WALTON COUNTY, Fla. — The future of Gulf World Marine Park is taking shape amidst ongoing transformations. The park, which closed in June following intense scrutiny over the deaths of dolphins and accusations of animal mistreatment, leaves behind a legacy and many unanswered questions about the fate of its inhabitants, employees, and the marine institute associated with it.

Despite the park’s closure, the Gulf World Marine Institute (GWMI) remains an enduring beacon of hope. Established in 2010, this nonprofit organization is dedicated to the rescue and rehabilitation of sea turtles and marine mammals, a mission that continues unabated.

In a demonstration of their ongoing commitment, GWMI recently celebrated a significant milestone. On Friday morning, they successfully released a subadult loggerhead sea turtle named Carlos back into the wild. Carlos had spent several weeks under their care after being ensnared by a hook at the M.B. Miller pier.

It’s a nonprofit organization dedicated to sea turtle rescues and releases and marine mammal rehabilitation.

On Friday morning, GWMI released a subadult loggerhead sea turtle named Carlos. He had been in their care for a few weeks after getting caught on a hook on the M.B. Miller pier.

Along with releasing Carlos, they released an update.

Gulf World Marine Institute will now be known as Florida Panhandle Marine Institute.

“That has been something we’ve been discussing for quite some time because in 2024 for our marine mammal work, we actually took over the entire panhandle…When we started doing that, we kind of realized that, especially as we were doing events over in that area and responding and making new connections with the asset providers over there, we realized that the name needed to reflect our expanded region of the mission. So that’s where the name change actually came from.” Gulf World Marine Institute Stranding Coordinator, Lauren Albrittain said.

Their new service area runs from East Franklin County to the Florida-Alabama state line.

Last month, a federal bankruptcy judge approved the sale of the Gulf World Marine Park property to local hospitality company, ‘By the Sea Resorts’.

That sale includes the facilities currently housing the marine institute, which functions as a completely separate entity.

GWMI said right now they can’t release any details about their relocation, but one thing is certain: their mission will stay the same.

“We are still here, and the mission continues. We are still doing the mission every single day to the best of our ability, like we always have. So if changes come, like I said, we’re looking into options, obviously, there’s potential other changes coming, and we will face them head-on and tackle every challenge that we come to, but the mission continues. There’s a reason we get into this work, and it’s not going to stop just because things are a little different right now.” Albrittain said.

The institute said it is always looking for volunteers.

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