The Treasure Island Community Center resembled a gambling ship Saturday night as members of the League to Aid Retarded Children gathered for their second annual casino night and silent auction to benefit the Pinellas Association for Retarded Children.
The wagers were all in fun, but the fundraiser has a serious purpose, having raised more than $800,000 for PARC over the years.
PARC president Curt Thomas, attending with his wife, Peggy, said cuts in government financing are posing challenges to the group, which works with disabled people of all ages.
Saturday night's crowd of volunteers and visitors included Candy Bauer, Sandy and Chuck Wasson, Wendy and Chuck Wasson III, Diane Cipolla, Jenny Hasbun, Steve Knaeble, Bonnie Pero, Kathy McGhee, Denise Linden, Elliott Rakofsky, Gail Culver, Connie Sutton and Tara Wooten.
Jan Chene got much of the credit for the nautical decor.
LARCs, as they are known, "are the heart of PARC," several volunteers said, with 100 percent of the monies raised going to help clients at the organization.
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Dr. Joycelyn Elders, U.S. surgeon general during the Clinton administration, preached a gospel of education Friday at the annual women's symposium sponsored by the Women's Council of the St. Petersburg area Chamber of Commerce.
The United States has the highest teen pregnancy rate in the industrialized world, she said. The nation has "more dog houses than homes for homeless women. We can do better," she told her audience at the Coliseum.
Vonda White, president of Collegiate Risk Management, was named Business Woman of the Year, and Elizabeth Marie Demo was recognized as Community Service Woman of the Year.
Finalists for Business Woman of the Year were Ellen Crow, founder, Florida Gulf Coast Autism Association; Marva Denard, owner, Bishop Academy II Christian Schools; Lisa Gladstone, president, Priority One Financial Services; Robin Grabowski, owner, Tranquility Day Spa; Laura Krueger Brock, Cherry, Bekaert & Holland; Janet Mittendorf, owner, Janet Mittendorf Salon & Day Spa; Kathryn Pemble, president, Bank of America in Pinellas County; Sophie Sampson, executive director, Society of St. Vincent de Paul; Debra Shade, president, Neighborly Care Network; Najiyyah Shaheed, owner, Shaheed's African and Islamic Wears; Sylvia Walbolt, board chair, Carlton Fields; and Bernadette "Bernie" Young, president, Center for Creative Teambuilding.
Community Service Woman of the Year finalists were Connie Beck, Suzanne Boland, Corinne Bulla, Jeancarol Hart, Luisa Perez-Harvey, Beth Houghton, Sharon Jackson, Connie Kone, Elizabeth Lusty and Mary Shuh.
A reception at Saffron's March 16 honored all of the nominees.
Tami Simms-Powell and Carolyn Wiggins co-chaired the event, aided by committee members Cory Adler-Leidersdorff, Karina Bogue, Hugh Ann Cason-Kelly, Corky Cleveland, Trish Conner, Kristin Guenthardt, Karen Krymski, Marilyn McClosky, Lisa Munafo, Rosemary Schrader, Mary Scribner, Kathy Thornton, Christine Weigle, Lisa Wharton-Turner and Jewly Youschak.
Major co-sponsors were Ceridian, Hospice of the Florida Suncoast, the St. Petersburg Times and the Wine Cellar.
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On Thursday night, the Coliseum crowd comprised friends and well-wishers of Bill and Hazel Hough, whom the Tampa Bay Research Institute honored as its 2004 Humanitarian Award recipients for their many contributions of time and money to a legion of organizations.
Former St. Petersburg Mayor Bob Ulrich was master of ceremonies for the evening, which featured Dr. Alla Shapiro, a pediatric oncologist and bioterrorism medical officer with the Food and Drug and Administration.
Shapiro has worked with survivors of the 1986 nuclear accident at Chernobyl, the effects of which are still evident in the number of thyroid and urinary bladder cancers being diagnosed in the area. The Sept. 11, 2001, attack on the United States "and more recent events" are directing the FDA's attention toward developing antidotes to toxins from nuclear, biological and chemical warfare.
The Tampa Bay Research Institute, is a nonprofit biomedical research institution focused on the study, prevention and cure of chronic diseases.
Looking ahead
Today
AUCTION, LUNCHEON: All Children's Hospital, Beach Branch, event. 11:30 a.m.-3 p.m. Carrabba's Italian Grill, 3530 Tyrone Blvd., St. Petersburg. 392-6929.
Friday
ASAP DINNER, SHOW: Dinner, entertainers, music to benefit ASAP Homeless Services. 6:30 p.m. Treasure Island Community Center, 1 Park Place. $25. 812-3236.
BIKER BALL: Inaugural benefit for A Brighter Day. Live band, dancing, cocktails, appetizers, motorcycle drawing, auction. Pinellas Expo Hall, 10601 U.S. 19 N, Pinellas Park. $40. 381-5103.
MUCH ADO ABOUT ART: Live auction benefits participating artists, American Stage Shakespeare In the Park. Complimentary hors d'oeuvres. 6 p.m. Sunset Vinoy Ballroom, 600 Snell Isle Blvd. NE, St. Petersburg. $20 advance; $25 at door. 823-1600, ext. 201.
PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: Dinner, live and silent auctions benefit Canterbury School of Florida. 6:30 p.m. St. Petersburg Yacht Club, 11 Central Ave. $80. 521-6201, ext. 39.
Saturday
ABILITIES WINE & FOOD FESTIVAL: Abilities Foundation benefit features 500 wines, 40 restaurants, 400 auction items. 6 p.m. VIP reception; 7 p.m. tasting. Tropicana Field, 1 Tropicana Drive, St. Petersburg. $150 VIP. $60 grand tasting, $70 at door. 538-7370, ext. 345; www.abilitiesfoundation.com
FESTIVAL OF STATES LUNCHEON, FASHION SHOW, CARD PARTY: Women's Chamber of Commerce event. 11 a.m.-4 p.m. St. Petersburg Yacht Club, 11 Central Ave. $35. 821-8006.
Y-TEENS REUNION: For YWCA teens of the 1950s-'70s. Speaker: Bob Jeffrey, St. Petersburg manager of urban design and historic preservation. 2-3:30 p.m. St. Petersburg Woman's Club, 40 Snell Isle Blvd. NE, St. Petersburg. RSVP to 461-2997, ext. 22.
- Mary Jane Park can be reached at 727 893-8267; fax (727) 893-8675; e-mail park@sptimes.com PO Box 1121, St. Petersburg, FL 33731.
