MMHS NEWS
September 2021
EMBRACE THE MANDARIN EXPERIENCE

Dear friends,

This has been a very bizarre and difficult eighteen months with us being closed due to COVID twice and construction delays. You don't see us on Saturdays, but there are so many people working hard behind the scenes to bring a bigger and better Mandarin Museum and a book titled "Images of America: Mandarin" to the public.

We are very soon going to see some structure added to the footings of our expansion. And, the book is coming along on schedule.

We recently walked the park with Brian Burket, COJ Parks, looking at every building and identifying things that need to be repaired or improved for the preservation of our wonderful buildings. Seen here left to right are: Brian Burket, Bob White of R.G. White Construction and Roger Sallas, MMHS Board member and Facilities Steward.

So, please trust us when we say that this expansion and the book will be well worth waiting for! Plus there will be improvements in the park. And we will.....get back to "normal."

Sandy Arpen
Thank You Rotary Club of Mandarin!
On August 3, Sandy Arpen and Anne Morrow were honored to receive a $2000 check from the Rotary Club of Mandarin. Liz Shaw (in yellow), President of the Club, presented awards to several nonprofits, a result of their May virtual fundraiser.

We are proud and grateful to be included with other organizations like the Mandarin Food Bank, Mandarin Presbyterian Daily Bread Food Pantry, The Clarke School, Heartfelt Ministries, and Yesha Ministries - all wonderful organizations that serve Mandarin's health and human service needs.

Thank you to our local Rotary for their philanthropy and support of so many non-profits in Mandarin over so many years. This is a club with a huge heart! If you know a Rotarian, please be sure to thank them for their community outreach.

Jax Best Awards
JaxBest Awards are given by WJXT and Visit Jacksonville annually to provide a "voter-centric guide to all that's great in Jacksonville and surrounding areas, and it is powered by your vote!"

MMHS won Best History Museum in 2019 and 2020! In 2021, we won "2nd place" in Best Museum, and the whole community won Best Historical Neighborhood!

There is still time to vote for 2021 Best History Museum and we'd love to have your support.

You can vote once per day through Sept. 5 by clicking HERE.
THANK YOU TO TWO
SPECIAL PEOPLE
In August artist Brenda Councill sold her very unique and major oil painting of Mandarin Road - and she donated half of the sale proceeds to MMHS in support of our art collection needs!

Brenda grew up in Mandarin and is especially well-known for her "Mandarin Series" of pen and ink drawings of historic places, which are for sale in our Gift Shop. She lives in North Carolina now, but always visits when she is in Jacksonville. We are very grateful for her ongoing generosity and support of our mission here. Thank you very much Brenda. Learn more about Brenda's amazing career after leaving Mandarin: https://councill.net.

The happy owner of the painting is Dr. MacKenzie Farnham. "Dr. Mack," as he is often called, also grew up in Mandarin and has returned home to practice dentistry at Farnham Dentistry on San Jose Blvd. The practice was created in 1983 by his parents Drs. Sutton and Jacqueline Farnham. We are also very grateful to him for loving Mandarin history and for loving this painting. If you are looking for a dentist in Mandarin, be sure to check out
https://www.farnhamdentistry.com/. You'll be glad you did.

Pictured left to right: Dr. MacKenzie Farnham, Brenda Councill, and Sandy Arpen
Closings of historic buildings continue in September

We are sad that we have to cancel our September openings. The Delta variant of COVID is still at a high level in the area and is extremely communicable.

Our decisions are made with the guidance of MMHS board member, Dr. Jim Waler, MD, with the safety of our volunteers and visitors as our number one priority.

The October schedule has not been determined.

The Mandarin Museum building will remain closed until construction and renovation are complete.

The park remains open - keep you eyes and ears open for our new visitor - this gorgeous rooster!
Update on the Frog Man


Just in case you missed the "Positively Jax" Award to Don Bowden last week - here is the link.

Many thanks to WJXT News4Jax and Tire Outlet for honoring Don with this wonderful recognition for all he has done to make a difference in Mandarin.
Mandarin Art Festival
Canceled

From Mandarin Community Club President, Susie Scott :

"We have been closely monitoring the spread of the Covid-19 variant as the number of cases in Florida and specifically Jacksonville has grown alarmingly. As the oldest civic organization in Jacksonville serving the community since 1923, the Community Club Board believes it is our duty to make every effort to stop the spread of the virus and protect our community’s health. We have therefore been forced to make the heartwrenching decision to cancel the upcoming October Mandarin Art Festival."

We are indeed sad also to miss this wonderful annual event for the second year. Hopefully by Easter weekend 2022, all will be back to normal and this event will go on as it has for over fifty years.
Flashback in Time


Did you know Mandarin had a tennis club as far back as the 1920s? The court was in front of the Walter Jones house, facing the river. They had very serious tournaments with Men's and Women's teams and mixed doubles.

The names of the players were well-known Mandarin names like Jones, Brown, Nichols, Folds, Dismore, Webb, and Roach.

What fun it must have been!


Mandarin Newsline

The September 2021 edition of the Mandarin Newsline will be online by the 1st or 2nd of the month.

This free newspaper is our chief way of sharing history stories, events and programs with the public. They are able to publish free papers due to the robust local advertising. Please pay attention to the ads and shop and eat at those businesses that support the community in this way. To read the entire Newsline click HERE and then click Digital Editions at the top of the page and then the September 2021 "Mandarin Newsline" link.
Reminder for members

Many museums are reopening, so don't forget that being a member of MMHS gives you discounts at other museums in the Southeast through the Southeastern Museums Conference Reciprocal Membership Program. Take your MMHS membership card to any of the museums listed HERE and some discount is applied to entry fees or gift shop sales. At MMHS, since we are always free, you receive a discount on most books in our shop.

We are always calling for more volunteers!

We always need more volunteers, as they are the backbone of our organization. This becomes even more important as we start reopening and hoping to have the buildings open even more.

If you would like more information CLICK HERE or email Paula Suhey, Volunteer Coordinator, at mandarinmuseumvolunteers@gmail.com and she will give you a call and tell you all about the opportunities we have. 

Follow us on Facebook and Instagram - click logos below.
Until next time....





Take some slow deep breaths........
Thank you to our community partners



MISSION: Mandarin Museum & Historical Society shares the stories of Mandarin's history, culture and natural resources by providing engaging programs that educate, entertain and inspire.



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Mandarin Museum & Historical Society
904-268-0784
mandarinmuseum@bellsouth.net