East County Observer 4.13.23

Braden River prom night PAGE 18

YOU YOUR NEIGHBORS. YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD.

Residents unreceptive to cell tower

YOUR TOWN

FINAL

Knows what she means about jelly beans

Lakewood Ranch’s Emmie Mannion (above) put a lot of thought into her guess for the East County Observer’s jelly bean contest.

She looked at the jar filled with jelly beans and submitted a guess of 1,100 jelly beans.

At the end of EGGstravaganza on April 1 at Waterside Park, Mannion, who is 5, found out her guess was closest to the 1,465 jelly beans in the jar. Her prize? Winning the entire jar of jelly beans.

Mannion said it felt good to win, and she was excited to eat them all.

From the classroom to the driver’s seat

After spending all day as the physical education teacher at Myakka City Elementary School on April 6, Joe Szewczyk (above) sat in the driver’s seat of a school bus ready to serve the school in a new way.

Szewczyk underwent training to become a bus driver for Myakka City Elementary School in addition to his teaching duties. Having a bus driver and school bus on campus allows the School District of Manatee County to ensure Myakka City students get to and from school in a more timely manner.

“When I look at it, it’s really for the kids,” he said. “The bell rings at 3:15 p.m., and it bothers me when I’m leaving school at 4:15 and they’re still on the playground waiting for the bus. They should be home already.”

Riley Duncan, Jennifer Lopez, Skylar Tobiassen and Carlee Lesinski, who are members of Girl Scout Troop 701, have earned their Silver Award by creating cat scratchers to donate to a local animal shelter.

Retiring Braden River JROTC instructor

Liz Ramos

Liz Ramos

Liz Ramos

Alexander Figueroa, a Braden River High School JROTC instructor, has spent 13 years building leaders for the future and state champions.

ABOUT THE SILVER AWARD

The Girl Scout Silver Award is the second highest award a Girl Scout can receive. Girl Scouts in sixth, seventh or eighth grade are eligible to earn the award.

Girls are tasked with identifying issues they care about, exploring their community, choosing a project, completing the project and celebrating and reflecting on their accomplishments.

Girl Scouts suggests troop members spend a minimum of 50 hours on their projects to earn their awards.

that would be waterproof and keep people who are homeless warm.

Eighth graders Reese Gurski, Isabella Arteaga and Alice Barr collected dozens of empty bags of chips from family, friends and classmates at school to start their blankets.

After cleaning them, they had to lay out the bags in the design they wanted, then iron them on parchment paper to fuse them together. They would then iron-on plastic wrap to make the blanket waterproof and, lastly, trim it as a final touch.

Arteaga said working on the project was a “labor of love.”

All that and a bag of chips

scratchers out of Girl Scout cookie cases to donate to Cat Town.

pating in other activities. The projects became easier with experience. They learned what worked and what didn’t.

Jennifer Lopez said she loved making the cat scratchers because she was able to make an impact on the cats at the shelter. She also loved being able to have fun with her friends in the process.

The troop members cut cookie cases into strips and either rolled them up and hot glued them to make circular cat scratchers or they stacked the pieces to make rectangle scratchers.

As a requirement for the Silver Award, each girl had to spend at least 50 hours on the project.

With each quilt taking at least four hours to make and each cat scratcher taking at least an hour and a half, the girls easily reached their 50-hour goal.

When members of Girl Scout Troop 701 were brainstorming ideas for their Silver Award, Riley Duncan thought of her cats.

Duncan adopted her cats, Cosmo and Luna, from Manatee County’s Cat Town Adoption Center in Bradenton. She was sad to see so many cats there and wanted to give them something to enjoy.

Duncan suggested to her fellow troop members that they make cat

While half the troop, which is based at Braden River Elementary, worked to make cat scratchers for their Silver Award, which is the second highest award a Girl Scout can receive, the other half of the troop decided to make blankets out of chip bags to donate to those who are homeless.

The troop found inspiration and lessons on how to make the chipbag blankets from a group in England. They saw it as a way to recycle materials while creating a blanket

“This is something we all were passionate about,” she said. Seeing what we can do and how it can help other people is something important.”

Barr said working on the project gave the girls time to reflect on everything they have and how the project was going to make an impact in the community.

“It encourages you to finish it,” she said. “You think about what you’re grateful for because you think about how you don’t need to make these for yourself because you have a roof over your head. It was good to selfreflect.”

The troop made 10 blankets and 23 cat scratchers.

For the past year, the girls would meet at Camp Honi Hanta to work on their projects on top of attending their usual meetings and partici -

The troop will donate the blankets, along with at least 10 blessing bags that are filled with hygiene products and toiletries, to the Umbrella Women at Woodland Community Church. The group works with and provides meals to those who are homeless in Sarasota and Manatee counties.

The girls also wrote encouraging notes to those who will receive the blankets and blessing bags.

The girls are proud to have earned their Silver Awards while making an impact on their community.

“I feel relieved because not a lot of people finish their Silver Awards,” Lopez said. “It makes you feel good because every Silver Award contributes to the community and helps it in some way. I feel happy I’m a part of that.”

Barr said she can be a role model for younger Girl Scouts and show that it’s possible to earn a Silver Award with hard work and dedication.

LIZ RAMOS SENIOR EDITOR

Girl scouts make blankets for the homeless out of chip bags in pursuit of Silver Awards.

Liz Ramos

Reese Gurski, Isabella Arteaga and Alice Barr, who are members of Girl Scout Troop 701, create blankets out of chip bags to donate to those who are homeless to earn their Silver Award.

“This is something we all were passionate about. Seeing what we can do and how it can help other people is something important.”

Isabella Arteaga

Lorraine Lakes’ towering concerns

Residents say they have health concerns about a cell phone tower planned next to their children’s playground.

Mary Buck stood in front of a doctor nine years ago and asked why her 5-year-old son, Jackson, had leukemia.

“The doctor said, ‘You never know what causes cancer,’” Buck said last week from her Lorraine Lakes neighborhood in Lakewood Ranch.

“That is unacceptable,” she said.

After three-and-a-half years of treatment, Jackson emerged from the ordeal and is now a healthy 14-year-old. However, Buck said Jackson’s cancer diagnosis “changed everything for us.”

One thing it has done for the Buck family is make them question possible health hazards, such as the cell phone tower planned for their neighborhood, just south of the Lorraine Lakes amenities center and the playground built by Lennar. It is also alongside an upcoming school bus stop. Cell phone towers emit radio frequency signals, which are being studied by worldwide health organizations to determine if there is a risk from long-term exposure.

Buck’s home is far enough away from the planned cell tower that she isn’t concerned about exposure there, however, she didn’t know the cell tower would be built near the playground and amenities center.

“We wanted a neighborhood with a good amenity center,” said Buck, who, with her husband, Jamie, also has a 12-year-old, Maddie, and a 10-year-old, Finley. “We will be using the pool there. I have an electromagnetic field blocking device on my phones, on my microwave oven, on my computers. We are proactive.”

NEIGHBORS PROTEST THE

TOWER

Buck started a group, Lorraine Lakes Residents Against the Proposed Cell Tower, and a petition asking Lennar that it not be built. It has been signed by 678 people as of April 11.

The petition states “We, the undersigned residents of the Lorraine Lakes Community, are concerned and shocked about the health hazards, visual pollution, and the unnecessary addition of another cell tower in our neighborhood. The cell tower, located at the town center, is causing great concern and distress for us and our families, many containing young children.”

It goes on to express concern about potential health hazards due to radiation, the fact it will be an eyesore and diminishes aesthetic appeal, that property values will go down and that other cell towers in close proximity to the community provide excellent service.

“People care about this,” said Buck, a former attorney who is now a life coach. “They don’t want this.”

Her fellow residents have rallied to

help Buck, and more than 300 Lorraine Lakes residents have joined her group.

RESIDENTS VOICE CONCERNS

Bill Pfannenstiel has lived in the neighborhood for 20 months on Tradewind Terrace, and he said he wasn’t aware the tower would be built “right on top of the children’s playground.”

“If I were a parent, I would be concerned about a 5G tower,” he said. “The long-term impact is not fully understood.”

Julia McRoberts, who is an oncology nurse, lives on Seafoam Trail.

“I have grandchildren, and I don’t want them exposed to that,” she said.

While the World Health Organization’s stance on cell phone towers is that “no adverse short- or long-term health effects have been shown to occur from the RF signals produced by base stations,” McRoberts said she is skeptical.

“There is such a high concern here,” she said. “This is a community with a lot of children.”

She said she would feel better if they moved the tower away from the amenities center and the playground.

Marc and Debbie Marini lived in Bridgewater for six years before moving to Lorraine Lakes two years ago.

“When they were showing us the homes, we didn’t know we would be looking at a playground and a huge cell tower,” Debbie Marini said. “Our main concern is that there will be health risks.”

Marc Marini called it an oxymoron to have a cell tower next to a playground. He also was concerned that a cell phone tower will devalue his home.

“We have seen published articles about home values decreasing by 20% when they build a cell tower,” he said. “This is just corporate greed, and we will be left to deal with it.”

Dane and Kim Bodamer were living in Waterside of Lakewood Ranch and they said they wanted to move away from power lines. They didn’t expect to run into a similar problem in Lorraine Lakes.

“We are living too close to these energy sources,” Kim Bodamer said. “I think it can cause long-term damage.”

Their other concern is the value of their home.

“We bought a $1 million home,” Dane Bodamer said. “We need to speak out and let them know our concerns. They are looking to make money, I get it. But they aren’t going to know how we feel if we don’t speak out.”

Taylor Messina is speaking out because she has an 11-month-old.

“The amenities center, in general, is where we will be hanging out,” she said. “And what if (the tower) fell down? This is all unnecessary with

WHERE THEY STAND

From the American Cancer Society: “The American Cancer Society does not have an official position or statement on whether or not radiofrequency radiation from cell phones, cell phone towers or other sources is a cause of cancer. ACS generally looks to other expert organizations to determine if something causes cancer, including the International Agency for Research on Cancer, which is part of the World Health Organization.

