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IN THE SPOTLIGHT: Ched McConnell

Indomitable is kind of an old fashioned word. You don’t hear it used much today. If you say someone has an indomitable spirit, you admire them because they never give up or admit they have been defeated. The word fits Ched McConnell, who never seems to let bad news defeat him. Ched has lived in […]

OBITUARY: Harry Childs III

On February 17, 2023, Harry Childs’ daughter went into his room and opened the window to let a breeze in. A 1950s hymnal selection was playing in the background. A song called “Here I am, Lord” came on as she left the room and attended to other things. When she came back, Harry had apparently […]

ECOWATCH: The North Atlantic Right Whale extinction bound

“Most whales and dolphins will be subjected to 3.5 million instances of temporary and/or permanent hearing loss. For species that depend on hearing for survival, to find food, migrate and communicate, any hearing loss could be catastrophic. As, one scientist noted, a deaf whale is a dead whale.”                                       -Pierce Bronson, actor and environmentalist Many readers may recall the […]

GUEST EDITORIAL: FWC makes several announcements after meetings

Commissioners with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) directed staff to take bold steps to protect Florida’s native ecosystems from invasive fish and wildlife. During the February meeting, Commissioners tasked staff with drafting proposed rules to prevent the establishment of new nonnative species in Florida. Staff will explore including a risk analysis to prove a species poses little or no threat to Florida’s ecology, economy, as well as human health and safety, before that species could be approved to come into the state.

Lee County Sheriff and staff meet with island organization heads to discuss employment of person on sex offender list

The explanation is this: Currently Lee County looks at the entire grounds of the Boca Grande Community Center as a “park.” A park has more restrictions than a school, in the fact that a sex offender can be at a school with proper supervision, and with good reason to be there (and prior approval). A sex offender cannot be at a “park” in Lee County while children are present. 

Lack of cell phone service almost claims a life

“I drove up to her and put the truck in park, said ‘Excuse me, Ma’am,’ and then she fell,” he said. “She fell hard. I tried calling 911 I think three times and my phone kept sending the message that it couldn’t find a mobile network. I work just about six houses down from where this was, and at that house I can make phone calls.”

You’ve heard of black holes, but blue holes? 

Emily and Jim talk about the blue holes of the Gulf Mote Marine Laboratory is sharing some of its most interesting research with Boca Grande audiences through a series of presentations called Coffee with a Scientist. This week there were two scientists having coffee and sharing their research on blue holes in the Gulf of […]

GICIA offers tours of Mercabo information and restoration update

The GICIA’s goals for the restoration were to improve water quality, enhance native fish and bird habitat, reduce seawall maintenance costs, and improve site aesthetics. Since the restoration was completed in 2021, water quality has continued to improve. Biologists have planted nearly 17,300 units of seagrass, four acoustic receivers have been installed to monitor tagged fish such as tarpon and smalltooth sawfish and environmental resource surveys are being conducted twice a year.  

The Grande Chorus wants you

We all think it’s Grande that singers that you have enjoyed watching sing solos in Royal Palm Players’ shows like Alice Court and James Martin are singing with you. A few seats away are the people who take part in the annual Christmas tree lighting like Nancy Garraghan, Jeff Lehrian and Oakley Johnson. They are sitting next to people like Ken Anderson (name has been changed to protect to innocent) who you’ve witnessed being glared at by his wife as he sings loudly in the audience when an All That Jazz concert is going on. Everyone is welcome.

‘Art on Banyan, Five Women’ exhibit coming soon

It’s the sixteenth year of celebrating creative innovation for the “Art on Banyan: Five Women” Exhibit, presented at the Boca Grande Art Center. This year the group welcomes a new addition, ceramic artist Carol Mack. Her passion for both clay and printmaking is revealed in her delicate vessels, which employ multiple applications of incising, underglazes, […]