Pineapple Jam fundraiser supports historic preservation efforts
- Pineapple Jam is the Historic Stranahan House Museum’s largest annual fundraiser, drawing more than 300 community leaders for a tropical-themed evening.
- Proceeds support year-round historic preservation and education programs at Broward County’s oldest and most historically significant surviving structure.
- The April 10 event features an open bar, live music, food, and bidding via a raffle and silent auction.
- The fundraiser spotlights leaders and partners tied to Fort Lauderdale’s cultural and civic life; 2026 honorees are expected to be announced later.
Overview of the Pineapple Jam Fundraiser
For one night in April, Fort Lauderdale’s oldest house shifts from museum quiet to party energy. Pineapple Jam—billed as a “Party in Paradise for Preservation”—returns Friday, April 10, turning the Historic Stranahan House Museum into a tropical soirée set against the New River.
The event is the museum’s largest annual fundraiser and is designed to feel celebratory rather than formal: more than 300 community leaders are expected, trading traditional gala looks for “tropical chic” attire. The draw is straightforward and social—open bar, live music, and food—paired with a raffle and silent auction featuring items and experiences positioned as one-of-a-kind and exclusive.
Behind the theme is a practical mission. All proceeds are directed to the Historic Stranahan House Museum’s year-round historic preservation and education programs. The museum describes itself as one of Fort Lauderdale’s top cultural attractions, and it anchors that claim in steady public engagement: more than 3,000 fourth-grade students and about 30,000 tourists and locals visit each year.
Pineapple Jam also functions as a civic spotlight. Organizers say the 2026 edition will again recognize leaders and partners whose dedication helps share Fort Lauderdale’s cultural and civic life through preservation, education, and community impact. The announcement of the 2026 honorees is forthcoming.
Event Details and Schedule
Pineapple Jam is structured as an evening event with a defined start and end time, giving guests a clear window for cocktails, music, food, and bidding. The setting—Stranahan House on the New River—does much of the work: the museum is both the beneficiary and the backdrop, placing preservation front and center without requiring a formal program to explain why the house matters.
The event’s schedule is intentionally simple: arrive, enjoy the open bar and food, listen to live music, and circulate through raffle and silent auction offerings. For attendees, that means the night is less about speeches and more about participation—supporting the museum by showing up, buying a ticket, and engaging with the auction and raffle.
For those planning logistics, the essentials are clear: the event takes place in downtown Fort Lauderdale at the Stranahan House Museum, with complimentary parking offered off-site at the Riverside Hotel. Additional details and inquiries are directed to the museum’s executive director.
Date and Time
Pineapple Jam is scheduled for Friday, April 10, running from 6:30 p.m. to 10 p.m. The four-hour window positions the fundraiser as a full evening out—long enough for guests to settle in, enjoy the open bar and food, and spend time with the raffle and silent auction items without feeling rushed.
The timing also aligns with the event’s “casual tropical soirée” framing. A 6:30 p.m. start allows for an after-work arrival, while the 10 p.m. close keeps the night contained—an advantage for attendees coordinating transportation, parking, or group plans.
For questions about the event, the museum directs the public to contact Executive Director Jennifer Belt at 954-524-4736 or [email protected].
Location
The fundraiser takes place at the Historic Stranahan House Museum, located at:
Stranahan House
335 SE 6th Ave.
Fort Lauderdale, Florida 33301
The venue is part of the event’s appeal. Organizers emphasize the New River as a picturesque backdrop, framing the night as a tropical celebration staged at Broward County’s oldest and most historic home. Unlike a hotel ballroom fundraiser, Pineapple Jam is physically rooted in the site it supports—guests are not just donating to preservation in the abstract; they are spending the evening inside the historic setting their ticket helps sustain.
For context beyond the fundraiser, the museum’s regular public hours are Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., and the site is promoted as a major cultural attraction for both locals and visitors.
Activities and Entertainment
Pineapple Jam is designed as a social fundraiser where the entertainment and the mission are intertwined. The “Party in Paradise for Preservation” concept leans into a relaxed, tropical atmosphere—open bar, live music, and food—while also giving guests structured ways to contribute beyond the ticket price through a raffle and silent auction.
The event’s audience is expected to be sizable—more than 300 community leaders—so the programming is built around mingling and movement. Guests can circulate between music and food, then pivot to auction and raffle offerings that highlight exclusive items and experiences. The overall effect is a night that feels like a celebration of Fort Lauderdale’s past and future, staged at a landmark that embodies both.
