Laura Ekstrom & Alexa Blue 

Hayley Odom & Kimberly Brundage

Gayle Choettle & Lisa Peters

Regina Harrison & Karen Fletcher

Laurie Hood & Lea Capers

   VIP Destin at Borago Restaurant

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photos & story by

 

Zhalman Harris

Lacey Pryce, Niki Noblin & Candice Floyd

Kimber Aronson, Brian Kish & Angie Nemecek

A

laqua Animal Refuge celebrated its 10-year anniversary with their 7th 
Annual Sip n’ Shop Event and luncheon at Borago Restaurant in Santa Rosa 
Beach on March 31. The non-profi t organization serves the Emerald Coast 
as a premiere no-kill sanctuary. Their primary goal is to ensure that every 

neglected, abused and homeless animal gets a second chance. Alaqua has proudly placed 
more than 15,000 animals of all kinds into loving homes and has also grown to become a 
recognized leader in animal welfare and animal cruelty prevention. 

During the course of the event, guests had the opportunity to enjoy and taste wines 

from a variety of winemakers and distributors who were present and also mingled, 
networked and took advantage of items that were up for bidding. They also had an 
opportunity to shop the curated collections that were available from local designers like 
Coastal Road Leather Goods, Destin Threads, The Zoo Gallery, Justin Gaffrey, Muche 
et Muchette, Jamie Zimchek and others. This event was not going to be a success without 
the sponsorship from several local organizations including, Insurance Zone, Smileology, 
Frontline Insurance, Destin Real Estate, Sandestin Real Estate, Debra S. Henry, CPA, 
Jack & Candis Wilson, and The John & Gaye Patton Foundation.

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