{"id":308807,"date":"2026-06-16T04:21:13","date_gmt":"2026-06-16T04:21:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/308807\/"},"modified":"2026-06-16T04:21:13","modified_gmt":"2026-06-16T04:21:13","slug":"rec-center-to-host-annual-shell-swap-sanibel-captiva","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/308807\/","title":{"rendered":"Rec center to host Annual Shell & Swap – SANIBEL-CAPTIVA"},"content":{"rendered":"


\n
\n
\n \/News
\n
\n <\/a>
\n
\n
\n <\/p>\n

1 \/ 5<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

CITY OF SANIBEL
\nIn celebration of National Seashell Day this weekend, the Sanibel Recreation Center will host its 2nd Annual Shell & Swap on June 20 on Sanibel.<\/p>\n

2 \/ 5<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

CITY OF SANIBEL
\nIn celebration of National Seashell Day this weekend, the Sanibel Recreation Center will host its 2nd Annual Shell & Swap on June 20 on Sanibel.<\/p>\n

3 \/ 5<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

CITY OF SANIBEL
\nIn celebration of National Seashell Day this weekend, the Sanibel Recreation Center will host its 2nd Annual Shell & Swap on June 20 on Sanibel.<\/p>\n

4 \/ 5<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

CITY OF SANIBEL
\nIn celebration of National Seashell Day this weekend, the Sanibel Recreation Center will host its 2nd Annual Shell & Swap on June 20 on Sanibel.<\/p>\n

5 \/ 5<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

CITY OF SANIBEL
\nIn celebration of National Seashell Day this weekend, the Sanibel Recreation Center will host its 2nd Annual Shell & Swap on June 20 on Sanibel.<\/p>\n

<\/a>
\n <\/a><\/p>\n

[expand]<\/p>\n

close
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n <\/p>\n

The islands community is invited to \u201cShell-abrate\u201d National Seashell Day with a free event.<\/p>\n

The Sanibel Recreation Center will host its 2nd Annual Shell & Swap on June 20 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Sanibel. Shell lovers can connect to exchange knowledge, browse for finds and swap stories.<\/p>\n

National Seashell Day is celebrated on June 20.<\/p>\n

\u201cLast year we wanted to do a community-driven event where shell collectors and enthusiasts could come and share stories and shells,\u201d city Recreation Department Marketing & Events Coordinator Denise Dillon said. \u201cAlso, we\u2019re all probably guilty of collecting too many shells.\u201d<\/p>\n

The event encourages shell collectors, beachcombers and curious newcomers to bring their extra or duplicate shells to trade, gift and share with fellow shell enthusiasts.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo it\u2019s an opportunity to share shells and stories,\u201d she said. \u201cAnd it makes for a fun day.\u201d<\/p>\n

Attendees can browse tables for unique finds.<\/p>\n

\u201cLast year was a mix of people looking to get rid of excess shells, as well as people who wanted to show off their finds,\u201d Dillon said. \u201cAll are local, Southwest Florida shells.\u201d<\/p>\n

In addition to sharing discoveries, they can exchange knowledge.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey will share their tricks of the trade, their best places. It helps new shellers and even experienced shellers learn something new,\u201d she said. \u201cEveryone walks away learning something.\u201d<\/p>\n

Attendees can tell the adventures of big finds.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a great way for people to swap stories,\u201d Dillon said. \u201cThere\u2019s always a story that goes along with finding a rare shell, like a junonia, or someone\u2019s favorite shell.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s just fun to hear other people\u2019s experiences,\u201d she added. \u201cIt\u2019s about the conversations about the shells and what the shells mean to people.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Bailey-Matthews National Shell Museum & Aquarium will offer local shell identifications.<\/p>\n

\u201cPeople can bring in shells, Southwest Florida shells, local shells,\u201d Dillon said. \u201cWe will have someone on hand to identify the shells if they do not know what they have.\u201d<\/p>\n

The museum will have shells on display, plus share how they are created and formed.<\/p>\n

\u201cPeople find that very interesting,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

The city\u2019s Natural Resources Department will also be on site.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey can speak to what beaches are the best to find them and which part of the day or year to find them,\u201d Dillon said. \u201cAlso the rules, because the rules are very important, like no live shelling.\u201d<\/p>\n

In addition, the Sanibel Shellers group on Facebook will once again paint and hide multiple shells around the islands leading up to the event as way to promote it and National Seashell Day.<\/p>\n

It is free and open to spectators.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnyone who just wants to come and observe and look, it\u2019s free to come in,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

It is also free for those interested in participating, but registration is required to do so to reserve table space.<\/p>\n

The main rules are:<\/p>\n

\u2013 No sales are permitted; it is a swap-and-share event only.<\/p>\n

\u2013 No commercially purchased shells; only personal collection items.<\/p>\n

\u2013 No live shells.<\/p>\n

The deadline to sign up is June 18.<\/p>\n

The community is encouraged to register to take part or simply swing by for a look.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat makes Sanibel unique is that shelling is more than a hobby here, it is part of our island\u2019s history,\u201d Dillon said. \u201cSo whether you\u2019re a serious collector or someone just shelling for the first time, there\u2019s something for everyone to learn.\u201d<\/p>\n

To register, visit https:\/\/www.eventbrite.com\/e\/2nd-annual-shell-swapnational-seashell-day-tickets-1984876021612?aff=oddtdtcreator<\/a>.<\/p>\n

For more information, call the center at 239-472-0345.<\/p>\n

The Sanibel Recreation Center is at 3880 Sanibel-Captiva Road, Sanibel.<\/p>\n

\u2026..<\/p>\n

IF YOU GO<\/p>\n

What<\/p>\n

2nd Annual Shell & Swap<\/p>\n

When<\/p>\n

June 20 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.<\/p>\n

Where<\/p>\n

Sanibel Recreation Center, 3880 Sanibel-Captiva Road, Sanibel<\/p>\n

Details<\/p>\n

Free for spectators and participants, with registration required for table space<\/p>\n


\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" \/News 1 \/ 5 CITY OF SANIBEL In celebration…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":308808,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[209,211,210],"class_list":["post-308807","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-cape-coral","tag-cape-coral","tag-cape-coral-headlines","tag-cape-coral-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/308807","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=308807"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/308807\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/308808"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=308807"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=308807"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=308807"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}