Oh how much can change in a year. At this time last spring, Jackson Holliday was finishing up his senior year at Stillwater High School in Stillwater, Oklahoma. This past weekend, the first overall pick in the 2022 MLB Amateur Draft made his Spring Training debut with the Baltimore Orioles, going one for three with a walk over two contests.

For context, a 19-year-old shortstop with less than a year of Minor League experience is not a common sight at big league camp. In fact, it’s a complete anomaly–non-roster invites (NRI) are typically reserved for upper level Minor Leaguers to compete for a chance at cracking the big league club’s 40-man roster–not a top draft pick just looking to get exposure. Spring Training itself is a cut throat business. For while the six-week stretch gives the incumbent Major League stars a chance to ease into the season, non-roster invitees are fighting tooth and nail to claw their way out of the Minor Leagues or worse – avoid being released altogether.

Jackson Holliday, however, is not your typical prospect. The son of seven-time All Star and four-time Silver Slugger Matt Holliday, the 6-foot-1 Jackson signed with the Orioles for $8.19 million, the largest signing bonus ever for a high school player and is ranked as the number 12 ranked prospect in all of baseball per MLB pipeline. After signing with the Orioles this past summer, Holliday made an instant impression, slashing .297/.489/.422 with one home run, five doubles and nine RBIs across 20 games in the Florida Complex League and Single-A Delmarva. Although Holliday isn’t expected to crack the Major League roster for a few more years and will be reassigned to Minor League camp in a matter of weeks, his presence in the Grapefruit League bodes well for his future with the Orioles. 

Image courtesy of Baltimore Sun.

For many people, venturing into a commercial bee hive appears daunting, but Chris Vasquez, the owner of Heritage Bee Farm, encourages everyone to explore the world of beekeeping through their Bee Farm Experience Tours. Vasquez began beekeeping as a hobby about 17 years ago, and the farm has grown to encompass 1,500 colonies, which he is eager to show off to guests. The tours, held at the farm’s main apiary in Myakka City, last about 1.5 hours and are conducted primarily outdoors.

“At the start of the tour, we spend time familiarizing the guests with everything related to bees, including beekeeping equipment and the products produced from a bee hive,” says Vasquez. “We try to educate them and express the importance of bees locally and across the world,” he adds. Following the introductory lesson, the guests suit up in protective gear to enter the hive. Vasquez notes that his honeybees are non-aggressive and pose little threat to humans, owing to the farm’s selective breeding process.10-20 frames of bees make up one colony, and a healthy hive houses thousands of individual bees. While visiting the hives, located outside, guests meet the queen bees, female worker bees and male drones. “Some people are nervous about going into the hive, but after about five minutes the nervousness goes away, and they are more comfortable, to the point where they can be around and hold the bees without fear,” he says, adding that all hive-related activity occurs with participants wearing protective gear.

Tour guides dispense facts about these important insects throughout the experience. Guests learn that the average worker bee produces 1/12 of a teaspoon of honey during its 45-day lifespan, highlighting the need for colonies with large, strong populations. They also discover that a bee will traverse a 3-mile radius to find nectar sources, a big journey for a small creature. The honeybees at the farm, which focuses on breeding non-aggressive queen bees for distribution across the country, serve as ambassadors for their species, whose behavior depends upon an individual bee’s genetic makeup. Following the hive experience, participants will either try their hand at bottling honey or delve into learning about queen bee breeding. Each tour ends with a chance to purchase products derived from the hive, including beeswax candles, lip balms and soaps, all handmade on the farm.

Visitors interested in pursuing beekeeping as a hobby often stay in touch with Vasquez and his team, who supply them with bees to populate their colony and offer helpful guidance. The farm offers tours for schools, and this year conducted a beekeeping outreach program in the Dominican Republic. Given the loss of 30-4 percent of bee colonies in recent years, Vasquez emphasizes the importance of knowing your beekeeper. “Supporting a local beekeeper by purchasing their products helps the community and its pollinators,” he adds.

Bee Farm Experience Tours are $45 per adult and $25 per child 12 and under. Contact the farm to book a tour and get pricing information for large groups. Heritage Bee Farm, 13339 MJ Rd, Myakka City, heritagebees.com. 

Pictured: A group learns about bees at Heritage Bee Farm. Photo by Kristen Vasquez.

