East County Observer 3.14.24

From halls to the aisle

Two Lakewood Ranch High School teachers tie the knot years after ‘dating’ in elementary school.

hen he was in fifth grade, Andrew Shackleford used to say he wanted to marry

Shackleford and Riggins, who now are teachers at Lakewood Ranch High School, were “dating” in fifth grade after being in the same class in third, fourth and fifth grades at Gene Witt Elementary.

“We were like little boyfriend and girlfriend in elementary school, but I don’t think we even hugged,” Riggins said with a laugh.

Their young, blossoming love went a different direction for Riggins.

She sent her friend to tell Shackl-

eford they were breaking up while he was waiting in the lunch line in the cafeteria. Shackleford was heartbroken, and his friends made fun of him for crying.

Fast forward to March 9 when now 28-year-old Shackleford’s fifth grade prediction of his future came true. Shackleford and 27-year-old Riggins tied the knot.

“It’s cool and crazy how life works,” Shackleford said. “It comes around in circles.”

Their story began as elementary students when they would play on the playground and the basketball court. They raced each other to see who was the fastest, a race Riggins said she won often.

Shackleford lived down the street from Riggins’ grandmother, Lynn Howard. Riggins recalled looking out into the cul-de-sac at Howard’s home and seeing Shackleford playing with neighbors and friends.

They liked each other and admired each other’s love of sports.

Once they finished at Gene Witt Elementary School, the two started to grow apart as they started at Carlos E. Haile Middle School and began making friends in different groups.

They still signed each others’ yearbooks and spoke occasionally, but it wasn’t like the days on the playground where they seemed inseparable.

At Lakewood Ranch High, the two remained acquaintances but went their separate ways when it was time to go off to college.

Then in 2020, when Riggins was out to dinner with friend Lindsay Martinez, the conversation happened to turn to Shackleford after they saw a friend of Shackleford’s at the restaurant. Riggins remembered how she always thought Shackleford was cute and sweet.

Four days later, Riggins and Martinez were at The Crafty Squirrel in St. Petersburg, and Martinez told Riggins she couldn’t believe who walked through the door.

It was Shackleford.

He said he was surprised to see Riggins after about eight years.

The two talked and parted ways.

Riggins said she was nervous she wouldn’t hear from Shackleford again. She did call to wish him a happy birthday a few days later, but Riggins didn’t pursue it any further. Fortunately, Shackleford followed up with her later in the week, and they scheduled their first date.

“I do believe that fate brought us back together and that it was always meant to be,” Riggins said. “We just needed to experience life on our own before we could appreciate one another.”

Within a few months, Shackleford and Riggins said they knew they were going to get married.

“I was the first one to tell him I loved him,” Riggins said. “I knew very early on just because you kind of get a feeling, and I was so comfortable with him. I never had to be something that I wasn’t or someone that I wasn’t.”

Riggins started working at Lakewood Ranch High School as an early childhood education teacher in 2018, while Shackleford became a physical education teacher at the high school in 2021.

They’ve loved being able to support each other personally and professionally at school as well as getting to know the same students because they worked with athletes. Riggins is a former soccer coach at the high school, and Shackleford is an assistant football coach and strength coach.

Their relationship grew stronger as well.

In June 2022, they were engaged.

Riggins said some students had joked about crashing their wedding, but they didn’t follow through.

Shackleford said he had never had a serious girlfriend until Riggins.

“I was his first girlfriend, and his last,” Riggins said.

“I do believe that fate brought us back together and that it was always meant to be. We just needed to experience life on our own before we could appreciate one another.”

DELANEY RIGGINS

Andrew Shackleford and Delaney Riggins went to elementary, middle and high school together. They reconnected in 2020 and got married March 9.

Courtesy images

Delaney Riggins accepts a marriage proposal from Andrew Shackleford, who said he knew in fifth grade he wanted to marry her.

NEW OWNER FOR THE COUNTRY CLUB

Heritage Golf Group, which buys “upscale” country clubs and top-tier golf courses, has moved into Lakewood Ranch with a major deal.

JAY HEATER MANAGING EDITOR

In announcing its purchase Friday of the Lakewood Ranch Golf and Country Club, its three 18-hole golf courses, the Lodge, and the tennis center, Heritage Golf Group CEO and President Mark Burnett succinctly wrapped up the transaction.

“This is a big day for SchroederManatee Ranch and us,” Burnett said. “This is a monumental day. This will be our flagship club. “This is one of the best residential communities in the U.S. and this is what we do. We focus on high-end clubs.”

Lakewood Ranch Country Club will be the Heritage Golf Group’s 37th club in the Eastern and Central U.S. to go along with three clubs in Denver. The Lakewood Ranch Country Club will be its eighth in Florida. Burnett said the Country Club’s 54 holes of golf and multiple amenities, including The Lodge, put it among the very top clubs it owns. That is an impressive statement considering Heritage Golf Group owns, among others, TPC Prestancia in Sarasota, TPC Tampa Bay and Venetian Golf in Venice.

SMR President and CEO Rex Jensen alerted Country Club members in December that SMR was seeing a strategic partner to “take ownership, operate, and elevate” the existing club.

A note sent to Country Club members on Friday noted “The objective was not only to enhance the current offerings but also to collaborate on expanding opportunities, particularly in the realm of future golf capacity, for existing and future members. I am pleased to share the news that as of today, Heritage Golf Group is the new owner of the Lakewood Ranch Golf and Country Club. This marks a significant development in our ongoing commitment to providing an exceptional experience for our members and further advancing the golfing landscape in Lakewood Ranch.” Whether that future Lakewood

Ranch Country Club landscape includes the Legacy Golf Club remains to be seen. Legacy owners and Heritage Golf Group executives did not return calls this week about the possible sale and purchase of Legacy. However, Legacy employees said the course was closing on Wednesday.

Jensen said after 24 years of running the Country Club and the courses, SMR had “done everything we could” in advancing the club and amenities.

The Cypress Links golf course, which already is closed for renovations, will undergo even more extensive improvements under Heritage Golf Group, improvements that are planned to be finished this year.

“Our thoughts are about improving the courses,” Burnett said. “Cypress is closed right now, and we are going to increase the level of turf renovation, even more work than what was planned. We will do King Dunes next year and Royal Lakes the following year. We always will have two courses open when one is closed (for renovation).”

Jumping into immediate improvement plans was a major factor in gaining SMR’s approval.

“We had an extensive improvement program in place,” Jensen said. “Mark wanted to expand the program from the first day. We wanted to find someone who would own and care for this in the long term. We needed someone like Mark. He has an investment to protect. He is putting his own capital into it and he is putting his money where his mouth is. Heritage Golf Group’s track record is well regarded.

“We started with 24 firms,” Jensen said of the sale process. “Heritage had all the things we were looking for, and Heritage consistently ranked No. 1 in the things we felt were important.

“Our selection of Heritage Golf Group was the result of meticulous consideration, focusing on their extensive experience and dedication to our standards,” Jensen said in his Friday letter to Country Club members. “Their respect for our commu-

“Over the coming weeks, club operations will be business as usual. There are no immediate changes planned in the short run from an operational standpoint.”

Heritage Golf Group CEO and President MARK BURNETT

nity and the club’s identity, culture, and traditions, along with a strong emphasis on staff retention and operational efficiencies, positions them as the ideal partner. These unique attributes, combined with Heritage’s leadership team, instill confidence that The Club will continue to evolve favorably across all facets of its operations and lifestyle offerings, always with the members in mind.”

Some Country Club residents said they were nervous about SMR turning over operations to Heritage Golf Group, however, Burnett covered some key points of their ownership.

First, Heritage will retain Wayne Piazza as the Country Club’s general manager. Burnett said SMR had given Piazza high marks and their interviews with him went well. He said other members of the Country Club’s leadership will be retained as well.

“Over the coming weeks, club operations will be business as usual,” Burnett said. “There are no immediate changes planned in the short run from an operational standpoint.”

Another concern of members was monthly fees.

Burnett said fees to join the club are bound to increase depending on the market. He said, normally, existing members don’t mind when it becomes more expensive for new members to join. However, he said no immediate increases are planned in terms of monthly fees.

“We always have been balanced on that, and we have to look at the competitive market,” he said.

Heritage Golf Group will begin holding member focus groups to gain insight on the members’ views of course conditions, club amenities, and member programming. Burnett said those meetings will indicate what capital improvements will be considered in the future.

“We have a lot of listening and learning to do,” Burnett said.

For instance, he said the County

MAJOR DEAL

What: Heritage Golf Group, of Herndon, Virginia, buys Lakewood Ranch Golf and Country Club from Schroeder-Manatee Ranch.

When: The deal was announced Friday and is immediate. About Heritage Golf Group: Specializes in high-end private clubs with 40 overall in the U.S. and eight in Florida.

More information: Go to HeritageGolfGroup.com.

About Lakewood Ranch Country Club: Opened in 2001; the Cypress Links golf course opened in 2002, followed by Kings Dunes in 2004 and Royal Lakes in 2007.

