Chamber to ‘elect’ honorary mayor of NFM Friday
Doug Dailey is no longer going to be North Fort Myer’s honorary mayor for life.
Dailey will finally give up the sash when the North Fort Myers Chamber of Commerce “elects” its next honorary mayor at the Chamber offices at the Shell Factory on Thursday in its first big event of 2023.
The two candidates, Reid McDaniel and Melissa Martin, have been out on the campaign trail, trying to gather “votes” and holding events to earn as many of them as possible.
Each dollar the candidates raise is equal to a vote. The candidate who raises the most money will become the honorary mayor and will represent the chamber for ribbon cuttings, grand openings, and other events throughout North Fort Myers.
On Saturday, Martin took to the trail by holding a bikini car wash fundraiser in the parking lot of McDaniel Insurance Solutions in the friendly competition.
“I was asked by Reid to run against him. He needed an opponent,” Martin said. “I just moved here and it’s been a lot of fun to be in it. I hope they continue with this.”
Unfortunately, the temperature was 55, not 85, meaning instead of Hooters girls in bikinis, it was Hooters girls in sweats and ski caps due to weather-related accessorizing.
“The girls have gotten through this well. We’ve raised a few hundred dollars. The weather hurt us. Some of the girls didn’t show up because of that,” Martin said.
Martin’s daughter, Kirstin, came up with the idea, saying that as a cheerleader in high school in Joplin, Mo., car washes did really well.
Kirsten, who works at Hooter’s, called some of her co-workers and another friend who works at Twin Peaks to help out with the fun fundraiser.
“They’ve always been a good fundraiser and made a lot of money from them. We’ve done pretty well here,” Kirstin said. “It’s chilly, but I’m from Missouri so this is normal for me.”
McDaniel held a golf tournament in December that raised nearly $8,000. It was so successful that the tournament could become an annual event where all candidates for honorary mayor can have the opportunity to raise money in their own creative ways.
But why allow your “opponent” to use your parking lot to garner votes?
“It’s about bringing the community together for the Chamber and the scholarship fund for local students. We’re bringing this back this year and next year we hope to make it bigger and better than ever,” McDaniel said.
For more information, visit www.nfmchamber.org.