Lighthouse Closed for Maintenance in August

The Lighthouse will be closed for the month of August 2009 for routine repairs and maintenance. It will reopen on Wednesday, September 2, 2009 at 10am.

Lighthouse Museum Anniversary Celebration

The 10th anniversary celebration of the Lighthouse Museum will take place on Florida Lighthouse Day on Saturday April 25th from 10am to 4pm at the Boca Grande Lighthouse. The Coast Guard will be conucting rare tours to the lamp room of the lighthouse, and there will be crafts for the kids, cake and drinks, a dulcimer player, and giveaways while supplies last. Special guests include Dian McKeithan Miller and her sister Joyce, daughters of the last Lighthouse Keeper, Vernice Rodriguez, who attended the old Boca Grande School, and one of the Bell sisters, who also grew up on the Island. Stop by and celebrate with us!

Upcoming Events

Tomorrow, Friday April 3rd, is the Grand Opening of our new kayak program at Don Pedro Land Base. The program will run from 9 to 11:30 am, and we will have kayak demos and serve free cookies and drink. There will be rangers there to show you how to get in and out of a kayak properly, as well as letting those interested take a 10 minute spin in the water.

Saturday, April 4th, is our Annual Member's Party open to all BIPS members. For the first time, we are inviting members to view the sunset off the Lighthouse porch, and offering rare tours of the lamp room, led by our Park Manager, Chad.

We hope to see you at one of our next events!

2009 Green Gala

Join us this Saturday, March 7th 2009, for a night of dinner, dancing, and music at our annual Green Gala. Our theme this year is "Denim and Diamonds", and we welcome David St. Romain, an up and coming country music artist who was a finalist on USA network's Nashville Star. He and his 5 piece band will be entertaining us for the night. Tickets are $100, and are available by contacting BIPS at (941)964-0060. We hope to see you there!

Cayo Costa Trek

Pete Durno will be leading a brown bag lunch Cayo Costa Trek on Thursday, February 12. The boats will leave Boca Grande at 9am, and arrive at Cayo Costa for a ranger-led tour, and visitors will also be able to see all the improvements that have been made to the park. Lunch will be held after the tour, and the boats will return to Boca Grande around 1:30pm. The cost is $10 for BIPS members, and $20 for non-members.

Best-Selling Author coming to Boca Grande

Mary Alice Monroe is coming to Boca Grande this Thursday, February 5th, a visit hosted by BIPS. Naturalists and others may be familiar with some of Mary Alice's books, including The Beach House, its sequel Swimming Lessons, Turtle Summer: A Journal for My Daughter (winner of the ASPCA Children's Book Award) and many others. Mary Alice's newest novel, entitled Time is a River, brings together fly-fishing, mystery, and the healing power of beautiful, natural places.

Put it on your calendar and join us at the Community Center Auditorium on Thursday, February 5th 2009 at 2:30pm. A reception and autograph session in the Women's Club Room will follow the lecture. For more information, call BIPS at (941)964-0060, or visit maryalicemonroe.com. We look forward to sharing this unique opportunity with you!

Lighthouse Lighting

A great time was had by all at the lighting of the lighthouse on Saturday night. Lots of food, drink, and friends.....and even a bit of caroling. The sales record for lighting night in the gift shop was surpassed. Thank you to all who attended for your support.

Annual Lighting of the Lighthouse

Join us this Saturday, December 13, from 6pm to 8pm to see the lighting of the Christmas Lights on the Lighthouse. Following the Lighting will be a party where you can mingle in the glow of the decorations and get into the holiday spirit.

Children's Educational Series

Tomorrow, Saturday November 29th, is the first program of our Children's Educational Series. The program runs from 10am to 11:30 am, and will take place at the pavilion by the lighthouse.

The title of this program is Creative Calusa, and will interpret the who the Calusa Indians are, where they lived, their style of art, and how they made their paint. There will be a project at the end for the children to try their hand at mixing their own colors and painting like the Calusa would have. 

The next Children’s Educational program is at Stump Pass and is titled Shark Smarts, to take place on January 17th. The program will go over the types of sharks in SW Florida waters, talk about common myths, possible reasons there are so many sharks teeth at Stump Pass Beach, and follow with a shark tooth hunt and necklace making session.

Charlotte Harbor Nature Festival

The Charlotte Harbor National Estuary Program is pleased to sponsor the ninth annual Charlotte Harbor Nature Festival – a day to explore, learn and enjoy the natural environment of southwest Florida. The event will take place on Saturday, November 22, 2008 from 10am to 3pm in Port Charlotte at the Charlotte Sports Park, located at 2300 El Jobean Rd, 2.5 miles west of US 41.

Visitors can participate in activities geared toward all ages, including nature exhibits, local artists, live native animals, musicians, wagon rides and guided walks to the Tippecanoe Regional Park.

Guest speakers will cover water issues and native animals. Musicians will perform songs about the environment. Mote Marine Laboratory will bring their mobile exhibit with its touch tanks. Food and beverages can be purchased at the event.

Festival organizers have again chosen to make this event free so that as many people as possible can enjoy it and – new in 2007 – a free cloth tote bag will be given away (one/car).

The festival is funded through event sponsorship and a raffle that will be held at the festival. The event planning committee invites your business, organization or association to be promoted as a sponsor or exhibitor, joining many others, if their information is about the natural environment of southwest Florida. The festival is organized and planned by a dedicated group of volunteers representing a diverse number of organizations and associations.

Be sure to stop by and visit BIPS to learn about our museum and pick up your Port Boca Grande Lighthouse Fan and Frisbee, while supplies last. The festival promises to be a fun and educational event.

(Festival information taken from chnep.org)