Friends of the Mound House to launch lecture series
Beginning in November, the Friends of the Mound House will host a monthly after-hours lecture series at the town’s historic site.
The first lecture is scheduled Tuesday, Nov. 14 from 5:30 to 7 p.m., and the inaugural topic will be native Florida planting by master gardeners Kathy White and Mary Ann Parsons.
Light refreshments and wine will be served at 5:30 p.m.with the program to follow. The event is free and will be held inside; seating will be provided. The Mound House’s overflow parking lot at 261 Connecticut will be open with transportation to and from the lot to the museum.
It’s the first sanctioned, re-occurring after-hours event to be held at the Mound House. Director Alison Geisen said it’s the brain child of the Friends of the Mound House, the 501(c)3 that supports the museum and grounds.
“The Friends are helping support our mission statement. We’re all about culture and the environment,” Geisen said.
The series will feature a different speaker and topic every month, said President Becky Werner, but each topic will be something of interest to local Fort Myers Beach residents as well as visitors who may be curious to learn more about the island.
“It’s an educational, cultural and environmental learning experience,” Werner said. “We need more visibility and it’s a way to get people interested in the Friends of the Mound House and promote interest in the Mound House.”
The Friends group is primarily dedicated to fundraising efforts, but has decided to let the lecture series focus on an awareness campaign for the historical site, its programs and the Friends group for now. Penny Jarrett, educational coordinator, used to host a lecture series at the Newton Beach House before the museum opened.
“We really enjoyed that. The museum opened and her responsibilities changed, so we decided we would take it on,” Ellen Vaughan, the Fundraising Chair, said.
Werner said she’s always wanted the Friends group to have a monthly program for its members, and this lecture series could help to draw in new Friends members.
The topics will all be locally-oriented. After Hurricane Irma, Vaughan said the group decided to not charge admission, at least for the first few, to give the community time to heal and welcome residents and visitors alike to spend time learning about the area and spend time at the Mound House.
“The overall goal, we wanted to raise awareness,” Vaughan said. “The Mound House is this treasure and it’s not as widely known as it ought to be.”
For more information or to see upcoming lecture topics, visit moundhouse.org or call 765-0865. The Mound House is located at 451 Connecticut St.