Dennis Doucette is seen here with his collection of sea beans, a hobby he’s enjoyed going on a decade now. (Staff photos by Ray Quiroga)
By RAY QUIROGA
Port Isabel-South Padre PRESS
rayq@portisabelsouthpadre.com
For Dennis Doucette, it all started one day while strolling the Galveston Island beaches. It was there, some nine years ago, that on the shore, entangled in weeds, and covered in barnacles, that he discovered a curious stone of sorts. He took it home, polished it off and discovered that this brownish, heart-shaped stone was not a stone at all, but a seed that had been warped and covered in barnacles after miles and miles of travel in ocean waters.
Doucette’s hobby has now turned into an obsession of sorts, as he’s collected roughly a thousand of what are known as sea beans, some of which are greatly prized by collectors, like Dennis, aptly known as sea beaners. The seas bean’s story is interesting in that its origins stem from trees typically located in Central America. The trees’ seedlings tend to fall on the ground, and are either picked up by birds, animals or washed into rivers which find their way into the Gulf. Finally, these 
“beans” make their way to the Gulf Coast shores.
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