U-M Club of Southwest Florida: Letter from Marc Appleman

As the new President of the U-M Club of Southwest Florida, I’m very excited to be working with our special group of local members and an excellent Board of Directors. I joined the board last year and was previously a member of the board of the U-M Club Phoenix.

I graduated from the University of Michigan in 1979 with a Bachelor of General Studies in English, History and Communications, and started my professional career in sports media as a sportswriter for the LA Times. I went on to hold senior level positions at ESPN, Fox Sports, AOL Sports, Sports Illustrated for Kids, SABR (CEO for the Society  for American Baseball Research) and at startups Active and Nobok Sports. I currently consult for a number of sports and tech startups, host a weekly Sports Talk forum at Pelican Bay, and am a Contributing Writer for Naples Illustrated. I grew up in NYC and have lived in Westport, CT, La Jolla, CA, Great Falls, VA, and Scottsdale, AZ. I’m currently a full-time resident of Naples.

• Welcome Back Party on Thursday, Jan. 14, 2027, at 5:30 pm at The Club at Olde Cypress with live music provided by Stacey and Guy Guerra, who have been popular with our club in the past.
• Lunch Speaker Series on Monday, Feb 8, 2027, at 11:30 am at The Club at Olde Cypress. The featured speakers are Paul Lee M.D., J.D., and Shahzad Mian M.D. Dr. Lee is a nationally recognized physician–leader, health policy expert, and glaucoma specialist who currently serves as Vice Dean for Clinical Affairs, Chief Physician Executive, and Executive Director of the University of Michigan Medical Group, as well as Professor of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences. Shahzad Mian M.D. is the F. Bruce Fralick Legacy Professor and Chair of the Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences and Director at W.K. Kellogg Eye Center.
• U-M Fundraising Dinner on Monday, March 8th , at 5:30 pm at The Ritz-Carlton Naples, Tiburon. The featured speaker is Bruce Madej, who is the longest serving Sports Information Director in the history of the University of Michigan Athletic Department. Madej currently serves as the senior Advisor to the University of Michigan Athletic Department after a distinguished career spanning parts of six decades in college athletics communications. A longtime leader in sports public relations, Madej directed communications efforts for two Heisman Trophy winners and helped manage media relations during Michigan’s nationally recognized Fab Five era. He also helped pioneer several innovations that transformed athletic communications, including computerized game statistics, athletic department websites, email distribution of press releases, online bowl ticket sales, and press box access for digital media.  This event will be free to members, thanks to the sponsor of the event, Greenleaf Trust. As it will be free to members, donations will be encouraged for this annual fundraising event to support the scholarship fund for the U-M Club of Southwest Florida.
• March in the Naples St Patrick’s Day Parade in downtown Naples on Saturday
  morning March 13, 2027.