This weekend, come to the Art Ovation Hotel for a truly rare experience: the chance to talk to an artist in the middle of their artistic, working process. This week’s Artist in Residence at the hotel is Teresa Stone, a Sarasota-based painter who grew up in the U.S. Virgin Islands. Stone’s acrylic-based paintings have ranged in size from small canvases to outdoor murals and are evocative of the tropical foliage present throughout her childhood in the Caribbean and her life in Florida. “Teresa paints in bright, vibrant colors and says that the flowers are ‘dancing across the canvas in a bohemian style’,” recounts Robyn Hall, Cultural Curator of the Art Ovation Hotel.

Stone arrived at the hotel this past Tuesday, July 26th, and will be present in the hotel’s studio for live demonstrations Tuesday through Sunday from 4pm-8pm. “While the artist may be working at their easel or on a table, we generally encourage them to interact with the guests - if someone comes up to them, we ask the artist to greet them and talk to them about what they’re interested in and share a little bit about their art. We want to promote conversation as opposed to sitting there and painting while the person watches,” says Hall.

In addition to Stone’s live demonstrations, a reception will take place on Friday from 5pm-7pm. Part of what makes the Art Ovation Hotel’s Artist in Residence program so interesting is the ephemeral nature of the art work - unlike the other works featured amongst the multiple floors of the hotel, the artist’s work is only present at the hotel for the duration of their stay. “Essentially with the residency program, the artist moves in on a Tuesday and checks out the following Monday - the installation is only here for that 7 day period,” attests Hall. 

Pictured: Art Ovation Hotel Artist in Residence, Teresa Stone. Photo courtesy of the artist.

The untimely passing of our incoming music director Bramwell Tovey on July 12 was a blow to the entire music world. At the end of our final rehearsal with him last April, in his designate season, he told our musicians that during his long career, he had rarely been so certain that he was exactly where he should be. We were just beginning what we all felt would be an extraordinary partnership. And then he was suddenly gone, and following the initial shock and disbelief, it became clear that, as we were processing our loss, we also had a responsibility to maintain the mission of our orchestra, to serve the community, and to honor Bramwell by continuing the work that he had begun. To that end, the goal of Sarasota Orchestra is retaining as much of the programming that Bramwell had planned during the 2022-2023 season. Bramwell had structured our season to be a well-balanced combination of musical "comfort food," long beloved standards that have stood the test of time, and selections from extraordinary living composers, writing music of our time. Bramwell spoke often that the pandemic has left the world feeling unsettled – so much of what we have always taken for granted has changed – and he wanted Sarasota Orchestra performances to provide a respite from the fear, and the reassurance that art is alive and well in 2022.As we forge ahead into the future, we feel that there is no better way to honor Bramwell Tovey, and all he had hoped to achieve here, than by maintaining his vision for this season. While his time here was short, he left behind a season filled with the music that he most wanted to share with our community, and we are committed to do just that. And so, Sarasota Orchestra will honor Bramwell Tovey’s artistic plans for the 2022-2023 season. We will take our memory of him as our inspiration as we move forward, committed to building the music center he joined us in championing and making great music for everyone in our community. We plan to have important updates in the coming weeks on additional specifics for the coming season. In the meantime, please know that we all stand together in advancing the role of music to inspire and uplift during challenging times, just as Bramwell would have wanted. On behalf of Sarasota Orchestra's musicians, staff, board, and volunteers, we thank you for your condolences and support. 

Hershorin Schiff Community Day School (CDS) announced that it has received an $8,000 Community Impact Grant from the Community Foundation of Sarasota County. The grant will help fund books and technology for its Janis Kaplan Multicultural Media Center. Dan Ceaser, Community Day’s head of school, explains that, when CDS secured a permanent campus in Sarasota one year ago, installing a state-of-the-art multicultural media center directed by a qualified media specialist was top on its wish list.

“This generous grant allows us to expand the materials and resources needed to reflect a 21st-century school multimedia center—one which offers faculty and students the opportunity to explore a diversity of experiences, voices, and perspectives from around the world,” says Ceaser. “The funds help us provide a wealth of library resources, technology tools, tutoring, and other academic support services. We envision this as a creative learning hub for people of all ages and interests to gather to explore and debate ideas. We are grateful to the Community Foundation of Sarasota County for helping CDS create a center of learning that connects students to our community—and to a world of ideas.” Community Day School opened its new campus, with record enrollment, on August 16, 2021. To learn more about Community Day School, visit communityday.org or call (941) 552-2770. 

Pictured: Community Day School preschool student with books in the Janis Kaplan Multicultural Media Center. Photo courtesy of Hershorin Schiff Community Day School (CDS).

The Florida Association of the American Institute of Architects, AIA Florida, has named the 2022 recipients of its highest design awards recognizing architects throughout Florida and the Caribbean. Architect Jonathan Parks AIA of the Sarasota architecture firm SOLSTICE Planning and Architecture was bestowed with a design award for the City of Sarasota’s St. Armands Parking Garage which was recognized with a Citation Award of Excellence in Sustainability. More than 250 submissions were received for the design awards, where a Barcelona-based jury of architectural experts judged work from Florida, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. The awards ceremony will be held July 30th at the annual 2022 AIA Florida Convention at The Breakers in Palm Beach, Florida.

