Campaign to keep trolleys free unveiled

HOLMES BEACH – Members of the Manatee County Tourist Development Council who favor keeping the trolley system free on Anna Maria Island announced a new campaign on Monday.

"Save Our Trolley" is a cooperative effort among Island residents, city and county governments, visitors and the business community to raise money for the trolley system, TDC member and Island hotelier David Teitelbaum said. More...

Scouts skip trip, give $$ to Humane Society

Local Girl Scout Troop 590 could have gone to Sea World, had a pizza party and attended the latest summer blockbuster movie with all the money they raised selling cookies this year.

Instead, the girls are donating that spending cash to help save homeless dogs. More...

Blood drive smashes record

HOLMES BEACH – The Annual Island Blood Drive broke all records for units of blood donated last weekend, according to Florida Blood Services Community Representative Wanda Read Burke.

This year donors gave 368 units of blood compared to 242 units last year, she said, and the Sunday donations amounted to almost as many as the ones on Saturday. More...

Island woman earns her star

Her customers knew her for a long time as a smiling face and a friendly voice as they bought their snacks and refreshments at Time Saver Food and Wine Store in Holmes Beach. Now the only "customers" she will be serving will be on a not-so-friendly basis.

Grace Rivers and 14 other students graduated from the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office Corrections Academy on Wednesday, June 10 with proud family members and friends watching. She now joins the staff at the county jail at Port of Manatee as a guard. More...

SAM says ‘No thanks’ to applicants

Save Anna Maria (SAM) has rejected the applications of several people who asked to join its ranks at a meeting on April 18.

The certified letters of rejection, dated June 12, state, "After lengthy deliberations and a telephone poll of our sustaining members, the executive board of SAM respectfully declines to accept your application for membership. We came to our unanimous decision because it reflected the consensus of SAM’s members and by virtue of the following power granted to us by our bylaws per Article III, Section (2) of SAM’s bylaws, the officers of SAM have the power to "...create such other standards and qualifications from time to time, as they may deem necessary for the orderly function of the organization." More...

Waveless surfing a link to the past

An ancient Hawaiian pastime is making a comeback locally among surfers without waves and kayakers who don’t surf.

Stand up paddle surfing requires standing on a longer, wider, more stable version of a surfboard, and paddling, not with your arms, but with an oar.

Waves are optional. More...

Everybody’s gone surfing, surfing P.S. Bay

PALMA SOLA – What do you do with retired polo ponies too spry to go out to pasture?

Saddle up for a surfing safari, of course.

Batman, Beverly and Acky are used to battling it out on polo fields, says their owner, former polo player Tim Mattox, so taking people for rides up and down Palma Sola Causeway seemed a bit too tame for their golden years. More...

Slow but sure progress on drainage

BRADENTON BEACH --– The engineer hired to oversee the city’s stormwater drainage improvements told city commissioners last week that money is the key to progress.

Lynn Townsend, of Lynn Townsend & Associates, said the city got a partial grant to help defray the expenses of the top five problem areas, estimated to be up to $3 million, and that she and the city would find ways to add to that. More...

Final Friday fest of the season rocks

The Anna Maria Island Friday MusicalFestival, sponsored by the Anna Maria IslandSun, drew a huge crowd last weekend withgreat food,lots of vendors, refreshment andmusic.They had some problems keeping thevolume down,which organizer Cindy Thompson said would not be a problem at the next Friday Fest next season. Rory Millerbegan the evening followed by FireDoor, HWY41 with Danielle Hollobaugh and finally the Blues Alternators Band. Stay tuned for more information on the next Friday Music Festival. More...

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A family affair

Fishing was a family affair for me. My first adventure on the water was with my father along the beaches near Wilmington, N. C. That day laid a lifetime foundation of love and respect for fishing and the value of our natural resources. An appreciation for the natural world and an understanding of the importance of protecting it can become one of the integral life lessons passed from one generation to another. We are fortunate to have many such local families who have shared these values with their children. More...

House swapping – Match.com with a deed

Humans are nothing if not creative, especially Americans who have been infused with entrepreneurial ideals and an independent spirit. So what do humans with those qualities do when they can’t find a buyer for their home through conventional avenues? They turn the corner to see if there’s a better way. More...

Electrifying service at Miller

Remember when you would vacation in paradise before you moved to paradise and wondered why can’t we live in a place like this? Julie Quinlivan and Sally Woodward had those same thoughts all the years that they would vacation on islands with blue water and white sand, until one day they set out to make it happen. More...

Uncharted Territory?

here has been a common theme in our conversations about the government and the economy recently, and it seems to cross party lines as well as income lines. The federal government is just spending too much money, we are mortgaging our future and our kids will not have it as good as we do today. More...

Poachers hit Sarasota sea turtle nests

Poachers hit four sea turtle nests last week in Sarasota County, taking the entire clutch of eggs from each nest.

"Three of the nests were on Venice Beach and one was on Casey Key," said Ryan Welsh, a Mote Marine Laboratory sea turtle biologist. "They took all the eggs from each nest. The average number of eggs in a nest is 100, so we are assuming they got at least 400 eggs." More...

Grossman scores twin win

Steve Grossman was at his best last week as he found himself on winning teams in both of last week’s horseshoe contests at Anna Maria City Hall.

On Wednesday, June 3, Jay Disbrow and Sam Samuels took first place while the team of Hank Huyghe and Grossman took second place over Bob Hawks and Tom Rhodes by a score of 21 – 19.

On Saturday, June 6, Grossman and Tom Skoloda beat Deb Rhodes and Dalton Aquilo 22 – 15.

Play gets underway each Wednesday and Saturday at the pits behind city hall in Anna Maria. Everone is welcome. It would be to your advantage to arrive about 15 minutes early to get in some practice.