The Snowbirds’ Survival Guide
It’s that time of year down here in Destin – snowbird
season!
Who are the Snowbirds?
Since 1979, snowbirds – vacationers who “migrate” south to
sunny Florida for the winter months – have been an active part of the Emerald
Coast community, filling our beaches and towns with a lively spirit from
mid-November to mid-March. Most of our snowbirds are retirees, but they come
from all walks of life. They keep things going in the colder months while we
wait for peak season to arrive, and it would be a lot slower down here without
them.
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| Photo credit: http://destinsnowbirds.org/index.html |
In fact, they’re such a big part of our culture that they
have their own official club! The Destin
Snowbirds meet every Tuesday at the Destin Community Center on Stahlman
Ave., where they enjoy local entertainment, catch up on upcoming activities,
and hear about new events. Most of these meetings also end with door prizes,
donated by local businesses. There are 21 meetings over the entire season, with
double meetings (at both 8:30am and 11am) on Tuesdays in January and February.
What do the Snowbirds do?
The Destin Snowbirds first came together for camaraderie and
new friendships, but they also perform a lot of important work in the
community. Over the past 30 years, their club has worked with charitable
associations and organizations across the Destin area, including the American
Legion, Emerald Coast Concert
Association, Niceville High
School Chorus, Sons of Italy, Center for Life Long Learning, Emerald Coast Convention & Visitors
Bureau, Mattie Kelly Arts
Center, and much more. From marching in parades to organizing charitable
endeavors, the Snowbirds get as involved in Destin life as they can while
they’re down here. Every year, they even have a special golf event that raises
money for the American Cancer Society, in honor of two of their own.
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| Photo Credit: http://destinsnowbirds.org/cgi-bin/photoalbum/view_photo/3288622 |
Perhaps their largest event is the Soundsations Snowbird Concert, held this year on Sunday, February 10th, at 2pm in the Mattie Kelly Arts Center. The stars of this show are the talented students in the Northwest Florida State College (NWFSC) Soundsations Show Choir. These fine and performing arts scholarship students provide an entertaining performance from start to finish, and all for a great cause. Over the 20+ year history of this concert, the Snowbirds have raised more than $100,000 for the bursary program for students of the performing arts program at NWFSC. Tickets to this year’s show are $10, and are available only through the Destin Snowbirds Club.
How do I join?
Destin Snowbirds Inc. is run by a 9-person volunteer board of directors, with 30 other snowbirds serving as coordinators for activities as diversified as the interests of the members. Aside from these directors and coordinators, there are over 2,000 other active members in the Destin Snowbirds club.
If you’d like to get involved, membership is only $8 per
person. Registration ends Feb 4th. For more information, visit www.destinsnowbirds.org.
