If not for the Smiths & Kamerons Friday Fiesta last night, I would have missed out on two free events today, plus another tomorrow.
Did I find out from the conversations going around the table?
Nope!
It's all thanks to the stack of Connect Savannah magazines spotted as Laura and I were headed for the exit.
She and I both grabbed one, me for the crossword puzzle, her for her own reasons.
I glanced through last night, than looked more carefully this morning.
Not seeing the expansive list of February events I'd expected, I checked the website.
Ah ha, there we go!
What museums could I go to for free this first weekend in February?
Holy cow, there were seven on that list, including three I'd never explored!
So, that's where I went, enjoying the sunshine.
This mural, filled with smiling faces, greeted me!
The seated man, I would learn, was Sammy Wiggins, who served as the foreman for the A.S. Varn & Son Oyster and Crab Factory after "Old Man Varn" died.
The three friendly women worked in the Oyster Factory, which was the largest building at the site.
Built right on the dock of the Back River, now called Moon River, the
simple concrete block construction had some ingenuity going for it.
That began with the Oyster Factory's centralized location on the dock, with plenty of room for boats, called bateaus, to pull in and offload their cargo.
The flat-bottomed boats could pull up on both sides of the building, then offload the half-ton of oysters by shoveling them directly over a short wall into a chute - that's the upper, large, rectangular, lit area - to the waiting shuckers inside.
Those freeing the oyster meat would transfer that product into a bucket, then release the shells into that smaller rectangular hole that led - ingeniously - right back onto the dock.
The oyster fishers could then load the shells onto their bateau and take them back out to dump in the river as the next bed for growing oysters.
Talk about sustainable fishing!
And all done with no need for transport of materials through some intermediate space.
Ingenious, I tell you!
The buildings may have been almost a century old, but the museum is fairly new.
The Oyster and Crab Factory was in operation from 1926 until 1985, falling into disrepair after its closure by "Bunny" Varn, Jr., who died a few years later.
In 2006, when Congress recognized the area as part of the Gullah/Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor, interest in restoring the four buildings was piqued, with the restoration occurring in 2011 and the place becoming a museum then.
Following the lead of the factory before it, the museum employs Pin Point residents, helping the area remain a thriving community.
Such a perfect place for me to begin my Savannah Black Heritage Month experience!
Thanks, Bank of America!
A free concert?
From the Savannah College of Art and Design's choral group??
And at a midtown location???
Sure thing!
The Universe had even saved me a parking space right across from First Presbyterian Church, on the side street - right place!
I had feared I might be late, but the representative for Union Mission was still talking, so I'd missed none of the music - right time!!
i thank You, God!
I was treated to almost 90 minutes of energetic song and dance by the Bee Sharps - gotta love that name!
Candice Glover, a SCAD alum and winner of the 2013 "American Idol" show, as well as a native Southerner from Beaufort - performed several songs with the group, including a rollicking good version of "Proud Mary" as the finale!!!
Yes, I was nice and warm, after all of that dancing in my seat, and I even made a donation to the homeless shelter on my way to my car.
What a wonderful bonus of unexpected entertainment I have had today!
(smile!)
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