Margate Matriarch Honored For Over Half a Century of Community and Family

Name: Margate Matriarch Honored For Over Half A Century Of Community And Family - Margate Talk
Uploaded: 2024-02-23T12:59:39-05:00
Description: During the February 21 Commission Meeting, Margate resident Lauren Skipper was recognized for being a long-time resident of the city for 58 years.

by David Volz February 23, 2024

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Margate Matriarch Honored For Over Half a Century of Community and Family

Lauren Skipper pictured with her daughters Kelli Russell, Heather Farmer, and Tami Gorden. {Photo by David Volz}.

By David Volz

During the February 21 Commission Meeting, Margate resident Lauren Skipper was recognized for being a long-time resident of the city for 58 years.

Mayor Tommy Ruzzano gave her a plaque and praised her for selecting Margate as her home.

“I love Margate, and I raised five children here,” she said. “I like to go to the Northwest Focal Point Senior Center, play bingo, and work on arts and crafts,” she said. “The people at the center are all nice, pleasant, and helpful.”

Skipper was born in Massachusetts in 1945 and graduated from high school in Maine. Her parents, Arthur and Olive, moved to Margate before she did.

Her father owned the Chik Nik on Margate Boulevard. She married Mark Hodgkins and moved to Margate to be with her parents when the Army sent him to California. Lauren and Mark later divorced, and she married Douglas Skipper.

Douglas worked in the building trades, and Lauren worked in accounting and bookkeeping. She was also devoted to her children, four of whom now live in Margate and one in Fort Lauderdale. They all graduated from Coconut Creek High School.

“I love it here, and life is easy and not chaotic. It is just a nice place to live, and people are friendly,” said Skipper. “I have lived here so long because it is a great place, and I have no intention of leaving.”

Three of her daughters, Kelli Russell, Heather Farmer, and Tami Gordon, attended the ceremony. Her son, Mark Hodgkins, and daughter, Robin Hodgkins, could not come. A granddaughter, Adrienne Litwinas, and her great-grandson, Cambridge, attended the event. She has multiple grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

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Author Profile

David Volz

David Volz has worked as a writer in South Florida for 35 years. He has written for the Sun-Sentinel, Hollywood Gazette, School Transportation News, South Dade News Leaders, Observer among others. He has an MA in Communications from Florida Atlantic University and a BA in Communications from Valparaiso University. Volz teaches Communications at Miami Dade College and Palm Beach State College. He lives in Coral Springs and enjoys running and participating in 5Ks and half-marathons.