to

use a transparent pot to be interesting.

“She has a green thumb with roses and orchids,” said Kinsey, who said she had known McClure from their membership together in the Manatee River Garden Club. “She’s inspirational.”

Lowry-Nation said in addition to hosting events such as the orchid presentation, quite a bit has been accomplished since the club began.

She said the club built a butterfly garden in Summerfield Park and a Blue Star veteran’s memorial at Lakewood Ranch Town Hall and is planning a Gold Star memorial for the upcoming Lakewood Ranch Library.

Lowry-Nation said the club began with 10 members but has expanded to 40 members. The club is affiliated with Florida Federation of Garden Clubs, which she said includes 10,000 members.

“We’re a fun club,” she said. “We just enjoy each other. We’re like a family, a wonderful team.”

Seminar about orchids unites gardeners who bond over similar interests.

Photos by Ian Swaby

Julie McClure, president of Manatee County Orchid Society, discusses the selection of plants she has brought to the event.

Lakewood Ranch’s Judy Johnson and Madeline Daraio are members of Gardeners Out East, and Carolyn Lowry-Nation is president.

RANCH ADDS EXCLUSIVE NEIGHBORHOODS

area, 21 homes sold for $1 million or more. However, only one home sold for $3 million or more, and that was a flat $3 million.

Laura Cole, a senior vice president for developer Schroeder-Manatee Ranch, said Lakewood Ranch always has had luxury offerings and custom programs in neighborhoods such as the Country Club, the Lake Club and the new Wild Blue, but she said Monarch Acres and Kingfisher Lake will raise the bar for exclusive neighborhoods.

IF YOU GO

THE MODEL EXPERIENCE, JOHN CANNON HOMES

Where: 7500 Island Cove Terrace, Suite 100, Waterside Place

Hours: 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Monday through Saturday; noon to 5 p.m.

Sunday Phone: Call Blaise Bright, design build specialist at 320-3229

About: The Model Experience is set up to offer prospective homebuyers ideas to incorporate into their new homes and to give information about the new neighborhoods of Monarch Acres and Kingfisher Estates.

“This gives Lakewood Ranch more upper-end buyers,” Cannon said. “They wanted a spot for the CEOs, the business owners who wanted an exclusive spot.”

The lots at Monarch Acres all are 1 acre or larger with some up to 2 acres. The lots at Kingfisher Estates will be approximately a half acre, but 12 of those 13 lots are on the water. Both will have one road that will service the community. Monarch Acres, in Manatee County, will be gated while Kingfisher Estates, in Sarasota County, will not.

The first home Cannon is building in Monarch Acres should be finished in the fall and will be more than 7,000 square feet of living area. Construction has yet to begin at Kingfisher Estates.

“These homes are very custom, with high finishes,” he said. “These will be discerning buyers. They want it all.”

Cannon said it will be a nice alternative to selecting a home in the “upper end” of some of Lakewood Ranch’s top communities.

He expects some of the buyers will be those who would have looked at the bayfront or the beach front in Sarasota, but due to factors such as hurricanes or red tide, have decided that Lakewood Ranch is a great option.

“You don’t have to leave here when the storm is coming,” Cannon said.

A Siesta Key resident, Cannon said he and his family lived in one of his Lakewood Ranch models during Hurricane Ian.

“People understand that they can live here and keep a boat in dry storage,” he said.

The Monarch Acres property will not have any model homes while Cannon will build a model home at Kingfisher Estates.

Earlier this month, John Cannon Homes opened The Model Experience at Waterside Place to show prospective buyers what they could build at either of the two new neighborhoods.

“The first thing we ask is ‘How can I make (your home) better for you?” he said.

JAY HEATER MANAGING EDITOR

The upper crust in Lakewood Ranch is rising a bit higher.

Luxury homebuilder John Cannon Homes has begun work on two small, exclusive communities in Lakewood Ranch aimed at the elite.

Monarch Acres will be a community of just eight luxury homes located on Uihlein Road, just to the west of The Concession. Kingfisher Estates will offer 13 lots, with 12 of those on Kingfisher Lake.

The starting price for homes in either community is approximately $3 million and John Cannon said he expects the price to soar as high as $8 million to $9 million depending on amenities and custom design.

In 2022, a Concession mansion set a new Lakewood Ranch area record for a home sale, bringing $7.98 million.

On March 21, Realtor Stacy Haas of Michael Saunders & Co. announced a home sale of $5.15 million, the highest price ever for a Lake Club home.

However, two communities offering 21 homes all at $3 million or more to start is something new for Lakewood Ranch.

Consider that between Feb. 27 and March 10 in the Lakewood Ranch

“These are small communities of exclusive homes,” she said. “This is the maturation of Lakewood Ranch. We have a number of different flavors here, and I am excited about these.”

Cannon has figured prominently in building custom homes in Lakewood Ranch’s most prestigious neighborhoods, but he always was part of a builders program.

Luxury builders would present

models of their exclusive homes on-site and then buyers would pick whomever they wanted to build their home in the neighborhood.

This time, Cannon bought the homesites and will do everything himself in the two neighborhoods.

“I give John credit,” Cole said. “He put his hand up. He always has believed in the potential of Lakewood Ranch. He always has stepped up.”

Cannon, standing at the site of the first home being built in Monarch Acres, said Lake Club’s new home offerings were winding down as that community was nearing capacity.

“We were hoping to continue what we had started in Lakewood Ranch,” he said. “We saw the market trending toward exclusive homes in Lakewood Ranch.”

Cannon talked to SMR about creating smaller, more exclusive developments and how they fit into SMR’s master plan.

With 3D design and actual models of rooms on-site, the Model Experience will use technology to allow people to see their future vision for a home.

“We don’t create the house,” Cannon said. “She did. She is the one who opens the door, and shows off what she created.”

Cannon said the time is right for the exclusive communities.

“Lakewood Ranch has matured,” he said. “It is a destination now, with its amenities and the lifestyle. You have shopping, I-75, golfing, trails, the airport.”

Cannon noted that those who want to be on a waterfront will enjoy the views at Kingfisher Estates.

“And they have the only lots on the lake that you can have a private boat dock,” he said. “You can cruise over to Waterside Place.”

Monarch Acres and Kingfisher Estates will offer a combined 21 homes, starting at $3 million.

Jay Heater

Builder John Cannon says the time is right for his two, new exclusive neighborhoods in Lakewood Ranch, Monarch Acres and Kingfisher Estates.

Courtesy rendering John Cannon’s Oulina model will offer more modern architecture along Kingfisher Lake in Waterside.

Lake Club home sells for $5.15 million

A 6,648-square-foot Lake Club home at 8019 Bowspirit Way has sold for $5.15 million.

The sale was announced by Michael Saunders & Co.’s Stacy Haas, who represented the sellers.

In a release, Michael Saunders & Co. said it is the highest-priced home ever sold in the Lake Club.

The home is located on 1.13 acres and has six bedrooms, eight bathrooms and a four-car garage.

The home was built by Stock Custom Homes.

According to the release, the home sold after being on the market less than three months for 94% of the list price.

Haas is Michael Saunders’ top agent in Lakewood Ranch, selling more than $590 million in career sales volume.

Winn-Dixie to close in Lakewood Ranch

Winn-Dixie, the grocery store that came into Lakewood Ranch as competition for a string of Publix stores, will close its location at The Green on April 10.

When Winn-Dixie opened Nov. 11, 2020 at The Green, Regional Vice President Joey Medina said the store would cater to the needs of Lakewood Ranch, with healthy food options, a great variety and high

quality items. But two years and four months after opening, that pursuit has ended.

“We have made the difficult decision to close the Winn-Dixie store located at 11525 State Road

70 E. in Lakewood Ranch,” said Meredith Hurley, the senior director of communications and community for Southeastern Grocers, in an email.

“While we understand that closing this store will impact the local community, we want to assure you this decision was not made lightly. All store associates who wish to continue employment with WinnDixie have been offered positions at nearby locations. The Lakewood Ranch Winn-Dixie store will be working hard to continue delivering the great service and value our customers have come to expect until the time of closure in April.”

The store had replaced Earth Fare, a specialty natural and organic grocery chain store that opened in January 2018. Earth Fare closed early in 2020 because the chain shut down operations. Company officials said at the time the Lakewood Ranch Earth Fare actually was performing well.

Parkinson’s Expo set for convention center

The 2023 Parkinson’s Expo presented by the Neuro Challenge Foundation runs 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. March 25 at the Bradenton Area Convention Center.

It is an interactive, free event that, according to a Neuro Challenge Foundation release, “intends to educate, engage and empower the Parkinson’s community.”

The expo features renowned Parkinson’s experts and also offers booths and exhibits for those who attend. Everyone who attends receives an expo swag bag.

Neuro Challenge of Sarasota features more than 45 monthly educational, support and therapeutic programs along with community resource referrals, individualized care advice and educational events. For a list of speakers and a full schedule of the event, go to NeuroChallenge.org.

Murray Friedberg, M.D.

Robert Edelman, M.D.

Scott Silverman, M.D.

Robert Sambursky, M.D.

Pooja Khator, M.D.

Jeffrey Davis, M.D.

Jody Abrams, M.D.

Paul Brannan, M.D.

Selina Lin, M.D.

Philip Ames, M.D.

Neal Kansara, M.D.

Courtesy photo

Realtor Stacy Haas of Michael Saunders & Co. announced the sale of a $5.15 million Lake Club home on Tuesday.

Creekwood roundabout raises concerns

JAY HEATER MANAGING EDITOR

Diane Carter stood outside her Creekwood home and looked out at a pond that was almost completely covered by ducklings.

