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Easter Sunrise Service

Parking garage threatens religious service’s future

Written by SUN contributor on . Posted in Community News, Holmes Beach.

HOLMES BEACH – A much-loved, historic Easter service may be in jeopardy if a multi-story parking garage is erected at Manatee Beach.

Thousands of people gather on the sand every year for the non-denominational Easter Sunrise Service hosted by the Anna Maria Island Kiwanis Club. Residents and visitors from all over the world gather for the service before the sun comes up, celebrating together as the sun rises in the east over the top of the single-story concession stand.

Manatee County commissioners have a plan to replace that building with a three-story parking garage with additional parking on the roof. The bill awaits a decision by Gov. Ron DeSantis. If approved, the county could build the garage despite prohibitions in city ordinances and the land development code. County commission Chair Kevin Van Ostenbridge estimates the 1,500-plus parking space garage will cost $45 million to build over at least two years.

The garage would change the venue where the sunrise service has been held for 58 years, rising at least 36 feet over the beach, casting a shadow on the sand in the morning, and blocking the view of the sunrise during the religious service.

Sandy Haas-Martens, secretary of the Kiwanis club, said that the group is on its summer meeting schedule and have not discussed the future of the service if DeSantis signs off on the parking garage, but she anticipates it will be a topic at a future meeting.

Speaking on behalf of St. Bernard Catholic Church, one of the Island churches that participates in the annual service, Haas-Martens said the Easter sunrise service is something that brings the Island community together, both locals and visitors, and is something each church’s leaders enjoy participating in. The 2023 service was the first time the event was live streamed for online viewers.

Holmes Beach Police Chief Bill Tokajer, who handles security and traffic for the service, said he hopes the service will be able to continue.

“I’m still hoping the county commission comes to their senses and realizes the garage is a bad idea,” he said, noting that the city still had plenty of available parking spaces even over the busy Memorial Day holiday weekend.

If the garage is built, he said trying to get traffic in and out of the planned three-story space would be extremely difficult, especially if a large number of people try to leave at once, which often happens at the beach during a rainstorm, and at the end of the service.

“How are you going to get out when everyone is in line for the exit?” he said.

Representatives from other participating churches, Roser Memorial Community Church, Harvey Memorial Church, The Episcopal Church of the Annunciation and Gloria Dei Lutheran Church could not be reached for comment by press time for The Sun.

Letter to the Editor: Kiwanis offers thanks

Written by SUN contributor on . Posted in Letter to the Editor, Opinion.

On behalf of the Kiwanis Club of Anna Maria Island, we would like to thank our churches who took part in our 58th Annual Easter Sunrise Service. The attendance was fantastic and the weather didn’t disappoint.

Thank you to the AMI Beach Café for the location, Chuck Caudill for providing the sound system, Morgan Bryant for her lovely voice, the City of Holmes Beach, the Holmes Beach Police Department for helping with the parking and the Anna Maria Island Sun newspaper for their coverage.

Another “thank you” goes to Casey Hoffman of Real Island TV, who, for the first time, live-streamed our service, which you can watch on YouTube.

We had our members and their families helping to make Easter special for everyone.

Lastly, a huge “thank you” to the Anna Maria Island Chamber of Commerce, which awarded

our club a Trolley Grant to help defray expenses. With this and the generosity of those who attended, we will be able to share the net proceeds with the churches and our scholarship fund.

We look forward to seeing everyone next year for our 59th Easter Sunrise Service.

 

Sincerely,

Sandra K. Haas-Martens

Kiwanis Club of Anna Maria Island, secretary

Holmes Beach

Egg hunt brings hundreds to Anna Maria

Egg hunt brings hundreds to Anna Maria

Written by Jason Schaffer on . Posted in Anna Maria, Entertainment, Featured, Holiday.

ANNA MARIA – The 34th Annual Easter Egg Hunt at the Sandbar Restaurant drew hundreds of children and their excited parents to the white sands of Anna Maria Island on April 16.

Egg hunt brings hundreds to Anna Maria
Children make a mad dash for eggs on the beach at the Sandbar Restaurant’s 34th Annual Easter Egg Hunt. – Jason Schaffer | Sun

This annual event is not only a treat for local children, but kids from around the world. There were families from across the United States, as well as Germany, the UK, Argentina, Canada, Australia and many more countries. 

“We are here from England. We saw this on one of the local Facebook groups we follow and knew the kids would love it,” said Linus Davies, whose three children scrambled for eggs in the hunt. “It was over so quickly, we were only able to get one quality photograph before the eggs were gone. Much more competitive than we anticipated.”

