A Message of Hope

FLORIDA KEYS VIDEO ADVISORY           September 11, 2026

Contacts: Chad Newman, Chad@fla-keys.com (310) 283-8441 or Mary B. Haban, Mary@fla-keys.com (305) 394-3142

Story: A Message of Hope: 150-Pound Sea Turtle Overcomes the Odds and Returns to the Wild on September 11

Locator: Marathon, Florida Keys

Usage: HANDOUT / RIGHTS CLEARED (Unlimited Broadcast & Digital)

Video Link: Click Here

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Radio Link: Click Here

Photo Captions Below

Video: B-roll of Turtle Hospital staff and local first responders carrying Hope, a 150-pound female loggerhead sea turtle, to the shoreline at Sombrero Beach in Marathon, Florida Keys; community members watching the public release; and Hope entering the Atlantic Ocean and swimming away. SOTs with The Turtle Hospital general manager Bette Zirkelbach (pronounced Betty ZIR-KULL-BACK).

Technical Data:

     TRT: 2:21

     Filename: KeysHopeTurtleRelease.mp4

     Audio: Stereo Mix

     SOTs: Clean / Isolated

     B-Roll: Nat. Sound

Credit: Florida Keys News Bureau (Screen credit appreciated, not mandatory)

A Message of Hope: 150-Pound Sea Turtle Overcomes the Odds and Returns to the Wild on September 11

MARATHON, Florida Keys (September 11, 2026). Today, the community celebrated a powerful moment of survival and unity as Hope, a 150-pound adult female loggerhead sea turtle, swam back into her ocean home from Sombrero Beach. Local first responders joined the public release to honor a journey defined by grit, healing and second chances.

Returning Hope to the wild on September 11 carries profound meaning. Her return serves as a reminder that healing is possible after devastating loss and that strength can emerge from deep trials.

The Turtle Hospital general manager Bette Zirkelbach described Hope as “a story of resilience, second chances, and the unbreakable spirit of survival.”

Hope was rescued in early June after being found entangled in an anchor line. The line had wrapped tightly around her front flipper, causing critical trauma that required emergency veterinary surgery and amputation to save her life.

Following the procedure, Hope faced a difficult road to recovery. She initially refused to eat as she adjusted to her injury. Through specialized care, fluid treatments and dedicated rehabilitation at The Turtle Hospital, she fought her way back to health, showing an unyielding spirit of survival.

“Hope lost her front flipper to the anchor line entanglement. But we have seen successful rehabilitations with turtles. They go out and live their life with three flippers. She's swimming strong. She's able to chase her prey and eat lobster,” Zirkelbach said.

Surrounded by cheering community members and local first responders, Hope returned to the Atlantic Ocean at Sombrero Beach. The release was dedicated to first responders in gratitude for their daily bravery and for helping the community through its darkest hours and hardest times. “Today on 9/11, we want to honor all those lost on 9/11, but also our first responders,” Zirkelbach said. “We had some local first responders here today, but we are eternally grateful. We will never forget.”

Hope's return to the ocean stands as a living testament to resilience, the power of second chances and the spirit of survival.

Located in Marathon, The Turtle Hospital is the world's first veterinary hospital dedicated solely to the rehabilitation of sea turtles. For more information, visit turtlehospital.org.

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