The day before Hurricane Ian, there were well over 150 businesses on Sanibel-Captiva Island.
Not one was open the day after the storm.
“Some were total losses,” said independent filmmaker and Sanibel City Council member Laura DeBruce. “Sadly, some of the old stalwarts of the community are not coming back. The old Dairy Queen took a hard hit. The antiques store that had been here forever is gone. George and Wendy's, a very beloved, popular, local place. There are a lot of places that aren't coming back.”
Yet another was the Bridgit and Dann Budd’s The Pecking Order, a popular fried chicken and pie joint located in the Town Center Shopping Mall at Palm Ridge and Tarpon Bay roads.
In 2022, Suncatcher’s Dream gift shop, On Island clothing store, JRod’s Surf, Fish & Style and the Over Easy Café were located in a shopping center where Periwinkle Way empties into Tarpon Bay Road. Ian filled each store with seven feet of surge.
Over Easy co-owner Trasi Sharp describes the scope of their loss.
“We lost the ceiling. We lost the walls. We lost all the electrical, all the plumbing … the gas lines,” Sharp noted. “The gas tank under the ground had to be pulled out. Everything had to be redone.”
From ovens and kitchen equipment to tables and chairs, it all had to be replaced. They received just $8,000 in insurance proceeds.
Sharp and her partner, Liza Clouse, also lost their house, cars and a second business. So, the decision to re-open the 20-year-old breakfast-lunch mecca was not automatic.
“We thought about where else we’d go,” said Sharp. “Honestly, there’s not many places like Sanibel Island and the community is a place that I’ve never seen before. I’ve never felt before. And everybody was incredibly supportive and we just decided for everybody here we need to rebuild the restaurant.”
Kate Sergeant and Laura DeBruce at On Island, Dan Thompson of Suncatchers’ Dream and Jerod and Brandy Edgington at JROD’s came to the same conclusion.
With help from their landlord, the four businesses rebuilt and reopened 18 months later, on St. Patrick’s Day 2024.
“Then in August, Helene hit and we received about a foot of water,” said Sharp. “We still had to tear out walls and we lost equipment, but we were only closed like a week and we got back open. And then ten days later, Milton hit and that was probably mentally the hardest one for us because we had worked so hard and then 3.5 feet of mud came in and we lost again pretty much all of our equipment and the walls and all that.”
Sharp and Clouse told their landlord that they were done.
“We decided we can’t go through this again or worry about it,” Sharp recounted. “It’s just incredibly stressful to keep waiting for your business to be destroyed.”
The others were in a similar dilemma.
DeBruce sympathized.
“It was a really difficult decision whether or not to reopen,” said Sue Van Oss, the director of digital communications for Saint Michael & All Angels Church. “It’s a combination of you need the energy, you need the moral support, you need the money. I think, for all the small businesses, those are kind of the various questions we were asking ourselves.”
After a lot of texts, talks and sleepless nights, Sharp, Clouse and the others accepted their landlord’s offer to move to his other property, The Village Shops on Periwinkle Way.
“I don’t know how we did it,” Sharp recalled. “Everybody just picked up their stuff and we left and we moved down here and we opened here July 3, 2025 and it was a big celebration.”
And it’s a celebration every time an old business recovers or a new enterprise arrives on Sanibel.
“Every time a new business opens, we have confetti, we have the news people out, everybody joins in,” said Sharp. “The fire department came. The police department came. It's pretty special. So everybody's very excited. And those of us that live out here, we're thrilled that we have more businesses out here.”
Like Clare Stoa and Celebrer.
“Celebrer is a design studio,” said Stoa. “So, we design spaces and brands, and I call this physical space a love letter back to the island because for me, it was hard seeing vacant spots on the island in these really beloved communities, whether it's Tahitian Gardens or the Village Shops. My goal was to really open a space that honors the legacy of Sanibel, something rooted in sustainability, rooted in bringing in unique artistry, unique pieces, things that really tell a story.”
It’s a common refrain for every business on the barrier island.
“The reason why I wanted to be on Sanibel from a business perspective is that it’s so rooted in community building and philanthropic community building, but also, we really take care of each other,” Stoa added.
Van Oss agrees wholeheartedly.
“It’s that small town vibe that people, I think, are craving for even more in a world where there’s so much division and negativity. You just come across the causeway and people just breathe a physical ‘aaah back on Sanibel.’ It’s a different vibe.”
Sanibel-Captiva is built on small business. No chain stores. Nothing over three stories. Shop and restaurant owners who cater tourists and residents. No hurricane … or string of hurricanes … can take that away.