Egg hunt brings hundreds to Anna Maria
The sun was shining on the beach behind the Sandbar Restaurant in Anna Maria as eggs were scooped up by hundreds of young participants at the 34th Annual Easter Egg Hunt. – Jason Schaffer | Sun

Eggs had treats hidden inside for the children to enjoy after the bring your own basket event. There was also a bonnet contest with prizes including lunch for four at the Sandbar, a gift certificate to Anna Maria Rocks and a chocolate bunny. For the adults, there was a Sandy Toes picnic experience, Sea-Renity Beach Spa massage and lunch for two at the Sandbar up for grabs. For most people, it seemed that just spending time on the beach as a family was the big prize.

“It’s our first time on the Island,” Emily Roth said. “We’ve been to Siesta Key twice and we’ve done Destin, but we really like the feel around here. We saw this event on the AMI Chamber of Commerce’s website.”

Egg hunt brings hundreds to Anna Maria
The Roth and Cowgill families attended their first egg hunt at the Sandbar in Anna Maria. – Jason Schaffer | Sun

The Roths and their friends, the Cowgills, who have vacationed on the Island previously, said they enjoy the laid-back charm of Anna Maria Island and its family-friendly atmosphere.

Sponsors of this year’s egg hunt include the Sandbar, The Anna Maria Island Sun, Anna Maria Rocks, Sea-Renity Beach Spa and Courtesy Cleaners.

Celebrate Easter with Roser Church

Celebrate Easter with Roser Church

Written by SUN contributor on . Posted in Anna Maria Island, Churches, Community News.

ANNA MARIA – Congregations may not be able to gather this year due to the governor’s orders to stay at home and not gather in groups of more than 10, but that’s not stopping the Holy Week ministry at Roser Memorial Community Church.

The Holy Week services begin with Maundy Thursday on April 9. Between noon and 2 p.m., the Roser Chapel will be open for a drop-in communion service. During the service, all COVID-19 guidelines will be observed including limiting the number of people in the chapel at any one time, disinfecting and cleaning, and maintaining social distancing of six feet between people.

This year’s Good Friday service, “He Took My Place,” will be broadcast live online April 10 at 7 p.m. on the Roser website. The service also will be available to watch after the live broadcast on the Roser YouTube page.

On Easter Sunday, April 12, the 10 a.m. traditional worship service will be streamed live online followed by the 5:30 p.m. SoulJourn contemporary worship service. During the 10 a.m. service, the flower cross traditionally decorated by congregation members will be in the sanctuary. Once the service concludes, it will be placed outside the church for the public to view, along with Easter lilies, which can be purchased in honor or memory of a loved one for $7. The names of those honored with the lilies will be in the Friday April 10 e-bulletin.

Currently, the church is closed to the public but the chapel remains open Monday through Friday 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. for individual prayer and meditation. A sanitizing station is located inside the door and the chapel is cleaned and sanitized twice daily.

The Roser Food Pantry also remains open to offer assistance to the community. While the food pantry is well-funded financially due to generous donations, the ability of volunteers to purchase items in bulk has been diminished by the current demand on supplies due to the coronavirus’s effect on the community. Volunteers are asking for help in purchasing needed supplies including canned soups, vegetables, beans, meat and fish, peanut butter, jelly, boxed meals such as macaroni and cheese, canned fruit, fruit juice, rice, pasta and cereal. Donations can be dropped off in front of the church office at 512 Pine Ave. in Anna Maria during office hours. A cart for the food pantry is located just outside the office door for donations. A full list of needed items is available online.

To request assistance from the food pantry, contact a pastor or make a prayer request, contact the church office at 941-778-0414 or email info@roserchurch.com.

Related coverage

Holy Week celebrations

Roser Food Pantry needs your help

 

Rise and shine on Easter

Rise and shine on Easter

Written by Tom Vaught on . Posted in Archives.

ANNA MARIA ISLAND – Kiwanis of Anna Maria Island invites all to experience the 55th Annual Easter Sunrise Service on Sunday, April 21 at 6:30 a.m. at Manatee Beach, 4000 Gulf Drive.

The service is uplifting and ecumenical, with all invited to join in singing inspirational Easter music, and all the Island churches participating.

Father Matthew Grunfeld of Episcopal Church of the Annunciation will deliver the opening prayer. Rev. Edward Moss of CrossPointe Fellowship and Rev. Douglas Kings of Gloria Dei Lutheran Church will deliver scriptures. Rev. Dr. Bob O’Keefe of Roser Church will deliver the sermon. Matthew Nowicki, Director of Faith Formation at St. Bernard Catholic Church will deliver the offering prayer. Rev. Stephen King of Harvey Memorial will deliver the benediction.

