YACHT CLUBS
58
TREASURE COAST BOATING
Things run fairly smoothly at the club until a disaster such
as a hurricane or fire strikes. In a December 1988 letter to
a previous club manager, Colleen Vachon, who was on the
board of directors and later became the club’s first female
Commodore, recalls the trials and tribulations of that year.
The club was in the process of remodeling the kitchen, dining
room and pool. Vachon says, “Well, we laid off the staff,
and proceeded into construction and ran into a bad floor
which had to be replaced; hoods so low the chefs would
have had to have been midgets; our equipment supplier was
sold and wouldn’t return our calls; the tile contractor had to
be fired and the tile ripped up and done again; gee, whiz, we
just had so much fun! Despite all, we opened only 7 weeks
after closing.”
Vachon goes on to describe the night that the club reopened
after rebuilding the kitchen and dining room. They had a
sold-out dinner with 100 people attending on a weeknight.
Vachon was tickled that her hard work overseeing the construction
was coming to fruition. But after leaving for the
evening, she got a phone call and immediately returned. “The
Pelican was in flames — I could not believe it standing in the
parking lot at midnight watching it all go up in smoke. The
firemen were superb; it was contained quickly, but she was
an old building. It started in the Pelican Room where the new
power joined the old power. The fire was so intense, I don’t
think that they will ever pin it down. But, we will persevere,
and the Pelican will be back, bigger and better than ever.”
The club did come back even stronger. In addition to its
93-slip marina, members can enjoy the pool, tiki bar, main
lounge, dining room and health and fitness center. Now celebrating
its 65th anniversary, the club is chaired by its third >>
The club has endured several disasters, including hurricanes and fire.
Shortly after major renovations, the club caught fire and had to be demolished
in 1988.
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