JR. CAPTAIN

The 2023 Jr. Captain Contest is Closed!

Check back for details on this year’s winner and to nominate a representative in the 2024 Jr. Captain Contest.

Congratulations 2023 Jr. Captain

Ben Avalon

Representing Freedom Waters

Attention Broward County Non-Profits!

Enter a Representative into the Winterfest Foundation 2024 Jr. Captain Program and Share your Mission…

Every year, the Winterfest Foundation creates a contest to choose one lucky nominee representing a Broward County nonprofit organization to win the Jr. Captain title and be in the Seminole Hard Rock Winterfest Boat Parade.

The contest is voting-based on social media and starts in September. ALL nominees will have the opportunity to be on the Santa Showboat presented by Amazon in the Parade. The “winner” is named Jr. Captain, and their name and the nonprofit’s name are put in lights on a boat in the Parade. During the contest, each organization is represented with a photo and a story to be read, shared, and voted on.

We are seeking nominees for the 16th annual Jr. Captain Program powered by FPL & TWO MEN AND A TRUCK.

Nominate a child between the ages of 7 & 16 that receive services your Broward County Non-Profit organization provides.

One Lucky Nominee along with their Nonprofit Organization will win the title of 2024 Winterfest Foundation Jr. Captain.

The nominee’s name along with the non-profit will be in lights onboard the Jr. Captain Showboat powered by FPL & TWO MEN AND A TRUCK.

The winning nominee (2024 Jr. Captain) will ride with 25 of their guests in the Seminole Hard Rock Winterfest Boat Parade.

The Nonprofit Organization the 2024 Winterfest Foundation Jr. Captain is representing will receive a check for $1,000!

The contest is voting-based on social media. ALL nominees will have the opportunity to be on the Santa Showboat presented by Amazon in the Parade. During the contest, each organization is represented with a photo and a story to be read, shared, and voted on.

ROLLING SUBMISSIONS – VOTE ONCE A DAY – FACEBOOK USERS ONLY (EVERY 24 HOURS) STARTING IN SEPTEMBER.

(One candidate per non-profit may be nominated. Non-Profit Organization must have an affiliation with Broward County.)

If you are unable to fill out the embedded form on this site, CLICK HERE to download the 2022 Winterfest Foundation Jr. Captain flyer, nomination form and parent/guardian consent form.

For a copy of the Flyer, CLICK HERE

Photos / Story submissions can also be uploaded using Instagram and Facebook (we do not use Twitter because of the word count).

UPLOADING A SUBMISSION USING INSTAGRAM: the account has to be public in order for the entry to be recognized and pulled in using the hashtag #WFJrCaptainNominee2024.

UPLOADING A SUBMISSION USING FACEBOOK: because of Facebook policy disallowing sharing on personal pages to enter a contest, the entry must be posted on the Winterfest Foundation business page’s timeline (https://www.facebook.com/winterfest.parade) with the hashtag #WFJrCaptainNominee2024 . If approved, it will be shared on the Winterfest Foundation Page and seen in the Gallery (Voting) of the Woobox platform.

If it is not approved – the post will be removed from our social media platform.

Past Jr. Parade Captains

2023: Ben Avalon representing Freedom Waters

2022: Luna Maria representing Forza Stefano Charitable Foundation

2021: Violet Martin representing Florida Youth Orchestra

2020: Dantonio Frazier Jr. representing Jack & Jill Children’s Center

2019: Emma Sorensen representing Make-A-Wish South Florida

2018: Thomas Boegler representing The Salah Foundation Children’s Hospital at Broward Health

2017: Grayson Zrelak representing Deliver The Dream

2016: Daniel Moreno representing the Ann Storck Center

2015: Madison Smith representing Cure SMA – Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA) type 2

2014: Alex Casamento representing the Arthritis Foundation, Florida Chapter, SE Region. He was diagnosed with Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis (JIA) at the age of five and is one of 300,000 kids in the U.S. who suffers from this painful and incurable disease.

2013: Lauren Bendesky who was diagnosed with Stage IV Neuroblastoma. Her fight and optimistic attitude is the reason “A Prom to Remember” nominated as their representative in the Parade. Lauren was aboard the Jr. Captain Showboat powered by FPL

2012: Sydney Lister diagnosed with a rare and aggressive form of bone cancer called Ewing’s Sarcoma (Facebook winner with 927 votes).

2011: Five year old Martina Bello diagnosed with Leukemia sponsored by the James Jr. Fund.

2010: Alison Marchessault – Born with the Recessive form of Polycystic Kidney Disease, Alison Marchessault has spent so much of her life in hospitals. She is an extremely bright, beautiful and happy young woman. Starlight Children’s Foundation has been one of Alison’s favorite organizations over the years and she participated in the parade on the Florida Marlin’s Boat highlighted this charity.

2009: TheWinterfest^® Jr. Captain was created as a legacy of 15-year-old Amanda Blake who battled osteosarcoma, a rare form of bone cancer.