Written by Garland Pollard on . Posted in Featured News, News, Police & Fire.
Wednesday, the Auxiliary Emergency Radio Communications System, or AUXCOMM system went live. The system was successfully tested by members of the Island EOC Emergency Communications & Interoperability Working Group. “The system was a lot of hard work, and this thing is going to be a tremendous asset for the community,” said Boca Grande Fire Dept. […]
Written by Garland Pollard on . Posted in Featured News, News.
The four digit … It’s the time of year to check on and update your listing in the 4-Digit Phone Book. Since 1991, the Boca Beacon has published this reference text, one of the last remaining residential phone books in the U.S., which were once ubiquitous. Do you have a new number? Do you want […]
Written by Garland Pollard on . Posted in News, Police & Fire.
Boca Grande has a new officer in charge of the island from the Lee County Sheriff’s Office, Lt. Michael Sawicki. Lt. Sawicki (above, at right) is familiar with Boca Grande, having served as the reciprocal officer for Boca Grande while he was at Captiva. Lt. Sawicki, officially Island Residential Deputy, is moving to the island […]
Written by Sheila Evans on . Posted in Breaking News, Community, Featured News, News, Sports & Outdoors.
Croquet is a game for the ages, and this current age is seeing a surge of interest. The Croquet Club at The Gasparilla Inn is a major player in the sport, so to speak, and recently upped its game by adding ten new, world-class mallets to its stock. Oakley Johnson, president of The Inn’s Croquet […]
Written by Garland Pollard on . Posted in Breaking News, Featured News, News.
As crowds thronged through Boca Grande on New Year’s Day, there was a festive tone, as the weather had broken and hit somewhere around 72, depending on where you were. While optimism for the New Year was present, not everyone actually made resolutions. In a heavily unscientific poll along Park Avenue, about half of the […]
Written by Staff Report on . Posted in Boca Beacon Back Pages, Travel.
BY BILL AND KATIE CALDWELL Note: Boca Beacon readers Bill and Katie Caldwell visited Tanzania and Rwanda with guide Adam Nkinde of Wilderness First Travel after hearing him speak at the Community Center. They had been there in 2015 and 2018, as well as Uganda in 2010. Also on the trip were Jeri Smith and […]
Written by Sheila Evans on . Posted in Community, Profiles.
Few people are more enthusiastic, joyful, grateful, or optimistic than Pam Heilman. She is a board member and number one cheerleader for the Boca Grande Historical Society. Pam served as president of the board for a couple of years, as well. “I was lucky,” she said, “five years ago they asked me to join and […]
Written by Staff Report on . Posted in Breaking News, Letters to the Editor, News, Police & Fire.
Editor’s note: Capt. Jeff Corkhill (pictured above at right) will be moving on from Boca Grande as of Monday, and Lt. Jeff Sawicki, who had been at Captiva Island, will be taking his place. Island residents wrote in to the Boca Beacon to say thank you for his 13 years of service. A news story […]
Written by Staff Report on . Posted in Obituaries.
Susan Bruggemeier Kruder of Akron, Ohio and Boca Grande, Florida passed away at her home in Florida on December 10, 2023 at the age of 92 comforted by her loving family and caregivers. Susan was born November 1st., 1931 to the late Irene and George Bruggemeier. She was the beloved wife of the late Paul […]
Written by Staff Report on . Posted in Featured News, News.
The year 2023 was a year where things got back to normal, mostly, from Hurricane Ian. While there were still many houses and condos that were still incomplete, Gasparilla Island came back to some sense of normalcy. But it was not a total normal. Every storm brought angst. The question before every storm, whether Hurricane Idalia or […]