BY NIKKI HEIMANN - For more than a year now, three island locals have happily volunteered their time with an amazing non-profit organization called Surfers for Autism. The name is pretty self-explanatory - members and volunteers of this program are dedicated to introducing children with special needs to the sport of surfing with a remarkable day at the beach full of joy, laughter and inspiration.

Their mission is to unlock the potential of people with developmental delays, while supporting advocacy for autism issues and scientific research. Their focus is to eliminate stigma through public awareness and education and to unite communities through volunteerism.

BY LIZA STROUT - Having spent her first 14 years in Charleston, S.C. before moving with her family to Virginia and then on to California, Renee Lindsey vowed that she would spend the rest of her life west of the Rockies. When her father was transferred to Point Loma, a community in San Diego, Calif., she just knew that she had found her permanent home.

“When his next assignment came up, and it was in Guam, I decided that I would be staying in California,” Renee laughed. “I spent the next 20 years living in San Diego. I swore that I would never live on the East Coast again. I have a California soul. I just felt like I belonged.”

To the Editor:

I wish to add my name to those objecting to the ditch along the bike path. It runs from 40th to 48th street, and as Jane Caple wrote ‘it is a green, slimy and smelly mess.’ All the work Lee County did only deepened the ditch to store more water. It appears that the drains which should take away the water are almost fully clogged. Their work only made the situation worse. Perhaps if GICIA and Chamber personnel would travel the path in a golf cart, they would be more aware of the problem.

Martha Randall

Boca Grande

 BY LIZA STROUT - They say only one out of every thousand sea turtle hatchlings survives to maturity. A group of local volunteers works to give the turtles every chance possible to survive the dangerous period between a nest being laid and the hatchling reaching the surf.

Coastal Wildlife Club monitors the beaches of Gasparilla Island, Little Gasparilla Island and Manasota Key. CWC volunteers head out early each day to walk miles of local beaches, searching for signs of new sea turtle nests.