provided to The Santiva Chronicle
Nearly 30 years after introducing Islands Night, Bailey’s General Store has turned over management and promotion of the annual event at Hammond Stadium in Fort Myers to the Sanibel & Captiva Islands Chamber of Commerce. This year’s event is scheduled for Wednesday, June 1, when the Fort Myers Mighty Mussels meet the Tampa Tarpons for an evening of baseball, a pre-game parade featuring businesses and organizations from Sanibel and Captiva islands, and islander camaraderie.
“We are super honored to make the Sam Bailey’s Islands Night a chamber event, especially since it’s the first of the full islands’ tradition – parade and all – to be held in three years,” said John Lai, chamber president and chief executive officer. “It should be an exciting game against the Tarpons, a baseball club that has the distinction of being managed by Rachel Balkovec, the first full-time female manager in the history of affiliated baseball at the major or minor league levels.”
The chamber is seeking sponsors for the 2022 Islands Night on four levels: Homerun ($500), Triple ($300), Double ($200), and Single ($100). Sponsorship benefits include unlimited game tickets, a spot in the parade, and various degrees of publicity, depending on level of sponsorship. Sponsorship donations will benefit island charities. Find more details at the sanibel-captiva.org Calendar of Events or contact Landen Collins at 239-472-8255 or Landen@sanibel-captiva.org for information about sponsorship or participating in the pre-game parade.
Game time on June 1 is 7 p.m. Gates open at 6 p.m. and the parade takes place starting at 6:15. Free tickets to the game are available from the chamber visitor center, Huxters Market & Deli, or any of the retailers at Bailey’s Shopping Center.
Sponsors for the 2022 Islands Night include: Homerun Sponsors: Alliantgroup LP, Bailey’s General Store, The Grog Shop, Sanibel Captiva Beach Resorts, Sanibel Carts, Sanibel Moorings Resort, Toys Ahoy; Triple Sponsors: Captiva Spirits, Island Inn, Santiva Chronicle, SCCF, Valerie Tutor with Kingfisher Real Estate Inc.; Double Sponsors: Ashton Kirchner Group, Heidrick & Company, Island Taxi; Single Sponsors: Carefree Birding, CROW, “Ding” Darling Wildlife Society, FISH of SanCap, NOISE Inc., Saint Michael & All Angels Church.
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