WORDS & PICTURES: Gabrielle Versmessen
Oftentimes, we don’t realize how much of a lasting impact a stranger can have on our lives, especially as a child. But most of us can recall at least one teacher or mentor who positively influenced us over the years. You can be that person to a child!
The Early Learning Coalition of Manatee County (ELC) offers the ReadingPals program to VPK children at local …
WORDS & PICTURES: Gabrielle Versmessen
From being a guitarist in a moderately successful punk rock band in England to becoming the Chief Executive Officer of The Bishop Museum of Science and Nature, Andrew Sandall has had quite the assorted road to his current role.
Beginning his museum journey in 1992, Andrew started as a curatorial assistant at his local history museum in Boston, England. At that time, he had no …
WORDS & PICTURES: Gabrielle Versmessen
Imagine living in a community where language barriers are broken, creating a common ground where we’re able to see ourselves as more the same than different. ¡HOLA! Elementary at Manatee School for the Arts is striving to do just that.
As an arts-infused dual-language public charter school, ¡HOLA! Elementary is the first and only school of its kind in Manatee County. It opened its doors …
WORDS & PICTURES: Gabrielle Versmessen
Have you ever wanted your child to be enrolled in an afterschool care program but worried about lack of transportation? Would your child benefit from free tutoring that’s done on at least a 3:10 teacher-to-student ratio? What about being secure in knowing that your child is in a safe, positive, and life-affirming environment?
Avenue941 is a local initiative that does all of these things and …
WORDS & PICTURES: Gabrielle Versmessen
April 7th marked the 75th De Soto Children’s Parade sponsored by the Early Learning Coalition of Manatee County (ELC). Children from all over gathered in Palmetto to watch a slew of handmade floats, performance acts, and conquistadors march down 10th Street to Sutton Park. The winning float for “Best Use of Theme” was designed by Palma Sola Elementary School.
It featured students …
WORDS & PICTURES: Gabrielle Versmessen
After one of the most unprecedented times in our country’s history in 2020, D C’s Child Care Center was at a loss for what to do. Short-staffed, unable to find anyone to hire, and about to close their doors for good, they reached out to the Early Learning Coalition of Manatee County.
“We called, said we’re about to shut down, and we didn’t know what …
WORDS & PICTURES: Gabrielle Versmessen
Our local community has a plethora of established clubs and organizations that work hard every day to make Manatee County a better place to live. The Rotary Club of Bradenton especially strives to bridge the gaps in early childhood education to set young students up for educational success.
Rotary International focuses on six specific issues: teacher training, fighting diseases, saving mothers and children, supporting education, …
By almost any conceivable standard a school district can be measured, Superintendent Saunders’ five-year tenure as superintendent has been a rousing success.
Since being sworn in as superintendent on June 26, 2018, she has been a difference-maker.
Leadership in a Crisis
When the COVID-19 global pandemic broke out in early 2020, Ms. Saunders presided over one of the most challenging periods in the school district’s history.
Working …
WORDS: Sheri Roca
PICTURES: Whitney Patton
Ms. Tracey Vita is a name you may recognize. She has become something of an icon in Manatee County, touching the lives of more than 200 families each and every year, for more than 42 years, through the art of dance.
At Tracey Vita’s School of Dance, the kids don’t dance for trophies, medals, or ribbons. They don’t dance to prove they are the …
WORDS: Sheri Roca
PICTURES: Whitney Patton
Hunter McGrath has always had a love for cows (all animals, really), and when she saw some of her friends showing animals through the 4-H club, she knew that it was something she just had to do. Armed with a cattle halter, a show stick, and determination, Hunter took first place with her steer, Big Mac, in the 2023 Manatee County Fair. For Hunter, …
WORDS: Merab Favorite
PICTURES: Whitney Patton
At the height of COVID-19 in 2020, working mom Katie Becker found herself at a figurative crossroads. Her three-year-old son had a respiratory vulnerability, so to ensure his safety, Katie placed her career on hold and became a stay-at-home mom. In order to earn income, she watched her neighbor’s son too.
A few months into her new career path, she found herself at another …
WORDS & PICTURES: Gabrielle Versmessen
Someone you wouldn’t necessarily think would be connected to every part of a community is the “trophy guy.” But chances are if you or your kids played sports in Manatee County in the last 37 years or have received an award in school or at work, you’ve obtained a piece created by Don Ide of The Trophy Case.
Don moved from south of Buffalo, New …
WORDS & PICTURES: Gabrielle Versmessen
The Early Learning Taskforce held its first Transition to Kindergarten (T2K): Breakfast with a Purpose in January. The Breakfast sought to lay the foundation for a successful transition between prekindergarten and kindergarten for students.
The Taskforce is comprised of representatives from Step-Up Suncoast, the Manatee County School District, and the Early Learning Coalition of Manatee County. In attendance at the Breakfast were kindergarten teachers, VPK …
WORDS & PICTURES: Gabrielle Versmessen
A penguin is unlike your typical bird due to its inability to fly, but that doesn’t stop the bird from having its own beautiful uniqueness. It is from this philosophy that The Penguin Project was born.
The Penguin Project is a national musical theater program where children and young adults with disabilities perform in a modified version of a well-known Broadway musical. All roles are …
WORDS & PICTURES: Gabrielle Versmessen
When walking up to Prospect Riding Center, one is greeted by the sounds of chickens clucking, roosters crowing, cows mooing, and horses snorting. Not your typical equine therapeutic riding center, Prospect Riding Center offers a variety of hurdles to help folks with special needs overcome many different drawbacks, whether they be mental or physical.
“Coming here, you don’t know what you’ll come up on,” Susan …
