Who We Are

Friends of Padre Fall Fiesta

If you'd like to sponsor or be a vendor at this event, please contact us at info@friendsofpadre.com 

Calling all kids ages 4 - 12!

Friends of Padre is excited to announce our first Kid’s Summer Art Contest!

Entries should demonstrate why your child loves the beach, and the importance of keeping it clean. The first QR code on the flyer will provide you with a t-shirt template to be used by your child for their artwork. The second QR code takes you to the contest entry form. There is additional information for submitting your child’s artwork on the entry form, as well.
The submission deadline is August 5, 2022 and the winning art will be used for the 2023 Billy Sandifer Big Shell Beach Cleanup's kids' t-shirt. The winner will be announced at our Friends of Padre Fall Fiesta on September 17, 2022 at the Briscoe King Pavilion.
Please share this post so that we can reach as many creative kids as possible! Please contact us at info@friendsofpadre.com or through Messenger if you have any questions.
If you have trouble with the QR codes on the flyer please use the following link for the Google form and T-shirt template.
Google Form
T-shirt Template

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27th Annual Billy Sandifer Big Shell Cleanup 2022 Results are in!

The official numbers are in! Despite low temperatures and rain, 500 volunteers removed 30 tons of trash from 25 miles of Padre Island during the Big Shell Beach Cleanup. Thanks to everyone who came out to clean and to our sponsors. Billy would have been proud.

Contact: Tyler Thorsen – Vice President - Friends of Padre for more information. Email: tthorsen@grandecom.net or 361 – 779 – 3044

 If you would like to make a donation in honor of Billy, you can click on the Paypal "Donate" button below or send a check to PO Box 18108 Corpus Christi, TX 78418.

Thank You!

 

 The primary function of Friends of Padre is to fund and organize the annual Billy Sandifer Big Shell Beach Cleanup in perpetuity. Beginning in 1995, the Big Shell Beach Cleanup occurs once a year in the Big Shell portion of the Padre Island National Seashore (PINS). Each year, hundreds of volunteers dedicate a Saturday to removing trash from this rugged, desolate stretch of beach. Since its inception, over 12,925 volunteers have removed 3,122,000 pounds of trash from this remote and wild stretch of 4 Wheel Drive Only beach.


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Friends of Padre

Dr. Jen Brown's Gulf Podcast episode 3 "A Sense of Place"

Dr. Jen Brown highlights the history of the Friends of Padre and the 25th Annual Billy Sandifer Big Shell Beach Cleanup. There's classic audio of Captain Billy that sure is nice to hear. Thank you, Dr. Brown! Dr. Jen Brown...

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Texas Turtle Nest Update 4/24/2020

On 23 April, 1 Kemp's ridley nest was located on the Texas coast, on San Jose Island.    Total numbers of nests found in Texas this year, by species and area, have been updated below.   KEMP'S RIDLEY TURTLE So far this year, 28 nests have...

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Dad is home for Father's Day 6/14/2019

For years the joke around most of Billy's younger friends and minions was that we always called him "Dad". Though he never had any kids of his own, Billy had many sons and daughters that loved him like a father,...

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