“The goal of sustainability and obtaining the Parksmart designation was extremely important,” said Mark Lyons, Parking Division Manager for the City of Sarasota. “The City of Sarasota established a goal to achieve 100% use of renewable energy in city buildings by 2030. This project was a fantastic culmination of community effort and achievement that keeps moving our vision for the community forward.” 

Pictured: St. Armands Parking Garage. Photo courtesy of SOLSTICE Planning and Architecture.

Five-O Donut Co has set up a squad in Bradenton. Located at 5942 34th Street West Unit #116 Bradenton, FL 34210 in the El Conquistador plaza adjacent to SCF and IMG Academy. This is the 5th and newest location for the local Sarasota based brand. Founder + CEO Christine Nordstrom says "Five-O always open a new shop with a gratitude giveaway for its loyal fans. The giveaway on Aug 6th will include 1 free donut per person, a free tshirt to the first 6 in line also a free mixed 6 pack to the first 12 loyal fans that arrive with their Five-O Squad shirts on. We are just so very appreciative of all the support our community lends us. We are also launching our long awaited and heartily requested VEGAN lineup! A new vegan menu with 4-6 creative options will be dropped each month. We will be producing on vegan dedicated equipment with all vegan ingredients. Our vegan line be available at Bradenton, UTC and Siesta Row locations to start. We will eventually roll it out to all locations system wide as we perfect the process." Five-O Donut Co is a local Sarasota family owned business established in 2016. Five-O is known for its "Arrestingly Good Donuts" including their creative and inventive weekend specials. Five-O is committed to gracious customer service and making "Arrestingly Good Donuts" which they find is the recipe to their success.  

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Louie’s Bistro, offering made-from-scratch breakfast and lunch entrées, opens Friday, July 29, in the award-winning Wellen Park Welcome Center. The bistro, operated by the proprietors of Venice Island Coffee, features family recipes, southern-style dishes and reflects the small-town Kentucky and West Virginia hospitality of owners Jennifer and Corey Pope and their three children. Named after Jennifer Pope’s late father, Louie, a retired firefighter and head firehouse cook, the bistro will have a soft opening July 29 with a grand opening planned later in the year. The menu features some of Venice Island Coffee’s popular selections, including omelets, breakfast sandwiches, grilled Taylor pork Jersey rolls and its locally roasted proprietary coffee blend, as well as many new made-in-house options like biscuits and gravy, hashbrown casserole and southern-inspired tuna salad with pickle relish and eggs, according to Jennifer Pope. As a multigenerational gathering spot for the local and regional community – as well as the Pope family – the restaurant will have on-tap cold nitro-brewed coffee and kombucha. The bistro also features coffee from Tampa-based mom-and-pop Java Planet, as well as flavored blends from other brands. It will eventually offer mimosas, sangria, wine and beer and host special dinners and live music on the patio overlooking Downtown Wellen. With seating for about 50, including a coffee bar, the bistro offers a cozy, comfortable ambience with photos of Louie, firefighting equipment and a lamp he created from a fire extinguisher. Louie’s Bistro is located in the Wellen Park Welcome Center, which won the prestigious 2022 gold award as the Best Community Welcome Center in the U.S. from the National Association of Home Builders. The bistro joins a growing number of retail boutiques, restaurants, beauty services, medical and professional offices in Wellen Park’s developing downtown, the vibrant central hub and gathering place for residents and the region.To learn more about living at Wellen Park, call 941-960-7805, go to wellenpark.com or visit the Welcome Center at 12275 Mercado Drive in Venice, Fla. The Welcome Center is open daily 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. 

Pictured: Louie_s Bistro is named after ow ner Jennifer Pope’s late father (right) who was a retired firefighter and head firehouse cook.

Sarasota Memorial Hospital- Sarasota Campus continues to lead the region in quality and safety, as the only hospital in Sarasota, Manatee and Charlotte Counties to earn a 5-star rating for overall quality from the federal government this week. The 5-star quality rating makes Sarasota Memorial the only hospital in Florida, and one of only 33 in the nation, to consistently earn the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ highest quality award since the rating system launched in 2016. Of the 4,500-plus hospitals that were evaluated, less than 14% of received 5 stars in the CMS ratings updated on Wednesday. In Florida, only 15 hospitals achieved the 5-star designation in 2022. CMS assigns the star ratings by evaluating hospitals’ results in dozens of quality measures that are divided into five categories: mortality, safety of care, readmissions, patient experience and timely and effective care. The honor is the latest in a series of prestigious national awards Sarasota Memorial has received in July. In addition to earning several spots on U.S. News’ “Best Hospitals” list on Tuesday, SMH-Sarasota was also recognized as one of the nation’s 100 Top Hospitals and top 40 teaching hospitals in a study released a few weeks ago by Fortune/Merative. David Verinder, president and CEO of Sarasota Memorial Health Care System, credits the staff’s never-ending focus on delivering quality care, applauding the efforts of the entire health system. “Our repeated recognition across multiple hospital rating organizations is a testament to the work of our staff and physicians,” said Verinder. “We are unquestionably a national leader in quality, safety and service, and it’s all due to the incredible team here, guided and supported by the Sarasota County Public Hospital Board.” 

To learn more, visit