Category: Island Update

Pianist John Nakamatsu launches the 35th anniversary season of the Sanibel Music Festival on Saturday, March 5th at 7:30 pm. Gold medal winner of the 1977 Van Cliburn International Piano Competition, Mr. Nakamatsu has toured with many leading conductors and orchestras. In addition, he is an artist in residence at the highly selective Chautauqua Piano Program.

Tickets are on Sale at www.sanibelmusicfestival.org; at Bank of The Island on Sanibel, 1699 Periwinkle Way; by mail to Sanibel Music Festival, P.O. 1623, Sanibel, FL 33957, or by phone at 239.344.7025. Nakamatsu will perform at Sanibel Congregational United Church of Christ.

The Captiva Civic Association will continue with its 2021-22 art exhibition season next week with an opening reception for the fourth of five exhibits scheduled at the gallery over the coming months.

“Shorelines: Paintings and Stories of Captiva and Her Island Neighbors” will be a solo exhibition of paintings of places and landmarks in and around Captiva, Sanibel and the Pine Island region by Florida artist Paul Arsenault. It is a deliberate play on words as a title as he believes his creations inspired by the island “shore” locales capture the history, or the “lines” of the story, of the places. Mostly acrylic on canvas, Arsenault’s work captures the feeling and vibrance of the tropical atmosphere and the uniqueness of the island communities: colorful and exotic, while also being familiar and nostalgic.

“Paintings in this exhibition include the early days of South Seas, a unique perspective of the Lady Chadwick’s berth, Kite Day on Sanibel, circa 1984, Katy Gardenia’s shop, the colorful Pirate Playhouse when it was on Periwinkle and several depictions of Blind Pass over the years,” he said.

The opening reception is set for Feb. 17 from 5:30 to 7 p.m. at the Captiva Civic Center.

Open to the community, it will feature a bar, light refreshments and live music. Reservations are required to attend; visit the Eventbrite link at www.ccacaptiva.org/events-classes-meetings/.

In addition, Arsenault will give a presentation called “Stories” on March 3 at 4 p.m. at the center. He will talk about the “Shorelines” exhibition and share the stories behind his featured paintings.

The presentation is also free and open to the community, but reservations are required to attend. To register, visit the Eventbrite link at www.ccacaptiva.org/events-classes-meetings/.

“We had planned to have this exhibition last year but had to postpone it,” CCA Executive Director Emily Ankerson said. “Paul’s work is really amazing — breathtaking — and he is a wonderful storyteller. I think people in the community are really going to enjoy his beautiful paintings and the stories behind them.”

“Shorelines” will be on display from Feb. 17 through April 18.

The gallery is open for viewing Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Click here for more info

The public is invited to celebrate Thomas Edison’s 175th birthday at 10 a.m. Feb. 11 at the Edison and Ford Winter Estates. The party is a free public event and includes a birthday cake which is sponsored in part by the Edison Pageant of Light, the organization founded in 1938 to memorialize Thomas Edison and honor his achievements and contributions in Fort Myers. Click here for more info

Visitors are invited to a free tour of the Manatee Park butterfly garden and habitats at 9 a.m. Sundays through March 27. Visitors will enjoy walking the ADA accessible paths through the restored native plant habitats and butterfly gardens. A volunteer naturalist will lead the tour. Manatee Park is a non-captive refuge for the threatened Florida manatee. Optimum viewing is now through March. Free tour with paid parking. Click here to learn more

The 23rd Annual Southwest Florida Reading Festival will feature more than 20 acclaimed and bestselling authors from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. March 5. The festival will be hosted on the downtown Fort Myers Regional Library campus located at 2450 First St., Fort Myers.

Free and for all-ages, this popular annual outdoor event gives fans the opportunity to meet a diverse lineup of bestselling authors, participate in contests, activities and discover the latest in books and technology. In addition to author appearances and autograph sessions, there will be food truck vendors, storytelling programs, arts and crafts, youth writing contests and a free book for every child and teenager.

The complete list of authors can be found on the festival’s new mobile app “SWFL ReadFest” at the App Store, Google Play or by visiting the festival website at ReadFest.org

New air service at Southwest Florida International Airport (RSW) Air

Transat: Montreal (YUL), weekly, seasonal service
Eurowings Discover: Frankfurt, Germany (FRA), weekly, year-round service starts March 28

New flights at RSW
Sun Country: Duluth, Minn. (DLH), weekly; Green Bay, Wis. (GRB), weekly; Milwaukee (MKE), weekly; Rochester, Minn. (RST), weekly starts Feb. 3
United Airlines: Los Angeles (LAX), daily; San Francisco (SFO), daily
News from Punta Gorda Airport (PGD) Allegiant service from Akron, Ohio (CAK), begins March 2

In partnership with Captiva Cruises and Todd and Leanne Marcum, the Sanibel-Captiva Conservation Foundation’s next  Pine Island Sounds cruise will feature Ryan Scott on Jan. 16 from 4 to 6 p.m.; it will depart from McCarthy’s Marina, at 11401 Andy Rosse Lane, Captiva. Scott is a Brooklyn-based guitarist and soul singer whose music embodies rock ‘n’ roll and soul in its purest form, influenced by the blues-rock guitar lineage, New York’s jazz tradition, New Orleans R&B, Brazilian psychedelia and more. Tickets are $100 and include first drinks provided by Janie Howland and Jack Thomas and snack box from Catering by Leslie Adams. A cash bar will also be available. Proceeds will benefit the SCCF’s water quality efforts including research, policy and educational outreach. For more information or tickets, visit https://pineislandsounds.eventbrite.com.

The LeAneSUAREZGroup was one of the key sponsors for the Let’s Pink Out Sanibel Captiva Pink-A-Ball gala held on Saturday, October 9th at Sundial Beach Resort and Spa.

Let’s Pink Out raises funds for uninsured and underinsured residents and employees of Sanibel and Captiva islands who need mammograms and assistance with other cancer-related needs.

2021 marked the 10th year for the organization which has grown from a simple picnic table at the Sanibel Fire Station during the month of October to a month-long affair with a variety of wonderful community events.

LeAne and the entire Suarez family were honored to support the breast cancer needs of their community and especially support John R. Wood Properties very own staff member and breast cancer survivor, Ann Neubauer.