On Saturday, May 13th, Pace Center for Girls raced 30,000 rubber ducks down the Manatee River at Caddy’s Bradenton! As Pace’s Signature Fundraiser, the Lucky Ducky Race for Pace provides much needed funding for girls to have access to a quality education and the counseling they need to thrive.
The entire community came together to adopt ALL 30,000 rubber ducks, which raced for the chance at prizes. The 1st Place winner, Jeff Houser, won the opportunity to take home a Jeep Wrangler (2-year lease or $5,000) provided by Firkins Automotive; The 2nd Place winner, Katie Dean, won Weekly Dinner for Two for a YEAR at Anna Maria Oyster Bar (some restrictions apply); And the 3rd Place Duck, adopted by Cross Creek Environmental, scored an outfit a month for a Year at the Teal Turtle Boutique! Over 20 other prizes were won!
How did we get all those ducklings adopted? Over 70 teams led by community volunteers and local businesses competed in the weeks prior to see who could adopt the most ducks. The top Board-Led team, Team “Quackerjacks,” adopted 2,587 ducks (led by Dottie Turner, Amanda Horne, Darcie Duncan, Alanna Massey, and Katie Carter Benoit). The top Community-Led “Team Oelker” adopted 2,152 (led by Chelsea Oelker). We also had the help of partnering establishments including Anna Maria Oyster Bar, Sonny’s BBQ, Caddy’s Bradenton, Swordfish Grill, Duffy’s Tavern and DOGPerfect locations, spreading the mission of Pace to their customers and sharing the opportunity to adopt ducks in the race.
Sponsors covered expenses of the event so that all funds from the community adopting ducks will directly benefit Pace girls. Diamond Duck sponsors include Neal Communities, Mosaic, FPL, Pittsburgh Pirates/Bradenton Marauders, Publix Super Markets Charities, and Planet Stone. Pace expects to raise over $180,000 from this event. Ritch Ventures sponsored this year’s race for the first time and looks forward to supporting this worthy cause in the future.
All our race partners and sponsors can be found on the race website: www.LuckyDuckyRaceforPace.com.
Visit our Facebook page to follow along and be inspired by our girls and their stories: https://www.facebook.com/PACEManatee.
About Pace Center for Girls: Pace Center for Girls envisions a world where all girls and young women have power, in a just and equitable society. Founded in 1985, Pace provides free year-round middle and high school academics, case management, counseling, and life skills development in a safe and supportive environment that recognizes and deals with past trauma and builds upon girls’ individual strengths. Dedicated to meeting the social, emotional, and education needs of girls, Pace has a successful and proven program model that has changed the life trajectory of more than 40,000 girls and is recognized as one of the nation’s leading advocates for girls in need. For more information on Pace Center for Girls, visit www.pacecenter.org