Sunday Speaker Series 2026
All events Sundays at 2 p.m.
Free admission, refreshments, onsite parking.
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Funding for this program was provided through a grant from Florida Humanities with funds from the National Endowment for the Humanities: Democracy demands wisdom. Additional support is provided by the Jacarlene Foundation. Any views, findings, conclusions or recommendations expressed in this program do not necessarily represent those of Florida Humanities, the National Endowment for the Humanities, or the Jacarlene Foundation.
Sunday, Sept. 27,
Genealogy 101: Building your Family Tree
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In honor of Ancestor Appreciation Day, this beginner-friendly introduction explains how to start researching your family history. Drew Smith is an internationally recognized genealogy educator, best known for being the co-host of The Genealogy Guys Podcast, the host of the Genealogy Connection podcast, the productivity columnist for the Association of Professional Genealogists Quarterly (APGQ), and one of the founders/admins for The Genealogy Squad Facebook group. He is vice-president of Aha! Seminars, Inc. Bring your old photos for scanning!
Drew Smith, MS. MA.
Sunday, Oct. 18
Recovering and Preserving the 19th Century Cuban Émigré Press of Florida and New York
Dr. Denis Rey (University of Tampa), introduces an extraordinary initiative to preserve the newspapers published by the Cuban immigrant communities of Ybor City, Key West, and New York City during a period of revolutionary zeal against Spain and calls for Cuba libre. We will listen to and contextualize some of the wonderful voices found between the pages of these elusive publications.
Denis Rey, Ph.D.
Sunday, Nov. 15
The Right to Stay in Florida During Times of Increased Immigration Enforcement
In light of federal and state immigration policies that have extended surveillance, detention, and deportability into local communities, Dr. Elizabeth Aranda, (University of South Florida) examines how these conditions shape Florida immigrants’ sense of belonging and conceptions of home, and how they assert a moral and practical right to stay in the United States.
Elizabeth Aranda, Ph.D.
Sunday, Dec. 13
Dalia Colon
Bread & Belonging: The Immigrant Food Cultures of Tampa Bay.
Take a journey around the world without leaving Tampa as we explore how immigrant food traditions continue to nourish our community's culture and identity. With Dalia Colon, host and executive producer of The Zest podcast for WUSF Radio, associate producer/co-host of WEDU (Tampa) Arts Plus, and author of The Florida Vegetarian Cookbook.