In 1966 she sold out her interest to John B. Whyte. The now more known landscape of the Fire Island Pines took shape after a major fire. Fears rebuilt Botel. John B. Whyte  Former model John B. Whyte encouraged its reputation as a gay destination after buying the rebuilt Botel Pines and Dunes Yacht Club in the 1960s (Cherry Grove was already a gay destination when Whyte developed the Pines). Whyte bought the property after a May 31, 1959 fire destroyed the entire complex. The Botel, which was known as The Hotel Ciel from 2004–2012, is still the central landmark and only hotel in the Pines. The conversion to a gay destination proved divisive among the initial owners. A large sign near the dock headlined, "Welcome to Fire Island Pines A Family Community." It also proclaimed "We believe in a community that is clean both morally and physically." Whyte bent rules to accommodate the gay crowd.
In 1966 she sold out her interest to John B. Whyte. The now more known landscape of the Fire Island Pines took shape after a major fire. Fears rebuilt Botel. John B. Whyte
 Former model John B. Whyte encouraged its reputation as a gay destination after buying the rebuilt Botel Pines and Dunes Yacht Club in the 1960s (Cherry Grove was already a gay destination when Whyte developed the Pines). Whyte bought the property after a May 31, 1959 fire destroyed the entire complex. The Botel, which was known as The Hotel Ciel from 2004–2012, is still the central landmark and only hotel in the Pines. The conversion to a gay destination proved divisive among the initial owners. A large sign near the dock headlined, "Welcome to Fire Island Pines A Family Community." It also proclaimed "We believe in a community that is clean both morally and physically." Whyte bent rules to accommodate the gay crowd.

