Amy Scherzer's diary
Stars bloom in fundraiser
By AMY SCHERZER, Times Staff Writer
Published April 23, 2004
STOP AND SMELL THE ROSES: Volunteers hustled nearly 65 roses at Stars for Life, a gala fundraiser for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. With each $100 rose came hope for a cure - and a chance to win two tickets anywhere American Airlines flies.
Guest speaker Richard Weiss told the story behind the 65 roses during dinner Saturday night at the Hyatt Regency Tampa. Almost 30 years ago, when he was about 4, he thought his mother said "65 roses" when she was really saying he had cystic fibrosis, a genetic disease that affects more than 30,000 U.S. children and adults.
Emcee Deiah Riley, WFTS-Ch. 28 anchor whose nephew suffers from the condition, spotlighted 24 "stars" who raised at least $1,000 each. "Star" Jaime Driggers brought in more than $15,000 on behalf of his granddaughter, Jordan, who has CF. On Monday, WFLZ 93.3 FM radio personality Dave the Dwarf moved into a Dumpster on Gandy Boulevard to collect donations to get the gala net total to $100,000, said Brandi GreenLeaf, the foundation's executive director.
SMELL THE ORCHIDS, TOO: The crowd was small but lively at Saturday night's Orchid Gala to benefit the Asthma & Allergy Foundation. Dancers from Evention Show Productions kicked up the volume Vegas-style for 125 guests in the Marriott Waterside ballroom. Before it was over, they'd be leading a Baked Alaska dessert conga line.
Honorary chairman Dr. Richard F. Lockey welcomed the newest member of the Orchid Club, WFLA-Ch. 8's Irene Mayer, inducted for reporting health issues vital to the 900,000 Floridians who suffer from asthma and the 4-million with severe allergic disorders. The club is named for the only non-allergen flower.
Orchid Gala-goers spied some celebrities in an adjacent ballroom where Tampa Bay Buccaneer Derrick Brooks celebrated his 31st birthday.
TORCH SONG TRIO: Now you can add lounge act headliner to soon-to-be former County Commissioner Pat Frank's lengthy resume. (She's a candidate for Clerk of the Circuit Court.) Sparkling in a yellow sequined jacket, Frank showed she's got the chops when she joined city arts maestro and Plant Museum board member Paul Wilborn and TECO senior vice president/pianist Richard Lehfeldt on the verandah of the old Tampa Bay Hotel on April 16. Her constituency: patrons of the H.B. Plant Museum. Their repertoire: 1940s standards to the Beatles.
"Our parties are always so tasteful and elegant, but this one rocked," said museum director Cynthia Gandee.
CREATE RAINBOWS: "Open your heart, open your home," said development officer Anthony Adamo, in an emotional appeal to adopt the abused or neglected kids living at the Children's Home. Adamo's words began the Home's annual Recognition Luncheon on April 14 at the Hyatt Regency Tampa.
Gospel vocalist Belinda Womack sang grace before 400 guests honored the founders of Outback Steakhouse as "exemplary corporate citizens." The restaurant chain supervised and paid for the renovation of the kitchen and dining room at the Children's Home. Tim Gannon and Bob Basham accepted the award; CEO Chris Sullivan was recovering from recent skin cancer surgery. Also missing: Gen. H. Norman Schwarzkopf who was resting up from a double knee replacement.
In August, some of the 60 kids living at the Home will have their own 13,000-square-foot wing in the new Helen Ayala Davis Elementary School built on 25 acres of the Home's campus on Old Memorial Highway. The Home recently deeded the land to the school board. Davis was applauded for a half a century of supporting the Home.
TAMPA LOOKS SOOOO GOOD: The cast gets decimated, but Tampa looks great in the action flick, The Punisher. At the April 15 premiere screening at Channelside theater, the VIP audience cheered every time they recognized one of the 52 locations used in the movie. Spotted before the lights dimmed: Melanie and Richard Gonzmart, George Williamson, Jack Shiver, Buddy Johnson, Sue and Joe House and Nancy and Peter Skemp.
The bloopers shown exclusively during the preview were fun. My favorite line in the movie is when hunky Thomas "The Punisher" Jane tells his neighbor at the end to "read the newspaper."
ORDER IN THE COURT: After a three-year hiatus, the auxiliary of Hillsborough County Bar Association reconvened for brunch at Laurin and Rex Farrior's home on Davis Islands on April 16. President Sharon Pizzo agreed to stay on another term to keep the 50-plus-year-old club on track. Besides socializing with other legal spouses, the group may take on some charitable work. In the past, they sponsored the courthouse exhibit at the Children's Museum.
BIG BIRTHDAY BLOWOUT: Florida Orchestra associate conductor Susan Haig celebrated her birthday (a nice round decade) with about 90 members of her fan club at a brunch hosted by Suzette and Monroe Berkman at their Bel Mar Shores home Sunday. The sunny day delighted the South Dakota transplant who shares her birth date - April 14 - with orchestra benefactor David Harbert who turned 64. Here's to many more happy birthdays.
- To pass along tips to Amy Scherzer, reach her at 226-3332 or scherzer@sptimes.com
[Last modified April 22, 2004, 13:26:57]
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