Coastal Breeze News

By Coastal Breeze News Staff Season is back and so are the Canadians! Get acquainted with your fellow countrymen and women at the Marco Island Canadian Club Welcome Social on January 22 at BMO Harris Bank at the Esplanade. All Canadians visiting or living on the island are invited to this free event to celebrate another season in warm and sunny Marco Island. Meet, mingle and enjoy each others company on the outdoor, second floor pavilion balcony at 800 N. Collier Blvd. Cold beer, sodas, water, wine and delicious hors d’oeuvres will be served from 4:00 until 6:00 PM. Music ... Read More »

By Danielle Dodder Major beachfront cities like Miami are banning them outright. The resort empire that is Walt Disney World in Orlando has replaced them with paper versions. The small bits of plastic straws and drinking cup lids discarded by people quickly accumulate into a giant toxic mess on beaches globally. The unsightly litter not only ruins the beauty of a pristine beach, but also strangles the birds, turtles and fish who mistake it for food. Straws and lids are the most widely and easily littered items along most beaches, but here on Marco cooperation will hopefully trump the need ... Read More »

By Danielle Dodder The Optimist Club of Marco Island was formed in 2008 to make organized sports accessible to a wide range of children’s ages and abilities. The fee to sign up a child is $40 and the uniforms and part of the equipment is sponsored. This season, the soccer team added 100 new kids to the program, bringing the number of participants to nearly 300 in the soccer program alone. The Optimist Club also provides football, cheerleading and basketball throughout the year. The secret behind the program’s success is a group of dedicated parents who roll up their sleeves ... Read More »

By Natalie Strom [email protected] “I was a killer,” admits Jeane Lefebvre, Grounds Supervisor at the Marco Island Marriott Resort and Spa. “I thought if there was a bad bug, let’s shoot it. Anything I could spray, I would.” Recalling his early years, Lefebvre laughs as he describes his “180 degree turn” when it comes to the use of pesticides. Under the Master Gardener eye of Lefebvre, the Marriott’s grounds have been pesticide-free for 20 years. As Lefebvre battles the biggest pest invasion of his career – the spiraling whitefly – he shares his secrets for a pesticide-free landscape. For 23 ... Read More »

PROTECTING & PRESERVING Nancy Richie [email protected] Something is going on. Razorbills, an alcid bird or a web-footed, diving seabird, have been seen all over Florida by avid birders and beach goers. A few have been reported on Marco Island’s Tigertail Beach as well as in Caxambas Pass. Being a peninsula with one of the longest coastlines in the country, Florida has seabirds, so why is it so unusual to see the Razorbills? Historically, there have only been 14 documented sightings of this species in Florida. But since early December, there have been over 20 reports from Jacksonville to Marco Island of ... Read More »

LADY ANGLERS Captain Mary A. Fink islandgirlscharters.com The first three articles of the “Lady Anglers Corner” in Coastal Breeze addressed the many benefits sport fishing provides, tackle selection and what conditions and structure to look for when seeking fish. Now it’s time to start fishing using the skills mentioned in previous articles to your benefit! This author suggests testing your skills with local mangrove or gray snapper fishing. Mangrove or gray snappers are quite common around mangrove edges, reefs, rocks, docks and other structures. This is one reason why starting with snapper fishing is a good idea as your likelihood of ... Read More »

ARTFUL LIFE Tara O’Neill [email protected] [In the spirit of full disclosure I tell you now that the following subject touches me personally as I am not only president of the GAA board of directors, but am also on its festival committee.] The Goodland Arts Alliance is spreading its wings. A fledgling – but a mighty fledging – this newly formed non-profit is dedicating itself to the mission of “preserving, promoting, and advancing, the cultural presence in the Village of Goodland, through art, history, and education.” Towards that end (end?), the GAA is sponsoring its inaugural outdoor Harbor Arts & Music ... Read More »

CHEF’S TABLE Chef Anne Feinman [email protected] I love telling stories about cooking food. It comes natural to me, as food is essential to our humanity and our well-being and it affects all aspects of our lives. Some people may question the seriousness of writing about food. Most of us can go weeks without reading a book, watching a movie, or playing golf…. but I can’t imagine any of us going that long without food. More and more, cooking shows, cookbooks and magazines appear daily to educate and enhance our eating experiences. Food stories are important… they make us laugh, they make ... Read More »

ALL THAT GLITTERS Richard Alan [email protected] I hope to debunk wives tales and inform the misinformed in the next couple of issues about “all that glitters.” Also, always feel free to email any questions you may have about jewelry, diamonds or precious gems to [email protected] Falsehood #1… You can take a bunch of little diamonds and melt them together to make one large one. Diamonds are individual carbon crystals that take millions of years of pressure and high temperatures to form, one can burn a diamond and ruin its appearance but never melt one. It would be like melting two jet ... Read More »

DOG & STYLE Tony Wakefield-Jones [email protected]     Dear Tony, Why does my human insist on dressing me up all the time? She even had a professional photo shoot for me. It’s ridiculous! Help! B.B. Wrinkles, Goodland, FL   Dear B.B.: Sad. So sad and tragic. Essentially, your human NEEDS A LIFE! It’s one thing for every groomer on the planet to think we dogs look “cleaner and cuter” sent home with those silly little homemade handkerchiefs around our necks; it’s another when our humans try to haphazardly channel celebrity fashion designer Marc Bouwer and accessorize us. I mean, Marc Bouwer ... Read More »