The crowd normally numbers between 1,200 and 2,000 people. There is ample parking, and the Island Trolley will be up and running at 6 a.m. The Anna Maria Beach Café also will open at 6 a.m. to serve coffee. Bring chairs or a blanket to sit on and dress for the weather.

The offertory collection will be divided among the participating churches and the Kiwanis Club for its State College of Florida Key Club Scholarship program.

Chiles Group offers an old-fashioned Easter for all

Chiles Group offers an old-fashioned Easter for all

Written by Tom Vaught on . Posted in Entertainment, Events, Family fun, Holiday.

ANNA MARIA – The Chiles Group wants to provide an old-fashioned Easter for kids and adults with three activities on Saturday, April 20. The events are sponsored by the Chiles Group, Pine Avenue Restoration and The Anna Maria Island Sun.

Beginning at 8:30 a.m. in The Sandbar Gazebo, there will be breakfast snacks, coffee and juice for kids age 10 and under and their families who want to participate in the 33rd Annual Easter Egg Hunt. The egg hunt begins at 9 a.m. for kids 10 and younger on the beach in front of the Sandbar Restaurant.

Bring baskets or bags to hold the eggs the kids will collect from the beach.

Parking is available in the Sandbar Restaurant parking lot, in adjacent lots on Gulf Drive and at Anna Maria City Hall. Folks are encouraged to ride the free Island trolley to the event from home or from CrossPointe Fellowship at 8605 Gulf Drive, Anna Maria.

After the Easter Egg Hunt, the Easter Bunny will lead everyone down Pine Avenue to the 10th Annual Easter Egg Roll, featuring fun for the whole family from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. Kids can get their faces painted, play games and participate in egg-rolling races. Complimentary framed pictures with the Easter Bunny will be offered with pictures taken by Dara Caudill, owner of IslandPhotography.org. DJ Chuck Caudill will provide music. There will be free food and refreshments.

Easter bonnet contest judging will be at 10:30 a.m. The prize for the first place adult bonnet is a two-night stay at an Anna Maria guest house located on Pine Avenue. There will also be prizes for second and third place. The prize for the best kid’s bonnet is a Sandbar lunch for the winner and three of their friends, complete with hot fudge sundaes. There will also be prizes for second and third place. This is the 17th year The Sun newspaper has been a sponsor for the Sandbar Easter Egg Hunt.

For more information on the Sandbar Easter Egg Hunt and Pine Avenue Easter Egg Roll contact Ashley Chiles at achiles@chilesgroup.com.

Easter bunny

Clouds don’t stop this bunny

Written by Tom Vaught on . Posted in Entertainment, Family fun, Featured.

ANNA MARIA – Hundreds of kids and their parents showed up for an Island tradition, the Sandbar restaurant’s annual Easter Egg Hunt.

This year, they started the hunt a few minutes late to accommodate those who got stuck in traffic or delayed leaving home because of the scattered rain in the area. Instead of rain, there was a gentle, cool wind as the kids searched for plastic eggs nestled in the sand.

This year, they had a smaller area roped off for kids three and under, and when the announcer said “Go,” the youngest hunters had to be urged by their parents to go after the eggs. The older kids needed no urging and soon, the beach was cleared of eggs and kids.

Soon after that, the crowd found the Easter Bunny, who took them down Pine Avenue to a roped-off side street. Kids rolled eggs down a course for prizes, got their faces painted, spent some time with coloring books, tossed eggs into baskets for prizes and more.

DJ Chuck Caudell played Easter music. His wife, Dara, took pictures of kids with the Easter Bunny. Two of them, Paisley and Teagan O’Hara, from New Jersey, found out about the celebration when they got here because they were told by their friends who rented them a home. The parents of Teddy and Elliott Thomas, of Connecticut, found out about it when they looked out the window of their rental unit above Olive Oil Outpost, where the pictures were being taken.

There was food for all in the form of egg and ham rolls, juice for the kids and mimosas for the adults and pastries from Hometown Desserts.

There was a drawing for a basket filled with goodies from Pine Avenue merchants. May Xo won.

Then came the judging for the Easter bonnet contest. There was a remarkable array of hats ranging from colorful to wild. One hat was really two hats stacked vertically. One youngster had a bonnet made from playing cards.

The adult winners were Ryan Holbrook, Nicolle Henry and Jeanie Murray and the children winners were Max Pupin, his brother, Ben, and an unidentified girl who got away before anybody could get her name.

