Advocating for the Bonita Estero Rail Trail and ConnectLee Trail Network!
President’s Message
Hello Friends of Bonita Estero Rail Trail and welcome to our January 2024 Newsletter. As we enter 2024 I want to say just how proud I am of our Friends of BERT organization and what we, together, accomplished last year. Thank you! We are expecting 2024 to be an even bigger year for Friends of BERT!
Read about our recent successes in this month’s newsletter including:
- Our First Annual Trek Ride for BERT was a huge success with more than 250 riders and volunteers participating
- We asked YOU to respond to a Lee County request for public feedback on Resilient Lee funding for the trail and you came through in a big way!
- The Fort Myers City Council unanimously endorsed BERT
- The growth of our volunteer organization
Progress continues with the negotiations on the rail corridor acquisition from Seminole Gulf Rail and we remain very encouraged and hopeful that an announcement will be coming very soon. Stay tuned! Your Friends of BERT Leadership team continues to meet with municipal, county and state representatives and staff to forge partnerships for safe places to walk, run, ride and roll in Lee County. We’ve come away from those meetings very encouraged. The message from our elected officials and staff is citizen advocacy is impactful and critical for success of BERT!
Please forward this newsletter to others and encourage their engagement with us. Get engaged yourself by volunteering or donating to the cause. Lastly, I want to thank all of our 3000+ members for making this past year such a success andI look forward to an even better 2024!
Deb
First Annual Trek Ride to Benefit BERT
On Sunday morning, November 12, 250 bicyclists from the local area left from the Trek Bicycle Store of Estero at the Coconut Point Mall for a journey of 15 or 30 miles through Bonita Springs and Estero. Lots of good music, food, information and festivities followed…
Fort Myers City Council Unanimously Endorses BERT
On October 16th, Friends of Bonita Estero Rail Trail made the case for supporting a resolution from the Bike/Ped Committee of Fort Myers to endorse BERT to the Fort Myers City Council. The Council unanimously voted to endorse the Bonita Estero Rail Trail Project as part of the ConnectLee network…
Members Come Through on Resilient Lee Feedback
On November 30th, 2023 Friends of BERT sent our members an email asking to provide feedback to the Resilient Lee Task Force on initiatives that they have been working on over the past year, and boy did our members come through in a big way! The initiatives are plans on how to use a $1.1B grant that could be used to fund the purchase of the rail…
Florida Gulf Coast Trail
Imagine a trail network stretching from Naples to Tampa, connecting communities and people through seven counties for 420 miles along Florida’s Gulf Coast. This is the goal of Trust for Public Lands and its Florida Gulf Coast Trail (FGCT) Director, Charles Hines. Charles Hines is featured in a Webcast, hosted by the Florida Office of Greenways and Trails where he details Trust for Public Lands (TPL) mission, the FGCT status and howto make this trail a reality…
BERT In The News – Spotlight Magazine
Volunteer Corner
Our volunteer team has grown significantly over the past year with 70+ volunteers and multiple coordinators. Look for the Volunteer Corner to be added to each of our upcoming newsletters that will list the upcoming volunteer activities and locations. The Volunteer Corner will provide information of upcoming events for our existing volunteers and those whom might be interested becoming a volunteer.
Below is a list of our upcoming volunteer events:
- Pop-Up Biergarten Feb. 3 at Riverside Park in Bonita Springs
- Bonita Brew Fest Feb. 17th at Riverside Park in Bonita Springs
- Estero Fest March 16th at Estero Community Park
- Kicking the Blues May 4th at Riverside Park in Bonita Springs
We will need help setting up for each event, talking with new members, helping with the technology, and placing things back into storage after each event. If you are interested in volunteering for Friends of BERT, simply click below and enter your information and one of our volunteer coordinators will be contacting you.
A Shoutout to Our Newest Sponsor – Rotary Club of Estero
We would like to give a special acknowledgement to our newest sponsor, The Rotary Club of Estero. The Rotary Club provides service to others, promotes integrity, goodwill and peace through fellowship of business, professional and community leaders. Join them for a 5K Walk/Run to benefit Mental Health organizations in Lee and Collier County. Sign up for this March 16th event is here.
