By MADDY VITALE
Turtle T-shirts are going on sale at the Welcome Center this weekend.
And for anyone who loves turtles, supports the city’s Environmental Commission, or just wants a cool shirt, they will be available.
The new T-shirts emblazoned with the words “Save a Turtle 2020” will be available at the Welcome Center window, 300 JFK Boulevard, from 10 a.m. to p.m. Saturday and Sunday. The shirts cost $10 each for short sleeve shirts and $15 for long sleeves.
“People have been asking for them, since the Welcome Center was closed,” Environmental Commission Chairwoman Annette Lombardo said Wednesday.
She said since the COVID-19 closures and without them being available online, the commission is eager to sell the shirts. The turtle-theme T-shirts have been sold by the commission for more than 30 years and has become a staple fundraiser for the group.
“We will be behind the eight ball. We have 500 of them and usually by this time of year, we are sold out,” she added.
Two of the biggest fundraisers for the commission, the “Sara the Turtle Festival” and the Skimmer Weekend were canceled, although Skimmer will still hold the auto show.
She explained how important it is to sell the turtle shirts. Funds go toward Environmental Commission projects and the Sea Isle City Terrapin Rescue, which is run by Steve and Susan Ahern, members of the commission.
“We want to raise money for the turtles and our other projects we have. We plant trees in the turtle garden at the library and we always need materials for that,” Lombardo noted. “We also use the money for anything else the turtle people may need.”
They also have been part of a family tradition for many residents and visitors, Lombardo said.
Each year, people come back to purchase new turtle T-shirts, which are different each year. “People collect them,” Lombardo noted.
“Every year the shirt is different. We have had people who have been collecting them since 1988,” Lombardo said. “One woman bought them each year and now she has little kids and buys them for them. I have one grandmother who buys 14 each year.”
And this year, due to cancellations of trips, she said people have been buying them for friends who come from over sees.
“There are people buying them for their friends in England who aren’t coming this year,” she added.
In addition to helping the turtles and other projects, the money raised from the turtle T-shirt sales go toward the Beachcombing tours, which begin again July 7.
The family-friendly educational tours, which are organized by the Environmental Commission, focus on the shore’s ecosystem and marine life.
In addition, Lombardo said free coloring books are handed out each year, including ones donated to teachers to use as a fun tool for classroom instruction on the environment.
“Anyone who wants the coloring books can have them,” Lombardo said. “It’s great for the children. They end up knowing more about the turtles sometimes than the adults.”
