Written by Boca Beacon on . Posted in Obituaries.
Ford Bowman Draper Jr., 82, passed away peacefully surrounded by love on June 22, 2024, at his home in Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania, after a short illness. Known affectionately to his many childhood friends as “Pete” after a favorite horse, Ford was a beloved husband, father, and grandfather known for his style, love of the outdoors, […]
Written by Staff Report on . Posted in News, Sports & Outdoors.
Charlotte County’s mosquito treatment schedule is available online at charlottecountyfl.gov. Their treatment schedule is updated daily by afternoon once they determine which areas require immediate attention. The treatment schedule as posted is a planned schedule which may be delayed or rescheduled due to weather. The county is divided into ground zones, units and sections, and […]
Written by Staff Report on . Posted in Featured News, News, Sports & Outdoors.
Recently, there were Army Corps of Engineers technicians on island surveying the beach for renourishment. The crew was for the Jacksonville District – Lee County Gasparilla Shore Protection Project. The Corps said that they have just initiated plans and specs development, so we have nothing to share yet about the details. “We’re currently projecting a […]
Written by Boca Beacon Reader on . Posted in Opinion.
BY STEVE KIEFFER As a former full-time resident of Boca Grande, I have been following the parking issues with some interest. I was pleased to see the editor address curb “lawns” last week. I believe county employees have failed to properly serve county residents by allowing select individuals to landscape public land in front of […]
Written by Garland Pollard on . Posted in Community, Editorial.
Currently, the Boca Beacon is digesting hundreds of pages of correspondence between Lee County and Boca Grande as part of a public records request. On June 4, we filed and paid for a record of any recent email or text correspondence that contain the keywords “Boca Grande” or “Gasparilla Island” between all county commissioners, county […]
Written by Staff Report on . Posted in News, Sports & Outdoors.
A volunteer seagrass monitoring program through the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences needs volunteers to survey sites this summer. The UF/IFAS Extension Florida Sea Grant Charlotte County program will use information collected by volunteers to inform environmental health assessments and increase credibility within the scientific community. State biologists at the Charlotte […]
Written by Sheila Evans on . Posted in Profiles, Sports & Outdoors.
Her byline in the Beacon should be enough of a clue that Arlene Hall is someone worth getting to know. She is the one who has been writing about the happenings with the Boca Grande Sea Turtle Association. She is also the group’s secretary, and one of its most dedicated volunteer turtle patrollers. For those […]
Written by Staff Report on . Posted in Featured News, News, Real Estate.
Gasparilla Island Water Association is implementing a new customer portal that allows customers to easily manage their utility accounts, monitor usage, view bills and enroll in Paperless, Autopay by E- check or credit card, or Text to Pay. Current ACH customers will not need to sign up for Autopay in the new online portal unless […]
Written by Garland Pollard on . Posted in Editorial.
Americans often take for granted the hard-won freedoms celebrated at the Fourth of July. We should not. Our duty not to forget starts with the Declaration of Independence signers. The signers had everything to lose if the effort was unsuccessful. One forgotten part of the Declaration is at the end, where they pledge their great […]
Written by Staff Report on . Posted in Events, News.
A roundup of upcoming events and specials in Boca Grande and around Cape Haze and Charlotte County. Some events: Golf Cart Parade: Lineup for the Fourth of July parade begins on Thursday, July 4 at 8:30 a.m. in the gravel lot at Scarpa’s Coastal. The parade will begin at 9 a.m. Decorate your golf cart […]