Club and the Tennis Center have many courts that are well used. He said if the membership has a need for more courts, that would be delivered in the future.

Burnett said Heritage Golf Group is very community focused calling the County Club a centerpiece of the community.

“First and foremost, this club has been operating with great standards,” he said, noting that will continue, and he hopes, in some cases even will improve.

“There have been some cases where (Heritage Golf Group) has purchased a club and needed to invest substantial maintenance capital immediately for major fixes.

“This is not the situation here,” he said. “This club is a jewel.”

Jensen said Heritage Golf Group’s purchase could lead to additional partnerships with SMR in the future. He noted that the Country Club has a three-year waiting list and that the Lakewood Ranch area doesn’t have enough golf courses to fill the need. However, he said at the time SMR doesn’t have land that can turned into to a golf course.

“I have to find more land,” he said.

Jensen and Burnett did not release details of the sale.

Jay Heater

The purchase includes all three of the Country Club’s 18-hole courses. All three will undergo improvements.

The Heritage Golf Group has purchased Lakewood Ranch Country Club, the tennis center, the Lodge, and all three 18-hole golf courses.

When Lakewood Ranch Preparatory Academy announced its schoolwide spelling bee would take place in December, Amara Chepuri, a fifth grader, decided to give it a try.

Her father, Ananth Chepuri, didn’t want her to participate. With Amara’s aspirations to become a professional tennis player, he wanted her focus to be solely on tennis.

After finishing second in the schoolwide spelling bee last year, Amara wanted another shot at claiming the title of top speller in her school.

“I’m glad she didn’t listen to me,” Ananth said.

Chepuri is headed to the Scripps National Spelling Bee on May 26 at the Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center in National Harbor, Maryland.

It was through the schoolwide bee in December, the regional qualifier in January and the regional competition in February that Ananth and his wife, Meeta Chepuri, discovered their daughter’s hidden talent for spelling words.

Amara Chepuri

Photo by Liz Ramos

Amara said she has “somewhat of a photographic memory” that helps her remember many words. She’s also a detail-oriented person.

When it comes to memorizing the words, Amara’s approach is simple: Break down each word into manageable pieces.

Take “Makgadikgadi” (as in the Makgadikgadi salt pans) as an example. She started with “ma” then added “kgadi.” She repeated what she had so far. When she was comfortable, she added the last “kgadi.”

Amara loves learning long words.

The more letters involved, the better.

For example, oxyacetylene. It’s her ability to break the word down and memorize how to spell words that, to her and her parents, seem made up.

After memorizing a large portion of the list, Amara will test herself.

If she is able to complete a practice test successfully, she’ll move onto the next portion of the list.

The process is repeated until she’s mastered the list.

To prepare for the regional qualifier in January, Amara had to learn 4,000 words from a list Scripps provided as any of them could be on the exam. The regional qualifier would help Scripps narrow the field from more than 100 Tampa Bay-area children to 51.

Ananth said needing to know 4,000 words in three weeks before the regional qualifier in January seemed impossible, but his daughter beat the odds. The regional qualifier consisted of a 50 multiple choice online test.

Since deciding to participate in the schoolwide spelling bee, Amara has dedicated two hours per day studying words. She juggles her studies with her homework, three hours of tennis practice and spending time with friends and family.

Out of 51 spellers at the regional Feb. 10 at Tropicana Field, Amara was among the top three, securing her spot in the national bee.

Amara said she had come to the point where she had decided there was no point in being nervous because it wasn’t going to help her.

“I just decided to stay calm and listen to the words,” she said.

Still, as the rounds progressed at the regional bee, she experienced a constant back-and-forth between being anxious about what word she would get and happiness for spelling the word correctly. She secured her spot at nationals by spelling “deglaciation.”

Afterward, Amara said she was shocked to find out she was in the top three. All she could do was cover her face with her hands in disbelief.

With the Tampa Bay Rays as the sponsor, Amara went home with a golden bat as a trophy.

Jessica Adams, the fifth grade team captain and English language arts teacher at Lakewood Ranch Preparatory Academy, said after seeing Amara place second in last year’s spelling bee, she knew she had talent.

“I told her this year was going to be her year, and it has been,” Adams said.

Now comes preparation for the national spelling bee.

Amara needs to learn how to spell and define 2,100 medium words on top of learning how to spell 750 difficult words.

While many of her competitors will be focused on those words, spelling is not Amara’s top priority.

She hopes to go to IMG Academy in the future to continue to pursue her love for tennis and advance her skills.

But even while on the court, Amara said the words are running through her head.

Courtesy image

Between tennis and the bee, Amara also finds ways to decompress and shut her brain off. She loves drawing celebrities, like her favorite musician, Taylor Swift. She listens to music, writes her own songs and plays piano.

Meeta said Amara always has been a “creative athlete,” with passions for the arts and athletics. She also always has been creative, making her own projector out of a magnifying glass and a shoe box at 7 years old.

Adams said Amara is an “incredible student and artist” who excels in “all tasks she is given.” Last school year, Adams nominated Amara for the gifted program at the school due to her academic and personal performance.

Knowing many of the spellers at the national bee dedicate at least 10 hours per day studying words and reading the dictionary, Amara’s

expectations for advancement in the national bee aren’t high. Her goal is to make it to the quarterfinals.

She’s excited to see how far she can make it, but Amara said it’s more the experience of participating in the bee that’s important to her.

Meeta and Ananth said no matter how far Amara advances in the national bee, the knowledge she gains from learning thousands of words will help her in the future as she prepares for exams such as the SAT.

“Win or lose, she wins because her vocabulary base has been broadened just going into middle school,” Ananth said.

Although Amara is unsure whether she will participate in next year’s spelling bees, she is certain about one thing.

She’s tired of people asking her how to spell words.

AMARA’S “A” LIST

Amara Chepuri’s top 10 favorite difficult words to spell Llullaillaco patripassianism Paramahamsa breviloquence cavalletti dghaisa effleurage pulchritude boulevardier glyceraldehyde

Amara Chepuri, a fifth grader at Lakewood Ranch Preparatory Academy, receives a golden bat after placing in the top three of the regional spelling bee, securing her spot at the Scripps National Spelling Bee.

Will social club idea be put to bed?

Some residents fear plans for Backyard Social will threaten the hours and character of the Lakewood Ranch community.

DPROPOSED HOURS OF OPERATION

If approved, Baum said Backyard Social would take about nine months to build.

The proposed hours of operation are until 11 p.m.

Monday through Wednesday, until midnight on Thursdays and until 2 a.m. on Fridays and Saturdays. Sunday’s proposed closing time of 10 p.m. complies with Sarasota County’s regulations.

neighborhood meeting. The meeting took place over Zoom on March 5.

Baum said the hours of operation were not “set in stone,” but he and Mann want to be sure the restaurant can stay open until 2 a.m. on special occasions like St. Patrick’s Day and Cinco de Mayo.

“Let me say sweetly, we’d like you to revise your application to say what you mean,” Neal said. “We’re going to have to organize a group and be represented because 2 a.m. is late in Sarasota.”

Neal was not alone in that stance.

About a half-dozen residents joined the Zoom meeting to say the proposed hours are “unreasonable” and “excessive.” They fear Backyard Social will set a bad precedent.

which features live music and DJs on select weekends inside until 2 a.m. The rest of the surrounding restaurants in Waterside close by midnight on Friday and Saturday nights.

Without a special exception, the development code limits outdoor dining, drinking and entertainment to the hours of 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. from Sunday through Thursday and 6 a.m. to 11 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays.

The code also states that the sale and consumption of food and beverages outside of the given hours “shall take place only within a completely enclosed structure.”

BY THE NUMBERS

The Backyard Social concept combines dining and entertainment by offering games, live music, a bar and a food truck park.

10 acre site

12,500 square-foot building

neighborhoods are to the south of the site in Sarasota County — the Alcove by Neal Signature Homes and Avanti at Waterside by Pulte Homes.

A restaurant is a permitted use for the area, which is zoned Planned Commerce Development. The proposed 10-acre site is part of a larger 188-acre parcel owned by the Lakewood Ranch Corporate Park. A mandatory step in gaining a special exception for a project is to hold a

“This is more of a theoretical question,” said local resident Stanley Morrow. “What makes you think the folks at Waterside won’t feel the need to compete with you?”

However, Backyard Social would not be the first establishment to offer extended hours in the area. Baum owns Agave Bandido at Waterside Place, too. The restaurant opened March 11 and stays open until 2 a.m. on Friday and Saturday nights.

The breakfast eatery Forked has also dipped its toes into the latenight scene with Forked at Night,

Morrow is a member of the Waterside Neighborhood Alliance. He said the group will be meeting soon to discuss the trend of later hours in the area.

“I think what Backyard Social wants to do is alarming,” Morrow said. “But perhaps there might be a less intrusive approach by some of the Waterside Place restaurants. We will evaluate.”

