Written by Staff Report on . Posted in Community, News, Obituaries.
It is with great sadness to announce the passing of Jacob Patrick Halunen of Englewood, Florida on Thursday, November 23, 2023. Jacob was 19 years old. Born on October 22, 2004, to Michael Paul Halunen Sr. and Yvonne Diane (Barnthouse) Halunen. Jacob was a senior who would have been part of the graduating class of […]
Written by Garland Pollard on . Posted in Community, Profiles, Uncategorized.
Every issue, the Boca Beacon highlights one of our own in our Page 3 In The Spotlight. We look to the community to see who is making news, whether they be a volunteer for one of our non-profits like BIPS, or the retired important people who have come here after long careers elsewhere and reinvented […]
Written by Staff Report on . Posted in News.
At their upcoming Dec. 5, 2023 Board of County Commissioners meeting, Lee County will vote on a new contract for “population control services for black spiny-tailed iguanas” on Gasparilla Island. The award, set for the consent agenda, would be given to Blue Iguana Pest Control, Inc. dba Iguana Control of Coral Springs, Fla. as the […]
Written by Delores Savas on . Posted in Opinion, Sports & Outdoors.
Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall, Humpty Dumpty had a great fall.All the King’s horses and all the King’s menCouldn’t put Humpty Dumpty together again.” Lewis Carroll There is now a great push to return the manatee to the Endangered Species List. Many environmental agencies are asking the public to write to the United States […]
Written by Garland Pollard on . Posted in News.
A resident heading back home to Boca Grande had his most recent work of art, a Betsy Ross flag made of shark’s teeth, stolen while he stopped somewhere between Tampa and home. “The flag was the best one I have ever made,” said Frank Koffend, a historian, fisherman, park volunteer, author and a lifetime collector […]
Written by Staff Report on . Posted in News, Sports & Outdoors.
Gasparilla Island State Park is finishing a restoration project to remove invasive plants from the southern half of the island, north of Boca Grande Pass. Restoration projects are frequently undertaken at Florida’s state parks to ensure that native habitats thrive. Invasive plants alter native plant communities by out competing and displacing them but provide little […]
Written by Garland Pollard on . Posted in News.
The downtown streets of Boca Grande were completely filled Saturday evening for the annual Christmas Walk. While some retailers were closed for the evening festivities, most were open, offering drinks and snacks for the families waiting for Santa’s fire truck visit. “There were definitely more people this year,” said Boca Grande Area Chamber of Commerce […]
Written by Staff Report on . Posted in News.
Each year, the Boca Beacon publishes a guide to all things Gasparilla Island, the Boca Beacon Visitor’s Guide. The annual publication is the official guide to Gasparilla Island. The booklet, which is free, has a 30,000 circulation. It is the only all-inclusive printed resource for visitors and residents to find out about all things Boca […]
Written by Garland Pollard on . Posted in Opinion.
The first newspaper in the U.S. colonies was a weekly, like ours. Appearing on April 24, 1704, the “Boston News-Letter” was sold at a “shop near the Old Meeting House” and printed by Bartholomew Green, an early American notable whom many on this island might claim as an ancestor. That weekly paper carried news both […]
Written by Garland Pollard on . Posted in News.
Rep. Adam Botana, a Republican from Bonita Springs who represents Boca Grande, is sponsoring a draft bill to create what would be the Captiva Island Conservation Area Act. The act would be modeled after the Gasparilla Island Conservation District Act, which has protected building heights and density on Boca Grande since the 1980s. The bill […]