The museum and event listings consistently emphasize the same core elements: open bar, live music, great food, and raffle and silent auction opportunities. The simplicity is intentional; it keeps the focus on participation and fundraising rather than a complicated schedule.
Live Music and Food
At the center of Pineapple Jam is the promise of an easy, festive evening: live music, delicious food, and an open bar. The museum describes the event as a lively tropical paradise, with the New River providing the backdrop for a casual tropical soirée.
While specific performers and menus are not detailed in the event information, the framing is consistent across announcements: the night is built for guests to enjoy themselves while supporting preservation. One listing describes the culinary vibe as Floribbean cuisine, reinforcing the tropical theme and positioning the food as part of the experience rather than an afterthought.
The open-bar component is also repeatedly highlighted, signaling that Pineapple Jam is meant to feel like a true party—an incentive for attendees to stay, mingle, and engage with the fundraising elements throughout the evening.
In practice, these choices serve the mission: the more guests linger and socialize, the more likely they are to participate in the raffle and silent auction, and the more the event becomes a shared civic moment rather than a transactional donation.
Raffle and Silent Auction
Beyond the ticket, Pineapple Jam’s fundraising engine includes a raffle and silent auction, giving guests the chance to bid on one-of-a-kind items and exclusive experiences. The museum’s event description emphasizes that these offerings are meant to be distinctive—designed to spark interest and encourage participation.
The silent auction format also fits the event’s social flow. Guests can browse items and experiences while moving through the party, placing bids without interrupting the evening’s music-and-food rhythm. The raffle adds another layer: a lower-barrier way for attendees to contribute, with the added excitement of a chance to win.
Together, the raffle and silent auction reinforce Pineapple Jam’s identity as a fundraiser that doesn’t separate giving from having fun. Guests are invited to celebrate Fort Lauderdale’s history and future while directly supporting the museum’s preservation and education work through their bids and raffle purchases.
Ticket Pricing and Sponsorship Opportunities
Pineapple Jam is positioned as a premium community fundraiser, with pricing that reflects both the event experience and the museum’s reliance on philanthropic support. Individual tickets are $175, offering entry to the evening’s core features—open bar, live music, food, and access to the raffle and silent auction.
For those looking to support at a higher level, the museum offers sponsorships and underwriting opportunities ranging from $1,500 to $7,500. These sponsorships are presented as a way for individuals and organizations to align with the museum’s preservation and education mission while helping underwrite the costs of staging the event and sustaining year-round programming.
The museum directs prospective sponsors and attendees to its event page for sponsorship opportunities and additional details, and it provides a direct contact for questions: Executive Director Jennifer Belt at 954-524-4736 or [email protected].
While the event’s honorees for 2026 have not yet been announced, organizers say the fundraiser will again spotlight leaders and partners whose dedication supports Fort Lauderdale’s cultural and civic life through preservation, education, and community impact—an emphasis that often matters to sponsors seeking community visibility tied to a historic institution.
Historical Significance of Stranahan House
The setting for Pineapple Jam is not incidental—it is the reason the fundraiser exists. The Historic Stranahan House Museum is described as Broward County’s oldest and most historically significant surviving structure and the oldest house in Fort Lauderdale. Built in 1901, it is recognized as the birthplace of Fort Lauderdale and is positioned as the epicenter of Broward County’s long and fascinating history.
The house is closely tied to two foundational figures in the area’s story. It was home to Frank Stranahan, described as Fort Lauderdale’s first businessman and a respected pioneer, and Ivy Cromartie Stranahan, the area’s first schoolteacher and a champion of civic, social service, environmental, and educational causes. The museum’s mission explicitly centers on telling the story of the community’s birth through the lives of these two people and the homestead they created.
Over time, the structure served multiple civic functions—operating as a trading post, post office, town hall, and home—making it a rare surviving site that connects domestic life with the early public life of the community.
The house opened as a museum in 1984, formalizing its role as a preservation and interpretation site. Today, the museum says its purpose is to preserve, interpret, and promote the house, the historic site, and the history of the community’s founding family, serving as an enduring legacy of historic preservation.
The scale of its public reach is notable for a historic house museum: each year, more than 3,000 fourth-grade school children and 30,000 tourists and locals visit, reinforcing its role as both an educational resource and a cultural attraction in Fort Lauderdale.
Event Leadership and Committee Members
Pineapple Jam is co-chaired by Marianna Seiler DeJager and Brianna Reeves, who are leading the museum’s largest annual fundraising event. Organizers describe the 2026 edition as continuing a tradition of bringing together more than 300 community leaders for a tropical celebration that supports preservation and education.