“Is our wildlife going to go away?” she said with a forlorn look on her face.

Diane and Tom Carter hosted several concerned Creekwood neighborhood homeowners March 17 at their Terrace East home.

The Carters’ home, which has been in the family for 19 years, is most susceptible to change as Manatee County plans a roundabout at Creekwood Boulevard and 73rd Street East, which is the entrance into the community.

While homeowners had their concerns about the roundabout, they also came to support the Carters.

Tom Carter stepped forward to answer his wife’s question about the wildlife going away from their backyard.

“This is a dog-and-pony show,”

Tom Carter said. “Everything will be gone.”

Tom Carter said county officials have told him it could be possible that a large pond behind his home and several trees would need to be removed for the project. He said the new road configuration would have traffic passing his home only about 30 yards away.

Currently, his backyard can best be described as tranquil.

Tom Carter said the county has looked into building the traffic circle on the opposite side of Creekwood Boulevard (to the southeast), but that would involve filling in part or all of a huge pond.

“I was told that would have been a

$6.2 million project,” he said.

Katie Walstrom, who has lived on 72nd Street for 25 years, said it is not right to cut into the Carters’ property.

“I don’t understand why you take property in the middle of town,” she said.

She also was concerned that no signs were placed at the roundabout site or in the Creekwood neighborhood.

Ogden Clark, the strategic affairs manager for Manatee County’s Public Works Department, said the land acquisition for the project was not as extreme as the Carters believed it to be. And he said the county currently is looking at other options for the roundabout.

Construction on the project was supposed to start in January and be completed in January 2024, but the county has put on the brakes after listening to Creekwood residents’

biggest concerns was that the sign announcing the project was on 52nd Place East coming out of the shopping center and not at the actual roundabout site at Creekwood Boulevard and 73rd Street East. The concerned residents said it was misleading and added they could never read the sign anyway because the print was too small and that there are too many traffic concerns at that spot to look around.

Diane Carter said she didn’t know about the project until she saw workers planning stakes into her property.

When Joe Cantalupo, who has lived in Creekwood for 29 years, saw the project sign for the first time on 52nd Place East, he said he through “it was a joke sign.”

“That roundabout is not going to do anything,” Cantalupo said. “It will be a hindrance. It will destroy the entrance to Creekwood.”

Jeff and Maureen Denler, who have lived on 52nd Terrace East for 18 years, said they were concerned both about the traffic at their community entrance and the noise from the road being closer to the homes.

They also said they thought the roundabout was going to be built where the sign about the project was posted.

Clark said the county is looking at options in realignment that could be a win-win for both the motorists and the residents.

ABOUT THE PROJECT

What: Planned roundabout at Creekwood Boulevard and 73rd Street East, Bradenton

Why: Creekwood Boulevard at 52nd Place East has been a problem intersection as traffic exiting the shopping center via 52nd Place East backs up into the shopping center as drivers attempt to make a left-hand turn on Creekwood Boulevard.

Many drivers already make a right hand turn on to Creekwood Boulevard and then make a U-turn to head back to State Road 70. The traffic conflict has created safety concerns. Because of the proximity of the Creekwood Boulevard and 52nd Place East to the S.R. 70 intersection (.1 mile), a traffic signal is not feasible.

Cost: $1.775,000 overall. Design $200,000; land purchase $50,000; construction $1.25 million; equipment/ project management $275,000

concerns. Clark said District 5 Commissioner Vanessa Baugh asked Public Works to take another look at the project.

“I don’t believe the brakes are on,” said Kelly Blaski, who has lived on 73rd Street for two years with her husband, Rick Blaski. “This was so not up front. We didn’t know about this, and it is like things are getting shoved down our throat.”

Kelly Blaski also is worried that if a roundabout is built right outside the entrance to the community, it will increase truck traffic going past the entrance.

Rick Blaski said one of his

He said everything has stopped now until updated designs are presented and approved by the commissioners.

The process, Clark said, will be a new design alignment, surveys, the plan being approved by the board of commissioners and property acquisition before construction can begin.

He said construction on the project isn’t likely to begin in the next six months and said a general meeting will be held to discuss the project with Creekwood residents well before that point.

Clark said the county should have enough “wiggle room” to adjust the project.

Manatee County delays project to come up with design options.

Jay Heater Tom and Diane Carter say the county might take out most of their backyard to build a roundabout on Creekwood Boulevard.

“That roundabout is not going to do anything. It will be a hindrance. It will destroy the entrance to Creekwood.”

Joe Cantalupo

Roundtable looks to stem tide

Rep. Vern Buchanan meets with leaders from Manatee and Sarasota counties to discuss actions to lesson red tide’s impact on the region in the future and to ensure more help comes from the federal government.

As red tide continued to grip the beaches of the Suncoast, U.S. Rep. Vern Buchanan met March 17 with leaders of Manatee and Sarasota counties to compile their feedback and discuss future actions.

Charlie Hunsicker, the director of Manatee County Natural Resources, told Buchanan at the Beach House on Bradenton Beach that he has been a great help in the past.

“When you started, you were right there with us on a flood control project — Ware’s Creek,” Hunsicker said in a release. “Flooding had an impact on water quality.”

Buchanan is trying to get more federal support for damages caused by red tide.

In January, Buchanan introduced the Protecting Local Communities from Harmful Algal Blooms Act. The bill, which would amend the Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act, would designate red tide as a major disaster. The change would require the Federal Emergency Management Administration to provide both technical and financial assistance to states suffering from outbreaks of red tide.

Besides Hunsicker, other Manatee County leaders attending the roundtable were Manatee County commissioners Kevin Van Ostenbridge, James Satcher, Amanda Ballard, Mike Rahn and Jason Bearden.

“On the Suncoast, we rely on clean water and white, sandy beaches to

support our economy and our way of life,” Buchanan said in a statement. “Red tide has wreaked havoc on marine life, our waters and the many businesses that rely on Florida’s tourism-based economy.”

Longboat Key Major Ken Schneier said his town has the desire to act as a model community in terms of combatting red tide and ensuring clean waters. He asked for recommendations for how the town could reach that goal.

Those who attended were in agreement on one thing: New steps need to be taken to combat red tide and keep it from worsening.

“Florida’s economy is built on the coast,” said Ed Chiles, the founder of Chiles Hospitality. “We are seeing harmful algal blooms and water quality issues come more often, longer and stronger.”

The importance of local estuaries to the area in terms of water quality and recreation was at the forefront of discussion as well.

“We have a responsibility to be the stewards of those estuaries,” Chiles

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by Dental Implant Specialists

said. “All of the things that we love — the habitat, the biodiversity, the fishing opportunities, the ability to be able to go out and recreate — all depend on our ability to keep these estuaries healthy.”

Even though the current red tide conditions appear to be improving, Buchanan and fellow roundtable attendees agreed that the conversation needed to continue regardless of the presence and severity of a harmful algal bloom.

“Red tide is a natural occurrence, but at the end of the day, we are aggravating it even more so,” Buchanan said. “The goal is to do everything we can to minimize the red tide. Unfortunately, what I have seen over the years is that we will have a bad bout of red tide, and everybody gets ramped up and then we don’t deal with it.”

He predicted that as people continue to move to the state in droves, red tide conditions will only worsen unless necessary steps are identified and taken.

Dave Tomasko, the executive

director of the Sarasota Bay Estuary Program, was asked to share his knowledge about red tide.

Although it is a naturally occurring organism, Tomasko said that humans can make it worse with such behaviors as overfertilizing lawns.

Outside of simply what steps can be taken, local officials highlighted actions underway to improve water quality, including Manatee County’s $1.3 billion investment in capital improvement projects over the next five years.

Projects include replacement of old sewer lines and rehabilitating two of the county’s three wastewater filtration systems.

“When it comes to the quality of life of our citizens and when it comes to the cleanliness of our water, we know that is a primary function of government and we know it is a focus and priority of our citizens, so it’s a priority for us as well,” Van Ostenbridge said.

Lauren Tronstad

U.S. Rep. Vern Buchanan hosted a roundtable with local leaders about recent red tide outbreaks on Florida’s Gulf coast.

First Phase of Luxury Homes Just Released

Announcing the release of the first phase of luxury homes at Wild Blue at Waterside in Lakewood Ranch by Stock Development. This new waterfront community features oversized homesites and luxury single-family homes by some of the region’s most notable builders.

Residences range from 2,300 to over 4,000 square feet, with nature and waterfront views, and floor plans that include expanded outdoor living spaces to enjoy the best of the Florida lifestyle.

Wild Blue at Waterside’s unparalleled lifestyle includes the 13-acre Midway Sports Complex with 6 tennis courts, 8 pickleball courts, kayak launch, miles of walking trails and so much more. The 25,000-square-foot social clubhouse features indoor and outdoor dining, two pools, movie theater, fitness center and a lifestyle director to organize social events.

Blissful Yoga? No kidding

Myakka’s Corinn Smith hopes her goat yoga classes can be a healing and relaxing experience with plenty of goat snuggles.

LIZ RAMOS SENIOR EDITOR

St. Petersburg’s Jill Ryan laughed as Dolly Parton, a small, blackand-tan goat, jumped onto her stomach.

Then Dolly Parton kept moving closer to her face.

To Ryan’s surprise, Dolly Parton even tried chewing on her hat.

“I thought you were in love with me, but you just want my hat,” Ryan said with a laugh.

Ryan has had such goat interactions before as a regular at Corinn Smith’s Blissful Goat Yoga class in Myakka City.

After the March 18 class, Ryan said the dozen goats running and playing during the yoga class provide an “extra level of fun” to her experience.

