News: Florida

Caloosa Winnies
Local Chapter

Dec. 3-6 the Caloosa Winnies and Funtime Travelers met at Oak Haven RV Park at Arcadia, FL for four days of fun and friendship! Thirty-nine coach families attended. We began with happy hour Thursday. Hosts for the weekend were Carole and Ed Gies, Jim and Sally Rayburn, Charlie and Ellen Zucker, and Nancy and Jerry Miller. We welcomed guests Ross and Jan Ziegler and Frank and Gerry Sementilli. The clubhouse was decorated for our Christmas celebration and set the mood for the weekend.

Our hosts served Thursday dinner of Souper Chicken with all kinds of dishes prepared by our members! We invited the park residents to join us for an Ice Cream Social and bingo games which everyone enjoyed!

Friday a shuffleboard tournament was organized for our group and the residents. Most everyone was outside participating—that was great fun! Inside, several of the ladies made Christmas ornaments from beads that turned out just great! Some of the group went shopping and others hung around and chatted in the clubhouse. Later we convened at the clubhouse for happy hour and then caravanned to Trattoria Limoncello, a local Italian restaurant for dinner.

Back at the clubhouse, our game of "Name That Tune" began. Teams were formed and we had to guess the title of songs and singers to accumulate points from the '50s and '60s music. The winning team of Doris Palmer, Diane Cipolla, Bob Ross, and Cliff Spiller took home the prizes!

Saturday at our business meeting, we had lots of discussion about our state rally next March and about GNR plans. A slate of officers for 2010 was voted on with the following people to be installed in January: President, Charlie and Ellen Zucker; Vice President, Pete and Corinne Wightman; Secretary, Jim and Sally Rayburn; Treasurer, Jim and Jane O'Neill. We were delighted to welcome the Zieglers and Sementillis as they decided to join the Caloosas!

The afternoon was free time for shopping, doing RV work, and visiting with friends. That afternoon everyone gathered at the clubhouse for happy hour, followed by dinner complete with all the great dishes prepared by all our good cooks!

After dinner, we held our annual "Pound Auction." Each person was asked to bring a pound package of something—wrapped. Soon our auctioneers appeared on the scene to begin the bidding! Charlie Zucker was dressed in an elf outfit, which was just hysterical! Mike Sofarelli took the microphone and described what he thought might just be in the packages. One package he described as a big package of Provolone cheese imported from Italy turned out to be a big skein of yarn!! Ed Tyndall was the elf that collected the money after the prizes were awarded from the bids—those three elves did such an outstanding job! It is a tradition that one of our group always has to get the package of toilet paper and Bill Fuss was again the high bidder on that package! It was noted that Larry Ireland got two packages of old rusty bolts—so are we starting another tradition here? The sidesplitting laughter was heard all over the park, the entire three hours was just a BLAST! The best part was we collected $1,200 total to be given as our donation to the local food banks.

The first camping weekend for the Caloosas was held at Riverside RV Park near Arcadia, FL with 30 coaches attending! Among them were five new ones with excited owners showing off their new homes on wheels! They graciously allowed the rest of the group to take a close look, and as a result, three other members ordered new coaches! The Caloosas are doing our part to keep those lines moving in Forest City!

Thursday, happy hour was held with President Jerry Miller welcoming everyone back from summer travels. An Ice Cream Social was held with everyone making their favorite sundaes! Cards and games were enjoyed for the rest of the evening.

Friday our hosts and other volunteers prepared our traditional Pancake Breakfast. Tours of the new coaches were next, and later beanbag baseball was a big hit! On our winning team were Cheryl Wilson, Gene Hogan, Belinda Feldgoise, Jim Brand, Charlie Zucker, Gerry Sciarrino, Jim Rayburn, Diane Cipolla, and Bud Swift! Happy hour commenced at 4:00 p.m. and we caravanned to Golden Corral Buffet for dinner. Later in the evening, we played "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire." The game brought lots of laughs, groans, and a team of winners: Corinne Wightman, Sally Rayburn, Jim Brand, and Larry Ireland. They didn't win a REAL million—just a plastic million-dollar bill! Prizes were also given to our winning baseball team and each received a certificate and box of Cracker Jacks!

