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About
Us—Suncoast Pride…a global destination
We are Suncoast Pride, Inc.—a global destination. And that
is what we are working to do—make Sarasota a global destination
that will attract people from near and far to attend our events.
We are a group of people, both straight and gay, who have joined
together to bring entertainment suitable for both communities to
Sarasota. We are growing, and we invite you to join us. We are in
the process of incorporating as a nonprofit corporation.
Suncoast Pride, Inc. devotes itself to enriching the lives of gays,
lesbians, bisexuals, transgenders, and their family members and
friends by providing opportunities for positive interaction among
all people of the Sarasota community and the State of Florida. This
is accomplished through charity, cultural, education, and/or entertainment
events, which will draw attention to contributions of the GLBTF
community and encourage all people to support each other. Our central
goal is to celebrate the human community. We do not discriminate
with regard to age, creed, economic or health status, gender identification,
national or cultural origin, physical ability, religious affiliation,
or sexual orientation.
One of our long term goals is to revive an old Sarasota custom of
holding an annual King Neptune Festival. This old custom disappeared
from the scene during the late 1970s after having been enjoyed for
many years by the residents of Sarasota. We want to revive the tradition
to include a full week of festivities, culminating with the crowning
of and parade of King Neptune and his Queen. Our aim is to provide
an exciting event that will draw visitors from all over Florida
and, for that matter, the United States.
We have begun small—by holding events which are of interest
to all as frequently as possible. These events range from a 50s
sock hops to alfresco movie nights held in the street to gala evening
celebrations. Some are free while others will have small costs.
Some will be charitable in nature. All will be open to everyone.
Organization
Suncoast Pride consists of a Board of Directors made up of no fewer
than five members or more than thirteen. Vacancies on the Board
are filled by a nomination from Board members in good standing and
the Board’s subsequent approval by a quorum present.
These are the members of the current Board of Directors:
Richard
Day, Chair
RichardDay@SuncoastPride.org
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Former
operator of beauty salons and schools in the United
States and Mexico
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Former operator of restaurant and catering business
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Former builder and home remodeler
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Co-owner of John Carl Spa and Salon in Sarasota
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Father of four children
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Partner:
Ray
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Jim
Ferri, Vice Chair
JimFerri@suncoastpride.org
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Retired from IBM
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Former president of Charter IBM Employees Club in Charlotte,
North Carolina
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Former treasurer, building committee member, head of interior
design, and advisory board member of Methodist church in
North Carolina
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Former board member of Names Project: The AIDS Memorial
Quilt
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Former treasurer and steering committee member for "An
Event in Three
Acts,” national AIDS awareness production
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Former volunteer at Ringling Museum
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Former chair of medieval fair
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Former member of GLBT Sarasota Community Center Exploratory
Group
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Chapter treasurer of Take Off Pounds Sensibly
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Coordinator of Bi-County Gay and Lesbian Koffee Klatches
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Founder, creator, and distributor of "Ferri
Things to Do" newsletter
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| Shari
Shepard, Secretary
ShariShepard@suncoastpride.org
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Creator of designs for business and charitable promotions
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Specialist in fundraisers, fashion shows, sales events,
private shopping events, public/private catering, and interior
design
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Owner
of DETAILS! Event Management and Public Relations Firm in
Sarasota
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Dan
Beswick, Treasurer
DanBeswick@suncoastpride.org
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Retired after twenty-seven years from U.S. Government
Employment
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Retired after fifteen years of small business ownership
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Volunteer with specialty in Bromeliads at Selby Botanical
Gardens
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Volunteer at and member of First Congregational United Church
of Christ
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Former board member of Sarasota Pride, Inc.
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Board member of PrimeTimers Sarasota
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Avid walker
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Two sons, two grandsons
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Partner: Ron
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Pamela
Henley, Historian
PamelaHenley@suncoastpride.org
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Teacher at European Academy in Nokomis
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Teacher at Island School in Boca Grande
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Teacher of private piano lessons
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Former state board member and holder of Special Learners’
Chair
in Ohio Music Education Association
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Former member of and speaker at local, state, and national
levels for Ohio
Arts Education Advisory Committee
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Former president of Cincinnati chapter of Ohio Brain Injury
Association
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Member of Derby Day Committee and creator of scholarship
for Hippotherapy
program at Smith Center
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Mother of twins
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J.
Raymond Peper, Member
RaymondPeper@suncoastpride.org
- Co-owner
of John Carl Spa and Salon in Sarasota
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Retired as project coordinator, fixture superintendent
trainer, and visual merchandise manager from Sears, Inc.
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Former consultant for Sterling Department Stores
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Studied at Maryland Institute College of Art
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Volunteer for ASID Show houses to Benefit Boys’ and
Girls’ Clubs, Community AIDS Network, Circus Sarasota,
Cystic Fibrosis
Garden Tour
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Two children
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Partner: Richard
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Membership
We ask your help in achieving our goals. If you believe in and support
our mission, we welcome you to join our group by completing a membership
application. Membership is FREE. Download
(PDF format) and complete this application and mail it to Suncoast
Pride, Inc., 935 N. Beneva Road, Suite 609-47, Sarasota, FL 34232.
Mission
Statement
Suncoast Pride, Inc. devotes itself to enriching the lives of gays,
lesbians, bisexuals, transgenders, and their family members and
friends by providing opportunities for positive interaction among
all people of the Sarasota community and the State of Florida. This
will be accomplished through charity, cultural, education, and/or
entertainment events, which will draw attention to contributions
of the GLBTF community and encourage all people to support each
other. A central goal will be to celebrate the human community.
We will not discriminate with regard to age, creed, economic or
health status, gender identification, national or cultural origin,
physical ability, religious affiliation, or sexual orientation.
Exempt Organization
Suncoast Pride, Inc. has applied for exempt organization status
under Internal Revenue Code Section 501(c)(3).
Newsletter
Suncoast Pride will periodically publish a newsletter or issue items
of interest. If you would like to be added to our email list for
the newsletter, please
click here.
Volunteers
We are in constant need of volunteers to help with the many varied
activities and events which we produce. We hold an “open house”
every couple of months for the purpose of orientating interested
individuals to the organization. We encourage you to attend one
of these events to find out more about Suncoast Pride, Inc. To enroll
in the next “open house,” send an email to the Postmaster@SuncoastPride.org
telling us of your interest and providing your name, address, phone
number, email address and what areas you might be interested in
working.
Links of interest
Sarasota
Calendar, Sarasota Community and Events Calendar
Church
of the Trinity, MCC, 7225 N. Lockwood Ridge Road, Sarasota,
FL 34243
First Congregational UCC,
1031 South Euclid Avenue, Sarasota, FL 34237
Southwest
Florida Business Guild, P. O. Box 49802, Sarasota, FL 34230-6802
Sarasota
Pride, Inc. P.O. Box 5265, Sarasota, FL 34277
ALSO Out Youth,
1470 Boulevard of the Arts, Sarasota, FL 34236
PrimeTimers
Sarasota, c/o 7452 Eleanor Circle, Sarasota, FL 34243
Manasota
GLBT Community Center (GaySarasota)
FerriThingsToDo,
Sarasota, FL 34240
Gulf Coast Men's Chorus,
P.O. Box 2453, Sarasota, FL
34230
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