Happy Long Labor Day Weekend
Welcome To Our Great Town, GaYBOR/ Ybor City
Making plans to leave your town to go somewhere this weekend? Come and visit the charming GaYBOR/ Ybor City where there is Great Shopping, Hot Bars & Clubs with TOP Entertainment, Super Restaurants that are unequal in Cuisine and of course the convenient Hotels right in the heart of the district.
A list is easy as going to www.gaybor.com or www.MCFILMFEST.com
Hampton Inn & Suites, Don Vicente Historic Inn, Sheraton Riverwalk or Hilton Gardens Inn (Discount MC FILM & GaYBOR rates available). 6 blocks of great variety of fine eating establishments Mediterranean, Italian, Spanish or American BBQ. Bernini’s Italian, Carne’s Chop House, Hamburger Mary’s, Laughing Cat, La Terazza Italian, Green Iguana, Yo Bro Yogurt, New York New York Pizza, JJ’s Cafe, Centro Canteen are a few of the great choices.
Shopping couldn’t be any better than MC FILM, Agora or La France.
Over a dozen Club & Bar events are listed below…
A big hit this weekend is the GaYBOR Beach Blanket Bar Crawl on Sunday. 10 bars giving you a shot at each establishment! Starts at 4:30 at Hamburger Mary’s and goes from there.. Always a huge memorable fundraiser for the GaYBOR District Coalition.
$15.00 tix available at Hamburger Mary’s, Ybor City Wine Bar, Bradley’s on 7th and MC FILM.
Start your own new customs and traditions right here in GaYBOR/ Ybor City this Labor Day Weekend!
BRAVO Wedding To Be, Maybe 1st Lesbian Broadcast Wedding
Tampa residents and lesbian couple are finalist in the “Bravo TV Wedding Contest.” We are lucky to have a great couple locally representing one of the 5 finalist for the National Live TV Wedding.
Liz Hillen & Pam Di Muccio live together in Seminole Heights and are a pet rescue household. The physical therapist and prothetist orthotis met in a rehab center in Largo 15 years ago. The two women made each other laugh and the supervisor had to separate them for patients sake. They later went out on a date and it has been harmony since.
The Bravo TV competition is by the highest couple gathering the most votes gets a FREE wedding and ceremony that will be broadcast live on Bravo TV. 5 couples vying for the winning ceremony are straight, gay, interracial and our local lesbian couple.
“This would be history as the first lesbian couple to wed on TV.” said smiling Liz. You can vote up to 40 times. Every vote will be a vote for Tampa Bay and GLBT history. “We can’t get married legally in Florida now but we’ll make a major Florida statement if we get selected as the winning lesbian couple!”
The couple loves Broadway theatre, traveling, friends and pets. On a vacation trip to Maui in 2001 they found there last rescue dog on the side of the road. They took it to the local humane society and no one claimed the abandoned pet. They crated him back to Tampa from Hawaii. More on the couple go to their website www.VotePamandLiz.com
Besides the on air wedding the contest offers a massive catered reception and a new 2014 Fiat!
Voting takes place now through Sept 6th. www.bravotv.com/wedding .
The live wedding ceremony is set for Oct. 10th on the Bravo TV network.
Jazz Legend Marian McPartland, 92, Passes
One of the famous jazz legends and one of my favorite NPR shows passed away this week. Jazz pianist Marian McPartland, 95, was the host to many shows including the Sat night Peabody Award winning, ‘Piano Jazz.’ I had the honor of listening to her and musical guests for over 15 years traveling home from work in St. Pete and GaYBOR. She has received so many national jazz awards including one for her jazz performances from the Kennedy Center and NEA Jazz Master.
I love her comment about retiring. The living legendary jazz performing McPartland said,
” Retire? Why retire? I got a job! I am making money! I love what I do.”
She and her music will live on.
HCC Ybor Classes Are Back In Session
With the fall semester just beginning classes at schools & colleges across the country so is it at the campus at HCC Ybor. New students are starting a new life in getting their education for a new life future. More students are registering for classes as a beginning to their education then transferring to a 4 year college or major university.
The change in enrollment this year is different than the past couple of years. Years past students registered because of the local down turn in the unemployment & economy and wanted to further their education for better jobs. Most of the students enrolled this fall are 2013 high school graduates.
The GSA had a Welcome Party for new students in the campus park. Welcome Back HCC Students!