From the World Health Organization’s International Agency for Research on Cancer: The IARC has released new recommendations to reassess as a “high priority” the cancer risks of radiofrequency radiation between 2020-24. A WHO/IARC monograph states that research shows this radiation is absorbed deeper into children’s bodies than adults. WHO/IARC Director Christopher Wild recommends taking measures to reduce exposures until research on long-term exposure is completed in light of the risk classification.

From the World Health Organization: From all evidence accumulated so far, no adverse short- or long-term health effects have been shown to occur from the RF signals produced by base stations. Since wireless networks produce generally lower RF signals than base stations, no adverse health effects are expected from exposure to them.

other cell towers so close.”

Alejandro Vizcaino agreed that those who live in the community have excellent cell phone reception, so another tower is not needed.

“(Lennar) is pushing the tower just to get (the monetary) benefits,” Vizcaino said.

He also is concerned about health issues and property values.  He said the cell tower plans were

mentioned in his contract to buy his home, in the fine print “that no one reads.”

PROJECT CLEARED

MAJOR HURDLES

Because of a Manatee County Commission meeting in 2018 in which Commissioner Vanessa Baugh asked Lennar to try to find a different spot for the cell tower, Vizcaino thought the tower might eventually be rejected. That didn’t happen. The plans were approved in 2019.

Currently a redesign of the cell phone tower is filed with Manatee County’s staff, but Baugh said it isn’t likely the issue will come in front of the commissioners again.

“I knew this would come back to haunt everybody,” said Baugh, who has opposed the placement of the cell tower and recommended looking into the possibility of building a cell phone tower on nearby countyowned land.

Baugh said it might be too late to stop the wheels from turning.

“I am afraid this is how it is going to end up,” she said. “But we do need to have cell phone towers. There you are. There is not a lot we can do with that.”

The amenities center is expected to open in May or June.

“This cell phone tower is being built against the community’s will,” Vizcaino said. “Without the community’s support, they shouldn’t be doing it.”

The community is scheduled to be 1,500 homes with about 500 having been occupied already.

“From my perspective, this is almost like bullying,” said Seafoam Trail resident Anthony Rizzi. “There has been no consultation with the community. We were third owners of our home and we never saw the original plan.”

WILL THERE BE ‘DECENCY?’

His wife, Marie Rizzi, said she believes in the “decency of humanity” and is hoping Lennar will reconsider.

“I am optimistic,” she said.

After residents began a letter writing campaign to Lennar officials, those residents received a letter on April 10.

It said Lennar is working on setting up a town hall meeting with residents to discuss the matter. The letter said SBA Communications representatives will be on hand to answer questions. No date has been set.

Calls to Lennar to respond to this story were not returned.

Calls to SBA Communications Corp., the builder of the cell phone tower, also were not returned. SBA Communications builds cellphone towers and leases antenna space to wireless service providers.

Jay Heater

Members of the Lorraine Lakes community in Lakewood Ranch are concerned a cell phone tower planned not far from the playground will be harmful to children.

JAY HEATER MANAGING EDITOR

Dancing

THURSDAY,

4 COURSE DINNER

the Tunes of DJ Larry Blackburn

Special

Chief deputy of finance appointed

Neil Unruh has been hired by Manatee County to be the new chief deputy of finance for the Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller’s office.

Unruh will operate all finance divisions in the clerk’s finance department.

Before joining the clerk’s office, Unruh was the comptroller for the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office for seven years. Before that, he was an audit partner for Shinn & Company, now known as Carr, Riggs and Ingram, CPAs and Advisors.

The Kansas native holds a bachelor of science in business administration with a focus in accounting from Wichita State University. He is a certified public accountant and is a member of the Florida Institute of Certified Public Accountants and the Florida Government Finance Officers Association.

“Neil’s experience and expertise in government financial accounting, in addition to his proven leadership and community involvement, makes him the ideal candidate to take the helm of our award-winning finance team,” said Angel Colonneso, the clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller for Manatee County, in a county press release.

The clerk’s finance department is responsible for carrying out the clerk’s duties as the CFO and comptroller for the Manatee County Commission and Port Authority. Services include accounting services, accounts payable and payroll, according to the release.

Residents asked to submit health survey

The Manatee Healthcare Alliance and the Department of HealthManatee are launching a campaign to encourage anyone ages 18 and older who lives or works in Manatee County to complete an online community health survey before May 8.

Survey results will be used to steer the course of community health efforts and resources between now and 2026.

A county healthy department

Lakewood Main Street, Suite 207, Lakewood Ranch, FL 34202 PHONE: 941-755-5357 | WEBSITE: www.YourObserver.com

release said questions ask surveytakers to identify, among other things, leading health issues, unhealthy behaviors and overall health of Manatee County.

The health department hopes to capture the thoughts of more than 12,000 men and women as to what they believe will help improve overall health across the community.

For the survey, go to SurveyMonkey.com/r/ManateeHealthSurvey.

All survey answers are anonymous.

For more information, call 7206145.

Special training for Gold Coast employees

Gold Coast Eagle Distributing has partnered with the National Beer Wholesalers Association to conduct an awareness training through its Distributors Against Human Trafficking initiative to educate employees on recognizing and reporting the warning signs of human trafficking.

According to a release, Gold Coast Eagle Distributing’s efforts are part of a nationwide campaign to help combat human trafficking in communities across the United States.

“As a local business, Gold Coast Eagle Distributing is always looking for ways to make a difference in Sarasota and Manatee Counties,” said Gold Coast President Andrea Saputo Cox, in a release. “Sadly, every community is vulnerable to the horrors of human trafficking, and Sarasota and Manatee counties are no exception.”

Gold Coast Eagle Distributing had 192 employees participate in the initial awareness training session. Gold Coast Eagle Distributing’s employees were also provided tools and resources to help them spot suspicious behaviors and alert authorities while on their routes.

To date, the Distributors Against Human Trafficking campaign has successfully trained nearly 30,500 beer distributors from 250 companies.

“We are incredibly proud of the growth of the Distributors Against Human Trafficking initiative since its launch,” NBWA President and CEO Craig Purser said in the release.

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Freedom addition nears completion

The East County elementary school’s capacity for students will rise to 910 from 746.

LIZ RAMOS SENIOR EDITOR

Guy Grimes, principal of Freedom Elementary School, has been excitedly watching an eight-classroom addition be built in the back of the school.

The $4 million project, which is on budget and on time, is expected to be complete in July, giving teachers enough time to move into the addition before the first day of the 202324 school year Aug. 10.

Since breaking ground the week of Sept. 5, work on mechanical, plumbing and electrical systems, along with the roof, is ongoing. The exterior stucco finish is being applied, and the drywall is being installed in the classrooms.

Grimes said the district and McIntyre Elwell and Stammer, the contractors of the project, have tried to disturb the school as little as possible, which has meant often working nights and weekends.

“It’s running smoothly,” Grimes said. “I’ve been a part of other building projects that it’s like one thing or another, you can’t get labor, you can’t get help and it takes forever. These guys are rock solid. I’m very impressed.”

According to the School District of Manatee County’s construction services department, the work that needs to be completed on the addition includes exterior finishes, site work, interior finishes, painting and the installation of playground equipment and case work as well as the completion of the mechanical, plumbing and electrical systems.

Grimes said teachers and staff are excited about the new technology that will be in each of the classrooms.

Each classroom will have a “teaching wall” that has a 75-inch panel, and the classroom will have upgrad-

ed Wi-Fi. Grimes said students and teachers will be able to do more with their laptops and the panel, such as the teachers being able to mirror what is on a student’s laptop onto the panel for the class to see.

The classrooms also will have flexible seating options and collaborative furniture, such as tables that are on wheels so they can be joined together with ease.

“If the teacher says, ‘OK, I want group A and group B to come together,’ literally, they just come right together,” Grimes said. “They have everything they need right there. The furniture is designed for that movement in the classroom.”

An aspect of the addition that Grimes as well as teachers and staff are looking forward to is the two bathrooms that are being constructed outside the addition near the covered physical education area.

“It’s a small thing, but it’s a big thing for us,” Grimes said. “The teachers are mostly excited about that because now the kids don’t have

to trek back into the building. We’ll have facilities right there.” Grimes said it has not been decided which teachers will move into the addition once it’s complete. Although the classrooms will be

FREEDOM ELEMENTARY SCHOOL ADDITION

572: Enrollment 746: Capacity 910: Proposed capacity with addition

8: New classrooms in the addition

160: Added student stations

$4 million: Project budget July 2023: Expected completion

“Everyone’s excited about the new building because of the possibility it brings,” Grimes said. “There’s some older teachers who don’t want to move, but they’re excited about what the building represents. Whoever goes in there, they’ll be 100% fine because they know it’s for the betterment of the school. Give a teacher an audience, and they’ll teach.”

Grimes said the new addition represents growth, new resources and new opportunities for students.

Freedom Elementary School fourth graders Lainie Prater and Jalee Harnish put on hard hats and grab shovels to celebrate the groundbreaking of their school’s new addition Sept. 22.

smaller than other Freedom Elementary classrooms, teachers and students still will have plenty of space because with the use of technology, the classes don’t need as many textbooks and other resources.

The single-story building is expected to have about 160 student stations, bringing the school’s capacity to about 910 student stations. The school’s enrollment sits at about 600 students this school year with a current capacity of 746 students.

There are apartment complexes and homes being built in the school’s attendance zone that will lead to an increase in enrollment at the school.

“Our school has done nothing but increase our academic success over the last few years,” Grimes said. “We’re an ‘A’ school, and we’re projected to be an ‘A’ again. It’s another positive resource for our parents to have an option. We call ourselves a hidden gem.”

Grimes said the school is projecting to have about 650 students in the 2023-24 school year.

“As more communities go up and with the (school) choice option for parents, we can easily house more than 850 kids,” he said. “More space means more kids. More kids means more families, and more families means a stronger community.”

Photos by Liz Ramos

Freedom Elementary School’s eight-classroom addition is expected to be complete in July.

Room to calm the senses

LIZ RAMOS SENIOR EDITOR

Hope Li, an eighth grader at R. Dan Nolan Middle School, launched herself onto the giant crash pad in the corner of the sensory room.

She laughed while sitting on the crash pad for a few moments before trying the squeeze machine.

