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American Lighthouse Foundation, Inc.
P.O. Box 565
Rockland,
Maine 04841
Phone: 207-594-4174
Fax: 207-596-1091
info@lighthousefoundation.org
The American Lighthouse Foundation is a
Non-Profit 501(c)(3) Organization dedicated to the
preservation of America's historic
lighthouses & lightships and
their heritage.
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Introducing Lighthouses & Preservation To A
Broader Audience
By Bob Trapani, Jr.
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The lighthouse
community has spent years working to integrate education within its
mission of preservation, and along the way our collective efforts have
made some tremendous inroads. For example, thanks to dedicated
volunteers, many students around the country have been |
Photo by Bob Trapani
Pemaquid Point Light Station
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introduced to
lighthouses – children who might not
otherwise have ever learned about this wonderful aspect of American history.
Lighthouse organizations have also touched the lives of countless families
and seniors through community outreach and educational activities, yet there
remains an undeniable dilemma within our mission that threatens the future
of lighthouse preservation.
Everywhere you
look, dedicated volunteers are graying and growing weary of carrying the
torch of lighthouse preservation for so long. In some cases, we are sadly
beginning to lose key members of the |
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Photo by Bob Trapani
Fresnel lens exhibit at the Maine
Lighthouse Museum
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lighthouse
movement as they “cross the bar.” This natural progression of life would
not normally cause undo alarm, but since we are at a time when the
responsibilities, expectations and external challenges in lighthouse
preservation are reaching all-time highs, the movement we love so much
is unfortunately not keeping pace. The rising demands of preservation,
coupled with the availability of more lighthouses than groups to care
for them, is forcing us to “tread water” in many cases. Such
circumstances are outdistancing our growth capabilities due to the lack
of new volunteers in enough |
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numbers to replace
our aging, stressed and burned-out “keepers.”
Attracting new
“keepers” in meaningful numbers to the lighthouse preservation movement is
the most critical challenge in overcoming the present dilemma. Appreciable
increases in volunteers would bolster all present facets of preservation,
which includes the mission’s pillars of education, fundraising and
restoration. Of the aforementioned pillars, the most vital is the education
process, which is responsible for creating awareness and value for the
mission, and subsequently peaking the public’s interest to become involved
in our effort to save America’s lighthouses.
The traditional
approach to educational efforts has been to convey to the public why
lighthouses were built and their value to shipping, along |
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| with recounting the intriguing
human-interest stories of the many dedicated keepers and families who
kept the lights shining. In recent years, education initiatives have
appropriately focused on the plight of America’s lighthouses and why we
must act now to save them |
Photo by Bob Trapani
Wood Island Light Station
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before it’s too
late. Though these learning aspects are all critical to our mission, there
are internal signs everywhere we look that our educational philosophies may
need to be enhanced to reach outside the present boundaries of lighthouse
interest.
By focusing less
on finding lighthouse enthusiasts and more on civic-minded individuals
within our communities – people who may not “love” lighthouses but desire to
make a difference where they live, we may begin to find a new pool of
potential volunteers who could then easily grow into passionate members and
donors. Other audiences who may not have previously discovered the value of
becoming involved in lighthouses, but share many of our ideals in relation
to preservation, are outdoor recreationists, naturalists, boaters and even
the kayak community – groups who enjoy and wish to preserve the wonderful
environments in which many lighthouses reside.
Admittedly, the
aforementioned groups of people are somewhat “niche” interests similar to
lighthouses, so how do we appeal to a more |
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Photo by Bob Trapani
Marshall Point Light Station
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broad audience? One way is to expand upon our mission in
a more subtle fashion by supplementing the face value of lighthouses and
their utility with “lighthouse parallels” that have a less direct or
intangible connection to lighthouses, but are no less fascinating. The
key to remember in lighthouse education is
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that we don’t have to make others “love” lighthouses like
we do, but simply peak their interest in a way that is meaningful to the
individual and inspires that person to get involved – even if it is for more
non-traditional reasons.
I personally believe it is exciting to be able to share with others the fact
that the American dream of individual freedom, and the pursuit of life,
happiness and prosperity would not have been near as rewarding to previous
generations of families had it not been for the lifesaving powers of our
nation’s lighthouses. As we know, from Colonial times forward, countless
immigrants breathed a huge sigh of relief at the |
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welcoming site
of a lighthouse shining bright from our shorelines. The immigrant knew
that the sight of a lighthouse meant they had “made it,” – that they did
not shipwreck, and that they were about to embark on a new life, in a
new land. Nearly every American family today owes a |
Photo by Bob Trapani
Cape Elizabeth Light Lighthouse
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debt of gratitude
to our nation’s coastal beacons that
helped safeguard our ancestor’s arrival to this great country.
Our ancestry’s
arrival to this great nation is hardly the only connection to lighthouses
that many Americans possess today. Lighthouses played a monumental role in
helping build the economic prosperity of the United States of America by
serving as vital components for safe |
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Photo by Bob Trapani
Spring Point Lighthouse
Waterways
were once our
nation's
"highways"
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coastal
navigation. People forget that up until the advent of the automobile,
our nation’s waterways were the “highways.” Everything ranging from
commerce to tourism, and even national security, relied on the
capability to safely transit our country’s dangerous coastlines, rivers
and harbors.