Smith started hosting Blissful Goat Yoga classes in January. It was in 2021 when Smith was at a goat yoga class in Tampa that she saw two military veterans come into the class. After one of the veterans, who had a prosthetic leg, sat down, one of the goats decided to have a little fun with him. To everyone’s surprise, the goat took hold of the veteran’s prosthetic leg and ran off.

Smith was shocked, but the veterans laughed.

She said the veteran’s wife turned and told her, “That’s the first time in years my husband has laughed.”

Smith saw the healing power goat yoga could have on people.

“I just wanted to make people laugh,” she said. “I knew how healing this could be for people. We’re all struggling from something. I’ve had people come out here with all kinds of different types of pain. They hang onto these animals, and you can see whatever it is just melt away. It’s a healing that you didn’t know you needed.”

Smith decided to pack up her previous home in Clearwater, sell everything and buy five-and-a-half acres of land in Myakka City in December 2021. She decided to use her 35 years as a certified yoga instructor to start providing goat yoga.

“I never expected to go to a yoga class and have it disrupt my entire life,” she said while watching the goats play by the barn. “I found this little slice of heaven.”

Smith, a Navy veteran who spent 14 years as a fire investigator and 10 years in law enforcement, suddenly was a farmer.

“My family owns a farm, but I was not a farmer, and now I’m a farmer,” she said. “I’m so excited to say that. This was not necessarily the plan, but I’m the luckiest person in the world. I laugh every day of my life without fail.”

Smith hosts yoga classes on Saturday and Sunday mornings in a corral in her backyard.

“We’ve just had so much fun,” she said. “It gives people an excuse to come out here, relax, laugh and get outside. What we’re all starving for, after all this craziness in the world, is to sit here and just forget about everything.

Besides the goats, she also has six donkeys who don’t mind snuggling with participants.

She said the moment she opens the gate to the corral, her 12 goats are excited because they know it’s time for yoga.

“Ready for the running of the goats?” Smith asked the three people who attended her class March 18.

The goats came stampeding through the gate, instantly running up to the three class participants and yoga instructor Brooke Woodworth.

During the class, Jill Ryan and Tim Ryan tried to follow along with the yoga poses as best they could, but it wasn’t always easy with Charlotte, a big brown-and-white goat, trying to eat Jill Ryan’s hat; or with Halo, a baby brown goat, standing underneath Tim Ryan while he tried to move from the table top position (in which he’s on his legs and knees ) into the upward dog position (where

he’s laying down but with his chest stretching toward the sky.)

Woodworth led the group through poses — “goat allowing,” which meant if a goat wasn’t in their way.

In the middle of class, Daisy and Opal, two of the six donkeys on property, decided to make their thoughts on the yoga class heard and brayed loudly.

“I hear ya,” Tim Ryan said with a laugh.

Although it is a yoga class, Smith said participants can do as much or as little yoga as they want.

She’s seen some participants take the yoga class seriously, while others decide to simply sit on their mats and cuddle a goat.

Jill Ryan said whenever a goat jumped on her back, it felt like a massage. But she said the yoga class had a good flow.

“It was a great way to start a Saturday,” she said. “Being out in the country air, breathing in all that fresh air and being around the animals is a great experience.”

With her military and law enforcement experience, Smith hopes to offer free classes starting in the fall to people who serve in the military and are first responders.

She plans to allow those who serve in the military and first responders to come to have quiet time with the baby goats.

“Everybody can heal in a different way,” she said. “We cannot appreciate those people enough.”

“I just wanted to make people laugh,” she said. “I knew how healing this could be for people. We’re all struggling from something.

Corinn Smith

“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

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Where: Blissful Goat Yoga, 6902 279th St. E. Myakka City

Price: $36 per person

Details: Enjoy a yoga class with a dozen goats and four donkeys.

More information: BlissfulGoatYoga.org

8130 Lakewood Main St., Suite D207 Lakewood Ranch, FL 34202 941-755-5357

©

Both goats and participants, such as instructor Brooke Woodworth, practice twisting and turning their bodies.

Dolly Parton gives Orlando’s Jason Bubb a massage. She has a knack for jumping on people’s backs during yoga.

Photos by Liz Ramos

Dolly Parton has no problem jumping on St. Petersburg’s Jill Ryan’s back while she’s in child’s pose.

The goats are always excited to be in the corral with Corinn Smith, owner of Blissful Goat Yoga.

Artsy sounds welcome at Waterside

Art will be in the air at Waterside Place on March 24.

OK, I’m not talking about people tossing around paintings or sculptures. This will be of the musical variety provided by the Lakewood Ranch Wind Ensemble.

Developer Schroeder-Manatee Ranch always wanted culture and art to have a significant presence at Waterside Place to go along with the beautiful backdrop of Kingfisher Lake and all the dining and entertainment options that are surfacing as the hub matures.

The Players Theatre for Performing Arts was expected to fill that East County arts void by building a $30 million theater at Waterside Place, an endeavor which hit the brakes in March 2022 as SMR became convinced that such a theater couldn’t be built in a timely manner.

It didn’t want a missing tooth in its beautiful new hub.

Already the No. 1-selling multigenerational, master-planned community in the U.S., Lakewood Ranch doesn’t need an arts presence, considering its neighbor, Sarasota, has plenty of arts groups to spare. But SMR always has been proactive about trying to give residents of Lakewood Ranch all the lifestyle options they desire, right in their backyard, or at least on the east side of Interstate 75.

It is part of the reason that “Sights and Sounds” has become a new music series at Waterside Place.

Nicole Hackel, SMR’s events and residents experience manager, has brought The Players, the Florida Studio Theatre, the Asolo Repertory Theatre and Sarasota Contemporary Dance to Waterside Place for performances. In doing so, she said the feedback has been positive.

“People were excited to have arts on the Ranch,” she said. “It was

something different from our typical Friday and Saturday entertainment (at Waterside Place).”

That “typical” entertainment has been a solo artist or a duet performing in front of the pavilion. While that entertainment will continue, once a month Hackel has worked to schedule something a little different, which can be on either a Friday or Saturday night.

“This will be an opportunity for the arts groups to promote themselves and to make those organizations accessible to those who live within the Ranch,” Hackel said.

Therefore Hackel decided to give the series the “Sights and Sounds” tag, starting with the Lakewood Ranch Wind Ensemble’s 6 p.m. performance.

The Lakewood Ranch Wind Ensemble will bring 25 musicians

to Waterside, with the possibility of bringing the entire ensemble to perform in the future.

Hackel said the pavilion could host more than 60 musicians comfortably and will do so when Strings Con Brio of Sarasota performs in May. (The date has yet to be finalized.)

It is great news for the Lakewood Ranch Wind Ensemble, which has been holding concerts at Peace Presbyterian Church and has been looking for more venues to host its entire group.

“It is beautiful there,” said Joseph Miller, founder and conductor of the Lakewood Ranch Wind Ensemble of Waterside Place. “And everything (in the future) depends on our acceptance.”

By that, Miller meant if those who hear the ensemble provide positive

feedback to SMR, it will be invited back.

Miller said the March 24 show will “showcase our product.”

Hackel said the “Sights and Sounds” series won’t be confined to just a Friday series or just a Saturday series because she wanted to be flexible when it came to scheduling music groups.

She said approximately 200 people could bring chairs and sit comfortably in front of the pavilion, and of course, those who come to dine at one of the restaurants can enjoy the music as they pass.

While the series will be taking place at Waterside Place in Sarasota County, it would be nice if Manatee County officials are paying attention.

Manatee County bought the Premier Sports Campus and its 127-

acre campus, plus another adjacent 36 acres, in 2017. It added another adjacent 74.5 acres the next year.

Original plans included an outdoor amphitheater, but no design has been presented yet to Manatee County commissioners or the public. At the time, Manatee County’s Charlie Hunsicker said he expected the park to be built out in about a decade.

Since that time, nothing on the property has opened, although the $17.3 million library is expected to open late this year. An aquatics facility and pickleball complex will be next to break ground.

While nothing more has become public about an amphitheater, this past June, Elliott Falcione, who manages Premier for the county, talked about the need for an indoor gymnasium or an indoor events facility.

If Manatee County built both the amphitheater and an indoor gym/ events facility, it could be a boon for arts groups in the region. Of course, that is if the county solicits opinions from those groups on what they would need for their performances in terms of a stage and power hookups.

While Lakewood Ranch wouldn’t be home to any musical arts group in particular, it would have the venues to bring them here on occasion. For many residents, that is a sweet sound.

File photo

Conductor Joseph Miller will lead the Lakewood Ranch Wind Ensemble during a concert at Waterside Place on March 24.

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

A change in lifestyle

JAY HEATER MANAGING EDITOR

When Lakewood Ranch’s Monaca Onstad announced in March 2022 she was leaving as community relations director at Schroeder-Manatee Ranch to launch her own business, it was kind of like being at the bottom of a pool.

“I couldn’t breathe,” she said.

But then her new OnPlace amenities and lifestyle planning business landed a client, and then another and another.

A year after the launch of OnPlace, she is breathing just fine.

“We started with consulting,” said Onstad, who lives in Country Club. “I had a good indication through research that it was needed. What was happening time and again was that (developers) would begin by building the amenities and then think about the programs.

“I didn’t know there would be such a big demand.”

She did extensive research because she wasn’t going to “step off the ledge.” Even so, it was a bit scary.

“My 20-year career (before starting her new business) was so comfortable,” she said. “The biggest thing for me is that I had to be comfortable with being uncomfortable.”

On March 4, she held a one-year celebration party to let people know she is doing fine.

“I am very happy with the amount of business we have received,” she said. “All of my clients have been referrals.”

So far, her clients have been in

regions where master-planned communities thrive, such as Florida, Texas, North Carolina and South Carolina.

