Robin Lilly to reign as queen of MangoMania
Dozens of Greater Pine Island Chamber of Commerce members gathered last Thursday to celebrate the crowning of the queen at Earth and Spirit Garden Gallery during the annual MangoMania kick-off party.
After much deliberation by chamber members, Queen Robin Lilly received her crown and will now embark on her journey to promote Pine Island throughout the county.
“This was a very pleasant surprise and I am excited and honored to have been named queen,” said Queen Robin. “When my husband Chris and I first moved to Pine Island six years ago, I have always wanted to be Mango Queen and now my wish has come true.”
Lilly and her husband, Chris Capone, are the owners and operators of Little Lilly’s Island Deli located in the Island Exchange building just north of the center on Pine Island.
“I have spent a lot of time pealing, preparing and eating mangos over the last few weeks in preparation for MangoMania,” she said. “We have even been offering them to our customers in the form of wraps, cold soup and salsas.”
Also present for the crowning were several of the past mango queens, including Nancy Goodwin, Nicole Ashmore, Theresa Roach, Tonya Player and last year’s queen, Lynn Berreitter.
“I have had the opportunity to meet several of the past queens and they all have given me a lot of advice and great tips and I hope that I can continue to count on them for their support,” said Queen Robin. “I also am looking forward to meeting a lot of new people as well as spending time with all of my loyal subjects.”
Among the queen’s responsibilities will be to promote Pine Island as a tourist destination.
“Pine Island has a lot to offer visitors, especially those who are looking for a laid-back island atmosphere,” said Lilly. “I am sure that there are a lot of people who haven’t discovered Pine Island even though we are just a short drive away. It will be a great pleasure to introduce them to our island and all it has to offer.”
Assisting the queen will be King Richard Grimes.
“I am looking forward to working with King Richard. He has so much enthusiasm and it should be a lot of fun because he really seems to enjoy his role as king.”
Following the crowning, the queen and king kept with tradition and offered a gift of fruit to appease the hurricane gods.
“When we went to make our offering, it began to rain and I believe that the thunder meant that the gods were pleased with our gift,” she said.
The 13th Annual MangoMania Tropical Fruit Festival is scheduled to take place Saturday, July 11, and Sunday July 12, at the German-American Club in Cape Coral.