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EAST COUNTY
Obser ver
Health Matters FEBRUARY 2019
Observer Lakewood Ranch’s weekly newspaper since 1998
HOW MANY STEPS? Technology now can ment, measure our move h? but how much is enoug PAGE 2
INSIDE ONE STEP AT A TIME
Tips and tricks for running your first 5K.
YOU. YOUR NEIGHBORS. YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD.
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GOING DRY Abstaining from alcohol isn’t as hard as you think.
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PICTURE OF HEALTH
The Energizer Bunny of exercise.
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FREE THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2019
VOLUME 21, NO. 14
YOUR TOWN
Champion under glass Mark Hubbard captures first LECOM Suncoast Classic title. SEE PAGE 17A Photo courtesy Florida Fish and
Andrew Atkins
Wildlife Conservation Commission
Attendance ahoy
Gopher tortoises prefer dry sandy soil. Their burrows average 15 feet long and 6.5 feet deep.
A fifth-grader at Tara Elementary has won the Suncoast Campaign for Grade Level Reading’s annual Attendance Awareness Poster contest for the third time. Isabelle Flores (above) used a pirate theme in creating art to reflect the importance of solid attendance. “It inspires me to let kids know not to let absences affect grades,” she said. According to the Suncoast Campaign for Grade-Level Reading website, almost 200,000 posters have been created across Sarasota, Manatee, Charlotte and DeSoto counties since 2015.
Slow, steady progress Ryan Kohn
Denver’s Mark Hubbard enjoys his victory celebration Feb. 17 after winning the inaugural LECOM Suncoast Classic golf tournament at Lakewood National Golf Club.
Rye Preserve restoration will help struggling gopher tortoises. PAGE 3A
File photo
An Emmy salute ESPN college basketball analyst Dick Vitale soon will be honored with the Lifetime Achievement Award for Sports. On Feb. 12, the 79-yearold Lakewood Ranch resident learned he would receive the honor May 20 at the 40th annual Sports Emmy Awards at Jazz at Lincoln Center’s Frederick P. Rose Hall in New York City. “To have my name listed among the giants in sports broadcasting and to receive this prestigious award leaves me speechless, and you probably know that doesn’t happen to me often,” Vitale said in a statement.
A+E
A place for poetry Andrew Atkins
Ella Hartigan and Nick Chop discovered poetry could be enjoyable as they participated in teacher Karen Nikla’s fourth-grade class.
Willis students explore ... leaving them wanting more ... and it wasn’t a chore. SEE PAGE 8A
Preparing for the circus. INSIDE