WEEK APRIL 23, 2025 FLIER INSIDE
‘Above average...’
University, weather agency make predictions about upcoming hurricane season — INSIDE PINEISLAND-EAGLE.COM
VOLUME 48, NUMBER 50
Island community mourns Leoma Lovegrove By PAULETTE LeBLANC
pleblanc@breezenewspapers.com
The community of Matlacha said goodbye to legendary artist Leoma Lovegrove on April 10. Lovegrove, 72, was diagnosed with and had battled Stage 4 breast cancer since 2018. She often employed her art, using it to promote awareness and early detection. The community is invited to attend a celebration of life 2 p.m., Monday, April 28, at the Broadway Palm Dinner Theatre. For planning purposes, RSVPs are kindly requested by today, April 23, at https://www. eventbrite.com/.../leoma-lovegrove... Close friend and fellow Matlacha business owner Chardayne Seuffert, speaking affectionately of Lovegrove, said, “She chose to live,” in the midst of her
Leoma Lovegrove
years-long battle with breast cancer, to Seuffert’s recollection, never complaining or relenting. Seuffert also contends that Lovegrove was known, by close friends for her tremendous generosity, even in the face of disaster, such as, in the aftermath of Hurricane Ian. “She gave her boots away — she gave her glasses away — she was very kind. A lot of people
Celebrating Pine Islanders: Jamie DeLacey
Once again, the Matlacha Hookers will be hosting the 24th Annual Pine Island Fishing Tournament & Derby at Jug Creek Marina on Sunday, May 18. This long held tradition is open to anyone, even those who may have elementary school aged children who would like to fish, although it is open to the whole family and it’s also free of charge. Former Matlacha Hookers’ Madame Donna Jo Ruscik said this event still has room for sponsors and that it is especially good for Pine Islanders who are more than ready for the Annual Fishing Derby, since the previous hurricane season pushed the event forward from November 2024 to this coming May. “The Fishing Tournament is on Saturday. The Pine Island Elementary (PIE) Fishing Derby is on Sunday — along with the payouts and the raffles and we’ll award bicycles to some of the kids,” Ruscik said. The event will be very family-friendly, she said, with much celebration and awards to go around. Typically, this event has been held in the fall, Ruscik said, but the spring has shown to be a better season for attendance. The Matlacha Hookers organization has hosted this event since its beginning and since then, it has raised more than $220,000. “I want to make it clear that the proceeds go to Pine Island Elementary for educational tools and to offset outof-pocket costs to teachers, but any elementary school student can participate. So, if people have grandkids or nieces and nephews that are off-island, they can participate,” Ruscik said. Every child fishes, she said, adding that sponsorship of a child is $35 and that child will receive a brand new rod and reel, lunch and beverages throughout the day, a Derby shirt and organized crafts and activities. Registration begins at 8:30 a.m., she said, and the whole event ends at 3 p.m. A parent or guardian is expected to stay with the child or children for the duration of the event.
amie DeLacey said she identifies as a mother, friend, wife and community leader. Having a really good family is something she holds very dear. Her father built her Bokeelia house in the 1980s, she said. “It was basically just a fish camp. We were snowbirds at that time, just here on vacation and just to fish. We didn’t have anything in the house but beds and fishing poles,” DeLacey said. Her parents got divorced when she was in the second grade and that’s when her father moved into the Bokeelia house full time. At that point she was spending some of her time in Orlando and some in Bokeelia. When she graduated from college, she started working in California, which lasted for a number of years. At this point, she found that for some reason there was an emptiness in her life that she could not fill. “Whenever I came home to visit my parents in Saint James — who got remarried by the way — it felt like I was whole again. I only had that feeling on Pine Island,” DeLacey said. A part of her love for the island stems from the fact that it is not overdeveloped, even after all these years, she said. “I love that it’s quaint and I love that kids can still ride their bikes on the street,” DeLacey said. In an effort to keep it safe, she said, she continues her work at the Fire Department, where they are the first line of defense against anything coming toward the island from the state or the county. See JAMIE DELACEY, page 7 The DeLaceys, from top, Travis, Jamie, Colton and Saylor. PHOTO PROVIDED
INSIDETODAY
Pine Island Fishing Tournament & Derby scheduled for May 18
pleblanc@breezenewspapers.com
pleblanc@breezenewspapers.com
Athlete of the Week..........13 Bridge Beat......................11 Cat of the Week................12
See LEOMA LOVEGROVE, page 11
By PAULETTE LeBLANC
By PAULETTE LeBLANC
J
will never know how kind she was, because she never put that stuff out there for recognition. Her heart was always Matlacha, always,” Seuffert said, adding that Lovegrove was an avid fisherwoman, taking every chance she had to fish. CW Fudge factory owner William Tidball emphasized Lovegrove’s abundant love for Matlacha, saying she’s been a staple in the community for as long as he has been her business-neighbor and friend. “Everything she did was what she felt was best for Matlacha. Once she knew you and she knew that you also loved Matlacha, she loved you as well. She’s always done everything possible to promote Pine Island and
See FISHING TOURNAMENT & DERBY, page 7
Cribbage Corner..............11 Dolphin Tales.....................6 Local Tides......................12
On the Water.......................8 SJCCA Update...................6 Worship Directory........ ......6
Classifieds & Obituaries