The squeeze machine puts pressure on every part of the body as Li makes her way through, with the help of Kim Guerra, the Exceptional Student Education department chair.

Students with special needs, such as students with Autism spectrum disorder or students who are intellectually disabled, have access to the new sensory room to help calm them when they are overstimulated, help relieve anxiety and meet other sensory needs. Eventually, the room could be open to all students.

“We can see a difference when they leave here,” Guerra said about the sensory room. “What we are teaching our students to do is recognize when they’re starting to feel either frustration or when they need to take a break. This could be one of the areas they go to take a break, to calm down, to get away, to get that input they need.”

When Guerra and the Exceptional Student Education teachers bring students into the room, they give each student a color so they know at which station to start. After about 5 minutes at each station, the students will rotate so they can have access to different sensory equipment.

The room has small blue lights strung along a wall so the classroom lights do not have to be on if students find them overstimulating.

The sensory room features a crash pad that allows students to literally throw themselves onto a pad to release energy.

There’s a trampoline for students to jump on to release energy.

There are tactile sensory toys for students to play with so they can work with their hands.

The lights on the walls help students focus, as they can change each light to be the same color.

There are bean bag chairs and a canoe that puts weight on a person similar to a weighted blanket that provides comfort and security while easing stress and soothing anxiety.

If students need a moment to themselves, they can go inside the tent.

Guerra’s favorite part of the sensory room is the squeeze machine.

“Going through the rollers, they’re

getting that sensory input all the way from head to toe, top and bottom,” she said. “It will calm them down if they’re in a frustrated state where they just need some of the sensory input.”

Guerra said teachers also can bring students into the sensory room oneon-one and allow them to choose a station or equipment that will best help meet their needs.

The sensory room, which opened at the beginning of the 2022-23 school year, was made possible with the help of the school’s Parent-Teacher Organization, which paid for some of the equipment. The Exceptional Student Education department also received a grant, which teachers used to purchase the lights, crash pad and other items.

Because the school already owned

SENSORY ROOM FEATURES

The sensory room includes various items and equipment to meet students’ needs including:

n String lights to provide a calming environment

n Bean bag chairs to provide comfort and security while easing stress and anxiety

n Tactile sensory toys so students can work with their hands

n Tent for time to themselves

n Crash pad and trampoline to release energy

n Sensory board with different textures for students to touch and feel

n Lights on the wall to help students focus

n Squeeze machine to provide pressure all along the body

n Letters on the dry erase board to work on spelling

into the sensory room when they’re having a bad day, and it’ll turn their day around.  She said if students are happy and calm in class, it’s for the better of the entire class as there are fewer distractions.

“If you start to see behaviors in the classroom, it could look like anything,” Guerra said.

some of the equipment, like the squeeze machine, it cost around $1,500 to bring the rest of the room together.

With input from the Exceptional Student Education teachers, the school’s occupational therapist and behavior specialist, Guerra and her team were able to find the equipment that would best meet students needs and make a successful sensory room.

“That population of students is so unique,” Guerra said. “They’re so fun. I love working with that population of students. You never know what you’re going to get when you walk in there or when you leave. Just to see the smiles on their faces and having them happy and loving their time in here is the best. It’s very rewarding.”  Guerra said students can come

“It could be that some students rock, it could be students making noises. (The sensory room) is a positive thing in helping them with their behavior and getting them what they need. It’s all about these students, their needs and how we can best meet their needs. This is one room that regardless of what they need, we can find it in here.”

Guerra said the room is still a work in progress as they find ways to improve the room and new things to add.

For example, she would like to create a sensory path, which is a series of guided movements based on markings on the ground, such as a square that tells a student to twirl or hop to the next square. She also wants to add more string lights around the room.

R. Dan Nolan Middle School offers a sensory room that serves as a calming environment for special needs students.

Photos by Liz Ramos

Eighth grader Hope Li balances herself on blocks forming a path.

Seventh grader Moses Rodriguez has fun using the various equipment provided in the sensory room to help students calm down, feel less anxious and feel safe.

Library club begins new chapter

SENIOR EDITOR

Greenbrook’s Hannah Weakley and her 1-year-old daughter Avery walked up to the new Little Free Library at Greenbrook Adventure Park.

They took their time looking at the various children’s books available before choosing “Little Blue Truck’s Springtime.”

Arbor Grande’s Elizabeth Henderson, who founded the Little Free Library Club in Lakewood Ranch, was all smiles as she saw dozens of people browse through the books during the library’s ribbon cutting April 8.

Henderson began working to open a Little Free Library in 2014 after she opened one at a recreation center in Maine where she was living. When she moved to Arbor Grande in 2018, she brought the library with her and installed it in her neighborhood.

Henderson thought people throughout Lakewood Ranch would love to have access to books at every public park, so in 2019, she received permission to start the Little Free Library Club in Lakewood Ranch.

The pandemic stalled her plans to start the club, but in January, she finally began club meetings.

About 13 Lakewood Ranch residents come together on the second Monday of every month to be a part of the Little Free Library Club.

“I love to meet people from different neighborhoods, different parts of (Lakewood Ranch), since it’s growing so fast,” Henderson said. “I felt more hands make for fun work. We’ve been having a lot of fun.”

Club members were able to stop by Henderson’s home to help with the building of the library in her garage.

“It’s a great sense of building community and getting to know different people, and that will continue,” Henderson said.

In four months, the club was able to design, build and install its first Little Free Library April 8 at Greenbrook Adventure Park.

The little library is in honor of Country Club East’s Arielle Monserez’s mother, Irene Farese, who died of pancreatic cancer last June.

Monserez inherited all the books that belonged to Farese, who was an avid reader.

WANT TO JOIN?

What: Little Free Library Club

Liz Ramos Arbor Grande’s Elizabeth Henderson, who is the founder of the Little Free Library Club, Country Club East’s Arielle Monserez and her 4-year-old daughter, Millie Monserez, and Tampa’s Katerina Farese are thrilled to have the little free library open.

When: 10 a.m. every second Monday of the Month

Where: Lakewood Ranch Town Hall North, 6310 Lakewood Ranch Blvd., Lakewood Ranch

Details: Join the Little Free Library Club as the group works to install Little Free Libraries in Lakewood Ranch parks.

More information: LittleFreeLibraryLWR@ gmail.com

LIZ RAMOS

YourObserver.com

Last drill for Pirates’ instructor

Alexander Figueroa will lead the Bradenton school into one more state tournament before retiring.

The Junior Reserve Officers’ Training Corps Drill Team State Championship mostly has been a joyous occasion for Alexander Figueroa. After 13 years serving as a JROTC instructor at Braden River High School, this year’s state championship on April 15 will be bittersweet for the longtime instructor.

Figueroa will retire in June from both his teaching duties and leading the drill team.

“It’s going to be fun because I call it the last dance,” said Figueroa, who has decided to go into ministry work. “It’s going to be bittersweet.”

From the time the drill team meets for the first time in October to when the team competes at the state championship in April, Figueroa said it’s a complete transformation as students embrace their roles as leaders and freshmen learn the basics.

“On competition day, I’m just like a proud papa watching them do what they’ve been practicing all week,” Figueroa said. “I always tell them, ‘It’s showtime, but when you go out there it’s no different than how you practice during the week. Just go showcase what you’ve worked on.’ It all comes together like a ballet.”

This year’s state championship also will be bittersweet for the students as they know it’s their final competition with Figueroa.

Julianna Chupp, a senior, said Figueroa has changed her mindset on winning. Rather than focusing on the other teams she’s competing against, she’s focused on herself and her team.

“He always tells us we’re not competing against anyone except for ourselves,” Chupp said. “You’re not thinking about how good the other schools are going to be; you’re thinking about how good you are going to be and how you are going to outdo yourself. You’re always going to be working on improving yourself.”

Figueroa sees his years teaching as a service to the school, the community and the students he has helped turn into leaders.

“I want to share my experience with the kids in a community where I can make a difference to impact future generations,” Figueroa said. “Teaching high school kids was not on my radar, but there’s a higher power that called me here. I’m always obedient to that.”

Since 2008, the female and male drill teams have won a category state championship title almost every year, always building upon the drill team’s legacy.

AREA 5 DISTRICT CHAMPIONSHIP RESULTS

Female UnArmed Squad 1st place

n Cadet Master Sgt. Hailey

Hogan

Female UnArmed Platoon 1st place

n Cadet Battalion Cmdr. Crystal

Trejo

Armed Squad 1st place

n Cadet Cmdr. Leah Buehler

Armed Platoon 1st place

n Cadet Sgt. Firstclass

Maddison Kelley Squad Exhibition 1st place

n Cadet First Sgt. Aurora Skuba

Platoon Exhibition 1st place

n Cadet Battalion Executive Officer Julianna Chupp

Color Guard 2nd place

n Cadet First Sgt. Adanna

Wharton

Male Platoon Exhibition 1st place

n Cadet Cmdr. Taylor Fairchild

Armed Squad 2nd place

n Cadet Sgt. Edgar Monroy

Color Guard 3rd place

n Cadet First Sgt. Nathan

Walmsley Squad Exhibition 3rd place

n Cadet First Sgt. Jeremiah

Gonzales

Individual Exhibition

n Cadet Battalion Executive Officer Julianna Chupp 1st place

n Cadet First Sgt. Adanna

Wharton 2nd Place

n Cadet First Sgt. Jeremiah

Gonzales 2nd place

n Cadet First Sgt. Nathan Walmsley 2nd place.

Dual Exhibition

n Cadet First Sgt. Adanna

Wharton 1st place

n Cadet Firstclass Maddison Kelley

n Cadet Battalion Executive Officer Julianna Chupp 2nd place

n Cadet First Sgt. Aurora Skuba

UnArmed Knockout

n Cadet First Sgt. Adanna

Wharton 3rd place

Armed knockout

n Cadet Firstclass Maddison

Kelley 1st place

n Cadet First Sgt. Adanna

Wharton 2nd place

“It’s an honor to be a part of something that the kids develop and establish their legacy,” Figueroa said. “I’m just a small piece of it. The reality is the kids do all the work. I just got to teach, coach and guide them to being the great champions they are.”

