Amuseum Naturalis

The all-volunteer Les Fruits de Mer association is looking forward to welcoming the people of St. Martin to The Old House on this Saturday, April 20th. The Old House is the ending point of the peaceful march organized by the Collectivité of Saint-Martin to defend local land and heritage. The Collectivité is organizing a Family Day at The Old House following the march. For the last six years, The Old House has been home to Amuseum Naturalis, a free museum of local nature, heritage and culture, created by Les Fruits de Mer. 

“We believe it is vital to preserve The Old House,” said Les Fruits de Mer president Jenn Yerkes. “Dating back to 1766, this is one of the island’s most important heritage sites. We are grateful to the Collectivité for their dedication to preserving this site and to acquiring the Beauperthuy lands to use for the benefit of the people of St. Martin. We look forward to the historic march on the 20th of April and spending time at The Old House with everyone who comes out!.”

Les Fruits de Mer volunteers have been getting Amuseum Naturalis at The Old House ready for a record crowd on April 20th. They have also been preparing books about St. Martin for kids and people of all ages to give away for free at the Family Day event. There will be a coloring station for kids to enjoy. There will also be an oral history station. Volunteers from the association will be present to answer questions about the museum and its exhibits.

“Our volunteer team is working hard to prepare for this historic event,” said museum manager Mark Yokoyama. “We are pulling together about 1,500 books to give away at the event. We have coloring and activity books about St. Martin nature, collections of oral histories of St. Martiners and more. The Old House is my favorite place on earth. It will be a joy to share it with people as we stand together for the future of the island.”

Amuseum Naturalis at The Old House is a free community museum of St. Martin nature, heritage and culture. It is open daily from sunrise to sunset. It hosts free visits for schools on both sides of the island. It is created and maintained by an all-volunteer team. 

The public is invited to a free festival celebrating St. Martin’s migratory birds on Saturday, October 14th from 9am to noon at Amuseum Naturalis in French Quarter. The event will include the launch of two new bird coloring books: Soualiga Birds and Birds Around Me. The two books will be available for free at the event while supplies last. Kids can dive right into the books at the festival’s coloring station. Guests can also play fun bird games in the Amuseum’s gardens, learn about the science of bird tracking, and explore the museum exhibits and grounds.

“We’re super excited to bring back the Migratory Bird Festival with the launch of these two great new books!” explained Jenn Yerkes, President of the Les Fruits de Mer association. “ Each one is the latest coloring book in two popular series about local nature. And they both showcase St. Martin birds, including birds that migrate here each year!”

Soualiga Birds is the newest edition in the association’s multi-lingual Soualiga series. It invites young children to learn and practice writing the names of St. Martin birds in English, French, Spanish and Dutch. Like the other books in the Around Me series, Birds Around Me is bilingual in English and French, and is also a nature journal where kids can record their own observations and make their own drawings of local species.

In addition to discovering the new books, festival guests can participate in fun Birdsleuth Caribbean activities like Bird Bingo and the Bird Habitat Scavenger hunt. These activities were adapted specifically for the Caribbean, featuring local birds and nature. They are perfect for kids and families to enjoy in the Amuseum’s gardens.

“Migratory birds are truly amazing,” said Mark Yokoyama, co-founder of the Les Fruits de Mer association. “These birds travel thousands of kilometers each year and connect St. Martin with the rest of the Americas. We’re helping people learn more about them with a MOTUS station at the Amuseum. It uses antennas to track birds that are wearing tiny transmitters. It is one of the very first stations of its kind in the Caribbean.”

The Migratory Bird Festival will take place from 9am to noon on Saturday, October 14th. It will be held at Amuseum Naturalis at The Old House on the hill above Coconut Grove in French Quarter. The event is proudly sponsored by Delta Petroleum. For more information, visit http://lesfruitsdemer.com.

