When the board members of Embracing Our Differences (EOD) joined a Zoom conference to experience The Oneness of Art, Cedric Hameed’s poetry self-empowerment workshop, they thought they were in for a casual dry run. What transpired was a tour de force of feeling. “Afterwards we were all discussing how it was the best therapy we’d had in years,” says EOD executive director Sarah Wertheimer. “It went deep.”

And that’s what Hameed lives for. The poet, educator and self-empowerment speaker from Schenectady, NY combines his own journey to self-love with a talent for eliciting feeling in others, yielding workshops that leave attendees glowing with emotion. With The Oneness of Art, Hameed brings his gift to disadvantaged populations in the region, including Boys and Girls Clubs of DeSoto, Manatee and Sarasota Counties, Second Heart Homes, and Easterseals Southwest Florida. When the program ends in the Spring of 2022, each workshop cohort from each organization will partner with Ringling College of Art and Design students to create works of art based on the poems. 

“I had a rough time growing up,” says Hameed, “and my journey to self-love wasn’t easy. But once I figured it out, I didn’t want to be the only one living in that feeling.” His rough upbringing includes bearing witness to a murder at six years old, estrangement from his father and aimlessness as a young adult that stemmed from a deep fear of failure. “By the time I was 22 I had seen so much failure and disappointment in my life,” says Hameed. He was working with at-risk youth in the Bronx at that point in his life and organized a poetry reading for his group. “It snowed like crazy that day and almost nobody showed up,” he says, “except for my father.” 

That night was an inflection point for Hameed, a moment in which he discovered how a broken social fabric is sewn from broken individuals. “I realized we were just these two broken boys,” he says, “and we grew a lot after that.”

That growth is exactly what The Oneness of Art hopes for. Using poetry and deep self-reflection, Hameed hopes his poetry workshops can help attendees rise above their own unique challenges. “We’re trying to give people a place where they feel safe trying to be better,” says Hameed, “and it starts with learning to see yourself from a place of love.” For Hameed and The Oneness of Art program, the ultimate goal is to enrich the community by enriching the life of the individual, one poem at a time. 

Pictured: Teaching artist Cedric Hameed workshops with the Second Heart Homes cohort for The Oneness of Art program. Photo by Nate Illardi.

Learn more about Embracing Our Differences here.

Jim Weiss may be new to South Florida, but he already knows his way around the state. As the new regional president for Fifth Third Bank, Weiss brings a decade of experience in Florida banking. 

Weiss began his time in Florida as a senior commercial banker in Fifth Third’s North Florida region and Tampa’s city president. Most recently, he was a credit risk executive with oversight for middle market, business banking, wealth and asset management, treasury management, dealer floorplan and asset-based lending.

Though he has only been on the job in South Florida since June, Weiss has quickly taken to the region. “I’ve been amazed at how open and accepting the community is with people moving into the market. People have reached out and been supportive personally and professionally,” said the Midwest native, who has been with Cincinnati-based Fifth Third since 2007.

How has your experience in Florida banking with Fifth Third helped in your transition?

I’ve had the opportunity to run almost every line of business in my 15 years with the bank. My experience across all those lines has prepared me for this role, including the past one and a half years as a credit risk executive, which gave me a unique perspective on what was going on across all of our regions and exposed me to best practices. It also gave me an understanding of the regulatory environment. 

Fifth Third has often been recognized for its charitable efforts. Why is community service important?

In 1948, we became the first financial institution to establish a charitable foundation. We know we can help create better lives by giving donations and time, especially around causes supporting financial literacy, homeownership and reemployment, veterans’ affairs and sustainability.

Fifth Third is committed, not only through the financial support we provide as an organization, but also through volunteer hours. We contributed $3.6 billion in Florida in 2020, and locally, we have worked with many organizations. 

It’s an exciting place to call home, and I am enjoying being part of what is happening currently in South Florida and what is to come.

