Hello Fellow Gators!

Our Membership Picnic on Sunday, May 17th was a fabulous event. We had delicious food and drinks, great weather and the opportunity to connect with a lot of fellow Gators and guests. Thank you to all our members who came and special thanks to all the wonderful volunteers who helped to make it a big success.

We will have another Full moon Dinner on the Beach on Sunday, May 31st. Thank you to Lisa Smelcher for leading this.

Lisa Smelcher is leading a weekend event at Manatee Landing near Weeki Wachee on June 12-14. We will stay on the river and kayak plus join in an optional pontoon boat ride on Saturday. Please contact Lisa for more information or to sign up.

Space is still available on our Danube Bike and Barge trips. We have cabins available on the Budapest to Vienna trip and spaces for a single male or a single female on both trips. We are also offering an affordable option for a boat-only trip (without an extension in Budapest) for the Vienna to Budapest Bike and Barge at a low price of $3,995.

Join us on our exciting new “Music City” fall getaway trip to Nashville, staying at the Margaritaville Hotel downtown on October 11-16, 2026. For a price of only $1,290, double occupancy, you can enjoy the Jimmy Buffet “It’s 5 o’clock somewhere” ambience at the Margaritaville. We will be only 2 blocks from Nashville’s iconic Broadway, where you can experience the country music scene, bars, restaurants, honky tonks, distilleries, historical sites, and much more. It is also fall leaf viewing season and you can visit nearby parks to view them. The trip includes a club happy hour and a club dinner.

Our Vietnam and Cambodia Bike and Barge is now on sale! This incredible and exotic trip will allow you to experience the wonders of Vietnam and part of Cambodia. Please contact trip leader Kelly Lunsford for more information or if you’d like to sign up.

We have several exciting major trips on our docket:

· Vienna to Budapest Bike and Barge on July 25-31, 2026 (space for a single male or a single female)

· Budapest to Vienna Bike and Barge on July 28-August 8, 2026 (space available)

· Budapest to Vienna Bike and Barge (Boat-Only) August 1-8, 2026 (space available)

· South Africa and Victoria Falls Tour on September 8-22, 2026 (wait list)

· Nashville Margaritaville Hotel Fall Getaway on October 11-16, 2026 (space available, single male wanted)

· Vietnam and Cambodia Bike and Barge on October 27-November 14, 2027

We are considering a trip to Niagara Falls and Toronto for 2027 and are trying to gage member support for it. Please let me know if you would be interested.

We have a local Special Activities event that is mentioned elsewhere in this blast and is posted on our website:

· Weekend at Manatee Landing on June 12-14, 2026

We also have some Social events on our calendar:

· Happy hour this Friday at Grande's Bella Cucina

· Full Moon Dinner on the Beach on Sunday, May 31st

Please join us at our happy hours. You can meet other members and make new friends or reconnect with old ones! I would like to thank Letti Falko, Lorain Lyon and Ben Smith for their ongoing help as Gator Happy Hour Ambassadors.

I will continue to plan our weekly Friday night happy hours. Our VP of Socials, Lisa Smelcher, will be organizing some occasional Saturday happy hours.

I am looking forward to seeing you at some of our events and meeting our new members.

Thank you,

Sharon Long

VP of Special Activities

Mobile: (561) 768-6365

wmarussich@comcast.net