A new twist of events has surfaced regarding the two men rescued in local waters last week by the Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office.

As it turns out, two of the women who were on the boat that left the men in the water as a joke are employed by the Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office.

BY NIKKI HEIMANN - When Sally Van Nuland quit smoking a few years ago, she didn’t realize just how much of a positive impact it would have on her life.

The manager at Dolphin Cove (formerly the Pink Pony) was tired of coming in third in the 5K races she competed in. She had participated in high school track, so running came naturally to her.

Sally wanted a first place, but knew if she was to achieve it she would have to genuinely leave behind previous tendencies. Hence, her life-altering decision was made.

BY LIZA STROUT - At 8:46 a.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2012, the Boca Grande Fire Department turned on their siren.

The sound marked the minute that American Airlines Flight 11 was flown into the North Tower of the World Trade Center in 2001.

In the wake of Tropical Storm Debby, prospects for this year’s crop of sea turtles looked grim.

After a busy start to turtle nesting season, Debby’s timing couldn’t have been worse. The storm grazed southwest Florida during Week Ten of the season, which is right at the peak for new nests being found each year. It caused a drop in the weekly reported nest numbers from the upper 40s to the lower 20s. But in the weeks that followed, there were signs for optimism. There was an instant rebound in the number of nests found during Week 11, along with evidence that turtles had continued to lay new nests throughout the storm.

Demographic information recently released by a company called ZipCode.org bring some interesting Boca Grande facts to light that we thought we would share with you, our loyal readers.

To say we’re slightly different than the rest of the country is an understatement. These statistics, by the way, were based on the 2000 census, and are only for the 33921 zip code.

Golfers will be in their element on Monday, Oct. 15 as the annual Boca Grande Scramble Golf Tournament will once again be held at the Gasparilla Inn & Club Golf Course.
As in past years, this is the major fundraiser for the Boca Grande Chamber Scholarship Fund.