The sky is a neighborhood

(First appeared in the Baldwin Times for Gulf Coast Media, Feb. 27, 2026)

Crowds line Alabama 59 during the Gulf Shores Mardi Gras parade on Fat Tuesday. (Wayne Smith photo)

By Wayne Smith

Gulf Shores Media Contributor

The sign stopped me.

It was my first time inside The Hangout, a few steps from the Gulf. I was there for a benefit Fat Tuesday breakfast hosted by the restaurant and the Rotary Club of Gulf Shores and Orange Beach.

You may be familiar with the words on the sign. It begins:

Darling,

Here’s a short list of everything in this world I want for you …

Then a couple hundred words or so. And the last line:

Yours forever & always.

It didn’t read like decoration. It read like a letter from Dorinda.

Soon afterward, I started seeing familiar faces. Then another. Then a couple more. I couldn’t have said that when relocating here in July. I knew exactly one person — my Realtor, the one Dorinda and I had first contacted when we began talking about moving here.

Angela Malick was the first person I met after moving here, through another Rotary connection and friend in Florida.

Back in August, she invited me to attend a meeting of the Rotary Club of Gulf Shores and Orange Beach. And then a Lower Alabama Parrot Head Club, along with Mark Chaffins, where I met more folks.

Guests gather inside The Hangout for the Rotary Club of Gulf Shores and Orange Beach Fat Tuesday benefit breakfast.

The funds raised from the breakfast remain in Baldwin County, supporting local service projects, youth leadership programs and other community initiatives Rotary invests in throughout the year. The Hangout handles the food and service, while Rotary volunteers handle the rest. It’s something the club has been associated with for the past three years. About 300 folks were served this Fat Tuesday morning, with approximately $4,000 being raised for the community.

“What many people may not realize is that The Hangout is not normally open for breakfast,” Angela said. “They open their doors specifically for Rotary that morning. That means staffing, food costs, and operations, all for the purpose of helping us give back to the community. I truly cannot thank them enough for their generosity and heart.

“For me personally, this breakfast represents what makes our community so special. Seeing nearly 300 people show up early on Fat Tuesday to support local service work is powerful. As someone who helps promote Rotary and sees the behind-the-scenes effort, I can tell you this event represents months of planning and a whole lot of heart.”

The morning carried over into the parade as I joined the crowd at the end of Alabama 59, the last stop along the event’s route.

There were floats and beads and Moon Pies, of course. But mostly there were people just enjoying being around each other, even strangers, newcomers like myself, or snowbirds.

That, I think, was the coolest part of my first Fat Tuesday in Gulf Shores. Just friends. Smiling and talking. Warming up a brisk February morning.

A well-known message inside The Hangout greeted visitors during the Rotary Club’s Mardi Gras benefit breakfast in Gulf Shores.

I enjoyed live music a little later at the Hangout before making my way back home.

It was a good day.

The night before had been an emotional one. Discovering things from the past. Some letters unfolded other memories — good ones, but poignant ones.

Dorinda was supposed to be here with me. Cancer said no. Of course, I know she’s here with me in a way — I’ve seen the signs.

You see, I usually head to the beach alone before dawn, trying to position myself for the perfect sunrise shot or two. The span of sand is usually empty at that time. Just me, the sand and the waves waiting on the sun, along with a few palm trees. It’s like the sky is a neighborhood and I’m the only resident.

But this morning — ahead of the Fat Tuesday celebration and the Gulf Shores Mardi Gras parade — it felt good to know a few more folks. I grabbed my breakfast tray and sat beside another new friend.

Sometimes one group — or one person — can make a big difference in someone’s life. People like my new friends here. Angela and Jim Watson. Folks like Susan Blackwell, John Mullen and Aimee Bertucci. And my Realtor, Tom Stanton.

The Hangout sits just steps from the Gulf in Gulf Shores, where Rotary’s Fat Tuesday breakfast helped start the day’s Mardi Gras celebration.

They did for me as some of my first friends here. Moving here without Dorinda beside me has been hard enough. My growing circle of friends has been a blessing, along with friends and family across Alabama, Florida and elsewhere.

I’m sure I’m not the first who has paused to read that sign inside the Hangout. It stopped me that Fat Tuesday.

Heading back from the parade, I glanced toward the beach and realized I’m not alone anymore.

If the sky is a neighborhood where Alabama 59 meets the Gulf, I’m not its only resident.

Wayne Smith has worked as a writer and editor at newspapers across Alabama, Florida and South Carolina. His weekly column focuses on navigating Gulf Shores alone after losing his wife to cancer, and the places he discovers and the people he meets. Read his previous columns at www.GulfCoastMedia.com.