Florida Senate - 2013                            (NP)    SR 1916
       
       
       
       By Senator Bean
       
       
       
       
       4-05505A-13                                           20131916__
    1                          Senate Resolution                        
    2         A resolution recognizing the 50th anniversary of the
    3         Isle of Eight Flags Shrimp Boat Races and Festival.
    4  
    5         WHEREAS, Fernandina Beach is the birthplace of the modern
    6  shrimping industry and, for more than a century, has produced
    7  the finest wild-caught shrimp brought in by skilled, hardworking
    8  fishermen plying the inland and offshore state and federal
    9  waters of the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico, and
   10         WHEREAS, the Shrimp Boat Races and Festival began in 1963,
   11  under the guidance of Dee Dee Bartels, president of the
   12  Historical Society, with assistance from Melvin Daugherty, Billy
   13  Burbank, Jr., Joe Tringali, and Ray Caldwell, and
   14         WHEREAS, the Cook, Tringali, and Lang families were the
   15  first to participate in racing, with the late Dave Cook’s
   16  daughter, Arnez Cook Jones, playing an active role in shrimping
   17  history, and
   18         WHEREAS, Caterpillar and other businesses supported the
   19  race and donated prizes, and family members prepared, served,
   20  and sold seafood gumbo, and
   21         WHEREAS, shrimp boats racing during the 1960s and 1970s
   22  included the Captain D. A. Cook, Sr., the Lady Annie, the
   23  Charlie B., the Annie, the Haze, the Atlantic Sun, the Dixie
   24  Queen, the Jerry and Linda, the Miss Melody, the Miss Louise,
   25  the Miss Nina Jo, the Beach King, the Florida Boys, the Wanda
   26  Peggy, the Eight Flags, the Lady Belle, the Mr. Fox, the Little
   27  David, the Murdock, the Pryor, the Ebb Tide, the Chickadee, the
   28  Miss Hazel, the Jitterbug, the Golden Isles, the Gray Ghost, the
   29  Miss Carol J., the Delores D., the Capt. Flossy, the Golden
   30  Knight, the Golden Nugget, and others, and
   31         WHEREAS, Fernandina Beach native Wendell Herbert
   32  McCollough, born in 1914, held the distinction of being the only
   33  African-American shrimper to enter and win the Fernandina Beach
   34  shrimp boat races, winning in 1969 on Joe Tringali’s boat, the
   35  Ebb Tide, and
   36         WHEREAS, the shrimp boat races signaled the start of the
   37  shrimping season, and, in the 1970s, the Eight Flags Shrimp Boat
   38  Races was renamed the Isle of Eight Flags Shrimp Boat Races and
   39  Festival, and
   40         WHEREAS, shrimp boat races continued until 1974, when the
   41  cost of fuel became prohibitive, and
   42         WHEREAS, shrimpers continue to contribute to the well-being
   43  and quality of life of their families and all Floridians,
   44  playing a vital role in competing with imported farm-raised
   45  shrimp, providing jobs, and contributing valuable natural
   46  resources to the local economy and community, and
   47         WHEREAS, in 2005, as part of the celebration of Super Bowl
   48  XXXIX, the Shrimp Producers Association and the Amelia Island
   49  Fernandina Beach-Yulee Chamber of Commerce organized an event,
   50  and Janie Thomas secured a permit that allowed two shrimp boats,
   51  representing the Philadelphia Eagles and the New England
   52  Patriots, respectively, to race and 36 shrimp boats representing
   53  different NFL and AFL teams to participate in the “Super Shrimp
   54  Boat Race and Parade,” the “Super Hermit Crab Races,” and the
   55  “Super Shellfish Feast,” and
   56         WHEREAS, shrimpers have earned the respect of the general
   57  public for their dedication and contribution to people’s lives,
   58  working positively with the state and federal governments to
   59  protect sea turtles and other marine life using efficient and
   60  effective devices, NOW, THEREFORE,
   61  
   62  Be It Resolved by the Senate of the State of Florida:
   63  
   64         That we recognize the 50th anniversary of the Isle of Eight
   65  Flags Shrimp Boat Races and Festival.