LONGBOAT
Observer
SEASON WINTER 2026
T H E O B S E R V E R ’S G
U I D E TO T H E A R TS
AND SOCIETY
Longboat Key’s weekly newspaper since 1978
YOU. YOUR NEIGHBORS. YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD.
INSIDE MUSIC DANCE ART THEATER BLACK TIE
THURSDAY, JANUARY 1, 2026
VOLUME 48, NO. 20
YOUR TOWN
MARCH With a hearty collective effort, community members help “push in” the newest fleet addition at Fire Station 92 during a March 25 open house. The public was invited to see the facility, which opened in 2021, as well as check out the station’s new $600,000 ambulance.
Dana Kampa
Diplomat raises the flag again Rebuilding from the 2024 hurricane damage was no small hurdle for The Diplomat Beach Resort, as co-owner and board President Jan Daly described. Over the course of 78 days after the hurricanes hit Longboat Key, staff worked hard to reopen all but one unit. Recently, the team completed a new project on the resort grounds, one considered a “bucket list” item, to celebrate the rebuilding. Staff members raised the American flag on their new flagpole in mid-December. Daly said the timing was perfect as they reflected on the immediate rebuilding, the work they did over the past year, and how far they’ve come in reinvigorating the resort over the past 15 years. “It’s an important time of year to sit down and remember our blessings,” Daly said. Visit DiplomatResort.net for more information.
Dana Kampa
Longboat Key Provisions officially opens The newest addition to The Centre Shops officially celebrated its opening with a ribbon-cutting ceremony Dec. 19. Jason Bond, owner of Longboat Key Provisions (above), said he was grateful to his mother and friends for helping get the store ready to open just in time for the holidays. The shop features charcuterie, gourmet snacks and gifts, picnic supplies and similar goodies. Located at 5370 Gulf of Mexico Drive, Longboat Key Provisions is open from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily. Call 941-5569363 or visit LongboatKeyProvisions.com.
2025
YEAR IN PHOTOS
JUNE Oliver
Sheckler, Karson Sheckler, Haydn Rozeboom and Heather Rozeboom enjoy a final visit to Mote Marine Laboratory & Aquarium on July 6. The aquarium closed to the public as it prepared to open its new facility in the University Town Center area, the Science, Education and Aquarium in October.
With equal doses of grit and fun, Longboat Key closes out the year. OBSERVER STAFF
I
n a year that faced recovery, rescheduling and plenty of resilience, Longboat and her
surrounding keys showed their grit — and community spirit — to rise above it all. And, despite the challenges, residents even managed to do what they do
OCTOBER The jumping team trio of brothers Ryan, Garrett and Travis Bouley pulls off a helicopter move even in less-thanideal water-skiing conditions on Oct. 19 at Sarasota Bay. The Ski-A-Rees is a multigenerational tradition in Sarasota that performs through the season on Sundays at City Island.
best: have fun. Here is a review of 2025 captured through our Observer lens.
$0.10 AUGUST Jack and Rose, the pair of Aldabra tortoises at The St. Regis Longboat Key Resort, celebrate their first anniversary there on Aug. 14. Their treat of the day was a watermelon “cake” with other assorted fruit and vegetables.
SEE MORE PHOTOS, PAGE 3