Shannon Brown, a resident of Apollo Beach, is the 2013-2014 SouthShore Honorary Mayor, an annual event sponsored by the SouthShore Chamber of Commerce. Brown’s title was achieved following a month-long campaign during which she raised $7,000. Brown ran to raise funds to support local youth athletic programs.
Brown was inspired to do this because of her late husband, Aaron, who was an athletic trainer at area high schools. Aaron passed away after a long battle with brain cancer, but when Aaron was alive, he was active as a mentor and friend to student athletes. He would often help students whose families could not afford to purchase sporting equipment.
Brown said, “When the cancer paralyzed Aaron and he was unable to work, you would still see him on the sidelines volunteering his time to help out and root on the student athletes. He never let them forget that anything is possible with hard work and dedication.”
And so Brown took this spirit of hard work and dedication and ran for Honorary Mayor. Brown is the Assistant Director at Kids ‘R’ Kids SouthShore. Many of her events were centered around kids and the staff at Kids ‘R’ Kids helped a great deal with her campaign. Brown established the Refuse to Lose Fund. She said that the support during the Mayor’s Race was amazing. “I hope to continue raising money for the Refuse to Lose Fund that will help local athletes in need,” explained Brown.
Brown said, “I was so excited when they announced the winner, but we were all winners raising money for our charities of choice. This is really an awesome way to get active in the community. Helping others is in my blood.” Brown added, “As Honorary Mayor, I look forward to having the opportunity to be involved with the community and make a difference.”
When asked if she achieved her goal by running, Brown said, “I surpassed my fundraising goals and believe that I have served my purpose to this fund, to Aaron and to the community. If I can help one child be able to be a part of a team, then I have achieved my goal.”
For more information on the SouthShore Honorary Mayor’s Race or other events sponsored by the SouthShore Chamber of Commerce, please visit www.southshorechamberofcommerce.org.
