Written by Marcy Shortuse on . Posted in News.
Did you miss our 4-Digit drive-thru days? If so, no worries. Stop by the office and check in with us, and we can accomodate. The first copy for residents in the book is free, any copy after that is $5. If you are in the 4-Digit and have picked up your copy make sure your […]
Written by Marcy Shortuse on . Posted in News, Sports & Outdoors.
Lee County Communications Director Betsy Clayton confirmed this week that the Wheeler Road dog park construction is set to begin in June and will take five months to complete.
The park will include an area for big dogs and another for little dogs. It will also have a shade pavilion, pet and human water fountains, seating and many other amenities.
Written by Staff Report on . Posted in Community History.
This public exhibit showcased three major hurricanes – unnamed hurricane of 1926, Labor Day Hurricane of 1935, Hurricane Charley in 2004 which caused major damage to the island.
It also featured the explosion of the Arthur Albright, a phosphate carrier that blew up at the Port of Boca Grande in 1965 (due to a faulty valve resulting in over pressurization of the fuel tank). Eight men were hospitalized with extensive injuries.
Written by Guest Columnist on . Posted in News.
As is typical throughout human history, it was the artists, who watched, processed, responded to and recorded these landscape transformations.
Emerson and Thoreau made deep and lasting impressions on American education, and I recall devouring those books while in school; their principles influenced many of us down through the ensuing generations.
But, certainly, it has been the artists who have kept reminding all of us just how precious this gorgeous world truly is, and it is they, even now, who present us with reflections of our world in the form of paintings.
Written by Guest Columnist on . Posted in News.
Last week Gary Carlson and his brothers held a celebration of life for Jane Carlson, a long-time resident of Boca Grande. While he was cleaning out her home, he came across three versions of a story she had written in longhand. It was evidently very important to her, in that she kept them with her […]
Written by Guest Columnist on . Posted in News.
In September 1774, John Adams attended the first Continental Congress in Philadelphia and wrote to Abigail about his encounters with the delegates from 12 of the other 13 colonies for the first time. Adams wrote: “I flatter myself, however, that we shall conduct our embassy in such a manner as to merit the approbation of our country.” In this letter, Adams was quite rightly describing himself and the other Massachusetts delegates to the Continental Congress as if they were ambassadors to a foreign power, explains Peterson. “And when Adams says ‘our country,’ he is referring to Massachusetts,” not the United States, notes Peterson, who adds that up until the Civil War, both nationally and internationally, Boston and its New England hinterland was thought of as a separate country with its own “national” identity.
Written by Boca Beacon on . Posted in News.
The Boca Grande Health Clinic is celebrating its 75th anniversary. For this occasion the Boca Grande Clinic Foundation will host a gala street party on Thursday, April 7, to revel in this momentous occasion and to thank the entire island community for their support.
Festivities will include food trucks, celebratory beverages and entertainment by the “Swinging Bridge” bluegrass band.
The Clinic has come a long way since the mid-1900s, when an out-of-town doctor treated patients once a week in a small room above the Railroad Depot. The journey to 75 years wasn’t always easy. It required courage, passion and perseverance – and the steadfast support of the island community.
The party will be held on 3rd Street between the Clinic and the Annex from 5 to 7 p.m. on April 7.
Written by T Michele Walker on . Posted in Profiles.
To put the timeline into perspective, by the time Betsy’s father built their home in 1940, their family had been on the island for 32 years.
“When the train moved to Boca Grande, my grandfather, Jerome, Sr., was offered a job and eventually opened up his own business, Fugate’s Drug Store,” she said.
Fugate’s opened in 1916, in the same building where it operates today. A few years earlier, Jerome married Betsy’s grandmother in 1911 and in 1912, Betsy’s father was born on Banyan Street.
“My grandfather Jerome passed away in 1955, when I was pretty young, but he was a big fisherman. He was involved with the very beginning days with the tarpon fishing,” Betsy said. When he passed away, Betsy’s uncle took over the family business.
Written by Boca Beacon Reader on . Posted in Letters to the Editor.
With rising gas prices, thieves around the country are targeting your gas tanks. The Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office provides tips on how to protect your tank, and wallet, from thieves.
Written by Boca Beacon Reader on . Posted in Letters to the Editor.
The GICIA does a very good job of encouraging safety on the path north of First Street. Behavior on the path south of First is the anti-GICIA rules of the road. The South Path is under the jurisdiction of Lee County. There are not even signs encouraging speed limits or even courtesy toward pedestrians. It is an autobahn for golf carts – faster is better with NO consideration for pedestrians. I run on that path six days a week, staying ever alert for fast carts driven by people of all ages. It is dangerous.