Soualiga Birds and Birds Around Me were produced with support from the Collectivité de Saint-Martin and the Agence nationale de la cohésion des territoires. The book project is supported by the Politique de la ville de Saint-Martin, implemented by the State and the Collectivité de Saint-Martin. Both books are also available for purchase on amazon.com worldwide, and as free downloads at http://lesfruitsdemer.com.

The public is invited to celebrate the launch of 6 Poems / 6 Poèmes / 6 Poemas by Lasana M. Sekou on Saturday, February 4. The launch and free give-away of the new book will be held at Amuseum Naturalis at The Old House in French Quarter from 9 am to 12 noon.

The author, St. Martin poet and writer Lasana M. Sekou, will be present to sign copies of 6 Poems, and light refreshments will be served for all to enjoy, said the Les Fruits de Mer association, publisher of the book. The launch event is part of the 32nd annual Black History Celebration organized island-wide by Conscious Lyrics Foundation.

The book presents six poems by Sekou in three languages: English, French and Spanish. It was created by Sekou and Les Fruits de Mer for distribution to students, schools, and the public. The internationally renowned author has published over 20 books, said Les Fruits de Mer. St. Martin and its people are often the focus of his writing.

“For the last 40 years, Sekou’s poetry has been a vital expression of St. Martin culture and identity. It was a privilege to develop 6 Poems together to help make his work accessible to more people, especially youth,” said Mark Yokoyama, editor at Les Fruits de Mer.

“We selected poems with themes of the island’s past and present, its traditions, elders, art, and spirit. We chose to present them in French and Spanish, as well as the original English, to make them more available to more people here. And we will be giving hundreds of copies to schools and students,” said Yokoyama, who is also an author.

The slim volume includes new translations by Alex Richards, Fabian Adekunle Badejo, and Jocelyne Illidge. A new exhibit in the Amuseum’s poetry garden will be unveiled at the launch event, featuring the poems from the book in three languages.

“6 Poems is an outcome of the St. Martin literature panels and poetry in the park exhibits that Mark Yokoyama, Jenn Yerkes, and Les Fruits de Mer have initiated at Amuseum Naturalis. The association is known for its fascinating books for children and adults about St. Martin’s wildlife from the land, air, and sea,” said Sekou.

“It’s an honor to be one of the writers with work being made visible to young people, parents, teachers, visitors, all who visit the museum. With 6 Poems some of that writing can be taken home and into classrooms and media centers of schools throughout our island,” said Sekou.

The 6 Poems collection is also available as a free download from lesfruitsdemer.com, and for purchase on amazon.com worldwide. Teachers and youth group leaders interested in copies are encouraged to contact Les Fruits de Mer at info@lesfruitsdemer.com. Companies, organizations, or individuals interested in sponsoring copies for schools are encouraged to contact the association, said Yokoyama.

Free printed copies of 6 Poems by Lasana M. Sekou will be given to St. Martin schools as part of Les Fruits de Mer’s book give-away program, said Yokoyama. This project was funded by the Collectivité de Saint-Martin through Vie Associative. Permission to publish the poems in this volume was granted by House of Nehesi Publishers and Sekou.

The Les Fruits de Mer association has published a new activity book, Super St. Martin! This unique bilingual activity book invites young people to explore and celebrate the amazing nature and heritage of the island of St. Martin. It has over a hundred pages of discovery and fun, with mazes, word games, coloring pages, creative writing activities, and much more. The book features over 150 plants and animals that can be seen on St. Martin, including some that are only found here, and nowhere else in the world!

“We hope St. Martin kids and families will really enjoy this book, during the holiday season and beyond,” said author Jenn Yerkes. “It’s important for kids to have books about where they live. Imagine doing a word search with local names for birds, inventing short stories about this island’s night creatures, dreaming up a new kind of insect, or creating a beautiful floral pattern for a traditional dress!”

“Every activity is in both English and French, so it can also be a great tool for language learners,” added Mark Yokoyama, co-founder of Les Fruits de Mer.

