WORDS: Amy Treis
PICTURES: Whitney Patton
It is often said that fire and water are the Yin and Yang of the existing world. They create the requisite nature of rising and falling, ebbing and flowing, and remaining stoic and wilting. If you ask East Manatee Firefighter Erik Nicholson, he will say that fire and water are essential elements that have contributed to his success and passions in life.
Since becoming …
WORDS: Bre Jones Mulock
PICTURES: Whitney Patton
Like an inevitable Tsunami swirling dark, angry waves in the ocean, perilous influences, and risky behavior nearly drowned Russell Serreia in the mid-1990s. Plagued with alcohol addiction and a fractured home, 15-year-old Serreia navigated the cold shadows of Bradenton neighborhoods, rolling in and out of street fights and jail cells.
Hardened, lost, and flirting with danger, Serreia happened to land in a recovery …
WORDS: Bre Jones Mulock
PICTURES: Whitney Patton
A single word unexpectedly and beautifully burst from the mouth of a non-verbal teenage girl in a class for students with profound special needs, igniting a surge of joy and excitement through the heart of Pam Parmenter in the early 1980s.
The sound, “Vickypoo,” floated out assertively and purposely into the busy classroom and commanded attention like a surprise visit from a four-star …
WORDS: Bre Jones Mulock
A clock ticks just shy of 4:30 p.m., and a dozen round, hopeful young faces pressed against a glass window smudged with handprints and reflecting an army of sparkling gold trophies standing guard across the room. Squirmy anticipation rolls through the roster of six to 12-year-olds like a case of contagious wiggles. The children, sporting gym shorts and T-shirts and a few crumbs from an after-school …
WORDS: Amy Bell
PICTURES: Whitney Patton
If you ever have a chance to meet Virginia (Gini) White, you might assume she’s an angel on earth. Over the last 39 years, Gini has fostered more than 300 children, most with severe medical needs. She has adopted three of her foster children and is in the process of adopting a fourth. Gini is also the proud mother of three biological adult sons.…
WORDS: Amy Bell
PICTURES: Whitney Patton
Way back in 1971, a gang of pirates invaded Anna Maria Island, and they’ve been making waves across Manatee County ever since. But these aren’t your typical swashbucklers. Known as the AMI Privateers, this krewe is on a quest to help kids in the community.
The organization’s official mission is to have a positive impact on the area through community service and activities and …
WORDS: Bre Jones Mulock
PICTURES: Whitney Patton
To a symphony of humming vacuums, strawberry, leather, and jasmine air freshener scents floated among the soap bubbles at American Car Center, an iconic car wash perched along the main artery of West Bradenton and luring in A-list residents like former Florida State Senator Bill Galvano, Bradenton Mayor Gene Brown and Manatee County Sheriff Rick Wells since the mid-90s.
Many loyal customers would …
WORDS: Bre Jones Mulock
PICTURES: Whitney Patton
To the heart-tugging rhythm of his mother sobbing, Dr. Charles Tomeo – stoic and stone-faced – listened to searing words drop in painful slow motion from the frowning mouth of his high school senior guidance counselor. Tucked in a tiny office inside the school, the counselor’s opinion slammed down as final as a guillotine: You will never amount to anything in life.
The …
WORDS: Bre Jones Mulock
PICTURES: Whitney Patton
The requests rolled in rapid-fire, pinging Carl Reynolds’ inbox like unexpected raindrops on a tin roof with tearful, heart-grabbing messages. The words laced together despairing narratives: A single mom juggling four kids – one with special needs – all sharing a cell phone for online school.
A dad furloughed with no means to buy a computer for his third grader to tap into …
WORDS: Amy Bell
PICTURES: Whitney Patton
Dan and Betty Callaghan may be retired from their business, but they have no plans to retire from philanthropy. If the name sounds familiar, it’s because Callaghan Tire has been a mainstay in the Bradenton area for more than four decades.
Dan and Betty, both Chicago area natives, moved to Florida from Iowa in the late 70s when their daughters were teenagers. On February …
WORDS: Bre Jones Mulock
PICTURES: Whitney Patton
Sun-drenched and coated in sand, a young kid with wobbly legs and a warm smile stands upon a donated surfboard, bobbing in the beach’s rolling waves on White Avenue on Anna Maria Island for the first time at Eternal Summer Surf Camp. Pure joy radiates as Kris Cox – a Bradenton native who helped found the non-profit Christian surf camp in 2008 – …
Words: Amy Bell
Picture: Whitney Patton
For most of her life, Margaret (Peg) Delegato has been on a quest to end poverty and rid the world of hatred. It’s certainly a lofty goal — but if anyone can come close to pulling it off, it’s a dedicated philanthropist like Peg.
Born and raised in Detroit, Peg says Motown was a vibrant and exciting city during her childhood. “I grew up …
WORDS: Bre Jones Mulock
PICTURES: Whitney Patton
Like a luminary shooting warm light through a grey winter sky, Kara Moates rises each day to comfort and guide. Not long after sunrise, she dives into a day chatting about theology and spiritual concepts with a man eager and grateful to share his thoughts about the world while she assesses his vitals. On the same day, she visits a woman in her …
WORDS: Katelyn Disbro
At the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Early Learning Coalition of Manatee County (ELC) wanted to do everything they could to support their ‘Untold First Responders’ – childcare providers who were open every day during this health crisis looking after and continuing to educate our local children!
To help and support them, the ELC procured paper products, cleaning supplies, hand sanitizers, and much more to distribute …
WORDS: Bre Jones Mulock
PICTURES: Whitney Patton
Nancy Griffith pulled up to the G.T. Bray playground three years ago with her two grandsons Easton and Nathan – born just six weeks apart and who share a love for all things play – and felt a sense of deflation filter through her body like a party balloon sinking with a slow leak. Apprehension replaced joy as she scanned the playground stretched …