Residents requested a sound study be submitted as part of Backyard Social’s application.

4,600 square-foot activity lawn

3,100 square-foot deck

143 parking spaces

8 food trucks

Following the meeting, Baum said he planned to meet each request. A sound study will be completed, and the application will be revised to clearly state the hours of operation versus the live music schedule.

Baum and Mann opened the first Backyard Social in Fort Myers four months ago. Only ages 21 and up can stay past 9 p.m., but the establishment is family friendly during the day. Inside, bands and DJs play until 1 or 2 a.m. Outside, the bands wrap up between 9 and 11 p.m.

Baum said they’ll be following the same model in Lakewood Ranch and that the two locations are similar in that both have upscale residential developments within a mile radius. So far, the Fort Myers location hasn’t received any noise complaints. Morrow isn’t convinced.

“This is a clear threat to the character of our community,” he said. “If this late night dance and party club is allowed to open, it will only encourage similar type operations in the Waterside business center. This is not the Lakewood Ranch community I signed on to.”

File photo

The location in Fort Myers provides an idea of what to expect in Lakewood Ranch if the project is approved.

Scan below for a full list of Open Houses, property details, driving directions and more

PEAK PERFORMANCE

Summerfield senior has the heart to climb Kilimanjaro.

JAY HEATER MANAGING EDITOR

David Paliotta was re-creating the fateful steps in his Summerfield home.

It was a laborious effort, his right leg taking a robot like step upward and forward, then dropping heavily to his living room floor.

Then pole, pole — pronounced po-lay po-lay — his left leg followed, moving forward barely a foot, then dropping like a wet bag of cement.

Boom! A smile peeked through his heavy, white beard.

On Feb. 29, Paliotta had reached the summit of Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania; and on a sunny Florida day, he wanted to show just how hard those final steps were to complete.

“Pole, pole” means “slowly, slowly” in Swahili. It was a constant reminder during his ascent of Kilimanjaro.

Those final steps to reach the 19,341-foot marker might have seemed lightning fast to Paliotta considering he started his trip five years earlier.

“At 17,500 feet, I started singing ‘The Lord’s Prayer’ in cadence with my footsteps. I don’t think I would have been alive without divine intervention.”

DAVID PALIOTTA

OUT OF SHAPE

The first step of his journey came in 2019 when his daughter, Emma Paliotta, insisted on a hiking trip to Angels Landing in Utah. Emma Paliotta figured it would be a confidence-building trip.

David Paliotta was afraid of heights, and Angels Landing — as described by BackPacker.com — “is a 1,488-foot-tall rock formation in Zion National Park that requires the hiker to need mental and emotional fortitude to hike the half-mile of narrow, precarious pathways over deep canyons.”

“I never had been hiking, but I am proud, so I persevered,” said Paliotta, who had moved to Lakewood Ranch in 2015 after retiring at age 62. “I had to stop every couple of hundred yards, and I thought it was because I was out of shape.”

When Paliotta returned to Florida, he ignored the pressure he had felt on his chest. It almost was a fatal mistake.

In June 2021, Paliotta was taking the next major step in his journey to the top of Kilimanjaro. He just didn’t know it yet.

He was getting on a step ladder at his job at Sarasota Glass and Mirror. He was out of breath and he thought he was having a severe case of indigestion.

His wife, Maria, who works for Tidewell Hospice, wasn’t so sure. She told him he should go to the hospital, but he said he was fine. In September, though, he was feeling pain again, and Maria put her foot down.

“You’re going to the hospital,” she said, showing the firmness in the tone she used that day.

They went to Lakewood Ranch Medical Center, and after an assessment, he was sent by ambulance to Sarasota Memorial Hospital. He was met at the door by Dr. Jeffrey Sell, the chief of cardiovascular surgery. Paliotta knew he was in serious trouble.

Thinking back to that moment in the hospital, his eyes filled with tears and he had trouble speaking.

“I told Dr. Sell, ‘Try to save my life because I want to walk my daughter down the aisle.’

“The next thing I remember is that I had tubes down my throat. They had to do a quadruple bypass. They took a vein out of my leg and built the bypass.”

ISOLATED BY COVID

Maria Paliotta couldn’t be at the hospital because of the pandemic, but she said the Sarasota Memorial staff described everything that was happening over the phone.

“They couldn’t have been kinder, more reassuring,” she said. “Dr. Sell is amazing. He kept saying, ‘You’re husband will be OK.’”

She was able to download an app that allowed her to watch the step-

by-step progress of the surgery. She sat on her living room couch and never took her eyes off her computer screen.

“We were supposed to go on vacation,” she said. “We were going off the coast of Venezuela. He would have died. We wouldn’t have had the availability of incredible medical care.”

After returning home from the hospital, Paliotta was determined to get into shape. Maria said they went to one cardiologist who told them he had about seven months to live. They dumped him quickly. Then they found cardiologist Garrett Brown, a mountain climber who told Paliotta it was his job to get him to climb to the summit of Kilimanjaro.

“That’s why I chose him,” Paliotta said.

By summer 2022, Paliotta went to his homeland of Wales to climb Yr Wyddf, the highest mountain in that country at 3,559 feet.

He later graduated to other training climbs at Mount Chiquita and Ypsilon Mountain in Estes Park, Colorado. Mount Kilimanjaro was on his mind.

Maria was concerned, but she knew he “has the heart of an athlete. I knew he had to prove this to himself.”

At age 16 in 1969, Paliotta gave up a professional soccer contract with Burnley F.C. and moved from Wales to the U.S. to be with his dad. He later earned degrees in technical writing and information systems and engineering.

If he was going to take an extreme risk (according to the Kilimanjaro National Park website, three to 10 people die each year trying to climb Kilimanjaro), he was going to be smart about it. He hired Embark Exploration of Portland, Oregon, to lead him.

At age 70, he arrived at Londorossi Gate on Feb. 23 and went to the Mount Mkubwa camp at 9,100 feet. Over the next week, his group of 12 people, including four other men in their 70s, hiked to the summit.

When he arrived, Paliotta wasn’t filled with emotions as he thought he might be. He remembered the words of Maria when he came home from

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the hospital. “God has great plans for you,” she said. He began taking in the sights, telling himself that all the suffering was worth it. He thought about the days he wore a backpack with 20 pounds in it, walking up and down the flights of stairs at the Nathan Benderson Park finish tower. Then there were the days of training with his personal fitness trainer at L.A. Fitness.

“I needed this mountain,” he thought.

‘HE CHANGED HIS WHOLE LIFE’

Maria said he worked hard for his moment. “He has changed his whole life, his diet, his nutrition,” she said.

Paliotta hopes his story checks a couple of boxes. First, he wants people to know about the outstanding care he received at Sarasota Memorial.

“Dr. Sell is amazing, and I was attended to by 15 to 20 nurses. Other staff helped me to walk when I didn’t want to do anything. I will never forget them. They touched my soul.”

Second, he hopes his story inspires others to do something they deem special.

“He has pushed me to do things,”

Maria said. “I have a bad knee, and I am a bone cancer survivor. We have inspired each other.”

His story was just about told, but Paliotta was standing again.

“At 17,500 feet, I started singing ‘The Lord’s Prayer’ in cadence with my footsteps,” he said while walking slowly forward and recalling his trip to the summit. “I don’t think I would have been alive without divine intervention.”

While imagining those final steps, once again he saw the glacier, the mist, the clouds, the snow. The temperature was mild, about 15 degrees. There had been 100 mph winds two days before. It was calm, and so was he. He remembered the beginning steps of his journey, when his daughter took him to Utah, when his wife forced him to go to the hospital. He was grateful, and proud.

“People express fear,” he said. “But you can’t stop living.”

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Despite quadruple bypass surgery, David Paliotta was urged by his cardiologist to climb Kilimanjaro.

Courtesy photos

Once ailing, golf thrives in East County

When I moved to Lakewood Ranch a decade ago, I figured I would be playing a lot of golf.

I didn’t think I would be writing about it so much.

That’s because shortly after I arrived, I heard all the arguments why golf courses were a thing of the past.

First, and most notably, land is just too darned expensive. Every fairway could be a row of 32 townhomes. That’s lost revenue.

Next, younger generations don’t like strolling a golf course for five hours when they could be on social media.

People don’t like to be forced into an expensive golf course membership if they want to move into a certain community. It’s hard to write that $800 check every month when all your puttering is done in the garage.

Golf courses are so expensive to maintain, it’s near impossible to turn a profit, or in the case of a private community, sustain financial viability without assessing the residents on a regular basis.

People want a multitude of amenities in their new communities, and a golf course can detract from the ability to provide those amenities, especially in terms of space.

So the last thing I expected when I moved to the area was to see more golf courses being built, or companies putting major revenue into existing courses.

Certainly, the market seemed to be slowing down at the time.

A 2018 story by USA Today said that municipal golf courses in Florida had lost $100 million over the previous five years. A 2018 story by Builder magazine asked “Are golf communities a thing of the past?”

