Sanibel woman says yes to junonia with diamond

Julia Dressler is overjoyed after finding out a junonia planted on the beach near the Sanibel Moorings by her sweetheart Michael Grey, contained a diamond ring inside along with a marriage proposal.

Julia Dressler always dreamed of finding a rare junonia shell.

And like most young women she also longed to find the man of her dreams.

She got both.On Thursday, Michael Grey got down on bended knee on East Gulf beach in front of the Sanibel Moorings and proposed to Dressler, his girlfriend of nearly two years.

For Dressler, 26, the cool, sunny day seemed like a fairy tale.

One minute she was sifting through the sand looking for shells with Grey and the next she was scooping up a junonia with the words printed in marker "Julie will you marry me".

A moment early her clever Casanova called her over to check out a shell he found. He picked up the brown mottled shell and gave it to Dressler.

Her mouth curled into an O and her face broke into a 100 watt smile at the sight of the round solitaire diamond ring placed inside the shell.

"He pulled it out and gave a cute speech," Dressler said. "People didn't realize what was going on."

The day before his marriage proposal, Grey bought a junonia at Showcase Shells and got prepared for the big moment.

"I had actually run through it a few times," he said with a chuckle.

Grey had decided to propose to Dressler in front of the Sanibel Moorings - where her parents Barry and Suzanne Dressler own a condo - because the vacation home and Sanibel mean a lot to her. She has been spending time with her family on Sanibel since she was 18-months-old.

The Pennsylvania-based couple who met through mutual friends are excited to be engaged.

"It was love at first sight," Dressler said as she flashed a shy smile at Grey. "He's even a rarer and more special find then my junonia."

Dressler's parents were in on the romantic surprise. They had mimosas waiting for the pair when they arrived off of the beach with the junonia and ring in Dressler's hand.

"We're just so delighted to have a son in our lives," Suzanne Dressler said.

Grey, a computer consultant, is relaxed after everything went as plan -including Dressler's response to the ring.
"I said yes," she said.
The couple plans to marry on Sanibel.
"It's a place that's near and dear to my heart," Dressler said.

Island prepares to 'Celebrate Sanibel!' with weeklong series of special events

The Second Annual "Celebrate Sanibel!" kicks off this Sunday, Nov. 8 with free festivities and a Club Expo at the Sanibel Community House and culminates on Friday, Nov. 13 with a Historic Beach Buffet at Thistle Lodge.


In between, various non-profit island organizations and sites will host special talks, open houses, tours, and other activities. The week's schedule is included below.

Kristie Anders, education director at Sanibel-Captiva Conservation Foundation (SCCF), will address Sanibel Island from a historic and natural heritage perspective as Sunday's keynote speaker. City Planning Director James Jordan will talk about Sanibel, in both present and future tense.

Various island clubs will be on hand that day to disseminate information about their services while attendees enjoy free refreshments and can enter a drawing for a pair of six-foot Jamaica dogwood trees, compliments of SCCF.

To celebrate its historic role in Sanibel Island's history, Thistle Lodge will reprise its once-popular family beach buffets on Friday, Nov. 13 from noon to 2 p.m., featuring historic recipes. Cost is $14.95 per person.

The Committee of the Islands, Sanibel Community Association, Sanibel Historical Museum & Village and the Sanibel Public Library are co-partners for "Celebrate Sanibel!," a week of community festivities to commemorate our island's past, showcase its present and envision the future.

For more information, visit www.CelebrateSanibel.com or send an e-mail to CelebrateSanibel@zebis.com.

"Celebrate Sanibel!" Schedule of Events

Sunday, Nov. 8 Kickoff at Sanibel Community House

12:30 p.m. - Island Club Expo opens with host displays by ABWA, Bike Club, CHR, COTI, FISH, Human Trafficking Awareness Partnership, Kiwanis, Lions, Optimists, Rotary, Sanibel Beautification, TIDE, Zonta and more.

1 p.m. - Welcome from Celebrate Sanibel!'s Alex Werner and Vice Mayor Kevin Ruane.

1:15 p.m. - Keynote Speaker Kristie Anders, SCCF Education Director.

2 p.m. - Wrap-up from James Jordan, City of Sanibel Planning Director.

2 to 3 p.m. - Club Expo continues with free refreshments.

Daily Monday, Nov. 9 to Friday, Nov. 13

Special historic pictorial exhibit at Sanibel Public Library.

