Name: Releasing June Cleaver the Loggerhead
Start: 2025-09-03T16:00:00-04:00
Location: Howard E. Futch Memorial Park At Paradise Beach

Leave it to June Cleaver – she's heading home to the ocean!
This 230-pound loggerhead was named after the matriarch in “Leave It to Beaver” when she first arrived at our Sea Turtle Healing Center about two months ago for care.
June Cleaver will be released on Wednesday, Sept. 3, at 4 p.m. from Howard E. Futch Memorial Park at Paradise Beach, 2301 Jimmy Buffett Memorial Highway in Melbourne. Special thanks to Brevard County Ocean Rescue Services for their support during this release!
A few things to keep in mind:
- Flippers will be in the water at 4 p.m., so make sure you grab your parking spot early!
- Sea turtle releases typically take place rain or shine – but they can be postponed if there is lightning in the area.
- Don't forget to bring your filled reusable water bottle. It's hot out there, so please hydrate throughout the release!
On June 27, June Cleaver was observed trying to lay eggs for about two hours in Melbourne Beach. The Sea Turtle Preservation Society transported her to the Healing Center. June was found to have a previous boat strike wound, making it necessary for her to have several CTs to ensure the injury to her carapace (top of the shell) wasn’t critical. The scans found that this wound wasn’t fatal, but it did need some extra care.
Rest, good nutrition and care had June feeling so well that she laid more than 113 eggs in her Healing Center pool. The eggs were given to biologists to bury on the beach, where they remain incubating.
June Cleaver will be remembered for many things by the Healing Center team, but especially for her “diva” food tastes. Crabs are typically enjoyed by loggerheads – but June Cleaver’s favorite food is squid. Volunteers had to stuff shrimp into her squid or else they would go uneaten.
This is sea turtle nesting season! We want to remind you to call the Sea Turtle Preservation Society’s hotline, 321-206-0646, if you find nesting sea turtles or hatchlings in distress on a Brevard County beach.
We hope to see you on the beach for June's release!