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ECOWATCH: Welcome to the New Year, but let’s remember the past

“There are winds of destiny that blow when we least expect them. Sometimes they gust with the fury of a hurricane, sometimes they barely fan one’s cheek.                         But the winds cannot be denied, bringing as they often do a future that is impossible to ignore.”   – Nickolas Sparks, American novelist                                                                                                    The Christmas holiday has its three ghosts: the past, […]

Be a friend of the pelican: Reel, remove, release

“A wonderful bird is the pelican; his bill can hold more than his belly can.”– Dixon Lanier Merritt The above excerpt from Merritt’s poem is true: A pelican’s pouch can hold up to three times more than its stomach. Brown pelicans are primarily fish-eaters and require up to four pounds of fish a day. They […]

EcoWatch: Sharing nostalgic island memories of the past

“To bring a departed one back to life is no great magic. Few are wholly gone;  blow on a departed man’s embers, and a live flame will start .”   – Robert Graves, poet                                                                                                        It is true that a person is not really departed while his name is still spoken. So let’s go back to my column […]

GICIA releases dates for tours of Mercabo Preserve

By Misty Nichols, GICIA The Gasparilla Island Conservation and Improvement Association is excited about relaunching the Volunteer led tours of the Mercabo Cove Site in 2022. These site tours have been extremely popular in the past and have booked quickly. With the restoration of the Cove completed, the 2022 tours will be the first opportunity […]

Windy was an understatement: 60+ mph winds recorded on Solstice Day

On Tuesday morning, Dec. 21 it was one of those mornings when you saw a lot of people looking concerned and asking one another, “What is going on?”  Wind. It was wind that was going on, and a lot of it. What had originally been reported as the passing through of a standard “cold” front, […]

An Island Christmas Poem

Twas the night before Christmas and all around No noses were frozen, no snow fluttered down. No children in flannels were tucked into bed. They all wore their shorty pajamas instead! To find wreaths of holly was not very hard, For holly trees grow ferociously  in everyone’s yard. In front of the houses were daddies […]

Island church services for Christmas Eve, Christmas Day

Lighthouse United Methodist Church of Boca Grande: • Friday, Dec. 24 – “The Grinch Greets the Babe” –  Family Service, 5 p.m. This is a fun service for families where kids can be kids and worship is fun! All ages are welcome. • Traditional Services – Carols, candlelight and Holy Communion Service at 7 & […]