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The more lighthouses that were established along darkened stretches of
America’s coastline, the less precious lives and valuable cargo were lost to
the sea. Physically and figuratively, lighthouses helped shine a light on
America’s path to becoming the greatest nation on earth. Conveying this
message to a broader public audience – including the business world, could
prove quite effective with infusing lighthouse preservation with new
volunteers and even additional financial gifts, all which strengthen the
mission’s long-term sustainability.
In her wonderful book Lighting the Bay: Tales of Chesapeake Lighthouses,
author Pat Vojtech talks about the diverse connection lighthouses have had
on all sorts of American enterprises, noting, |
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“From war to
advances in technology, lighthouse keepers were in the midst of
everything, despite their lonely outposts. They were on the cutting edge
of technology, as lighthouses were employed in the early development of
communications, power, sound transmission, radio transmission,
geological survey, construction technology, and of course, advances in
optics and lighting.”
Vojtech goes
on to say, “The latest techniques were employed in lighthouse
construction, sometimes (but not always) as quickly as they were
invented. |
Photo by Bob Trapani
Portland Head Light Station
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Early masonry and brick lighthouses, which were exposed
to the worst natural environments, including salt, water, sand, and high
winds, were used as experiments for improving on the early ingredients of
cement and mortar. Some of the first modular homes were lighthouses. The
superstructure, or living quarters, of the lighthouses built on piles in the
Chesapeake were almost all built in wall sections on land before being
hauled to the site and assembled, usually in less than a month.”
In addition to benefiting science, engineering and industries like
construction, lighthouses were among the critical aids to navigation that
protected the shipment of “black gold” to American ports. As we |
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Photo by Bob Trapani
Portland Breakwater Lighthouse
Huge oil
tankers transport petroleum
products
to American ports
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know, some of the richest companies in
the world today are those who specialize in petroleum. No other
commodity transported by ship has meant more to America’s economic and
military power than petroleum. Ensuring this commodity was timely in its
delivery to ports of call all across our nation, and that it reached its
destination without incident to the |
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human and
environmental components of the operation, was made possible in part by the
guiding lighthouses of America.
Aside from
acquiring new volunteers, enhancing our educational message will also
greatly aid donor confidence and credibility within the public/private
sector. By raising awareness for the connection lighthouses have
historically to so many of our nation’s entrepreneurial and economic
pursuits, we raise our opportunities to inspire businesses and corporations
to financially support lighthouse preservation who might not otherwise have
believed that our mission fit into their community focus for charitable
giving. Admittedly the process will not happen overnight, nor will this
message always be effective, but it does present yet another opportunity to
diversify our educational approach and further strengthen the mission’s
crucial fundraising needs.
Lighthouse
education must not only be able to validate our mission, it also must
inspire. Many government and charitable funding options today desire to know
how many people are being impacted by our |
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| efforts to save lighthouses before they
even consider investing in our mission. As the lighthouse preservation
movement goes forward, it is crucial that we succeed at broadening our
audience and increasing the numbers of people that are |
Photo by Bob Trapani
Portsmouth Harbor Light Station
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impacted in a
positive fashion through
lighthouse preservation in order to enhance our appeal as benefactors for
vital donor funds.
American Lighthouse Foundation president Timothy Harrison is fond of saying
that, “You can learn more about early American history by studying
lighthouses than any other source.” Harrison’s statement could not ring more
true when considering the plethora of magnificent moments in the country’s
history that are interwoven with our lighthouse heritage. From countless
historical events that have occurred at lighthouses to the dedicated people
employed by the United States Lighthouse Service, no one can deny the role
lighthouses have played in shaping the storied history of the United States
of America. After 289 years of faithful service to our great nation, the
meaning and importance of America’s lighthouses goes far deeper than their
mere utility.
People love and cherish lighthouses for a wide range of reasons that include
their innate ability to inspire, comfort and serve as timeless treasures to
our collective educational, environmental and cultural ideals. Lighthouses
also have an immense value to many coastal states that rely on these
majestic icons to help anchor their economic budgets |
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Photo by Bob Trapani
Many of America's lighthouses
still show the way at sea
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through
heritage tourism. Visitors to America’s coastal regions have long sought
out lighthouses. In fact, they plan their vacations around lighthouses
and utilize lighthouses as integral components to their special events
such as weddings and reunions. In short, lighthouses today are
continuing to make unparalleled history in the United States.
As with real
life, the lighthouse community should strive to consistently evolve and
adapt to the ever-changing dynamics of the world around us |
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if we are to remain viable for
the long-term. Through creative education that explores lighthouses beyond
their tangible values and captures their far-reaching impact within U.S.
society, we have the opportunity to show Americans that lighthouses are one
of the few national constants. The chance to share the value, importance and
symbolic strength inherent to these stately sentinels with the public is
phenomenal. In doing so, the lighthouse community may ultimately appeal to
new volunteer keepers who might recognize the honor associated with “keeping
a good light,” thereby safeguarding the sustainability of our passion and
commitment to see lighthouses shine on beyond our “watch.”
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