Westchase Rotarians Charity Pub Crawl May 4
On May 4 from 6-10 p.m. sombreros will once again decorate the bars and restaurants of West Park Village.
As part of their Sixth Annual Westchase Cinco de Mayo Pub Crawl, the Rotarians plan to host over 250-sombrero wearing crawlers and aim to raise over $9,000. Funds raised will be donated to local charities and help support an international water project!
The sponsors and participating bars and restaurants include: Greenacre Properties, Catch 23, Zen Bistro, Burger 21, Siam Thai, World of Beer, Maloney's, Blend Lounge, Tijuana Flats, Pizza Fusion, Greek City and San’s Pizza. Be sure to buy your tickets early for this fabulous fiesta as it will sell out! You can purchase them online at http://www.westchaserotary.org
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The Rotarians offer a shout out to everyone who came out to the Strappy Hour shoe drive at Burger 21 on Feb. 21. Benefiting Soles for Souls, the event collected over 200 pairs of shoes. Local Westchasers who are going on a mission trip in April to Haiti will distribute shoes to men, women and children that don't own any. David Johnston, the owner of Burger 21, donated 10 percent of all sales proceeds that day towards the mission trip. Way to pay it forward!
Thanks to a dynamic group of local individuals, the Westchase Rotarians are helping change the lives of people globally and locally. In 2013 they are focusing on increasing their membership and encourage new applicants in the community. They welcome visitors every Wednesday morning at their 7:30 a.m. breakfast meeting at the Westchase Golf Club. To learn more about their club, please visit http://www.westchaserotary.org and see what a difference they are making in the world.
By Christy Young
And the Holiday Decorating Contest Winners Are…
It took three cars, 15 judges (five kids and 10 adults), five hours and a quarter tank of gas. After driving through the community on Dec. 15, WOW’s dedicated Holiday Decorating Contest judges have picked their winners!
Taking first place for the first time in the contest’s history are Radcliffe residents Keith and Judy Heinemann for their impressive and classy display at 12014 Wandsworth Dr. Second place was a tie between two perennial top finishers, Philip and Maria DeCampos, for their popular collection of inflatables at 10740 Tavistock Dr. in Chemsford and Aaron and Joellyn Thompson for their remarkable lights and music display at 10622 Chambers Dr. in Keswick Forest.
Winning Best Neighborhood was Talbot Place in Bennington. The Talbot families’ joint incorporation of lighted angels proved quite impressive. Receiving judges’ Honorable Mentions in the neighborhood competition were Chelmsford, Bennington and Brentford.
Individual homes receiving judges’ Honorable Mentions included the following:
10338 Abbottsford Dr.
10310 Springrose Dr.
10713 Tavistock Dr.
10424 Gretna Green Dr.
10417 Snowden Pl.
8907 Sierra Vista Pl.
11936 Keating Dr.
10403 Brentford Dr.
9825 Bayboro Bridge Dr.
12421 Bristol Commons Cir.
10109 Parley Dr.
10743 Ayrshire Dr.
10535 Greensprings Dr.
WOW thanks its generous judges and congratulates all the winners. We also request that a representative of Talbot Place contact WOW Business Manager Tracy Urso at (813) 926-0596 to discuss WOW’s sponsorship of its block party.
By Chris Barrett, Publisher
Rotary Hosts First Women’s Triathlon in Westchase
On June 16 the Rotary Club of Westchase and Athletes Who Care partnered to offer a Westchase women’s triathlon.
This inaugural event was a flying success as ladies biked, ran and swam in our beautiful community. The race course consisted of a 3.1-mile run, a 9.25-mile bike ride, and a 225-yard pool swim. Over 180 ladies registered and over $9,000 was raised for The Spring of Tampa Bay and The American Lung Association.
The organizers express their sincere appreciation to all their amazing sponsors and volunteers: Greenacres Properties, United Healthcare, BayCare Outpatient Center, Denihan & Associates, D1 Westchase Sports Medicine, Westchase Esthetic Family Dentistry, RunVie Racing, Danks Family Chiropractic, Peter Ragano, Jr. Inc. Plumbing, Carpet Care Tampa, Ryde for Life, Camden, San’s Pizzeria, Pilot Bank, GulfShore Bank, Outspokin Bicycles, Jersey Mike’s Subs, and Tampa Bay TriGals. So start training for next year’s event, which will be held in May.
The club has many more events coming up this summer and fall, including feeding the homeless at Trinity Café, Feeding Children Everywhere in August, volunteering at Movies in the Park, hosting a Westchase Family Bingo night at Aston Gardens and collecting backpacks and school supplies for impoverished schools.