25 percent off all boat and kayak tours for Sanibel residents (with ID) at Tarpon Bay Explorers.

Monday, Nov. 9

Free admission all day to J. N. "Ding" Darling NWR's Wildlife Drive.

1:30 p.m. - Refuge Manager's free guided tram tour of "Ding" Darling Refuge, limited to first 30 people (Make advance reservations at 472-8900).

Tuesday, Nov. 1010 a.m. to 2 p.m. - Open House at C.R.O.W., with guided tours of the new Healing Winds Visitor Education Center, gifts for the first 50 guests and book-signings by local authors.

3 to 4 p.m. Sanibel Beautification tour of Palm Ridge Garden

Wednesday, Nov. 11 Veteran's Day

11 a.m. - Retired Military Officers Association Flag Ceremony at City Hall.

11 a.m. to noon - Free talk at the Historical Museum & Village about the founding of the City of Sanibel.

11:30 a.m. American Legion Post 123 serves lunch and dinner (4249 Sanibel-Captiva Road).

Thursday, Nov. 12

10 to 11 a.m. - Sanibel Beautification tour of Palm Ridge Garden.

2 p.m. - Free "What's New at the Shell Museum" talk by Dr. Jose Leal at The Bailey-Matthews Shell Museum.

6 to 7 p.m. - Sanibel Historical Museum & Village open free to the public for self-
touring.

7 p.m. - BIG Arts screening of "Sandbars To Sanibel: Pioneering An Island" with a reception to follow.

Friday, Nov. 13

Noon to 2 p.m. - Thistle Lodge Historic Beach Buffet and Turtle-Trails-To-Treasure Raffle Drawing. Cost $14.95 per person.

3 to 5 p.m. - F.I.S.H. Open House at 1630-B Periwinkle Way.

Author Wittkopf says shells can spell!

For the last 35 years, Harlan Wittkopf has walked the same one mile stretch of beach between Sandlefoot Condominiums and the lighthouse. His head and shoulders are seen leaning forward as though pulled by the strings of a puppeteer and his eyes have a singular focus, the shape, coloring and markings of Conus spurius, the alphabet cone, known at one time as the Chinese alphabet cone.


"I'm not exactly sure what prompted my fascination with this particular species. In part it was the challenge, because they were difficult to find, but most of all it is the striking appearance that explains the magnetic pull," reported Wittkopf. "To me, they are even more striking than the junonia."

It was renowned shell author Peter Dance who first noticed that if you look closely at the markings on alphabet cones, often a letter of the alphabet or a numeral is depicted by the seemingly random pattern of brown dots. In his book "Out Of My Shell," Dance writes, "For him (Harlan), the traditional pot of gold at the end of the rainbow should be replaced by a bucket of alphabet cones! Indubitably, this is Harlan's shell, images of it emblazoning his shirts, jackets, hats, ties and stationery. His single-minded attachment to this cone is such that there is even an engraving of it on his tombstone. Devotion can go no further than this."

In 2005, Wittkopf found two alphabet cones, each displaying the pattern of his initials, HEW. Dorothy DeVasure, a Sanibel resident, shell collector extraordinaire and Bailey-Matthews Shell Museum volunteer, discovered an alphabet cone with the letters KOY. This was the beginning of Harlan's obsession with the letters on alphabet cones, an obsession that led to the publication of a four-page color brochure titled "Alphabet Cones: Living, Learning Tools."

The brochure includes all 26 letters of the alphabet and the numerals one through twelve. Wittkopf has generously donated the brochure to The Bailey-Matthews Shell Museum. Each child visiting the museum with their family or friends, every child coming through the "Adopt-a-Class" program, children attending community events in which the museum participates, and students in classes that receive the Shell Museum School Collection Kit will receive a copy of the brochure.

"Harlan's field experience on the beaches of Sanibel and his astute observational skill has made it possible for the Museum to provide children with a very powerful learning tool," said Dr. Jos H. Leal, Director/Curator for the Shell Museum. "He has been a supporter and a steady contributor to the Museum since its inception," added Leal.

Wittkopf, an attorney and former Judicial Magistrate, is a native of Algona, Iowa. While he alternates spending time between Algona and his summer lake home, he has called Sanibel Island his second home since 1975. Since Harlan uses his own photographs in his books, he spends countless hours on Sanibel's beaches. He and his wife, Jeanne, have been married for over 40 years. The Wittkopf's have two children and two grandchildren.

