Download - GATOR TALES - Wild Apricot
Last but not least I wish to
thank David Schue for all the
time he has devoted in mak-
ing our Friday Happy Hours
the resounding success story
they have become. Dave has
resigned from this job to take
a position with Donald
Trump as his Social Secretary.
Good luck with that!
David will be replaced (if that
is possible) by Evie Houston,
who will schedule the North
end Happy Hours and Abbe
Tessler who will handle the
South end.
Lastly, I recently returned
from the Gator trip of a life-
time traveling some 190 miles
down the great Colorado
river through the Grand Can-
yon with 15 other Gators led
by the one and only Lin Lam-
bert.
That is enough talky talk for
now. See you next month. It
is good to be a Gator!
Warmest regards;
Rich Wennet
President
Hey, Gators!
Happy 237th BirthDay!
Yes, on July 4th it will be 237
years since the founding of
our country. In addition to
the parades, picnics and fire-
works we should all remem-
ber that freedom isn't free.
We did not become a coun-
try until a great revolutionary
war was fought and won at
great sacrifice by what many
consider to be the first and
foremost generation of
Americans.
Well, June 1st started a new
Gator year with a relatively
new Board of Directors. I
again wish to thank the out-
going Board for their service,
and welcome the incoming
Board.
It will be a great year!
You probably aren't thinking
about snow and skiing in July.
But if you are, why don't you
check out the news from
your new VP of Ski Trips,
Sheri Agnew, to see where
we will be going when it gets
cold.
Some of those trips are going
to be available for sale very
shortly, so it wouldn't hurt to
start thinking about them
now.
I want to welcome Harry
Patat, our new Membership
Director; and yes, Harry was
selected for his charm, grace,
wit, and his dazzling personal-
ity.
I also want to welcome Estela
Basso who is your new Com-
munications Director and to
thank her for accepting a
thankless job. Sharon Gian-
notti will be assisting Estela in
designing a new Website.
Thank you Sharon!
HAPPY 237th YEAR
President’s Message
GATOR TALES J U L Y 2 0 1 3
B O A R D M E M B E R S PRESIDENT Richard Wennet 561.776.7729 [email protected]
VP SKI TRIPS Sheri Agnew 561.371.1153 [email protected] VP SPECIAL ACTIVITIES Connie Flow 561.329.0122 [email protected] VP SOCIALS Betty Williams 561.389.8353 [email protected] TREASURER Walter Marussich 561.626.0406 [email protected] SECRETARY Tammy Walkoff 772.237.5562 [email protected] PAST PRESIDENT Bruce Holtzman 305.206.1200 [email protected] MEMBER AT LARGE Pam Strickland 561.346.6855 [email protected] PAST PRESIDENT LIAISON Paul LaChance 561.775.9848 [email protected] COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR Estela Basso 561.214.1603 webmaster @gatorsnowskiclub.com MEMBERSHIP DIRECTOR Harry Patat 772.341.9613 [email protected] PUBLIC RELATIONS AMBASSADOR Evie Houston 561.762.2628 [email protected]
T H E O F F I C I A L M O N T H L Y P U B L I C A T I O N O F T H E
G A T O R S N O W S K I & A C T I V I T I E S C L U B
Next General Membership Meeting: July 11 North Palm Beach Country Club 7pm Social Hour 8 pm Business Meeting
Next Board of Directors Meeting: Wednesday, July 31 7 pm at the Strickland’s home: 3939 N. Ocean Drive, Singer Island
P A G E 2
We want to
attract a new
generation of
skiers and
snowboarders to
insure
sustainability for
our Club.
Do you know a skier or snowboarder 40 or under?
Our new Website is coming along... We have made good progress
in preparing our new website!
Thank you to all that are
providing help and input, and
special THANKS to Sharon
Giannotti for partnering with
me on this project.
It will come online very soon!
Do you have suggestions on its
structure or functionality?
Items that you would like to
see included?
COME FORWARD! Estela Basso
Communications Director
SOME FEATURES OF OUR NEW SITE
FORUM: Where members can discuss topics of interest, with other members
BLOGS: Each of your Board Members can keep you up-to-date on the news from their area of responsibility.
REGISTER FOR EVENTS online and pay as well.
JOIN AND RENEW your mem-bership online.
MEMBERS AREA ONLY pass-word protected area with a searchable Directory and other content.
SURVEYS where members can vote on preferences.
Check us out on Facebook It is a fun place to visit.