The Anna Maria Island Sun is a sponsor of the Easter Egg Hunt, the Easter Egg Roll and the Easter Bonnet Contest.

The winning kid's entries showed a lot of color and imagination. - Tom Vaught | Sun

The winning kid's entries showed a lot of color and imagination. - Tom Vaught | Sun

This double-face hat was an attention-getter. - Tom Vaught | Sun

This double-face hat was an attention-getter. - Tom Vaught | Sun

Ed Chiles hands out a ham and cheese biscuit. - Tom Vaught | Sun

Ed Chiles hands out a ham and cheese biscuit. - Tom Vaught | Sun

This year's event added an egg toss. - Tom Vaught | Sun

This year's event added an egg toss. - Tom Vaught | Sun

Kids hunt for eggs in the sand. - Tom Vaught | Sun

Kids hunt for eggs in the sand. - Tom Vaught | Sun

The Easter Bunny and his admirers head for more fun on Pine Avenue. - Tom Vaught | Sun

The Easter Bunny and his admirers head for more fun on Pine Avenue. - Tom Vaught | Sun

Easter sunrise service

Island churches celebrate Easter

Written by Tom Vaught on . Posted in Churches, Community News.

ANNA MARIA ISLAND – Easter is a busy time for the Island’s churches. With tourism at its peak, they are able to take in worshippers from around the world.

The highlight of the holiday is the Easter Sunrise Service, sponsored by the Kiwanis Club at Manatee Public Beach, 4000 Gulf Drive, Holmes Beach.

The service begins at 6:30 a.m., and the Beach Café is open at 6 a.m. Trolleys also start running at 6 a.m. If you go, bring a chair or blanket and dress appropriately for the weather. If you want to sleep in, here is the schedule for the churches.

  • CrossPointe Fellowship, 8605 Gulf Drive, Anna Maria, 941-778-0719, Rev. Ed Moss. The church will have services at 9 a.m. on Palm Sunday, March 25; at 7 p.m. on Maundy Thursday, March 29; at 7 p.m. on Good Friday, March 30; and 9 a.m. Easter Sunday, April 1.
  • Episcopal Church of the Annunciation, 4408 Gulf Drive, Holmes Beach, 941-778-1638, Rev. Matthew Grunfeld. Holy Week services are Monday, March 26, Holy Eucharist at 7 p.m.; Tuesday, March 27, Holy Eucharist at 7 p.m.; Wednesday, March 28, Holy Eucharist at 7 p.m.; Maundy Thursday, March 29, 7 p.m.; Good Friday, March 30, noon and 7 p.m.; Saturday, March 31, The Great Vigil at 5 p.m.; Sunday, April 1, Easter service at 7:30 a.m.
  • Gloria Dei Lutheran Church, 6608 Marina Drive, Holmes Beach, 941-778-1813, Rev. Rosemary Backer. Easter, April 1, a Festival Easter Worship at 9:30 a.m. followed by a potluck brunch at 10:45 a.m.
  • Harvey Memorial Community Church, 300 Church St., Bradenton Beach, 941-779-1912, Rev. Stephen King. Two services at the regular time, 8:30 and 10:15 a.m., will be held on Easter Sunday.
  • Roser Memorial Community Church, 512 Pine Ave., Anna Maria, 941-778-0414, Rev. Dr. Bob O’Keef. Maundy Thursday Service, March 29, at 7 p.m. in the Sanctuary, Rev. Neil Crowell speaks on “Third-Class Christianity.” The Chancel Choir will sing and, in addition to communion, there will be an anointing with oil. Good Friday service, March 30, at 7 p.m. in the sanctuary. The service will feature the Contemporary Ensemble of piano, guitar, bass, percussion and vocalists. Easter Sunday services, April 1, at 8:30 and 10 a.m. in the Roser sanctuary. Everyone is invited to bring a flower to place on the cross as a symbol of rebirth and resurrection. There will be an Easter egg hunt on the church grounds following the 10 a.m. service.
  • St. Bernard Catholic Church, 248 S. Harbor Drive, Holmes Beach, 941-778-4769, Father Michael Mullen. There will be Holy Week Masses at 8:30 a.m. and morning prayers at 9:15 a.m. Wednesday, March 28. On Holy Thursday March 29, there will be the Mass of the Lord’s Supper at 7 p.m. with the Altar Reposition until 10 p.m. On Good Friday, March 30, there will be the Passion of our Lord at 3 p.m. On Holy Saturday, March 31, Easter Vigil Mass will be held at 8 p.m. and on Easter Sunday, April 1, there will be a Mass at 8:30 a.m. and two Masses at 10:30 a.m., one in the church and one in the hall.