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Island parking meeting set for this Wednesday

The first meeting of the Boca Grande Parking Committee will be held on Wednesday, April 22 at 1 p.m. The public meeting, which will include all 15 members of the committee as well as Lee County s…

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Island parking meeting set for this Wednesday

The first meeting of the Boca Grande Parking Committee will be held on Wednesday, April 22 at 1 p.m. The public meeting, which will include all 15 members of the committee as well as Lee County s…

Gasparilla Island Magazine earns state awards

Gasparilla Island Magazine has been recognized in the 2026 Florida Magazine Association Charlie Awards, earning honors across a wide range of editorial, design and production categories. The annu…

International Women’s Fishing

The International Women’s Fishing Association met this week in Boca Grande for the Boca Grande Funament, held from April 12-15. The tournament is one of many events for the club; Funaments are ways…

Island School Bake Sale benefits teacher

The Island School students, parents and teachers came together to sell baked goods and lemonade on Saturday, March 28 to benefit their fourth grade teacher, Dorothy Rahal. From all the helpers…

IN THE SPOTLIGHT: Jeff Swift

Engineer at the Boca Grande Preschool Above, Jeff and Betty Swift. Photo submitted Jeff Swift laughs when asked about retirement. “Retirement isn’t doing nothing,” he said. “Retirement is doin…

Introducing The Island School’s Wax Museum

Second graders of The Island School appeared in character for their Historical Heroes Wax Museum. The second graders spent the third quarter of this school year reading, researching and writing abou…

Tarpon Season Kick-off Party Saturday

The Boca Grande Fishing Guides Association is hosting the first annual Tarpon Season Kick-off Party on Saturday, April 18. The event is from 5 to 7 p.m. at Whidden’s Marina, 190 1st St. East. The…

Troy Senik to speak on Grover Cleveland April 15 at

Friends of Boca Grande Community Center is pleased to host author Troy Senik for a lecture and discussion on his biography of President Grover Cleveland, “A Man of Iron,” on Wednesday, April 15, at…

Mount Vernon historian discusses legacy of John Adams

Historian and author Dr. Lindsay Chervinsky returns to Boca Grande on Monday, April 13, at 4:30 p.m. to present insights from her latest book, “Making the Presidency: John Adams and the Precedents T…

IN THE SPOTLIGHT: Afternoon with Andy Mill and author Thomas McGuane

Tom McGuane and Andy Mill told stories and took questions at the Johann Fust Library last Thursday, following an earlier screening of the documentary film “All That Is Sacred.” Mill first rose to prominence as an alpine ski racer, competing in two Olympics, before a long career in broadcasting. He now hosts a fishing and […]

Sports & Outdoors

Health & Wellness

Ask A Doc: The AI at the Boca Grande Health Clinic is about dictation, not medicine

BY DR. BRET KUEBER, M.D. If you’ve been to the Boca Grande Health Clinic recently, you may have noticed that your physician is looking at you a bit more and at the computer a bit less. That’s…

Ask a Doc: What happens when your doctor recommends a specialist?

The Boca Grande Health Clinic is the first stop for many residents and workers seeking care, from routine checkups to serious conditions such as cancer, heart disease and complex infections. Each ye…

IN THE SPOTLIGHT: Anita Dust

Parkinson’s advocate on troubling disease Anita Dust almost threw it away. It was just another piece of mail, a small educational flyer listing the early signs of Parkinson’s disease. Like most p…

Clinic takes guests on ‘rounds’ of new offerings

Serving since 1947, taking operation into the future On a chilly island morning, residents gathered at the Boca Grande Community Center for the Feb. 24 Grande Rounds Program on how the Clinic wor…

Fire Cadets Friday

The Boca Grande Fire Department will host a Mini Fire Cadet Academy on April 17 at BGFD Station for students in grades 3 through 5, ages eight to 11. The three-hour program is designed to provide ha…

Update on accident

Last week, the Beacon reported a golf cart and car accident on Thursday afternoon at 7th Street and the GICIA Bike Path. The accident was on April 2, 2026 at 3:55 p.m. The driver of the reported tha…

Two medflights and a busy week with EMS calls

Golf cart dangers abound Above, two Lee visits to the Damficare helicopter pad this week have kept emergency crews busy during Easter week. Photo by Sue Shaffer On Wednesday evening, April 8 t…

Testing a new truck ladder

The Bradenton Fire Department responded to a request from Boca Grande Fire Department Chief C.W. Blosser, to borrow one of their fire trucks. On Wednesday, a crew brought a Pierce 107 ladder truck…

News Archives

Paul ‘Chico’ Euwer 1935-2026

Paul (Chico) Euwer, from Boca Grande and Ligonier, PA, died on March 23, 2026. He graduated from the Lawrenceville School, Princeton and the Wharton…

Capt. John Spinks Celebration

Capt. John Spinks, best known as Capt. ‘Tater’ Spinks, died March 8, 2026. Born Jan. 1, 1947, he was a long-time Boca Grande fishing captain. Ta…

Memorial for Richard Scott Faley

A memorial mass for Richard Scott Faley (1947-2026) will be held at Our Lady of Mercy Catholic Church on Thursday, April 9th at 11 a.m. All are invi…

Paul Lewis Csank 1939-2026

Paul Lewis Csank (November 14, 1939 – March 28, 2026) was not a man who did things halfway. A native of Cleveland, he began studying psychology…

Charles Edward ‘Ched’ McConnell, 1948-2026

Charles Edward McConnell (Ched) of Boca Grande, Florida, passed away on Tuesday, March 3, 2026, at the age of 77. Ched was born on September 1, 1948…