Create your own free
Facebook account, then
search for Gator Snow Ski
Club. You can join the group
or just "like us". It has very
nice features to share photos
and comments. Share with
your friends, spread the
word! (and with your
kids...they may be impressed
with you!)
Important Note from Our Treasurer We started our new fiscal year by posting a $5019 loss in reve-nue from last year’s activities. The negative balance was mostly due to an unbudgeted media blitz prior to our annual member-ship picnic and a $3,000 non-refundable deposit from unsold spots on last year’s Danube trip.
Smartours, the vendor the Danube trip, has agreed to hold this $3,000 as a credit. This is credit for the Gator Snow Ski Club and our treasury will be reimbursed if you decide to book a trip with them this year (even if this is a private trip). They have a lot of neat, inexpensive destinations. If you are thinking of booking a trip, please let one of our officers know and we will contact Smar-tours. Our thanks to Smartours for making it possible to miti-gate this loss.
Your new Board has taken positive steps towards insuring a sus-tainable membership: Policy 23, adopted at the June Board meeting, offers a membership discount targeted to a new genera-tion of skiers and snowboarders.
Your new Board also approved policy 24, which deals with tax reporting for service contracts, benefits, and unincorporated ven-dors. This formalizes what should be standard practice.
A new budget for the fiscal year 2013-2014 was also ap-proved. Besides Board benefits, our biggest source of outlays will be CPA expenses needed to correct some inconsistent filing from previous years.
You can request a copy of the Board minutes and attachments for detailed information. Our goal, consistent with our bylaws, is full disclosure.
Walter Marussich, Treasurer
By resolution of your new
Board, Single and Family
Members whose principal
applicant has a documented
age 40 & younger shall be
entitled to a non- transfera-
ble rebate coupon. The val-
ue of the rebate will be ½
the cost of a general mem-
bership.
The rebate coupon may
be applied to any availa-
ble club trip.
G A T O R T A L E S
From your VP Ski Trips, Sheri Agnew
P A G E 3 J U L Y 2 0 1 3
Hello Gators!
Our Trip Leader Application meeting was successfully held before the June’s Gen-eral Meeting. A BIG thank you goes out to all the Gators who came, applied and are stepping up to serve YOU and their club, in giving all of us another Great Gator Ski Season, including our sea-soned Trip Leaders that are offering to mentor new trip leaders in our program.
We still need an Assistant for our FSC-Garmisch trip to Germany, and a Trip Leader for our Trip to Keystone, Col-orado, so if you have been considering helping your Club ~ now is your turn!
The following trips ARE ON SALE now, and taking appli-cations and deposits (you must, of course, be a current Gator Snow Ski Club mem-ber in good standing):
First up is our Early Sea-son Luxury Trip to Vail Colorado, December 7-
14, 2013. 36 Gators will be staying at the Lodge At Vail (a favorite from last season). This package currently in-cludes round trip air from Fort Lauderdale to Denver, round trip transfers from the airport to the resort, a 5 Day lift ticket (with a 6
th available)
and a party package. Your Trip Leader is John Pagli-alungo. For more infor-
mation on pricing and availability contact John at (561) 891-0009 or email him at [email protected] to reserve your spot now!
Next is FSC-Snowmass, Colorado, January 25-February 1, 2014, Janu-
ary 25-Feburary 1, 2014. Join the Gators & The Florida Ski Council in Snowmass, Colorado. This trip includes round trip air from PBIA into Eagle, ski in/ski out lodging at the Crestwood, round trip transfers, 5 day lift ticket, with a 6
th day available, and
both the FSC & Gator party package! Your Trip Leader is Everett Barber. For more information on pricing & availability contact or email Everett at (561) 215-8704;
email: [email protected] to re-serve your spot today!
Followed by FSC-Park City, Utah, February 22-March 1, 2014. Another
fun-filled trip with the Gators & Florida Ski Council! This trip is going with an exciting “Skier’s Choice” package, that will include round trip air currently out of PBIA into Salt Lake, just a 30 minute trans-fer to the resort and lodging at the Shadow Ridge. The “Skier’s Choice will give you the opportunity to ski Park City, Deer Valley & the Can-yons!! Your Trip Leader is Marie York and her assistant is Kathy Salata. For more information on pricing & availability on this “not the average FSC trip”, contact Marie at (561) 222.1478, or
email:
[email protected], or Kathy at (561) 346-8461, or email: [email protected] to reserve your spot today!
