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FLORIDA STATE WINNIE GATORS
January 20 – 22,
2012 The Florida State
Winnie Gators held the first Friendship Rally for the club at the
Central Florida Fairgrounds located in Orlando, FL.
59 coaches participated in the event, with 42 coaches coming in
early to enjoy the company of their chapter members and other friends!
The weekend theme was “Sports Center”, with many activities involving
different sports! It was a nice, warm, sunny weekend for mid-January,
and a great opportunity to share in many chapter challenges! We all love
competitions, and this weekend was all about friendly competition! Happy Hour on the
early day, Thursday, at 4:00pm brought everyone to the building to share
in food and beverages. The chapters were squared off by sections and it
was great to see so many smiling faces and guests all enjoying this time
together. Most everyone left for dinner at local restaurants, then
returned to the building for games and cards. Friday morning the
Executive Meeting took place as the officers discussed plans for the
upcoming March Rally. After
lunch, the Board of Directors meeting was brought to order by President
Jerry Miller. Topics for
discussion were the Tailgate Party sponsored by Lazy Days RV February 24
– 26, the March Rally details, the financial reports read by Treasurer
Walter Feldgoise, and this July Grand National Rally. Everyone was
encouraged to make reservations and attend these exciting events! Nancy
Miller reported on the rally vendors and seminars as Corinne Wightman,
Vendor Coordinator wasn’t able to attend this meeting. The cookbook
project is in the final stages of production. Nancy thanked everyone who
donated recipes and each goody bag given away at the rally will contain
a free cookbook. After the meeting, Jerry & Nancy met with some of the
chapters to discuss their rally duties. All the chapters have done a
great job in the past and this year will be another good one! At 4:00pm Happy
Hour began with the Winnie Gators “Posse” led by Mike Sofarelli and
Frank Cipolla selling tickets for a money raffle! 3 prizes were drawn
with Janis Fumia, Bonnie Milligan and guest Joan Regal taking home the
money prizes! THANKS to everyone for their generosity! Dinner was served
by our catering group, Rainbow Caterers, they did a great job with the
Sloppy Joes and all the side dishes. After dinner Nancy recruited
“scoopers” to serve ice cream! The line was all around the room –
everyone got their choice of ice cream and toppings! THANKS to all the 8
volunteer “scoopers”! Prizes were given
to the chapters based on attendance. Each chapter was judged on the
percentage of their members attending and in First Place was Mid -
Florida, 37%, Buccaneer Winnies, 27%, and Suncoast Winnies, 25%.
Additional prizes were given to Caloosa Winnies and Mid-Florida for a
tie of total members in attendance!
At 7:00pm it was time for
the Chapter Challenge Baseball and Bat Relay Game. Chapter teams lined
up on 2 sides of the room as teams had to race across the floor with a
baseball bat between their legs which had to be passed off, without
using hands, to their team mate while holding a baseball in each hand.
It was a timed race which was won by the first team to complete 16 trips
back and forth! This game brought lots of laughing and cheering! The
team that won was Florida Sunshine Winnies! They received boxes of
Cracker Jacks as their prizes! THANKS to everyone who participated and
for their good sportsmanship! Saturday morning
Rainbow served a breakfast of scrambled eggs, sausage gravy & biscuits,
and fruit. At 10:00am the General Business Meeting was called to order
by President Jerry Miller. Jerry welcomed the
many visitors both Winnebago owners and guests with S.O.B.’s. Walter
Feldgoise read the financial report and confirmed our club is in a good
position. Nancy Miller presented the 2012 Slate of Officers nominations,
Jerry Miller, President; Ted & Janis Fumia, 1st VP, Cliff &
Ree Spiller, 2nd VP; Christine & Bob Ross, Secretary; Walter
& Belinda Feldgoise, Treasurer. There were no nominations from the
floor. A motion was made and seconded to accept the slate as read and
have the Secretary cast one unanimous vote to a elect the officers.
Installation will take place during the March Rally. Jerry made several
announcements about the rally details including the theme, “Realm of
Winnebago”, a renaissance faire! Decorations and costumes are underway
and this will be a really visual event! Highlights include the usual
events, plus seminars conducted by Tom Pilgrim from Forest City, coach
driving classes by Lazy Days, garage sale tables, craft classes, day
night shade restringing demonstration, great food, entertainment, and
even some surprises! The afternoon many
members spent some time visiting the Vietnamese New Year’s Celebration
which was taking place in the main building. It was a huge event with
food booths, parades, dragons, fireworks, and beautiful costumes. Saturday Happy Hour
got off to a good start with a prize raffle. The table was filled with
items one could win if the right ticket was drawn. Our “Raffle Babes”
were not able to attend, so we called on our “Raffle Bums”, Butch Crosby
and Harley Mays!! They did a great job selling a bunch of tickets while
Dan Tuzzolo and Joe Sholtes tended the bar giving out free wine & beer!
It was a lively time and the lucky winners went away with some great
prizes! Dinner was served by Rainbow, Chicken in gravy and all the
trimmings! The Chapter
Challenge Game of “Fanta-Zany Football” proved to be a hilarious time!
Each of the 11 chapters represented for the weekend lined up at a grid
taped on the floor. Dice were thrown and players advanced a square based
on the dice number. Onlookers got into the action as cheerleaders for
their team! There was much laughing and cheering and even drum banging
to encourage the team members! Scores were tallied and the winners of
each round got to play in the “Super Bowl Championship”. The winner was
Paula Geng from the Funtimers! Her team joined in the celebration as
they accepted their winning ribbons!
Again, it was a fun time and good sportsmanship once again
prevailed! Sunday morning we
gathered for donuts, bagels, and coffee before we had to say our
goodbyes. THANKS to everyone who attended the weekend – we look forward
to seeing you all at the March Rally, March 15 – 18 at the same Central
Florida Fairgrounds. Check our website for details on all our chapters
and events:
www.winniegators.org. or
Who’s Inviting Travelers in the WIT magazine. Plan to join us – we love
visitors! Nancy Miller |