The event also relies on a committee, reflecting the kind of community-based organizing typical of major cultural fundraisers. The 2026 Pineapple Jam committee members are:
- Whitney Dutton
- Lindsay Lehn
- Sarah Lis
- Maggie Gunther
- Daphne Shephard Karl
- Yoni Anijar
- Karla Guadamuz-Davis
- Caroline Carrara
- Karen Polivka
- Susan Markowitz-Lewis
- Tara Moras
- Abbie Lipton
The museum has also indicated that the 2026 event will “shine a spotlight on outstanding leaders and partners” whose dedication helps share Fort Lauderdale’s cultural and civic life through preservation, education, and community impact, with honorees to be announced. That emphasis suggests Pineapple Jam is not only a fundraiser but also a public moment of recognition for those supporting the museum’s mission.
For operational questions and event coordination, the museum points the public to its executive leadership: Executive Director Jennifer Belt (954-524-4736; [email protected]).
Support for Preservation and Education Programs
Pineapple Jam’s purpose is explicit: all proceeds support the Historic Stranahan House Museum’s year-round historic preservation and education programs. The event’s tropical theme, open bar, and live music are the draw, but the underlying pitch is that a single night of celebration helps sustain the ongoing work required to preserve and interpret one of Broward County’s most significant historic structures.
The museum’s mission frames that work broadly. It aims to tell the story of the birth of the community through the lives of Frank and Ivy Stranahan and the homestead they created, while serving as an enduring legacy of historic preservation. Its stated purpose is to preserve, interpret, and promote the house, the historic site, and the history of the community’s founding family.
Education is not presented as a side benefit—it is central. Each year, the museum reports hosting more than 3,000 fourth-grade school children, tying its programming to local educational needs and reinforcing the idea that preservation is not only about maintaining a building, but also about maintaining public memory and civic understanding. The museum also draws about 30,000 tourists and locals annually, suggesting that its interpretive work reaches beyond school groups to a broader public audience.
In that context, Pineapple Jam functions as a community-supported bridge between the museum’s public-facing role and the behind-the-scenes costs of preservation and programming. The raffle and silent auction, in particular, are positioned as ways to deepen support during the event itself, turning guest participation into direct funding for the museum’s ongoing work.
Parking and Accessibility Information
For attendees, the museum has arranged complimentary parking at an off-site location:
Riverside Hotel
620 E. Las Olas Blvd.
Fort Lauderdale, Florida 33301
From there, guests can make their way to the event venue at the Historic Stranahan House Museum, located at 335 SE 6th Ave., Fort Lauderdale, FL 33301. The parking arrangement is a practical detail that matters for a downtown event, especially one expected to draw more than 300 guests.
The museum also provides clear channels for questions and planning support. For more details, attendees are directed to the museum’s website and to Executive Director Jennifer Belt at 954-524-4736 or [email protected].
Because Pineapple Jam is hosted at a historic house museum, guests with specific accessibility needs or logistical questions are best served by contacting the museum directly using the provided phone number or email. The event information emphasizes where to park and who to contact, ensuring attendees can confirm details ahead of arrival.
Join the Celebration at Pineapple Jam
Pineapple Jam is built around a simple proposition: spend an evening in a tropical party atmosphere, and in the process help preserve one of Fort Lauderdale’s most important historic sites. With the New River as the backdrop and the Stranahan House itself as the setting, the fundraiser makes its mission tangible—guests are celebrating inside the very place their support helps sustain.
The April 10 event brings together more than 300 community leaders for open bar, live music, and food, while also offering a raffle and silent auction designed to drive additional support. For the museum, it is the largest annual fundraising event; for attendees, it is a night out with a clear civic purpose.
A Night of Fun and Fundraising
The evening runs 6:30 p.m. to 10 p.m. on Friday, April 10, and is framed as a casual tropical soirée where guests are encouraged to dress “tropical chic.” The entertainment is straightforward—music, food, and an open bar—while the raffle and silent auction add the fundraising momentum that helps turn a party into preservation support.
Tickets are $175, and the event is designed to be both social and mission-driven: a celebration of Fort Lauderdale’s history and future staged at the city’s oldest house.
Support Historic Preservation and Education
All proceeds support the museum’s year-round historic preservation and education programs, reinforcing the Stranahan House’s role as both a preserved landmark and an active educational site. The museum reports welcoming more than 3,000 fourth-grade students and about 30,000 tourists and locals annually—numbers that underscore why fundraising matters beyond a single night.
For details, sponsorship opportunities, or questions, the museum directs the public to contact Executive Director Jennifer Belt at 954-524-4736 or [email protected].