And onto FSC-Garmisch, Germany, March 8-14, 2013, for our lovers of Euro-
pean travel. This trip also offers a three day extension to Munich, and is led by Trip Leader: Don Chalaire. Ga-tors will be staying at the 4 star Mecure Hotel, which includes daily breakfast. You can reach Don at (561) 714-3528 or [email protected] for ALL the specifics on what is going to be a fabulous trip to Germany! Don’t delay….reserve today!
Also upcoming as soon as Trip Leaders are in place, will
be our Budget Trip to Keystone, Colorado, February 2-7, 2014 starting at $799.00!! and our “Adventure Trip” to
the beautiful Schweitzer, Idaho & Red Mountain, British Columbia re-sorts, February 8-16, 2013, for some exciting cat skiing! Stay tuned for up-coming details!
Be sure to check us out on our Gator Snow Ski Club Facebook page for updates on these trips! Comments & suggestions are always wel-come, so please contact me any time!
Until next time, Gator Mates,
Sheri Agnew
VP Ski Trips
Our early
season Vail
trip is
ready for
you to sign
up!
Why ski with a
group, versus on
your own? One
side of the story is
that you might be
able to book a trip a
lot cheaper as an
individual. In
certain
circumstances that
might be true…but
with a group, you
enjoy the
experience of
staying in some of
the best properties
at a resort because
of the discounts,
the group rates for
lift tickets are more
economical and if
that is not reason
enough….there is
the experience of
meeting new
people and making
long lasting
friendships that will
have many great
memories
P A G E 4
Some of our
2013-2014
Ski Season
trips are
already
available
for you to
sign up
Park City, Utah - Ski Trip
Snowmass, Colorado – Ski Trip
The price of this trip is $1,698.00…
includes a 5 out of 6 day lift
ticket; Gator pre-trip party;
Gator dinner; and Gator apres’
skis!
We are ready to sign up now…
Contact John Paglialungo…ho…
561/965-6935; cell..561/891-
0009…[email protected]
Hello Gators!! It’s that time
again! We’re going to Vail, Co…Dec
7th-14th…we’re staying at the 4 star
rated Lodge at Vail…
Great accommodations…just steps
to the Village Gondola…rentals close
by…restaurants and shopping a short
walk away…and courtesy transporta-
tion to nearby activities.
We’ll be offering 2BR/2BA units, or
3BR/3BA units….
Mountain Glades! Lots of “après ski” places and live music! Sound familiar to our seasoned skiers? Sound exciting to new skiers? And that is just Snowmass. There is also Aspen Mountain, Aspen Highlands and Buttermilk ski areas close by. Ski in/ski out lodging at the Crest-wood Condos, 2 BR/2 BA units. Five day lift ticket with an option for another ski day! Dinner party just for the Gators. Fly from PBI to Eagle with ground transfer to Snowmass Village.
Jan 25 to Feb 1, 2014
This is the big Florida Ski Council Trip and that means parties, ski racing, hundreds of Florida skiers at one of the Gator’s fa-vorite ski areas! Over 4000’ of vertical with 21 lifts to get you up the mountain and 94 trails spread out over 3300 acres to get you down! Elk Camp! High Alpine! Big Burn! Sam’s Knob! And a new area called Burnt
All the above included for our full trip price of $1990 (subject to change)! More information to fol-low! Fill out your applications and get them to us at the next Club meeting or mail your application and $200 deposit to our Trip Leader, Everett Barber at 8236 So. Elizabeth Ave., Palm Beach Gardens FL 33418. If you have questions, contact Ever-ett at 561-215-8704 or e-mail to [email protected] .
AND Canyons—all within a
few miles of each other. You
can upgrade your lift ticket
to 5 out of 6 for another $53,
and even a 6 out of 6 for an
additional $111. Your expe-
rienced, fun, well-
organized, and savvy trip
leaders are: Marie York
om) & Kathy Salata
A Florida Ski Council Trip
Feb 22 – Mar 1 $1759 (4
day lift ticket)
The Park City trip includes 7
nights lodging at Shadow Ridge
Condos (just across from the lift),
roundtrip air from PBI to Salt Lake
City, transfers to the resort (a
short 35 minute ride), two FSC
dinners/parties (great fun) plus a
Gator dinner in Park City. This is a
Skier’s Choice package, meaning
you can ski Park City, Deer Valley
G A T O R T A L E S
Vail, Colorado - Ski Trip
Ski Trip to Garmisch, Germany From Trip Leader, Don Chalaire P A G E 5 J U L Y 2 0 1 3
Join the Gators
FSC European Trip
GARMISCH, GERMANY
March 8-14, 2014
Garmisch is a fabulous
European destination for
the GATORS. There is
plenty of skiing and great
day trips with sightseeing
with an abundance of res-
taurants and pubs mixed
in. After visiting
Garmisch, we are doing an
optional 3 day extension
trip to Munich or Ber-
lin. What a great trip this
will be for skiers and non-
skiers alike.