A yacht club tradition formally transferring responsibility, authority and accountability of yacht club leadership   The Marco Island Yacht Club today announced its 11th Annual Commodore’s Ball and Change of Watch will take place at the waterfront Club’s Harbor Dining Room the evening of Saturday, January 19, 2013. According to MIYC Membership Director Lisa Luft, yacht clubs use Change of Watch, a time-honored naval tradition, to formally transfer responsibility, authority and accountability from one individual to another and from one year to the next. The formal evening’s gala festivities begin with a cocktail hour at 6 pm followed by a ... Read More »

Beginning on January 27, the cost of a one-ounce, First-Class postage stamp will increase by one penny, to 46 cents. The new 46 cent Forever stamps will allow customers to mail letters to any location in the United States. Forever stamps are always good for mailing a one-ounce letter anytime in the future regardless of price changes. Procrastinators who haven’t sent their annual holiday greetings will want to stock up on Forever stamps at the 45 cent rate prior to the rate change. The Postal Service will also introduce a First-Class Mail Global Forever Stamp. The new stamp will allow customers ... Read More »

I-75: Recreational access area (east of Firewater Canal) on Alligator Alley:Construction project — Crews are building a recreational access facility that includes a boat ramp and parking lot with fencing and lighting. Work involves widening and resurfacing the facility’s roadway, making drainage improvements, and adding intelligent transportation system components and a high-tension cable barrier system on I-75 in this area. Crews will have daily lane closures from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. on northbound I-75 in the vicinity of mile marker 52, weather permitting. Work includes widening as well as milling and resurfacing the mainline. This will affect the northbound lanes ... Read More »

$1,200 offered by the Florida State Association of Supervisors of Elections Jennifer J. Edwards, Collier County Supervisor of Elections is currently accepting applications for the 2013 Florida State Association of Supervisors of Elections (FSASE) “Jimmy Whitehouse” Scholarship. The scholarship offers $1,200 to eligible Florida residents enrolled or accepted as full-time students in a senior college or university in Florida. To be eligible, applicants must be Political Science, Public or Business Administration, or Journalism/Mass Communication majors who have finished two years of junior college or undergraduate work. Students should also demonstrate a financial need. The scholarship application and guidelines are available ... Read More »

A delegation from Civil Air Patrol will ring the opening bell Friday at the New York Stock Exchange. Led by CAP National Commander Maj. Gen. Chuck Carr, a group of about 20 CAP representatives, including cadets, will be on the stock exchange podium at 9:30 a.m. EST to officially start trading. The opening bell ceremony provides a platform to generate international exposure for CAP, which provides emergency services – like search and rescue for downed planes and missing people and disaster relief to communities throughout the United States, as well as Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. In addition, ... Read More »

To start 2013 on a positive note, MIPO would like to take this opportunity to clear up any misconception about its mission and charter. Simply stated, our endeavor is to be ADVOCATES for ALL owners; condo, single family home and business alike. Come join us on January 17, 10 AM, at Mackle Park to hear how MIPO plans to accomplish this on your behalf. Kindly RSVP to [email protected] as seating is limited to 200 and a large turn out is expected. Please help us help YOU by completing our first annual MIPO Survey available on www.marcoislandpropertyowners.com. It is an opportunity to have YOUR opinion heard. We take our lead from ... Read More »

Join us for a really unique “Olde Florida” treat. The Friends of Fakahatchee are hosting Coastal Cruises through the mysterious mangroves of the Ten Thousands Island. On the way, you will probably see dolphins cavorting with the tour boat. When you arrive at Fakahatchee Island, a naturalist will point out unusual plants on the path up the ancient shell mound to the old cemetery. On the return journey, the boat passes by a famous rookery where the birds will be settling down for the evening. We might think of “Fakahatchee” as a swamp with Ghost Orchids and Florida Panthers but to ... Read More »

What do homemade soup and handmade ceramic bowls have in common? They’re being featured at the Saturday, January 26 Empty Bowls event being held at Cambier Park, Naples. The Naples community is gearing up to participate in the sixth annual event, which will take place between 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. The event is an annual fund raiser for the Harry Chapin Food Bank. For a $10 donation, those attending can select a handmade ceramic bowl and sample from at least 38 tasty soups. Not only would the selected bowl be a wonderful, useful item in the home, but the ... Read More »

The Florida scrub-jay becomes more threatened each day as encroaching destroys its habitat. To create more awareness, AuthenticFlorida.com, has joined forces with Oscar Scherer State Park and Clyde Butcher, Jack Perkins and Jeff Klinkenberg to present “Authentic Florida Meets Real Florida.”This special event is January 18, 2013, 10-11:30 a.m., at the Girl Scout Event Conference Center, 4740 Cattlemen Road in Sarasota. Emmy Award-winner and author Jack Perkins will serve as master of ceremonies. Special guest speakers include the renown local photographer, Clyde Butcher, widely considered the “Ansel Adams” of Florida, and journalist and author Jeff Klinkenberg. Sponsored by AuthenticFlorida.com, tickets are $30 per person. ... Read More »

“Twenty years! It seems like yesterday that we began the joyous hard work creating the dream of Big Cypress Gallery in a setting surrounded by the peace of over a million acres of wilderness. The public has been a big part of that dream, and we invite everyone to join with us as we celebrate the twentieth anniversary of our Big Cypress Gallery” Clyde will be in the gallery all three days to greet guests and autograph books from 10am-5pm. This rare opportunity to meet the photographer will also feature family friendly activites throughout the weekend including speakers throughout the day: Rangers from ... Read More »