Loggerhead sea turtle Betty White peeks over the edge of her enclosure during Sea Turtle Day
at Gumbo Limbo Nature Center in Boca Raton.
Madeline Gray/The Coastal Star
RELATED STORY: Gumbo Limbo 30 years old, and still growing
By Tao Woolfe
Children clambered onto rain-slicked turtle sculptures and ate ice cream, oblivious to the wind rattling the sea grapes and the crack of thunder.
It was, after all, Sea Turtle Day at Gumbo Limbo, so why care about anything but turtles and the sea?
This sense of watery adventure pervaded all the events of the 10th annual Sea Turtle Day Festival, which also marked the 30th anniversary of the nature preserve. In the morning, at the official opening of festivities, Boca Raton Deputy Mayor Constance Scott proclaimed Feb. 28, 2015, Gumbo Limbo Nature Center Day.
Yellow buses shuttled hundreds of families and tourists from the larger parking area of nearby Spanish River Park throughout the day. At least 2,000 enthusiasts braved the blustery weather to see rescued baby turtles, take tours, and learn how to be environmental stewards.
“Last year we had 3,800 people come out for Sea Turtle Day,” said Kristen Child, environmental program coordinator for the nature center. “We had a pretty good turnout this year, too, considering. We probably would have had over 4,000 if the weather had been better.”
Children were given passports and sent on a mission to collect stamps as they visited exhibits. They watched feedings, heard lectures, and learned about leatherbacks, loggerheads, green turtles and other coastal creatures.
“The kids ran us around like crazy collecting stamps,” said Marta Wojtysiak, of Boca Raton, who accompanied friends and their children. “The rain didn’t bother them — or us — at all.”
Kids also collected beads to make bracelets that spelled out I love Gumbo Limbo, had their faces painted, and watched fish and animal feedings.
Craft and food vendors set up stations in the nature center’s small parking areas shaded by signature gumbo limbo trees. A vintage Good Humor ice cream truck was a popular attraction.
And even those who already support conservation came away with a new appreciation for Gumbo Limbo’s work and the difficulties of being a turtle.
“I really liked seeing the turtle rehab center,” said Kassie Rodriguez, 16, of Pompano Beach. “I didn’t realize that each turtle has a different story and background. I think what they’re doing is really great.”
Gumbo Limbo was made possible by Boca Raton naturalists and visionaries who saw the hardwood hammocks and coastal dunes of South Florida bulldozed and replaced by hotels and condo towers.
Alarmed by the vision of an unbroken concrete canyon along the beach in Boca, the naturalists and city officials put together a bond issue preserving a five-mile tract of land that would become Red Reef Park and the 19-acre Gumbo Limbo coastal hammock preserve.
The center is operated cooperatively by the city of Boca Raton; the Greater Boca Raton Beach and Park District, Florida Atlantic University and Friends of Gumbo Limbo, who offer financial support and volunteer hours.
An estimated 100,000 local and tourist visitors come to the park each year to learn about sea turtles and other endangered plants and animals, and to walk the nature trails to catch a glimpse of woodpeckers, screech owls, foxes and rare plants.
Gumbo Limbo rescues injured turtles, helps them recover and returns them to the ocean. The preserve also finds and protects nesting turtles, and raises awareness through ongoing classes, field trips and research.
Besides Sea Turtle Day, there are many other events and activities at the nature center throughout the year. Visit www.gumbolimbo.org to see the schedule.
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