Kiwanis Lawn Party moved to November

Because of location conflicts, the Longboat Key Kiwanis Club Gourmet Lawn Party will be moved to Nov. 23, organizers said.

The popular event traditionally takes place in December at the Resort at Longboat Key Club, but because of construction, the event was postponed until March and was set to take place on the grounds of the former Colony Beach & Tennis Resort at 1620 Gulf of Mexico Drive.

But now, because of the new time and other conflicts, organizers have decided to bring it back closer to its traditional home in late November.

“There’s enough factors here that really have caused us to look at alternatives, and so we want to make sure that we have a great event, and so this is a good solution for that,” Kiwanis President Steve Branham said.

“We’re thankful for Mr. [Chuck]Whittall’s willingness to help us with this event. … It’s just tough to pull it all together.”

The party will honor the late Dr. Murray “Murf” Klauber, who died on Nov. 22, 2018, almost a year to the day of this year’s event. During the lawn party, there will be a ceremony honoring Klauber and some of his protégés in the local restaurant community.

The event will benefit the Kiwanis Club scholarship efforts. 

Branham said that the postponement of the lawn party might effect the number of scholarships or amount of each scholarship it awards in August, but the club will still work toward raising the money with its annual Pancake Breakfast.

This year’s breakfast will be from 7-11 a.m. March 30 at St. Mary, Star of the Sea, Catholic Church.