Today was the dedication of the Ulumay Park Wildlife Sanctuary historical marker. Nice weather, nice crowd, lovely marker - but what stands out in my mind is what it took to reach this point. How did this beautiful chunk of land that was home to Ais Indians 400 years ago become a park accessible to all, with a marker that establishes its place in history?I love a collaborative effort, and this is a good one. Back in 1970, the land was designated a Brevard County Park. In 1993, the Brevard County Historical Commission dedicated the Sanctuary as a historical landmark. In 2008, the Environmentally Endangered Lands Program purchased property adjoining the Sanctuary. About a year ago, Friends of Ulumay was organized. In late 2008, the Friends and the Historical Commission worked together to obtain the designation of the Sanctuary as a Florida Heritage Landmark. The Tourism Development Council paid for the marker.
All of these contributing/participating organizations were represented at this morning's ceremony. Guest speakers Dr. David Paterno (Chairman of the Brevard County Historical Commission), David Biega (President of Friends of Ulumay), and Commissioner Chuck Nelson (Brevard County, District 2) gave short, heart-felt speeches (shown in photo, left to right, after the unveiling). Jack Masson, Central Area Parks Operations Manager, served as a genial MC.
There was some dandy music - Joseph & Lynn Gray, shown here with their banjo-playing friend Tom Dundis, played their original composition, Ulumay. (You can hear them perform their song on the Friends of Ulumay web site in the downloadable slideshow. You can reach them at aspecialoccasionmusic@yahoo.com - nice people and talented musicians.) The Indian River Anthropological Society had an interesting display of artifacts and information. A Sheriff's Office Deputy directed traffic. A lot of people did their part to make this a nice event.
There was a great deal of mutual respect shown throughout the speeches and in the mingling before and after. Friends of Ulumay (shown above) may be a relatively new group, but it has garnered the admiration and appreciation of the Brevard County Parks & Recreation Department.
There was a great deal of mutual respect shown throughout the speeches and in the mingling before and after. Friends of Ulumay (shown above) may be a relatively new group, but it has garnered the admiration and appreciation of the Brevard County Parks & Recreation Department.
Over the past 39 years, enough people have cared about preserving and protecting this piece of Florida that today we were able to gather and celebrate another chapter in its history. We thank them for their efforts. Job well done!
(Read all about the Sanctuary itself - how to get there, what to expect - in the March 8 post.)
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It is good to see the History of our county acknowledged. A lot of people came before us and did a lot of things without all of the modern conveniences. I applaud the Historical Commission for giving us the proud look at our past, with the hope to teach our children about the sacrafices they made for us. And, how did they live without mosquito control?
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