Thanks to a dynamic group of local individuals and our new president, John Thomas, the Westchase Rotarians are helping to change the lives of people globally and locally. In 2011 they will focus on growing their membership and encouraging new applicants to join their group to make a difference in the community. They welcome visitors every Wednesday morning at their 7:30 a.m. breakfast meeting at the Westchase Golf Club.
To find out more about their club, please visit www.westchaserotary.org.
By Christy Young
Rotary Pub Crawl Proves Fun Fiesta
On April 27 the fifth annual Westchase Cinco de Mayo Pub Crawl blew the sombreros off the neighborhood.
Westchase Rotarians hosted over 250 sombrero-wearing pub crawlers and raised over $7,000 for local charities and Rotary's Camp Florida.
The Rotarians thank sponsor Greenacre Properties, Inc., and participating restaurants and bars, Catch 23, The Remedy Bar & Lounge, Zen Bistro, Burger 21, Siam Thai, World of Beer, Maloney's, Blend Lounge, Tijuana Flats and San’s Pizzeria.
The club has many more events coming up this summer, including the inaugural Westchase Women's Charity Triathlon on June 16. The race will benefit The Spring of Tampa Bay and Athletes Who Care.
To sign up, go to http://www.westchasewomenstri.com
We offer our thanks to those who came out to the Strappy Hour shoe drive at Catch 23 benefiting Soles for Souls. We collected over 300 pairs of shoes as a part a fundraiser shoe drive. They will be carried by some local Westchasers on a mission trip this summer and distributed to men, women, and children who don't own any. Catch 23 owner Rob Wickner donated 15 perent of the proceeds of the sales that evening towards the mission trip. Way to pay it forward, Rob!
Thanks to a dynamic group of local individuals, the Westchase Rotarians are helping change the lives of people globally and locally. In 2012 they are focusing on increasing membership and encouraging new applicants in the community. They welcome visitors every Wednesday morning
at their 7:30 a.m. breakfast meeting at the Westchase Golf Club.
To learn more about their club, please visit http://www.westchaserotary.org and see what a difference they are making in the world.
By Christy Young
Let’s Re-Cycle at Jan. 7’s Rotary Bicycle Roundup
On Saturday, Jan. 7, The Westchase Rotary will host their Third Annual Post-Christmas Bicycle Roundup.
The roundup will take place at the corner of Nine Eagles Boulevard and Race Track Road, next to Flying Fish Bicycle Shop and San’s Pizzeria.
Last year the roundup yielded 50 bicycles of all sizes and types. The bicycles are repaired and rehabilitated by our project partners at God’s Pedal Power Ministry. After passing a rigorous safety check, the bikes are donated to less fortunate people who use them as their primary form of transportation. The children’s bikes are donated to a variety of non-profit children’s homes within Tampa Bay.
The Rotary Bike Roundup hours are 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. If Santa was nice enough to bring a new, shiny bike and your old, clunky bike is stuck in your garage and feeling unwanted, please don’t banish it to the Island of Misfit Toys. Bring it to the Rotary Bike Roundup. There it will bring happiness to another child or a sense of hope to someone who’ll use it to get to work or school.
Rotary Bike Roundup
Jan. 7, 2012
Corner of Nine Eagles Boulevard and Race Track Road
By Mike Castro
Rotary Schedules Oct. 15 Blood Drive
Like proper vampires preparing for Halloween, Westchase Rotarians want your blood.
In keeping with October’s holiday, the Red Cross “Vampire Mobile” will be parked at the Northwest Hillsborough Family YMCA, located at 8950 West Waters Ave., on Saturday, Oct. 15. Please consider giving the gift of life through your blood donation. The Red Cross has assured us that your life-saving gift won’t be used to feed any starving zombies. The Westchase Rotary will be present to cheer on all donors and supply goody bags and other favors. The Red Cross considers 15 blood donations at any given event as a successful day. The challenge has thus been made to Westchase citizenry to surpass the average daily donation levels. The Vampire Mobile will be there from 10 a.m. until 3 p.m.
The Rotary Club will now meet every Wednesday morning except for the second week of the month. Morning meetings are held at 7:30 a.m. at the Westchase Golf Club, located at 11602 Westchase Golf Dr. In order to provide more accessibility to friends and members, the Rotary Club will also be conducting happy-hour meetings every second Thursday of the month. Our next happy-hour meeting will be held at World of Beer at 6 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 6..
On Oct. 6 your Rotary Club will be serving comfort food and compassion to the guests of the Ronald McDonald House. The Ronald McDonald House (RMH) is a “home away from home” for families of children receiving treatment at bay area hospitals. Rotary member Christy Young shared her insights on her past experience at RMH. “There is nothing more unsettling to a parent than to have a sick child,” she said. “Some kind words and a little moral support can go a long way.”
For more information about Rotary, see http://www.westchaserotary.org
.By Mike Castro