Remembering Blanche Lee Santini

Sep 15, 2010 1 min read

To the editor:

I was very sorry to hear Blanche Lee Santini had passed on from our community.

She was a treasure trove of local lore. I will never forget meeting her when I

worked for the Beach Bulletin nor the interview she gave me for the Sand

Paperthat resulted in one of my personal favorites – the story entitled: The

Origins of Flipper.

Can you imagine someone handing you a picture of their uncle

catching the TV icon, Flipper the porpoise? Well Blanche did that and much more,

opening my eyes to some of the incredibly rich history our Island possesses.

Sharing that type of material with readers was a highlight of my 11-year career

on the Beach writing articles, editorials and stories for the two newspapers. I

will miss her, though I will also remember she led a full, engaged life.

Carl Conley

Fort Myers Beach