SRQ DAILY Feb 8, 2023
Wednesday Philanthropy Edition
"Being a mentor may not change the world, but it will change the world of the child you mentor"
Big Brothers Big Sisters serving Sarasota, Manatee, DeSoto, Highlands, Hardee, Charlotte, Lee, Hendry and Collier counties is launching its annual “100 Men in 100 Days” campaign to encourage men to become a Big Brother and volunteer with the organization. The campaign which was first launched in 2013, runs from February 6 thru May 12, 2023. It first began because of the need for more positive adult male role models to match with young men. The recruitment campaign comes at a good time, as there are 107 boys waiting to be matched with a positive male role model.
The matches between a Big and Little are often described as ‘perfect’ by those who participate, but making the match is not a quick and easy process. According to Gina Taylor, Vice President of Communications and Marketing for Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Sun Coast, there is a lot of work and thought that goes into forming the relationships. “First, potential Bigs meet with a mentor manager who learns their interests, personality and matching preferences,” she says. “Then, background screening, fingerprinting and reference checks are conducted. Once approved as a Big, all mentors will complete online or in-person training prior to being matched. When we identify a Little who’s a great fit for the volunteer based on compatibility, interests and geographic proximity, we set up an introduction. Ongoing match support is provided by mentor managers.”
The youth in the programs range from age 6 through 18. There is also a program called Big Futures where the mentor is matched with the youth to the age of 21.
Mentoring is one of the most rewarding, enjoyable and simple things a volunteer can do. For as little as one hour a week, volunteers can add joy to the life of a child, and ultimately, contribute greatly to his or her potential. Activities can range from anything including attending or participating in sporting events, swimming, shooting hoops, going to car shows, movies, playing chess, checkers or just hanging out. Research shows that having the positive influence of a Big makes a real difference in the life of a child. Littles experience improvements in academic performance, behavior and relationships at home and and elsewhere, according to independent studies. A quote like this from a Little who was matched with a Big is not uncommon: “Thank you for believing in me and for not giving up on me."
"We often hear people say they don’t have the time," shares Taylor. "It only takes an hour a week for our site-based program or twice a month for our community-based program. We work with the volunteers schedule and are flexible."
Big Brother Rich Puckett has been mentoring young men for many years. “Being a mentor may not change the world, but it will change the world of the child you mentor” he shares.
To become a Big and contribute greatly to a child’s potential, please call (855) 501-BIGS (2447), (941) 488-4009, or visit bbbssun.org. 
Pictured: Nick and his Little, Gabriel. Photo courtesy of Big Brothers Big Sisters.
Halfacre Construction Company, a Lakewood Ranch-based commercial construction company, recently donated $1,000 to Nicole Golden, Hillsborough teacher and president of HABSE, the local chapter of the National Alliance of Black School Educators (NABSE), to help fund her trip to Washington D.C. to serve as a panelist for The White House Initiative on Advancing Educational Equity, Excellence and Economic Opportunity for Black Americans. The commercial construction company’s director of community and business diversity, Eric Graham, met Golden three years ago during his time working with Hillsborough County Public Schools. The Celebration of Black Educator Excellence: Education as a Form of Resistance event that Golden was a panelist for took place on Tuesday, Feb. 1 at the Bernard auditorium, located in the U.S. Department of Education in Washington D.C. The event celebrated the resilience, innovation and achievements of black educators in history and facilitated conversation among participating individuals, institutions and organizations interested in engaging relevant stakeholders about the White House initiative.
Pictured: from left to right: Mimi Woldeyohannes, director of external affairs at Center for Black Educator Development, and Nicole Golden, Hillsborough teacher and president of HABSE].
The Junior League of Sarasota recently revamped a storage room at The Florida Center for Early Childhood, creating a space where students can unwind and learn independently.
Starfish Academy, The Florida Center’s early education center in Sarasota, was selected for one of the “Done in a Day” volunteer projects that members of the Junior League complete
throughout the year. Volunteers cleaned, painted, organized, and revamped the storage room into a space where students can relax, read a book in a comfy bean bag chair, or get cozy in a peaceful tent. The Junior League also purchased new listening devices and books with CDs so that the preschool children can follow along visually while listening. Starfish Academy is a preschool that supports inclusion classrooms where typically developing children learn alongside those with delays, disabilities and mental health challenges. The nationally-recognized model helps build lifelong skills like empathy and encourages children to reach their full potential. The Florida Center offers campus tours and a variety of opportunities for volunteers and supporter engagement. Visit www.TheFloridaCenter.org for more information.