The market, even in a vacation oasis like Florida, was saturated. Golf was dead.

Or so it seemed.

Flash forward to today. Golf is not just a topic in East County in 2024.

It’s “the” topic. On March 8, Schroeder-Manatee Ranch announced it was selling its Country Club, The Lodge, court facilities and three 18-hole golf courses to Heritage Golf Group, which specializes in infusing capital into high-end clubs and courses and making them even higher-end. Let’s me repeat that ... infusing capital into high-end clubs.

If you are an existing resident or club member, that has to be good news. Your amenities are likely to be well maintained, which protects your investment. If you are a golfer, it means the ball is going to roll just a little bit smoother and that the fairways will be near perfect.

SMR’s Rex Jensen said Friday that his company has taken the amenities about as far as it could. If you have followed SMR’s strategy in the past, the sale of the country club and the courses should not be a surprise. SMR sold the Premier

Sports campus for the same reason, because Jensen and company thought someone who specialized in such an endeavor would be better equipped to run a quality operation. The same can be said for the Sarasota Polo Club.

But the County Club’s sale is not the only golf news in Manatee County. Two high-brow, elite golf courses are either under construction or nearing construction in Myakka City. The first is Soleta, a 530-acre community that will be home to a course designed by World Golf Hall of Famer Nick Price, a training facility designed by legendary instructor David Leadbetter, and 93 luxury homes. The Soleta course is under construction and expected to be open by the end of 2024.

The other is Steve Herrig’s Miakka Golf Club, which will break ground April 25. The course is near Herrig’s TerraNova Equestrian Center at 31625 Clay Gully Road.

The course is being designed by former PGA Tour star Paul Azinger along with Fry-Straka Global Golf Course Design. The course is being constructed on 1,100 acres along the banks of the Myakka River and will be a 7,700-yard monster. The golf facility will feature a 12-hole, Par-3 course, a lighted putting course, a performance center and a 360-degree practice range. The main course is expected to be open spring of 2025. A 50,000-square-foot clubhouse will open late in 2026.

At Heritage Harbour, plans are about to be announced for the new Club Homes at Heritage Harbour, which already has broken ground. That followed a multimillion dollar renovation of the golf course. Waterlefe Golf & River Club put $5 million of renovations into its course last year. Palm Aire has spent millions on a course renovation. Esplanade added another golf

course community at Esplanade at Azario to the one it already had in Lakewood Ranch. It goes on and on.

And there has been plenty of golf news making the headlines as well.

The Korn Ferry Tour returns to Lakewood National on April 18-21. The World Champions Cup, which made its debut at the Concession in December, has signed up for three more years at the area course. The Concession is awaiting a decision on its bid to host the 2031 PGA Championship.

Quite the decade. Golf in the area has gone from “its time has passed,” to one of the hotbeds in the U.S.

All this does have a downside, at least for me. When I got here, Legacy Golf Club was pretty much a dog patch of a course that had a hard time getting anyone to play it. It was so bad that I would go out in the summer and pay $12 for 18 holes, a cart and two free drinks, in the middle of the day. Since I had been playing crummy muni courses for years, I was more than happy to play the Arnold Palmer-designed course, even if it was rough. The price was right.

Alas, Jon Whittemore and Kevin Paschall bought the club in November 2015, and they began putting millions into its renovation. The dogs patches went away, and so did the low greens fees. In a couple years time, the Lakewood Ranch area had one more quality course.

It was a good story, one of many that have followed.

Now if I could actually stop writing about golf so I can play a few rounds.

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

Jay Heater

Soleta developer Charles Duff and Hall of Famer Nick Price are combining on just one of the new golf ventures coming to East County.

Cheers! Rotary raises $140K from Wine Fest

The Lakewood Ranch nonprofit has now granted $2.3 million over the years.

O$140,000 at

Wine

but

held back to present grants during the year for those in dire need outside of the regular grant cycle.

“I am so proud of this event,” said Rotary Club of Lakewood Ranch President Sybil Porter. “This is our premier event, and we have it down pat now.”

They have it down pat due to the dedication of the members. Of the 104 members, 60 were involved in volunteer work on last year’s Suncoast Food and Wine Fest. It should be noted that the Rotary has other programs as well that demand volunteer hours. The members are busy.

Steve Kelle guides the Suncoast Food and Wine Fest ship. Porter said it all starts with him.

She said the need in the community is obvious. The Rotary received 39 applicants for grant funds. Of the 26 grants that will be presented, the smallest is $2,000 and the largest $5,000. The Rotary has now presented more than $2.3 million over the years. Nonprofits must be in the region to be considered.

Porter said the money goes toward all kinds of needs.

“It runs the gamut,” she said.

The event itself is so well known, the Rotary has to offer subtle reminders about who is doing the work.

“The last couple of years now, there has been more attention paid to signage,” Porter said. “We have done a lot of advertisement.”

The work begins each year before the money from the previous year is granted. The Rotary Club at Lakewood Ranch held its first organizing meeting for the 2024 Suncoast Food and Wine Fest on March 7. This year’s event will again be held at Premier on Nov. 2. Meetings are held monthly, and the work is continuous.

“We absolutely bust our butts,” Porter said.

The frenzy culminates at the event.

“The tents go up on Wednesday,” Porter said. “On Thursday, we pick up equipment and signage from the storage unit. On Friday, we set up the tables and chairs. On Saturday, you finish all the last-minute tasks, and then Sunday, you clean up.”

For more information about the event or about joining the Rotary Club of Lakewood Ranch, go to LakewoodRanch-Rotary.com.

Robyn Bell, Lynne Lash, Linda Jacobs and Christine Captain say the Suncoast Food & Wine Fest is their favorite event of the year.

File photo

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10

A higher degree of impact

Five-year federal grant sparks program to help 60 Manatee district paraprofessionals to obtain their teaching degrees.

The School District of Manatee County has partnered with the University of South Florida to help 60 paraprofessionals become teachers.

The district and USF received a five-year federal grant through the Office of English Language Acquisition through the Department of Education to create Project Parasol. The grant provides funding to send 60 English for Speakers of Other Languages paraprofessionals to USF to receive their bachelors degrees in education.

USF is the fiscal agent of the $3.5 million grant and program, so the district does not have a financial stake in it.

The district has approximately

104 ESOL paraprofessionals helping to serve the more than 7,300 English language students in the district.

Debra Estes, the director of ESOL, migrant and dual language programs for the district, said the grant will be a “win-win” for the students, paraprofessionals and the district.

She said students will be supported and taught by people already invested in their success, paraprofessionals will be able to become teachers and earn a higher salary and the district will have another way of addressing the teacher shortage.

If they choose to participate in Project Parasol, the paraprofessionals will become first-year classroom teachers upon graduation and receive a starting pay of $55,177 with the School District of Manatee County. The starting salary for a paraprofessional is approximately $15 per hour, which Estes said totals to be approximately $22,000 per year.

“By hiring our ESOL paraprofessionals and getting them to graduate and become teachers, children have the opportunity to see people who look like them and sound like

them. Maybe one day (they) will get promoted to assistant principals and principals or district level positions,” Estes said.

ESOL paraprofessionals who already have an associates degree will be eligible to participate in Project Parasol.

They will attend classes at USF in the evening or during the weekends so they can continue to work as paraprofessionals during the week.

Upon graduation from USF, they will have an elementary education degree and a reading endorsement.

Estes said although the ESOL paraprofessionals will be able to teach in any classroom, a benefit of having a teacher who can speak Spanish and English will be having more teachers available for the dual language programs throughout the district.

Courtesy image Fabiola Cruz, an English for Speakers of Other Languages and dual language paraprofessional at Braden River Elementary School, helps Jeremiah Coblentz with an assignment.

SPORTS

Fast Break

Former Braden River High football player Ryan Neuzil, an offensive lineman, re-signed with the Atlanta Falcons on a one-year deal on March 4. Neuzil, 26, saw action in all 17 Falcons games last season, making four starts at center. Neuzil originally signed with the Falcons as an undrafted free agent out of Appalachian State University in 2021.

... The Out-of-Door Academy football senior Charlie Tack committed to Furman University on March 2. Tack, a 6-foot-1 linebacker, had 69 total tackles (14 tackles for loss), three sacks, three forced fumbles and an interception returned for a touchdown in 2023.

... Lakewood Ranch High boys lacrosse senior Lucas Anthony had 11 points (eight goals, three assists) in the Mustangs’ 18-5 road win against Wiregrass Ranch High on March 5. As of March 11, Anthony has 51 points (33 goals, 18 assists) and the team holds a 7-2 record.

... Lakewood Ranch Golf and Country Club was home to three holes-in-one last week.

On March 6, Mary Sue Owens sank one on the 81-yard No. 7 hole on the Royal Lakes course using a 7-iron. On March 7, Anne Ferris sank one on the 106-yard No. 4 hole on the Royal Lakes course using a 3-wood.

