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PROFILE: Pastor Gary Beatty

Written by Sheila Evans on . Posted in Featured News, Profiles.

If it is wrong to lie about your age when you are 16 so you can earn money to help your mother support the family, Pastor Gary Beatty has probably been forgiven. What was truly wrong was how poor he and his mother and five sisters were. Someone had to relieve the burden, so young Gary took it up as his responsibility. He joined the National Guard to get a paycheck. 

The Beatty family was not the only poor family in Lancaster, Ohio, and Gary was not the only underage boy who enlisted in 1956. 
“It wasn’t that uncommon,” Pastor Beatty recalled. “There were probably eight or 10 of us in our company who were underage.”

THIS DATE IN THE BOCA BEACON

Written by Marcy Shortuse on . Posted in Community History, Featured News.

FIVE YEARS AGOThe Boca Grande Historical Society was celebrating “Railroad Week” by introducing a new exhibit called “Railroads, Phosphate and Real Estate.” TEN YEARS AGO We had a sunrise eclipse. FIFTEEN YEARS AGO John McCain took the island vote in the polls with 58 percent. Island businesses were shuffling from locations and some disappeared altogether […]

LETTER TO THE EDITOR: Come check out upcoming History Center programs  

Written by Boca Beacon Reader on . Posted in Community History, Featured News.

To the Editor: On Tuesday, Nov. 14 join the Boca Grande Historical Society in welcoming John Pether to discuss Florida’s timeless boats. The presentation will cover highlights from his book, “Wood, Fiberglass, and Steel: The History of Boat Building on Florida’s Gulf Coast,” about the history of boat building on the Gulf Coast of Florida […]

New donations to AUXCOMM fund mean one step closer to the goal of emergency autonomy

Written by Guest Columnist on . Posted in News, Police & Fire.

Fire Chief C.W. Blosser and the Island EOC Emergency Communications & Interoperability Working Group would like to express their sincere gratitude to the Boca Grande Health Clinic Foundation for its recent donation of $8,095 to the Auxiliary Emergency Radio Communications System (AUXCOMM) project.
The Health Clinic’s timely donation covers the entire cost of the Clinic’s radios and extensive training in their use.
With that generous donation, the total amount raised for the project since mid-August is $306,595.

Might the sailboat at 9th be gone soon?

Written by Marcy Shortuse on . Posted in News.

Word has it that Lee County might be working to remove the sailboat lodged in the sand at 9th Street beach since Hurricane Ian … maybe even as early as today. On Thursday, Oct. 26 it was discussed that 9th Street beach access would be closed today, Friday, Nov. 3 so that the company A-C-T […]

Charlotte County tourism eagerly awaits opening of Sunseeker

Written by Garland Pollard on . Posted in News.

As fall visitors arrive and winter visitors begin to make plans, local tourism officials are looking for good news as vacation rentals come back on line.
“I think we are seeing some pent-up demand,” said Sean Doherty, the tourism director for Charlotte County tourism, which is branded the Punta Gorda and Englewood Beach Convention and Visitor Bureau.

Looking at Charlotte County’s tourism development tax revenues, in August the county saw its first actual increase in revenue since Hurricane Ian, with an upward blip of 0.7 percent. TDC revenue is derived from the lodging tax, which is assessed on any rental of less than six months and one day. These bed tax funds support both the Charlotte County and Lee County visitor bureaus.

Rental properties coming back on the market on Don Pedro and Little Gasparilla are also helping Charlotte tourism figures, as many were off market after Ian, Doherty said.

Tarpon and snook catch $1.2 million research grant

Written by Garland Pollard on . Posted in News, Sports & Outdoors.

Increasing development and the importance of local tarpon and snook populations have spurred a $1.2 million grant from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) that will specifically target Charlotte Harbor. 

“These are very specific needs of a very specific fish,” said Nicole Iadevaia, director of research and restoration for the Coastal & Heartland National Estuary Partnership. CHNEP is working on the project with a team that includes the Bonefish and Tarpon Trust, Florida’s Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission and Charlotte County government.

The study is unique in that it takes into consideration economic development, and asks for “realistic options for implementing habitat protection or restoration.” It is officially titled “Implementation of a research plan to guide decisions on place-based recreational fishery conservation in Charlotte Harbor.”

PROFILE: Gordon Allen

Written by Sheila Evans on . Posted in Profiles.

High tech meets high drama. And it’s all happening in a quiet neighborhood in the elegant town of Boca Grande. 
This is not the plot of a new play, but the real-life story of one of the newest actors joining the ranks of the Royal Palm Players. 

Gordon Allen took a couple of acting classes when he lived in Santa Barbara, California some 20 years ago. He was not actually looking to perform on stage, though. He was hoping to improve his skills as a salesman. 

“It was more just for fun. I’m in sales, so I spend a lot of time in front of people,” he explained. “I was talking to lots of senior-level executives, tech executives, things like that. So taking an acting class was a help in getting better at just talking … talking on my feet and thinking on my feet.”

That changed recently, however.

OBITUARY: Emerson White

Written by Staff Report on . Posted in Obituaries.

Emerson Donald White, 86, of Placida, Florida peacefully passed away on October 29, 2023 at home, surrounded by family. Known to all as Don, he was born in Winchendon, Massachusetts to Emerson and Alice White. He graduated from Leominster High School, received a business degree from Babson College and was also a veteran of the […]