One hundred free copies of Super St. Martin! are being given away at Amuseum Naturalis in December and January thanks to sponsor Delta Petroleum. Amuseum Naturalis is a free museum of nature and heritage located in French Quarter, St. Martin. It is open every day from sunrise to sunset.

The book is also available as a free download from http://lesfruitsdemer.com. Teachers and youth group leaders interested in copies are encouraged to contact Les Fruits de Mer at info@lesfruitsdemer.com. Companies or individuals interested in sponsoring copies for schools are also encouraged to contact the association. The book is also available on amazon.com worldwide.

Super St. Martin! was produced with support from the Collectivité de Saint-Martin, the Agence nationale de la cohésion des territoires, and Delta Petroleum.

The beginning of the fall rainy season is a traditional time for planting on St. Martin. To take advantage of the growing season, stop by the Les Fruits de Mer association’s free plant stand at Amuseum Naturalis! Thanks to support from Delta Petroleum, they will have special plants available and some free books about plants.

“We have a free plant stand at Amuseum Naturalis that we stock all year, but right now is the best time to get those plants into the ground,” explained Les Fruits de Mer President Jenn Yerkes. “We give away about 1,000 plants every year. We focus on native tree seedlings, and heritage plants like herbs and fruit tree seedlings. We want to help people create a space for birds and other animals in their backyard or neighborhood. We also want to support local plant traditions.”

Some of the local tree seedlings include calabash, lignum vitae, soursop, coco plum and sugar apple. Heritage plants include paracetamol, stinging thyme, lemongrass and Malabar spinach. The association will be filling the free plant stand with extra stock for the rest of the month. On Saturday, September 25th, they will give away free copies of Plantilles: Plants of St. Martin from 9am to noon while supplies last.

“We are really happy to support the free plant program,” said Natalia Ayala, Delta Petroleum Island Manager. “At Delta St. Martin, gardening and plant traditions are really important to our employees, families and customers. We love that we can help bring life to the island.”

The free plant stand is located directly in front of Amuseum Naturalis, at The Old House in French Quarter. The plant stand and the museum are always free to visit. Guests are welcome to make a self-guided visit any time during daylight hours, any day of the week. For more information, visit amuseumnaturalis.com.

A new outdoor exhibit is now open at Amuseum Naturalis in French Quarter. The exhibit is titled The Last Frontier: Sir Roland Richardson’s French Quarter. It features etchings of people and places in French Quarter, and Richardson’s memories of the time he lived there. Visitors can come and enjoy the exhibit any time from sunrise to sunset, any day of the week.

“We are so excited to share this with St. Martin,” said Amuseum co-founder Mark Yokoyama, who developed the exhibit with Richardson. “It is an exhibit about art, and about French Quarter, and about St. Martin’s past. Sir Roland’s etchings aren’t as well-known as his paintings, but they are historical treasures. This exhibit presents them much larger than life size, and the detail is amazing. Combined with his memories, this is an exhibit that transports you to a time and place that no longer exists.”

The Last Frontier features eight Richardson etchings. Subjects include an etching of the house where Richardson lived in French Quarter, and The Old House, the historic building where Amuseum Naturalis is located. The text, taken from interviews with Richardson, reveals a French Quarter where traditions still survived on a rapidly changing island. He also shares insights into his artistic process.

Sir Roland Richardson remembers his time in French Quarter fondly, “I felt that was part of my real privilege, that opportunity to sleep with my doors open. I didn’t have any worries and I felt totally at home, but I felt really privileged to have out of every door or window where I looked, the natural landscape. I did a huge, huge body of work during those years.”

Amuseum Naturalis is located at The Old House in French Quarter. It is always free to visit, and all displays are now outdoors. Guests are welcome to make a self-guided visit any time during daylight hours, any day of the week. The Last Frontier is on permanent display just in front of the house. For more information, visit amuseumnaturalis.com.

This exhibit and other projects were made possible by support from the Collectivité de Saint-Martin and the Agence nationale de la cohésion des territoires.