-
3 weeks ago | 
sarasotamagazine.com | Kim Doleatto |Lauren Jackson |Cooper Levey-Baker |Megan McDonald |Megan Mcdonald
That’s a question those of us at Sarasota Magazine found ourselves asking again and again as we set out to compile a list of the region’s most influential individuals. Does power mean the ability to sway local government? Or does it come from having a huge national following? Does being wealthy make one powerful? Or does real power come from donating to causes important to you? These are all questions we debated, and they each helped shape our thinking in putting together this list.
-
1 month ago | 
sarasotamagazine.com | Cooper Levey-Baker
A critical and box office failure at the time of its 1981 release, the comedy Honky Tonk Freeway, which was partly filmed in Sarasota, is due for reappraisal. With a stacked cast that includes Beau Bridges, William Devane, Jessica Tandy and Peter Billingsley (aka the kid from A Christmas Story), and direction by John Schlessinger (best known for Midnight Cowboy and Marathon Man), it’s a silly, ensemble-driven hoot.
-
1 month ago | 
sarasotamagazine.com | Cooper Levey-Baker |Kim Doleatto |Lauren Jackson |Megan McDonald |Megan Mcdonald
Meet eight people who are making our region a better place. Plus: Eat like a local, meet Pittsburgh Pirates phenom Paul Skenes and tour 10 buildings that have shaped Sarasota's history. Lee DeLieto Sr. Helps Young People Thrive“We’re teaching woodworking, plumbing, electrical. That’s crucial, because many of those families need as much income as they can bring home.”David Shuel Helps People Find Work and Support After Being Incarcerated“These guys come here and they’re wounded. They’re hurt.
-
1 month ago | 
sarasotamagazine.com | Cooper Levey-Baker
Thirty years ago, a friend of Lee DeLieto Sr. invited him to a Christmas party thrown by the local Boys & Girls Clubs of Sarasota County. DeLieto, a commercial realtor with Michael Saunders & Company, had always believed in giving back and had even once considered entering a seminary to become a priest. Meeting Boys & Girls Club kids at that party made him realize that this was where he could make his biggest mark.
-
1 month ago | 
sarasotamagazine.com | Cooper Levey-Baker
Several years ago, David Shuel hired a man named Lonnie Martin to work at Beneva, the flower shop and events business he’s owned since 2015. (The company was called Beneva Flowers for many years.) Unbeknownst to Shuel, Martin at the time was living in a home run by Project 180, a Sarasota nonprofit that helps people who are leaving incarceration rebuild their lives.
-
1 month ago | 
sarasotamagazine.com | Kim Doleatto |Lauren Jackson |Cooper Levey-Baker |Megan McDonald |Megan Mcdonald
Fostering unity isn’t about pie-in-the-sky dreams of getting along with everyone all the time—it’s about doing the hard work of overcoming assumptions you might have about people who are different from you, and reaching out a hand to lift up those who are less fortunate. That’s the guiding spirit of the eight winners of our 2025 Unity Awards—a group of people whose commitment to bringing us together will leave you hopeful and inspired.
-
2 months ago | 
sarasotamagazine.com | Cooper Levey-Baker
Four-time Super Bowl-winning tight end Rob Gronkowski delighted audiences at the Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall on Monday when he spoke as part of Ringling College Library Association's Town Hall lecture series.
-
Jan 17, 2025 | 
sarasotamagazine.com | Cooper Levey-Baker
Architect Victor Lundy, who died last year at age 101, designed some of Sarasota’s most significant buildings, including multiple places of worship, like this drive-in Presbyterian church in Venice. Constructed in 1955, it was featured in a photo spread published by Life magazine in April of that year, which is where this image comes from.
-
Jan 13, 2025 | 
sarasotamagazine.com | Cooper Levey-Baker
Most of us have picked up a shell or two that caught our eye while strolling the beach, and many of us might even have a small collection of favorites that decorate our shelves and counters at home. But for members of the Sarasota Shell Club, finding shells isn’t just an idle hobby—it’s a lifestyle. They organize shell-hunting trips to distant spots in Florida and around the globe, search out specific species and even make arts and crafts with their unique finds.
-
Jan 13, 2025 | 
sarasotamagazine.com | Kim Doleatto |Lauren Jackson |Megan McDonald |Megan Mcdonald |Cooper Levey-Baker
Sarasota and Manatee counties are in the midst of rapid transformation, with new construction carving out fresh neighborhoods across the region and older wood frame homes being razed and replaced with bigger concrete abodes. Once sleepy streets are now bustling with development, as new homes, businesses and infrastructure rise in response to our growing population. Here’s a look at 11 local neighborhoods where change is happening fast.
