Hail to the 2025 Chasco Ball King & Queen
NEW PORT RICHEY, FL – April 5, 2025 — Lighthouse for the Visually Impaired and Blind is pleased to announce our 2025 King Pithla Gary Gann and Queen Chasco Angie Gardner who were crowned on March 28th at the 2025 Chasco Coronation Ball. The Ball celebrates the outstanding contributions made by many in our community with nominations from not-for-profit organizations, and it recognizes two of the nominees with the Coronation of King Pithla and Queen Chasco. This year, 35 Superheroes from our community were honored, including our newest King and Queen, and 19 Not-for-Profit agencies were highlighted—all for their incredible contributions of time and talent that lift up those in need.
GARY GANN was nominated by the Rotary Club of New Port Richey. Gary is the owner and President of the Creative Institute of Dental Arts. Gary has been an active member of the New Port Richey Rotary Club since 1988, serving in every club office and as its President in 1995-1996. The Club has recognized Gary’s efforts by naming him Rookie of the Year (1988-1989) and Rotarian of the Year (2022-2023), along with awarding him the Distinguished Service Award (2018-2019) and the Service Above Self Award (2021-2022) and naming him a double Paul Harris Fellow (1993, 2020). Gary has also worked on the Chasco Fiesta since 1997, serving as a member of its Steering Committee since 2008. His other volunteer efforts include the Friends of the Hacienda & Historic New Port Richey and the Cotee River Bike Fest.
ANGIE GARDNER was nominated by Leadership Pasco. She is the Vice President, Commercial Relationship Manager at The Bank of Tampa. She is very proud to be able to use her banking experience to help businesses and individuals in their time of need. Angie is the Board Treasurer, Program Day Assistant Chair, and Class Liaison for Leadership Pasco. She is also a founding Board Member, past VP, and a current volunteer for Marjorie’s Hope, a long-time United Way Board member and Allocations Chair, the current secretary of the Good Samaritan Health Clinic, and an active member of the Holiday Rotary Club. Service Awards include Service Above Self (Holiday Rotary, 2023), Community Involvement Award (The Bank of Tampa, 2022), and Heroes Among Us Award (Gus Bilirakis, 2018).
The 2025 Chasco Ball had a wonderful turnout with over 250 guests and 25 volunteers. The attendees were delighted to celebrate with the nominees, witness the coronation of the new Royalty, and partake in all the Royal festivities. We were fortunate to have two guest speakers, Jeovanni (Jeo) and Marianna Diaz, who told us about growing up with the Lighthouse. They can barely remember a time when they weren’t coming to the Lighthouse, and in addition to the blind skills they learned, they made so many good friends and great memories. Jeovanni is graduating from our Teen Transition Program this summer and Mariana graduated in 2023. Now they are both working toward future employment; Jeo would like to enter the military and Mariana would like to work in a veterinary clinic. Jamie Mick, 2015 Queen and 2025 Ball Chair, said “A major highlight of the event was hearing from our guest speakers who shared
heartfelt stories that brought a tear to many eyes in the crowd—these moments were profound as they filled everyone with pride and appreciation for those who live with vision impairment. Happy Chasco to All!!!”
The Lighthouse was fortunate to have the support of several sponsors for the 38 th Annual Chasco Coronation Ball. Top sponsors include Royal Bar: Rotary Club of New Port Richey, Silent Auction: The Hook Law Group, Dance Floor: Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices of Florida Property Group, Print: Internal Medicine & Clinical Anti-Aging Center, and Dessert: Morton Plant North Bay Hospital. To learn more about the Ball, the Lighthouse, and to view a list of nominees, visit lvib.org.
photos courtesy of K-2 Photography, Wayne Selk, and Debbie Humphrey
Introducing the newly crowned 2025 King Pithla Gary Gann and Queen Chasco Angie Gardner.
Guest speakers Jeovanny & Mariana Diaz spoke about their experiences in LVIB’s Children’s & Teens’ Programs. They said growing up with a vision impairment was easier because of LVIB
