Upcoming Event
The next Sarasota Republican Club meeting will be held on
Thursday, November 21, 2024
6:00 pm at Marina Jack
Guest Speaker:
Matt Walsh
CEO & Founder of the Observer Media Group
Join us to discuss the election aftermath with Matt Walsh from the Observer Newspapers!
Mr. Walsh is one of seven children born to George & Janice Walsh in St. Louis, Missouri.
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Former baseball player with the Kansas City Royals
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University of Missouri Columbia School of Journalism,
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Editor on the business desk at the Miami Herald in 1980
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Editor of Florida Trend Magazine, based in St. Petersburg, Fla., in 1986
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Forbes Magazine in 1994 as the Southeast Bureau Manager where he worked remotely out of their garage in St. Pete.
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Walsh, his wife, Lisa, in-laws David and Ruth Beliles and a group of investors purchased The Longboat Observer in 1995.
Nearly 30 years later, Walsh and his wife have grown the company to employ more than 125 people and one of the largest family-owned and operated community media companies in the state of Florida.
Committed to high journalistic standards, Walsh requires high-performance of his employees and inspires them to reach for the stars with his motto: “Ad Astra!” Sending a weekly “Thought for the Week” to all employees and conducting quarterly all company meetings where he highlights employee milestones like anniversaries, birthdays, weddings, births and how they “Make a Difference,” showcases how Walsh considers everyone employed at the Observer Media Group a member of the family. Those high standards have been demonstrated for many years in the FPA Weekly Newspaper contest, as the Observer Media Group usually carries home more awards in than any other weekly organization in Florida. The awards are merely a reflection of the service Matt’s papers provide to their communities. Serving others, sometimes even at the cost of profit margins, is a hallmark of each of Matt’s papers.
Not only dedicated to his company and employees, he is an ambassador to the communities he serves with humble commitment. Walsh has coached several T-ball and 5-and under soccer teams. He is a reader at his church St. Mary Star of the Sea on Longboat Key. He has served as a board member and chair of many of the following organizations — Longboat Key Chamber of Commerce, St. Armands Association, Longboat Key Kiwanis, Longboat Key Kiwanis Foundation, Sarasota Ballet, American Jewish Committee Gulf Coast, Gulf Coast CEO Forum and the American Court & Commercial Newspaper organization. He also served on the board of directors of FPA for many years and was its chairman in 2012. Walsh is a member of Leadership Florida Cornerstone Class X. His awards and achievements include Longboat Key Kiwanis Citizen of the Year, American Jewish Committee Civic Achievement Award and the Economic Development Corporation of Sarasota. SarasotS County Clyde Nixon Business Leadership Award.
Recent Events
Trump Party!!
Highlights October Club Dinner Meeting
The Sarasota Republican Club's dinner meeting in October 2024 was a mini-Trump Party! We dressed in our Trump Gear and President Tex led a group discussion about all of the reasons why we love President Trump and the MAGA movement. It was a lot of fun and a wonderful meeting!
Mission Statement:
The Sarasota Republican Club is a proactive group of Republicans that sponsor events and dinner meetings to promote constitutionally-based, conservative principles of government while seeking to support candidates who represent those principles. We provide members with up close political insights and the opportunity to personally and constructively engage in the political process.
Our Constitution