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Gecko's Cocktail Raises $10,000 for Mote

In 2018, Gecko's pledged to donate $1 for every sale of a new cocktail named in honor of Mote founder and world-renowned scientist Eugenie Clark.

By Cooper Levey-Baker June 8, 2020

Gecko's Hospitality Group co-owners Mike Gowan (left) and Mike Quillen (right) with Mote Marine Laboratory & Aquarium president and chief executive officer Dr. Michael Crosby (center).

When Southwest Florida was hit by a months-long outbreak of red tide in 2018, the people at Gecko's Grill & Pub wanted to raise some cash to support the research done by Mote Marine Laboratory & Aquarium. So the restaurant group whipped up a new cocktail, the Shark Lady, and pledged to donate $1 to Mote for each cocktail sold. Gecko's recently made good on that pledge, delivering a check for $10,000 to Mote.

The drink was named in honor of Mote founder and world-renowned scientist Eugenie Clark, who earned the Shark Lady nickname thanks to her pathbreaking research into shark behavior. The cocktail is made with coconut rum, blue curaçao, pineapple juice and sour mix and garnished with (what else?) a gummy shark.

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