Volunteer Spotlight

Michael & Dana Myers

by Paula Suhey

“People make up community, and their individual stories contribute to a community’s success…when a community comes together great results are anticipated!” said Michael Myers, Mandarin Museum Board Member.

Michael is originally from Titusville, Florida and is a retired veteran of the United States Navy. He graduated Magna Cum Laude from Columbia College with a degree in Business Administration and a Minor in Financial Counseling. Michael became a member of the Mandarin community in 1986 when he married his wife, Dana, and the rest is history! Dana is a native of Mandarin. Her family lineage in the Mandarin area dates back for at least five generations to the early 1800s. Dana has a master’s degree in Management and Leadership from Webster University and has been a civil servant with the federal government for 32 years. Michael and Dana have two adult children and two grandchildren.

Michael joined the Mandarin Museum & Historical Society board of directors in 2018. Being a student of history, he became intrigued with Mandarin's unique story after interviewing Walter Anderson (Dana’s grandfather) for a literature assignment. The knowledge Mr. Anderson shared about Black Mandarin compelled and motivated Michael to ensure Mandarin’s Black History is told and available for future generations.

Dana likes to tease Michael by reminding him that he is a transplant and not a true Mandarin native, and “he is not an Anderson even when he says he is.” Transplant or not, Michael has been a true asset to the Mandarin Museum & Historical Society and the community. He has spent many weekends volunteering to beautify the grounds of Walter Jones Historical Park. Michael and Dana played a large role in researching, gathering information, and conducting outreach to community members for the new exhibit The Untold Story of Black Mandarin. And Michael built the freestanding display for that exhibit and several others.

Michael and Dana were instrumental in obtaining important pieces of history for the St. Joseph's Mission Schoolhouse for African American Children, where Dana's great-grandfather, Leo Anderson, uncles, and many other family members attended. Before these efforts, she recalls seeing a void in the history of the Black community in the Mandarin area, a community, which at one point, was predominantly African American. She stated, “that missing history is my history."

Dana speaks highly of "her community," exuding great pride, honor, and respect for the seniors that she grew up admiring. "Growing up in a community where most people were related, people looked out for each other, had a respect for God, and a great sense of community. It is something you don’t find very often," Dana said. Her maternal grandparents, Walter and Estelle Anderson, donated property for a park during the time of segregation to provide black families a place for recreation. That property now bears her grandfather's name, “Walter Anderson Memorial Park." Michael and Dana led the charge to rename the park for three years, pounding the pavement getting petitions signed, reaching out to other community organizations, churches, Mandarin Museum & Historical Society, and speaking at City Council meetings. Their persistence and drive paid off when the park was renamed in September 2019.

Others in Dana's life garnered her admiration as well, including her paternal grandparents, Dossie and Lula Monroe, owners of Lula’s BBQ, her uncle, Horce Young, the owner of Shady Oaks Tavern, and of course her parents, David and Yvonne Monroe. Her father, David, managed the Mandarin Raiders Baseball Team, a community sandlot baseball team, for more than 15 years. Dana recalls her father telling her about helping to clear the field where Walter Anderson Memorial Park is located as a young boy. Her mother, Yvonne, was the recipient of the Museum's Miss Aggie Award in April 2022.

Michael and Dana have done extensive travelling and have lived in Iceland, Spain, Portugal, and many other places, but if you ask them both, they will tell you, there is no place like home. Michael and Dana are big proponents of community involvement. They both conveyed, “you can’t expect change by sitting on the sidelines." They are grateful for the opportunity to serve on the board at the Museum and very appreciative to the Museum for including and embracing the stories and contributions of all Mandarin residents.