Upon arrival into Munich,
we will bus directly to
Garmisch for an orienta-
tion tour of the two villag-
es. We will visit the Clas-
sic Ski Area, where we can
also take care of the ski
rentals and pass by each of
the FSC hotels so that eve-
ryone will have a better
idea of where they are in
proximity to the village,
their hotel and the ski areas.
Many of us are doing a
post trip extension to Mu-
nich. If not doing the post
trip extension, we can do a
day tour there from
Garmisch.
Skiing: Access to skiing
is within 15-20 minutes of
our hotel using the ski bus
or train. There are two
different ski areas. The
‘Classic’ area will provide
adequate skiing for two
full days. Garmisch’s big-
gest ski draw is the Zug-
spitze, the highest point in
Germany. It is accessed
by a scenic cogwheel train
or cable car and enjoyable
in itself. The top views
are fabulous.
Ski area Garmisch-Classic
- Scene of FIS Ski World
Championships 2011 and
annual FIS Ski World Cup
Race with famous Kanda-
har Slope
- 3 connected ski moun-
tains with about 25 miles
(40 km) of slopes
- 3 cable cars, 13 lifts, 5
snow-covered ski runs into
the valley
Ski area Glacier Zugspitze
- Highest mountain of Ger-
many with about 10,000
feet (almost 3,000 m)
- Glacier ski area with
about 15 miles (22 km) of
slopes
- 2 cable cars – 1 cogwheel
train, 5 lifts
Hotel: Our lodging is a 4
star hotel with ample Ba-
varian flavor, an experi-
ence of genuine Bavarian
ambiance. Bring your
220V adapters. A full
breakfast at the hotel every
day is included.
Day Trips: Tour and
hike to the top of the
Olympic Ski Jump. Walk
through the Partnach
Gorge, very impres-
sive. The path is cut down
inside the gorge and is
very narrow in places. It
is possible to arrive by
horse drawn carriage and a
nice restaurant is nearby
for lunch. Both these are
right in Garmisch. Other
day trips by bus include
Oberammergau, the Pas-
sion Play Theater, Ettal
Monastery, King Ludwig’s
Linderhof Castle,
Neuschwanstein, Munich
and more. Non-skiers
would have plenty to do
with multiple options.
The Base Trip price is
about $2500, with the Mu-
nich extension for $450
extra. Let
me know.
Don
Chalaire-
Garmisch
Trip Leader
561-714-
3528
Our early
season Vail
trip is
ready for
you to sign
up!
View from the Zugspitze
Garmisch’s
biggest ski
draw is the
Zugspitze,
the highest
point in
Germany. It
is accessed
by a scenic
cogwheel
train or cable
car and
enjoyable in
itself. The
top views are
fabulous!.
Social Activities From VP of Socials, Betty Williams
P A G E 6 J U L Y 2 0 1 3
Get ready for the fourth with the Gators at Roger Dean Ballpark, on Wednesday July 3rd. Join us for the ballgame, tribute to Billy Joel and some great fireworks. Thank you Rick Pahl for organizing it. Next get ready to bowl at Verdes Tropicana Bowling Lanes, Friday July 12th 6-10 pm. Thanks to our wonderful new Gators, Nina and Doro-thy who did a wonderful job of putting it together. Last but not least is our Raft Up at Peanut Island on July 13th. Come join us with or without a raft. Enjoy all your Happy Gators swim, snorkel or check out some of our Gator Boats. It is a fun time for everyone. Bring your sunscreen. See you there! Betty Williams VP Social Activities
July 3rd
Baseball - Fireworks - Live Music Billy Joel Tribute
Band
Roger Dean Stadium
Jupiter Game Jupiter Hammerheads
vs St. Lucie Mets at 6 pm, Fireworks at approx. 9 pm. All the while listen to live
Billy Joel tribute band. $5.50
Organizer:
Rick Pahl 7690 Hoffy Circle
Lake Worth, FL 33467 561.667.0515
July 12
Let the good times roll... Have a fun night of bowling with the Gators!