Saturday the business meeting was held with lots of news about the upcoming season and March State Rally. President Jerry presented a certificate to new members, Frank and Diane Cipolla, who are the 50th members of the Caloosa Winnies! The rest of the afternoon was spent enjoying the sunshine, visiting with friends and shopping! Happy hour brought the group back together, followed with a delicious turkey dinner. Cards and games were played the rest of the evening.

It was such a GREAT weekend back with GREAT friends, and we look forward to the rest of our season! We invite anyone traveling in our area to join us for a weekend! We love visitors! Check our schedule at Who's Inviting Travelers or www.winniegators.org Web Site. Come to our March Rally in Orlando, FL Mar. 11-14! You'll be glad you did!

Nancy Miller 239-565-3115

Du-Bol Winnies
Local Chapter
By Donna Weitzel

Twenty-four coaches (48 people), plus six who drove in for Saturday, enjoyed the DuBol Winnies Thanksgiving Campout Nov. 19-22, at Kelly's Countryside RV Park, Callahan, FL. Ten coaches arrived Wednesday to hang out, experience the much awaited fall weather, and catch up on all the "wild" stories of summer travelers.

November is a big month for the chapter since it holds its Charity Auction where members bring all the items they cannot use and other members buy them as new treasures. Our Auctioneer is our incoming President, Jack Caffrey. He has been entertaining the members with his selling technique and stories for several years and the auction is always a success. This year we raised $857.

We also had two couples become honorary members of the DuBols. Between the two couples, they have 50 years of RVing experience. Our President, Jennie Pikula, presented both couples with certificates denoting their dedication to the DuBol Winnies and proclaiming them honorary members.
Our hosts for the weekend were JoAnn and Dick Davis, Claudia and Don Brideson, and Ferol and Ray Drust. The hall was decorated with fall leaves, coordinating tablecloths, pumpkins, and pilgrims paying tribute to Thanksgiving and all of the savory food that was served Saturday afternoon.

Eighteen coaches and seven others attended the December Campout Dec. 10-13 at Oaks 'N Pines RV Park in Lake City, FL.

The 2009 officers hosted the campout and had omelets-in-a-bag for breakfast Friday. The varieties of two-egg omelets were many, with each person getting a freezer Ziploc bag with two eggs and concocting their custom omelet with mushrooms, peppers, onions, tomatos, cheese, and crumbled cooked sausage. Everyone had their name on their bag and dropped them in a huge pot of boiling water. When the cook time was up, each claimed their omelet from the group boil. This is a great breakfast. We urge all clubs to try it.

We tried a hobo chili supper Friday night. This was a great success. Much laughter followed some exclamations at the chili—either it was too spicy or not spicy enough.

Saturday everyone arrived early for the Christmas lunch at the clubhouse. All were laden with food and gifts. Suncoast RV, our sponsor dealer, furnished the hams for the dinner and Eddie and Louise Jones (honorary members) cooked and brought the hams to the dinner. Our club abounds in good cooks and the Christmas dinner allowed everyone to strut their style.

After lunch the 2010 officers were installed. They are: President, Jack Caffrey; Vice President, Marian Benfield; Secretary, Donna Weitzel; and Treasurer, Cindy Hoffren.

Donna Weitzel

Florida Sunshine Winnies
Local Chapter
By Janice Underwood

The Dec. 3-6 campout was held at Lake Oklawaha RV Park in Fort McCoy, FL and hosted by Kathleen and Richard Bock. There were four coaches at this campout, the Bocks, Jack Collins, the Schultzes and the Underwoods. Lake Oklawaha RV Park is in a very remote location and the nearest town is 16 miles away. Thursday we went into town for an Italian meal.