Figueroa said a key to the drill team’s legacy is building leaders the moment they join the program as freshmen and then continuing their development.

“We embrace every student at different levels to where they teach, coach and mentor one another, and they learn together,” he said. “We we establish that down at the lowest level. A freshman could say, ‘I was a state champion.’ It starts from there.”

Junior Giovanni Sarnuto said Figueroa has taught him how to build great leaders. Figueroa taught his students to see if potential leaders are the answer to three questions: Does the leader care? Can the leader help? Can students trust him or her?

“I have taken this to heart because it’s such a great way to lead,” Sarnuto said. “Once you show you care for the people you’re leading, they’ll respect you.”

Chupp said Figueroa is like “the fun uncle” of the JROTC family.

“He’s kind of a wackadoo, but he’s serious when he needs to be. He makes practice fun. He’s the best of the best. I don’t think anybody can ever top Sergeant Major when it comes to coaching us.”

Students recalled when someone left a small yellow bike leaning against the building where the JROTC program has its classes. Before they knew it, Figueroa was riding around in circles on the bike.

Chupp said she’ll always remember when Figueroa stayed in contact with the drill team through Zoom when students were learning from home during the COVID-19 pandemic. She remembered him making a heart with his arms above his head.

“Every time he does it, it’s so adorable,” Chupp said. “I have so many pictures of him doing it. It just shows he cares.”

Although Sarnuto was hoping Figueroa would be the drill team instructor for his senior year, he said Figueroa has ingrained in the students high standards that won’t change in the future.

“Despite him not being there, we’ll be prepared,” Sarnuto said.

“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.”

The Braden River High JROTC drill team won the district title at Riverside High in Sarasota and is headed to the state event.

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Sophomore A.J. Peters, junior Giovanni Sarnuto, JROTC instructor Alexander Figueroa, junior Adanna Wharton, senior Julianna Chupp and sophomore Tiffany Rock are hopeful they can add to the school’s many state championships.

Injured career soldier motivated by Rosedale’s efforts

Christopher Blauvelt, who will be the reluctant recipient of an adaptive, mortgage-free home from Homes for Our Troops, knows he will benefit mightily from that kindness.

However, his appreciation comes more from what the home will mean to his family.

Wesley Chapel’s Blauvelt was the featured recipient at this year’s Rosedale Golf Classic in East County that was held April 5 at Rosedale Golf and Country Club. The Rosedale community bands together each year to host the fundraiser for Homes for Our Troops.

On April 4, 2010, Army Sgt. Blauvelt was on patrol in Laghman Province in Afghanistan when an improvised explosive device detonated under his vehicle.

The blast left him with spinal fractures, a fractured pelvis, a traumatic brain injury and many more injuries. His right leg had to be amputated.

“Everything was shattered up to my T-10 (10th thoracic vertebra),” he said, pointing at his chest. “It mushed everything, broke everything all the way down.”

A career soldier who served in both the Coast Guard and the Marines before signing with the Connecticut Army National Guard after the 9/11 attacks, Blauvelt actually considered staying in the service after his injuries, but he was told he would be never allowed to run again, which would make him nondeployable.

So in 2012, he retired from military service as a master sergeant.

The years that have followed have not been easy.

Without his military peers around him, he confined himself to his home, with his wife, Bernadette, and five kids, being his entire social group.

Since his home had not been adapted for someone with his physical challenges, he would

become angry when he couldn’t do what most would consider simple tasks. His chronic pain complicated matters.

“My family was exposed to me being in pain all day,” he said. “It weighs down everyone in the family. They would deny it, but you can see it on their faces.”

Even so, the years passed and Blauvelt came to grips with the fact that he would just have to deal with the pain and aggravation.

“I could survive in a dirt field,” he said.

Then a couple of years ago, some friends suggested to Blauvelt that he apply for the Homes for Our Troops program. He said no.

“I felt awkward,” he said. “I will be 57 in May. I have a wife and five kids and a grandkid.”

He wanted to see younger solders

get the benefit. But his wife applied anyway. Before the Rosedale Golf Classic teed off, Blauvelt stood in front of Rosedale Golf and Country Club and addressed the 140 golfers (a sellout), volunteers and those who came to support the effort.

He noted that his wife was responsible for the new home.

“You could say she has given me everything I have in my life,” he said.

“This is going to help us tremendously,” Bernadette Blauvelt said.

“We have been working our butts off forever.”

Married for 25 years, she said he became a different person after being injured in Afghanistan. He began to show more anger and frustration about little things, such as people shutting the door on them

after they entered a grocery store. Socially, he would shut down, unlike when he was around his military family. She noticed how much more comfortable he was at Rosedale with several other veterans who had been severely injured in attendance.

“He was comfortable in his element,” she said. “That’s not always the case.”

Blauvelt said the Rosedale Golf Classic volunteers, led by founders Kathi Skelton and Deb Kehoe, and Homes for Our Troops have motivated him to attempt a little more interaction with the world. He said he would like to pursue a degree in clinical social work.

If Blauvelt wonders what difference a new, mortgage-free home could make in his life, he could talk to Bobby Withers, a former recipi-

ent who attended the Rosedale Golf Classic. The Army National Guard captain received a home in 2015 and at the time he couldn’t get out of his wheelchair from the injuries he suffered in Afghanistan in 2010 from stepping on a mine, severing the bottom of his right leg and most of the back of his left leg.

A week before the Rosedale event, he completed an Ironman halfmarathon in Oceanside, California. It was the fourth time he has completed a triathlon.

“Having that home means I have a safety net,” he said. “I can do anything I want to do. It has set my life trajectory.”

Giving him a boost toward a better life was watching Skelton and Kehoe put together the Rosedale event to help him.

“The military talks about putting values into action,” Withers said. “They highlight what that means.”

Skelton and Kehoe love seeing the difference a home makes in veterans’ lives. They hope this year’s event propels Blauvelt forward.

“Everything went great,” said Skelton, noting that the event raised $178,700, just short of last year’s record of $181,000.

“We have raised awareness,” said Kehoe, who noted that this year marks their 10th anniversary of the fundraising effort, which now totals $1,094,000 for Homes for Our Troops. “The bulk of fundraising is about word of mouth.

“That represents a lot of word of mouth.”

Photos by Jay Heater

Career soldier Christopher Blauvelt is dropped off during a procession to honor him before the Rosedale Golf Classic.

Rosedale Golf Classic co-founder Kathi Skelton is all smiles because preparation for the event is finished and the golfers are headed to the course.

Volunteers still needed for Suncoast Classic

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED

What: Volunteer to be a marshal for the LECOM Suncoast

JAY HEATER MANAGING EDITOR

It’s one of the prime attractions for being a volunteer at a professional golf tournament.

You never know who you will meet.

Take Bradenton’s Cindi Hopkins for instance. She has been a volunteer at various golf tournaments for 16 years, the last three with the LECOM Suncoast Classic at Lakewood National.

“It is so much fun, just being out there and watching the crowd, watching the golfers,” Hopkins said. “You’re outside on a golf course, and it is beautiful.”

And every year, she said she meets interesting people.

At the 2017 Presidents Club at Liberty National in New Jersey, Hopkins was volunteering as a golf cart driver when Jack Nicklaus jumped into her cart with his publicist.

She pretty much stayed out of their conversation, but when the ride was over the publicist asked if she wanted a photo with the “Golden Bear.”

Of course it is now a cherished souvenir.

Others she has met during tournaments have been Jim “Bones” Mackay, the former caddie for Phil Mickelson and the current caddie for Justin Thomas, and former LPGA star Michelle Wie.

Although the Suncoast Classic is a Korn Ferry Tour event — the level below the PGA Tour — future and former stars often participate. Past participants have been major champions Scottie Scheffler, Mike Weir and Angel Cabrera, along with PGA Tour star Will Zalatoris and Champions Tour star Steven Alker. Hopkins and her husband, Mike Gerbasio, are in their second year as directors of the Suncoast Classic’s volunteer marshals. The tournament dates are April 20 through 23 and volunteer marshals are still needed.

Classic Dates: April 20-23

How: Go to LECOMSuncoastClassic.com

Cost: $40

Perks: Volunteers receive a tournament shirt and hat, a free round of golf, meals on the work days, tickets to the event

After its first four years were held in February, this year’s Suncoast Classic has moved to April, and that means many of the volunteers who were snowbirds already have left.

“The more marshals you have, the better,” Gerbasio said. “There is no such thing as too many. Last year we had 180, and this year we have about 125.”

Lakewood Ranch’s Marty Fugardi and his wife, Jamie, volunteer every year.

“We enjoy being that close to the players,” Marty Fugardi said. “The majority are very friendly and nice.”

The Fugardis usually work as marshals on the Par 5 No. 14 hole for the tournament, which actually is the course’s usual No. 5 hole, but the nines are switched for tourney play. Since it is a blind drive on that hole, they signal to let the players on the tee know that the players in the fairway have moved forward and are out of range. Blind shots also can result in lost balls if spotters don’t mark the ball with a flag when it is buried in the rough or in a hazard. A pond is about 325 yards off that tee, so the players can reach it.

Last year, eventual champion Byeong Hun An hit a drive toward some trees on the final day. The ball stopped just short of the trees, and Marty Fugardi marked it with a flag. An walked up and saw the flag, then looked at Fugardi.

“Thanks for kicking it out of the woods,” An told Fugardi.

The Korn Ferry golf tournament needs course marshals.

Endocrinology

WELCOMES

Stillpoint donations soar

LIZ RAMOS SENIOR EDITOR

Certified, Endocrinology

Gayatri Sarkar, MD Board

Dr. Gayatri Sarkar brings to Intercoastal Medical Group at the Lakewood Ranch II office a wealth of knowledge and experience in Endocrinology.

Graduate School: Masters of Neuroscience, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY

Medical School: University of Calcutta Medical College, Kolkata, India

Residency: Internal Medicine, Lincoln Medical and Mental Health Center, Bronx, NY

Fellowship: Endocrinology, Diabetes and Obesity, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD

Certification: American Board of Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism

Hospital Affiliations: Sarasota Memorial Hospital; Lakewood Ranch Medical Center

A Patient Focused, Multi-Specialty Group l National Expertise l Multiple Locations A Patient Focused, Multi-Specialty Group l National Expertise l Multiple Locations

TO SCHEDULE AN APPOINTMENT,

Every year, Lakewood Ranch’s Bob Smith tries to beat his donation to Stillpoint Mission from the previous year by at least $1.