Pictured: Students can now relax and read a book in a comfy bean bag chair at The Florida Center for Early Childhood. Photo courtesy of The Florida Center for Early Childhood.
Since 1996, Teen Court of Sarasota has awarded over $200,000 in scholarships. We will celebrate our outstanding teens graduating from high school in 2023 with a program, dinner, scholarships, awards and showcase our newest Teen Court informational video! Teen Court of Sarasota, Inc. is a nonprofit organization, and our fundraisers help to support the
services we provide to the teens and their families in Sarasota County. The Scholarship Awards Dinner is held annually and honors our young people who have been supporting our
efforts or received services from us. This year's event will be held on Wednesday, March 8, 2023, at Michael' on East at 5:30pm. Nine teens will share how Teen Court impacted their lives, helped them through a tough time, become a better public speaker, pursue a law degree, help their peers, and make our community a better place. “Our 2023 Scholarship recipients have collectively volunteered more than 500 hours with Teen Court of Sarasota. They have been role models, mentors, tutors, peer-to-peer support, and a voice for their peers. Our students are our success. It is with great pride that we celebrate these graduates and recognize their accomplishments. “said Heather Todd, Executive Director.
Sarasota Orchestra has received a $60,000 Arts Appreciation Grant from Gulf Coast Community Foundation in support of the 2022-2023 season and the Orchestra’s mission to engage, educate and enrich the community through high-quality, live musical experiences. Gulf Coast’s generous contribution bolsters several of Sarasota Orchestra’s most impactful events: the Saturday Great Escapes series, the annual Sarasota Orchestra Brunch to support education programming, and the 2022-2023 Special Concert & Gala event featuring Yo-Yo Ma. Sarasota Orchestra’s 2022-2023 programming includes performances in a variety of venues and formats and is comprised of concerts in five different series: Masterworks, Discoveries, Chamber Soirées, Pops and Great Escapes. The Great Escapes series, supported in part by Gulf Coast Community Foundation, presents a unique combination of classical works and popular music in themed programs. Alongside its concert series, the Orchestra's extensive education offerings include the Sarasota Youth Orchestras, Summer Music Camp, and Young Artists Competition. Many alumni of these award-winning programs have become performers with major symphony orchestras throughout the country, including Sarasota Orchestra. To learn more about Sarasota Orchestra’s 2022-2023 season and programs, visit www.SarasotaOrchestra.org.
Manatee Pride is a fun family event with all proceeds benefiting ALSO Youth, a 501(c)(3) non-profit Florida corporation. It will be held on March 11, 2023 from 12-5 PM at the Riverwalk Pavilion & Event Area (452 3rd Avenue W. Bradenton, FL). ALSO Youth provides Advocacy, Leadership, Support, and Outreach for LGBTQ+ youth in Sarasota and Manatee Counties and is dedicated to supporting, affirming, encouraging, and empowering all LGBTQ+ youth, their families, and allies via two youth centers that host weekly programming, support groups, scholarship opportunities, and more. The annual Manatee Pride festival will showcase incredible live entertainment, music, delicious food, refreshments, health checks, and more. Want to become involved with our upcoming Pride festival as a volunteer? Email info@alsoyouth.org to get started. Interested in participating in this year’s event? With thousands of visitors passing through the festival, this is a great opportunity to present your products or services in front of an energetic and engaged audience. Whether you’re an established company with great brand recognition or a local artist or startup looking to get noticed, having a booth is guaranteed to make an impact. Manatee Pride celebrates the LGBTQ+ community & their allies while showcasing the best of Manatee County and our surrounding areas.
From January 27, 2023 to February 23, Art Uptown Gallery will exhibit Elements by Cheryl Moody. Cheryl loves being outdoors and painting subjects in oils that spark her interest, whether it's the way light filters through leaves, reflects on water, creates patterns of color in the landscape, or how palm fronds twist in the wind. Cheryl enjoys hearing from people saying they could “ feel the wind blowing” or “smell the salt air,” and knowing that they have been transported to her special places. Meet the artist at the gallery on Saturday, January 28 from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. and at the monthly First Friday, 6 p.m. public reception on February 3. Art Uptown Gallery welcomes patrons and friends at 1367 Main Street daily where the diverse art works of regional, award-winning artists are exhibited. Telephone 941-955-5409 or visit www.artuptown.com for hours and further information.