Wittkopf's first book, "The Sanibel Kaleidoscope," published in 1997, has been a best seller for 12 years and is into its fifth edition. He is the author of "Favorite Collectible Sanibel Shells" and co-authored (with Anne Joffe) "Seashells of Sanibel and Gulf Coast Beaches." In 2007, he and Dance co-authored "Beach Treasures Of the Gulf Coast" and, in 2008, Wittkopf authored a friendship book, "Gems To Treasure," which is an analogy between seashells and friendship, with a tribute to Dance.

Preserving Our Good Nature - Sanibel-Captiva Conservation Foundation

Preserving Our Good Nature - Sanibel-Captiva Conservation Foundation

The islands’ reputations are known worldwide for shelling, birding, fishing and striking beauty. Located where the temperate mingles with the tropical climate and fresh water mixes with the salty water of the Gulf of Mexico, Sanibel and Captiva Islands are ideally situated to create unexcelled habitat for aquatic and terrestrial life.

The land and sea are so strikingly beautiful, productive and bounteous, they captured the attention of conservationists long before most of the world became aware natural resources were finite.

In the 1930s the Sanibel and Captiva Islands Conservation Association was founded under the leadership of Jay Norwood Darling. The first formal protection came from the State of Florida in 1939. In the next few decades under Darling’s urging, the federal government began protecting lands, and the Sanibel refuge was established.
In 1967, the refuge was renamed to honor the memory of its first conservation hero, Mr. Darling. In that same year, the grass roots organizers incorporated as the Sanibel-Captiva Conservation Foundation (SCCF), dedicating themselves to the preservation of natural resources and wildlife habitat. Complementing the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service’s activities, the foundation began preserving precious freshwater wetlands, while the refuge purchased bayside mangrove habitat.

Lot by lot, acre by acre, SCCF has purchased and restored vegetation and habitat that began to disappear under pressure of development on these islands. Skilled habitat managers have studied the land and needs of wildlife, steadily influencing the preserved lands to provide a place for river otters, bobcats, gopher tortoises, great egrets and more.
Marine scientists conduct research and monitor the health of the waters that surround the islands. Educators help residents and visitors explore the islands and learn more about the world around them. A native plant nursery is available for gardeners to learn more about landscaping for wildlife.

Baileyfest 2009 OCT 25 from 1 to 4p.m.

"Baileyfest 2009 offering $1,700 worth of prizes"

More than 40 different door prizes - valued at more than $1,700 - will be awarded at the 24th annual Baileyfest.

Baileyfest 2009 will be held on Sunday, Oct. 25 from 1 to 4 p.m. at Bailey's Center, located on the corner of Periwinkle Way and Tarpon Bay Road.

All 14 merchants in the Bailey's Center Merchants' Association (BCMA) have donated prizes:

Bailey's General Store $100 gift card

Bailey's True Value Hardware $100 gift card

Biddles Bucket Four $25 gift certificates

The Grog Shop $100 case of wine

Nick's Frozen Yogurt $100 gift basket

Hillgate Communications $100 spa gift basket

Island Cleaners $100 gift package

Island Cinema 10 $10 gift certificates for concessions

Lily & Co. $495 jewelry set

Sanibel Barber Shop Four $25 gift certificates

Sanibel Beauty Salon $100 beauty gift basket

Sanibel Shell Automotive Four $25 gift certificates for parts or labor

Select Vacation Properties $100 BBQ gift basket

The Video Scene 12 double movie rental packages

In order to enter the drawings, individuals need to visit the 14 BCMA merchants through Friday, Oct. 23. Entries are limited to one per person at each merchant. Winners will be announced at Baileyfest, but do not need to be present to win.

The Baileyfest stage will run from 1 p.m. and feature acts from local performers such as The Schoolhouse Theatre, BIG Arts, Jennifer Valiquette (saxophone player), The Sanibel School Steel Drum Band, Ring of Emerald dancers and more.

The family-oriented event will include food and beverages, crowning of Baileyfest King and Queen, mule and wagon rides, a bounce house, dunk tank, inflatable slide, miniature golf, and traditional games, including an egg and spoon race, hula hoop contest, tin can alley and fastest pitch. All proceeds will benefit Sanibel and Captiva non-profit organizations such as CROW, F.I.S.H. and Sanibel-Captiva Conservation Foundation.