Wednesday, July 2, 2010, was a bright, sunny day in the south Gulf beaches area of Pinellas County, FL.

There was excitement in the air!

The pelicans were coming! 

Officials from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service were about to release 32 brown pelicans along the beach at Fort De Soto Park in Tierra Verde, FL, as a final step in the bird’s rescue and release process. 

Rehabilitated at Fort Jackson Wildlife Center in Buras, LA, the pelicans were flown by the U.S. Coast Guard in New Orleans to the St. Petersburg/Clearwater Coast Guard Station.  From there, they were just a few short miles from freedom and a new life along an unspoiled beach–one of the most beautiful beaches in the continental USA (voted #1 Beach by Dr. Beach on numerous occasions and voted #1 by TripAdvisor two years running, in 2008 and 2009).

Pinellas County showed its beauty–and its pride–that day.  It was a bright spot in an otherwise sad and frustrating situation.  As a Tierra Verde resident and wildlife lover, not a day goes by that I do not agonize over the impact to the Gulf region, especially our neighbors to the north and west, from the BP oil disaster.  Thankfully, and with blessings, Pinellas County remains unspoiled and 32 brown pelicans have joined our extended family.

Fort De Soto Park is one of the County’s gems!  The Park is home to lush nesting areas and more than 300 species of birds, including migratory wildlife.  The sand on the beaches remains sugar white and the water is crystal clear.  There is not a building in sight, unless you count the Visitor Center.  It is Old Florida and we treasure it!

The release of the pelicans on July 7 was not the first  to occur in the Tampa Bay area.  Oiled birds from Louisana have been flown to our area since the spill began in April.  Other releases took place at Egmont Key National Wildlife Refuge, an island preserve not far from Fort De Soto Park.

Many photos and videos of the release of the pelicans appear online on various location websites, including www.TampaBay.com and www.Bradenton.com.  The St. Petersburg Times and the Bradenton Herald, as well as other media outlets, joined Park staffers, residents, and other onlookers on that special day.  It was a sight to behold.  I am including links to a few sites below.

Those of us who live and work along the south Gulf beaches, especially those along the Sun Coast in Pinellas County, are grateful that our beaches have remained clean and unspoiled throughout this disaster.  Our hearts go out to those less fortunate, to our brothers and sisters who live and work along the northern Gulf  coast of Florida and in other states that have been impacted by this tragedy.  It is obligation and civic duty to do all that we can to make this area whole again.  We must work together to insure that this frayed piece of the fabric of America, one that needs mending because it is unique and represents a generations-old lifestyle, heals and becomes vibrant and alive again. 

Here in the south Gulf beaches, along the Sun Coast in Pinellas County, we welcome our new friends, the brown pelicans, and each evening, when they sprend their wings and soar into the golden sunset over the sparkling waters of our beaches, we will remember you and say a prayer. 

We are here for you and thank you for the gift of your feathery friends.  They are in good hands.   

From a loving friend . . . in Paradise Found. 

CREDITS:  Photos courtesy of my husband, Thomas Gerwe, and Scott Keller, St. Petersburg Times.