Meeting Dates & Location
Sarasota Shell Club meetings are held at 7 p.m. on the second Thursday of each month from September through April in Room 206 of the Albritton Center at the Bee Ridge Presbyterian Church, 4826 McIntosh Rd, Sarasota (at the corner of Proctor and McIntosh roads).
2023-2024 Meeting and Excursion Schedule:
September 14: First Membership Meeting. Activity: Shoe Box Exhibits.
October 12: Membership Meeting: Speaker: Alan Gettleman: “Shells from the Most Extreme, Most Exotic Locations on Earth.”
October 30: Shelling Trip: Mullet Key/Blackthorn Park Low tide (-0.5) at 7:51 a.m.
November 9: Membership Meeting: Speaker: John Jacobs: “Strombidae, Rostellariidae, Seraphsidae – An Introduction.”
November 29: Shelling Trip: Sanibel Island.
December 9: Holiday Party: Bird Key Yacht Club Luncheon, Auction and Merriment. Time: 11:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
December 14: Shelling Trip: Carefree Learner Low Tide (-0.75) at 7:30 a.m.
December 16: Shelling Trip: Keewaydin Island Low Tide (-0.6) at 9:34 a.m.
January 11: Membership Meeting: Speaker: Clair Beckman: “Shells Around the World.”
January 11: Shelling Trip: Carefree Learner Low tide (-0.98).
January 16: Shelling Trip: Kice Island Low tide (-1.1) at 7:20 a.m.
February 8: No meeting, Shell Show is February 9 and 10.
Febuary 17: Fossil Silent Auction Field Trip plus Collier Co. Museum, and lunch. Location and time: Gary Schmelz’s home in Naples, 9:30 a.m.
March 9: Shelling Trip: Missouri Key at Low Tide
March 14: Membership Meeting: Speaker: Dennis Sargent: “My Life with Seashells.”
April 11: Membership Meeting: Speaker: Ron Bopp: “A Tale of Two Trips.”
April 13: Annual Sarasota Shell Club Picnic, Coquina Gulfside North Pavilion. Time: 10 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
June 11-16: Conchologists of America Convention, Melbourne, Florida. To attend the convention and participate in the presentations, field trips, and silent auctions, you must be registered. Registration forms will be available from the COA website, conchologistsofamerica.org. The Convention consists of several pre-convention field trips, a Welcome Party, Presentations, Silent Auctions, the Banquet, an Oral Auction, and the Dealers Bourse. No registration is required to attend the oral auction and the bourse. The bourse consists of up to 10,000 square feet of space for dealers from around the world displaying a huge variety of shells and shell-related items.