MORE INFORMATION:
Suncatcher’s Dream sells handcrafted items reflecting the spirit of Sanibel Island. Located in The Village Shops, it is open daily from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.
JRod’s is an owner-operated boutique specializing in beach ware, fishing apparel and accessories.
More on Trasi Sharp, Liza Clouse and Over Easy Café
Trasi Sharp and Liza Clouse’s Hurricane Ian story is like many others on Sanibel.
They’d operated Over Easy for 20 years without incident, weathering a number of major hurricanes, including Charley in 2004, Wilma in 2005 and Hurricane Irma in 2017. Each was predicted to ravish Sanibel Island. None of those predictions came true, so they logically concluded that they’d similarly make it through Hurricane Ian unscathed.
Besides, Tampa lay in the center of Ian’s storm track.
So while Sharp and Clouse took the usual pre-storm precautions, they opted to remain on Sanibel rather than evacuate the island.
That decision nearly cost them their lives.
During the height of the storm, they decided to seek shelter at their neighbor’s, whose house was higher than theirs. But that meant trekking through waist-deep surge filled with debris — with Sharp’s 89-year-old mother and a 170-pound dog.
Her mom caught her foot on a tree limb and disappeared under water. After several frightening minutes, Sharp found her and pulled her to the surface.
They had no choice but to return to the house and ride out the storm in the attic with their Great Dane.
For a time, it appeared they wouldn't survive Ian’s relentless assault.
Given their harrowing experience, there was more involved in their deliberations about whether to rebuild or move off island than the fate of their 20-year-old Sanibel breakfast-lunch bastion. They also had to rebuild and refurnish their home and find accommodations during the 18 months it took to complete the reconstruction.
“We all wondered if they were going to be able to recover emotionally from the storm,” noted DeBruce. “They’re just a story of resilience to the max. They’re just such a wonderful couple who have helped bring this island back because of their resilience.”
“It took a lot of hard work, a lot of waiting, a lot of frustration,” Sharp shared. “But we rebuilt everything with the support of community encouragement. People would stop by all the time and say, you know, we're thrilled you're coming back. On social media, we had thousands and thousands of people sending love, sending support, asking what we needed.”
What they needed most was construction material, new furnishings, restaurant equipment and supplies.
“It was quite an adventure getting equipment and things in Southwest Florida because, mind you, most every restaurant [on the island] was destroyed or partially destroyed, along with most homes. So, we weren't the only one trying to procure equipment. We had to kind of shop all over the country and find it however we could.”
It took all of 2023 and the first couple of months in 2024 to complete all the repairs and rebuilding.
“We were so blessed because 90% of our employees came back to work for us,” said Sharp. “They had gotten part-time jobs or full-time jobs at other places, but continually stayed in touch and said, ‘When you reopen, we want to be there.’ So our crew came back and felt like family again.”
Their grand opening was akin to a family or high school reunion.
“People from all over the country sent us flowers. People from all over the world were wishing us luck. It was a really good feeling,” said Sharp. “And we thought, you know, we may have been knocked down, but not out.”
Their ordeal and recovery explains the devastation they experienced when Hurricane Milton filled the café with three-and-a-half feet of silt and mud six months later.
Their new location in The Village Shops is farther inland and 5 feet higher than their former plaza. It also has better parking and more foot traffic.
That’s not to say the transition’s been without its challenges. Aside from the cost of building out a new leasehold and the loss of revenue during down times and the move, Sharp, Clouse and the others have had to weather the loss of international travelers, particularly Canadians, over the past 12 months.
Of course, most of them were seasonal residents and visitors. Making it economically through the summers presents a different set of challenges.
“Over the last several years, we've kinda replenished our summer business with Americans. A lot of [people from] Mississippi, Georgia, the Carolinas, and it's been really fun and exciting. Every day, people come in that have not been to the island since Ian. So it's kind of... Every day is reuniting with people and seeing them and catching up and sharing. And everybody's been so kind about us reopening and the effort it took to reopen and how they're grateful we did. It makes us feel good,” Sharp said.
In addition, the café is experiencing a resurgence in local patronize in large part due to a program called “Love Sanibel Back” designed and promoted by Sue Van Oss. For more on that, keep reading.
“We knew we had a great community [before Ian], but then when a disaster strikes and you lose all your belongings, your cars, your home, your businesses, it really makes you think more about your community,” said Sharp. “I always knew it was wonderful, but I never thought that hard on it. And to make us decide to stay on Sanibel, it had to be a really good community after what we had been through.”
More on Clare Stoa and Celebrer
Clare Stoa opened Celebrer in November of 2025.
Stoa lives off island, but schools her kids on Sanibel.
