Krewe of Zingaro delivers Christmas presents and cheer to campers at Eckerd Connects E-Nini-Hassee
For Immediate Release
Media Contact:
Felicia Migone or Chris McClung
secretary@zingaro.org
(913) 306-1454 or (910) 551-3135
Krewe of Zingaro delivers Christmas presents and cheer to campers at Eckerd Connects E-Nini-Hassee
(Floral City – FL) Members of the Krewe of Zingaro participated in their most treasured yearly tradition once more. After collecting customized wish lists from each of the campers at Eckerd Connects’ E-Nini-Hassee, they completed all the shopping in one morning and met at a member’s home to wrap the gifts.
This Christmas delivery is the Krewe’s largest event each year. “We support this program because we all believe and recognize that the youth of today are our future and we want to afford them with some of the same opportunities that other kids have,” one participant shared. E-Nini-Hassee is an outdoor therapeutic program for at-risk girls in the southeast. The camp provides a positive, strength-based environment for girls ages 12-18 to experience nurturing guidance. Each girl receives individualized treatment and an accredited on-site education.
“(This yearly Christmas outreach) is an opportunity to meet with very bright and talented young women, sharing our own stories with them, answering questions, and building positive relationships. None of the young women at Camp ENH asked to be born into the situation they find themselves in, and we believe they deserve the same opportunities as any other child, or our own children, and so we try to provide that to them in some part via celebrating Christmas with all of them just as we do with our own families.”
The Krewe of Zingaro delivered presents to 22 young women this year and look forward to repeating the tradition in 2023.
About Eckerd Connects
Eckerd Connects was founded in 1968 by Jack and Ruth Eckerd with the belief that everyone deserves the opportunity to succeed. The national nonprofit organization has connected about 316,000 people to the help they need through programs in job corps, workforce development, juvenile justice, and family & children services.
For more information about Eckerd Connects, visit www.eckerd.org.
About the Krewe of Zingaro:
The Krewe of Zingaro traces its roots back to the intrepid pirate days of Jose Gaspar. In 1783, the Gypsy Krewe of Zingaro rescued a young Spanish Navy Lieutenant after he was injured and thrown from his ship during fierce naval battle. This act of kindness forged a friendship between Lieutenant Gaspar and the gypsies lasting over thirty years.
Throughout Jose’s pirating career, this band of gypsies was entrusted the secret location of his ill-gotten loot and booty of GOLD. Although no one has found Gaspar’s hidden treasure, the exact location of Gaspar’s fortune has been passed from generation-to-generation of Gypsies through the Gypsy monarchs.
To this day, trusted members of The Krewe Of Zingaro are the only ones who know the location of Gaspar’s treasure. Once a year, The Krewe returns to collect a small amount treasure and give it back to the people of Tampa.
Today, the Krewe of Zingaro is a not-for-profit, social and charitable organization. Zingaro (Gypsy in Italian), is one of the most active, fun, and charitable Krewes in Tampa Bay. Now entering its 25th year, Zingaro supports several charities and participates in several volunteer events throughout the year. Those charities include Eckerd Connects Camp E-Nini-Hassee, City of Tampa Paint Your Heart Out, Blue Star Mothers, the Humane Society, Big Brothers-Big Sisters and previously the St. Joseph’s Hospital Foundation and Children’s Cancer Research Group. To date, Zingaro has raised well over $500k for charities in the Tampa Bay area. For more information, please visit our website www.zingaro.org.