She is considering whether she wants to expand as far West as Arizona and California, also hot spots for master-planned communities.

IMMEDIATE GROWTH

Not only is her business expanding in terms of clients, but she already has launched another division (OnVie). Besides helping developers “pre-build” their communities with a thoughtful selection and design of amenities, the new division will concentrate on staffing and managing the communities’ welcome centers and other amenities, basically overseeing the lifestyle side of the new community.

She has a main staff of six employees, with three more coming in April. Mackenzie Straley, who worked with her at SMR, joined OnPlace two weeks after it began. She handles communications, marketing and putting out newsletters for the communities OnVie manages.

“She is integral to our success,”

Onstad said. “She has worked with me for six years, and she can finish my sentences.”

Parrish’s Amanda Arnold is Onstad’s vice president. She has been working with Del Webb’s activities program.

While it would seem developing lifestyles programs wouldn’t be complicated, Onstad said her clients are busy with everything that goes into a new community, and could use someone to make suggestions about the vision of the

amenities.

“Sometimes it is validation of the ideas they had,” she said.

She said a typical model involves a developer buying land, going to a landscape architect and then saying what kind of amenities are needed. However, the process often doesn’t involve the consideration of the expected demographics of the community, or what the landscape is like surrounding the property or what kind of lifestyle people in the area want to live.

OnPlace does all the research to find out those questions and more.

“Take pickleball, for instance,” she said. “I do research on pickleball projects in the area and around the nation because I don’t want to tell them you need six pickleball courts and four tennis courts without doing some deep research. I give them a good report and vision from around the country.”

Onstad said it is important to understand how spaces are used and how people connect.

“If you do that, you can start changing the way we build things,” she said.

She gave an example of a pool

area where parents could lounge in their favorite spot while having a straight line of vision to their children’s play area.

“If I am sitting here, I can see my kids over there,” she said.

DEVELOPERS CARE

Part of the reason for OnPlace’s success, she said, is that developers care about their residents’ experience.

“You can pretty much get the same house anywhere you want,” Onstad said. “How do you show (your community) to be different?”

To accomplish her goals, Onstad has been a road warrior, leaving her husband Eric Onstad to oversee the household and their two children, 13-year-old Garrett and 19-month-old Alexander.

“Eric asks me sometimes, ‘Can we have five minutes without OnPlace?’” she said. “But he is such a good man. He is my biggest fan, and he can see the vision on where we are going and what we are building.”

Onstad said he chose last year to leave SMR because the Waterside Place project basically was

finished with clients beginning to move into the hub. She said it had been launched successfully. At SMR, she had developed award-winning lifestyle programs in Lakewood Ranch since 2016. In 2017, she was selected as the Lifestyle Director of the Year by the National Association of Home Builders.

She wants OnPlace to “change how lifestyle is done.”

Currently, she said not a lot of competition exists for her, but she said more developers are realizing the importance of the lifestyle component, and she expects competition to increase.

“I want to put in the hard work and grow a little more,” she said.

She misses her co-workers and staff members at SMR, but said she now has a different kind of coworker and colleagues.

And she still lives in Lakewood Ranch and is the chair for Lakewood Ranch Community Activities.

“I will still tell you today, Lakewood Ranch is the best community in the country,” she said. “I love the way it was developed.”

Lakewood Ranch’s Monaca Onstad and OnPlace want to enhance lifestyles one community at a time.

Jay Heater

Erin Steele, community relations; Sandy Friedman, business development; Monaca Onstad, president and CEO; Amanda Arnold, vice president; and Mackenzie Straley, director of community experience, celebrate OnPlace’s first year.

REELING IN FUN

Children learn the basics of fishing in preparation for the Angler’s Club annual Youth Fishing Tournament.

Lakewood Ranch’s Edison Gassenhofer and his sister, Eleanor, listened carefully as Bob LaVopa demonstrated how to cast his fishing line.

Edison Gassenhofer, who is 6, then took the rod from LaVopa, a member of the Lakewood Ranch Angler’s Club, and tried casting for the first time.

For Edison Gassenhofer and Elea-

TIPS FOR FISHING

n Patience and more patience.

n If at first you don’t succeed, try again.

n Once you cast, count to 10. Don’t reel it in right away.

nor Gassenhofer, who is 8, the Lakewood Ranch Angler’s Club youth fishing seminar at Summerfield

Community Park on March 18 was their first time holding a fishing rod.

After a few more attempts, both Edison and Eleanor Gassenhofer were getting acclimated to casting.

Their parents, Danielle and Markus Gassenhofer, paid attention to the advice from LaVopa and the tips and tricks other Angler’s Club members provided on lures, knot tying and how to be a good angler.

Markus Gassenhofer said his children loved learning the basics of fishing.

More than 80 children attended the two sessions of the youth fishing seminar March 18, completing four 15-minute stations. With all four

n Always bring a pair of pliers and scissors.

n Rotate the different lures you use.

stations complete, they received a fishing rod and supplies from Fish Florida.

Jeannette Wirz, president of the Angler’s Club, said when a child receives the free rod and supplies, it’s like Christmas morning.

“The face lights up,” Wirz said. “Sometimes they go right back to the lake to start fishing again.”

While Ed Van Stedum, a member of the Angler’s Club, showed participants various lures, he explained how they attract fish and told them

to rotate the different lures they use.

“You don’t eat pizza every day or chicken every day, do you?” he said.

“Well, fish don’t eat the same thing every day either, so you want to use different lures and bait.”

Although parents were able to help their children during the seminar, Wirz said they will not be allowed to assist during the Lakewood Ranch

Angler’s Club Youth Fishing Tournament on March 25.

During the fishing tournament, Nancy Frederick, the secretary of the Angler’s Club, said she has to remind children who don’t catch a fish an important lesson about fishing.

“It’s called fishing, not catching,” she said.

Seeing someone catch a fish is always a favorite moment of the tournament for Wirz.

“I love seeing the look on their faces,” she said. “It’s so joyful and pure. It’s genuine happiness.”

IF YOU GO

Lakewood Ranch Angler’s Club Youth Fishing Tournament

When: 8 a.m. to noon March 25

Where: Lake Uihlein, meet behind Lakewood Ranch Town Hall, 8175 Lakewood Ranch Blvd., Lakewood Ranch, Price: $5

Details: Children ages 5-19 can compete in the Lakewood Ranch Angler’s Club Youth Fishing Tournament. Participants will receive a T-shirt, goodie bag and lunch. More information: MyLWR.com

•

After having the same Orthopedist for years I was very hesitant and nervous to go see a new one. After 5 minutes with Dr Silverstein I was put at ease, so much so I scheduled a full hip replacement. The hip replacement was such a success that now Dr Silverstein is doing my knee. I have complete confidence in Dr Silverstein and will highly recommended him to anyone who may need any type of orthopedic services.

Dr Silverstein has given me a new outlook on life again. I was very skeptical of getting a hip surgery at 34. But now 2 months after I am completely back to a normal life and getting better than ever thought. I am playing with my kids and just got my first job after three years. Dr Silverstein is very intelligent and amazing. I am forever grateful of what he has done for me. Don’t wait in pain like I did.

LIZ RAMOS SENIOR EDITOR

Photos by Liz Ramos

Lakewood Ranch’s Danielle Gassenhofer listens carefully as her children, 8-year-old Eleanor Gassenhofer and 6-year-old Edison Gassenhofer, get advice on how to cast from Robert LaVopa, a member of the Lakewood Ranch Angler’s Club.

Lakewood Ranch’s 7-year-old Levi Schwartz and 5-year-old Jacob Schwartz are thrilled to have new fishing rods.

SPORTS

Fast Break

WHAT IS A SPRINT CAR?

A sprint car is a high-powered, openwheel race car. They are mostly driven on short dirt tracks. The design came into prominence in the United States in the years following World War II, with cars designed with stripped parts from Model T Fords.

The other popular type of racing in the U.S. is stock car racing, which sees closed-wheel cars race mostly on paved roads. Originally, the “stock” part of the name was literal, as the cars could not be modified from its factory build. The sport has since evolved to allow modifications. NASCAR is stock car’s de facto governing body.

during races, and he knows when to make moves and when to be patient. He said he’s also getting better at giving constructive feedback on the race car after testing.

Lakewood Ranch High

junior quarterback Clayton Dees received his first ranking by a scouting/recruiting service March 17 when On3 Sports rated him an 86-grade, threestar player. The 6-foot-3 Dees, who has played one season of varsity football, threw for 1,704 yards and 13 touchdowns and ran for 391 yards and three touchdowns in 2022.

Former Braden River High girls basketball player Cheyenne Stubbs entered the NCAA transfer portal March 14 after two seasons at Canisius College. Stubbs, who is 5-foot5, averaged 8.7 points and 2.9 assists per game in 23 games (12 starts) in 2022.

Former Lakewood Ranch

High girls basketball player LaDazhia Williams and the Louisiana State University Tigers won their first two games in the NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament. Threeseed LSU (30-2) will next play the two-seeded University of Utah (27-4) in the Sweet 16 on March 25 (time and TV channel TBD). Williams had 10 points and 10 rebounds in the team’s second-round 66-42 win over the University of Michigan on March 19. Looking to get some exercise while supporting an important cause? Join Walk MS at 8:30 a.m. March 25 at Nathan Benderson Park. The event raises money for the National Multiple Sclerosis Society. To register, visit MSSociety.DonorDrive.com.

The Out-of-Door Academy senior Tyler Beck is fifth in Florida High School Athletic Association Class 1A in the pole vault as of March 20. Beck set his season-best mark of 12 feet, 4.75 inches March 18 at the 2023 IMG Spring Break Invitational at IMG Academy.

