St. Augustine Lighthouse & Maritime Museum awarded $15K grant from Volunteer Florida

The St. Augustine Lighthouse & Maritime Museum will receive a $15,000 grant from Volunteer Florida. The Tallahassee-based organization announced this week that it is awarding $360,000 in Volunteer Generation Fund (VGF) grant funding to 24 nonprofit and service organizations throughout the state. Each organization will receive a $15,000 grant, and together they will match the funding with $360,000 in local donations. In total, $572,000 will be invested in Florida’s communities.

“We are grateful to Volunteer Florida for all they do for our communities, said Kathy Fleming, Executive Director of the St. Augustine Lighthouse & Maritime Museum. “We look forward to providing even more civic engagement and educational opportunities through this amazing support!”

The St. Augustine Lighthouse & Maritime Museum, a private nonprofit, has a current volunteer program that consists of 273 volunteers who donate nearly 25,000 hours each year.

The Museum works with local colleges, namely University of North Florida and Flagler College, to provide internships and opportunities to gain relevant work experience. Internships cover all areas of the organization and include experience with public relations, graphic design, tourism management, public history and history education, underwater archaeology, and artifact conservation and care. The Museum also coordinates with local high schools to provide opportunities for high school students. These roles include office assistant, historic interpreter, collections assistant, and junior camp counselor.

Volunteer Florida’s VGF program, which is funded by the Corporation for National and Community Service, will help grantees use skills-based volunteers to serve Florida students, families and communities. Skills-based volunteerism expands the impact of organizations by leveraging the experience and talents of professionals, such as teachers, IT consultants, accountants and attorneys. This year, special consideration was also given to organizations that can utilize volunteers to help with disaster mitigation and response or reducing or preventing prescription drug or opioid abuse. For more information, please visit www.volunteerflorida.org.

“I’m very proud of Volunteer Florida’s administration of the Volunteer Generation Fund,” said David Mica, Jr., CEO at Volunteer Florida. “It’s a unique program, strategically promoting skills-based volunteerism in order to increase productivity within organizations, and in turn, generate a more significant impact among their respective beneficiaries throughout Florida.”

For more details about the St. Augustine Lighthouse & Maritime Museum, visit staugustinelighthouse.org or call 904-829-0745. Stay updated on social media at facebook.com/staugustinelighthouse, Instagram.com/stauglighthouse, and twitter.com/firstlighthouse

ABOUT THE ST. AUGUSTINE LIGHTHOUSE & MARITIME MUSEUM:

A pivotal navigation tool and unique landmark of St. Augustine for over 140 years, the St. Augustine Light Station is host to centuries of history in the Nation’s Oldest Port^®. Through interactive exhibits, guided tours and maritime research, the 501(c)(3) nonprofit St. Augustine Lighthouse & Maritime Museum is on a mission to discover, preserve, present and keep alive the stories of the Nation’s Oldest Port^® as symbolized by our working lighthouse. We are the parent organization to the Lighthouse Archaeological Maritime Program (LAMP) and an affiliate of the Smithsonian Institution. (StAugustineLighthouse.org)

 About the American Alliance of Museums:

The St. Augustine Lighthouse & Maritime Museum is accredited by the American Alliance of Museums (AAM), the highest national recognition afforded the nation’s museums. The American Alliance of Museums has been bringing museums together since 1906, helping to develop standards and best practices, gathering and sharing knowledge, and providing advocacy on issues of concern to the entire museum community. As the ultimate mark of distinction in the museum field, accreditation signifies excellence and credibility. Accreditation helps to ensure the integrity and accessibility of museum collections,  and reinforces the education and public service roles of museums and promote good governance practices and ethical behavior. Representing more than 35,000 individual museum professionals and volunteers, institutions, and corporate partners serving the museum field, the Alliance stands for the broad scope of the museum community. (www.aam-us.org)