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Concert for Peace returns in June

Concert for Peace returns in June

Written by Jason Schaffer on . Posted in Entertainment, Music.

CORTEZ – Cortez restauranteur Bob Slicker, owner of Slicker’s Eatery, is once again gathering members of the Anna Maria Island Rotary Club and the community to raise money with a Concert for Peace. The second annual event is being held to help the people of Ukraine whose lives have been upended by the ongoing war with Russia.

Slicker, who became passionate about helping the people of Ukraine after watching the war begin to unfold in 2022, vowed to do whatever he could to help get supplies to the people who needed them desperately. His first Concert for Peace, held in June of 2022, raised more than $50,000, 100% of which went to supplies such as medical needs and refrigerators.

The second annual Concert for Peace will take place Saturday, June 10 at The Center of Anna Maria Island. The concert will be free and open to the public and feature musical acts the Eric Von Band and Trevor Bystrom, with money being raised through sales of food, drinks, raffle items, t-shirts and sponsorships. The AMI Rotary Club will take the proceeds and work with their Rotary partner in Poland to purchase supplies and get them into the areas of Ukraine where they are most needed.

“I went over there and saw first-hand how difficult these people have it due to the war,” Slicker said. These are just normal people who get up and go to work just like you and I, then one day their lives are upended. I went to apartment buildings where not only are multiple people sharing community refrigerators, but often multiple families have to share one shelf of a fridge.”

“The Rotary can be trusted to get the job done,” AMI Rotary President Jim McDaniel said. “There are only two seats in the United Nations that don’t belong to individual countries. One is the Red Cross and the other is Rotary.”

Sponsors are still signing on, so there is no complete list yet, but in addition to Slicker’s and the Rotary, Painting with a Twist will hold another “Painting with a Purpose” event at Slickers on June 4. More fundraising events are anticipated to be announced on Facebook in the coming weeks.

For information on becoming a sponsor, making a financial donation or the Concert for Peace, visit the Campaign for Ukraine Facebook page or email campaignforukraineami@gmail.com.

Campaign for Ukraine continues

Campaign for Ukraine continues

Written by Jason Schaffer on . Posted in Anna Maria Island, Community News.

The Rotary Club of Anna Maria Island and Bob Slicker, owner of Slicker’s Eatery in Cortez, continue to raise funds for Ukraine.

The Concert for Peace on June 12 raised over $50,000; Rotary Club of Anna Maria Island also sent $5,000, which was matched by a Rotary District in New Hampshire (7870) for a total of $10,000; and the Rotary Club of AMI and Slicker’s Eatery Partnership released another $10,000 to President Wojtek Jankowski of the Rotary Club of Czestochowa, Poland.

Polish Rotarians are using the funds for a make-shift hospital, a refugee center for families and making regular supply runs to soldiers on the battlefield to get them food, medical supplies and clean clothing.

Slicker is currently in Eastern Europe witnessing firsthand the work being done on the ground. He is set to return on July 7.

“While in Poland, Bob is being taken care of by our Rotarian friends in Czestochowa so we are comfortable he is in good hands,” said Rotary Club of AMI President James McDaniel in a press release. “He will be accompanied by an international grad student affiliated with Rotary who will be filming his visit and documenting the conversations he has with the leaders and the people he meets. We feel this will help us explain the strong connection that Rotary is providing for our efforts to provide funding toward the cause. It also helps us bring awareness to this very trying situation that our world neighbors are experiencing and the importance of our work to this small area of the much greater area affected by this war.”

McDaniel said that when Slicker returns, the next fundraising event, slated to take place in August, will be announced.

 

Related coverage

 

Campaign for Ukraine rocks The Center

 

Concert for Peace highlights local Campaign for Ukraine

 

Mystery tour raises money for Ukrainians

Island business awards announced

Written by Tom Vaught on . Posted in Business, Featured.

