CALOOSA WINNIES

Local Chapter

  By Nancy Miller

March 16 – 19, 2006, the Caloosa Winnies attended the Winnie-Gators Rally held at the Central Florida Fairgrounds in Orlando. The “Wild Life of Florida” was the theme. Over all attendance was just shy of 400 coaches. The weather was perfect, sunny and warm which was a great example of March in Florida. Our members in attendance were Bill & Sue Fuss, Bud & Paula Geng, Kathryn Griffin, Phil & Shirley Halstead, Bob & Anita Law, Jerry & Nancy Miller, Jim & Jane O’Neill, Joanne Weber and her guest Bella Cook.

The Greeters – Mid Florida Winnies group, and The Parkers – South Florida Winnie-Gators, did a great job getting everyone on the grounds fast and efficiently. Registration was handled by the Funtime Travelers, again in a very organized manner. Wednesday evening was Bingo for those who wished to play. Some of our group went to dinner at a nearby restaurant.

Thursday morning Vendor Hall was open early, this year there were 43 vendors selling just about anything and everything an RV owner could want or need! The Winnebago Service Team was open and ready to help those needing repairs.

Opening ceremonies were held at the Main Hall at 11:00am. The Mil-Wit Winnies color guard presented the flags, Ted Meekma led the National Anthem, Invocation was given by Barbara King. Bud Geng, Winnie-Gators President welcomed everyone to the 35^th anniversary celebration of the Florida Rally. Dennis Burkholder, WIT General Manager,  gave his usual enthusiastic welcoming speech, followed by Dick & Mikki Dodge, WIT Eastern Area Reps.

Lunch was served right after the closing. We all enjoyed chicken salad croissant sandwiches, chips, cookies and drinks.

The afternoon offered a wide variety of options for participants. 4 dealers were on hand to show new coaches, seminars were scheduled and well attended. The Friendship Walk was held just off the Main Hall. Several chapters donated baskets of goodies, as well as some cakes for prizes. Participants got in a circle, paid their money and transferred paper plates around the circle until the music stopped. The winner of each round was determined by a plate number and they took home their prize.

Seating for dinner was different this year and proved to be a huge success! Each person had a different picture of “wild life” animals or birds on their name badge. They had to find the table with the matching sign and sit with that group. It was a great way to mix things up and meet new people. Dinner was served at 5:30pm, Hot Dogs, Brats, Baked Beans, Cole Slaw, and Cobblers for dessert made a great meal for a hungry crowd. Service was fast thanks to the Du-Bol Winnies group as food helpers, and our Rainbow Caterers. Entertainment for the evening was Bill Castner who sang 50’s music while many people danced by the stage.  The music was really enjoyable, it was nice to see many of the RVer’s could still dance the twist and jitterbug! Talk about aerobic exercise!

Friday was St. Patrick’s Day, lots of people were dressed in green to celebrate the day! A continental breakfast was served in the Main Hall. All during the rally there were hat ladies selling chances on the “money hat”.  Mary Stoddard, was dressed from head to toe in green while selling chances on her hat for St. Patrick’s Day. Several other raffles were going on throughout the rally grounds. The Caloosa Winnies had the “Car of Cheer” which we sold tickets with the proceeds going to the Winnie-Gators charity, The American Cancer Society. The Suncoast Winnies were raffling a beautiful handmade quilt with the proceeds also going to the same charity, 

There were many seminars to attend during the day, something for everyone!  One program that proved very informative was one about the Florida State Parks. The Park Rangers explained how the work/camp and volunteer programs work, as well as tips about getting into parks to camp. There are 158 parks in the state. They have won awards for the best state park system in the United States.

 At 2:00pm the Ice Cream Social was held at the end of Vendor Hall and this event proved once again to be a big hit! The Buccaneer Winnies did a great job getting everyone served and it was a great treat on a warm day!

The Caloosa Winnies hosted a craft session at 3:00pm, with 40 people in attendance! We showed them how to make a note holder to hang outside their coach for messages if a visitor stops by and they are away. It was a fun time with a chance for the ladies to sit and chat while they worked.

