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HomeNewsArchivesBACCHANAL 2000 IN SARASOTA THIS WEEKEND

BACCHANAL 2000 IN SARASOTA THIS WEEKEND

Pull up a bottle of Cruzan, a few funny hats, your old flip-flops and lots of good stories, 'cause it's time for Bacchanal 2000 in Sarasota, Fla., this weekend, May 5-7.
The annual gathering of Virgin Islands ex-patriates, which started five years ago as a modest picnic in Fort Lauderdale, has blossomed into a three-day celebration where more than 350 partiers are expected.
According to Ann Johnson, one of this year's organizers, "It looks like most of the continentals that ever landed at Truman/King airport are on the list, plus many born-there's." She expects that this year "we have more coming up from St. Thomas than ever before."
Nicky Russell, the "Mighty Whitey," will bring his inimitable island voice to the festivities, as he did last year in Key West, where he serenaded the Friday night welcome party and continued into the long weekend.
This year's welcome starts at 5 p.m. Friday at the Radisson Resort at the outdoor bar on Lido Beach, where you can register, pick up your T-shirt, listen to steelpan sounds and get jamming with old friends. All the festivities take place on Sarasota's Siesta Key and Lido Key.
Saturday is an all-day party at Siesta Beach, with volleyball, a catered lunch, more steelpan music and, no doubt, more "Mighty Whitey." This is all in the shade of a pine grove with lots of picnic tables for the non-athletic.
The action winds up with a Bloody Mary farewell on Sunday from 9 a.m. until.
Among the old-timers expected at this year's party are Jo Tatum and Jack Chapman of All Island Air, Patty and George Hubschman (George flew for Antilles Airboats), longtime Antilles School teacher Martha Christiansen, Trudy Clark, Chris Pentland, Jean Whims, Nan and David Puritz and Carol Galvin. And this is only a glimpse of the guest list.
It's not too late to contact the committee, but hurry because they need to count noses as closely as possible. It's $40 for adults and $20 for youngsters 10 to 17 (plus getting yourself there, of course). This includes the Friday welcome party with open bar and complimentary food, Saturday's beach party and the Sunday farewell.
Several nearby hotels offer accommodations at reasonable prices. For further information, contact Ann Johnson at SNBOX@aol.com. (Does the address give you a hint of Johnson's St. Thomas career?)

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