Friends of Tigertail Complete Final Beach Cleanup of 2021

Keeping our beaches clean requires continual community effort, and many groups and individuals endeavor to maintain the beauty of our shoreline.

Friends of Tigertail sponsors quarterly events, with the final cleanup of 2021 on Saturday December 4, 2021. There were 59 volunteers that included residents and visitors, Friends of Tigertail and MICA members, 17 students from Marco Island Academy, several Marco Island Noon Rotary members, and employees from the Marco Island Starbucks, who also donated coffee for all of the volunteers, a treat on the cool morning. The Noon Rotary members donated six "grabbers" to the Friends group, making debris collection easier and safer for the volunteers. The support of the community yielded excellent results: 79 pounds of debris were collected, including 58 pounds of trash and 21 pounds of recycle items.

Some of the participants noted that there seemed to be less debris than in years past. One explanation for this is that certain individuals who frequently walk the Marco beaches clean trash on a daily basis. One example is Lee Gundersen, known to many as one of the parking attendants at Tigertail Beach Park. On days off, Lee walks from Resident's beach all the way to the tip of Sand Dollar Spit, collecting trash as she goes and educating beach goers. She started this years ago with Nancy Ritchie and has continued through the years with other friends.

Friends of Tigertail salutes all of those who support keeping our beaches beautiful, and thanks the community groups who donate time and equipment to make the quarterly cleanup events such a success. The next Tigertail beach cleanup will be in April, part of Collier County's Bay Days/Keep Collier Beautiful. More information can be found on their Facebook page or their website: www.friendsoftigertail.com.