The Wandering Disciple

The sun sets over Cocoa Beach as the Disney Magic slips out to sea, embarking on its next high seas voyage.  (Photo: January 23, 2010)

The Atlantic Ocean shows its fury as it hurls waves towards the Cocoa Beach coastline. The waves at Cocoa Beach are some of the best in Florida and are prime for surfing. (Photo: January 23, 210)

The Disney Magic is in view just off the coast of Cocoa Beach as it departs Port Canaveral on a Caribbean cruise.  The Magic is the first of four vessels in the Disney Cruise Line.  Introduced in 1998, the Magic sails from Port Canaveral to varying Caribbean itineraries.  (Photo: January 23, 2010)

The iconic Cocoa Beach Pier extends into the Atlantic Ocean. One of Cocoa Beach’s landmarks, the 800 foot pier was built in 1962. The image of the pier has changed throughout the years but it’s restaurants, bars and shops continue to make it a popular attraction for tourists and locals alike. (Photo: January 23, 2010)

Cocoa Beach, Florida: This coastal town located along Florida’s Atlantic coast is home to one of the Space Coast most popular beaches. Home to some of the best surfing waves in Florida, Cocoa Beach is known as the Jewel of the Space Coast. The areas first residents were a family of free slaves from the Civil War. The land was then purchased by a group of investors from Cocoa and eventually founded into the Town of Cocoa Beach in 1925 which was later incorporated into a city by 1957. The population continued to grow and by the 60’s had increased over 1000%. Much of the growth had been contributed to the space program and nearby Kennedy Space Center. But just as quickly as the population grew with the program, it fell with the program. The city suffered a 14.3% unemployment rate in 1975 mainly due to the completion of the Apollo project and the associated layoffs. But the space program recovered with the introduction of the space shuttle and the city recovered. Today almost 12,...