Another familiar face is leaning in for a hug at The Islander . Store owner Anita Cereceda opens her arms and happily embraces the returning customer.
“Anita, I’m so happy for you!” says a smiling Sharon Breton.
Cereceda smiles back.
“Oh, thank you honey,” she says. “That’s so nice of you.”
It’s been like this all week at The Islander Gift Gallery & Boutique — ever since the Fort Myers Beach store reopened Saturday, Oct. 19, for the second time in 15 days. Before that, it had been closed for two years after Hurricane Ian.
Cereceda — Fort Myers Beach’s first mayor and now chair of the island’s Local Planning Agency — says she’s loved every minute.
She describes the last week as a “homecoming parade.”
“It’s feels wonderful …” she says. “I haven’t seen these people in two years. I’m used to seeing them every day.
“So homecoming is really what it is. It’s being reunited with people who are not just customers. They’ve become part of my life after 35, 38 years.”
Together, they’ve been catching up, laughing and sharing stories of survival and perseverance after Hurricane Ian and, more recently, Hurricanes Helene and Milton.