Andy Weidenbach sank a hole-in-one March 15 on the No. 2 hole of Lakewood Ranch Golf and Country Club’s Cypress Links course. Weidenbach used an 8-iron on the 146-yard hole.

The drive to win

RYAN KOHN SPORTS EDITOR

It has been 12 years since Conner Morrell first sat behind the wheel of a car and raced it, and he’s finally living the life he envisioned at that moment.

It’s not a life everyone would want, Morrell said. The 18-year-old Braden River High grad is based out of Lakewood Ranch, but he will now spend most of his time away from home.

That road trip begins April 7-8 at Attica Raceway Park in Attica, Ohio, with the Core and Main Spring Nationals on the Tony Stewartowned All-Star Circuit of Champions. Morrell said he hopes to participate in approximately 80 sprint car races this year, which would be 40 more than his previous high. He said it will be a grind but one he embraces.

He has shown he can make a living from driving sprint cars, and for him, what could be better?

“I just want to race — bad,” Morrell said.

Besides racing more in 2023, he also is going to do it on a higher level. Morrell signed with Marc Dailey Racing on March 13, giving him a full racing team and an enhanced support system for the first time.

He also announced deals to race in two high-prestige sprint car series in 2023, Stewart’s All-Star Circuit and former NASCAR Cup champion Kyle Larson’s dirt-track High Limit series. At these events, Morrell will have to grow up fast as he won’t be competing against amateurs and hobbyists any more.

The good news, Morrell said, is the pay will reflect the jump in difficulty.

The High Limit series, for instance, will award winners $23,000 in 10 of its 12 races, with the other two races awarding $50,000. He will also have a shot at the Eldora Million at the Eldora Speedway in New Weston, Ohio, on July 13. True to its name, the “richest race in sprint car history” awards $1 million to its champion.

The prize money is nice, Morrell said, but it’s not why he competes. He said he genuinely loves racing more than anything else.

Now that he’s signed to a team,

Morrell’s worries turn to securing sponsorships and earning enough to keep advancing. He has logos for Tub O’ Towels and Amalie Motor Oil on his car.

“I want to win,” Morrell said.

“That’s all I want to do. I don’t care about the money. I have high expectations for myself and my team.”

Morrell has grown a lot — as a person and as a driver — since he was piloting sprint cars as a middle school student. The more you get behind the wheel, he said, the more you learn and the better you get. He said it’s why drivers in their 50s and 60s are able to remain competitive for so long.

He said he’s improved his mental game more than anything else the last few years.

He’s better able to stay focused

His constant learning is also why, Morrell said, he’s not expecting a championship in either of his highprofile series — at least in his first year.

“We’re probably not going to go out and set the world on fire, though it would be cool if we did,” Morrell said. “This year, I’m looking to get all sorts of experiences. I’ll be going against some of the best drivers in the business, and I’ll be constantly on the road for the first time. I’m trying to live the life of someone in that position, balancing my personal life with racing.”

Morrell said he would like to win at least one All-Star series race and finish in the top 10 of a High Limit series race.

Other than that, Morrell said his goal is to have fun. He’s proven himself capable of pulling out victories.

In 2022, Morrell won the 410 Sprint Car Race at Hilltop Speedway in Millersburg, Ohio, earning $2,500. He also won the Steel City Stampede at the Lernerville Speedway in Sarver, Pennsylvania, and earned $3,000.

Down the road, Morrell said, he’s keeping his options open. Morrell has always been a fan of NASCAR, and he’s considered giving stock car racing a shot, he said. But he also would like to own a racing team of his own someday, which might be more feasible at lower levels of the sport. With every additional year of experience, Morrell’s vision of his future changes.  No matter what, Morrell said, racing is a part of it. That, he said, is something he will never take for granted — even when the grind is at its peak.

“Obviously, back in the day, I had a lot less worries,” Morrell said. “I have to treat this like a job now. I can’t ride scooters with my friends at the track all day and then race. But I still have fun. That is what I want to do. It’s like a drug. Once you get on the ride, you can’t get off.”

“I have a strong personality. I’m a go-getter. I’m fierce and opinionated.”

— Lakewood Ranch High’s Morgan McCabe SEE PAGE 15

File photo

Clayton Dees (5) will enter his second year as a starting quarterback as a senior for Lakewood Ranch in 2023.

Ryan Kohn

Conner Morrell, 18, will race sprint cars in two high-level series in 2023.

Conner Morrell, 18, has been racing at various levels since he was 6 years old.

Courtesy photo Conner Morrell won his heat at the 2022 Amalie Oil /Tub O’ Towels 410 Sprint at Attica Raceway Park in Attica, Ohio.

PROSE AND KOHN RYAN KOHN

Former Mustangs coach thrives at IMG Academy

The shiny digs and successes at Bradenton’s IMG Academy obviously haven’t changed Jeremy Schiller that much.

Consider he was on vacation in Orlando on March 15, but he still took the time to return a sportswriter’s call.

Schiller, you might remember, was the boys basketball coach at Lakewood Ranch High for 10 years, building a successful machine, before leaving to run the Ascenders’ varsity program in 2021.

Schiller, who still lives in University Park, led the Mustangs to a 17498 record, bringing the program into the Florida high school elite by the end of his tenure. The Mustangs went to two state tournament semifinals and reached the 2019 state championship, losing 57-52 to Blanche Ely High at the RP Funding Center in Lakeland.

More than with the talent he attracted, Schiller brought the program success by developing a winning culture.

He emphasized to his players the need to care about each other more than the average teammate would. He said when you’re truly playing for the people beside you, you play better.

He scheduled team trips to places like New Orleans, as much to eat beignets and listen to jazz as to play basketball. Those unique experiences gave the Mustangs an edge.

At IMG, Schiller said, things are different. The type of culturebuilding he did at Lakewood Ranch isn’t quite as possible with the Ascenders. IMG has six varsity teams, Schiller said, and each September, the basketball staff collectively places those players on teams in a way it hopes will maximize everyone’s development. That might mean a player sticks with the same team and coach for four years, or it might mean a player has a different coach every year.

In 2022-23, Schiller’s IMG

Academy Blue team went 18-9 and won the High School Slam consolation bracket at the Big Shots Prep National Championships held Feb. 24-26 in Rock Hill, South Carolina. One of his players, 6-foot-9 freshman wing Tim Winkler Jr., has received offers from the Universities of Florida, Auburn University and Arizona State, among others. Another one of Schiller’s Ascenders, Olivier Rioux, is widely considered to be the “World’s Tallest Teen.” The junior center stands 7-foot-6.  Schiller said he does miss the long-term, culture-building coaches can do at public schools that often isn’t possible at IMG Academy, with players constantly moving up between the school’s teams throughout their tenure. What he can’t do in terms of building, however, is made up in spades

by what he can do.

“IMG being year-round basketball has been awesome,” Schiller said. “I’m able to go into work every day and just be focused on doing what’s best for the kids on my team. Because of that, I think I have had a lot of growth.”

That growth, Schiller said, has come both as a motivator and as an in-game coach. Schiller said the different level of talent at IMG compared to a public school allows him to ask more of his players and run concepts he otherwise wouldn’t.

When coaching a player like Rioux, Schiller finds ways to get him out of his comfort zone. Schiller said at IMG, it is the expectation of every player that they end up playing in college, so it is Schiller’s job to do everything in his power to get them there.

Any team success on top that is nice, of course, but Schiller is still a people person above all else. Schiller said one of the more satisfying parts of his job has been seeing his teams come together by the end of the season, going from being strangers to messaging each other constantly. There have even been some seniors who stayed in contact with their teammates (and with Schiller) after graduation.

“That’s always the most special part for me,” Schiller said.

The Mustangs have taken a hit since Schiller’s departure. Lakewood Ranch has gone 17-32 the past two years under Chris Kawcak, who resigned at the end of the season, and will now be led by George Holub, a 20-year veteran of the high school coaching scene who won a New York state title at Elmont Memorial High (Elmont, New York) in 2016.

Would Schiller ever consider going back to the public school life?

Don’t hold your breath. Schiller said he’s thrilled with where he is, as he gets to coach high-level talent while staying close to his family,

something that is important to him. Before going to IMG, Schiller had received interest from college programs, hoping he’d jump to their level. No opportunity he received made as much sense as IMG did, Schiller said at the time.

Now, with a few years of experience at IMG, Schiller still feels similarly.

“For me, it’s all about quality of life,” Schiller said. “I love IMG. My goal is to stay at IMG long-term. The only way I would look for other opportunities is if it was a really good fit, maybe with a former player or something that you couldn’t say ‘no’ to it. But my intention is to stay here and continue building IMG Blue into a national brand.”

Courtesy photo

Jeremy Schiller (bottom left) and his staff stand with IMG Academy senior Eishin Naito on Senior Day. Schiller has coached IMG for two seasons.

Ryan Kohn

Former coach Jeremy Schiller went 174-98 at Lakewood Ranch High School.

Morgan McCabe

Morgan McCabe is a senior midfielder on the Lakewood Ranch High girls lacrosse team. McCabe is the team’s leading scorer with 29 goals and 35 points as of March 20. McCabe’s offensive output has helped the team start the season 8-2.

When did you start playing lacrosse?

I started as a sophomore. I did gymnastics for 10 years before, but I was getting bored of the sport. I had a teacher who was the lacrosse coach here at the time (Sammy Stoltz), and she always talked about it in class. I fell in love with the way she talked about it. I tried out my sophomore year and made the varsity team.

What is the appeal to you?

I love that it is fast-paced and that you get to run. I love bonding with the team. I love the atmosphere of playing at night. I love everything about it.

