Florida maritime historian and enthusiast Ray Stewart will be the speaker at the Bea Peskoe Lunchtime Lecture series on Monday, Jan. 7, noon, at the 1st National Bank of South Florida third floor Pioneer Room, 1550 N. Krome Ave. in Homestead.
Stewart’s topic will be The Florida Maritimes. The talk is free and open to the public.
With 2,276 statute miles of coastline, Florida cannot be studied without focusing on its maritime history. The state’s development always has depended on its waterways and the men and women who sail its coastline. Stewart strongly believes we Floridians survive, profit, and die because of the sea.
His extensive maritime experience began with his boating family’s home on the New England shore. He served in U.S. Coast Guard lifeboat stations, ships at sea and while assigned to the Key West Coast Guard Station temporarily as the Key West Lighthouse Keeper. One of his career highlights was rescuing crews off freighters in the North Atlantic while aboard a weather ship.
His upbringing and his Coast Guard experience instilled in Stewart a love of all things nautical and especially of our nation’s maritime service. He visits and photographs lighthouses all around our nation and has been a U.S. Power Squadron member since 1953.
An optional simple lunch will be available for $10 beginning at 11:30 a.m. by reservation only. Call Barbara at 305-230- 9185 before 2 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 4, 2013. Handicapped access is excellent. Parking is available on the east, south and west sides of the Bank.
This lecture series is named for the late Bea Peskoe who was an advocate for social justice, education and culture. The series is presented with the support of the Miami-Dade County Department of Cultural Affairs, Cultural Affairs Council, Miami-Dade Mayor and Board of County Commissioners.
