Each year we receive many website inquiries from people wanting to donate shells to our club. In fact, we’ve previously posted website requests for shell donations. Most of the donation offers are from inherited collections or self-collected shells, but an email we received last month was from a museum.
I am the director of the Clewiston Museum and while cleaning in our storage room, I found loads and loads of shells. We already have a full collection on display, so I thought I’d see if your club would be interested in them.
Leigh Woodham
Museum Director
Clewiston Museum
The majority of our donated shells come from our own club members. Small donated shells are used to fill more than 3000 shell baggies given away annually as a thank you gift for admission donations at the Sanibel Shell Show.
Donated shells that are specimen quality, too large for shell bags, or are in special collections may be sold at silent auction events during our in-person club meetings. Proceeds from these auctions go towards our educational grants program. We’re looking forward to returning to those meetings and auctions again soon!
Since the 2021 in-person shell show and all 2020-21 season in-person club meetings were cancelled, our shell inventory is nearly overflowing! But the email from the Clewiston Museum seemed like a win-win opportunity to help each other.
Shells from the Clewiston Museum
Joyce Matthys and her daughter Susan drove to Clewiston and met with museum chair Brenda Lopez to see what they had to donate. After going through cabinets of shells and fossils, Joyce returned with three boxes of nice shells while also helping the museum clear out their storage room.
Here are four Clewiston shells that are sure to find their way to our silent auctions next season.
Thanks to Joyce and Susan who always step up when needed and are so willing to help with everything. We’re grateful to Leigh Woodham, director of the Clewiston Museum, for contacting us. If you’re ever near Clewiston, FL (at the SW shore of Lake Okeechobee), be sure to stop by and see the museum’s collections, including cases of modern and fossil shells and an impressive displays of large mammal fossil bones. M-F from 9 am – 4 pm.
GOT SPECIMEN SHELLS?
If you have specimen quality shells, display boxes or cases, or special shell collections you’d like to donate for our upcoming silent auctions, please email some photos of your shells to info@sanibelshellclub.com.
Thank you!