What is your best skill?

I think it’s being aggressive, being a leader on the field. I get plays started and get us going (emotionally). I keep the atmosphere up.

What is your favorite memory?

We beat The Out-of-Door Academy this year (7-4 on Feb. 28 at ODA), and that was the first time in my three years on varsity that we have done that. That was eye-opening for us and showed us that we could play.

What has been the key to the team’s success in 2023? I think a lot of it has to do with having more fun on the field. We’re always down to have a

If you would like to make a recommendation for the East County Observer’s Athlete of the Week feature, send it to Ryan Kohn at RKohn@ YourObserver.com.

good time. And Blair (Woods, firstyear head coach) has been amazing. Our culture is a lot different than it was a year ago. If we’re having fun, then we’re going to play well.

Which superpower would you pick?

I would want to read people’s minds. I know a lot of people would disagree, but I want to know everything. I think it would be so cool.

What are your hobbies?

I like to go to the beach and to get ice cream and to hang out with my friends.

What is the best advice you have received?

Focus on controllable things. You can’t worry about things you don’t control. Just worry about yourself and your success in the moment.

Finish this sentence: “Morgan McCabe is …” … Strong. I have a strong personality. I’m a go-getter, I’m fierce and opinionated.

YOUR NEIGHBORS

FASHION FRENZY

Before the eight River Strand models headed out to the runway during the Stylin’ at the Strand event Saturday at the River Strand Country Club, they had to be checked out first. They were modeling clothes by the Evelyn and Arthur women’s clothing store of Sarasota.

Doing the checking was Judy Horn, an employee at Evelyn and Arthur for the past nine years.

So what was on the checklist?

“You have to make sure their tags aren’t hanging out,” Horn said with a laugh about the new clothes they were showing.

Actually, Horn knows that the River Strand women who agreed to walk the runway for the event are volunteers who have done little to no modeling.

They can be nervous.

So Horn makes sure that the bottom of their pants are straight and even, their accessories are hanging just right and their handbags have the fronts pointed at the crowd.

It’s all accomplished in a light-hearted manner.

“We try to keep it upbeat and fun,” Horn said.

A sold-out crowd of 130 women were in the audience to raise funds for the Food Bank of Manatee County. It was the fourth annual event put on by River Strand residents and organized by Eloise Eckler and her committee. However, the event wasn’t held two years during the COVID-19 pandemic.

— JAY HEATER

River Strand’s Lisa Larson says she loves the clothes, the fashion, the design and the style.

Eloise Eckler, Lil Vivona and Christine Levine put together the event to benefit the Food Bank of Manatee County.

River Strand’s Valerie Thurston says she once did some modeling and added that she loves it because “I’m a clothes horse.”

Photos by Jay Heater

River Strand’s Lisa Larson, Kathy Justinak, Mary Griffith, Nedra Clark, Valerie Thurston, Sandy Franks, Adrian Figliotti, and Marla Coniglio light up the runway during Stylin’ at the Strand.

Besides walking the runway as a model, Nedra Clark says she looks forward to doing some shopping because the Evelyn and Arthur clothes would be available after the show.

COMMUNITY

THURSDAY, MARCH 23

THROUGH SUNDAY, MARCH

26

LIVE MUSIC AT JIGGS LANDING

Runs each day from 3:30-6:30 p.m. at Jiggs Landing, 6106 63rd St. E., Bradenton. This week’s music includes Steve Arvey (Thursday), Soundwave (Friday), Swinging Bridge (Saturday) and Nax Steel (Sunday). A $5 cover is charged on Fridays and Saturdays, and the other days are free. For more information, go to JiggsLanding.com.

SATURDAY, MARCH 25

YOUTH FISHING TOURNAMENT

Runs from 8 a.m. to noon at Lake Uihlein, with those participating in the event meeting behind Lakewood Ranch Town Hall, 8175 Lakewood Ranch Blvd. The Lakewood Ranch Angler’s Club and Lakewood Ranch Community Activities host the annual Youth Fishing Tournament. The cost for kids ages 5-19 is $5. Participants receive a T-shirt, goody bag and lunch. For more information, go to MyLWR.com.

WALK MS

Begins at 8:30 a.m. at Nathan Benderson Park, 5851 Nathan Benderson Circle, Sarasota. Walk MS is an event that raises money for the National Multiple Sclerosis Society. There is no registration fee, but the event encourages fundraising and donations. To register or for more information, visit MSSociety.DonorDrive.com.

MY HOMETOWN FEST

Begins at noon at Nathan Benderson Park, 5851 Nathan Benderson Circle, Sarasota. My Hometown Fest is a fundraiser that supports the Sertoma Club of Greater Sarasota. The event features food from area restaurants, craft beers and live music. General admission tickets, which include all food and beer samples, are $35. Food only tickets are $25. Kids 12 and younger are admitted free. Parking is $5. For more information, visit MyHometownFest.com or call 993-9036.

SUNDAY, MARCH 26

WALK TO END HUNGER

Begins at 8:30 a.m. at Nathan Benderson Park, 5851 Nathan Benderson

BEST BET

FRIDAY, MARCH 24 AND SATURDAY, MARCH 25

SIGHTS AND SOUNDS AT WATERSIDE

Begins at 6 p.m. both days at Waterside Place, 1561 Lakefront Drive, Lakewood Ranch. Waterside Place introduces its “Sights and Sounds” music series on Fridays by hosting the Lakewood Ranch Wind Ensemble under the pavilion. Limited seating is available, so bring a lawn chair. Then on Saturday, musician/singer Frankie Lombardi performs for those who enjoy sunset views of Kingfisher Lake, fun at the hub’s parks, or dining at the various restaurants. The entertainment is free. For more information, go to WatersidePlace.com.

Circle, Sarasota. The All Faiths Food Bank’s 2023 Walk to End Summer Hunger marks the start of the organization’s six-week campaign to raise funds to feed children at risk.

Registration for the walk, which includes a T-shirt and a light breakfast, is $25 for adults and $15 for those younger than 18. For more information, call 549-8131. To register, visit AllFaithsFoodBank.org.

FARMERS MARKET

Runs from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Lakefront Drive in Waterside Place, Lakewood Ranch. For more information, go to MyLWR.com.

POLO

Begins at 1 p.m. at the Sarasota Polo Club, 8201 Polo Club Lane, Sarasota.

Gates open at 10 a.m. Thousands of fans enjoy high-level polo action each Sunday while tailgating. Tickets can be purchased in advance at SarasotaPolo.com or at the gate.

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 29

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. For more information, go to WatersidePlace.com.

YOUR CALENDAR

April 7, 202

U.S. Representative Greg Steube The Haven Carrier Global WWSB ABC 7

Sheriff Kurt A. Hoffman

THE AQUA CARES FOUNDATION is proud to recognize those who have demonstrated exceptional leadership, commitment and dedication in providing safety in our community.

Please join us in celebrating their outstanding achievements on

Friday, April 7, 2023 at The Grove 10670 Boardwalk Loop, Lakewood Ranch, FL 34202

Guest Speaker: Jason Mozo, J.D., Florida Chamber Safety Council

MC: Sarah Jacobs, iHeart Media

Tickets: $200 per person

Purchase sponsorships and tickets on www.aquacaresfoundation.org

Meals on Wheels rolls down red carpet

Lake Club’s Kathy Martella is ready to hit the red carpet.

Although she hasn’t selected the dress she will wear, she knows it will either have some sparkle or rhinestones to bring plenty of glitz and glam.

Martella used some of the outfits worn at the Academy Awards March 12 as inspiration to prepare for Meals

IF YOU GO

MEALS ON WHEELS PLUS OF MANATEE’S TROPICAL NIGHTS GOES HOLLYWOOD

When: 6-10 p.m. March 25

Where: Grove, 10670 Boardwalk Loop, Lakewood Ranch

Price: $250 per ticket

on Wheels Plus of Manatee’s Tropical Nights Goes Hollywood.

“I was looking very closely,” Martella said about watching the Oscars.

“Of course, I can’t top what they wear, but let me see what Hollywood’s wearing. They’re a little more over the top than I could do. I’m definitely looking forward to a fun night to dress up like I’m in Hollywood. This is a nice excuse to dress up and bring on the glitz.”

Maribeth Phillips, CEO

and presi-

Details: Meals on Wheels Plus of Manatee brings Hollywood to Lakewood Ranch for its annual Tropical Nights fundraiser. Walk the red carpet, enjoy a meal and live music and participate in the silent auction to support the nonprofit’s biggest fundraiser of the year. More information: MealsOnWheelsPlus.org/events/ tropical-nights

dent of Meals on Wheels Plus of Manatee, said the event will have plenty to celebrate.

After guests strut down the red carpet, they will run into James

Bond and Lady Gaga impersonators. Guests can get their photo taken with a 360 camera and dance the night away to music provided by the band Tropical Ave.

“I expect we’ll see all kinds of outfits,” Phillips said. “I’m sure there will be people who will be very Hollywood glam. Over the years, people have gotten into the spirit of the theme (of Tropical Nights).”

Meals on Wheels Plus of Manatee’s annual Tropical Nights event is the biggest fundraiser of the year for the nonprofit.

“It’s always a very fun night, with great food and dancing,” Martella said.

“I love the exposure the organization gets because I think people don’t know how much else Meals on Wheels does besides providing weekly meals. It is near and dear to my heart way back from when my mom would feed neighbors who needed it. I see the need, and I just love paying it forward right in our own backyard.”

With inflation and effects from Hurricane Ian causing the cost of rent, food and other necessities to rise, Phillips said the nonprofit’s ability to serve the community is more crucial than ever.

