News to Know

In case you missed it, Linnea Hall of St. Petersburg, FL won our first towel contest. She submitted this photograph of her holding one of our awesome towels the furthest distance from the Tampa Bay Area - in Seattle, WA. That'd be about 2,600 miles away for those of you playing at home.

For her efforts, Ms. Hall won a cool $100. If YOU would like to win $100, enter our current Towel Photo Contest.

Between now and August, send us a photo of as many people as possible standing BEHIND a TBFB towel. At least one arm or one leg or the upper-half or the bottom-half of a body must be covered by the towel.

Sending a photo of planet earth peeking from one side of the towel will result in prolonged public ridicule. Otherwise, the winner and photo will be published in the August newsletter.

Send your photos to editor@tampabayfreebeaches.org.

You can acquire one of our towels in an array of tropical colors or a modest donation by clicking here.

Dear TBFB Board and Members:

President Rettig, Treasurer Clark, and I had a very busy week lobbying and advocating on behalf of all members in the TBFB family. Our education and advocacy brought us back before Pinellas County decision makers in our quest to set aside the East Beach in Fort DeSoto for nude recreation.

So far, TBFB has personally met six of the seven commissioners in Pinellas County, including Chair Peters. We also met with Sheriff Gaultieri, a most influential figure in Pinellas County politics, and left with positive feedback and an open door policy to discuss implementation and operations when the time comes.

The most important job the TBFB family can do at this juncture in the process of education and advocacy is for us to focus our efforts in building goodwill with each Commissioner by establishing friendships and trust. We accomplish this by participating and supporting their election or reelection campaigns through the Primaries (August 20, 2024) and General election (November 5th, 2024).

How can I help? Please reach out to President Rettig with your desire to help. All help, monetary or the gift of your time, is extremely valuable.

ACTION PLAN:  TBFB will seek to support our friends in the Commission and those running by doing the following:

We are now preparing to meet with the County Manager and his professional staff, including the Assistant County Attorney, and Parks Director. These are the meetings that will set in motion the creation of an Ordinance and Resolution securing and setting aside the East Beach at Fort DeSoto.

In closing we "THANK YOU" for your support, commitment, and vision.

Yours truly,

Ramon Maury
CEO, Maury Management Group
Healthcare & Government Solutions
Phone: (850) 222-1568
rm@ramonmaury.com
Maurymanagementgroup.com

Dear TBFB Members and Friends:

I am thrilled to report the ongoing success of our education campaign (advocacy) toward the goal of establishing a set aside nude beach in Pinellas County. 

We have concluded a week of scheduled meeting with several people. The goals for this week of meetings were aggressive. 

We scheduled to meet key Pinellas County figures in the following offices: County Attorney's Office, Sheriff, two individual County Commissioners, and the Chair of the County Commission. 

Every interaction was positive and informative. 

There was an last-minute cancellation by Commissioner Peters. A follow up meeting with Chair Peters will take place the week of May 8th to discuss our plan in detail and to solicit her assistance and support of the project and the ability for us to work with her professional county staff. 

Our visit with County Sheriff Gualtieri was welcoming, efficient, and interactive. Sheriff Gualtieri understands it is the job of the county commission to decide the issue of a set aside, but personally has no issue with a set aside or designation concept as presented, a palpable affirmation. The Sheriff also proffered “If there ever was such a beach, the East Beach at Fort DeSoto would be ideal." The Sheriff was versed on the topic and understands the recreational and economic benefit derived by niche tourism markets and the benefit they could derive to improve services for Pinellas County and its residents.

Opportunities for YOU to participate: 

A majority of the Pinellas County Commission are running for election and re-election, giving US, "TBFB”, the ideal and perfect opportunity to help our friends get elected to ensure our project becomes a reality.

Four county commission seats have open races in November 2024. Seats 1,3, 5, 7 are open. 

We, (EACH AND EVERY TBFB MEMBER) will need to help each of these candidates starting now thru November to build a friendship and develop trust. 

Maryanne and Jack will share with you in detail an opportunity we have with Commissioner Charlie Justice. 

Tampa Bay Free Beaches appreciates everyone’s support and you can contribute to assist us in this endeavor at www.tampabayfreebeaches.org.

Thank You.

Ramon Maury
CEO, Maury Management Group
Healthcare & Government Solutions
Phone: (850)-222-1568
rm@ramonmaury.com
Maurymanagementgroup.com

TBFB is looking for people with these skills:

FUNDRAISER: Do you have experience and expertise in raising serious cash for nonprofits? We’re not talkin’  bake sales, car washes, or bank robbery here. We’re looking for an individual who can work with our Board of Directors to raise $10,000 by the end of this year. This is a volunteer position. For more information, email jack@tampabayfreebeaches.com.

LEGAL EXPERT: Are you a Legal Eagle with a keen understanding of Federal and State laws pertaining to nonprofits? We need your volunteer expertise to keep us on the straight and narrow. (Billing rate: $0 per hour)  For more information, email jack@tampabayfreebeaches.com.

SOCIAL MEDIA GURU: We are looking for a  volunteer who really knows how to leverage social media to maximum advantage. We’re currently on Facebook, Instagram, X, and TikTok (although we haven’t figured out TikTok yet). Work with our creative team to make sure people are kept up-to-date with everything TBFB and take us to heights heretofore unknown! For more information, email dave@tampabayfreebeaches.com.