Fifth Third Bank, National Association. Member FDIC. 

Having never read Tess Hadley’s previous best-selling novels, Late in the Day to name one, I found her latest, Free Love: A Novel thoroughly entertaining. Set in late ‘60’s in London, a suburban family of four complacently exist before a young rebel is invited to dinner.  The consequence is alluring, alarming and life-changing for all.

Tess Hadley has a lovely writing voice, like a joyful lazy river ride displaying strong and passionate undercurrents. I relished the idea of how a change in a person’s environment can change his or her entire outlook and personality. Hadley also captures multiple generations’ perspectives with spot-on accuracy, both teenage lust and longing and the ironic mixture of both wisdom and confusion of those in midlife. 

The late 1960’s, rife with conflict and its subsequent emerging novelty, seem to be a popular culture to explore given its parallelism to our current world experience. Hence, like Franzen’s Crossroads, Hadley’s Free Love is a less intense, but satisfying look at human nature.

Free Love, A Novel comes out February 1, 2022 and can be purchased in person at BookStoreOne Sarasota or ordered from their online store at sarasotabooks.com/shop 

Photo courtesy of Penguin Books

Arts Advocates is thrilled to offer its artist members the opportunity to show their work in the Arts Advocates Gallery, located in The Crossings at Siesta Key, 3501 S. Tamiami Trail, Sarasota. These pop-up shows run in conjunction with the main Sarasota Art Colony artists exhibit and can be viewed on Saturdays from 2:00-5:00 pm. Dan Houston’s work is currently on display through Saturday, November 13. Houston, who owns Architectural Wall Decor Art Gallery in Sarasota, creates acrylic paintings on various platforms. His contemporary pieces include paintings and sculptures intended for architects, designers, interior decorators. 

The following pop-up shows will feature each artist painting live in the gallery on the opening day of his or her exhibit: Marjorie Sayer, Saturday, November 20 – Saturday, December 11, 2021;  Violetta Chandler, Saturday, December 18, 2021 – Saturday, January 15, 2022;  Elisabeth Trostli, Saturday, January 22 – Saturday, February 19, 2022;  Jerry Chesley, Saturday, February 26 – Saturday, March 19, 2022; and Tony Reinemann, Saturday, March 26 – Saturday, April 16, 2022.

Docent-guided gallery tours of the main exhibit are offered the first Wednesday of every month at 11:00 am; reservations for tours are required. To learn more about Arts Advocates, register for a tour, or become a member, visit ArtsAdvocates.org. 

Pictured: Marjorie Sayer's "Such Long Hair"

Sarasota Opera is seeking men to volunteer as supernumeraries, or “supers,” non-singing and non-speaking extras in the 2021 Winter Opera Festival, which will include Puccini’s Tosca, Donizetti’s The Daughter of the Regiment, Bizet’s The Pearl Fishers, and Verdi’s Attila. This is an exciting opportunity to see and hear opera from a unique perspective. The “super” roles are for men only, and all cast members mustshow proof of full vaccination against COVID-19. Supers should be available to attendrehearsals and performances from late January through March 22, 2022. The roles are unpaid; however, supers will receive complimentary tickets to performances for their family and friends. Men interested in participating in this exciting season may contact Artistic Administrator Marco Nistico at mnistico@sarasotaopera.org or call 941-328-1310 to schedule an appointment. 

Pictured: 2013 Pearl Fishers. Photo by Rod Millingon

To learn more, visit here

SCD presents its first film and dance experience as part of its In-Studio Performance Series, featuring SCDE and local director Bonnie Silvestri's film, Funnel of Dreams. In Funnel of Dreams, the Silvestris relocate to the United Kingdom to experience how paid family leave impacts families compared to U.S. In the film, the family investigates the impact of the United Kingdom's policies for families, including paid parental leave, childcare services, and the children's right to play.  Alongside the film, Bonnie is collaborating with the SCD Ensemble (SCDE), SCD’s student training company, to bring a live performative element to Funnel of Dreams. Inspired by the film, SCDE will be interpreting the feelings and concepts of the Funnel of Dreams through movement. With this collaboration, Bonnie has pledged that all proceeds from SCD’s screening of Funnel of Dreams will be donated to SCDE. Performances take place this weekend, November 5-6 at 7 pm at SCD's Home Studio 1400 Boulevard of the Arts Suite 300. Tickets are $20 each. 