“These funds that will be raised at Tropical Nights will, in turn, help us make sure we are feeding all the people who come to us. We’re able

to secure the food through the food bank and get it to our pantries and continue to provide the programs we do,” Phillips said. “Our programs are life changing for many people.”

Phillips said she’s encountered people who have had to choose between putting gas in their car or paying their rent. Then when food prices increased, it only made matters worse.

“Whoever thought a carton of eggs would cost $7,” she said. “I saw first hand people who needed Meals on Wheels, and literally there was nothing in their refrigerator. This is why these programs are so important to people in need.”

Just like other companies and nonprofits, the operating costs for Meals on Wheels Plus of Manatee has increased as a result of inflation, Phillips said.

The nonprofit is having to spend more to obtain the food needed for its various programs.

“We’ve experienced shortages of staff, changes in hiring and our expenses have gone up,” she said. “This is why our annual gala, Tropical Nights, is so critical.”

People who aren’t able to attend Tropical Nights still can support the nonprofit through its silent auction. The auction opens March 17 and closes at 7:30 p.m. March 25.

LIZ RAMOS SENIOR EDITOR

Tropical Nights Goes Hollywood set to bring glitz and glamor to the Grove in Lakewood Ranch.

Like last year, the Meals on Wheels Plus of Manatee’s Tropical Nights silent auction will include several items. The auction opens March 17 and closes March 25.

File photos

Maribeth Phillips, president and CEO of Meals on Wheels Plus of Manatee, welcomes everyone to Tropical Nights in 2022.

This year’s theme is Tropical Nights Goes Hollywood.

Sarasota Jazz Festival energizes crowd

With hundreds of jazz fans filing into the Circus Sarasota big top March 17 at Nathan Benderson Park for the Sarasota Jazz Festival, Susana Ramlie was impressed with the scene before her.

“I love it,” Ramlie said. “It’s amazing that it’s so big.”

It wasn’t the only amazing thing about the six-day event, which had both indoor and outdoor stages.

On March 17, the lineup included a performance by 96-year-old pianist and composer Dick Hyman. Other performances that evening included Brazilian jazz guitarist

Diego Figueiredo, singer-songwriter

Kurt Elling, guitarist and songwriter

Charlie Hunter and the Tampa Baybased trio La Lucha.

Sarasota Jazz Festival Director

Nik Walker said the main purpose of the Jazz Club of Sarasota, which hosted the event, is to keep jazz alive.

Walker said the number of jazz radio stations and artists is dwindling and that the club wanted to offer high-quality jazz performances to the community.

Vic Caserta was happy he attended the event.

“With Dick Hyman playing the way he does at his age, and Diego’s Brazilian techniques, it’s fantastic,”

Caserta said.

Telma Siker said she came to see Figueiredo.

“I think he’s amazing,” Siker said.

“What he can do with a guitar is fantastic.”

Figueiredo wanted to be on top of his game because the audience was “hot.” He also said the night was special for him for another reason.

“To be here and perform with Dick Hyman, this legend, was fantastic,” Figueiredo said.

— IAN SWABY

Photos by Ian Swaby

Diego Figueiredo performs at the Sarasota Jazz Festival.

Bob Seymour, former jazz director for WUSF-FM (89.7) and honorary board member of the Jazz Club, addresses the crowd.

Melonie Favorite and Susana Ramlie

Guitarist Charlie Hunter and drummer Corey Fonville play in an ensemble with singer Kurt Ellling.

The Circus Arts Conservatory staff members Aaron Watkins, Irene Certas, and Cal Bonnett serve Anne Mierzykowski.

Modern tropical style rises to meet urban sophistication in the heart of walkable downtown Sarasota. Pairing an intimate collection of luxury tower residences with the curated amenities of a boutique hotel, SOTA delivers serviced simplicity to a stylish new address overlooking the city.

Lake Club home tops sales at $3 million

ADAM HUGHES RESEARCH EDITOR

Ahome in Lake Club topped all transactions in this week’s real estate. John and JoAnn Grossi, of Bradenton, sold their home at 8405 Pavia Way to Michael and Tara Lendener, of Lakewood Ranch, for $3 million. Built in 2022, it has four bedrooms, four baths, a pool and 3,738 square feet of living area. It previously sold for $1,523,100 in 2022.

COUNTRY CLUB

Donald and Cynthia Paxton, of Lakewood Ranch, sold their home at 13305 Palmers Creek Terrace to Michael Weisenberg, of Sarasota, for $2.8 million. Built in 2004, it has three bedrooms, four baths, a pool and 5,028 square feet of living area. It sold for $1.21 million in 2019.

Peter and Annick Stephenson sold their home at 7102 Whitemarsh Circle to Kathleen and Kevin Hagerty, of Narragansett, Rhode Island, for $881,000. Built in 2003, it has three bedrooms, three baths, a pool and 2,494 square feet of living area. It sold for $514,200 in 2003.

CONCESSION

Christopher John Hickman and Donna Hickman, of Bradenton, sold their home at 19450 Beacon Park Place to Donald and Diana Vavro, of Manitoba, Canada, for $2.55 million. Built in 2013, it has four bedrooms, four baths, a pool and 3,886 square feet of living area. It sold for $1,325,000 in 2016.

LAKE CLUB

Richard and Margaret Beckwith sold their home at 8205 Pavia Way to Joseph and Suzanne Deluca, of Phoenixville, Pennsylvania, for $1,835,000. Built in 2021, it has three bedrooms, two-and-a-half baths, a pool and 2,427 square feet of living area. It sold for $1,092,300 in 2021.

Oliverio Estuar Cahueque-Godoy and Doris Cahueque sold their home at 16841 Verona Place to Ryan and Amber Duncan, of Bradenton, for $1.5 million. Built in 2020, it has four bedrooms, three-and-ahalf baths and 3,004 square feet of living area. It previously sold for $597,600 in 2020.

COUNTRY CLUB EAST

Ronald and Jeanne Oliver, of Sarasota, sold their home at 16817 Berwick Terrace to Robert Andrew Lieberman and Peri Ann Aptaker, of Bradenton, for $1.64 million. Built in 2015, it has three bedrooms, three baths, a pool and 2,972 square feet of living area.

Daniel Brock Rogers and Danielle Marie Minnick sold the home at 15213 Castle Park Terrace to National Residential Nominee Services Inc. for $1 million. National Residential Nominee Services Inc. then sold the home to Scott and Angela Joan Brigger, of Lakewood Ranch, for $1 million. Built in 2017, it has three bedrooms, three baths, a pool and 2,383 square feet of living area. It sold for $630,000 in 2019.

HEATHFIELD

Jonathan Hyman, trustee, sold the home at 7676 Heathfield Court to Cynthia Hayden, trustee, of West Chester, Ohio, for $1.3 million. Built in 2004, it has four bedrooms, three-and-a-half baths, a pool and 4,153 square feet of living area.

LAKEWOOD NATIONAL

Robert and Aniela Siniakowicz, of West Windsor Township, New Jersey, sold their home at 5715 Mulligan Way to Thomas William Bennet Jr. and Kathy Ann Bennet, of Bradenton, for $1,163,000. Built in

2021, it has four bedrooms, threeand-a-half baths, a pool and 3,120 square feet of living area. It sold for $717,500 in 2022.

BRIDGEWATER

Philip Giusti and Terri Hughes, of St. Petersburg, sold their home at 13827 Swiftwater Way to Akshay and Neha Kapadia, of Bradenton, for $1.13 million. Built in 2017, it has four bedrooms, three baths, a pool and 2,904 square feet of living area. It previously sold for $960,000 in 2021.

Jason and Ann Mitchell, of Lakewood Ranch, sold their home at 13631 Swiftwater Way to Angela Graham Stewart, of Bradenton, for $926,000. Built in 2016, it has four bedrooms, three-and-a-half baths, a pool and 3,095 square feet of living area. It previously sold for $556,500 in 2020.

ROSEDALE ADDITION

Evys Otero and Nadieska Lemus

Suarez, of Ellenton, sold their home at 4719 Tobermory Way to David and Rachael Scanlan, of Bradenton, for $1.1 million. Built in 2018, it has five bedrooms, four baths, a pool and 3,810 square feet of living area.

RIVERDALE REVISED

Richard and Barbara Anderson sold their home at 4739 Compass Drive to James and Emily Caldwell, of Bradenton, for $899,000. Built in 2000, it has three bedrooms, two-and-a-half baths and 2,089 square feet of living area. It sold for $385,000 in 2015.

Charles and Ann Lee, of Ellenton, sold their home at 4713 Pinnacle Drive to Nancy Burnett, of Bradenton, for $890,000. Built in 2002, it has three bedrooms, three baths, a pool and 2,279 square feet of living area.

SAPPHIRE POINT

Kevin and Julie Keener, of Medina, Ohio, sold their home at 5772 Bluestar Court to Jason and Ann Mitchell, of Bradenton, for $875,000. Built in 2022, it has five bedrooms, four-and-a-half baths and 3,443 square feet of living area. It previously sold for $597,600 in 2020.

Wally Sabrii, of Lakewood Ranch, sold his home at 6126 Bluestar Court to Elizabeth Panta Zavala, of Lima, Peru, for $590,000. Built in 2021, it has five bedrooms, three baths and 2,638 square feet of living area. It sold for $320,000 in 2022.

POLO RUN

Kristi and James Sauter sold their home at 17426 Polo Trail to Emily and Basher Assana, of Bradenton, for $855,000. Built in 2021, it has three bedrooms, three baths, a pool and 2,573 square feet of living area. It sold for $718,800 in 2022.