Friday the guys decided to go into Palatka to the Wal-Mart but forgot to take a GPS with them and got lost and never found their way into Palatka. The ladies decided to go to a church bazaar and consignment shop in Fort McCoy, had no trouble at all locating either of them, and found a few bargains. In the afternoon, the ladies began their craft projects—making sock monkeys.

We held our potluck dinner, Christmas party, and gift exchange Friday in the clubhouse. Barbara and Bill Stewart drove up from Eustis to join in on the fun.

Saturday the guys went to Wal-Mart in Palatka, this time with a GPS to help them. The ladies stayed behind and worked on their craft projects. We again went into Fort McCoy for dinner at the Golden Skillet and everyone agreed the food was delicious.

President is Al Schultz 407-699-0228

Funtime Travelers
Local Chapter
By Ted Meekma

Ten coaches arrived Friday, Nov. 20, at Little Willie's RV Resort in Arcadia, FL, in anticipation of a fun-filled weekend together. Our hosts for the weekend were President, Carole and Ed Gies and co-hosts, Larry and Betty Ireland and Ted and Evie Meekma. What really made the weekend extra special was the addition and attendance of our three new couples: Jim and Edie Houlihan, Terry and Joan McDonald, and Jim and Ruth Schilk. We enjoyed having them with us and truly appreciate their membership.

Friday afternoon was spent visiting after the long summer break and having a lot of good conversation. We met at the Clubhouse for happy hour where we enjoyed cake and ice cream in celebration of the 15th anniversary of our Chapter.

As usual, most of our weekend was spent eating! Waaaaay too much food, but we sure all put it away!

Saturday night we had a "Best Western Attire" contest. The two best-dressed couples were Betty and Dave McLauchlin, first place, and Joan and Terry McDonald placed second. Both couples really looked great and it was a fun thing to do!

The last thing for the evening was our raffle. Everyone brought an unwrapped item to be raffled off to raise a little money for our chapter. This was fun and a good way to conclude our day.

Everyone had a wonderful time over the weekend evidenced by their seemingly reluctance to leave after all the goodbye hugs.

Just a reminder to check the Who's Inviting Traveler's section of the WIT magazine to view our chapter outings scheduled for the coming year.

Carole and Ed Gies 941-497-5700

Mid Florida Winnies
Local Chapter
By Ginny Wilson

Our November campout was held at Wild Frontier Campground in Ocala, with 31 people attending. Our hosts, Charlie and Ruth Monzillo and Don Kirkland and Helen Forsman, did a great job of keeping us active and well fed through the weekend.

Friday after a fun happy hour and taco supper, we were treated to several games of card bingo. Saturday's breakfast was prepared and served by our hosts, with the monthly meeting held shortly thereafter. During the meeting, we collected $75 to donate for postage to send care packages to our troops overseas. After lunch, many gathered to work on craft projects, while the rest of us had a game of golf ball toss (with the men winning), and a hot game of beanbag baseball (which the women won by 1 run!).

The RV dealership that owns the campground treated us to a wine and cheese party at happy hour and gave away several gifts to some lucky winners. Afterwards, we had a super turkey dinner with all the trimmings, and then a silent auction that created a lot of laughs and some tough competition! Some people even signed in their bid with made-up names to throw off their competitors! It was a lot of fun and raised $177 for our charity this year, Hope Lodge at Moffitt Cancer Hospital in Tampa. Congratulations were offered to Harry and Lois Jones on their 50th wedding anniversary and to Charlie and Ruth Monzillo on their 60th wedding anniversary! It was noted that we have eight couples in our club who have been married 50 years or more....way to go!

Seventeen coaches arrived at The Oaks in Bushnell on Dec. 4 for our holiday campout. Carolyn and Ed Jouret and Eileen and Chuck Cochran kept us busy and well fed throughout the weekend. We had Cincinnati Chili, which was a new twist on chili that we enjoyed. Saturday we gathered for our business meeting and installation of our new officers for the upcoming year: President, Tom and Sharon Zopff; Vice President, Dave and Donna Rumrill; Secretary, Ginny and Randy Wilson; and Treasurer, Barbara and Gil Trad.

