Roberts Dameus used to work for the government of Haiti. Now, he wants to represent his new home community in the Florida Legislature. The Democrat qualified last week to challenger Rep. Tommy Gregory, R-Sarasota, for a seat in the Florida House representing the newly reconfigured state House District 72.

As for Gregory, he said he will continue to run with a focus of improving transportation infrastructure in the region while promoting conservative government policies on the statewide level.

Dameus aid his issue was not with any particular actions by the incumbent. Rather, he wants to represent the needs of a community he feels lacks a voice in Tallahassee.

“I see a lot of problems and believe I can help,” he said.

Dameus has been active for years in the Stand Up For Haiti organization since moving to Manatee County in 2015. When he lived in Haiti, he served as a secretary for the Global Initiative for Health and Development in the country. Today, he operates a handyman compact based in the Parrish area, providing among other things air conditioning and installation services. 

Gregory, who before his election did missionary work in the Dominican Republican, said he holds an interest in the plight facing the Haitian people now. He looks forward to meeting Dameus in upcoming debates.

He said his focus in Tallahassee remains on improving roadways, particularly east-west corridors, in the greater Bradenton-Sarasota-Lakewood Ranch region.

“I’m supporting and defending our constitutional rights and doing what I can to make sure Florida remains free and prosperous,” Gregory said. “At home, I am focused on transportation infrastructure, road building, and doing whatever we can to keep up and make sure our roadways remain safe and so people can get to work, school and other activities, the beach and anywhere they want to go.”

Asked his greatest accomplishments in his first two terms, Gregory leans heavily on appropriations projects like improvements to State Road 70 and Moccasin Wallow Road and Fruitville Road, as well as Clark Road improvements to the south of his district.  

Our community is filled with many incredible young people doing such amazing things. This summer, we are featuring some of these young people in our Thursday Family & Education edition. Each of the students we are highlighting has been chosen as one of this year’s SRQ Magazine’s top youth leaders based on their values, determination and outstanding achievements in different aspects of their lives in and out of school.

A college bound senior at Southeast High School, Taylor is an Ambassador in Girl Scouts (which is the highest level) and is working on her Gold Award with them as a community service project. She isCo-Captain of the Nolettes dance and auxiliary dance team. Taylor was nominated by Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Sun Coast for her achievements and leadership skills.

We asked Taylor to tell us about her role model.

"My role model is my mother," she said. "Seeing her accomplish so much and the hard work and dedication she puts into everything shows me that I can do it too! My goal is to graduate college with a bachelors degree and to be successful in whatever I do." 

Pictured: Taylor S., a senior at Southeast High School. Photo by Wyatt Kostygan.

How do we decide which stories we pass on to the next generation? In our modern world, how do we ensure that the stories of our past are not forgotten as we progress into the future?

The Legend of the Spirit Serpent - a modern retelling of a traditional Kalinago legend from the Carribean island of Dominica - ensures that this piece of the Kalingo’s past will stay with us. The story focuses on an eight-year old girl named Natari, an only child who lives with her mother and father in the village of Snake Cou, on the island of Dominica. The village is protected from the dangers of the outside world - hurricanes, famine, and invaders - by the presence of the benevolent Spirit Serpent, who lives in a cave above the village. Natari has been told many stories about the Spirit Serpent by father, one of the tribe’s chiefs, and desperately wants to visit its cave. Her father sternly warns her not to, however, as only the leaders of the tribe can visit the serpent and make it out alive.

Natari’s desire to see the Spirit Serpent only grows stronger - as has her confidence in her own abilities. Trained by her father from a young age, Natari has already proved herself strong and capable - once, while her father was away on a fishing expedition, she saved the village from starvation by hunting for food. With this in mind, she sneaks out one night to visit the Spirit Serpent.

Natari is terrified upon entering the cave - the massive Spirit Serpent coils itself around her, hissing menacingly. After Natari asks it to spare her life and become her friend, however, the Spirit Serpent transforms into a young boy. The boy proclaims that much like Natari, he’s never had a human friend before. The pair spend the night outside of the cave, walking across the still water, before the Spirit Serpent shows her a vision - three massive ships on the horizon, a warning of Christopher Columbus’s impending arrival. The pair agree to keep it a secret between the two of them and Natari wakes in her bed the next morning.

