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.  

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. 

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 10^th, 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.