So opening a business on Sanibel isn’t just good business, it accords with her family plan and their desire to be an active participant in a close-knit community.
“The biggest awareness that I have and what I want to celebrate the most is truly how the community has really pulled together,” Stoa said. “The major difference for me is the amount of support that we get from all of our community members — whether it's from the city, whether it's from the Chamber of Commerce, whether it's from our neighbors down the street, like the hospitality workers.”
“We're thrilled that, despite everything, [people] have decided to come and invested in the island,” DeBruce added.
Love Sanibel Back
To facilitate support from Sanibel residents and off-island visitors, Van Oss and St. Michael’s and All Angels Church established Love Sanibel Back three years ago.
“Since it started in 1960, the hallmark of St. Michael’s has been hospitality and being an integral part of the island,” Van Oss explained. “The day after [Hurricane Ian], we said we're going to come back and we're going to help the island community come back even though our church buildings were wiped out as well. We had six feet of water in the buildings, but we were able to rebuild our thrift shop quickly because it was higher up, and when that opened, we turned it into a community center.”
It was called the Gathering Place.
“We offered the space for mental health services, the Small Business Administration, the senior group, a cooling center that first summer,” said Van Oss. “And from then on, we've just continued to be a part of helping the island come back. We continue to offer our space to organizations free of charge to use. We want it open 24-7. We want it used seven days a week. So that's just the hallmark of St. Michael's.”
As is Love Sanibel Back.
“Love Sanibel Back was started three years ago by St. Michael's Church as a way to help businesses that we knew, from past experience, were going to be struggling during the summer,” Van Oss continued. “Putting a store or restaurant back in working order is only the beginning of the process. Remaining open through the summer is a different matter altogether. So we really tried to encourage off-island traffic and the residents who were here to come out and flood the businesses that had taken the chance to reopen with their financial dollars.”
And, just as importantly, with their moral support.
“We had so many business owners that said, yes, it was great to have that extra revenue, but to have the residents come in all summer long and say, thank you for coming back, you're what makes the island someplace we want to be, was invaluable,” said Van Oss.
“So it was great for the business owners to have that sense that they belonged and that they were valued.”
This year’s program began in May 31 and runs through Aug. 9.
Each week, Love Sanibel Back suggests an activity. After completing the activity, the participant shares a picture on Facebook or Instagram with the hashtag #lovesanibel back.
“The idea is to flood social media with positive images of Sanibel,” said Van Oss.
Although they’ve gotten likes and shares from places like France, the idea is to spur other residents and off-island visitors to participate and post selfies and photos ops of themselves.
“We really want people all throughout Southwest Florida and beyond to come and experience the true love of Sanibel,” she added.
Toward that end, Love Sanibel Back introduces themes and free community events each week.
“They are free for the public to come and just gather and connect and really experience the true spirit of Sanibel,” noted Van Oss.
For example, July 13-19 was “Beach Kindness Week,” during which residents were tasked with picking up at least 10 pieces of litter at a local beach and then either take a Sanibel-Captiva Conservation Foundation guided beach tour or go to the Shell Museum for a “Beat the Heat” beach walk.
July 20-26 is “Wild Mile Week,” during which residents are challenged to learn one wildlife fact and visit, volunteer at or donate to a wildlife organization on the island such as the J.N. "Ding" Darling National Wildlife Refuge or C.R.O.W.
July 27-August 2 is “Give Back Week,” which encourages people to restock the food pantry at FISH and provide items for residents in CHR housing.
August 3-9, “Celebrate Local Love,” is the final week of the campaign. “Return to your favorite island businesses participating in Love Sanibel Back, make purchases, leave a positive review on Google, Trip Advisor and/or Yelp and consider volunteering if one of your favorites is a nonprofit,” states Love Sanibel Back’s website.
Participating businesses offer discounts, gifts and other perks to people sporting Love Sanibel Back T-shirts or buttons.
“Sanibel wouldn't be the same without businesses like Suncatcher’s, JRod’s, On Island, Over Easy and Celebrer,” said Van Oss. “So Love Sanibel Back is our way of saying we love you, we're here for you, we're going to support you. Even through the summer months, we're going to be here for you.”
“As a small business owner, I can say that every single year that this program has gone on, it's just been like this godsend to suddenly you have people and customers and some from off island and some are people on island who are like, oh, I've never really been in here before, but I figured I'd come out and help support the community,” said DeBruce.
Support for WGCU’s arts & culture reporting comes from the Estate of Myra Janco Daniels, the Charles M. and Joan R. Taylor Foundation, and Naomi Bloom in loving memory of her husband, Ron Wallace.