Enjoy a night of fun at Waterside Place during Ranch Nite Wednesdays. The event features food trucks, live music, a night market, a vintage mobile bar and cornhole. Visit lakewoodranch.com to learn more. Waterside Place, 1561 Lakefront Drive, Sarasota.
The Manatee Performing Arts Center (MPAC) will host a very special matinee showing of a rags-to-riches story featuring a young man, whose family fled the Nazi invasion of their home in Italy, and who would one day become the most famous professional wrestler in the world. Bruno Sammartino makes its Florida debut at MPAC on Thursday, February, 9 at 2 p.m. Tickets are $8 and can be purchased on the MPAC’s ticketing center online.
Join us for a free movie at The Bay Park. Bring your blankets, chairs, family, and friends to enjoy a wonderful evening under the stars.
The Nest, the new concession at The Bay, will be selling tasty food and beverages to make the evening a legit and fun movie-going experience for all.
(R) - In 1977, college graduates Harry Burns (Billy Crystal) and Sally Albright (Meg Ryan) share a contentious car ride from Chicago to New York, during which they argue about whether men and women can ever truly be strictly platonic friends.
Visit thebaysarasota.org for more information. The Oval at The Bay, 1055 Blvd of the Arts, Sarasota.
Chorus, orchestra and soloists sing of ships and their captains, wind and waves, the voyage of every human soul, and music so vivid you can almost taste the sea spray in the air. Vaughan Williams’ setting of Walt Whitman’s sea texts elicit thrilling viscerality in its climactic vision of the individual soul sailing forth ‘for the deep waters only, where mariner has not yet dared to go.’ This large-scale symphony was one of the first to incorporate choir throughout the work and is considered one of the mightiest first symphonies ever composed. Baritone Jamal Sarikoki and soprano Suzanne Karpov add their stunning virtuosity to this epic masterwork.
All ticket buyers are welcome to join us for a special presentation by Mote Marine President and CEO, Dr. Michael P. Crosby, one hour before each concert. Dr. Crosby will reflect on the importance of the sea as he shares Mote’s mission, its groundbreaking research, ocean conservation, education and plans for its exciting future with Oceans for All!
Visit keychorale.org for more information and to purchase tickets. Church of the Palms,
3224 Bee Ridge Rd., Sarasota.
Follow the beat of happy feet to a magical place where art and literacy meet. It’s all on the avenue we’re taking you to…Storybook Street! The Early Learning Coalition's FREE, family-friendly, book-themed wonderland returns—this time to Suncoast Technical College in Sarasota. Storybook Street will once again collaborate with more than a dozen local arts and culture organizations to bring children’s books to life. Designed for children ages birth to 7, this year’s extravaganza will be an in-person event. The event will feature dance, drama, art, music, movement and more. Preschool-level performances will be coupled with engaging, hands-on, age-appropriate activities for young children to enjoy. No registration necessary. Just show up (early) with a smile! The first 400 families will have an opportunity to walk away with 16 new children’s books each, a swag bag of goodies as well as meaningful, memorable moments to help foster an early love of reading. To enjoy the full experience, the Coalition recommends arriving before 10am since families will likely take more than an hour to visit all the booths and collect books. Children are welcome to dress up as their favorite storybook character!
Visit earlylearningcoalitionsarasota.org for more information.
This monthly gathering of car enthusiasts brings together automobile lovers from every walk of life, not to mention a wide array of spectacular cars. Bring your own vehicle (all makes and models are welcome) to show off, or check out the hundreds of cars on display. Each month, the event sponsors a different charity, and attendees are encouraged to donate $10 to benefit the charity. The event, occuring on the second Sunday of each month, will feature live music, complimentary coffee and more. To learn more, visit facebook.com/carsandcoffee941. Sarasota Cars and Coffee, The West District at University Town Center near Ford’s Garage, 295 N. Cattlemen Rd., Sarasota.
On February 11-12, the Gulfcoast Studio Company of the Sarasota Cuban Ballet School will present a program celebrating love in two acts. The first act features modern-day romantic classical and contemporary pieces. The second act showcases the eternal love of Swan Lake with highlights of the traditional “White Swan” choreography and Tchaikovsky’s haunting music.
There will be 3 intimate black box performances at the Sarasota Cuban Ballet School’s auditorium on Saturday, February 11 at 2:00 pm and 7:00 pm, and Sunday, February 12 at 2:00 pm. Tickets are $35. Visit srqcubanballet.org to learn more and purchase tickets.