Dinner was served at 5:30pm, including corned beef and cabbage, in honor of St. Patrick’s day. The lines moved fast, it’s amazing just how fast almost 800 people can move through a food line! Entertainment began at 7:00pm, Robert Skoglund, a humorist, also known as “The Humble Farmer” told stories and jokes. The audience laughed and had a great time.

Saturday morning a full breakfast was served beginning at 8:00am, egg, biscuits, gravy, fruit, juice and coffee – YUM! That got everyone started on another busy day with more seminars, visits to the dealers and vendors.

The WIT store was open under the direction of Mikki & Dick Dodge, Eastern Area Reps. They sold lots of shirts, hats, etc. and also conducted a seminar on WIT Tours which was well attended.

The Spacecoast Winnies held the games competition in the morning which proved to be a really fun time for the participants! One of the games was a ”toilet bowl race”. Each chapter had a couple enter the race, they had to sit on a real toilet bowl mounted to a wooden platform on wheels, and using toilet plungers as “oars”, race to the finish line! This event had everyone cheering and laughing at the same time! More about this later!

In keeping with the Rally theme, “The Wild Life of Florida”, beginning at 1:00pm there was a display of wild animals in one of the buildings. Horseshoe Creek Animal Display was the name of the company, they brought a beautiful young tiger who was still drinking from a baby bottle! It was really great to see the animals up close and personal.

At  3:00pm the Caloosa Winnies hosted the Wine & Cheese party in Vendor Hall. We assembled our group at 1:30pm to begin preparations. This was our second year hosting this event – so we had it down pat! Dan and Linda Tuzzolo, Winnie-Gators 1^st Vice Presidents,  and Pete Schmittzeh, Winnie-Gators Treasurer, brought all the items we needed to the hall.

These people are the GREATEST to work with, we’re lucky to have them as officers!

Setup was accomplished quickly, thanks to our wine pourers Bill Fuss, Phil Halstead, Bob Law, Jerry Miller, and Jim O’Neill. We also had 2 helpers who are prospective members of our group, James & Janet Ingolia. Nothing like getting new people a job right away! Our other special helpers, Karen & Bob Demmerle pitched in – they are members of the Ononbago Winnies in Syracuse, NY. The rest of the team, Sue Fuss, Kathryn Griffin, Anita Law, Nancy Miller, Jane O’Neill, JoAnne Weber and her friend Bella Cook, all placed cheese on napkins and kept replenishing the tables as the crowds came in! THANKS to everyone for pitching in and completing another successful task!

I have to mention the “Hat Lady” of the day. Joe Sholtes from South Florida Winnie Gators dressed in an “outstanding” outfit to sell tickets! You had to be there to see it! You could hear him all over the grounds giving away his “instant winner” awards! Way to go, Joe!

Soon it was time to eat again – dinner was served at 5:30pm. On the menu was Chicken, Roast Pork, Rice, Green Beans, complete with Orange Cake for dessert. Each chapter sat together this evening. The members sat on one side of the table and guests from other states, etc. sat across from chapter members. This was also a great way to meet new people. After dinner, the officers of the Winnie-Gators were sworn in by Dennis Burkholder.

Then came the final “toilet bowl race” playoff! The two teams raced relay style back and forth down the main aisle! You had to be there to see it! After the race, the big challenge began! It was Denny Burkholder racing against Dick Dodge! They had no idea this was coming and it had the whole hall laughing and cheering! Then it was time for Bev Burkholder and Mikki Dodge to have a race – it was just great fun! Talk about your good sports – they really deserved a hand!!!

After the crowd settled down it was time for the entertainment – Fred Moore. Fred sang songs, talked about Germany and presented several stories about the country.

All the remainder of the raffles tickets were drawn, and the winners took home their prizes.

The Caloosa Winnies “Car of Cheer” was won by a WIT member guest fromTexas.

Sunday morning continental breakfast was served in the main hall. A meeting with the officers and local club presidents was held at 9:00am, followed by a general meeting for everyone. Before long it was time to pack up and say our goodbyes.

I hope everyone who attended our rally had a great time. Our committees worked hard to host this rally and everyone deserves a BIG round of applause! Plans are already underway for “Fun in the Sun” next year. Those dates are MARCH  8 – 11, 2007.  Put the Winnie-Gators Rally on your schedule – you won’t want to miss it!!

Nancy Miller
239-574-2511