HOMESTEAD CENTER FOR THE ARTS, INC.
HOMESTEAD, FLORIDA

History for Homestead Center For The Arts A BRIEF HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE ON THE HOMESTEAD CENTER FOR THE ARTS “We want Homestead to be known as a cultural center for the arts,” explained Captain Mike Gallagher, first vice president of the Homestead Center for the Arts. These words soon became the mantra for the fledgling arts group. According to Marion Archer, president of the newly formed arts group, the idea for the center was conceived 2 years before by the Homestead Art Club. Other organizations—the Harlequin Players ( a local theater group), the Homestead Community Concerts Association, and the Margaret Mills Music Club—soon took a vital interest in the project and the collaboration resulted in the birth of the Homestead Center for the Arts. The Center was chartered by the state as a nonprofit organization on October 25, 1976. The initial membership included 66 individuals. The completed Homestead Center for the Arts was meant to serve as a beacon for the arts and artists that would light an area that had been culturally deprived for many years. Unfortunately, art complexes don’t come cheaply. The price tag for Homestead’s center was $1.5 million. A portion of this was to come from federal, state, and local grants as well as the community. Welcome to Homestead Center for the Arts Art, exotic orchids, music, the love of history, the uniqueness of the Everglades and much more – all are a part of what makes up the arts and culture of Homestead. In 1976, Bea Peskoe, her husband, Irving, and several others knew that the area’s artistic and cultural richness was often overlooked. In that year of the Nation’s Bicentennial, the small group established the Homestead Center for the Arts to promote and bring attention to the talent that extends throughout the community. HCA, as it is commonly referred to, became that umbrella organization dedicated to highlighting and encouraging all those who share this passion. In linking together with the Miami-Dade County Department of Cultural Affairs, HCA is able to serve as a pass-through agency for small grants for local arts organizations and to provide lectures, music performances, and general support to artistic and cultural expression.