A week before Smith wanted to submit his donation to the Bradenton nonprofit, he was $10,000 short of topping last year’s donation of $63,035.

“It didn’t look very good because we weren’t getting any new donations, but through a burst of nagging, I hauled them over the finish,” Smith said.

Smith, with the help of his “captains,” Lakewood Ranch’s Judy Balmer, Diane and Greg Brune and Bob Keehn, was able to collect $70,380 in donations to the nonprofit that provides food, diapers, clothing and utility bill assistance to those in need.

The Louis & Gloria Flanzer Philanthropic Trust also agreed to match donations, helping the group reach its goal of donating more than $63,000.  Balmer, who has been involved with Stillpoint Mission for the past decade, and Diane Brune, who has been involved for 16 years, saw the dedication and passion Smith had for the nonprofit and wanted to do their part to help raise money.

THE GOAL KEEPS RISING

Lakewood Ranch’s Bob Smith raises his goal for donations to Stillpoint Mission each year.

2012: $1,500

2013: $5,825

2014: $7,243

2015: $11,000

2016: $11,300

2017: $16,500

2018: $20,235

2019: $25,525

2020: $32,705

2021: $40,950

2022: $63,035

2023: $70,380

12-Year Total: $306,198

and the captains this time of year, for the campaign has been consistent for the past 11 years.

to celebrate a donation of $70,380 to the nonprofit.

Lakewood Ranch II 11715 Rangeland Parkway, Bradenton, FL 34211 www.intercoastalmedical.com

A Patient Focused, Multi-Specialty Group l National Expertise l Multiple Locations

“It’s a labor of love,” Balmer said. “We’ve all been successful in our fields, and when you graduate from the work environment and play for a while, you look for something to fill that empty spot that made you feel like you were contributing to something. What a better cause than to help people who are less fortunate than you, especially children.”

Diane Brune said people have come to expect to hear from Smith

“People start to almost count on that we’ll ask during a certain time for help, and I think that gives power to it,” Diane Brune said. “We’re not a one-time thing. It’s a commitment.”

Gene Tischer, the president of Stillpoint Mission, said the nonprofit is serving, on average, 300 clients per week.

With the rise in cost for food and supplies as a result of inflation, Tischer said the donation from Smith is crucial.

Jump start your day with a cold brew coffee and sand volleyball before squeezing in a spa treatment and an afternoon of shopping. And as the sun begins to set, gather family and friends for dinner and drinks under the stars. Whether you’re in the shops, on the Plaza, or at the park, you’ll find new ways to spend the day at Waterside Place every time you come. Our year-round events, Sunday farmers’ market and weekly live music are open to everyone. explore

Liz Ramos

Bob Smith, Judy Balmer and Diane and Greg Brune join Gene Tischer, president of Stillpoint Mission,

The annual collection by Bob Smith results in $70,380 from Lakewood Ranch residents for the Bradenton nonprofit.

SPORTS

Fast Break

ished third (13 under par, one shot better than An). Montgomery has earned $2,382,435 this season and is 16th in the FedEx Cup standings.

ANDREW NOVAK, 2020 CHAMPION

Novak shot 23 under par to win the 2020 event by one stroke over John Chin. He did not have a strong finish to the 2020 season, but because the PGA Tour decided to combine the 2020 and 2021 seasons when distributing Tour cards because of the COVID-19 pandemic, Novak got another chance, and despite playing the Suncoast Classic again and missing the cut, he played well enough overall to earn a card.

This year, Novak has played in 12 PGA Tour events and made the cut in nine of them, with four top 25 finishes. His best performance came at the Valero Texas Open, held March 30-April 2 at the TPC San Antonio, when he finished ninth (nine under par). Novak has earned $718,322 this season and sits 86th in the FedEx Cup standings.

The Out-of-Door Academy senior Jack Bancroft was named to the 2023 Florida Dairy Farmers Academic All-State Team on April 5. Bancroft, who plays football, soccer and lacrosse for the school, holds a 4.0 GPA, ranking fifth in his senior class, and received a perfect score on the ACT.

Former Lakewood Ranch

High softball pitcher Payton Kinney is excelling at the University of Connecticut. Kinney, a junior, has made 12 starts (19 total appearances) for the Huskies and holds a 2.30 ERA with 77 strikeouts in 70.1 innings. Kinney has a 9-5 record and has been named the Big East Pitcher of the Week twice this season.

UMR Sports is offering a baseball pitching clinic at 9 a.m. on April 15. The clinic will teach beginners of any age the fundamentals of pitching in a small group setting. Registration for the three-hour clinic is $100. To register or for more information, visit UMRSports. com.

The Lakewood Ranch High baseball team has won five games in a row as of April 10 and now sits at 11-5. The Mustangs have done it with stellar pitching with an ERA of 1.40. … It was a big week for holesin-one. On April 3, Ted Ellis sank one with a 6-iron on the 116-yard No. 16 hole at University Park Country Club. On April 6, Pat Summerlee sank one with a 5-iron on the 99yard No. 7 hole on Lakewood Ranch Golf and Country Club’s Royal Lakes course. On April 8, Jeff Diemand sank one with a 7-wood on the 162-yard No. 6 hole at Lakewood Ranch Golf and Country Club’s Cypress Links course.

File photos

LECOM’s springboard to success

Some high finishers at the Suncoast Classic have thrived in the time since, while others have struggled to replicate their success.

With the Korn Ferry Tour’s 2023 LECOM Suncoast Classic coming to Lakewood National Golf Club on April 20-23 — the fifth iteration of the event — here’s a look at past winners and runners-up of the event to see where they are now.  While some have struggled to find a consistent groove, others have done well on the PGA Tour.

BYEONG HUN AN, 2022 CHAMPION

After winning the Suncoast Classic last February by shooting 17 under par, Byeong Hun An would finish in the top 10 at just one more Korn Ferry Tour event. He tied for second at that event (20 under par), then rode that high into the PGA Tour’s Zurich Classic of New Orleans, held the next weekend at TPC Louisiana, where he finished tied for 14th (20 under par).  Even though An would struggle down the stretch, he did enough to earn his PGA Tour card, and he’s played well in 2022-23, making the cut in 13 of 17 events and finishing in the top 25 of five events, including a tie for fourth (12 under par) at the Fortinet Championship at Silverado Resort and Spa in Napa, California, in September. An has made $1,263,286 this season and is 57th in the FedEx Cup standings.

BEN GRIFFIN, 2022 RUNNERUP

Griffin finished tied for second with three others at 16 under par at the 2022 event and used that momentum to earn his PGA Tour card, ending the year with five top 10 finishes. This season on the PGA Tour, Griffin has played in 17 events and made the cut in 14 of them, with six top 25 finishes.

His best finish came at October’s Butterfield Bermuda Championship, held at Port Royal Golf Course in Southampton Parish, Bermuda, where he finished tied for third (17 under par). Griffin has earned $1,520,047 this season and is 46th in the FedEx Cup standings.

HAYDEN BUCKLEY, 2021 CHAMPION

The 2021 champion has perhaps the best narrative of any past winner. Buckley won in 2021 by shooting 13 under par and winning a playoff. He did it after starting the tournament 10th on the alternate list, getting the official call 15 minutes before he had to tee off.  Buckley has never stopped building off his improbable win. He earned his tour card at the end of the 2021 season and has been playing well on the PGA Tour. As of April 7, Buckley has played in 14 events in the 2022-23 season and made the cut in eight of them — but finished in the top 25 in five of those eight events, including three top 10 finishes. His best performance came at January’s Sony Open in Hawaii, held at Waialae Country Club in Honolulu, where he finished alone in second place (17 under par), one shot back of Si Woo Kim.  Buckley has earned $1,836,289 this season and is 33rd in the FedEx Cup standings.

TAYLOR MONTGOMERY, 2021 RUNNER-UP Montgomery lost the 2021 Suncoast Classic on a playoff hole, then failed to follow up the tournament with enough good results to earn a tour card as he finished 26th in both the Korn Ferry Tour’s regular season standings and the KFT Finals standings (the top 25 get cards). But Montgomery played well in 2022 and finally earned his card, and has gone on a tear in the 2022-23 PGA Tour season.  Montgomery has played in 16 events and made the cut in 14 of them, with 10 top 25 finishes and four top 10 finishes. His best performance came at the Fortinet Championship, where he fin-

JOHN CHIN, 2020 RUNNER-UP

After coming within one stroke of a Suncoast Classic win, Chin has struggled to replicate his success. He failed to get his PGA Tour card after the combined 2020 and 2021 seasons and did not get one in 2022 either, after missing the cut in 12 of 22 Korn Ferry Tour events and never finishing higher than 26th, which he did at the Utah Championship at Oakridge Country Club in Farmington, Utah in August.  Chin, 35, has not played in any event in 2023.

MARK HUBBARD, 2019 CHAMPION

The first LECOM Suncoast Classic champion, who won by shooting 26 under par, has held his PGA Tour card since the 2019 season ended, though Hubbard did return to the Suncoast Classic in 2022 in the hopes of working out some kinks in his game. He finished tied for sixth (15 under par) in his return.

On the PGA Tour, Hubbard has been up and down. He has played in 17 events this season but made the cut in just eight of them, with three top 25 finishes. His best result came at the Sanderson Farms Championship, held Sept. 29-Oct. 2 at the Country Club of Jackson in Jackson, Mississippi, where he finished tied for fifth (13 under par). Hubbard has earned $695,390 this season and sits 96th in the FedEx Cup standings.

MAVERICK MCNEALY, 2019 RUNNER-UP

McNealy finished two strokes behind Hubbard at 24 under par but had two other top 10 Korn Ferry Tour finishes in 2019, which was enough to earn his PGA Tour card. McNealy has had a consistent hold on his status in the years since.

