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Soon after getting my BSBA from the University of Florida in 1956, I really had no desire to go out and conquer the world of business and finance. I decided that Sarasota was the place to be. Our business, Sarasota Cycle & Key Shop had a local franchise from Schwinn Bicycles.

There were no Schwinn dealers in Arcadia, Venice or Englewood. Usually we sold about a dozen Schwinns at Christmas time to people from those areas. Some parents wanted their kids to have something better than a Montgomery-Ward or a Sears-Roebuck bike.

One day in the late 50s a middle-aged man and wife came in and bought a "his" and a matching "hers" shiny new Schwinns.  During the course of the transaction the man told me they selected Englewood as their retirement city because it was small, laid back, friendly, no one in a big city rush-rush, and people stop and visit. He allowed as how Sarasota had more stores, 2 train stations, 12 doctors, 4 dentists, 2 movie theaters, but he liked living in Englewood.

I told him I could appreciate how he felt because I was born and raised in a town about the size of Englewood. "Oh? Where was that?" he asked. "Sarasota", I replied.  Life was/is good.