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pipe up to weave a narrative, sharing
surprising facts like, “Oh, she’s a teacher
here now, but I had her as a baby at the
center and, by the way, I also have her
kids here now, too.”
Beaming with pride, Larkin’s smile glowed
brighter and brighter as she continued
to rattle off all the kids who played, rode
tricycles, napped, and explored the
alphabet at her center and are now adults
bringing their own kids to Happy Cubs.
“It’s like déjà vu!” Larkin exclaimed with
a chuckle. “I’ll have a kid giving me an
expression or acting a certain way, and
then I’ll remember their mom or dad did
the same thing. I’m so fortunate to see kids
grow into adults and stay or come back to
this community. I love my community – it’s
a place where everyone knows everyone,
and we all look out for our kids.”
As if waiting in the wings and stepping
out on cue, Director of Maintenance for
Blake, Dave Roehl, popped his head
into Larkin’s of��ce to not only check on a
work order, but also peek in on someone
special: His grandson. Two out of his four
grandchildren have been Happy Cubs
kids. Even more profound, both his sons
attended the center as babies, too.
“This is a great center for children, and it’s
this way mainly because of her,” he said,
pointing a ��nger at Larkin.
Perhaps families continue to cycle back
to Larkin because she creatively builds
unique programs to feed growing minds.
Inspiring a new generation of community
volunteers, Larkin reached out to Manatee
High School’s Spanish Club to invite
students to teach her kids Spanish once
a week in return for service hours.
A voracious reader who will drive back
to the of��ce at night in her PJs if she
happens to leave her book at work, Larkin
developed a reading program to bridge
the kids with hospital employees. She
reached out to administration at Blake
and invited employees to lead story time
for the kids.
“The response was amazing,” said Larkin,
who will not hesitate to open a cabinet
door and show off her impressive stack
of mystery and romance novels she
shares with her staff. “Almost every top
administrator has been over to read.
It’s been good for the employees, too. I
Manatee County Sheriff Rick Wells takes part in the Deputy Friendly reading program
at Happy Cubs.
might have an ICU nurse with a terminally
ill patient come over to read. She gets
hugged on and kissed on by the kids and
a little break. She can go back to work a
little refreshed.”
When she is not running a school or
striving to make change in her community,
Larkin is probably whipping up one of
her famous auction baskets, which she
does annually for the ELC Golf Classic
fundraiser. With a ��air for fashion and
style, she relishes in the challenge and
artistry of piecing together auction items
bene��ting various community fundraisers.
“I like to think about how I would want a
basket,” said Larkin. “If it’s a limo ride, I
would pair it with a nice dinner, maybe
champagne with
pret ty glasses.
How about a wallet
with a $100 bill in it
for the man? I’m the
one who will seek
out ribbons with
golf balls on them
for a golf basket.
I love doing this. I
love seeing the joy
it brings.”
The joy in helping
others has inspired
Larkin to march up to Tallahassee when
she retires and advocate tirelessly for
child care. But for now, she’s content
surrounded by her Happy Cubs kids.
“I love being around these kids because
they are so innocent,” said Larkin. “They
don’t care if you can’t read well or if you
have a funny voice or how you look. They
are non-judgmental.”
Well, almost…
“I will say they can say the funniest
things,” Larkin said. “I had this one little
girl who came up to me and said, ‘Ms.
Annette, I like your out��t and you look
nice today, but you really could use a little
lipstick.’ And you know what? I probably
could have used some lipstick.”