On Sunday, March 13 at 3:00 PM, the Rt. Rev. Dabney Smith, the Bishop of the Diocese of Southwest Florida, will peform the Blessing of the Fleet ceremony at Lynn Hall Park. This is a change from the past few years when the Blessing of the Shrimp Fleet was held on San Carlos Island. . This year the Bishop’s Council at Historic St. Raphael’s Church on Williams Drive voted to hold the Blessing of the Fleet on the second day of the Lion’s Shrimp Festival Celebration. They also opted to hold the ceremony at Lynn Hall Park so that more people could observe and participate in this 59 year old Beach tradition.
The first Blessing of the Shrimp Fleet took place on December 21, 1952, when the Rt. Rev. H.T. Loutitt, the Bishop of South Florida Episcopal Diocese conducted the blessing at the Columbia Fish Company Docks. Colorfully docorated shrimp bloats passed by to receive their blessing while the Beach School Glee Club sang and the Master of Ceremonies, William R. Rumpf, lowered an anchor of white gladioli on the waters in memory of the crewmen lost at sea.
In the 59 years since that first blessing, the ceremony has become a tradition on the island. According to church records, there was no blessing in 1953, but in 1954, the blessing became an important part of what was then known as "Beach Day," the final event of the Edison Pageant of Light Celebration. The Blessing of the Shrimp Fleet was an itergral part of the celebration which included a parade, barbeque, and a beauty pagaent. A few years later, Beach Day became its own celebration, no longer tied to the Pageant of Light. Initially, this celebration was held on the weekend nearest the full moon after the Edison Festival of Light. This time was chosen since the shrimp fleet would be in port during the full moon. This schedule was observed for over fifty years until the Lion’s Club decided to hold the festival on the same weekend each year rather than going by the full moon, so that it would be easier to plan the activities and schedule the vendors.
Although the Shrimp Festival moved to the second weekend in March, the Blessing of the Shrimp Fleet remained true to the full moon schedule to make sure the fleet would be in port for the blessing. In 2002, Bill Dodd, the priest at St. Raphael’s, decided that the Blessing should be moved from Lynn Hall Park to the shrimp docks. Since then, the Blessing has been held on San Carlos Island and has not been a part of the Lion’s Shrimp Festival.
This year, the Bishop’s Council voted to permanently hold the blessing on the Sunday after the Shrimp Festival Parade, so that it could be part of the Shrimp Festival once again. The short service will feature prayers, songs, and a blessing from the Bishop for all vessels that call Fort Myers Beach their home. This includes commercial shrimping, crabbing, and fishing boats, sportfishing boats, and any personal craft that would like to receive the Blessing. The ceremony will also honor those who have lost their lives at sea by bringing back the original flower wreath which will be lowered into the gulf from the pier at the end of the ceremony.
According to Senior Warden Bob Bunting, " Although the Blessing started out as a blessing of the shrimp fleet, we decided to open it up to all vessels who call this area their home port. We are more than a shrimping port today. We have many commercial fisherman, crabbers, and sport fisherman as well as personal boaters who will benefit from this ritual. People do not have to be physically out in their boats to be blessed; they can participate in the service at the park, or they can receive a blessing by anchoring off the county park at 3:00 on Sunday."
