Jimmy Buffett christens Miss Peetsy B

Singer-songwriter Jimmy Buffett, alongside his sisters Lucy Buffett and Laurie Buffett McGuane, christened their donated vessel Miss Peetsy B at the University of Southern Mississippi's Gulf Coast Research Laboratory in Ocean Springs on Monday.

Miss Peetsy B was named after the Buffett siblings' late mother, Mary Loraine "Peets" Buffett, who died in 2003.

The Buffett trio christened the boat using Jimmy Buffett's own island-style beer Landshark Lager in honor of their mother.

Buffett recently donated the 33-foot craft, which features a Detroit engine, to the University of Southern Mississippi Foundation. The Marine Education Center, located at GCRL, will use Miss Peetsy B for educational programs for upper elementary and secondary schools.

Miss Peetsy B will also be available to the general public and for fundamental programs such as Sea Camp, tours of the Biloxi Bay and trips to Deer Island.

Jimmy Buffett, a USM alumnus, said that he and his sisters were proud that they could contribute a research tool to Southern Miss.

"It's always fun when crazy ideas become a reality, then to be passed onto something as important as educating future generations who are in the process of growing up here the way me, Laurie and Lucy did as kids on the coast," Jimmy Buffett said.

University President Martha Saunders was present at the christening.

"This wonderful contribution by the Buffet family will mean the world to our Marine Education Center," Saunders said. "Schoolchildren from across the coast will get the opportunity to explore the coastal waters and learn about the ocean. We are most grateful."

Jimmy Buffett said he was excited for the vessel to honor his mother.

"It's special having a boat like that dedicated to my mom, a great coastal girl who went a long way," he said. "She's going to ride again."

For more information about Miss Peetsy B, contact the Southern Miss Gulf Coast

Research Laboratory at

228-872-4200.