On March 8, Mark Duffy sank one on the 170-yard No. 7 hole of the Royal Lakes Course using a 4-hybrid.

... Braden River High junior baseball pitcher Rhys Klein threw four shutout innings, striking out three batters, in the Pirates’ 10-0 home win over Clearwater High on March 8. Klein now holds a 3.50 ERA. The Pirates are 4-4 as of March 11.

“When everybody stands around you and starts to clap after a jump, I like that feeling.”

— Braden River High’s Derek Anders SEE PAGE 16A

RYAN KOHN SPORTS EDITOR

All The Out-of-Door Academy girls lacrosse team wants to do is “be the bean.” It’s a saying from a book titled “The Coffee Bean: A Simple Lesson to Create Positive Change” by Jon Gordon and Damon West. In it, a teacher inspires his students by talking about coffee beans, specifically how they react when they get into hot water. Some things like carrots wilt and become weak. Other things like eggs harden and become prone to cracking. In both cases, the water changes the object inside it.

Coffee beans are different. When put in hot water, coffee beans change the environment, turning hot water into something rich and nutritious.

The ODA program read the book as a team, head coach Carolyn Keber said, and the lesson stuck. When faced with challenging environments and situations, you can either let them affect you, or you can “be the bean,” changing the environment into something advantageous.

For a lacrosse team, senior Ella East said, affecting your environment means being a supportive teammate on and off the field.

Through seven games in 2024, the lesson is working. ODA is 5-2 as of March 8 — already besting 2023’s win-loss record (4-13).

“You want your teammates to look good before you make yourself look good,” East said.

The unselfish culture ODA wants to create showed itself during a March 7 home game against Bradenton Christian School. In an 18-3 win over the Panthers, 10 ODA players scored at least one goal, led by East’s four goals. Though the team’s offensive production is not normally as spread out as the attack against Bradenton Christian was, four Thunder players — East (22), junior Ellie Hierholzer (29 goals), senior Emma Arrigo (26 goals) and junior Makenna Larkin (11 goals) — have double-digit goal totals through seven games.

It is an example of the team’s way of thinking. ODA’s ball movement and chemistry has been key to its success, Arrigo said.

It all goes back to another one of the ODA program’s sayings under

Keber: “PMA,” meaning “positive mental attitude.” There is no room for discord in the Thunder locker room; no grumbling about playing time or petty criticism of another player’s skills will be tolerated. Instead, the team’s mental energy is to be focused on the positive, whatever that may encompass. Even after a loss, for example, the team will select a player of the game to honor, someone who exemplified the type of attitude Keber wants to cultivate. If someone is not embodying the PMA lifestyle, Hierholzer said, it is up to the captains — herself, Arrigo and East — to talk to that player and get things back on track.

Hierholzer said the team’s captains know each other’s games well from playing together at ODA and on a True Lacrosse club team. They have seen each other improve over time, and that has been true of this season more than any other. Because of the culture the program has established, the struggles of 2023 did not break the Thunder’s spirit. Instead, the players hit reset and focused on what they learned from the experience, and what they still needed to learn.

“Everyone’s skill has improved tremendously (this season),” Hierholzer said.

Keber said the team’s midfielders have led the way, particularly on the defensive end of the field. They’re hustling, Keber said, and that type of play is infectious. When ODA can limit the amount of time the opposition spends the ball, it maximizes the chances the team’s offensive players get to score.

The turnaround is not done, Keber said. She wants the team to get better with crashing — converging on a player with the ball near the goal crease — and with creating space on offense, alongside more “fire in the belly” skills like hustling for ground balls, something Keber said can always be improved.

ODA will face stiff tests in the coming weeks, including a home game against Riverview High (5-2) on March 22, which will task the Thunder with defending Clemson University signee Susan Lowther. But this season has already been more successful than the last. If one year of learning led to that success, Keber said, the struggles were worth it. ODA did not wither in hot water. It made the best of it, being the coffee bean it set out to be.

Courtesy photo

Former Braden River High offensive lineman Ryan Neuzil re-signed with the Atlanta Falcons for the 2024 season.

Photos by Ryan Kohn ODA senior Ella East, a team captain, scored four goals against Bradenton Christian School.

ODA junior Makenna Larkin catches a pass against Bradenton Christian School on March 7. Larkin scored two goals against BCS.

Economic impact dominates stadium strategies

The

however that may come. While the 140-acre campus has hosted important events at its stadium, which seats approximately 3,000 people, in the past, including the 2017 Men’s and Women’s Nike International Friendlies soccer events, Falcione said its main focus will never be events of that scale.

The reasons are several, Falcione said, but a main one is that there are less of those events to go around, and many of the events that do come to the area will elect to be held at Bradenton’s IMG Academy, which has dorms where players and coaches can stay while visiting. Premier does not have the same type of infrastructure, Falcione said, and it does not make financial sense to add it when it is bringing in consistent business from youth events and select amateur events, like the United States Australian Football League tournament it hosted in October.

The strategy has been working. Falcione said the campus is generating $40 million to $45 million per year in economic impact to the local economy.

“We’re focused on any kind of out-of-town business that stimulates the economy, whether it is professional, international or stateside,” Falcione said. “Sometimes, we have to pick our poison on what might be the higher revenue (event).”

Though the campus will take many types of events, Falcione said

soccer events are among the easiest to set up and have the most options, which is why Premier hosts so many of them. Falcione said he expects to host more flag football and lacrosse events in the future as well, as those sports continue to grow nationwide. Falcione said the appeal of out-of-state events is exposing people to the Bradenton-Sarasota area for the first time. Falcione said 74% of sports parents who visit the area for the first time will return within 12 months, ensuring that even more money is spent in the area beyond a given event’s duration.

On occasion, Falcione said, the campus will also host local nonsports events, like the Lakewood Ranch Business Alliance’s 34thannual Hob Nob BBQ, which PSC hosted on Dec. 6, and the Suncoast Winefest, which it hosted in Sep-

tember. The campus is also adding a permanent, 6,500-square-foot framed tent, which can host things like lunches, dinners and chamber events.

One thing not on the docket for Premier: concerts. Falcione said the campus wants to be respectful to its neighbors in the evening, and a concert held at the location’s stadium would likely be too noisy.

While Premier will not be adding infrastructure to host professional events any time soon, there will be additions coming to the area. Plans for the Premier Park Racquet and Aquatic Complex, which will feature a 50-meter pool and 24 pickleball courts among other amenities, are progressing. Falcione said he is excited for those facilities to open so the area can host an even wider variety of events. The hope, Falcione said, is that some of those

events will be primarily for locals instead of out-of-state travelers, something that is not the case for many of Premier’s events.

The current Premier facilities will continue to receive improvements. Last year, Premier’s stadium received an upgrade to its lighting.

It now has the same type of lights, LEDs provided by Musco Lighting, that Bradenton’s LECOM Park has, which Falcione said is important for organizations hoping to livestream their events at night. Falcione said additional fields will also see their lighting upgraded this year, allowing more games to be held at night.

Falcione said the facility will also redesign its parking lot to create 400 more spaces and a dropoff circle at the main entrance. Premier will also add 3,000-square-foot locker rooms near its offices for teams that require them. All of

these upgrades, Falcione said, come via customer requests.

“If you listen to the customer and add based on their feedback, it goes a long way,” Falcione said. “It keeps you at the top of their mind.” Another avenue for Premier to bring in supplementary money? Stadium naming rights. In 2017, the campus announced a naming rights deal with the Tampa-based American Integrity Insurance Group, though Falcione said the two sides ultimately could not agree on the finer details of the deal and nothing materialized. Falcione said the campus is still open to a naming rights deal if the right opportunity presents itself.

While Premier is keeping busy, it is also careful not to overdo things, as the quality of its fields is one of its biggest selling points to host events. Falcione said several factors go into maintaining the “five-star” facilities, including how often it rains. Individual fields are evaluated week to week. For the Lakewood Ranch Chargers, who call Premier their home for games and practices, that can mean practicing on field seven one day, then field nine for several days, before going back to field seven.

“You can’t get too greedy,” Falcione said. “But will we stress that grass for economic stimulus? Absolutely.”

If economic impact is the name of the game, Premier Sports Campus is winning. Just don’t expect to see too many big-time names at the facility in the near future.

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

File photo

Elliott Falcione said Premier Sports Campus could pursue a naming rights deal for its stadium in the future.

ATHLETE OF THE WEEK

Derek Anders

Derek Anders is a senior on the Braden River High boys track and field team. Anders set a school record in the high jump (6 feet, 5.5 inches) on March 8 while winning the event at the Pirate Booty Invitational, held at Braden River High. Anders also won the 400-meter race (50.43 seconds) at the event.

When did you start track and field?

I started in 10th grade. I started here and then joined an AAU club team (SPARQ Track Club). People in my family did track in college. They motivated me to try it.

What is the appeal to you?

