In the Fall of 1983, a group of Pine Island friends who shared a mutual love of boating traveled to places like "Tween Waters for the Sunday Brunch, North Captiva for a beach party or to Captain Al's at South Seas for breakfast then onto North Captiva for a beach outing. In 1984, this growing group would meet off York Island then head off to destinations like Upper Captiva for a day of volleyball, horseshoes , yard darts and socializing. As a consequence of the good times had by all, the official motto of "Safe Boating With Friends" was born. By then numbers had grown to 40 to 50 people and 10 to 15 boats. With the election of Rich Larkin as the first Commodore in June of 1984, along with the introduction of our famous red, white, and green Pine Tree burgee, the formation of the Pine Island Boat Club was well underway. Coincidentally, most of the initial members and founders of the Pine Island Boat Club were also members and founders of the Calusa Land Trust. To this day the relationship remains and explains our close support of Calusa Land Trust functions and the help and staffing given to support the Calusa Land Trust Poker Run and the annual Duck Race.
In the beginning, the Tuesday monthly meetings were held at the Gulf Breeze Inn ( Ragged Ass / Starboard Lounge ) with a regular boat trip on the first Sunday of each month. Over the years, meetings were held at most of the bars and clubs in town as well as at member's homes. The Pine Island Eagle was the vehicle for announcing meetings and trips to the early members. Then as now, there are no dues, but in the early years, funding came from an annual " Shipwreck Party" with raffles.
Today, the club funds its activities with a 50/50 raffle at meeting and events, sale of the obligatory new member burgee and sales of club apparel at the Ships Store. Although the Eagle still carries announcements of club meetings, the website and Email have emerged as the primary communication vehicle. Although the club has matured and changed over the years, it remains true to its roots of "Safe boating with friends", " If you ever run aground, there is always someone around" and "Do you want to have good times with the crowd". New members continue to flock to the Pine Island Boat Club and its' member for life tradition and enjoy the wide array of activities planned and supported by the club.
In 2018, after being lead by more than 25 Commodores, the Pine Island Boat Club will Celebrate 35 years of successful boating!