Written by Boca Beacon on . Posted in Editorial.
Many of you are aware that Sam Samsonov, a toll tender with the Gasparilla Island Bridge Authority for 30 years, is no longer at the booth. There has been a flood of responses on social media regarding his leaving, and we wanted to acknowledge him. Sam, you were a Gasparilla Island fixture. Many people saw […]
Written by Marcy Shortuse on . Posted in Obituaries.
BY MARCY SHORTUSE We lost another one of our island mothers on Sunday, July 5, as Louise Bowe slipped away from congestive heart failure. Other than for a few years her entire life was spent on the island, and while she was a quiet, understated woman her impact on Gasparilla Island was profound. Mary Louise […]
Written by Boca Beacon on . Posted in News.
BY MIKE VASHER When was the last time you had the opportunity to be invited onboard a fishing vessel to get to meet and speak with one of the world’s most well-known artists, scientists, explorers, and conservationists, Dr. Guy Harvey? With a little perseverance, Capt. Sandy Melvin, owner of Gasparilla Outfitters and a director of […]
Written by Boca Beacon on . Posted in News.
Remember back in the day when you used to be able to go to our website and watch the world go by in downtown Boca Grande? Those days are here again, my friends, because the Boca Beacon webcam is back in business. Right now we’re still aiming it right down Park Avenue facing Hudson’s Grocery, […]
Written by Boca Beacon on . Posted in News.
BY MARCY SHORTUSE You’ll want to remember the name Gabriella Vetter. She’s only a teenager now, but give her a few years and she might be playing in the Masters’ Golf Tournament. You actually wouldn’t believe this story if you heard it out on the course or sitting at the clubhouse, but we can guarantee […]
Written by Boca Beacon on . Posted in News.
Catrina Maria Crawford, granddaughter of Linda and Bob Edic from Boca Grande and daughter of Darlene Edic Crawford, recently graduated from Dreyfoos School of the Arts High School in West Palm Beach and will be attending Florida Atlantic University in Boca Raton, Fla. Catrina was honored to be a national YoungArts Finalist (top 20 new […]
Written by Boca Beacon on . Posted in Obituaries.
Mary Louise Bowe, 89, formerly of Boca Grande, died in Port Charlotte on July 5, 2015. Louise was born on September 2, 1925 in Bartow and moved to Boca Grande at age 3, where she resided until age 88. She retired from the Boca Grande Post Office in 1985 and was a lifelong member of […]
Written by Boca Beacon on . Posted in Profiles.
BY JACK SHORT Joshua Karl would have had to try pretty hard to end up in a place more different than Boca Grande. When he grew up here on the island, he went by Joshua Johnson, of the “harbor pilot” Johnsons. But as he prepares to turn 40, he does so as a designer in […]
Written by Boca Beacon on . Posted in News.
BY JACK SHORT A proposed minimum-wake zone expansion that began as an effort by a small group of homeowners has passed its first major hurdle. The Charlotte County Marine Advisory Committee heard presentations over the last two months from the public representing homeowners in Boca Grande North and in houses along Gulf Shores Drive, as […]
Written by Boca Beacon on . Posted in Featured News.
BY JACK SHORT An item stricken from the 2015-2016 Florida budget that would have sent $1 million to the Gasparilla Island State Park contained little information about how the money would have been used, other than that it was marked for “the assessment and evaluation” of lands for purchase inside the optimum park boundary. No […]