December 2015 President's Message by Richard Mason Gearing up for 2016 Florida legislative session

First, I want to thank all that participated in the raffle held by B.E.A.C.H.E.S Foundation Institute and South Florida Free Beaches / Florida Naturist Association (SFFB/FNA). The raffle is an important source of revenue for SFFB/FNA, supporting our many efforts in government affairs. See below for prizes and winners.

The Florida Legislature has been holding committee meetings since September. Our lobbyist, Ramon Maury of MMG, Inc. Government Affairs, has been attending those and meeting with legislators individually on a few bills that could have implications for naturists. Unfortunately, these bills are all in the realm of the Criminal Justice Committees, and thus their wording and crafting become extra important to naturist interests.

South Florida - A Naturist Perspective Richard's monthly column in NUSA Sun November 2015: A Success Story by Design: Haulover... America's Best Nude Beach Richard recounts how meticulous planning, organizing, and relationship-building were combined to create and sustain a successful naturist beach. Read...

One of the bills concerns photographs of nude children. Many promoters and sponsors, as well as legislators, of child protection laws believe that a picture of a child, merely nude, is sexual in and of itself and that it's even porn when in the possession of an adult. Thus, these laws can create serious problems for nudist families. We continue to watch this bill and our lobbyist is working with legislators to craft language that will protect our interests.

Another bill that is of concern is a proposal to amend Florida Statute 800.03, the lewd and lascivious law, as it concerns police authority to cite or seize a person, based on suspicion. Presently, an officer has to witness a violation. This is difficult in a public park. Our problem with this amendment is that a sunbather, now dressed, could still be cited or arrested on suspicion. We have seen a lot of this police behavior in the past, when it was not legal to do so and it was easy to defend against in court, but legalizing it will make a defense very costly. Presently, mere nudity does not violate Florida Statute 800.03.

We were successful two years ago in having this same bill held up in committee. We are willing to work with the sponsors to craft a bill that will protect naturists. We believe that the wording of the bill violates the Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution (worth a read).

The 2016 session of the Florida Legislature starts two months early in January, making December a critical month in finalizing our efforts to protect naturist interests. The Florida Legislature is fair, but you must show up and speak up for your interests. We were successful throughout the 1990s and early this century in defeating boldly written anti-nudity legislation, but it never goes away. We must stay alert when the legislature is in session, because other bills can be amended to have a negative effect on nude recreation.

Florida Capitol, Tallahassee

We are also representing The Naturist Society in Florida and have the Naturist Action Committee as a back-up resource. We are coordinating our activities with AANR Florida (Florida Region of the American Association for Nude Recreation) and now share the same lobbyist. This relationship has strengthened our position in Tallahassee. B.E.A.C.H.E.S. Foundation is involved in the effort to educate legislators on nudist / naturist issues.

I presently plan to visit Tallahassee this month for the purpose of coordinating our activities with our lobbyist and AANR Florida on legislative and state park issues. Previous Tallahassee efforts by B.E.A.C.H.E.S. Foundation, AANR Florida, and SFFB/FNA led to the successful implementation of coverage of Florida nudist resorts and recognized naturist beaches on the website of VISIT FLORIDA®, the state's official tourism promotion agency. (See related articles in the July 2015 and November 2014 issues of this newsletter.)

Our efforts continue in the realm of making nude recreation a legal option, accepted within the greater society. Future efforts must be made to get mere nude sunbathing out of the criminal code.

Thank you for your continued support and, if not a current member, please consider becoming one - numbers matter. Join at sffb.com, fill out an application in the Naturist Beach Guide booklet found in the news dispenser boxes on Haulover Beach, or see at left for a special membership offer.

Beach Ambassador training

This year's remaining Beach Ambassador (BA) training is scheduled for Haulover Beach in Miami on Saturday, December 12. The tentative dates of subsequent training sessions in 2016 are Sunday, February 28; Saturday, May 14; Sunday, August 21; and Saturday, November 12.

BAs are volunteers that serve as beach monitors and greeters, a combination of block watch and welcome wagon. For their service, BAs at Haulover Beach get a cool hat, ID badge, and free parking on their duty days. Seasonal residents are welcome to participate. If you have any questions or wish to sign up for a training session, contact Ken.

2015 Keep Our Beaches Bare fundraising raffle ends with record high donations

Haulover Beach lifeguard managers (flanking) and The Honorable Pam Oakes, former Mayor of Pasco County, FL (center left), assist Shirley Mason, B.E.A.C.H.E.S. Executive Director (center right), in drawing the nine winning raffle tickets on November 30, 2015.

B.E.A.C.H.E.S. Foundation Institute and South Florida Free Beaches / Florida Naturist Association have concluded our 2015 Keep Our Beaches Bare fundraising raffle. The drawing took place at the Ocean Rescue (lifeguard) headquarters on Haulover Beach in Miami on November 30, 2015.