Prizes will be awarded for the Winning Team, Most Creative Handicap Excuse and Best Costume Including Hats! Costumes are encouraged but not required. $16 per person if bowling
(includes 3 games, shoes, balls and 1 free drink)
FREE if you are just coming to hang out with us! Verdes Tropicana Bowling Lanes 2500 N Florida Mango Rd West Palm Beach FL 33409 Organizers: Nina 561.202.4399 namodia @related.com Dorothy 561.964.0243 [email protected]
July 13th
Peanut Island Raft-Up
From NOON on Peanut Is-land. If you do not have a boat, there is a water taxi. Fellow gators with boats will be shuttling back and forth as well.
Come and join us with or without a raft. Swim, snor-kel, bring your kayaks, check out your fellow Gator boats. Bring your food, drinks, mu-sic and do not forget your-sunscreen! Contact:
Ray Flow
561.358.3285
UPCOMING HAPPY HOURS
July 5th - The Grumpy Grouper, Lantana
224 N 3rd St #5, Lantana, FL 33462
July 12th - VerdesTropicana Bowling Lanes, West Palm Beach
2500 N Florida Mango Rd West Palm Beach
July 19th - Carmine's Ocean Grill, Palm Beach Gardens
2401 PGA Blvd Ste 160 Palm Beach Gardens
July 26th - Carrabba's Italian Restaurant, North Palm Beach
11201 US Hwy 1 North Palm Beach
Come to our Social and Special Activities Planning Meeting:
Always the first Monday of the month at 7 pm at Tall Tales (inside Gander Mountain)
Bring your ideas and we will make them happen! Next meeting: August 5, 2013
Special Activities From VP of Special Activities, Connie Flow
P A G E 7 J U L Y 2 0 1 3
Please come to our next Social and Special Activities Planning Meeting at Tall Tales (inside Gander Mountain in North Palm Beach) on August 5 at 7 pm.
This meeting is always the 1st Monday of each month, at the same location and time. All are invited! Share your ideas with us. We will try to make it happen! Tall Tales offers good food at reasonable prices. We munch while we plan.
SPECIAL ACTIVITIES in the plan-ning :
RIVER RANCH Nov 14-15
FANTASY FEST Oct 26
SPRING LAKE GOLF Labor Day weekend
BASEBALL: MARLINS GAME trip
HARD ROCK CAFÉ trip
DISNEY VISITS for HALLOWEEN AND CHRISTMAS
CHRISTMAS PAGEANT FORT LAUDERDALE
DAYTONA 500 trip
Please sign up as “interested” at our Next General Meeting, so we can better plan!
Thanks
Connie Flow
VP Special Activities
Grand Canyon Rafting Report from Trip Leader Lin Lambert
An adventure we will reflect upon for the rest of our lives!
Our days were filled with expe-riencing a natural wonder of the world, the Grand Canyon, from the bottom up. Awesome hikes, over rocks and along ledges, scenic swimming holes, magnificent water falls, beauti-ful unbelievable scenery, amaz-ing stars and constellations in the night sky, and the thrill of the sound of the next approaching rapid.
A 12 - 16 foot drop into the whitewater and a ride of your life.
Our skilled guides, JP and Chel-sea were the best and will al-ways be in our hearts when we reminisce about this trip in the years to come. I want to thank all “River Rats” for being part of this trip as it will always be one of my most treasured adven-tures. Is this trip on your buck-et list? To view our pictures/videos go to www.flickr.com
Sign in under yahoo, user name: grandcanyon13
password dammit13
Upper left click "you" photos/videos will appear.
Life is a GREAT adventure.
Lin Lambert, Trip Leader
Come to our Social and Special Activities Planning Meeting:
Always the first Monday of the month at 7 pm at Tall Tales (inside Gander Mountain)
Bring your ideas and we will make them happen! Next meeting: August 5, 2013
Some of the possible names dis-
cussed were (no particular order):
Palm Beach Ski Club
Palm Beach Gator Ski Club
Gator Snow Ski and Activities
Club of the Palm Beaches
and many more…
Some of you may have other won-
derful name ideas, some of you
may want to keep our
name as it is.
In our new Website, there will be
a forum where all members can
At our last General Meeting, I
presented the initiative originated
by various members, for a possi-
ble name change for our Club.
Most other Ski Clubs have in-
cluded their geographical affilia-
tion in their names. Are we miss-
ing out by keeping the prestigious
Palm Beach name out of ours?
discuss this topic.
There will also be a Sur-
vey area where you will
be able to vote on which
name you prefer. You will
be able to vote only once.
Do let us know... Pam Strickland Member at Large
A Gator By Any Other Name...
July 2013 Calendar