The Civilized Life in Sarasota: Community Video Archives' Hall of Fame Luncheon

Four dedicated, fun, and inspiring honorees composed the inductions to this year's Community Video Archives' (CVA) Hall of Fame. The luncheon, held at Michael's On East, is always a must-attend on the Sarasota social calendar, so of course, I was there!

Chris Pfahler chaired the event for the seventh (!) time and Judy Fiala was once again the emcee. The grande dame of the day though was CVA president and founder, Annette Scherman. What a wonderful gift she has given the community by producing this treasure trove of local history. She mentioned at the luncheon that there have been over 16,000 borrowings for CVA videos over the years.

Isabel Norton, a long-time community volunteer, Nate Jacobs, founder and artistic director of Westcoast Black Theatre Troupe, Janice Zarro, Women's Resource Center's Executive Director, and Charlie Huisking, retired from a long career as the arts and entertainment writer for the Herald Tribune, were the the 2013 class of inductees. Of course, these brief descriptions are just the tip of the iceberg of the accomplishments of these four. Each one has been a true leader in our community for many, many years and I am honored to be friends with most of them.

I love to see the video snippets of each inductee. The childhood photos especially are usually "ahhh" inducing and usually the teenage photos are good for a little chuckle, as hairstyles are always, ahem, interesting!

One of the best things about this luncheon is that it always runs on time. You are in and out within an hour, but it does not feel rushed. If you have a flexible schedule, there is also plenty of time afterwards to mix and mingle, as most stay around and chat for at least another hour.

Others seen in the crowd were Lydia McIntire, Gayle Guynup, Larry Thompson, Wendy Resnick, Richard Storm, Renee Pastor, Eva Slane, Roberta Hamilton, Beth Knopik, Pam Truitt, John Horne, Dr. Donal O'Shea, Roberta MacDonald, Bob Turoff, Robin Serbin, Lee Peterson, Susan Featherman, Betsy Kane Hartnett, Kim Githler, Laurey Stryker, Carolyn Spizzirro, Audrey Coleman, Anne Garlington, Marjorie Peter, Betsy Bagby, Dr. Henry Porter, Mary Anne Servian, Iain Webb, Barbara Zdravecky, Nancy Roucher, Scott Atkins, Flori Roberts, Roxanne Joffe, Karin Gustafson, Michael Saunders, Ron and Rita Greenbaum, and oh so many hundreds more.