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October 16, 2008

"Endless Summer" beach bash: Trade frost on the pumpkin for frosty glasses

Rotary club plans beach-party dance

By Bethany Bray

Just when you thought it was time to break out the sweaters, the Andover Rotary Club has planned an evening all about flip-flops and island attitude.

The Rotary's "Endless Summer" dance, planned for Friday, Oct. 24, will have summer food and live music by the Baha Brothers, a band that opened for Jimmy Buffet when he played Fenway Park in 2004.

"It's one last fling before putting away the summer clothes," said Peter Cotch, a Rotary member who is organizing the fundraising event.

"This year, we decided to try something different, with an emphasis on fun," he said. "It's a chance for people to come out, have a good time, meet their friends, do some dancing and contribute to a worthy cause."

The Endless Summer party is the Rotary's main fundraiser for the year, Cotch said. Besides dancing, door prizes and sampling food and drinks provided by Dish caterers and Andover Liquors, party-goers can bid on both silent and live auction items, ranging from gift certificates to a week in a vacation home.

There will be a full bar, with margaritas, Cotch said, as well as beer, wine and sodas. The food will highlight the summer theme, with offerings including quesadillas, mini hamburgers and hot dogs, chips and salsa, cheese and fruit platters and an array of other appetizers.

To top it off, Dish has a "Margaritaville dessert assortment" planned, he said.

Attendees are encouraged — but not required — to wear beach wear, Cotch said, and "dancing is encouraged."

The evening's entertainment, the Baha Brothers, are a Massachusetts-based band known for their island mentality, said Cotch.

Their repertoire includes rock and pop favorites, including covers of everything from the Beach Boys to the Beatles to Garth Brooks — and, of course, Jimmy Buffet.

"These guys have played all over the U.S. They appear on stage in Hawaiian shirts, and maintain this beach-like disposition," he said with a chuckle.

The event will be at the Andover Town House, also known as Old Town Hall, at 20 Main St. Only 200 tickets will be sold because of the size of the function hall.

All of the proceeds from the evening will go directly to the Rotary's charities and educational projects.

Over the course of the year, Rotary pays for scholarships and an anti-bullying project in local schools, Cotch said. The club also donates time and money to other nonprofits, including the Merrimack Valley Trauma Intervention Program and Lazarus House soup kitchen. It buys turkeys and gifts for less fortunate families at the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays.

The Andover Rotary club has roughly 50 members, said Cotch, and anyone can join. Members meet Friday mornings at the Lanam Club on North Main Street.

"One of our goals is to get people familiar with Rotary, and get people to realize we do good deeds while having fun," Cotch said. "Our motto is service before self, but we like to inject an element of fun."

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"Endless Summer" beach bash: Trade frost on the pumpkin for frosty glasses
by By Bethany Bray , , Thu Oct 16, 2008, 02:02 PM EDT
Arts/Entertainment

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