Hundreds of Lakewood Ranch families enjoyed their last summer hurrah Aug. 27 at the Lakewood Ranch Community Activities Corp.'s annual Back to School Splash Bash event. The event, held at the Lakewood Ranch YMCA, featured swimming, arts and crafts, inflatable slides and other activities.

Over 25 people came out Friday, Aug. 26 to participate in Vinyasa & Vino at T. Georgiano's.

St. Michael the Archangel Catholic Church held their monthly Family Fun Movie Night Friday, Aug. 26 in the Parish Hall.

The Out-of-Door Academy Thunder kicked off its 2011 campaign with its preseason contest against Berkeley Prep Aug. 26 at Thunder Stadium. The Bucs handled the Thunder 41-6. For more, see next week's East County Observer.

Actor Mike Kradlak portrays an astronaut in an independent film called "Life in a Glass House." Part of the short film is being shot at SMR Aggregates today.

Opening reception for annual juried members art show plus "Out of Mind" and "Food for Thought"

The Longboat Key, Lido Key, St. Armands Key Chamber of Commerce held their After Hours event Wednesday, Aug. 24 in conjunction J Wood Realty's 'meet the neighbors' event that included Envy and Bridge Street Bistro.

Students, parents and family members filled the halls on the first day back to school Wednesday, Aug. 24 at of Out-of-door Academy.

Kids at Primrose School's Camp Primrose shared some homemade recipes with parents at the camp's 'Dig, Stir, Chomp!' session last week. After honing their cooking skills with author Suzanne Beecher, the kids served 'stone soup' based on a popular children's book.

A group of pelicans enjoyed floating and perching on large concrete blocks in the ocean on Casey Key this morning.

Sarasota School of Arts and Sciences students skipped off to middle school Aug. 22.

Those big yellow vehicles are back in action with many of the Sarasota County schools starting back up today after the summer break. Be on the look out for frequent stops and for children getting on and off buses.