The Imagine Museum of Contemporary Glass Art held its annual Fire and Light event on Saturday, celebrating its fifth anniversary while bestowing awards to some of the most prominent glass artists in the world. Held at its Central Avenue location, the event saw more than 250 people—including 30 glass artists from around the globe—gather to celebrate the museum’s half-decade of inspiring museumgoers in the region. This event was the first in a series of anniversary celebrations planned for 2023. Additionally, Imagine Museum awarded two international artists with the museum’s coveted Artist of the Future award, handed to world-renowned glass artists garnering critical acclaim internationally. This year, Ms. Duggan awarded Wilfried Grootens of Germany and Vladimira Klumpar of the Czech Republic. Held in collaboration with Habatat Galleries Michigan, the Fire and Light event allowed attendees to peruse yet-to-be-seen galleries, enjoy live music and hors d'oeuvres, and converse with glass artists from around the world. The celebration also drew acclaim from two prominent Florida dignitaries: Governor Ron DeSantis and Senator Rick Scott. Recommended as one of the “Top Ten Attractions in St. Petersburg” by Trip Advisor, Imagine Museum is located at 1901 Central Avenue, St. Petersburg, FL. For more information on the Imagine Museum’s upcoming events, visit www.ImagineMuseum.com.  

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“I am a senior at Sarasota High School and an officer of our Coexistence Club. On paper, I am the perfect student. I have a 4.5 GPA in the AICE honors program; I am in five clubs, for two of which I serve as a student leader. I swam for my varsity team for two years, work five shifts a week as a server, and I have a good social life. But behind the perfect student there is a self-hating, stress ball of a person who just wants to relax.” This is how 17-year-old Lucia Warren began her speech to a sold-out crowd of more than 430 guests at Embracing Our Differences 20th anniversary Annual Luncheon at Michael’s On East on February 17. Warren explained how deeply meaningful EOD’s educational programs have been for her. A recent breakthrough came when she participated in EOD’s Unity Day initiative, during which she was able to share her struggles with other participants. The support she received was beyond heartwarming—it was positively inspirational. As Warren put it, “Without this experience I don’t think I would have found the courage to take a step back from my overwhelming life, step out from behind my mask, and dare to be my vulnerable self.” Other students joined Warren on stage in moving testimonies of how EOD’s programs have propelled them forward in their lives.

The “Embracing Kindness” exhibition opens in Butler Park in downtown North Port on March 22, with a free opening event on Saturday, March 25, noon to 3 p.m. The event features music by Monkey Finger, food trucks, and kid-friendly activities. For more information about Embracing Our Differences, call 941-404-5710, or visit www.embracingourdifferences.org. 

Pictured: Student speakers Sarai Castro, Jennica Charles and Lucia Warren gave heartfelt testimonies at Embracing Our Differences’ 2023 Annual Luncheon. Photo by Cliff Roles.

Registration is open for the 2023 spring semester at the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI) at Ringling College, which offers noncredit educational opportunities for adults to pursue new interests, expand intellectual horizons, and enrich their lives. The semester, which runs March 13-May 5, 2023, features more than 45 courses, lectures, and special presentations covering a wide variety of topics, including arts and entertainment, history, music appreciation, health, literature, philosophy, religion, and science. Semester highlights include Sex, Censorship and the Silver Screen; Writing Your Story: Two Pages at a Time; Science Wednesdays; and a free, special program, Warriors of Sarasota: The Interconnections of Diasporic Roots and Identity. Classes are offered at Sarasota Art Museum of Ringling College of Art and Design, 1001 S. Tamiami Trail, Sarasota; and online via Zoom. To register, or for more information about becoming an OLLI member, visit www.OLLIatRinglingCollege.org or call 941-309-5111.  

Pictured: OLLI at Ringling College offers a variety of courses for adults. Courtesy of Ringling College.

Sarasota Memorial Hospital was recognized among the world’s best hospitals today in Newsweek and Statistica Inc.’s fifth annual global ranking of hospitals. The global rankings released today by Newsweek, in collaboration with market research company Statista Inc., recognize approximately 2,300 medical institutions across 28 countries, including 440 hospitals in the United States and 16 in Florida. The SMH-Sarasota campus has made the prestigious list five years in a row, since the global rankings began in 2018. It is the only hospital in southwest Florida to make the list, which is based on patient care quality metrics as well as surveys of patients, physicians and hospital staff. While all hospitals have been challenged by the pandemic, what sets the world’s best hospitals apart from others is consistency, said Nancy Cooper, Global Editor-in-Chief for Newsweek. Relatively few hospitals can maintain what it takes to deliver world-class care, year in and year out, she said, especially with rising costs, aging populations and a medical workforce exhausted from battling a global pandemic. Newsweek releases the list each year to help consumers discover leading hospitals—close to home and around the world—shaping the future of medicine. Besides the United States, other countries in the global study include Germany, Japan, South Korea, France, Italy, United Kingdom, Spain, Brazil, Canada, India, Australia, Mexico, The Netherlands, Austria, Thailand, Switzerland, Sweden, Belgium, Finland, Norway, Denmark, Israel, Singapore, United Arab Emirates, Colombia, Saudi Arabia, and Taiwan. The 2023 World Best Hospital rankings are published online at: https://www.newsweek.com/rankings/worlds-best-hospitals-2023.