For tickets, head here

Icard Merrill is proud to announce that the firm has been named to the list of “Best Law Firms” by U.S. News & World Report and Best Lawyers ® for the twelfth consecutive year. The firm has achieved this ranking every year since the program started in 2010. Firms included in “Best Law Firms” list are recognized for professional excellence with consistently impressive ratings from clients and peers. In addition, Icard Merrill is regionally ranked in nine practice areas: Tier 1 in Construction, Land Use & Zoning, Construction Litigation, and Real Estate Litigation; Tier 2 in Commercial Litigation, Family Law, Land Use & Zoning Litigation, and Real Estate; and Tier 3 in Personal Injury Litigation - Plaintiffs. Achieving a tiered ranking signals a unique combination of quality law practice and breadth of legal competence.

The “Best Law Firms” rankings are based on a rigorous evaluation process that involves collecting quantitative and qualitative data about a firm’s expertise, responsiveness, understanding of a business and its needs, cost-effectiveness, civility, and whether a client would refer someone else to the firm. 

For US News' 'Best Law Firm's list, head here

Sheriff Kurt A. Hoffman is pleased to announce the Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office is hosting its fifth annual holiday toy drive benefitting the 12th Judicial Circuit of Florida’s Guardian ad Litem program. There are currently more than 1,300 children from throughout Sarasota, Manatee and DeSoto counties who have been removed from their homes due to abuse or neglect and as such, appointed a Guardian ad Litem. Because the children range in age from newborn to 18 years old with varying personal needs, the sheriff’s office has chosen to focus the holiday initiative solely on toys and gift cards. Citizens are asked to refrain from donating clothing or stuffed animals and to make sure all donations are new and unwrapped. The initiative begins Wednesday, December 1 and continues until Sunday, December 12. Citizens can deliver donations to the agency’s headquarters located at 6010 Cattleridge Boulevard, Sarasota, every day between 7am - 7pm. The initiative launched in 2017 when the agency moved into its new headquarters facility on Cattleridge Boulevard in Sarasota.

To date, with help from agency members, residents, local businesses and organizations, the sheriff’s office has donated more than 7,000 gifts including $20,000 in gift cards to the Guardian ad Litem program. Thanks to a partnership with the Sarasota Memorial Hospital Public Safety Department, public safety personnel are once again generously donating a holiday tree which will serve as the collection site for the toy drive. The first 500 attendees to deliver a new and unwrapped toy or gift card will receive a free sheriff’s office t-shirt.

The event will take place from 2pm-6pm. For more information, contact the agency’s Community Affairs Office at 941-861-4005. 

As the end of daylight saving time nears, Sarasota County Fire Department personnel encourage residents to use the time change on Sunday, Nov. 7, as an opportunity to replace batteries in their smoke and carbon monoxide alarms. Approximately three out of five fire deaths happen in homes with no smoke alarms or no working smoke alarms, according to the National Fire Protection Association. When properly installed and maintained, smoke and carbon monoxide alarms can save lives by giving residents an early warning and a chance to escape to safety. While you're changing batteries in your alarms, remember to change the batteries in weather radios. This can help keep you informed in the event of severe weather. 

If you cannot afford a smoke alarm or would like more information on smoke alarms, contact Sarasota County Fire Prevention Office at 941-861-2290. For additional information regarding weather radios, call the Sarasota County Contact Center at 941-861-5000.  

For more information click here