CORTEZ – It was a bittersweet honor for John Horne on Friday night at the Anna Maria Island Chamber of Commerce Annual Awards Ceremony and Board of Directors Installation at the Seafood Shack.

Rotary Club of Anna Maria Island co-directors Judy Rup and Dennis Schuermann awarded the Rotary Club’s Businessperson of the Year award to the Anna Maria Oyster Bar owner.

Anna Maria Oyster Bar owner John Horne, center, with Judy Rup and Dennis Schuermann of the Rotary Club of Anna Maria Island after they presented him the Businessperson of the Year award. – Tom Vaught | Sun

Horne was overwhelmed with emotion when he said he was receiving the award a week after the passing of his mother. He said it was also his parents’ 61st anniversary, noting his father was in the audience. He thanked the Rotary Club for the honor.

The Chamber announced the winners of the businesses of the year in four categories, adding a new category – Non Profit of the Year – to the small, medium and large business categories.

Dennis Schuermann displays the Rotary Club of Anna Maria Island’s award – the Anna Maria Island Chamber of Commerce Non Profit of the Year. – Tom Vaught | Sun

The first winner of the new Non Profit of the Year award is the Rotary Club of Anna Maria Island. Rotary co-directors Judy Rup and Dennis Schuermann accepted the award.

The Large Business of the Year award went to Duncan Real Estate.

Large Business of the Year
Karen LaPensee, left, presented Darcie Duncan, owner of Duncan Real Estate, the Large Business of the Year award. – Tom Vaught | Sun

Owner Darcie Duncan remarked about how all the businesses pulled together during the red tide event this summer and fall, saying she is proud to be a part of the Island business community.

In the Medium Business of the Year award, from five to 14 employees, the winner was Happy Paddler Kayak Tours.

Anna Maria Island Chamber of Commerce Board Member Karen LaPensee with Shane Catts, owner of Happy Paddler Kayak Tours, the winner of the Medium Business of the Year award. – Tom Vaught | Sun

“It all began with a couple of kayaks and a credit card,” owner Shane Catts said as he accepted his plaque.

The winner of the Chamber’s Small Business of the Year award for businesses up to four employees was Scott’s Deli. Scott Mason and his wife, Jane, accepted the award.

From left to right, Anna Maria Island Chamber of Commerce Board Member Karen LaPensee with Jane and Scott Mason, of Scott’s Deli, winners of the Small Business of the Year award. – Tom Vaught | Sun

The awards ceremony drew 127 people. John Rinnell provided the musical entertainment.

Rotary Golf tourney car

Get a hole in one, win a car

Written by Joe Hendricks on . Posted in Golf, Sports.

BRADENTON – Golfers competing in the fourth annual Anna Maria Island Rotary Club Golf Classic on Wednesday, April 4, will have the chance to win a new Volkswagen SE Jetta Sport.

A hole-in-one on the 167-yard, par-3 third hole at the IMG Academy Golf Club in Bradenton is worth a new car valued at approximately $45,000.IMG hole 3

The grand prize is again being offered by Boast Volkswagen in Bradenton. Sales Manager Mike Shaughnessy said the Jetta will be positioned near the tee box so the golfers can see what they’re shooting for. A second car will be on display near the putting green.

“No one’s ever got a hole-in-one, but we hope they do. We basically buy insurance based on the number of players, the yardage and the difficulty of the hole. We pay for the insurance and provide the car. We’ve been doing it since the first Rotary tournament, and we’ll continue,” Shaughnessy said.

“It’s a real nice car. It’s loaded with everything, and it’s got special safety features. It’s one of the top-selling Jettas we have,” he added.

Shaughnessy said company president Steve Bierwirth prefers these kinds of community-oriented promotional activities rather than the basic advertising auto dealerships typically utilize.

“We help the community and the different charities around town, and this is one of the projects we do each year. My wife, Beth, and my son, Tim, have been involved in the Rotary. We believe in what the Rotary does helping out both internationally and locally, and we’ve been able to help them raise money every year,” Shaughnessy said.