The hard work. I had to get used to (the difficulty of) track workouts at first, but they got me where I am

What is your favorite event?

Probably the high jump. When everybody stands around you and starts to clap after a jump, I like that feeling.

What is your favorite track

It’s definitely breaking the high jump record this past meet. It was a great moment. I’m proud of what I can do. I worked hard for that mark, so it feels good.

What is your best advice for improving your time in a race or improving your height in the high

When I see somebody in front of me, my body pushes me to do more. I don’t have a specific technique I use. I just want to beat everyone

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.

so bad. It’s all about your motivation.

What are your goals for this season?

I want to break 50 seconds in the 400-meter run. I can do that. It’s coming.

What is your favorite food?

I love any type of pasta. I like to have it the night before meets.

What is your favorite school subject?

Probably English. My English teacher this year (William Duncan) is great. He helps me out a lot.

What is your favorite TV show?

I actually don’t watch much TV. I watch stuff on YouTube, like track videos.

What are your hobbies?

I like to play video games and hang with my friends. I’ve been playing Elden Ring lately since it just came out with a new update.

Which superpower would you pick?

Super speed, come on. (Laughs.)

That would be helpful.

What is the best advice you have received?

Stick with it and stay motivated, whatever ‘it’ is. That hard work is going to pay off sooner or later.

Finish this sentence: “Derek Anders is ... ” ... Goofy. I just want to make other people laugh.

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He’s a

baaad goat

A stray goat that was found wandering the streets of Jacksonville was taken in by the Farmhouse Animal and Nature Sanctuary.

LESLEY DWYER STAFF WRITER

There’s a new kid on the block at the Farmhouse Animal and Nature Sanctuary. His name is Oats McGoats. He’s about 3 feet tall, estimated to be younger than 2 years old and is a bit of a troublemaker.

Oats was picked up by the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office on Jan. 13. Residents reported seeing the goat running through neighborhoods like a stray dog for several weeks.

In an attempt to locate his owner, the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office added a punny public plea across its social media accounts.

“The pictured male goat was located in a neighborhood on the city’s westside near the intersection of Collins Road and Settlers Landing Trail South. The animal has not been able to assist in telling us how he goat there,” the posts read.

After two weeks at an impoundment facility, the goat was sent to auction. Oats hadn’t been given a name yet.

“We did not officially name him,” Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office Public Information Officer Allyn Kelly said, “but officers commented on his Houdini-like escape skills.”

No one raised a paddle for the

goat at the auction, which meant his next stop was the slaughterhouse. Instead, the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office reached out to a local nonprofit called EPIC Outreach. EPIC mainly rescues pigs and horses, but the nonprofit will take in a goat temporarily.

“We are not set up to keep goats long-term,” Founder Jessie Miller said. “We provide veterinary care and then adopt them out or transfer them to other rescue organizations.”

In the two weeks the goat spent at EPIC, he was given a name, vaccinated, castrated and tested for illnesses.

Through the power of Facebook, Oats found a forever home at the Farmhouse after users tagged the sanctuary on EPIC’s post. Owner Lisa Burns had no problem giving the goat a home, but she had no way to transport him from Jacksonville to Myakka City.

Once again, Facebook had Oats covered. Heather D’Agostino saw the sanctuary’s post asking for help.

“Some plans we had (were) canceled for the weekend,” D’Agostino said, “I thought, I can’t just let this goat die because nobody wants him, so I told my kids, ‘We’re going to go help rescue a goat.’”

While she’s down to only a dog now, D’Agostino grew up on a farm in Virginia with a variety of different animals, so transporting a goat wasn’t completely out of her wheelhouse.

Her children — Ben, 11, and Emily, 17 — were immediately on board. EPIC had a volunteer willing to meet them in the middle, so the D’Agostinos only had to drive two hours from their home in Parrish up to Ocala.

“(The kids) thought it was super exciting,” D’Agostino said, “And they just thought he was so cute. They feel good about doing things like that.”

The family felt so good, they offered to help the sanctuary with

FARMHOUSE ANIMAL AND NATURE SANCTUARY

2807 S. Duette Road, Myakka City. Visit FarmhouseSanctuary.org.

In addition to farm animals, the sanctuary rescues exotic and domestic animals. Very few are adopted out; most will live the remainder of their lives at the sanctuary.

transports in the future. What’s been discovered about Oats since being dropped off at his forever home on Feb. 17 is that he’s a goats’ goat, not a people’s goat.

Burns said he integrated into the herd in an instant, but he has no interest in being petted. Volunteers have tried.

“He is extremely crazy,” Burns said. “I think he liked being wild and running around the busy streets of Jacksonville and blocking traffic.”

Oats is a mountain goat, so climbing is among his Houdini skill set. While at EPIC, He repeatedly tried to get out of his stall by climbing up boards that were nailed up to 5 feet high. The boards had to be extended to the ceiling to stop him.

At the sanctuary, Oats’ preferred method of escape is crawling under the fence. Burns said he “flattened out like a pancake” and escaped through a 12-inch gap at the bottom. That fence has since been reinforced with metal panels that reach to the ground.

No one ever claimed Oats, so the reason why will remain a mystery, but he’s fearful of people. Burns said it’s difficult to get close to him, but he’s found a protector in one of the bigger goats.

“If people go in there to clean, (the bigger goat) gets between the people and Oats and doesn’t let anyone try to touch him.”

Courtesy photos Heather, Ben and Emily D’Agostino pick up Oats in Ocala on Feb. 17.

Oats McGoats is adjusting to his new home at the Farmhouse Animal and Nature Sanctuary in Myakka City.

The Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office tries to locate the goat’s owner on social media.

NONPROFIT SPOTLIGHT

A solid foundation for grieving kids

After the death of her husband, Melissa Wandall started The Mark Wandall Foundation to help children cope with the loss of a family member.

LESLEY DWYER STAFF WRITER

Melissa Wandall has endured the same kind of grief as the children she helps through The Mark Wandall Foundation.

At 12, Wandall lost her 14-year-old sister Tammy to cancer. At 35, Wandall lost her husband, Mark, in a car crash.

The crash occurred in October 2003, five days after the couple’s first anniversary and 19 days before she gave birth to their only child, Madisyn Wandall.

Her husband was a passenger in an SUV that was turning left onto Tara Boulevard from State Road 70. The other driver ran the red light.

The tragedy would define Wandall’s career path. She championed red light cameras for five years until Florida’s Mark Wandall Traffic Safety Act passed in 2010. She is now the president of the National Coalition for Safer Roads. Professionally, she’s

a public speaker and advocate.

At the same time, she is a mother. That’s where The Mark Wandall Foundation comes in. She understood the pain Madisyn would feel growing up without a father.

“I had incredible parents (Claone and Morey Wolfe),” Wandall said in thinking back to the days after her sister died. “They pulled our beds (She has a brother Philip.) to the middle of the living room and said, ‘We will sleep here together until you can get back to your own rooms.’ So I had that in my home, but the grief that I experienced outside my home was so isolating.”

Madisyn Wandall is now 20 years old and so is the foundation. Melissa Wandall started the nonprofit with the wife of her husband’s fishing buddy, Gina Babcock.

Mark Wandall and Brian Babcock both worked for John Hancock. They always tried to get their wives together, and while the women had met and enjoyed each other’s company, life always seemed too busy for social events.

Following the crash, the Babcocks were among Wandall’s most devoted supporters.

“To have a best friend for 20 years, it’s crazy. I’ve never had that,” Babcock said of Gina Babcock. “Her fortitude to stick with things and see them to fruition is what I admire about her most.”

The two have slowly but surely built up the nonprofit that exists mainly on donations. Without a big bank account and a brick-and-mortar location, it hasn’t been easy.

The two friends work out of Wandall’s home in Tara. They have no staff and only hold one fundraiser a year. The foundation also receives some smaller grants from agencies in Sarasota and Manatee counties.

Despite limitations, the foundation has served more than 500 chil-

dren from around the state, with about 65% coming from the Tampa Bay area.

The Childhood Bereavement Estimation Model reports that one in 11 children in Florida will have a parent or sibling die by the age of 18. The No. 1 goal of the foundation is to make those kids understand that they are not alone.

The foundation offers four services: an annual camp, a quarterly reconnection events, equine therapy and scholarships.

The reconnection events are laidback events like barbecues and kickball games. The next one is a fishing clinic, but the purpose is always the same — to bring the kids and caregivers together.

The annual sleepaway camp is the largest program the foundation funds. It’s a partnership with another nonprofit called Comfort Zone Camp. Campers stay from Friday through Sunday, and there is a strict no caregiver rule.

“These kids are not going to say a lot in front of their parents,” Wandall said, “And the parent, the caregiver — they need that weekend. They are encouraged to take time to themselves to regroup and regenerate before these kids come back on Sunday.”

The camp costs about $70,000 for 65 children to attend. Children can attend their first camp at age 7 and return each year until they graduate high school.

