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36: LANCE WINGSPAN TOURS DE BAY
Sponsor: Thompson Engineering
Artist: Benita Hatfield McNider
About the Pelican: Brilliant yellow with blue accents adorned a triumphant Lance Armstrong when he claimed his historic 6th Tour de France victory in July 2005. You may already have guessed that our Lance is, in fact, a distant relative of Lance Armstrong - and that's no fish story. A fancy helmet, goggles, pro-Fairhope slogans, and other necessary embellishments will further enhance our brave bird. Pelican Lance will then perch gracefully upon his shiny, speedy-flight bicycle, poised to take off, and continue the proud family tradition of another Tour De Bay victory! As you might expect, hundreds of Racing Pelican wanna-bees congregate in and above the tranquil shores of Mobile Bay for this competition. Sadly, most of these birds fizzle and wind up panhandling at the docks or dozing away on pier pilings. Take heart, sports fans, because there is one Pelican who will go on to soar across the finish line, 1st for Fairhope, and he is your own Lance Wingspan!
About The Artist: In grammar, middle and high school, Benita admits, she did more doodling than studying and went on to enter the program of Fine Arts at Wesleyan College in Macon, Georgia and Ringling School of Art in Sarasota, Florida, where doodling was a good thing. She later furthered her art education at Spring Hill College in Mobile and has attended some exceptional workshops. She is active in the Mobile Art Association, ESAC, the Portrait Society of Atlanta, BRAG and the American Portrait Society Foundation, and has won awards over the years with her artwork Locally her work is represented by the Lyons Share Gallery in Fairhope and the Wall De'cor Gallery in Orange Beach. Her work can be visited at www.mcniderart.com.
About The Sponsor: Thompson Engineering, celebrating 54 years of engineering excellence, is a multi-disciplined engineering design and environmental consulting firm, headquartered in Mobile on Cottage Hill Road. A TCO company, Thompson has more than 250 personnel, 42 professional engineers and $30 million revenue projects in 26 states, including the Fairhope pier and many others. John Baker of Fairhope is CEO.
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