ESPLANADE

Paul and Peggy Jo Frank, of Bradenton, sold their home at 13034 Prima Drive to Catherine and Anthony Camut, of Cranberry Township, Pennsylvania, for $850,000. Built in 2015, it has three bedrooms, two baths and 2,256 square feet of living area. It sold for $482,500 in 2020.

Sheila Smith and Carrie McQueen, of Bradenton, sold their home at 12647 Sorrento Way to Paul Tippet, of Gibsonia, Pennsylvania, for $625,000. Built in 2018, it has two bedrooms, two baths and 1,685 square feet of living area. It sold for $363,000 in 2018.

PRESERVE AT PANTHER RIDGE Michael and Stefanie Marchand, of Banner Elk, North Carolina, sold their home at 7710 Jay Watch Glen to Gregory Jones and America Carla Jones, of Bradenton, for $830,000. Built in 2002, it has four bedrooms, three baths, a pool and 2,733 square feet of living area. It sold for $430,000 in 2013.

DEL WEBB Carol Matla, of Bradenton, sold the home at 17216 Hampton Falls Terrace to Susan England and William Roberts, of Bradenton, for $765,000. Built in 2019, it has two bedrooms, two baths and 1,863 square feet of living area. It sold for $518,600 in 2019.

PINEY RIVER

Christine Patneaude, of Tampa, sold her home at 6915 84th St. Court E. to Hawk Head Property Investors LLC for $730,000. Built in 1993, it has three bedrooms, two-and-a-half baths and 1,939 square feet of living area. It sold for $285,000 in 2013.

ROSEDALE HIGHLANDS

Becki Telford, of Grand Rapids, Michigan, sold her home at 5209 97th St. E. to Janice Conaway and Dennis Van Conaway, of Bradenton, for $635,000. Built in 2005, it has three bedrooms, two baths, a pool and 1,853 square feet of living area. It sold for $550,000 in 2021.

GREENBROOK

John Hunter, of Milton, Delaware, sold his home at 6510 Field Sparrow Glen to Lisa Reichl and Jack Arthur Reichl, of New Berlin, Wisconsin, for $610,000. Built in 2003, it has three bedrooms, two baths, a pool and 2,073 square feet of living area. It sold for $415,000 in 2020.

Alison Chafin, of Bradenton, sold her home at 14228 Gnatcatcher Terrace to Thoai Nguyen and Ariane Mercado, of Lakewood Ranch, for $465,000. Built in 2004, it has four bedrooms, two baths and 1,868

Liz Ramos

This Country Club home at 13305 Palmers Creek Terrace sold for $2.8 million. It has three bedrooms, four baths, a pool and 3,738 square feet of living area.

square feet of living area. It sold for $260,000 in 2019.

MILL CREEK

William and Cynthia Hall sold their home at 13528 Second Ave. N.E. to Spencer and Lindsay Robinson, of Bradenton, for $585,000. Built in 2000, it has three bedrooms, two baths and 2,566 square feet of living area. It sold for $295,200 in 2014.

RIVA TRACE

Riva Lending LLC sold the home at 8044 Rio Bella Place to Evjeni Ndini and Stefan and Thellenza Ndini, of Naples, for $552,500. Built in 2015, it has two bedrooms, two baths, a pool and 1,909 square feet of living area. It sold for $381,000 in 2016.

CREEKWOOD

Scott and Laura Galletto, of Brooksville, sold their home at 4819 77th St. E. to Elixdanis Batista Pena, of Bradenton, for $550,000. Built in 1996, it has four bedrooms, three baths, a pool and 2,223 square feet of living area. It sold for $390,000 in 2005.

RIDGE AT CROSSING CREEK

Douglas Frank McDonough and Teri Lynn McDonough, of Bradenton, sold their home at 7557 Ridgelake Circle to Adam George Lewis and Marci Beth Lewis, trustees, of Bradenton, for $550,000. Built in 2020, it has four bedrooms, three baths and 2,274 square feet of living area.

It sold for $402,200 in 2020.

Benjamin David Schumacher and Taylor Rae Scharfenberg sold their home at 7633 Ridgelake Circle to Jeffrey James Mason and Chris Lee Mason, of Bradenton, for $480,000. Built in 2018, it has three bedrooms, two baths and 1,928 square feet of living area. It sold for $365,000 in 2020.

INDIGO

Allison Hinds Jr. and Jeanne Camperchioli, trustees, of Bradenton, sold the home at 12717 Deep Blue Place to Betty Parker, of Bradenton, for $547,000. Built in 2015, it has three bedrooms, two baths and 1,495 square feet of living area. It sold for $303,300 in 2015.

STONEYBROOK AT HERITAGE

HARBOUR

Lido Key Management Consultants

LLC sold the home at 9019 Willowbrook Circle to Tammy Edens and Jack Engle, of Bradenton, for $535,000. Built in 2006, it has four bedrooms, three baths and 2,228 square feet of living area. It sold for $314,000 in 2006.

SABAL HARBOUR Robert and Donna Masters sold their home at 4569 Runabout Way to Camille Michelle Diago-Catolico and Maria Rachelle Pepa, of Bradenton, for $530,000. Built in 2001, it has three bedrooms, two baths, a pool and 1,832 square feet of living area. It sold for $174,800 in 2001.

VERANDA AT LAKEWOOD

NATIONAL

Timothy Alan Bubb and Janet Bubb,

of Bradenton, sold their Unit 2511 condominium at 5711 Palmer Circle to Keith and Luann Dunlap, of Bradenton, for $515,000. Built in 2022, it has two bedrooms, two baths and 1,462 square feet of living area. It sold for $375,000 in 2022.

Ronald David Jones Jr. and Nancy Sarah Jones sold their Unit 614 condominium at 5507 Palmer Circle to Dennis Ryan, of Marietta, Georgia, for $415,000. Built in 2018, it has two bedrooms, two baths and 1,336 square feet of living area. It sold for $215,000 in 2018.

EDGEWATER

Pamela Humphreys and Joseph Michael Bond, trustees, of Longwood, sold the home at 8402 Idlewood Court to Carmen Hroncich, of Bradenton, for $490,000. Built in 2000, it has three bedrooms, two baths and 1,584 square feet of living area. It sold for $194,800 in 2000.

RIVER POINT OF MANATEE

Gary Niemerg sold his home at 326 36th St. N.E. to Kevin and Michele Dicus, of Bradenton, for $458,000. Built in 2001, it has two bedrooms, two baths and 1,710 square feet of living area. It sold for $438,500 in 2022.

CENTRAL PARK

Amanda Ackley and Harry Dale Ackley III, of Palmetto, sold their home at 4943 Newport News Circle to Tuan and Dung Nguyen, of Plano, Texas, for $450,000. Built in 2013, it has three bedrooms, two baths and 1,495 square feet of living area. It sold for $256,000 in 2016.

PINEHURST ESTATES

Veronica Lee and Charles Dekar, trustees, of Sarasota, sold the Unit 191 condominium at 7417 Eleanor Circle to Diane Farber, of Sarasota, for $450,000. Built in 1998, it has three bedrooms, two baths and 1,541 square feet of living area. It sold for $425,000 in 2022.

GREENFIELD PLANTATION

Michael and Jennifer Montecalvo, of Ft. Myers, sold their home at 9910 Sugar Mill Drive to Justin Skipper and Morgan Appler, of Pasadena, Maryland, for $446,000. Built in 1999, it has three bedrooms, two baths, a pool and 1,795 square feet of living area. It sold for $195,000 in 2004.

DEL TIERRA

Stanley Chester Kopczenski and Marie Annette Kopczenski sold their home at 429 Tierra Verde Way to Justin and Kaitlin Kahlmeyer, of Bradenton, for $445,000. Built in 2017, it has four bedrooms, two baths and 1,846 square feet of living area. It sold for $250,000 in 2017.

Gary and Bailey Corona, of Bradenton, sold their home at 15540 Rose Grove Drive to Shannon Rae Pacheco and Michaela Pacheco, of Albuquerque, New Mexico, for $440,000. Built in 2016, it has four bedrooms, two baths and 1,846 square feet of living area. It sold for $246,400 in 2016.

COTTAGES AT SAN CASCIANO

Kelly Stewart, of Sarasota, and Messina Loop LLC sold the home at 219 San Casciano Lane to Patrick and Deborah Gilroy, of Bradenton,

for $435,000. Built in 2014, it has three bedrooms, two baths and 1,596 square feet of living area. It sold for $440,000 in 2022.

WHITEBRIDGE COURT

B. Lynn Carter, trustee, of Virginia Beach, Virginia, sold the home at 6311 Walton Heath Place to Stephen Spanos, of University Park, for $400,000. Built in 1993, it has two bedrooms, two baths and 1,464 square feet of living area. It sold for $350,000 in 2005.

VERANDA AT RIVER STRAND James Robert Parker and Michelle Ann Parker, of Midland, Michigan, sold their Unit 1014 condominium at 7205 River Hammock Drive to James Michael Sawyers and Karen Marie Sawyers, of Bradenton, for $380,000. Built in 2012, it has two bedrooms, two baths and 1,561 square feet of living area. It sold for $230,000 in 2021.

HARMONY Brandon Thanh Lam, of Bradenton, sold his home at 5564 Pleasantview Court to Brendan Rimer and Lianne and Joseph Rimer, of Bradenton, for $377,500. Built in 2019, it has three bedrooms, two-and-a-half baths and 1,512 square feet of living area. It sold for $242,000 in 2020.

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UPENDED by Dennis Nullet, edited by Jeff Chen

By Luis Campos

Celebrity Cipher cryptograms are created from quotations by famous people, past and present. Each letter in the cipher stands for another.

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

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..

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