Your Town

+ Car wash, flooring store receive kudos

East County businesses commanded the spotlight at the Manatee Chamber of Commerce's Small Business of the Year Awards Luncheon Sept. 18.

Of the 98 nominations, two of four winners operated businesses out east. 

Clear Sunset Car Wash & Detail Center and Overturf's Floor & Fabric Care each took a small business award back to their workplace for display.

"When they started talking about us, my wife and I were just in awe," car wash owner Tony Milen said. "It was really cool. We're going to create a little shrine inside the car wash of letters from Vern Buchanan and our awards."

The annual event applauds small businesses for excellence in growth, productivity, customer service, job creation and community contribution.

+ BRHS shows spirit

They've got spirit, yes they do.

In a head-to-head competition, East County rival schools Lakewood Ranch and Braden River high schools showed their school spirit.

Braden River won the Spirit Week competition held at Chick-fil-A at Creekwood. Between 6 a.m. Sept. 14 and noon Sept. 18, people visited the fast food chain to show support for their school.

The school to have the most spirit received the prize — a check for $2,116.98, which was 20% of the sales the school brought in to Chick-fil-A — during the homecoming football game Sept. 18. 

Lakewood Ranch High received $500.