We congratulate the winners and thank the hundreds of raffle participants and the donors of the prizes for their generous contributions, without which the fundraiser could not have succeeded. The 2015 raffle broke previous years' records, grossing a total of approximately $9,000.

Proceeds will be used for naturist education, free beach advocacy, capital improvements to to Haulover Beach or other clothing-optional beach sites, disability beach access program, and other purposes as listed in the scope of B.E.A.C.H.E.S.' mission and SFFB's mandate.

See below for the prizes (each of which is for two persons) and their donors and winners. Please patronize the prize donors, and tell them that SFFB and B.E.A.C.H.E.S. sent you!

• First prize: Bare Necessities Tour & Travel Co., 10-night nude cruise, February 6-16, 2016, from Fort Lauderdale, FL to the multicultural Caribbean. Ticket #1356, Anthony Christakis. By the way, there are still a few staterooms available. View cruise details and call 1 (512) 499-0405 or (800) 743-0405 (toll-free) for reservations.

• Second prize: Hidden Beach Resort - Au Naturel Club by Karisma Hotels & Resorts (6 days/5 nights), Kantenah, Riviera Maya in Mexico's Yucatán peninsula (one hour south of Cancún). Ticket #1196, John Galinelli

• Third and fourth prizes: Cypress Cove Nudist Resort & Spa (3 days/2 nights), Kissimmee, FL. Ticket #1159, Robert Hojnoski. Ticket #0221, Robert Elliot

• Fifth prize: daddy O hotel miami (3 days/2 nights), Bay Harbor Islands, FL (textile, but near Haulover Beach). Ticket #0369, John Marshall

• Sixth prize: Lake Como Family Nudist Resort (3 days/2 nights), Lutz, FL (near Tampa). Ticket #0807, Louis Pugliese

• Seventh prize: Sunsport Gardens Family Naturist Resort (3 days/2 nights), Loxahatchee Groves, FL (near West Palm Beach). Ticket #1339, Keith Reid. By the way, this is the venue for the Mid-Winter Naturist Festival, February 11-16, 2016. See below for more info.

• Eighth and ninth prizes: Werner Staub's Peppermill Restaurant (lunch or dinner) on the Intracoastal Waterway in Sunny Isles Beach, FL (textile, but walking distance to Haulover Beach). Ticket #0128, David Sellman. Ticket #1026, Martin Haberland

The Naturist Society publishes 2016 tour schedule of nude gatherings and festivals

Reprinted by permission from the December 2015 issue of The Gay Naturist E-former, quarterly magazine of Gay Naturists International (GNI)

Click image to read this issue. Browse back issues.

The Naturist Society (TNS), in which GNI had its origins in the early 1980s, recently published the 2016 tour schedule of nude gatherings and festivals that it organizes or sanctions, respectively. The theme of the tour is "Naturism Does A Body Good." TNS encourages participants to sign up as soon as possible after registration opens for each event that they want to attend, which helps in planning.

Registration forms are provided on line and in N Magazine (Nude & Natural), TNS' quarterly magazine of naturist living, starting with the winter issue. (TNS membership includes a subscription to the magazine. See above left for a special TNS membership offer through SFFB.)

TNS encourages volunteers to lead a workshop or other fun activity. For the Eastern or Western Naturist Gathering, e-mail Nicky with a brief description, which day(s) and date(s) you will be attending, and your preference for morning, afternoon, or evening. To help organize your submission, you may use the Naturist Gathering Activity Signup Form. For the other events, volunteer through the venues organizing them. Below is a bare-bones listing of events (including an anticipated one not yet posted). Check the 2016 tour schedule for details and updates.

• 28th Annual Mid-Winter Naturist Festival, February 11-16, Sunsport Gardens Family Naturist Resort, Loxahatchee Groves, FL (near West Palm Beach). See below for an overview.
• Young Adult Naturists Spring Fest, April 8-10, Sunsport Gardens (as above). All welcome, but special camping area, program, and pricing reserved for participants aged 18-30 and their partners.

Lee Baxandall Memorial Volleyball Tournament

• 34th Annual Eastern Naturist Gathering, June 13-19, Camp Westmont, Poyntelle, PA
• Nude Recreation Week, July 4-10. Various locations.
• 9th Annual Family Youth Camp, July 17-24, Sunsport Gardens (as above)
• Western Naturist Gathering, July 28-31, Lupin Lodge, Los Gatos, CA
• Northeast Naturist Festival, August 2-7, Empire Haven Nudist Park, Moravia, NY
• Young Adult Naturists Summer Fest, August 12-14, Sunsport Gardens (as above). Specials for young adults as above.
• Lee Baxandall Memorial Volleyball Tournament, August 19-22, Bare Oaks Family Naturist Park, Gwillimbury, ON, Canada
• 7th Annual Young Adult Naturists Holiday Fest, December 2016 dates TBD (event not published yet), Sunsport Gardens (as above). Specials for young adults as above. The dates of this year's Holiday Fest are December 11-13, 2015.