Marie Selby Botanical Gardens’ 2023 Jean and Alfred Goldstein Exhibition Tiffany: The Pursuit of Beauty in Nature showcases the creativity and innovation of American artist and designer Louis Comfort Tiffany (1848-1933). The first exhibition of its type to be presented in a botanical garden, the exhibition highlights the inspiring connection between Tiffany Studios and the natural world through unique horticultural displays in the Tropical Conservatory and the Gardens, accompanied by seminal examples of Tiffany’s work on view in the Museum of Botany and the Arts. To learn more, visit selby.org. Selby Gardens Downtown Sarasota campus, 1534 Mound St., Sarasota.
Grab your bestie and shower her with an evening of love & fun! The night will feature bottomless select wines, bottomless select wubbles, cheese, charcuterie, and accoutrements. There will also be jewelry by Link x Luxe, henna Tattoos by Haley's Sacred Tattoos and Champagne Sampling by Champagne Palmer and Co. Dress to impress as a photographer there to capture the moment. This is a limited ticketed event and costs $75/pp +tax and gratuity. Visit 99bottles.net to learn more and purchase tickets.
99 Bottles, 1445 2nd St., Sarasota.
Safe Place and Rape Crisis Center (SPARCC) is hosting its signature, annual fashion show on Friday, March 31, 2023 at The Ritz Carlton, Sarasota. The 2023 event, SPARCC Runway: Timeless Treasures will be filled with nostalgia and fashion-forward styles as we showcase trends that have come full-circle. Guests will enjoy valet parking, a champagne toast, shopping in the event’s premiere, pop-up fashion boutique (featuring great deals on high-end fashion pieces from SPARCC Treasure Chest), a delicious luncheon complete with wine service, and an unforgettable and fantastic runway fashion show. This year guests can also join in on our inaugural Fashion Show After-Party, and avoid the valet rush, with musical entertainment, for purchase beverage options and additional opportunities to shop the boutique. Registration and shopping begin at 10 AM, followed by the seated luncheon and fashion show at noon and the after-party immediately following. All festivities wrap-up by 2:30 PM. This year’s Fashion Show Chairs are: Vickie Smith, Event Chair; Darci Jacob, Fashion Chair; Coral Pleas (Cutting Loose Hair Salons) and Terry McKee (Nuovo Salon Group) as Honorary Chairs. As the owners of Sarasota’s most beloved hair salons the event’s Honorary Chairs are coming together to show their support of SPARCC, take a stand for survivors and help make Timeless Treasures an event to remember! All proceeds from the event support SPARCC’s free and confidential programs and services for
survivors of domestic and sexual violence. For tickets and sponsorship opportunities, visit www.sparcc.net/events or call 941-365-0208 ext. 110.
The 39th Annual St Barbara Greek Festival “Glendi” offers three days of pure family fun filled with delicious Greek dishes, domestic and imported beverages, amazing pastries, live Greek music and The St. Barbara Hellenic Dancers and all things Greek. The tents will be filled with amazing Greek food, Greek drinks, pastries dancing, vendors and more, including a raffle. Visit stbarbarafestival.org to learn more.
Saint Barbara Greek Orthodox Church, 7671 Lockwood Ridge Rd, Sarasota.
Join us as we celebrate the 35-year partnership of the Van Wezel Foundation and the Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall for an intimate experience featuring exceptional dining and Grammy-winning musician Kenny Loggins. Proceeds from the evening will the support the mission of the Van Wezel Foundation: to create and sustain a vibrant perfoming arts center, advance education, and enrich communities by inspiring minds through the power of the arts. Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall, 5:00 Cocktails, Dinner & Program, 8:00 Live Performance. Gala co-chairs: Kathy Martella and Susan Travers. For information about sponsorship opportunities, please contact Julie Schwartz at 941-271-4180 or jschwartz@vwfoundation.org.
SRQ DAILY is produced by SRQ | The Magazine. Note: The views and opinions expressed in the Saturday Perspectives Edition and in the Letters department of SRQ DAILY are those of the author(s) and do not imply endorsement by SRQ Media. Senior Editor Jacob Ogles edits the Saturday Perspective Edition, Letters and Guest Contributor columns.In the CocoTele department, SRQ DAILY is providing excerpts from news releases as a public service. Reference to any specific product or entity does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation by SRQ DAILY. The views expressed by individuals are their own and their appearance in this section does not imply an endorsement of them or any entity they represent. For rates on SRQ DAILY banner advertising and sponsored content opportunities, please contact Ashley Ryan Cannon at 941-365-7702 x211 or via email |
Powered by Sarasota Web Design | Unsubscribe
