By Gina Horan
Singing Bartender Raneé Kelly Mixes Cocktails & Choruses at Post #219
Plenty of part-time bartenders work to support hobbies or extracurricular activities, but few spend their shift hitting the high notes.
Raneé (pronounced “Rain-ey,”) Kelly’s time behind the bar is an excuse to sing and entertain the veterans at American Legion Post #219 in Fruitland Park.
“I started just singing and everyone thought I was crazy at first. But now they’re just used to it,” said Raneé, who’s been bartending for 20 years and singing at the Legion for the past three.
Raneé is strictly a volunteer who works for tips. Her payoff is having a stage.
She sings behind the bar, she sings with karaoke, she sings whenever the mood strikes.
During our photo session, she suddenly burst into “Mercedes Benz” by Janis Joplin. At one point I said, “So, you aren’t shy?” and the entire room erupted with laughter, especially post member Dudley Eddington.
Raneé grinned and said, “No, I’m definitely not shy. I just love making people happy. They say that I have energy.”
Her playlist proves it: “I Love Rock ’n’ Roll” by Joan Jett, “Some Kind of Wonderful” by Grand Funk Railroad, “Have Mercy” by the Judds, “Soul” by Lee Brice, “What’s Love Got to Do With It” by Tina Turner, “Proud Mary” by Creedence Clearwater Revival and just about anything by Janis Joplin. She even teams up for duets with Post #219 member Phil Manly.
American Legion Post #219, also known as the John Gella Memorial Post, is a gathering place for veterans, families and the wider community. Beyond live music, bingo and karaoke, Raneé also cleans houses for vets and volunteers on projects like delivering supplies to Fruitland Park Elementary.
Photos: Nicole Hamel
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Gina moved to Central Florida in August 2021 from the San Francisco Bay Area. She has a degree in linguistics and worked as a fashion editor, photo stylist lifestyle columnist and food writer for the Knight Ridder Newspaper Group. She also covered and photographed music festivals, fashion shows and sports throughout Northern California. In 2000, she joined KSAN radio as a morning show co-host and produced the news and sports content there for four years. She later covered travel, events and the restaurant scene for KRON-Bay TV. A veteran bartender, Gina has worked in hospitality on and off since high school. She has been with Akers Media since 2022 and hosts the Healthy Living Central Florida podcast. Her passions include travel, road trips, baseball, history books and podcasts, tasting menus and arriving in a new city without a map or guidebook.
