Over Coffee
Chapter Celebrates Its Year by Honoring Its Own
By Penny Fletcher
May 8, 2008 - 7:51:00 PM

I was one of the few in the room drinking regular coffee at 8 p.m. after a meal featuring homemade quiche and bread pudding at the Southern Comfort Bed & Breakfast in Ruskin. Most of the other women had decaf or tea in their fine china cups.

Not me. Knowing I would be up until at least midnight anyway, with my granddaughter out of school for a teacher’s planning day the next day, I went ahead with regular coffee after dinner and the special house blend made me glad I did.

Members of Beta Sigma Phi’s Laureate Zeta Pi Chapter invited guests – including me –  to the annual celebration dinner they hold at the end of each fiscal year. This year the dinner was May 1, and in less than two hours, those who attended witnessed the change of presidents, from Olga Baylis to Carolyn Warner; heard the announcement of Community Woman of theYear; listened to young Christian gospel singers perform Amazing Grace; and seemed to enjoy my short talk about two of my favorite subjects: motherhood and writing.

The peaceful environment at Southern Comfort was perfect for the group’s annual celebration of mothers at its last meeting before Mothers Day, and the formal dining room setting and country-inn style fireplace made a good backdrop for the evening’s entertainment, as Rachel and Ryan Modrow sang to Ryan’s accompanying guitar. Rachel, 18, was the chapter’s 2007 scholarship recipient and now attends the Honor Institute at Hillsborough Community College. Home-schooled from kindergarten through 12th grade, Rachel maintains around a 4.0 average as she studies pharmacy and nutrition. Ryan, who is 16, has never had a music lesson. “He taught himself guitar,” said his mom LuAnn, who also serves as “teacher” for all four of her children.

The highlight of the evening was the presentation of the chapter’s Community Woman of the Year to Marie Musgrove, a Sun City Center resident who was described as “someone whose middle name is volunteerism,” by presenter Mary Lutz.

Marie, who was a resident of Apollo Beach for 40 years and moved to Sun City Center eight years ago, was also recently chosen South Bay Hospital’s Outstanding Volunteer of theYear.
“I’m just blessed with good friends (who nominate her for these awards),” she said when interviewed after receiving the sorority award.

Talking with Marie I found that besides her work two nights a week on the reception desk at South Bay, she is very active in ministries at St. Anne Catholic Church in Ruskin, including counting money after services and serving as a lay Eucharistic minister. Marie has also been an usher at the Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center for almost 20 years.

But Mary’s description of Marie’s volunteerism goes much farther than that. “She takes people to the doctor and to run errands and helps them out in many ways whenever they need it, even keeping pets so they can go on vacation,” Mary said while presenting the award.

So congratulations again, Marie. And thanks to event chairwoman Norma McNally for asking me to take part in this group’s annual event. I seldom get to drink coffee with so many women at once!

*Perhaps you have something you’d like to share. Or maybe you’d rather tell the community about your favorite charity or cause: or sound off about something you think needs change. That’s what “Over Coffee” is about. It really doesn’t matter whether we actually drink any coffee or not (although I probably will). It’s what you have to say that’s important.

Penny Fletcher Photo ollowing being chosen as her sorority’s Community Woman of theYear May 1, Marie Musgrove listens to Rachel and Ryan Modrow perform “Amazing Grace.” Rachel, 18, was last year’s recipient of the Beta Sigma Phi Laureate Zeta Pi Chapter’s scholarship and now attends the Honor Institute at Hillsborough Community College.

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