The Legend of the Spirit Serpent is a beautifully crafted retelling of this Kalingo legend. It exposes young readers to a part of the world and aspect of history that otherwise would take years of schooling to address. It celebrates the culture that many readers will know nothing of, but can come to appreciate and understand. This achievement is not done through the writing alone - wonderful illustrations using smooth brush strokes and bright, vibrant colors help the story move gracefully from page to page.

Publication Date: Mar 21, 2022 by Reycraft Books, New York ISBN: 1478875178. Ages: 7-12. 

FST will tour a free, family-friendly musical production to seven locations from June – August. Featuring more than a dozen chart-topping songs from the past eight decades, Off the Charts! is a high-energy revue celebrating the universal language of music. With such hits as “Hound Dog,” “I Want to Hold Your Hand,” “Shake It Off,” and “Can’t Stop The Feeling,” Off the Charts explores music’s ability to make us think, feel, and connect across generations. Free public performances are scheduled at parks and libraries in Sarasota and Manatee Counties throughout the summer—the full schedule can be found below. Audiences are encouraged to register for these free events at floridastudiotheatre.org.­ 

Pictured: Cast of FSTs 2021 Summer touring show, On the Road Again, perform at Phillippi Estate Park. Photo by FST.

To learn more, visit.

The local chapter of the American Advertising Federation, known as AAF Suncoast, invites you and your furry friends to join them at the Sarasota Farmers Market for the inaugural Paws for Purpose charitable event on Saturday, July 2 from 7am-1pm. AAF Suncoast is partnering with My Service Dog’s Place, non-profit that provides refuge for all Veterans, Military Service Members, Law Enforcement Officers, Fire Fighters, Blue Star, Silver Star & Gold Star families, including their service dogs. As a vital program of My Warrior’s Place, an organization working to provide a safe refuge and bring about healing and hope to all Veterans and Military Service Members who have returned from the battlefield, My Service Dog’s Place has a vision to serve as the ultimate resource so that no American Hero would ever need to choose between his or her well-being and their service dog. Kick off July 4th weekend by meeting some of our community’s leading professionals in advertising and media while creating memories that last a lifetime with your four-legged best friend. Photographer Maria Lyle will be offering pet portraits to help raise funds for a new state-of-the-art kennel facility benefitting My Service Dog’s Place, as well as to support the programming of AAF Suncoast. Enjoy patriotic photos of your dog decked out in red, white, and blue and fun summer activities. Your $20 donation will provide three professional photos of one dog, and for $35 you will receive six professional photos for two dogs. If you can’t make the July 2 event, AAF Suncoast is hosting a second Paws for Purpose event at MakSchu Studio on July 23 from 11am-3pm with photographer Yana Parker. A portion of the proceeds will benefit AAF Suncoast and My Service Dog’s Place. 

Ideal-LIVING, a Southern living and real estate magazine, recently named Lakewood Ranch one of “The Top 100 Planned Communities.” The honorees were named in the publication’s summer issue, “Best Places to Live.” Among the top reasons cited for living in a master planned community were the people, a social network, and a sense of community. Others mentioned were walkability, healthy lifestyle, proximity to health care, social clubs, well-maintained homes, and green spaces and landscaping. Philanthropy was also important: readers wanted a “chance to give back” – community organizations that offered an environment to volunteer their resources, be it time, talent, or financial. This is not Lakewood Ranch’s first mention by ideal-Living: last year, The Ranch was also recognized as a Top 100 community. In 2020, it was named to the “Best Health & Fitness Community” category for its wellness-centered master planning, extensive recreational amenities, and health-conscious lifestyle program. In 2019, The Ranch received recognition in the “Best Wellness Community” category. 

Governor Ron DeSantis announced Monday the endorsement of Bridget Ziegler and Tim Enos for the Sarasota County School Board. Enos and Ziegler were two of just 10 School Board candidates in Florida who received the Governor’s coveted endorsement as candidates who will fight for the rights of parents and their school children over school bureaucrats, and will fight to protect the innocence of our youngest children. “It’s a great day when our popular Governor Ron DeSantis endorses two of our School Board candidates,” RPOSC Acting Chairman Jack Brill said. “We know the Governor is intent on getting the right School Board candidates on Florida School Boards — people who will stand up to the radical, woke indoctrination of our children and put parents and children ahead of political agendas.”