{"id":272483,"date":"2026-05-15T17:13:09","date_gmt":"2026-05-15T17:13:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/272483\/"},"modified":"2026-05-15T17:13:09","modified_gmt":"2026-05-15T17:13:09","slug":"chambers-annual-meeting-recaps-2025-looks-forward-sanibel-captiva","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/272483\/","title":{"rendered":"Chamber\u2019s annual meeting recaps 2025, looks forward – SANIBEL-CAPTIVA"},"content":{"rendered":"


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SANCAP CHAMBER
\nVISIT FLORIDA President and Chief Executive Officer Bryan Griffin demonstrates the effectiveness of his agency’s tourism efforts at the SanCap Chamber’s annual meeting on April 8 in Fort Myers.<\/p>\n

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SANCAP CHAMBER
\nOutgoing SanCap Chamber Board Chair Katy Forret, at left, and Clinic for the Rehabilitation of Wildlife (CROW) Executive Director Alison Charney Hussey, at right, present Bill Harkey with the Spirit of the Islands Award.<\/p>\n

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Florida\u2019s tourism outlook, board introductions, community awards, and a year of successes gave the SanCap Chamber reason to celebrate at its annual meeting on April 8 at the Marriott Sanibel Harbour Resort & Spa in Fort Myers.<\/p>\n

Outgoing Board Chair Katy Forret introduced incoming Chair Michael Nachef after summarizing a year of achievements and building momentum for chamber membership numbers.<\/p>\n

\u201cI know Michael Nachef will be instrumental in continuing to expand our ways and promote everything that I stand for,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Nachef presented Forret with an award for her strong contributions to the community and he looked ahead to his turn at leadership.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis will be a year of listening before we leap,\u201d he said. \u201cIt will also be a year of constituting with purpose. The organization is strong. We\u2019re not here to reinvent that. We\u2019re here to sharpen our votes, elevate our voice, and ensure we\u2019re being relevant and responsive and respectful to our members.\u201d<\/p>\n

Nachef introduced keynote speaker Bryan Griffin, new president and chief executive officer of VISIT FLORIDA, who emphasized the state\u2019s top-level tourism and national record-breaker status.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe continue to set records, continue to see raised value in tourism,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Griffin showed promotional videos now airing and addressed VISIT FLORIDA\u2019s strategies for disaster response. He drilled down specifically to how the agency is helping Sanibel and Captiva in ongoing recovery.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re putting together footage and video content for Sanibel, and we\u2019re going to do a commercial and utilize it to activate recovery in Sanibel. So, we are still here,\u201d Griffin said.<\/p>\n

He praised the region\u2019s importance to the state\u2019s tourism perception and chamber President and Chief Executive Officer John Lai, who served as VISIT FLORIDA\u2019s chair for his proactivity in the market.<\/p>\n

Lai reported on 2025\u2019s strengths, including 16 events with 5,400 attendees \u2014 including 39 ribbon-cuttings \u2014 22,969 visitors to the welcome center, 1.02 million website views, and 58 new members bringing the membership total to 465 business organizations.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur recent collaboration with the Greater Fort Myers Chamber allows us to reach across the bridge to another 750 members,\u201d he said. \u201cAll of this happens thanks to an amazing staff and board of directors.\u201d<\/p>\n

Nachef introduced his fellow 2026-27 board officers: Vice Chair Patience Jennings and Second Vice Chair Leigh Gevelinger; new members Jeff Blackburn, Ali Kendall and Will Oliver; and returning members Daniel Andrews, Mark Blust, Joel Goodman, David Lowden, Robert Monk, Evelyn Stewart and Bill Wellman.<\/p>\n

The presentation of the annual business awards began with the Sue Rosica Gray Volunteer of the Year Award. FISH of Sanibel-Captiva Executive Director Maria Espinoza presented the award to Claire Beckman.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe\u2019s not a volunteer that just shows up, but leads, brings up others, and it\u2019s hard to do that for the world,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

New Business of the Year went to the Sanibel Sprout. Owner Jianna Senkeleski video-delivered her message of gratitude to the community for its support in seeing her through the steps of moving from employee to owner before Hurricane Ian, then progressing from a food truck to a storefront presence.<\/p>\n

The chamber recognized Florida Trust Wealth Management and founder and Chairman Al Hanser as Business\/Organization of the Year for their 25 years; and Sanibel Captiva Beach Resorts (SCBR) President and Board Chairman Tony Lapi as Citizen of the Year for his decades of contributions through the \u2018Tween Waters Inn & Marina and SCBR, and numerous nonprofits and agencies within the islands, county-wide and statewide.<\/p>\n

This year, the chamber introduced a new award: Spirit of the Islands. It will be awarded on a discretionary basis when warranted by individuals who truly embody the selfless spirit of the islands in ways above and beyond.<\/p>\n

Bill Harkey accepted the award for him and his wife, Laurie, and received a standing ovation for their generous donations of time, money and encouragement to the community to give. Clinic for the Rehabilitation of Wildlife (CROW) Executive Director Alison Charney Hussey, who presented the award, said their impact ripples through nearly every nonprofit on the islands.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe congratulate all our deserving award winners this year for bringing our communities closer and closer to the incredible destination and home we will become,\u201d Lai said. \u201cOur success would not have been possible without the incredible backing and energy of businesses and individuals, such as our award-winners, along with the strong and giving spirit of everyone on Sanibel and Captiva islands.\u201d<\/p>\n

Bank of the Islands was the title sponsor for the meeting. Other sponsors included: Lee Health as a silver sponsor; and Alliant Property Management, Doc Ford\u2019s Rum Bar & Grille, and Sanibel Captiva Community Bank as bronze sponsors.<\/p>\n


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