The Conservation Foundation of the Gulf Coast has rebranded as the Big Waters Land Trust to reflect the growing reach of the organization.

“We thought long and hard, and we knew the time for a new name had come,” said Christine P. Johnson, president of Big Waters Land Trust. “As we explored potential new names, we wanted to celebrate what makes Southwest Florida so very special. Looking at our service area, which covers from South Tampa Bay to the Everglades, we realized it is water that defines our region. And because it’s Florida, we don’t just have small rivers and lakes, we have big waters.”

Foundation leaders announced the new name Friday at the Annual Conservation Celebration.

The organization originally formed in 2003 as the Sarasota Conservation Foundation, focusing its efforts on bays, beaches and watershed in the Sarasota County area. During that time, the group partnered with the Gulf Coast Community Foundation to turn a downtown Venice parking lot into an urban park and with Florida Forever on purchasing Bay Preserve to dedicate the land for public access to Little Sarasota Bay.

By 2010, the organization was purchasing lands outside the county and rebranded as the Conservation Foundation of the Gulf Coast. It received national recognation from the Land Trust Accreditation Commission. 

The foundation has worked in Sarasota, Manatee, Charlotte, Lee and Collier counties.

“Between the accelerating impacts of climate change and intense development pressures as more and more people move to Florida, there’s never been a more important time to protect nature,” said Sam Valentin, Big Waters director of marketing and events. “Together with our conservation community, we protect the land and water of Southwest Florida because we envision a future in which the human and natural worlds flourish together.”

The Big Waters name reflects a focus on the major water bodies in the region. Those include three estuaries — Tampa Bay, Sarasota Bay and Charlotte Harbor — and four major rivers — the Manatee, Myakka, Peace and Caloosahatchee rivers.

Photo courtesy Big Waters: Kayakers on guided tour of Sarasota Bay.

Dr. Daniel Friedman, MD, FHRS, FACC, and his team, recently completed a procedure where he performed both a catheter ablation followed by a left atrial appendage closure where he placed a Watchman® implant. The procedure was performed in the Cath Lab at Manatee Memorial Hospital (MMH). The procedure treats atrial fibrillation with an ablation then closes the appendage, so the patient is no longer dependent on blood thinners. Doctors recommend taking blood thinners after ablation for atrial fibrillation (a type of irregular heartbeat) in patients who have a high risk of stroke. Another option is left atrial appendage closure, a mechanical procedure that can replace the need for blood thinners. However, until recently, there has not been much information about using this procedure after ablation. To address this, the international OPTION trial that included 1,600 patients with moderate to high risk for stroke, determined that the left atrial appendage closure can safely reduce the risk of bleeding from blood thinners while still keeping a low risk of stroke in patients with atrial fibrillation who have had catheter ablation. 

HCA Florida Englewood Hospital will hold an in-person hiring event on Wednesday, December 11, from 4:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. at the HCA Florida Fawcett Community Center at 3280 Tamiami Trail in Port Charlotte. Registered nurses (RNs) experienced in cardiac catheterization, emergency, intensive care, medical/surgical/telemetry and progressive care, graduate RNs, respiratory therapists, cardiac catherization technicians, certified central sterile technicians and cardiovascular technicians are being sought to join the Englewood Hospital and Fawcett Hospital teams. Register now to schedule an interview time with a recruiter. At this event, you may have the opportunity to interview hiring managers and learn about the many benefits of joining the HCA Florida Healthcare team. 

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Michael Saunders & Company, Southwest Florida’s residential market leader, is proud to announce it is joining Forbes Global Properties, an international network of selected real estate brokerages that connects buyers and sellers to the world’s most exceptional properties. Michael Saunders & Company is recognized as the luxury leader across Sarasota, Manatee, and Charlotte counties, including $2,000,000-plus properties where it will officially represent the brand. Deeply rooted in Southwest Florida, Michael Saunders & Company is unwavering in its commitment to giving back to the community it serves through the philanthropic efforts of the MSC Foundation. The generosity of its agents and staff – both financially and in the donation of time and service – allows the Foundation to support a wide range of organizations along Florida’s gulf coast. 

DiVosta’s new single-family Layton floor plan in BeachWalk by Manasota Key illustrates the national homebuilder’s finesse for designing homes reflecting evolving lifestyles. The one or two story Layton Grande caters to the must-haves of today’s homebuyers, dedicating even more space to the popular open-concept floor plan with a dining room and open flex room, offering extra storage and enhancing the indoor-outdoor connection with sliding glass doors that pocket out of sight. BeachWalk by Manasota Key’s main entrance is located off Englewood Road/SR 776 at 26061 Seastone Drive, with convenient access to I-75 and US 41. The sales gallery and model homes are open Monday through Saturday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday from noon to 5 p.m. For more information, visit www.DiVosta.com/BeachWalk or call 941-413-2031. 

Pictured: DiVosta’s new single-family Layton Grande floor plan in BeachWalk by Manasota Key illustrates the national homebuilder’s finesse for designing homes reflecting evolving lifestyles.

Art Center Sarasota welcomes Katherine Ceaser as executive director and Mary Davis Wallace as board chair, marking a dynamic new chapter of leadership. Ceaser, a seasoned nonprofit professional with a background in arts education and community engagement, is elevated from her role as ACS’s education director to lead the organization as it approaches its landmark centennial in 2026. Wallace, an urban planner and public art specialist, will bring her expertise to guide the board as Art Center Sarasota enters a new stage of growth and innovation. 

Pink and Main is personalizing papercrafting in Palmetto, December 2024. 

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