Sarasota County's next stop is Denver for the All-America City Awards

By last night, most of our Sarasota County delegation landed in Denver and hit the ground running for the All-America City Awards competition.

If the delegation’s dry-run performance of “Sarasota Transcends,” held earlier this week at Glenridge Performing Arts Hall and Riverview High School on Tuesday night – attended by more than 400 supporters - are any indication, we’re expecting nothing short of a stellar show when they perform for the All-America City judges on Saturday, June 15 at 11:05 am sharp!

The 10-minute presentation spotlights Sarasota County's three community-driven projects: North Sarasota Library, Institute for the Ages and TPF’s Patriot Plaza partnership with the National Cemetery Administration and the Legacy of Valor campaign honoring veterans and their families. Yes…10 minutes to showcase our community. No easy feat!

Look at these smiling faces -- ready to take on all parts of the All-America City Awards and meet new communities in the process

But that’s only one aspect of the All-America City Awards. Other components include:

• A three-minute community video competition, which is posted on YouTube. The winner is based on the most video “Likes” and views. So be sure to “Like” our video – voting ends Saturday, June 15th 11:59 pm.

• An All-America City Youth Award competition, which the Herald-Tribune took the lead in promoting, processing applicants and working with judges in selecting the recipient. From a bevy of exemplary candidates, Treyvon Thomas was selected as the winner to represent Sarasota County.

• Community Marketplace – A civic fair where Sarasota County will display and promote our community, as well as learn about the other 19 community finalists.

• Quilt-square entry – Well, the stars were in alignment on this one! Carol Lipp, The Patterson Foundation's Initiative Support, is quilter extraordinaire and created a Sarasota-themed square.

The community spirit, commitment and “can-do” attitude that each member of our delegation has shown over the past two months aptly represents Sarasota County as a whole; and is a testament to why our community was selected as a finalist for the All-America City Awards. This accomplishment in itself is a pride point for our community.

But being a community with high aspirations is in our DNA. Our delegation’s goal is to bring that coveted award back to Sarasota County... And maybe in the process, convince a plethora of people to move to or visit Sarasota!

Be sure to follow our Sarasota team using hashtag: #aacsrq and #AllAmericaCity and continue to show your support by “Liking” our community's YouTube video http://ow.ly/lS82W