“Transformation and change” marked the day, said Ringling College President Dr. Larry Thompson to the crowd gathered at the Keating Center yesterday morning. “Too often we move from one thing to the next and we don’t take time to appreciate,” he says, and this will be that moment for reflection. Thompson will have been president of Ringling College for 19 years come June 2018, and he’s seen perhaps more than his fair share of changes in that time—to the campus, the curriculum and the community at large—but yesterday marked a milestone all its own with a momentous gift of $15 million from local philanthropists Drs. Joel and Gail Morganroth—the single largest the institution has ever received.

“We look at this as an investment not just in higher education,” says Joel, who has also served on the Ringling Board of Trustees for three years now, “but also in art, design, technology, creativity and community.” An academic cardiologist and academic nephrologist, respectively, this is the Morganroth’s first major gift to the Sarasota community. Speaking to the crowd, Joel described the pair as “careful givers,” but completely sold on Ringling College as a worthwhile investment with an inspiring vision for a quality product, fiscal strength, ethical awareness and an excellent team. “And I don’t know anyone who can top Larry,” he says.

Impact from the sizable donation will be felt throughout the school as it furthers programming, scholarships and projects such as the Sarasota Museum of Art, but most keenly in Ringling’s budding virtual reality department, where the gift will create the first endowed department head at the college. Ringling College is already ahead of the curve with its own virtual reality development department, but Morganroth wants to see even more. “Virtual reality is going to be the way that our children and grandchildren are going to learn in all fields,” he says, and, echoing Thompson’s refrain, will be necessary for any preeminent school of art and design.

But looking back on the great transformations that have rocked the Ringling campus since its inception in 1931, the Morganroths recognize that no single actor, and no single gift, no matter how large, can do it alone. “We hope we’re not the only ones,” they say. 

Pictured: Drs. Gail and Joel Morganroth celebrate at the Ringling College Keating Center. Photo by Wyatt Kostygan.

Editor’s Note: This is the second in a five-part series on winners of SRQ Magazine’s 2018 Localpreneurs of the Year.

Mike Quillen and Mike Gowan met each other in eighth grade, forging a lifelong friendship but also laying the groundwork for a business partnership that would prove bountiful for decades. Last week, the pair were named among the inaugural class of winners for the first-ever SRQ Media Group Localpreneurs of the Year.

“I was born in Sarasota, and it’s a great and satisfying thing to be recognized,” Gowan says. Quillen added, “It’s just great to be a part of a local community of entrepreneurs in the community where my partner and I both grew up.”

The two now run Gecko’s Hospitality Group, the company behind not only the locations for Gecko’s Grill & Pub but also Smacks Burgers & Shakes, Dry Dock Waterfront Grill and Dockside Waterfront Grill. The company’s first location opened at the Landings in 1992, where Quillen and Gowan, both experienced bartenders, served drinks themselves. That locale quickly grew from a 30-seat bat to a 300-seat restaurant on Fruitville and Stickney. Smacks joined the company’s offerings in 2013, while Dry Dock was acquired in 2015 and Dockside in 2016 became part of GHG family. Most recently, the Red Barn Bar became part of the company's offerings.

It’s no coincidence the word “hospitality” is part of the restaurant group’s name. Exceptional hospitality, along with fresh and locally sourced food with a gourmet twist, remains part of the company’s mission. The business partners with Honeyside Farms to supply produce and fruit, with Three Suns Ranch for quality bison and with Dakin Dairy Farm for dairy products at all Gecko’s locations.

Today, Gowan says the company has grown to about 600 people and continues to cultivate ideas from its junior management team. The team boasts of a corporate culture that “invites authentic involvement, encourages participation and is based on genuine care and sharing.”

Beyond the company, Quillen and Gowan see value in improving the affordable housing stock and improving comprehensive planning for the region. “We have a good education system but we need to make better,” Quillen says, “and we need to get the folkswho we educate to stay here in Florida, particularly stay in this community.” 

Louies Modern is revisiting the famed Crab Louies Salad with a Sriracha-induced twist. Juicy Florida Gulf shrimp steal centerstage and oust the traditional crab meat in a plated pyramid stacked with goodness.  No doubt, the housemade dressing alone is something worth bragging about. The Louie crab sauce is mixed and folded in fresh lemon vinaigrette, egg yolks, chopped parsley, ketchup and yes, you guessed it, Sriracha. Laying atop this creamy spread are thick wedges of Iceberg and Romaine lettuce that happily play the role of a crisp underlayer upon which is heaped generous portions of large poached shrimp. Perched on top are perfectly ripened avocados, sliced hard-boiled eggs, chopped cherry tomatoes and finely-cut chives tousled in an organized chaos of deliciousness.  Want more? Well the Crab Louies Salad is only one of the many new creations off of their recently redesigned menu. The rest awaits! 

Image provided by Louies Modern

Tableside Restaurant Group

Gulf Coast Community Foundation has selected 27 nonprofit board members from across the region to participate in the next class of its Gulf Coast Board Institute. These volunteers will take part in four half-day interactive training sessions over a five-week period beginning February 2. Topics covered in the course include the basics of nonprofit board governance, financial and legal oversight responsibilities, and organizational planning. The Winter 2018 class of Gulf Coast Board Institute will be the third group of nonprofit board members to take part in this comprehensive training. Gulf Coast Community Foundation will offer additional classes of its Board Institute in the summer and fall. 

Gulf Coast Board Institute

Morton’s Gourmet Market has announced Michelle Wolforth as its new executive catering chef. A culinary arts graduate of Johnson & Wales University with a bachelor’s degree in hospitality, Wolforth will oversee the company’s award-winning catering department featuring an extensive menu of party favorites and custom event planning. She most recently served as chef consultant at Cooked Chicago, a chef-prepared fresh meal delivery service. Her professional background includes culinary positions at such prestigious restaurants as the Waldorf Astoria and The Peninsula in Chicago, The Soho House in New York City, and the Mandarin Oriental in Boston. She also worked as a banquet chef at Gillette Stadium for the New England Patriots where she prepared food for luxury box suites and up to 15,000 guests. 

Morton's Gourmet Market

The Florida Center for Early Childhood, a local nonprofit serving at-risk children and their families in Sarasota, Charlotte, Manatee and DeSoto/Hardee counties, was awarded a $7,000 grant from the J. Milton and Nellie E. Hoffa Memorial Foundation. The grant will be used to train seven licensed mental health therapists as Circle of Security facilitators. The Circle of Security curriculum is aimed at helping at-risk parents with a history of trauma learn healthy ways of relating and forming attachments to their new baby. The Circle of Security program has been implemented at the agency for many years, but has recently expanded with the Early Childhood Court program serving Sarasota and Manatee counties. The Early Childhood Court follows the lead of the national Zero to Three Safe Baby Court Team and requires participation in The Circle of Security program, increasing the demand for trained professionals in the community. 

Florida Center for Early Childhood

The Sarasota Bradenton International Airport (SRQ) successfully completed its annual Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Airport Safety Certification. The inspection revealed that SRQ is in compliance with Federal Aviation Regulation 14 CFR Part 139, a key component in maintaining the FAA Airport Operating Certificate and the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) Airport License. The FAA inspector reviewed airfield signage, lights, and markings; runway pavement and safety area conditions; Airport Rescue Fire Fighter (ARFF) response time; fueling agent facilities/vehicles; wildlife management; and miscellaneous training records. In a letter dated January 11, 2018, FAA commended the Sarasota Manatee Airport Authority (SMAA) for its effective procedures in day-to-day airport operations. 

Sarasota Bradenton International Airport