Kealy Pfau threw splats of humor into her presentation for the Wednesday, Feb. 19, monthly SanCap Chamber luncheon meeting at Sundial Beach Resort on Sanibel Island — describing experiences businesses could participate in and encourage guests to join. As Coastal Watch director for Sanibel-Captiva Conservation Foundation, Pfau updated attendees on how her programs benefit the islands’ shorelines and post-hurricane restoration and to let businesses know how to spread the word to get visitors helping. SCCF sponsored the luncheon.

Pfau enumerated five specific restoration projects where visiting groups and families would be able to participate with SCCF to enjoy a “once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to get their hands dirty” while helping Sanibel’s environment recover. The programs were designed, she said, in answer to people from around the world asking how they could help. A short video sponsored by the Lee County Visitor and Convention Bureau illustrates the programs. It currently shows in the SanCap Chamber lobby and is available for businesses to air for staff and guests.

The five different areas where SCCF could use help with their mission to bring back Sanibel’s habitat, wildlife, and beauty include “marsh madness,” where groups can help plant mangroves along shorelines or simply adopt a mangrove to raise to “plant parenthood.”

“SCCF’s mangrove restoration efforts keep getting set back with hurricanes, but [we’re] getting people out there and really getting their hands dirty and understanding the importance of the mangrove habitat and all the critters that rely on it and how our system really operates,” Pfau said. Since 2020, SCCF has planted more than 20,000 mangroves.

Its oyster reef building activities distribute, by hand, empty oyster shells donated by local restaurants to areas of Tarpon Bay and San Carlos Bay not accessible by boat.

“Lugging 25- to 30-pound buckets of shell? Where else in Florida or even the world are you going to be able to have this opportunity?” she asked with a chuckle.

Other plantings and beach and other cleanups also provide “ways to help that are impactful and meaningful.” One of the easiest ways beach properties can help is with beach bucket stations, which encourage beach strollers to pick up and dispose of trash as they make their way down the sands. Pfau told chamber members SCCF wants to help businesses design group activities for team-building and outdoor recreation any way it can.

“We thank SCCF for its sponsorship and important presentations by Kealy and CEO James Evans at this meeting,” said John Lai, SanCap chamber president and chief executive officer. “You don’t often see such a strong partnership between conservation groups and the chamber like you do on Sanibel and Captiva, and SCCF is a big part of that.”