A local nonprofit club is taking sail here in the capital city, and preparing for their 16th annual event, which will fundraise for Alzeimher patients.

This club, known as the Tallahassee Parrot Heads, was founded in 1996.

The Tallahassee’s Parrot Heads is a part of the national organization, the Parrot Heads in Paradise, Inc., which was founded in the 1990s as a fan club of Jimmy Buffet, which is where the name “Parrot Heads” comes from.

According to the national organization’s website, the purpose of the organization is to promote the international network of Parrot Head Clubs as a humanitarian group sharing information and social activities for mutual benefits.

“We have a lot to drink about,” the club states, a claim that keeps the spirit of the club’s purpose alive: the Parrot Heads like to drink, do good for their community, and gather together for a good time.

The Tallahassee Parrot Heads Club currently has 135 members, and raises money to donate to local organizations.

This year alone, the club has already raised $9,000 for various local causes.

The Parrot Head club allows members to choose the organization that they would like to donate to, as well as providing hundreds of volunteer hours to the community.  

“As a club, we help a lot with the disabled community,” Ron Crolla, President of the Tallahassee’s Chapter said. “We sometimes build steps and ramps for homes of the disabled, but that is just a small part of what we contribute to the community.”

The local club donates to other charities, such as the Triple R. Horse Rescue - a local charity that helps and protects abused or neglected horses in the Tallahassee area. 

Each meet and greet that the club hosts also functions as a fundraiser, with the gathered funds donated to a local organization that the members select.

The local Parrot Heads meet twice a month, on the first and third Wednesday of each month, but they also attend meetings and events hosted by fellow clubs in surrounding areas.

“Each year we attend the St. George Chili Cookout, located on St. George Island,” Crolla said.

The Tallahassee club hosts several major functions each year, such as the Pub Crawl for Charity, a bimonthly road cleanup, an annual Alzheimer’s Walk, house concerts, and perhaps one of its biggest events: the annual Parrothead Phrenzy.

The Tallahassee Chapter of the Parrot Head Club started with the purpose of celebrating Jimmy Buffet, but continues with the desire to do good in the community. The Parrot Heads, as they are called, get together to celebrate all things pirate and tropic, raise a glass while raising funds, and volunteer in the Tallahassee area.

Tallahassee Parrot Head members are currently gearing up to host their 16th annual Parrothead Phrenzy on Saturday, August 13, at The Moon nightclub.

The Parrothead Phrenzy will take place from 6:30 to 11:30 p.m., and will serve as a fundraiser for The Alzheimer Project. 

According to Penny Weimer, chairperson to the Tallahassee Parrot Heads, she came up with the idea to host a huge party as a fundraiser to donate to the local Alzheimer’s organization when she became a member of the group in the early 2000s.

The Parrothead Phrenzy is an event dedicated to benefit the Alzheimer’s community, and their loved ones.

The frenzy - or phrenzy, if you will - includes a live concert, a happy hour buffet, wine toss, silent auction, and a Pirate/Tropical costume contest.

All funds raised through the night will be donated to the Alzheimer Project; through previous Parrothead Phrenzys, the club has donated over $144,000 to the project, which benefits caregivers to Alzheimer patients in the Big Bend area.

In 2021 alone, the Parrothead Phrenzy raised $19,000 for the local chapter of the Alzheimer’s organization.

Music for this year’s event will be provided by Jason Webb & the Caribbean Chillers, which has been acclaimed as “Florida’s Favorite Jimmy Buffet Tribute Band”.

Tickets to the Parrothead Phrenzy are $35 per person, and are available for purchase from the Tallahassee Parrot Head’s website HERE.

For more information on the club itself (they are always looking for new members to join their flock), get in contact with the president of the club, Ron Crolla via email at [email protected]