That evening, we had a novel gift exchange, with Carolyn reading a story about Mr. and Mrs. Right and all the left and right turns they made, as we passed our gifts back and forth and around the room. After a lot of laughs and much misdirection, we landed up with a gift of food or drink that we could enjoy at our leisure. Everyone had a great time.

Chuck Cochran was kind enough to bring in two large pipes (and one tiny one) that were made out of stone by the Hopewell Indians (these Indians lived from 1,000 B.C., with the last known one dying in 1825). Chuck spends many hours during the summer teaching children about our Indian heritage, so these pipes were donated to him for use in his teaching. They were fascinating.

If you are going to be in the mid-FL area, please feel free to contact us—we'd love to have you join us at a campout!

Tom and Sharon Zopff tzopff@hotmail.com 352-638-2910

Panhandle Winnies
Local Chapter
By Jenese Truelsen

November: The FL Panhandle Winnies met at Luxury RV Park at Gulf Shores, AL, for the November Thanksgiving campout and dinner, Nov. 20-22.

Sales Rep. Mark Woltjen, who will be selling the Itasca motor homes in the near future, represented Camping World. He provided a gift certificate and invited everyone to come see the new and used rigs. We look forward to him joining our club and campouts.

Members with seventeen rigs enjoyed the weekend; two guests from the Miracle Strip RV Club joined us. Several people enjoyed indoor baseball in the clubhouse in the afternoon, but the score was a bit lop sided. Everyone had a good time trying to score and following John Ware's directions.

Friday we went across the street to the Original Oyster House for seafood, then played cards and games.

Wagonmasters Jack and Peggy Slevin and Jim and Priscilla Westgate treated us to a delicious dinner Saturday, compliments of Carpenter's Campers. After dinner, everyone enjoyed games in the clubhouse.

Being close to the outlet stores and the Oldtime Pottery, most people found the afternoons a good time for shopping. Carpenter's Campers in Pensacola donated several door prizes for the drawings that were held. Election of officers was held for installation in December.

December: The FL Panhandle Winnies had a festive December weekend with seventeen rigs being parked at Topsail Hill Preserve State Park at Santa Rosa Beach, FL, Dec. 10-13. Our wagonmasters treated the early campers supper in the clubhouse Thursday. Friday everyone made or found their own breakfast. Our campers do love to go shopping and eating out!

The group camping officially started Friday with a seafood dinner provided by our wagonmasters, Jim and Barbara Moore and Larry and Jeanne Daland. After dinner, the Dalands led a group to go caroling around the RV park. The other campers enjoyed being serenaded with Christmas carols and then met again to warm up with coffee and hot chocolate back at the clubhouse.

Larry Daland donated a homemade wooden snowman checkerboard for a raffle to raise money toward the 25th anniversary celebration. Kathy Meader won this. Jim and Barbara Moore gave us little smile gifts. Everyone got a tree ornament when they told about a memorable Christmas from the past—that was interesting. Wonderful, energetic wagonmasters!!

The Friends of Topsail Hill State Park fixed an egg breakfast complete with biscuits Saturday. Rick Patterson installed the officers for 2010: Marlan Truelsen, President, Ken Schlatter, Vice President; Kathy Meader, Secretary; and Lois Schlatter, Treasurer.

Kathy Meader and Jeanne Daland taught and supervised the etching of glass items. The ladies enjoyed that and are asking to do more another time.

Seaside Winnies
Local Chapter
By Joan Senus

Our November rally brought us to Fort Wilderness at Disney World. We had nine coaches in attendance. Marie and Frank Caccavo, who did a great job organizing and planning this event, hosted this rally.

After setting up Sunday, we had our usual attitude adjustment. This was the first time some of us had gotten together since spring so there was a great deal to catch up on. Later some of us went to Chili's for dinner.

Monday morning we sat around chatting. Our host handed out a list of things available to us at Disney and offered some suggestions. That afternoon we had another attitude adjustment and since we had a very late dinner, we just chatted away. Dinner that evening was at the Polynesian Village and the Ohana restaurant.

