It looks like two YMCA fitness centers in Sarasota will stay open, but under new management. 

The board for the Sarasota Family YMCA organization announced Wednesday it has reached an agreement with the new school, Dreamers Academy, and the organizations Save Our Y and Project Stoked. As part of the deal, parties said, the fitness centers will now operate as part of a new organization—The Sarasota Y.

Jim Purdy, a former chief operating officer for the YMCA who left the organization more than six years ago, will volunteer as acting president of the group. “I would just hate like heck to see these beautiful assets disappear,” Purdy says. He describes himself as a behind-the-scenes guy always interested in developing the organization.

He would not address the more recent management of the YMCA, which announced earlier this month it had to close down the Frank G. Berlin and Evelyn Sadler Jones centers because of financial problems. The new organization will have a new board. Meanwhile, social services under the auspices of the Sarasota Family YMCA will stay under that existing organization.

Board members say there have been growing problems in terms of finances, and that for years other services have helped supplement the fitness centers despite those being the part of the YMCA most visible to the public.

Now, there is confidence the community treasure can continue.

“There is a lot of hope that good things are happening and the board is more than willing to work with any organization that will preserve the YMCA,” says Sarasota Family YMCA board member Erik Arroyo. “That’s what everyone wants.”

There seemed a lifeline for the centers when Dreamers Academy, a planned dual language charter school planned to open in August 2020, reached out to YMCA leadership. Founder Geri Chaffee says her group was near a deal with another property when the YMCA went public with its issues with the centers. Chaffee says the school started working with the group Save Our Y on a plan to save the centers.

“I have been awed by that organization, that was so quickly put into place,” she says. “I trust them because this is their sole purpose.”

While Sarasota Family YMCA members have noted declining membership at gyms impacting the fitness centers, the new Sarasota Y leaders note the old organization once ran four centers. Most believe just having the Berlin and Jones centers in operation can be achieved with existing membership numbers.

“We are overwhelmed by the level of commitment and partnership witnessed over the past few days,” says Sarasota Family YMCA chair Michele Grimes. 

Anya Adams, a founder of Project Stoked, a nonprofit investing in organizations making social impacts, says the centers were worth saving. Adams will be on the board for the Sarasota Y.

“Seldom do we come across a project that not only fits our investment criteria but also has a direct impact on our own family’s wellbeing,” she said.

But the new organization said there is still work to be done. While a cash infusion from Project Stoked and Save Our Y will keep centers open, there will still be more fundraising.

"“We urge members and friends to go to our web site www.saveoury.org, and continue donating so that we can hit the $1.2 million mark by the time new management takes over operations,” said Charlie Campbell, chair for the Sarasota Y. 

Photo courtesy Sarasota Family YMCA: Evelyn Sadlier Jones Center.

The Suncoast Partnership to End Homelessness, Inc. has announced that Chris Johnson has been selected to serve as the organization’s new Chief Executive Officer, effective September 16, 2019. Johnson, who moved to Sarasota in 2011, has held two positions within The Salvation Army Sarasota Florida Area Command, most recently as the Director of Program Services, and was selected as the result of a three-month national search, which attracted candidates from across the country. He holds a Master’s in Divinity as well as degrees in Youth and Family Ministry and Humanities. He has led The Salvation Army’s Program Services team in their efforts to move individuals from homelessness to housed through a variety of creative programming and engagement in national best practices. 

Suncoast Partnership to End Homelessness

Tampa-based brand, Irish 31 Pub House & Eatery, will open its eighth neighborhood pub on South Tamiami Trail in Sarasota on Monday, August 26. The Greater Sarasota Chamber of Commerce will perform a formal ribbon cutting ceremony that Monday at 5pm.

The Sarasota pub is growing Irish 31 brand’s seventh Florida location, with others in Hyde Park Village, WestShore Plaza, Wiregrass, Westchase, Seminole and Clearwater Beach. Located directly across the street from Westfield Siesta Key, the Sarasota location boasts 3,000-square-feet of intimate space, with wall-to-wall televisions, wood accents, a chef-inspired menu and a pup-friendly outdoor patio. Irish 31 Sarasota promises live music nightly, trivia, a free run club and daily Happy Hour. An Official Partner of the Tampa Bay Lightning, the pub will also host a number of Official Watch Parties next season. Permitting and construction are under way for more locations at Oviedo, Gainesville and Lakewood Ranch. 

Irish 31 Pub House & Eatery

All Faiths Food Bank has received a $30,000 grant from the Community Foundation of Sarasota from the Verena and Peter Gowa Fund, Bill and Karen Merrill Fund, and Hubert and Ruth DeLynn Fund in support of School Pantries for families at Emma E. Booker, Tuttle and Alta Vista Elementary Schools. School Pantries provide children and families in need with fresh produce, meats and groceries. 

All Faiths Food Bank

Badger Bob’s Services—a locally owned company specializing in HVAC, appliances and plumbing—has announced it has expanded its business to include licensed electrical repair and installation services. The new division includes a team of fully certified electricians on staff serving residential and commercial customers. The new electrical division will be led by Brian Brooks and serve the entire Manatee, Sarasota and Charlotte county region. The electrical team is fully accredited, licensed, bonded and insured. All service work is backed by a one-year warranty. 

Badger Bob's Services

Erin Hoffer of KSC Inc., a member of the Central West Coast chapter of the Florida Public Relations Association (CWC-FPRA), has earned professional accreditation in public relations. In receiving the designation of Accredited in Public Relations (APR), Hoffer joins the more than 5,000 professionals nationally who represent an elite group of highly-skilled public relations professionals committed to practicing with exemplary ethical standards. The APR examination is administered by the Universal Accreditation Board (UAB), which is an alliance of eight national and statewide professional associations dedicated to furthering the field of public relations and the development of public relations professionals.

Hoffer, APR, joined KSC’s team as an account executive in November 2018. Prior to this, she spent 11 years with the City of North Port, as a professional government communicator, during which she led numerous marketing, public relations and advertising initiatives. She is a 2008 graduate of the Gulf Coast Leadership Institute. 

KSC Inc.

The Venice-Nokomis Rotary Club recently bestowed Allison Hamley with its annual “Teacher of the Year Award” in recognition of her incredible impact on her students and the community. Hamley, currently a Reading Recovery teacher, has instructed at Venice Elementary School for 16 of her 25 years as a teacher. Reading Recovery aims to significantly reduce the number of first-grade students who have severe challenges while learning to read and write. These intervention tactics are most effective when they are accessible to all students who need them, and when they are used as a supplement to existing, results-driven curriculum. An estimated 75% of students who complete the full 12-to-20-week intervention are usually able to meet grade-level expectations in reading and writing when tested.

Hamley is noted as being exceptionally effective at aiding her students and supporting their diverse learning needs. The Venice-Nokomis Rotary Club’s Teacher of the Year Committee Chairman, Jesse Lazarus, presented her with a $1,000 check and plaque. 

Venice Elementary School