Boundaries clarified at Blind Creek Beach in Fort Pierce, FL

FPL warns against trespassing on its property at Blind Creek Beach.

With the increasing number of visitors to Blind Creek Beach on Hutchinson Island in Fort Pierce, FL, FPL, owner/operator of the adjacent St. Lucie Power Plant, has recently posted signs to demarcate its property and warn against trespassing. This does not represent any change; it's just a clarification of the status quo.

As indicated on some of the signposts, FPL's property is above (i.e., to the west of) the mean high tide line. Beachgoers have the right to pass at will below (i.e., to the ocean side of) that line. Visitors are reminded to respect FPL's private property and stay out of the dunes on the entire length of the beach, whether those are on private or public property. It's the law, and it's the right thing to do in order to protect this delicate environment.

Unrelated to the above, Friends of Blind Creek Beach, the group of volunteers who look after the naturist beach, are working on a revision to the map of clothing-optional boundaries, and plan to publish it in the near future. Check The Beach page of their website soon. Meanwhile, the group reminds visitors that there is now a portable outhouse in the parking lot. Its delivery and regular servicing are the result of private donations. (It is not provided by St. Lucie County.) The group welcomes additional donations toward maintenance of the port-a-potty and reminds visitors to use it and refrain from urinating on the beach.

Meet the new newsletter editor

Seth Paronick, SFFB newsletter editor

SFFB and B.E.A.C.H.E.S. thank Albert Pantaleón for his service as editor of this newsletter over the past year or so after his predecessor, Norma Mitchell, stepped down upon moving to Central Florida. Albert's business has picked up lately, requiring more of his attention. He asked Seth Paronick, who has been working by his side for a number of months to develop news content and provide technical assistance, to step in for him.

Seth hits the ground running, bringing to the table years of experience in naturist activism, event planning and club administration, and writing for naturist periodicals. He has been a member of SFFB since 1993 and serves on the B.E.A.C.H.E.S. Board of Governors, which he joined in November 2013. Seth is also deeply involved in several other naturist organizations. You can read more about that in his naturist bio.

If you have any questions, comments, or suggestions about this newsletter, please reply to the e-mail in which you received it from SFFB.

Find a nude beach group to join

Do you enjoy going to a nude beach where you live or travel? If so, we're glad you do! Nude beaches don't just happen, nor are they set up by the government. Their creation and continued existence are the result of the dedication, persistence, and hard work of local beach groups like SFFB, which depend on members, volunteers, and donations. Their careful stewardship and constant vigilance are required to preserve nude beaches.

We avidly encourage everyone with an interest in clothing-optional recreation to seek out and join, volunteer for, and donate to the advocacy group that mentors any clothing-optional beach where they live or travel, whether at an ocean, lake, river, or spring. To that end, B.E.A.C.H.E.S. maintains an online directory of nude beach support groups throughout the U.S. and Canada to help you find the nearest one. We encourage you to become a member of your local beach group today (you can join and/or donate to SFFB, above left) to help keep your nude beach open and safe for all.

Find a nude beach group to join and let them know that SFFB and B.E.A.C.H.E.S. referred you!

Effort to create Naturist Unity Council progresses

In February of this year, Shirley Mason and B.E.A.C.H.E.S. Foundation Institute convened a Naturist Unity Summit in Miami. For some time, Shirley and Richard Mason have been concerned about the lack of cooperation among the various nudist / naturist groups. She noted, "For decades we've all heard, 'Why don't the organizations work together (for the good of nude recreation)?'" The Naturist Unity Summit, sponsored by B.E.A.C.H.E.S., was the first serious attempt to bring about unity within the industry. There were a number of presentations over the course of the one-day summit, which attracted a total of 30-some participants from throughout the nudist industry.

First Naturist Unity Summit, Miami, February 11, 2015

Join other naturist men and women and their families from Florida and the rest of North America for the continent's first regional naturist gathering in 2016. Come for any or all of the days - it's up to you!

This nude gathering features more than 240 scheduled activities, including a broad array of seminars, workshops, sports, music and dance (including nightly drum circle around a huge bonfire), and social activities. There are also several off-site events, which include canuding on the jungly Loxahatchee River and excursions to Haulover Beach in Miami and Blind Creek Beach in Fort Pierce, FL.

The Mid-Winter Naturist Festival is one of a series of Naturist Society-sanctioned nude events each year. (See above for 2016 schedule.) Diversity is valued, and all are welcome. Pre-registration is encouraged for planning purposes, but not required. (It makes check-in quick and easy.) Proceeds of the Festival will benefit The Naturist Society and South Florida Free Beaches. Get details and/or register.

Meanwhile, try Sunsport Gardens' nude drumming circle, every Friday from 9 p.m. to midnight. (The first Friday of every month is a little more elaborate.) Free entry starts at 5 p.m.; visitors must depart by 2 a.m. Includes use of amenities such as the café, showers, pool, spa, and sauna. You must present your government-issued photo ID for admission. Get directions.