This year, McNealy has played in 13 PGA Tour events and made the cut in 10 of them, with five top 25 finishes and three top 10 finishes. His best performance came at the Sony Open in Hawaii, where he tied for seventh (13 under par). McNealy has earned $1,271,920 this season and is 66th in the FedEx Cup standings.

“I can play defense and I can hit, and if I’m not seeing the ball well, I have a slapping swing that I can use.”

— Lakewood Ranch High’s Cassidy McLellan SEE PAGE 15

Courtesy photo

The Out-of-Door Academy senior Jack Bancroft.

Byeong Hun An won the 2022 LECOM Suncoast Classic at Lakewood National Golf Club.

PROSE AND KOHN RYAN KOHN

Double development at Duke

Lakewood Ranch’s Connor and Jake Krug have been dead set on tennis since they were children.

They, along with their sister, Ava Krug, learned the sport from their mother, Sherri Vitale Krug, who played tennis at the University of Notre Dame.

They were good at it, too. They committed to Duke University in 2019 and signed in 2020 as top-30 players nationally, according to the Tennis Recruiting Network. Now sophomores at Duke, the twin brothers say their games have taken another step — but even more than that, they say the rest of their lives have been transformed by their college experience.

“In high school, I was playing a lot of tennis,” Connor Krug said. “I play a lot here, too, but there are also so many more avenues to explore. I have made a good group of friends off the court. I’m taking advantage of every opportunity Duke has. I’ve basically changed my perspective on everything since I got here.

“For most of my life, I have only been around tennis players and people who were similar to me. Here, I’m hanging out with people who are different. I feel like I have a personality outside of tennis.”

One example is that Connor Krug said he’s developed a love for travel and food, and he spent his spring break with friends in the Bal Harbour area of Miami going to different restaurants and experiencing as much of the village as possible.

Jake Krug agreed, saying he and Connor have gained a lot of maturity since hitting campus, something that shows in their day-to-day lives as well as their tennis habits. Before, he said, a bad tennis match would be all he thought about for the rest of the day. Now, he can relax afterward with four nontennis friends who don’t pepper him with questions about how the match went. That balance has been

crucial to his overall happiness, Jake Krug said.  There have not been many bad days lately. Both brothers have winning records as of April 7. Connor Krug is 15-10 (11-7 in dual matches) while Jake Krug is 13-12 (8-4 in dual matches). Their play in duals has given the Blue Devils necessary depth as Duke is 15-5 as a team and 8-1 in the Atlantic Coast Conference.

The brothers attribute their on-court success to a new initiative the Blue Devils coaches have implemented, targeting their players’ mental state. Connor Krug said their coaches have asked them to take stock of their play every time they lose a point and focus on something they did well during that point, as well as something they can correct on the next point.

As players only get 25 seconds between points, this activity forces players to put their energy toward something positive instead of complaining or getting down on themselves. It takes negative emotion out of the game, Connor Krug said, which is crucial. When you play with negative emotion, that’s when errors happen, he said.

“It sounds simple and easy, but it is something a lot of tennis players struggle with,” Jake Krug said. “It’s important.”

One thing they have been doing less this year is playing together.

The brothers have been a doubles pairing just once this season — they won the match — in favor of other pairings. Connor Krug has mainly played with freshman Teddy Truwit (they are 5-4) while Jake Krug has played with junior Andrew Dale (2-4) and junior Faris Khan (1-2).

The separation was not their choice, but they’re not upset about it, either. The brothers said the Duke coaches made the choice based on playing style, positioning and matchups. The team has become so close, they said, that

CONNOR AND JAKE KRUG STATISTICS

CONNOR

they are comfortable taking the court with anyone.

The brothers want to be clear, though, that they haven’t gotten sick of each other. In fact, they spend a lot of time together outside of tennis and have overlapping friends.

“Duke feels like home, and Jake certainly has a lot to do with that,” Connor Krug said.

At Duke, the brothers said, they have found their niche. They enjoy being part of a team after years of playing on their own, getting support from their fellow Blue Devils at practice and celebrating big wins together. While high school tennis can be a lonely experience with lots of travel and alone time, Jake Krug said, college tennis make you immediately feel part of something bigger.  They aren’t celebrities in Durham, North Carolina, but they do get recognized for being related to a certain family member.

“At one Duke basketball game this year, I don’t remember which one, I went up to grab some popcorn from the concession stand,” Connor Krug said. “I went to check

out and the cashier, who I had never seen before, said ‘Oh, you’re Dickie V’s grandson?’ And I said ‘Yeah. A discount on the popcorn, maybe?’ It didn’t work.”

The Krugs said Dick Vitale, their grandfather, has been up to see them a handful of times this year, as has the rest of their family. Being close enough for everyone to visit has been a nice perk, they said.

It’s another reason they feel at home with the Blue Devils.

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

Courtesy photo

Jake and Connor Krug are sophomores on the Duke University men’s tennis team.

Cassidy McLellan

Cassidy McLellan is a senior outfielder on the Lakewood Ranch High softball team. McLellan, who is committed to the University of Florida, is hitting .569 with 10 doubles, two triples, four home runs and 16 RBIs. She also holds a .969 fielding percentage. The team is 12-6.

When did you start playing softball?

I started with the Miss Manatee Softball organization when I was 5. What is the appeal to you?

The main thing is that I love the friends I have made. Some of my best friends are on our high school team and on my travel team (Hotshots National).

What is your best skill?

Well, I hope my teammates would say that I’m a great teammate. But besides that, I think I’m an allaround player. I can play defense and I can hit, and if I’m not seeing the ball well, I have a slapping swing that I can use.

What have you been working to improve?

I have been more aggressive on the bases. I have been working on doing delay steals while on second base or reading the ball while it’s in the dirt (to know when to steal).

What is your favorite memory?

Winning the first state championship with Lakewood Ranch (in 2021). Those bus rides to and from Clermont were fun, as was staying in a hotel with all my teammates. And obviously, winning felt amazing. Knowing it was the first one in Lakewood Ranch history was so fun.

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

Why did you sign with the University of Florida?

It’s a great academic school, and I love the coaching staff and the campus. It’s only two-and-a-half hours from here, so I’ll be close to family and they can come visit me.

What are your personal goals for the rest of this season?

My sophomore year I hit nine home runs. I have four right now. I’d like to get closer to nine. I also want to stay solid on defense. I’ve thrown three girls out this year but I’d like to get more of those as well.

What is your favorite food?

It’s the chicken tender sub from Publix. I get it with just lettuce and mayonnaise, which is kind of lame. But it’s my favorite meal.

What is the best advice you have

Before every game my mom (Denise McLellan) tells me to have fun. I think that’s important to remember. Even if you’re going through a slump or your team isn’t doing as well as you want, it’s still worth it if you’re

entence: “Cassidy McLellan

… Competitive. That’s what people tell me.

YOUR NEIGHBORS

NIGHT WITH THE STARS RETURNS

LIZ RAMOS SENIOR EDITOR

Bradenton’s Eddie Balen never went to his high school prom.  Instead, he went to a luncheon that served as an alternative prom.

But for the past seven years, Balen has been able to enjoy a prom experience through Night with the Stars Prom, a nonprofit that hosts a prom for individuals who are 16 years old and older with special needs.

“We’re mostly just friends, but at the prom, we’re family,” said Balen, who is an ambassador for Night with the Stars Prom.

At 6:30 p.m. April 14, Balen and more than 300 others with disabilities and their caregivers will strut the red carpet as they make their way into Woodland Community Church.

After checking in, each guest will receive a crown or tiara fit for a king or queen.

This year’s theme is “Night with Beast and His Beauty,” a take on Disney’s “Beauty and the Beast.” Guests will get to meet Beast, Mrs. Potts, Chip and potentially other characters from the Disney classic.

Mary Anne McDevitt, president of Night with the Stars Prom, is thrilled the nonprofit is able to host a prom once again after not being able to do so for the past three years because of the pandemic.

Going three years without hosting a prom has led the nonprofit to having trouble finding volunteers.

“A lot of our high school kids have graduated,” McDevitt said. “We lost all of that momentum because they’re all gone now, so we’re starting over again.”

McDevitt said the volunteers loved being at the prom because they would dance and spend time with individuals with disabilities. Before COVID, she would send out a letter to past volunteers to see who was interested in participating again, and she said she would have at least 30 people signed up within 15 minutes.

“A lot of the kids at the end of the prom would come up to me and tell me it was the best prom they’ve been to and it was even better than their own,” McDevitt said.

For some volunteers, McDevitt said the prom has inspired them to go into a career serving individuals with disabilities.

WANT TO VOLUNTEER?

Night with the Stars Prom is in need of volunteers. To get involved, contact President Mary Anne McDevitt at 7423972. Prom is at 6:30 p.m. April 14 at Woodland Community Church. Volunteers must wear a white shirt with black pants.

Night with the Stars Prom has opportunities for guests to meet characters matching the theme of the prom. This year’s theme is “Night with Beast and His Beauty,” a take on Disney’s “Beauty and the Beast.”

“When they tell me that, my heart just bursts and I want to cry because they found their calling just by coming to the prom,” she said.

Night with the Stars Prom is an event guests look forward to every year.

Guests have the opportunity to go to the nonprofit’s storage facility to select and try on a dress or tuxedo so they can look their finest on their big night.

The girls also can select accessories to go with their dresses. A local tailor provides alterations.

Eddie Balen’s father, Edward Balen, said attending the prom is like attending the Academy Awards.

“When you see the expressions on their faces as they walk through the doors to the sanctuary, they’re enlightened,” Edward Balen said.

“It’s sheer joy for them. The volunteers are instructed to make a fuss over them, and they do. They dance with them, make them laugh and escort them around. It gives you a chill down your spine when you see so much joy in one place.”

McDevitt and her core group of volunteers, who have been working with her since her days serving on the Parent-Teacher Organization at Carlos E. Haile Middle School, take over Woodland Community Church Thursday evening to start decorating and preparing the church for the prom.

Between 4:30 and 5 p.m. on the day of the prom, McDevitt and the volunteers finish with the final touches before getting ready themselves.

McDevitt said she usually starts seeing guests lining up to start

checking in 30 minutes before the prom begins at 6:30 p.m.

