Meet Summer Sea Turtle Scout Amy Isenhower

Sea turtles return to the same beaches year after year to lay their eggs, and for Amy Isenhower, that’s an exciting aspect of volunteering as a Summer Sea Turtle Scout for Florida Oceanographic Society’s Nighttime Sea Turtle Walks. Amy has volunteered since 2014, and will have 200 hours of service completed by the end of this summer.

“I love the idea that I might be seeing the same turtles year after year,” says Amy, “and that by the time my daughter Ruby grows up and becomes a volunteer, she’ll see the next generation.”

As a Sea Turtle Scout, Amy walks the beaches on South Hutchinson Island after dark in June and July to spot the signs of a nesting turtle. The beach walks are a highly regulated activity to protect the turtles, and Amy participated in extensive training. When Amy and her Turtle Scout teammates come across a loggerhead turtle at a specific stage of nesting, they alert the Coastal Center turtle walk team to quietly guide guests to watch the process.

Summer nights are an ideal service time for Amy, who is a middle school band teacher at Oak Hammock K8 School in Port St. Lucie. For 17 years she has led one of the largest school bands in St. Lucie County. Amy plays the flute in the Treasure Coast Symphony, and before COVID, was also in the Port St. Lucie Band. The Florida native earned her bachelor’s degree in Instrumental Music Education at Florida State University, where she was a member of the Marching Chiefs band. One of her favorite traditions is returning to march in the FSU alumni band each year.

Amy and her husband, Saint Lucie County Court Judge Daryl Isenhower, live with their daughter Ruby in Port St. Lucie. At age six, Ruby is too young to participate in Florida Oceanographic Society’s turtle walks, but she can’t wait for that day to come and has plans to walk in her mom’s volunteer footsteps. The family recently visited Disney World to spend the gift card Ruby earned as the top fundraiser for her Girl Scout Council.

“Being out on the beach at night, finding a turtle that’s nesting is a magical experience,” says Amy. “It’s exciting to bring others out to experience it too, and I know that the education we’re providing helps people understand how to share the beaches with these amazing turtles.”

Amy Isenhower Snapshot

Born in: Rockledge, FL

Good eats: Spiro’s Taverna, Olive Garden, Benihana

Screen time: Streaming comedies Only Murders In the Building and Holey Moley

Top tunes: SiriusXM's Elvis Radio (channel 75)

Free time: Spending time with family, photography, swimming