Rotary provides thank-you lunch to town employees

Town of Longboat Key public works employees were first in line to get lunch from a food truck set up at the Town Green on Wednesday.

The tab? Don’t worry about it, said Rotary Club of Longboat Key, which decided to hold a free lunch event to recognize all town employees for their hard work rebuilding from three hurricanes in 2024.

Jake Schunk, a service worker in the public works department, said cleanup recovery was “just work” but that it took months to get the island back in shape. Trimming trees, clearing drain pipes and sweeping up a mountain of sand was all part of the job.

As he sat down with a hamburger, fries and Coke at a picnic table on his lunch break, he said he “definitely feels appreciated.”

Oyster River Ecology was at the event demonstrating how to make an “oyster rag pot” using a wooden spacer, cotton rag, lawn spike and concrete mix and Tim Delaney of “Steely Pan” played the steel drums at the pavilion, contributing a tropical background tune.

The Rotary Club of Longboat Key organized and sponsored the event, with Panhandle Cleaning and Restoration and Longboat Key Dental also helping pay the tab. Rotary Club Service Chair Jeff Driver said he expected the total cost of the event to be about $5,000.

“The real intent was just to show gratitude to all the employees of Longboat Key having worked through the recovery process after a natural disaster of the magnitude of Helene and before that Debbie and Milton after that,” Driver said. “We really just wanted to recognize that hard work.”