PHellow Parrot Heads:
It starts with the thrumming of anticipation.
Excitement passes from one tropical soul to another. You count the months, the days, and finally the minutes. You whisper to each other, “Can it possibly be as good as last year?” That’s the thrill. No matter how great the show was last year, there’s no reason
this one can’t be even better.
Then it happens. Your PHriends are all
there. Hawaiian shirts, flip-flops, and smiles are the attire of the day. It’s time for the magic to happen. It’s show time!
Magic…due
diligence…passion…what makes a Parrot Head club successful? Much like a great Jimmy Buffett concert, you need a great set list. The old favorites that everyone knows by heart, a sprinkling of something new, and then
there are the show-stoppers.
Our club believes that excitement begets
excitement and it’s PHamily and PHriends that you meet in a Parrot Head club that make it a solid unit. Party with a purpose and living our motto is what puts the tunes of happiness in our hearts. So when we built
our set list of charitable activities for this past year, we made sure it would be filled with PHun, leave people thrilled, and guarantee they’ll want to come back again and again!
Dim the lights. The first
notes ring out . . .
Party
at the End of the World…
What better way to set the mood of fun and happiness? The crowd rocked it while decked out in denim or diamond outfits doing the tango twirl as our club turned 22-years-old. We partied with a purpose raising $51,700 thus far for our charities
and donated many hours to cleaning the beaches, building oyster domes, planting sea grass and counting scallops and assisting with local fund raisers.
The world’s not actually ending and our party is going to make it a better place. It’s a tune that hit all the right notes.
Beautiful
Swimmers…
How do you follow a great opening number? With a tune that everyone can nod along to. Primarily an environmental Parrot Head club we are thrilled that we gave $1500 to Save the Manatee Club and adopted “Whiskers,” a playful manatee that has grown
into a healthy adult. How did we keep the song going? Sing along now… “Donate $1…Spin-the-wheel… everyone wins a prize! Land on a special number and win a free membership, a registration to one of our events or a truly tremendous prize!” The song keeps going
and so far, we’ve raised over $500 for the Save the Manatee Club this year!
Desperation
Samba…
Next up, it was time to turn down the lights and let our inner island tribe rhythm take over. We donated $1500 to Tropical Nights, an island-themed fundraiser for Keep Our County Beautiful. The event raises money for environmental projects throughout
the area make it a cleaner, greener, and more sustainable living area for man and beast alike. We don’t want to “hear the people singing the same old haunting tune.” We work to make things better. More Samba…less desperation!
Jolly Mon…
By this stage of the show you need an old favorite! Get the crowd on its feet with our favorite zoo,
more environmental benefits, and…beer! We “heard a cry for help and saw a flashing light” and 60 of our members paused their dancing long enough to pour craft beers for guests at our Zoo’s “Wazoo Beer Fest.” Proceeds from the event
benefit animal care, education programs and global conservation initiatives of the Zoo, a nonprofit organization. They were glad to see
us come and hated to see us go!
Endless Weekend.
Like a great concert, there are some weekends you want to go on forever! We danced to the tune of Fireball
and Jägermeister in the Ice luge, raffles and live auction – all that helped us raise $1,850 for Our Area Bay Watch at our watering hole’s Annual Pig Roast.
In addition, we donated $1500 to a local aquarium to support their program “Rescue, Rehabilitate & Release.” It’s a thin line between Saturday night and Sunday morning, but we think we looked pretty good when that sun came up!
Margaritaville…This
one has to be on the set list, right? It’s what you wait to hear and give it your all! That’s how we react when Jimmy, himself, comes to town! Keeping with our environmentally focused objectives, our members passed out trash bags for the thousands of tailgaters;
played garbage can beer pong, raffles & spin a wheel to raise $1300 for our local Parrot Rescue and even had a parrot adoption during our Buffett tailgate party. Now
that’s partying with a purpose!
Summerzcool
– After a big hit, it’s time for something less talked about. Our club donated $1,500 to our own Parrot Head Scholarship at the local university for the eighteenth year. The funds go to the College of Marine Science. What does that mean? Some ambitious and
lucky student trying to understand and improve our environment will win the scholarship and our world just may be a better place for it. That’s a beat we can get used to.
False Echos
– “Time’s not for saving, no time ain’t for that!” As long there is a need, we will play on! We took our show to our city’s historic Cuban district, for another great fundraiser. Playing well with others we grouped together for the Alzheimer’s Scavenger Hunt.
We had a great time while raising money for this important charity. We also teamed up with the Alzheimer’s Walk and Breast Cancer Awareness Walk. During some of our meetings, we pass the bucket to collect additional funds for these charities. Like a great
ballad on the set list, some efforts leave you a little teary-eyed, but warm in your heart.
Barefoot Children…
We’ve seen too many barefoot children in the rain, so we collected close to 300 pairs of flip flops
and donated them to the local Resource Center for children and adults at risk. We collected: canned goods, boxed food, Toys for Tots and animal food and toys during our Holiday party. Also, during the Holidays we collect cards, donations and usable items
for Operation Gratitude. “Wrinkles only go where the smiles have been.” We hope our efforts created a few little wrinkles of happiness for those who dance along with us.
One Particular
Harbor… You may think the party’s over. The set list is done and it’s been a great show, but then
you hear a few notes you love so well. The dancing goes on and it’s bigger and better than ever! This year our biggest event was an amazing blend of sunshine, Trop Rock music, and generous dancing souls. We raised and donated $50,000 for a local children’s
hospital. That makes it over $150,000 for the last 5 years combined. We have won an award 3 times and this was our best yet!
It’s
about the PHUN! In addition to the
above, we have met and made PHriends with the greatest people in the world. Putting together a great set list of events and fundraisers make each year a concert of good times that make each and every one of us waiting for the next tune to come. We’re ready
to Kick It Second Wind and gear up for our annual bar stroll, birthday bash and more good times to finish out our PHenomenal year!
It has certainly been a Lovely Cruise!
Thank you for Volunteeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeering when called upon and taking pride in being a Tampa Bay Parrot Head in Paradise Club, Inc. member!
Dorothy
Your Lovely Lady!