Loggerhead Marinelife Center Inc.

Our organization aims to accomplish a positive synergy with every guest and partnering organization surrounding ocean conservation. Essentially, it is our vision to be a leading authority locally and internationally in ocean conservation via sea turtle research, rehabilitation, and educational programs. To do this, we reach near and far prospects to be a part of the story and solution.


LMC’s business model is multifaceted and its strategic plan is to expand its conservation and education impact through a blended local and global approach, modeled off the fact that sea turtles are global migrators. As such, its mission and portfolio must be aligned with the dynamic nature of these incredible creatures. LMC’s unique business model allows it to focus on four core areas as part of its key programming: rehabilitation, research, education, and conservation.


LMC actively works to increase the participation of underserved and differently served participants each year through our field trip and educational outreach programs for Title I schools, Passport and Passport Ambassadors. It is a long-term goal to target grants to under-resourced locations and keep admission free-of-charge to provide community access and inclusion.


While bringing new supporters, it is also essential our organization creates strong rapport with existing Circle 100 members. We aim to achieve a 75% renewal rate for our Circle Members as they are the life-giving force to our mission and capital projects.


In is also in our daily course of action to uphold the best science-based practices to support all of our core areas across the board, with a goal of establishing LMC as a global leader in ocean conservation. Our research findings serve as a guidepost to revamp education across South Florida schools and to inspire and reform international policies, such as water quality, to save sea turtles and human health.

The strategies that will bring our goals to fruition include serving as a collaborative partner to like-minded organizations and becoming an extension to those who are lacking resources. We are in a strong position to do this as we begin construction on our Waves of Progress capital campaign, which is a 27,500-square foot expansion to the current facility. The LMC staff will continue to strengthen relationships with corporate, individual, and prospective donors to reach our $20 million goal to complete the expansion.


LMC is at an exciting crossroads as we begin construction that will triple the Center in size. In the near future, we will be able to provide more classroom space for school students and lifelong learners, including a new ocean conservation auditorium, discovery zone exhibit, an ocean experience exhibit, a large multipurpose learning hall, indoor hands-on classrooms, an outdoor education amphitheater, and a redesign of our current learning center. The larger space will also provide presentation spaces for guest lecturers and visiting scientists so we can exist as an international teaching and training hub for sea turtle rehabilitation to increase the chance of saving sea turtles worldwide.


The approach to reaching our benchmarks also involves being an effective storyteller through marketing. It’s crucial that we give a voice to our sea turtle patients and to serve as thought leaders in the ocean conservation field. We do this by building strong relationships with the media and securing national and local coverage to send our message out to the public. In 2019, LMC’s media outreach garnered over 2.06 billion impressions, including local, statewide, national, and international coverage. This is a 33% increase from 2018. It is a testament to the innovative treatment taking place at LMC and the engaging conversations we are striking with stakeholders. Additionally, our social media presence has shown to be a critical tool. In 2019, our social platforms reached 21.9 million users, which is a 92% increase from 2018.

In collaboration with its Board of Directors and Senior Leadership, LMC has developed a thorough, strategic plan for the next several years. The organization’s capabilities of doing this lie in the strength of its 34 full-time staff members, over 400 volunteers who assist LMC in various departments year-round, the Board of Directors, and its dedicated donor base who continue to support LMC in a variety of ways.


In its 37 years of history, LMC has reached record levels of impact across all of its programming areas. In 2019, LMC welcomed over 360,000 guests, educated more than 74,000 students, recorded 20,998 sea turtle nests, admitted over 100 patients, and collected 209,314 pieces of marine debris. LMC’s proven track record of success is an indicator that it will continue to significantly amplify and accelerate its conservation impact. Another way in which we can achieve the elements outlined in our strategic plan involves our thriving retail operations which accounts for 40% of our annual budget and our robust fundraising strategy, comprised of various giving segments including: individual donors, public sector contributions, corporations, grants, and foundations.

LMC has grown from 70,000 guests in 2007, when its current building opened, to over 360,000 last year. In alignment with founder Eleanor Fletcher’s vision, LMC creates equal access to educational opportunities for all, including free admission. LMC is able to remain free to all guests due to its retail operations, which generates 40% of its annual revenue.

The Sea Turtle Hospital at LMC continually hosts interns, externs, and visiting veterinarians from around the globe who learn innovative practices in sea turtle care from Director of Rehabilitation, Dr. Charles Manire, and his experienced hospital staff. Last year, LMC released 112 sea turtles and saved 1,179 hatchlings. In 2017, Dr. Manire and his colleagues from around the world produced Sea Turtle Care and Rehabilitation, a first-of-its-kind medical text on best practices in sea turtle medicine that set the new global standard for sea turtle care and preservation. LMC’s hospital team also developed a revolutionary medical technique, TPN (total parenteral nutrition), to deliver proper nutrients to an olive ridley sea turtle intravenously. Since the development of TPN, the success rate of patients with chronic debilitation is now 90-95%.

LMC’s PhD-led research team monitors and surveys a 9.5-mile stretch of beach on Florida’s east coast during nesting season, March 1-October 31, each year. This stretch is one of the most densely populated sea turtle nesting beaches in the world, and last year, the team monitored a record 20,998 sea turtle nests (green, loggerhead, and leatherback species). LMC’s research has been published in leading-edge scientific papers, including SWOT (the State of the World’s Sea Turtles), Restoration Ecology The Journal of the Society for Ecological Restoration, and the Marine Turtle Newsletter.

LMC has become a leader in marine science education. Last year, LMC served 74,000 students annually and educated 2,479 students from Title I schools. This is achieved via LMC’s 39 STEM-based programs, which include Title I field trips, campus guided tour experiences, educational outreach, and virtual programming.

LMC now has 90 global partners that are focused on ocean conservation through its multifaceted initiative, Project SHIELD. Project SHIELD provides comprehensive conservation solutions to man-made threats facing sea turtles by collaboratively working with a variety of stakeholders including fishing piers, recreational boaters, beach-side hotels, snorkel and SCUBA operators, fishing charter operators, beach access points, as well as pollution prevention projects and initiatives. In 2019, LMC and Project SHIELD partners collected 209,314 pieces of trash.

LMC is embarking on the next phase in its history through its Waves of Progress capital expansion campaign, and has raised nearly $14 million towards its $20 million goal. This expansion will triple the size of LMC’s campus allowing the Center to accelerate and amplify its conservation and education impact.