The campers all have lost either a parent, caregiver or sibling. The camp teaches them coping skills while exploring nature and building friendships.

Natalie Meabon attended her first bereavement camp when she was 8 years old. Now, she’s 13 and attends annually.

Meabon lost her mom (Amy Acoveno) when she was 4 years old to

Type 1 diabetes. She lives in Parrish with her maternal grandparents Bonnie and Kevin Acoveno.

“Melissa Wandall is an angel on earth,” Bonnie Acoveno said. “I personally feel like part of Natalie’s adjustment to not having a mother is to be credited to the foundation.”

Each camper is paired with a “big buddy” for the weekend, so the camp requires up to 95 volunteers. The foundation is about 40 volunteers short for this year’s camp being held April 19-21 at Warren Willis United Methodist Camp and Conference Center in Fruitland Park. The camp is held at the same site each year.

There are three requirements to become a big buddy: Pass a background check, take on online training and have compassion.

“One of the biggest reasons people don’t sign up to train is because they think they’re going to be sad all weekend or can’t handle the child,” Wandall said. “There’s always somebody else there that can support you as a volunteer. If a child is having a hard time, there are therapists that volunteer their time.”

ABOUT THE NONPROFIT

The Mark Wandall Foundation. P.O. Box 21333, Bradenton. Visit TheMarkWandallFoundation.org or call 545-3359. Mission statement: We connect, uplift, and provide support for grieving youth who have experienced the death of a parent, sibling or guardian.

Courtesy image Nicoletta Camisa is Natalie Meabon’s “big buddy” at the 2023 Comfort Zone Camp.

Lesley Dwyer

Melissa Wandall and Gina Babcock started The Mark Wandall Foundation 20 years ago.

on March 9.

Lakewood Ranch Community Activities hosted its annual Irish Celtic Festival.

“This is the appetizer to St. Patty’s Day week because it’s a whole week of celebration,” said Bob Fair with the Lion Rampant Drum and Pipe band. “We are a traditional Scottish pipe band, but today, we’re an Irish pipe band because everybody’s Irish today.”

The dogs were all Irish, too. Satchels Last Resort organized the Lucky Dog Parade. About 20 of them strutted their best green outfits and hats around the park. The pipe band led the pack.

The humans didn’t get a parade, but that didn’t stop them from dressing for the occasion.

Dr. Stacy Greeter wore a halter dress in an all shamrock print.

“I’m a child psychiatrist, so I definitely use that as an excuse to have a lot of fun and say it’s for the kids,” Greeter said of her dress. “Really, it’s for me.”

She was accompanied by a therapy dog named Tikvah.

“Tikvah is the Hebrew word for hope,” Greeter said. “He usually dresses up, too, but I couldn’t find his leprechaun outfit.”

— LESLEY DWYER

Photos by Lesley Dwyer

Krista Brock, owner of Oh What Fun Party Co., gives festivalgoers a photo op.

Penny Durham, Scott Richards and Judy Shackelton are part of the Lion Rampant Pipe and Drum band.

Michael, Jennifer, Ashlyn and Ariel Szczuka attend the Irish Celtic Festival for the first time to see the Lucky Dog parade.

Have

YOUR CALENDAR

COMMUNITY

THURSDAY, MARCH 14-

SUNDAY, MARCH 17

LIVE MUSIC AT JIGGS LANDING Runs from 4:30-7:30 p.m. each day at Jiggs Landing, 6106 63rd St. E., Bradenton. The live music lineup at Jiggs Landing includes Steve Arvey (Thursday), Deadwood Dick and the Drifters (Friday), Matthews Johns Band (Saturday) and Rick “Rooster” Arnghi (Sunday). The Friday and Saturday concerts have a $5 cover; the other concerts are free. For more information, go to JiggsLanding. com.

FRIDAY, MARCH 15 AND SATURDAY, MARCH 16

MUSIC AT THE PLAZA

Runs 6-9 p.m. at 1560 Lakefront Drive, Waterside Place in Lakewood Ranch. Singer/musician Tom Burgess will perform Friday for those strolling the streets of Waterside Place in this free concert. Saturday, singer/songwriter Justin Layman will entertain the crowd. For more information, go to WatersidePlace.com.

SUNDAY, MARCH 17

POLO

Begins at 1 p.m. at the Sarasota Polo Club, 8201 Polo Club Lane, Lakewood Ranch. The Sarasota Polo Club runs every Sunday through April 7. Tickets are $15, with VIP packages available. Gates open at 10 a.m. Besides the polo action, enjoy the opening parade, halftime wagon rides, and food and drinks. Enjoy the traditional divot stomping at halftime. For tickets or information, go to SarasotaPolo.com.

FARMERS MARKET

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

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 20

RANCH NIGHT WEDNESDAYS

Runs from 6-9 p.m. at 1561 Lakefront Drive, Waterside Place,

BEST BET ART IN THE PARK

SATURDAY, MARCH 16

AND SUNDAY, MARCH 17

Runs from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at University Park Country Club, 7671 The Park Blvd, University Park. More than 60 artists will exhibit more than 160 works of art in painting, photography, sculpture and mixed media at the 24th annual Art in the Park event, which is free and open to the public. For more information, go to ArtInTheParkUPCC.com.

Lakewood Ranch. The weekly event includes good trucks, live music, a night market, a vintage mobile bar, and a recreational cornhole league. No outside food or beverage is allowed. For more information, go to Events@LakewoodRanch.com.

THURSDAY, MARCH 14

THEATER ON THE LAKE

Begins at 6:30 p.m. at Nathan Benderson Park, 5851 Nathan Benderson Circle, Sarasota. The Hermitage Sunsets at Nathan Benderson Park: Theater on the Lake event will see Terry Guest and James Anthony Tyler share their work and discuss their theater process, all as the sun goes down over the lake. Registration is $5 per person. For more information or to register, visit HermitageArtistRetreat.org.

SATURDAY, MARCH 23

EGGSTRAVAGANZA

Check-in begins at 9:30 a.m. and the egg hunts begin at 10:30 a.m. at Waterside Place Park. Lakewood Ranch Community Activities hosts Eggstravaganza. Thousands of eggs will be placed for the egg hunt. The egg hunt begins for children 5 and younger at 10:30 a.m.; for children with disabilities at 10:30 a.m.; and for children ages 6 and older at 10:45 a.m. Kids will have a chance to hang out with the Easter bunny from 10:45-11:45 a.m. There also will be face painting, food and drink vendors, games, bounce houses, building with Lego bricks and more. Cost for resident children is $10; cost is $20 for nonresidents. For ticket information and event details, go to LWRCA.org or contact Info@ LWRCA.org.

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Ahome in Riverdale Revised topped all transactions in this week’s real estate.

Jill Hamm, trustee, of St. Petersburg, sold the home at 602 Regatta Way to Christopher Frederick, of Bradenton, for $4.2 million. Built in 2021, it has four bedrooms, four-andtwo-half baths, a pool and 4,388 square feet of living area. It sold for $4.06 million in 2022.

COUNTRY CLUB EAST

Rickie Riegel and Geraldine Opera Riegel, of Ocean Isles, North Carolina, sold their home at 16335 Castle Park Terrace to Moshe Yohann and Karen Quick, of Lakewood Ranch, for $2.2 million. Built in 2017, it has three bedrooms, three-and-a-half baths, a pool and 3,095 square feet of living area. It sold for $1,774,000 in 2021.

Fatima Sadrianna, trustee, sold the home at 7441 Haddington Cove to Peter and Debbie Leuzzi, of Bradenton, for $1,625,000. Built in 2014, it has four bedrooms, three baths, a pool and 3,321 square feet of living area.

Mark and Kirsten Meisenbacher, of Maggie Valley, North Carolina, sold their home at 14822 Secret Harbor Place to Thomas Robert Kadlec and Le Ann Kadlec, of Lakewood Ranch, for $1.26 million. Built in 2011, it has three bedrooms, three baths, a pool and 2,632 square feet of living area. It sold for $630,000 in 2020.

Donald and Victoria Lisenby sold their home at 16548 Hillside Circle to Marsha Fox, of Bradenton, for $812,000. Built in 2017, it has two bedrooms, two-and-a-half baths and 1,947 square feet of living area. It sold for $438,000 in 2017.

EATON PLACE

Wayne and Sandra Geoffrion, trustees, of Senoia, Georgia, sold the home at 7334 Eaton Court to Brian and Janice Sweeney, of University Park, for $1,495,000. Built in 1996, it has three bedrooms, three baths, a pool and 2,798 square feet of living area. It sold for $527,500 in 2020.

Arthur Timothy Jones and Karen Hammond Jones, of Marietta, Georgia, sold their home at 7314 Eaton Court to Teresa Polyak, trustee, of Los Angeles, for $1.2 million. Built in 1997, it has three bedrooms, three baths, a pool and 2,836 square feet of living area. It sold for $806,000 in 2021.

