LONGBOAT
Rotary’s new leader.
Observer Longboat Key’s weekly newspaper since 1978
PAGE 16
YOU. YOUR NEIGHBORS. YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD.
VOLUME 42, NO. 48
FREE
YOUR TOWN
•
THURSDAY, JULY 9, 2020
Break spews sewage Concerns for Sarasota Bay rise following 25.8 million gallon spill. PAGE 3
Courtesy photo
Parker Ross with his grandfather, Woody Woolverton
It runs in the family History — and football greatness — repeats itself in the Woolverton family. Woody Woolverton and his grandson Parker Ross both made their All-State football teams in high school 66 years apart, Woolverton in 1953 and Ross in 2019. Both athletes cover both sides of the line, with Woolverton playing linebacker and fullback and Ross as a cornerback and wide receiver. Ross will play at the Colorado School of Mines, while Woolverton played at the University of Oklahoma.
BACK ABOARD Sail campers find a normalcy on the water. SEE PAGE 13
Keep it clean
The worst part about any holiday? Cleaning up. For three siblings, though, that was part of the festivities. Nadia and Lisa Schmitt and Nathan Gembarowski, who have been coming to Longboat Key every July with their family for 15 years, organized a clean-up on Longboat Key’s beaches after the Fourth of July to pick up trash left behind by revelers. “We love the natural beauty of Longboat Key, and we’re happy to help keep it trash free,” mom Cindy Schmitt said.
Nat Kaemmerer
Benjamin Vaughn leans back to control his boat during a sail in Sarasota Bay.
Town OKs mandate for masks
Turtle Tracks LONGBOAT June 28-July 4 2020 2019 Nests 101 131 False Crawls 196 216 Total as of July 4 2020 2019 Nests 837 1,036 False Crawls 1,058 1,311 Source: Mote Marine Laboratory
Mark Bergin
Maynard Helmuth wears a mask while collecting shopping carts in the Publix parking lot on Longboat Key.
Commissioners vote unanimously to require face coverings; order can be renewed in September. SEE PAGE 4
A+E Artist leaves work behind. PAGE 20