After 24 hours of stress preparing for the prom, McDevitt said it all melts away as soon as they see the guests and the look of excitement on their faces.

“We’ll open the doors and it’ll be like a swarm of bees just coming in,” she said.

Once inside, Eddie Balen said the prom is “wall-to-wall smiles and fun with head-banging music.”

Edward Balen said the Night with the Star Prom is a special event that gives people who weren’t able to go to their high school proms an opportunity to have that high school experience. It’s a night for them to dress up, feel special and hit the dance floor.

Guests have had the opportunity to meet characters related to the prom’s theme. This year, guests will meet Beast, Mrs. Potts and other “Beauty and the Beast” characters.

After a three-year absence due to the pandemic, the prom for those with special needs is back at Woodland Community Church.

Photos by Liz Ramos

Each guests has the opportunity to dress up and feel special at their prom during Night with the Stars Prom.

“We’re mostly just friends, but at the prom, we’re family.”

Eddie Balen

Great night of Gatsby

Braden River High School students Olivia Hunt, Leah Buchler and Ethan Zeitz wasted no time hitting the dance floor. They were the first to begin dancing at Braden River’s 2023 prom Thursday at the Hyatt Regency in Sarasota.

And as soon as they hit the floor, dozens of other students followed.

Junior Erika Sardina wore a headpiece, jewelry and other accessories along with her attire, which matched the “Gatsby” theme for the event.

“I love it,” Sardina said. “I feel like I came very on-point. I always like dressing for the theme.”

Photos by Liz Ramos

Seniors Ashlee Hatcher, Lindsay Page and Josh Schwab have fun at

— LIZ RAMOS Juniors Lourdes Capote-Dishaw and Chase Dougal and seniors Ethan McKay and Morgan Sowards are excited to be at prom. “It’s 18 years in the making,” McKay says.

Seniors Cameron Boyer, Jeremiah Parker and Yazan Traish have fun together before dancing with classmates.

Seniors Amya Dunbar and Benjamin Hudgepeth are named prom queen and king.

COMMUNITY

THURSDAY, APRIL 13-

SUNDAY, APRIL 16

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), the Divebombers (Saturday) and Mike Sales (Sunday). For more information, go to JiggsLanding.com.

FRIDAY, APRIL 14

MOVIE AT WATERSIDE

Begins at 7 p.m. at Waterside Place, 1561 Lakefront Drive, Waterside Place. The movie “Wall-E” will be shown outside at Waterside Place. The free event includes the Sidewalk Science Center hosting astronomy activities. Bring a blanket or lawn chairs.

FRIDAY, APRIL 14 AND

SATURDAY, APRIL 15

MUSIC AT WATERSIDE PLACE

Runs from 6-9 p.m. at 1561 Lakefront Drive, Waterside Place. Singer/ songwriter Tyler Vaden supplies the live, free entertainment on Friday as people enjoy strolling through Waterside Place. Singer/songwriter Kimi Tortuga will entertain the crowd on Saturday.

FRIDAY, APRIL 14-

SUNDAY, APRIL 16

SCULLING CHAMPIONSHIPS

Begins each day at 8 a.m. at Nathan Benderson Park, 5851 Nathan Benderson Circle, Sarasota. The Florida Scholastic Rowing Association

Sculling Championships will bring together middle school and high school crews from across Florida to race. The event is free for spectators but daily parking is $10. For more information visit FloridaRowing.org.

SUNDAY, APRIL 16

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 and dairy products. Other features are children’s activities and live music. For more information, go to www. MyLWR.com.

BEST BET

SUNDAY, APRIL 16

POLO

Begins at 1 p.m. at the Sarasota Polo Club, 8201 Polo Club Lane, Sarasota. The 2023 Sarasota Polo season has just three Sundays of competition remaining. Gates open at 10 a.m. Thousands of fans enjoy high-level polo action each Sunday while tailgating. The event includes themed weeks, entertainment at halftime and traditional divot-stomping. Tickets begin at $15 general admission and up for special packages and VIP seating. Tickets can be purchased in advance at SarasotaPolo.com or at the gate. Children 12 and under are free. Dogs are welcome on a leash.

The Suncoast is a beautiful place to live. Unfortunately, amongst our beautiful surroundings, there are many people who are struggling to find work, to secure housing, to overcome addiction, or to cope with dementia, or even to be better parents in

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 19

RANCH NIGHT WEDNESDAYS

Runs from 6-9 p.m. at Lakefront Drive in Waterside Place, Lakewood Ranch. Live music, food trucks, a market highlight this crowd favorite event. For more information, go to WatersidePlace.com.

THURSDAY, APRIL 20SATURDAY, APRIL 22 ‘SOMETHING ROTTEN!’

Begins at 6:30 p.m. at Braden River High, 6545 State Road 70 E., Bradenton. Braden River Theatre and Dance and International Thespian Society Troupe 8474 presents “Something Rotten!” The performance is rated PG-13. Tickets are $15 for adults; $10 for students and School District of Manatee County employees. Tickets at Our.Show/ BRHS-SomethingRotten.

Patients with Early-Stage PROSTATE CANCER May Benefit from an Easier Treatment Option

DR. SCIONTI HAS WORKED EXTENSIVELY WITH HIFU AND HAS PERFORMED MORE THAN 1,000 SUCCESSFUL PROCEDURES WORLDWIDE.

High Intensity Focused Ultrasound (HIFU) Is Available at Lakewood Ranch Medical Center and Can Offer Advantages over Traditional Treatment Options

For patients dealing with prostate cancer, surgery or radiation can often come with side effects, including erectile dysfunction and incontinence. The minimally invasive HIFU procedure aims to treat prostate cancer with reduced side effects.

How Does HIFU Therapy Work?

HIFU destroys prostate cancer cells through precise focusing of sound waves to the targeted location. A transducer from an ultrasound probe inserted into the rectum delivers the sound waves. The use of a robotic arm allows the surgeon to precisely control the probe’s movements. The heat, created from the interaction between the sound waves and the cancerous tissue, is what destroys the cancer cells.

Advantages of HIFU

• HIFU is minimally invasive, so only the cancerous tissue is targeted, not the surrounding tissue.

• Precision features significantly reduce side effects, such as impotence or urinary problems.

• HIFU is an outpatient treatment. Patients typically recover for about two hours in the hospital and then go home, often without a need for pain medication.

Experience Matters

When it comes to the use of HIFU for the treatment of prostate cancer, experience is important, according to Stephen Scionti, MD, board-certified urologist. Dr. Scionti performed the first HIFU treatment at Lakewood Ranch Medical Center in 2018 when the hospital became one of the first in Florida to acquire HIFU.

For patients who are seeking the advantages of HIFU, Dr. Scionti recommends that they do their research to find a physician who has experience with the procedure. Dr. Scionti has worked extensively with HIFU and has performed more than 1,000 successful procedures worldwide.

Prostate Cancer Statistics and Risk Factors

Other than skin cancer, prostate cancer is the most common cancer in American men.* Approximately 288,300 new cases of prostate cancer are estimated for 2023, and 34,700 deaths, according to the American Cancer Society.®

Individuals with the highest risk factors for prostate cancer include African American men, men who are 65 and older, and men with a family history of prostate cancer. Finding prostate cancer early may help reduce symptoms, make treatment easier or prevent death from prostate cancer.* Talk to your physician about your risk for prostate cancer and what screening measures may be right for you.

For a referral to a physician at Lakewood Ranch Medical Center, please call 800-816-4145.

Individual results may vary. There are risks associated with any minimally invasive procedure.

Talk with your doctor about these risks to find out if this procedure is right for you. Physicians are on the medical staff of Lakewood Ranch Medical Center, but, with limited exceptions, are independent practitioners who are not employees or agents of Lakewood Ranch Medical Center. The hospital shall not be liable for actions or treatments provided by physicians. For language assistance, disability accommodations and the nondiscrimination notice, visit our website. *CDC

File photo

Country Club East home tops sales at $2.3 million

ADAM HUGHES RESEARCH EDITOR

Ahome in Country Club East topped all transactions in this week’s real estate. Robert and Leslie Kornaker sold their home at 16116 Kendleshire Terrace to Robert Glen McCulley and Denise McCulley, trustees, of Mediapolis, Iowa, for $2.3 million. Built in 2018, it has three bedrooms, four baths, a pool and 3,182 square feet of living area. It sold for $1,018,000 in 2019.

COUNTRY CLUB

Charles and Elizabeth Kimsey, of Lakewood Ranch, sold their home at 13619 Legends Walk Terrace to Kenneth and Catherine Burns, of Bradenton, for $2.2 million. Built in 2003, it has four bedrooms, threeand-two-half baths, a pool and 4,573 square feet of living area. It sold for $1.55 million in 2008.

Kenneth Tyrone Burns and Catherine Dianne Burns, of Lakewood Ranch, sold their home at 7010 Dominion Lane to Charles Patrick Warren Jr. and Julie Gardner Warren, of Lakewood Ranch, for $1.5 million. Built in 2005, it has three bedrooms, three baths, a pool and 3,589 square feet of living area. It sold for $925,000 in 2019.

Robert Lieberman and Peri Ann Aptaker sold their home at 7238 Lake Forest Glen to Brian Paul Penney and Ann Elizabeth Penney, of Ontario, Canada, for $950,000. Built in 2008, it has three bedrooms, three baths, a pool and 2,674 square feet of living area. It sold for $1.05 million in 2022.

Mark and Colleen Tierney, of Portland, Maine, sold their home at 6510 Oakland Hills Drive to Gregg and Molly Van Lue, of Lakewood Ranch, for $675,000. Built in 1999, it has two bedrooms, two baths and 1,470 square feet of living area. It sold for $330,000 in 2008.

HARBOUR WALK

Theodore and Theodora Lynn Moll, trustees, sold the home at 531 Fore Drive to Francis and Rebecca Rice, of Rochester, New York, for $2 million. Built in 2006, it has four bedrooms, three-and-a-half baths, a pool and 3,476 square feet of living area. It sold for $1.8 million in 2021.

COUNTRY CLUB EAST

Thomas and Regina Gwiazdowski, of Lakewood Ranch, sold their home at 16631 Collingtree Crossing to Michael Winigrad, of Lakewood Ranch, for $1.51 million. Built in 2016, it has three bedrooms, twoand-a-half baths, a pool and 2,820 square feet of living area. It sold for $750,000 in 2020.

