Each year since 1994 the members of the Holden Beach Turtle Watch Program have produced and sold a new T-shirt design as the organization’s major fundraiser. Again this year, you have a chance to design the shirt.
The 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 1989 monitors, protects and preserves Holden Beach’s sea turtle population, works to foster community-based conservation and education and operates under the authority of the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission. The group is also known as the Holden Beach Turtle Patrol.
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If you love sea turtles and have a talent for graphic design, consider donating your design. The program’s 2026 T-shirt design contest is open Sept. 15-Oct. 15.
The winning 2025 T-shirt design was by Lois Palermo, a local sea turtle lover, and her sister Alyson Natale, of Woodlands, Texas, with “Let the Sea Set you Free.”
Submissions of original hand-drawn designs for the 2026 season T-shirt must meet the following requirements:
- Only one design submission allowed per individual.
- The design must include a sea turtle.
- The design must be an original hand-drawn design.
- The design is limited to two colors.
- The design must be in a PDF format to allow for possible changes in printing constraints.
- The chosen design will become the property of the Holden Beach Turtle Watch Program.
Submit your design to orders@hbturtlewatch.org by 11:59 p.m. Oct. 15. All submissions will be acknowledged upon receipt.
Designs for all past T-shirts can be viewed at www.hbturtlewatch.org; click “Shop T-Shirts, Hats, & Bags.”
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