The Port St. Lucie National Bank (Bank) originally commissioned me to write the book, "The Early Years of Port St. Lucie," so that an account of that city's founding and the experiences, efforts and achievements of its first residents might be recorded by someone who was an early resident and a participant in many of the city's activities. All arrangements were made by the Bank with the Donning Company of Virginia Beach, Virginia, specialists in community histories, for the book's printing and publication.

During the months that followed, the Port St. Lucie National Bank merged with the First National Bank and Trust, which company assumed ownership and marketing of the book. Mr. Sam Beller, President of the St. Lucie County branch of the bank, recently retired from this position, but before leaving, he arranged to donate the remaining copies of the book to the Indian River Community College (IRCC) Foundation, with the understanding that the proceeds from the books' sales would constitute a personal contribution to the College's Scholarship Fund, thus enabling students of the present generation to pursue a higher education.

As the book's author, I am personally delighted with this arrangement, grateful to Mr. Beller for his generous gesture, and to Dr. Edwin Massey, IRCC President, and to Jimmie Anne Haisley, Executive Director of the Foundation, for their acceptance of the donation, and making the necessary arrangements to implement it in the College Scholarship Program.

In a sense, this is a re-dedication of the book and the original purpose it was to serve. Many of those early residents attended classes at IRCC, seeking to further their own education, to expand their hobbies or interests, or to explore new paths of knowledge and information. I am confident that they would find great pleasure in knowing that a record of their early experiences and efforts in a community, originally designated as a retirement area, would be of financial assistance to members of a younger generation also seeking a higher education.

Strelsa Schreiber