Charles and Felicia Stone, trustees, of Palmetto, sold the home at 16608 Collingtree Crossing to Thomas and Cynthia McDavitt, of Bradenton, for $940,000. Built in 2017, it has three bedrooms, three-andtwo-half baths, a pool and 2,839 square feet of living area. It sold for $665,000 in 2017.

RIVERDALE

Lawrence and Marcie Noah sold their home at 4401 Fifth Ave. N.E. to Kevin and Patricia Huyck, of Bradenton, for $1,355,000. Built in 2017, it has three bedrooms, three baths, a pool and 2,529 square feet of living area. It sold for $1.35 million in 2021.

ARBOR GRANDE

Javier and Bethany Boy, of Bradenton, sold their home at 3004 Starwood Court to Kirk Wayne Jobe and Belinda Ann Jobe, of Bradenton, for $1.32 million. Built in 2018, it has six bedrooms, four baths, a pool and

4,482 square feet of living area. It sold for $629,800 in 2018.

PRESERVE AT PANTHER RIDGE

Mathew and Bridget Paterno, of Dunnellon, sold their home at 8006 Panther Ridge Trail to Michael and Athena Leardo, of Bradenton, for $1,237,500. Built in 2001, it has five bedrooms, four baths, a pool and 3,412 square feet of living area. It sold for $550,000 in 2017.

Lindsey Colombo, of Sarasota, sold the home at 21715 Deer Pointe Crossing to Javier and Bethany Boy, of Bradenton, for $1,215,000. Built in 2001, it has four bedrooms, three-and-a-half baths, a pool and 3,668 square feet of living area. It sold for $720,000 in 2019.

RIVER FOREST

Eric and Tina Zwirner, of Watertown, Tennessee, sold their home at 5919 River Forest Circle to Angela and Michael Hawthorne, of Bradenton, for $1.2 million. Built in 2005, it has four bedrooms, threeand-a-half baths, a pool and 3,458 square feet of living area. It sold for $875,000 in 2021.

ESPLANADE

Arthur John Zanella and Kathy Ann Zanella, of Toledo, Ohio, sold their home at 4543 Terrazza Court to Dana Fulks and Kevin McCreary, of Lakewood Ranch, for $1,055,000. Built in 2019, it has two bedrooms, two-and-a-half baths, a pool and 2,261 square feet of living area. It sold for $500,000 in 2019.

DEL WEBB

Bruce and Marni Gross, of Castle Rock, Colorado, sold their home at 6863 Chester Trail to Thomas and Regina Gwiazdowski, of Bradenton, for $1,025,000. Built in 2018, it has three bedrooms, three baths, a pool and 2,488 square feet of living area. It sold for $559,200 in 2018.

Jack and Nancy Fieldman, of Sarasota, sold their home at 17684 Northwood Place to Martin and Marilyn Munce, of Lakewood Ranch, for $549,500. Built in 2022, it has two bedrooms, two baths and 1,589 square feet of living area. It sold for $381,400 in 2022.

Patricia Eklund and Charles Cusumano, of Parrish, sold their home at 6738 Haverhill Court to Royal Service Systems LLC for $456,000. Built in 2017, it has two bedrooms, two baths and 1,543 square feet of living area. It sold for $273,400 in 2017.

BRIDGEWATER

Gabrielle Odierno and Thomas Gentile, trustees, of Bradenton, sold the home at 13303 Bridgeport Crossing to Iouri Tarsounov and Volha Tarsunova, of Sarasota, for $1 million. Built in 2014, it has four bedrooms, three baths, a pool and 3,350 square feet of living area. It sold for $540,000 in 2019.

INDIGO

Jacqueline Johns and Reuben David Johns III, of Bradenton, sold their home at 13227 Indigo Way to Maciej and Lidia Kedziora, of Pendleton, Indiana, for $1 million. Built in 2020, it has four bedrooms, three baths, a pool and 2,758 square feet of living area. It sold for $619,900 in 2020.

ROSEDALE HIGHLANDS

Robert and Susan Melum, of Bradenton, sold their home at 4923 96th St. E. to Steven and Nancy Davol, of Tiverton, Rhode Island, for $997,000. Built in 2014, it has three bedrooms, three baths, a pool and 2,867 square feet of living area. It sold for $250,000 in 2013.

WATERLEFE Mary Coffey Freist, of Carmel, Tennessee, sold her home at 991 Fish Hook Cove to Karen McDaniel, of Bradenton, for $950,000. Built in 2006, it has two bedrooms, four baths and 2,784 square feet of living area. It sold for $575,000 in 2014.

WINDWARD Neal Communities of Southwest Florida LLC sold the home at 2559 Wild Cherry Path to Craig and Valerie LaRosa, of Sarasota, for $928,500. Built in 2022, it has four bedrooms, three baths and 2,892 square feet of living area.

Jonathan Wynn Marter II and Simone Graca Mater, of Middlebury, Indiana, sold their home at 2570 Wild Cherry Path to Shawn and Katherine Snider, of Sarasota, for $720,000. Built in 2022, it has four bedrooms, three-and-a-half baths and 3,008 square feet of living area. It sold for $529,500 in 2022.

Neal Communities of Southwest Florida LLC sold the home at 2648 Star Apple Way to Joanne Lynette Giordano, of Sarasota, for $594,300. Built in 2022, it has four bedrooms, two-and-a-half baths and 2,496 square feet of living area.

ENCLAVE AT COUNTRY

MEADOWS

Daniel and Sandra DuPage, of Bradenton, sold their home at 929

MARCH 27-31

145th St. Circle N.E. to Patricia Bryan and Sandra Oates, of Bradenton, for $779,000. Built in 2018, it has three bedrooms, two baths, a pool and 2,372 square feet of living area. It sold for $442,000 in 2018.

WATERFRONT AT MAIN STREET

Thomas Boucher and George Naspo, trustees, of Amherst, New Hampshire, sold the Unit 1-205 condominium at 10530 Boardwalk Loop to Serenity North LLC for $765,000. Built in 2017, it has three bedrooms, two baths and 1,467 square feet of living area. It sold for $750,000 in 2021.

SEE REAL ESTATE, PAGE 22

Courtesy photo

This County Club East home at 16116 Kendleshire Terrace sold for $2.3 million. It has three bedrooms, four baths, a pool and 3,182 square feet of living area.

WATER OAK

Bryan and Tawnya Miller, of Morehead, Kentucky, sold their home at 6739 64th Place E. to Christopher Allen Michaels and Andreina Beatriz Michaels, of Milford Charter Township, Michigan, for $750,000. Built in 2008, it has three bedrooms, three baths, a pool and 2,570 square feet of living area. It sold for $359,000 in 2019.

RIVER PARK AT MOTE RANCH

Keith and Krystine Schiding, of Sarasota, sold their home at 6165 Palomino Circle to Scott Sterling, of New Albany, Ohio, for $705,000. Built in 2004, it has four bedrooms, three baths, a pool and 2,540 square feet of living area. It sold for $345,000 in 2012.

DEL TIERRA Tung Truong Vo and Kim Ha Trinh, of Palmetto, sold their home at 15016 Trinity Fall Way to Corey Allain, of Bradenton, for $700,000. Built in 2017, it has six bedrooms, four-and-a-half baths and 4,542 square feet of living area. It sold for $435,000 in 2020.

Nariman and Omar Edelbi, of Bradenton, sold their home at 15730 High Bell Place to Malcolm Gilbert and Claire Heckle, of Bradenton, for $400,000. Built in 2015, it has three bedrooms, two baths and 1,626 square feet of living area. It sold for $248,000 in 2018.

RIVER CLUB SOUTH

Kelly Ault, Leigh Capozzi and Ashley Esch, trustees, of Richardson, Texas, sold the home at 9977 Laurel Valley Ave. Circle to Peter Caruso, of Lakewood Ranch, for $700,000. Built in 1996, it has three bedrooms, three baths, a pool and 2,631 square feet of living area. It sold for $405,000 in 2013.

RIVERDALE REVISED

Alethea De La Vergne St. Paul, of Bradenton, sold the home at 4716 Fourth Ave. E. to Robert Szakacs, of

Bradenton, for $700,000. Built in 1997, it has three bedrooms, three baths, a pool and 2,096 square feet of living area. It sold for $280,000 in 2002.

Juan Curci, of Sarasota, sold his home at 4604 Fourth Ave. Drive E. to Stephen Raymond Graf and Christopher David Duke, of Bradenton, for $430,000. Built in 1997, it has three bedrooms, two baths, a pool and 1,704 square feet of living area. It sold for $265,000 in 2017.

COUNTRY CREEK

Donald and Sandra Enright sold their home at 15131 Third Drive E. to Terrence and Kathryn Riley, of Bradenton, for $695,000. Built in 2004, it has three bedrooms, two baths, a pool and 2,409 square feet of living area.

ROSEDALE

Carson and Maureen Mack, of Tampa, sold their home at 8765 49th Terrace E. to Anthony DiZinno Jr. and Amanda Elise Kanzler, of Bradenton, for $616,500. Built in 1997, it has three bedrooms, two baths, a pool and 1,773 square feet of living area. It sold for $302,000 in 2013.

Danny and Kathleen Austin, trustees, of Bradenton, sold the home at 8734 52nd Drive E. to Paul Sibole Jr. and Teri Hollister, of Sarasota, for $560,000. Built in 1995, it has two bedrooms, two baths and 1,838 square feet of living area. It sold for $285,000 in 2020.

Joanne Dicarlo, of Sarasota, sold the home at 8747 53rd Terrace E. to Mark Langan Wenzel, of Bradenton, for $456,000. Built in 1994, it has three bedrooms, two baths, a pool and 1,561 square feet of living area. It sold for $185,000 in 2000.

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BUSINESS NEWS by Rebecca Goldstein, edited by Jeff Chen

Luis Campos

Marvin Crepea captured this photo of turtles sunbathing on the banks of a pond by Thornhill Court in the Country Club of Lakewood Ranch.

RED PAGES

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*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..