Bon voyage as City Lifestyle welcomed our mayors, celebrities, special guests, friends,
family and our advertising partners aboard the magnificent Miss Augusta for our own Celebration Cruise. Words cannot begin to describe our absolute joy at greeting our guests—each of whom has played an integral part in our journey as publishers and owners of Chesterfield, then St. Charles County and now Clayton City Lifestyle Magazines.
We held our champagne glasses high as we left the Yacht Club Of St. Louis marina and proclaimed: Cheers to Five Years! We were toasting not only our own successes but the people of our surrounding communities who have played a huge part in them. So thank you again to Dave and Jerri Hoffmann, owners of the Hoffman Family of Companies and the Miss Augusta; Clayton Mayor Michelle Harris; Chesterfield Mayor Bob Nation; and Cottleville Mayor Bob Ronkoski for your tremendous efforts to promote growth and development in our communities. And thank you all for taking time to celebrate with us.
Thank you to “The Wizard of Oz,” Ozzie Smith, the gold glove shortstop, 1985 MVP and veteran of two World Series—who graced our June Men's Issue on the Chesterfield cover in 2019—for joining us with his special guest and fiance, Yolanda Lankford, as well as his son Nikko Smith--singer-songwriter, ninth-place finalist of Season 4 on American Idol and the current lead vocalist of hip-hop, funk-rock band, Dirty Muggs.
Ozzie warmed our hearts with his comment: "Gordon and Kelley do a great job. You are great representatives of our city.” And speaking of his son, who was featured in our June issue of Chesterfield City Lifestyle, Ozzie had this to say: “Thank you for honoring my firstborn OJ, AKA Nikko Smith. He has always made me proud.”
Miss Missouri America 2022, Clare Marie Kuebler, was a jewel aboard the ship in her crown. Big 550 KTRS radio host John Carney brought personality to the cruise. And St. Louis Cardinals Organist Dwayne Hilton wowed our guests with his musical artistry, as we cruised the Mississippi River enjoying hors d'oeuvres, custom-decorated cookies and cocktails.
It has been a fascinating and eventful adventure growing from one to three City Lifestyle Magazines in just five years. We would not be celebrating without the dedicated contributors and incredible advertising partners who are the backbone of these gorgeous hyper-local luxury publications. You believed in the power of marketing your city, and we are humbled and grateful that you believed in us. Because of all of you, we are able to share impactful, educational, interesting and entertaining stories each month allowing us to engage in and enjoy all that our cities have to offer. Some stories change lives, others motivate, and many play an important part in building our communities.
For those who have been with us since the beginning, we cannot begin to express our gratitude to you. To our past advertisers, we hope to see you again soon. To those who we have just met, we appreciate all you have brought to our journey, and we look forward to continuing to thrive together. To invitees who were not able to join us to celebrate, please know you were missed. And to everyone who has participated in our journey thus far—from advertising partners to staff to readers—we say, “Cheers to many more years” as we wish each of you continued success in all that you do. Know that we are INSPIRED BY YOU!