Shaughnessy, who is not a Rotarian, has competed in previous tournaments, but he won’t be playing this year because he has to work. Beth won’t be playing either as she continues to recover from a stroke suffered last year, but she is eagerly awaiting the arrival of the couple’s seventh grandchild. Their daughter, Brianna, is expecting a baby boy in late July.

“She’s doing really well,” Shaughnessy said of his wife’s recovery. “She was supposed to be president-elect of the Rotary, but she had to pass on that as well. She’s recovering and getting better little by little. It’s a long haul with a stroke.”

Registration and prizes

Tournament proceeds will benefit AMI Rotary programs at Anna Maria Elementary School. They will also benefit the club’s Learn to Swim program, the Anna Maria Island Concert Chorus and Orchestra and the joint efforts with other local Rotary clubs to build all-inclusive playgrounds at three county parks.

The entry fee is $100 per person and includes 18 holes of golf, an electric cart, lunch, the awards dinner and on-course beverages. You do not need to be a Rotary Club member to play.

AMI Rotary Club Vice President Judy Rup said the winning foursome will get a $400 cash prize, which she noted would cover their entry fees. Additional prizes and awards will also be given away during the dinner taking place in the banquet room.

Rotarian Dennis Schuermann is in charge of golfer registration. On Monday, he said 67 golfers had registered so far.

“They need to register this week by the end of the weekend so we can get our numbers to IMG. They can pay on the day of the tournament,” he said.

To register, call 727-742-0762 or email dschuermann@msn.com.

Tournament sponsors include The Anna Maria Island Sun and LaPensee Plumbing, Pools and Air.

Chamber presents business awards

Written by Tom Vaught on . Posted in Business.

The Anna Maria Island Chamber of Commerce held its Installation Banquet and Small Business of the Year awards on Monday, Nov. 6, and there were uniformed law enforcement officers, firefighters and other first responders in the crowd.

Rotary Club First Responders award
The Rotary Club of Anna Maria Island honored first responders as the “Businessperson of the Year” for keeping the Island safe, especially after Hurricane Irma left much of the Island without power. – Tom Vaught | Sun

The reason became clear when Judy Rupp, of the Rotary Club of Anna Maria Island, announced the winners of their annual Businessperson of the Year award.

She spoke about how visitors, residents and businesspeople feel safe on the Island.

“This feeling of security that we all enjoy is not accidental,” Rupp said. “We have agencies that keep us, our visitors and our property safe.

“During Hurricane Irma, the Island was shut down to protect homes, businesses and property from looting, fire and theft,” she added. “We are fortunate to have emergency rescue right here on the Island with lifesaving skills to treat us and get us where we need to be. Our waters are patrolled for the safety of all.”

After introducing the law enforcement department and fire and safety personnel, Rupp said, “These agencies are our Rotary Businesspersons of the Year, our Anna Maria Island First Responders. Thank you for all you do.”

From left to right: Liza Kubik and Jed Lippincott of the Seafood Shack, winner of the large category winner; Andrew Kiegley and David Hassell of Allegra Printing and Signs Now, the medium category winner; and Mark and Jen Bowman of small category winner Keller-Williams on the Water. – Tom Vaught | Sun

After the dinner ended, Chamber President Deb Wing presented the Chamber Board of Directors and the team that chose the winners of the Chamber Small Business of the Year awards for three sizes: 1 to 5 employees; 6 to 15 employees and more than 15 employees.

In the small category, Grooms Motors, Advanced Insurance Brokerage, Sugar Beach Digital, The Hive Creations, AMI Health and Fitness were runners-up to Jen and Mark Bowman at Keller-Williams on the Water.

In the medium category, Island Vacation Properties was runner-up to Allegra Printing and Signs Now of Bradenton.

In the large category, Boyd Insurance was runner-up to Seafood Shack Marina, Bar and Grill.