Written by Marcy Shortuse on . Posted in News.
NOW IS THE TIME TO CONFESS YOUR LOVE, WHETHER IT’S RED AS FIRE OR WHITE AS A DOVE;YOUR LAST DAY TO SEND THEM IS FEBRUARY 8, IF YOU KNOW WHAT’S GOOD FOR YOU, YOU SHALL NOT BE LATE!Email your lovelines to mshortuse@bocabeacon.com by Tuesday, Feb. 8.
Written by Guest Columnist on . Posted in Community, Community History, News.
Janet Gillespie who lived in Boca Grande between 1978 and 2004 told stories of the jobs she held, the friends she made, the programs she helped start and the pranks she pulled to the interest and delight of the audience at the Historical Society’s first History Byte since 2020. A number of themes ran through Janet’s presentation, her love of horses and of the water and fishing, her creative friends with whom she started several Island organizations and events and her history of pulling pranks.
Written by Guest Columnist on . Posted in News.
Friends from decades past, I came to regard Patti Middleton as the true artistic nature muse of our coast. Her passing in May of last year seemed emblematic of the titanic scale of change throughout our island world and beyond.
I really felt this first when legendary seaplane pilot Mark Futch went on ahead in 2018. So memorable from earlier flying days was a sunset flight with Mark from the Boca Grande bayou out over Boca Grande Pass, which I preserved in a poem “Charlotte Harbor Sea Peace” in my collection called “Verdana Poems.”
Written by Staff Report on . Posted in News.
This past Sunday, Jan. 30, the First Baptist Church of Boca Grande honored their pastor, Dr. (Pastor) Gary Beatty and his wife Betty for 50 years of service to the Lord Jesus Christ. Of those years, 21 have been here in Boca Grande.
The church celebrated with a special service and lunch in the Polk Fellowship Hall. Several members commented on Pastor Beatty’s passionate preaching from the Word of God and Betty’s beautiful touch on the organ and piano.
Written by Staff Report on . Posted in Community, Community History, News.
The February 9 History Bytes program features the Davis family – Frank Davis, Robin Davis Melvin, Doug and Gail Coleman Davis – who spent their summers and holidays in Boca Grande during the 1960s, 70s and 80s. Their memories include arriving on the train from Arcadia, cutting the family’s Christmas tree at the north end of the Island and days of freedom, fishing, swimming and fun.
Written by Marcy Shortuse on . Posted in News.
On Sunday, Jan. 16 at 6:37 a.m. the winds of change blew at 110 mph for many residents of Gasparilla Mobile Estates. The EF-1 tornado that touched down and cut a narrow swath through the park completely destroyed seven mobile homes, and up to 33 more had damage. Many of the homes that were not destroyed still have been tagged as unfit for inhabitance. That means while people can still go in and get belongings and look at damage at their own risk, they cannot live there.
Out of the homes affected, only two were insured.
Written by Boca Beacon on . Posted in Entertainment, News.
While it was a rainy night for the opening party of the Boca Grande Film Festival, the people who gathered in the Boca Grande Community Center Woman’s Club Room were warm and sheltered from the elements, as they celebrated the announcement of films. This event was virtual last year, so this was a welcome gathering.
Sponsored by the Boca Beacon and Friends of the Boca Grande Community Center, this event includes special guests from some of the films. Many of these have been viewed at well-known festivals such as Sundance and each one was hand-picked for the event.
Here is your line-up of films and schedule for the 2022 Boca Grande Film Festival:
Written by Boca Beacon on . Posted in News, Sports & Outdoors.
The Gasparilla Island Tennis Classic is back on this year and has been extremely well received. Tennis players and spectators alike have had an eventful first week.
As this week of tennis comes to an end, there was some great action to be seen on the courts from mixed doubles tennis.
Written by Boca Beacon on . Posted in News.
As the island welcomes seasonal visitors back to Boca Grande, the Gasparilla Island Bridge Authority wants to encourage all toll pass account holders to register for online toll account monitoring.Simply follow the instructions at right to set up your access. Once established, you can use this feature to replenish your account, monitor your usage, print […]
Written by Boca Grande Health Clinic on . Posted in Health & Wellness.
By Thomas J. Ervin, M.D., Boca Grande Health Clinic Being asked “What do I do about COVID?” is a complicated question for anyone in clinical medicine to answer. If the COVID-19 pandemic was an elephant (it is large), it’s description would depend on which part of the anatomy was being viewed or described. The pandemic […]