Why a Bradenton man who helped first responders will toss the coin at the Citrus Bowl
Based on a good deed done during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, a Bradenton man has been selected to perform the coin toss at the start of the 2022 Vrbo Citrus Bowl football game.
The game will be played by the Kentucky Wildcats and Iowa Hawkeyes on New Year’s Day in Orlando, and will air nationally on ABC.
Mike and Jennifer Wilcox opened their Anna Maria rental home to a first responder at no charge during the lockdown between March and May of 2020. By government order, landlords had to cancel bookings in an effort to curb the spread of the virus.
Even though the Wilcoxes and other landlords lost three months of rental income, they wanted to make the best of the situation.
They were able to help a firefighter from Southern Manatee Fire and Rescue who had sold his house and was temporarily living with medically fragile in-laws. The firefighter needed to find another place to live after being exposed to COVID on a call.
“Having served as a fire lieutenant, I know firsthand the challenges that first responders have when it comes to exposure to the virus while on the job,” said Wilcox, 53. “I have friends on the front lines and wanted to help in this tough situation, and I also knew I was in a position to provide a solution.”
Before retiring as a fire lieutenant in Ohio, the couple purchased a vacation rental on Anna Maria Island, where they planned to spend their retirement.
Wilcox is taking the coin toss seriously.
“Frankly, I am looking not to mess it up,” he said Thursday.
He now works full-time at Pirate City, the Pittsburg Pirates’ baseball training facility, and has been getting advice from pitching coaches there.
“I have been working on my velocity and control,” he said.
Kevin Locraft, Vrbo’s vice president of partner success, said the company wanted to recognize Wilcox for his generosity and resilience during the pandemic.
“It’s inspiring and humbling to see Vrbo hosts go above and beyond for their communities,” Locraft said.
When the ban on vacation rentals in Manatee County was lifted in May 2020, there were a few initial stipulations. International guests would not be allowed, and a visitor’s state of residency would have to have fewer than 700 coronavirus cases per 100,000 residents, a statistic tracked by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
At that time, visitors from Louisiana, Michigan and New York — states with high COVID-19 numbers — would not be allowed to book a short-term rental. Those restrictions have since been lifted.
This story was originally published December 30, 2021 at 11:13 AM.