GROSVENOR GARDENS

Raymond David Pipes and Julia Pipes, of Sarasota, sold their home at 8323 Grosvenor Court to John Farrell, of University Park, for $1,495,000. Built in 2006, it has three bedrooms, three baths, a pool and 2,819 square feet of living area. It sold for $835,000 in 2020.

MALLORY PARK

Daniel Patrick Smith and Shelley Lynn Smith, of Bradenton, sold their home at 12213 Cranston Way to Roger Ostrovsky and Beata Ostrovsky, trustees, of Bradenton, for $1.3 million. Built in 2020, it has four bedrooms, three-and-a-half baths, a pool and 4,052 square feet of living area. It sold for $805,600 in 2020.

WINDWARD

Neal Communities of Southwest Florida LLC sold the home at 8038 Anthirium Loop to Brian Jeffry Tomm and Pamela Jean Schreier, of Sarasota, for $1,284,300. Built in 2023, it has three bedrooms, three baths, a pool and 2,861 square feet of living area.

Neal Communities of Southwest Florida LLC sold the home at 2577 Star Apple Way to Miguel Angel

Gomez and Elizabeth Rodriguez

Gomez, of Sarasota, for $650,200. Built in 2023, it has three bedrooms, two baths and 1,999 square feet of living area.

RIVERDALE REVISED

Joseph and Karen Charielle, of Bradenton, sold their home at 560 Mast Drive to Margaret McMullin, of Denton, Texas, for $1,199,000. Built in 2016, it has three bedrooms, two-and-a-half baths, a pool and 2,383 square feet of living area.

COUNTRY CLUB

Peter and Debbie Leuzzi sold their home at 12302 Thornhill Court to Richard Michael Smullen and Traci Smullen, of Maggie Valley, North Carolina, for $1.15 million. Built in 2008, it has three bedrooms, twoand-a-half baths, a pool and 2,564 square feet of living area. It sold for $660,000 in 2021.

Karen Quick, trustee, and Moshe Yohann, of Lakewood Ranch, sold the home at 12208 Thornhill Court to John Simmons III and Linda Simmons, of Lone Tree, Colorado, for $949,000. Built in 2013, it has three bedrooms, two baths, a pool and 1,999 square feet of living area. It sold for $409,000 in 2013.

J. Frank and Nancy Martin sold their home at 7612 Portstewart Drive to Margery Suzanne Ward and Mary Ellen Wagner, of Bradenton, for $875,000. Built in 2007, it has three bedrooms, two baths, a pool and 2,271 square feet of living area.

Mark and Joelle Kuron, of Park Ridge, New Jersey, sold their home at 7715 U.S. Open Loop to Kevin Richard Rollins and Angela Dawn Rollins, of Bradenton, for $625,000. Built in 1999, it has three bedrooms, two baths, a pool and 1,667 square feet of living area. It sold for $292,000 in 2008.

CYPRESS CREEK ESTATES

Jeffrey Moore-Derusha and Lori Derusha, of Bradenton, sold their home at 6182 Ninth Ave. Circle N.E. to Daniel Patrick Smith and Shelley Lynn Smith, of Bradenton, for $1,125,000. Built in 1989, it has two bedrooms, three baths, a pool and 3,033 square feet of living area. It sold for $472,000 in 2017.

ROSEDALE ADDITION

Ronald Edward Kiggins and Joan Peta Kiggins, of Ontario, Canada, sold their home at 9921 Carnoustie Place to Lisa Sabo and Ronald Sabo, trustees, of Novi, Michigan, for $1,095,000. Built in 2014, it has three bedrooms, three baths, a pool and 2,517 square feet of living area.

RIVER CLUB NORTH

Bache Investments LLC sold the home at 10313 Baltusrol Place to Christopher Bradley and Jenna Campo, of Bradenton, for $1.09 million. Built in 1994, it has four bedrooms, three baths, a pool and 3,154 square feet of living area. It sold for $663,000 in 2023.

RIVER CLUB SOUTH Clifford and Annie Thacker, of San

ESPLANADE

Robert Del Guidice and Mary Warwick, trustees, of Bradenton, sold the home at 13959 Messina Loop to Menelaos Tzilvelis and Donna Henney-Caruso, of Bradenton, for $949,000. Built in 2017, it has three bedrooms, three baths and 2,275 square feet of living area. It sold for $524,500 in 2017.

Gilbert and Nereyda Vega sold their home at 5227 Napoli Run to James Scott Cummans and Joann Cummans, of Bradenton, for $927,500. Built in 2014, it has two bedrooms,

two baths, a pool and 2,084 square feet of living area. It sold for $730,000 in 2021.

Bradley Wray Olsen and Vanessa Olsen, of Knoxville, Tennessee, sold their home at 12762 Del Corso Loop to Heather Perry, of Bradenton, for $920,000. Built in 2013, it has two bedrooms, three-and-a-half baths, a pool and 2,807 square feet of living area. It sold for $850,000 in 2022.

CRESSWIND

KH Lakewood Ranch LLC sold the home at 5004 Kiva Circle to Mary Ellen Bowers and Joel Alan Bowers, of Lakewood Ranch, for $920,000. Built in 2023, it has three bedrooms, three baths and 2,990 square feet of living area.

This Riverdale Revised home at 602 Regatta Way sold for $4.2 million. It has four bedrooms, four-and-two-half baths, a pool and 4,388 square feet of living area.

NEIGHBORS NOTES

Carnival brings smiles to Living Lord Church

Whether it was the face painting station, or the bounce houses, or the balloon art or any of the many games, children ran from one side of the Living Lord Lutheran Church parking lot to the other knowing another smile was right around the corner. The annual All God’s Children

Spring Carnival Fundraiser was going full speed ahead March 9, and Preschool Director Erin Bonifate was trying to keep up with the crowd of parents and children. “We are a nonprofit school, and we do this every spring,” Bonifate said while making hot dogs. “All the money we make comes back to the preschool.”

The money helps the preschool buy additional equipment or shading for the playground, or furniture or teaching materials for the classes.

Bonifate said the preschool is blessed.

“The community is very supportive,” she said.

The festival also featured an extensive silent auction.

Time to crack up at Eggstravaganza

The annual Eggstravaganza event returns March 23 at Waterside Park in Lakewood Ranch.

The event once again will offer thousands of eggs placed for the egg hunt, a chance to hang out with the Easter bunny (10:45-11:45 a.m.), face painting, food and drink vendors, games, bounce houses, building with Lego bricks and more.

Check-in for the event is 9:3010:15 a.m. The egg hunt begins for children 5 and younger at 10:30 a.m.; for children with disabilities at 10:30 a.m.; and for children ages 6 and older at 10:45 a.m. Children with disabilities will have their own exclusive hunt area. Cost is $10 for resident children; $20 for nonresidents.

For ticket information and event details, go to LWRCA.org or contact Info@LWRCA.org.

Lakewood Ranch

4-year-old Emma Cunningham and 2-yearold Olivia Cunningham enjoy the All God’s Children Spring Carnival Fundraiser on March 9.

Jay Heater

Creative contest at Jiggs Landing

Denise Kleiner, who runs the concessions at Jiggs Landing Outpost, has sponsored a contest in honor of the new movie “The Florida Wild,” which is being filmed in Myakka City.

Kleiner is asking those who love movies and writing to put together a plot for what they feel their own wild Florida movie would be about.

Kleiner said she is trying to promote creative writing while exposing Jiggs Landing to more people. One part of the contest is that those who enter must come to Jiggs Landing to write their “plot.” Those who enter will write 500 words or less.

The contest is free, and you must be 21 to enter. Jiggs Landing Outpost is located at 6101 63rd St. E., Bradenton. All entries must be submitted by April 11.

Entries will be compared to the actual, and yet-to-be-released, plot to decide who comes closest to the plot of the new movie.

The winner will receive a week’s stay in the historical Jiggs Landing replica cabin for five nights. The winner also will receive a free, three-hour fly-fishing lesson, a $100 tab for food and drinks at the Jiggs Landing Outpost and a sunset boat tour or a kayak rental for four.

The winner will be announced April 15.

Lakewood Ranch business owner earns PostNet award

Shawna Hicks-Cranston, owner of PostNet of Lakewood Ranch, was awarded PostNet’s 2023 Franchisee of the Year that goes to an outstanding franchise establishment owneroperator.

Shawna Hicks-Cranston joined the PostNet family in 2010.

“Shawna, alongside her entire family and team, epitomizes the pinnacle of what every franchisee should aspire to become,” said Bill McPherson, vice president of retail network development, in a release.

FORECAST

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PARTY ANIMALS by Dylan Schiff, edited by Jeff Chen By Luis Campos

The Shanahan Luxury Group facilitated the sale of our home with expertise and ease. Selling a home can be stressful yet the Shanahans made the process seamless, easy, and quick. Tyler was accurate in pricing our home correctly from the start and is extremely knowledgeable of the real estate market. I highly recommend the Shanahan Luxury Group when selling a home. — Bill and Bonnie, Del Webb