History Fort Lauderdale, celebrating its 60th year of stewardship of our community’s past, has announced Ted Drum and the Drum, Clark and Cox families as honorees for its 26th annual History Makers fundraiser set for Thursday, November 10, from 6 – 8 p.m. This yearly special event commends individuals and companies who have made an impact on the growth of the City of Fort Lauderdale. Tickets are on sale, now.

For over 70 years, Fort Lauderdale native Ted Drum and his extended family have made significant contributions to the development of the City of Fort Lauderdale through political leadership and prosperous marine, hospitality, and real estate ventures.

Ted Drum was born in Fort Lauderdale in 1938, and Bob Cox arrived in 1946 aboard an 85-foot deep-draft motorsailer. Looking for dockage that would accommodate the boat led him to a naval station on the Intracoastal near 17th Street. A series of fortuitous events, perseverance and engineering expertise on Bob’s part led to his establishment of what would become the Lauderdale Marina.

The Drum and Cox families merged in the early ‘60s when Ted met and married Carol Clark, Bob Cox’s daughter. Soon thereafter, Ted left for Vietnam and returned home seven years later as a decorated combat company commander and captain. The family grew the marina property to include homes for Drum Realty, which Ted’s father Harlan established in 1951, and the 15th Street Fisheries restaurant, established with Carol’s brothers John and Macdonald Clark. One might thing that Bob Cox would have had enough to occupy his time during these years with the marina and other business enterprises. However, seeing a need for leadership in Fort Lauderdale he found time to serve on the city commission and as mayor of Fort Lauderdale from 1986 until 1991.

During this time, Ted and Carol, while raising two children, grew Drum Realty and established a reputation for themselves, and their business, for integrity and fair dealing. Their children, Lorrie Drum Roschman and Kelly Drum continue that reputation as current owners of the family businesses. While Carol sadly passed away in 2011, Ted has remained active in real estate in Fort Lauderdale and Drum Realty continues, today, as does Lauderdale Marina and 15th Street Fisheries, which operate under the umbrella of The Shipyard. These enterprises remain family businesses with Ted’s son, Kelly, as president of the Shipyard and of 15th Street Fisheries and Scott Clark, Bob Cox’s grandson, serving as president of Lauderdale Marina. Currently, eight other Drum, Clark, and Cox family members are involved at The Shipyard. The Drum family expanded in 2015, when Ted married Kathy Molinet. Since then, Ted and Kathy, while remaining busy in their careers, carve out ample time to enjoy their shared passion of boating and travel.

Previous History Maker honorees have included Denison Yachting, the Marine Industries Association of South Florida, the Forman Family, “Alligator Ron” Bergeron, City Commissioner Steven Glassman, developer Dev Motwani, H. Wayne Huizenga, Chris Evert and Jimmy Evert, the South Florida Sun-Sentinel, Winterfest and Susan and Buddy Lochrie.

History Fort Lauderdale’s 26th annual History Makers is sponsored by 15th Street Fisheries,

Lauderdale Marina, Marine Industries Association of South Florida, Lank Oil, Water Taxi of Fort Lauderdale, Hudson Family Foundation, Boston Whaler, and Roschman Enterprises (Platinum sponsors), Drum Realty, Juliet Clark, Denison Family & Denison Yachting, Fratarcangeli Wealth Management, Marrinson Group, Moss & Associates and Southern Glazer’s Wine and Spirits (Visionary sponsors) and ASTA Parking, Cleveland Clinic, Fish’s Wholesale, Gray Robinson, Kelley Law Firm, Lago Mar, Walt McCrory, The Molinet Family, Nova Southeastern University, Nor-Tech, Pool Doc, Safe Harbor Lauderdale Marine Center, Soflo Boats, Stiles Corporation, Travel Host Fort Lauderdale, Tripp Scott, Stephanie Toothaker and USB (Trailblazer sponsors). Friends of sponsors include Art Bengochea, Juliet & Michael Bluestein, Cloud 9, Daoud’s Fine Jewelry, Designer Sign Systems, Egan Family Fund of the Community Foundation of Broward, Fanizzi & Co., Bob Golden, Hooper Construction, Gordon James, Keefe McCullough, Robert Kozich, Lauderdale Boat Yard, Alan & Susie Levan, Kate Lochrie & Captain Clay Thomas, Merrimac Ventures, Miller Construction, Offerdahl’s Hand-Off Foundation, The Pillars, Ed Smoker, Stephens Distributing Company, Total Marine Solutions, UStransact, LLC, Jennifer Uustal, and Vintage Wine Estates.

Tickets for History Fort Lauderdale’s 26th anniversary History Makers fundraiser are $125 each and are available to purchase online at bit.ly/HFLHistoryMakers2022.

For more information about History Fort Lauderdale, please call (954) 463-4431 or visit historyfortlauderdale.org. Follow us on Facebook at facebook.com/ftlhistory on Instagram @ftlhistory and on Twitter at @FTLHistory.