Tuesday was spent shopping and touring Disney, later we went to Joe's Crab Shack for dinner.

Wednesday after our business meeting, we went our separate ways to discover what Disney had to offer. That afternoon we went to The Contemporary Hotel and Chef Mickey's for a wonderful dinner. Thursday we met for a continental breakfast hosted by Marie and Frank, and then we gave our hugs and goodbyes for a safe journey home.

Dec. 7-11 was our rally held at The Great Outdoors resort in Titusville, FL. Our hosts were Neal and Jackie Kelley who did a wonderful job with the Christmas theme. Nine coaches attended the rally with everyone arriving Sunday.

Daytime was 'on our own' and we found lots to do. Quite a few of us took our Christmas cards to the nearby town of "Christmas" to get them postmarked. One morning some of the men played golf. We found plenty of eateries in the area, including a couple right on the grounds. Jackie had our evenings chock-full of food and games, one evening included a game of 'pass the gift' and 'Stuff Santa and Mrs. Claus' (we had to stuff as many balloons as we could into the over sized clothing that the Clauses were wearing)! Another evening we had our Christmas party with a feast and all the trimmings prepared by our hosts. That was followed by a gift exchange. Our gifts had to cost NO more than $11.28, be consumable, and be placed in a brown paper bag. What fun. A Christmas trivia contest was loads of fun. Making a nice time even nicer, Mickie and Dick Dodge, who own a site at TGO, were able to join us for the evening. One of our members owns a home in TGO and invited us for a late afternoon get-together. It was fun to see the lovely homes available.

Thursday after coffee, donuts, hugs, and kisses we wished each other a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year, and then headed home.

Bob Cook retairlinepilot@bellsouth.net 321-984-9419

South Florida Winnie Gators
Local Chapter
By Marlene Sholtes

Our Christmas campout took place at Upriver Campground. We had a great time, as usual. We got busy decorating our motor homes to brighten up the park. Thursday night we played Chase the Ace led by Damaris Travers and Marlene English. Estelle Armstrong was the lucky winner! Friday Lee Macdonald and Sylvia Smith led a group of ladies making leis for the March State Rally. Our members are now experienced and could probably get a job in Hawaii making them for visitors. Our members would probably enjoy that!

At our happy hour, the Raffle-Babes-In-Training, Mo Shaughnessy and Barbara vonMosch, were very festive in their "Christmas Aprons." The big winners were Silvia Peacock, Virgin Vandervlugt, and Harvey Peacock, and they donated their winnings to the campground's charity to help some needy families for the holidays. They were very thoughtful! We have the nicest people in our chapter. Our dinner Friday was a taste of Italy where everyone brings an Italian dish to share. There were so many different dishes to choose from and everyone was delicious! Following dinner was a raucous game of Crazy Cards led by Damaris Travers and Joan Gill. Dan Tuzzolo won and was the most raucous!

Saturday we went about delivering our Christmas cards to each other. We re-elected officers and board members for 2010 to be sworn in at the January meeting. Saturday was a very busy day for everyone. In the afternoon, we had our Annual Egg Nog and Cookie Party. Everyone brought a gift and was given a ticket to choose the order they would pick their gift. There were many fine gifts for everyone. It was also Dan Tuzzolo's birthday, and he thought this was a nice party for him. We did give him a birthday card and a balloon and he was very happy!

The party was quite lively with our energetic Santa helper Raffle Babes, Becky Bunn and Damaris Travers. Also manning the libation station were Joe Sholtes and Beverage-Dispenser-In-Training Lee Macdonald who were kept quite busy. The winners of the motor home decorations that was judged by campground personnel, were: 1st, John and Louise Maenner; 2nd, W.C. and Helen Herndon; and 3rd, Bill and Marlene English.

Raffle-Babes-In-Training Mo Shaughnessy and Barbara vonMosch.

Winnebago-Itasca Travelers