SARASOTA/SIESTA KEY
Observer
Sweet shop PAGE 19
YOU. YOUR NEIGHBORS. YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD.
FREE • THURSDAY, MAY 30, 2024
VOLUME 20, NO. 27
YOUR TOWN
Shall we convene downtown? A new proposal would turn post office into convention center with a hotel. SEE PAGE 3
FREEDOM RIDE
Courtesy image
Parker Morgan
Parade goers line Main Street for annual Memorial Day parade, themed ‘Some Gave All.’ SEE PAGE 9
Tangible meaning
It began when students’ inspiration was sparked in 2011. During a class on the Holocaust for seventh graders at Temple Sinai, teachers screened the film “Paper Clips,” a documentary about a middle school class in Whitwell, Tennessee, which collects 6 million paper clips to represent the 6 million Jewish victims of the Holocaust. “The kids said that if a little town in Tennessee could do it, they could do something, too,” said Sue Huntting, coordinator of the Tabs for Souls project. To make tangible the 6 million lives lost, children began collecting aluminum can tabs. Today, the project has grown to involve a new generation of students, as well as their parents, older members of the congregation and nearly 150 donors outside of the synagogue, and has now passed the halfway mark with a count of 3.8 million as of May 13. This spring, with guidance from Southside Elementary teachers Michelle Rivas and Stacey Holman, it also came to involve the students there. “It really is a win-win all the way around,” said Huntting, stating that the event spreads awareness and thinking about the Holocaust to the whole community. She hopes once all the tabs have been collected, they can become an art installation.
Hit the beach for fun run series Looking for ways to burn off some of the kiddos’ excess energy this summer? Sarasota County is bringing back its annual free Kids’ Summer Beach Run series to Siesta Beach starting June 4. Each Tuesday through July 30 (with the exception of July 2), kids can participate in a 1-mile fun run that starts at Siesta Key Public Beach. Participants receive a ribbon, and children who complete four runs receive a T-shirt and coupons for Gecko’s and New Balance. Visit SarasotaCountyParks.com for more info.
Ian Swaby
Liliana William and Miguel Gomez participate in the Memorial Day Parade on a motorcycle.
Standing room only
Turtle Tracks AS OF MAY 25 TOTAL NESTS: 2024 Siesta Key 110 Lido Beach 38 Casey Key 231
2023 100 52 415
TOTAL FALSE CRAWLS: 2024 2023 Siesta Key 114 158 Lido Beach 44 87 Casey Key 298 452 Source: Mote Marine Laboratory
Andrew Warfield
Sarasota Senior Transportation Planner Corinne Arriaga discusses complete street plans with a resident during the public workshop.
Sarasota turned out in force to learn about pedestrian-friendly redesign plans for Boulevard of the Arts and 10th Street. SEE PAGE 4
A+E
Festival of note INSIDE