As part of its 150th anniversary celebration and to honor the military, the Point Fermin Lighthouse hosted a Memorial Day Tribute on Friday, May 24. The event drew active and retired military for speeches and lunch. (Photo by Chuck Bennett, Contributing Photographer)
As part of its 150th anniversary celebration and to honor the military, the Point Fermin Lighthouse hosted a Memorial Day Tribute on Friday, May 24. The event drew active and retired military for speeches and lunch. (Photo by Chuck Bennett, Contributing Photographer)
As part of its 150th anniversary celebration and to honor the military, the Point Fermin Lighthouse hosted a Memorial Day Tribute on Friday, May 24. The event drew active and retired military for speeches and lunch. (Photo by Chuck Bennett, Contributing Photographer)
As part of its 150th anniversary celebration and to honor the military, the Point Fermin Lighthouse hosted a Memorial Day Tribute on Friday, May 24. The event drew active and retired military for speeches and lunch. (Photo by Chuck Bennett, Contributing Photographer)
As part of its 150th anniversary celebration and to honor the military, the Point Fermin Lighthouse hosted a Memorial Day Tribute on Friday, May 24. The event drew active and retired military for speeches and lunch. (Photo by Chuck Bennett, Contributing Photographer)
As part of its 150th anniversary celebration and to honor the military, the Point Fermin Lighthouse hosted a Memorial Day Tribute on Friday, May 24. The event drew active and retired military for speeches and lunch. Lieutenant Commander Rob Poitinger addresses the crowd. (Photo by Chuck Bennett, Contributing Photographer)
As part of its 150th anniversary celebration and to honor the military, the Point Fermin Lighthouse hosted a Memorial Day Tribute on Friday, May 24. The event drew active and retired military for speeches and lunch. (Photo by Chuck Bennett, Contributing Photographer)
As part of its 150th anniversary celebration and to honor the military, the Point Fermin Lighthouse hosted a Memorial Day Tribute on Friday, May 24. The event drew active and retired military for speeches and lunch. (Photo by Chuck Bennett, Contributing Photographer)
As part of its 150th anniversary celebration and to honor the military, the Point Fermin Lighthouse hosted a Memorial Day Tribute on Friday, May 24. The event drew active and retired military for speeches and lunch. (Photo by Chuck Bennett, Contributing Photographer)
As part of its 150th anniversary celebration and to honor the military, the Point Fermin Lighthouse hosted a Memorial Day Tribute on Friday, May 24. The event drew active and retired military for speeches and lunch. (Photo by Chuck Bennett, Contributing Photographer)
As part of its 150th anniversary celebration and to honor the military, the Point Fermin Lighthouse hosted a Memorial Day Tribute on Friday, May 24. The event drew active and retired military for speeches and lunch. (Photo by Chuck Bennett, Contributing Photographer)
As part of its 150th anniversary celebration and to honor the military, the Point Fermin Lighthouse hosted a Memorial Day Tribute on Friday, May 24. The event drew active and retired military for speeches and lunch. (Photo by Chuck Bennett, Contributing Photographer)
As part of its 150th anniversary celebration and to honor the military, the Point Fermin Lighthouse hosted a Memorial Day Tribute on Friday, May 24. The event drew active and retired military for speeches and lunch. (Photo by Chuck Bennett, Contributing Photographer)
As part of its 150th anniversary celebration and to honor the military, the Point Fermin Lighthouse hosted a Memorial Day Tribute on Friday, May 24. The event drew active and retired military for speeches and lunch. (Photo by Chuck Bennett, Contributing Photographer)
Diane Bertelsen, Martha McKinzie (lighthouse society president) and Kristen Heather (city curator) in front of the Point Fermin Lighthouse which dates back to the late 1840s. The city of Los Angeles and the harbor were just beginning to grow and the site for a lighthouse was chosen in 1872 and Congress appropriated $20,000 for construction in June of that year. On Dec. 15, 1874, the inaugural lighting was held. (Photo by Chuck Bennett, Contributing Photographer)
As part of its 150th anniversary celebration and to honor the military, the Point Fermin Lighthouse hosted a Memorial Day Tribute on Friday, May 24. The event drew active and retired military for speeches and lunch. (Photo by Chuck Bennett, Contributing Photographer)
As part of its 150th anniversary celebration and to honor the military, the Point Fermin Lighthouse hosted a Memorial Day Tribute on Friday, May 24. The event drew active and retired military for speeches and lunch. (Photo by Chuck Bennett, Contributing Photographer)
As part of its 150th anniversary celebration and to honor the military, the Point Fermin Lighthouse hosted a Memorial Day Tribute on Friday, May 24. The event drew active and retired military for speeches and lunch. (Photo by Chuck Bennett, Contributing Photographer)
As part of its 150th anniversary celebration and to honor the military, the Point Fermin Lighthouse hosted a Memorial Day Tribute on Friday, May 24. The event drew active and retired military for speeches and lunch. (Photo by Chuck Bennett, Contributing Photographer)
The Point Fermin Lighthouse in San Pedro sometime in the 1870s. (Courtesy of the Los Angeles Public Library)
While throngs of festival goers flooded the waterfront on Friday, May 24, a bucolic scene unfolded on the south-facing bluffs overlooking San Pedro’s rugged coastline.
An outdoor gathering of some 100 people, including some veterans and active-duty service members, came together to mark the arrival of LA Fleet Week — but also to remember the 150th anniversary of the Point Fermin Lighthouse.
“This is the first time the lighthouse has participated in any Fleet Week events,” said Diane Bertelsen, a voluntary board member. Inspired by the involvement of a neighboring historic site — Banning Residence Museum in Wilmington where there was to be a welcome party thrown for the visiting military on Friday night — lighthouse supporters thought it would be fitting to provide something similar.
Unfortunately, the dozens of invited military men and women from Fleet Week did not make it for the luncheon party. But a number of veterans and some active duty service members were on hand.
The San Pedro High School ROTC presented the colors followed by the singing of the National Anthem by attendees.
Ann Clare, 100, who married veteran Richard Clare while he was stationed at the lighthouse during World War II, led the crowd in the Pledge of Allegiance.
Los Angeles/Long Beach Coast Guard Base Commander Robert Poitinger was the featured speaker who noted that lighthouses continue, while many no longer serve their original purpose, have retained a historic allure that continues to make them popular tourist spots.
Dating back to the 1840s, the lighthouse, which has a storied military past, has narrowly escaped demolition over the years.
Point Fermin served to guide ships to shore until 1941, said Martha McKinzie, a descendent of Point Fermin Lighthouse keepers and president of the Point Fermin Lighthouse Society. When Pearl Harbor was attacked, the light was doused and covered up, the top perch inside changed to a lookout tower.
More recently, the structure was the focus of restoration campaigns and efforts to save it altogether, led through the decades by the late William Olesen and John Olguin.
Kristen Heather serves as the Point Fermin Lighthouse historic site curator and invited guests to view a Toys of Resilience (from the World War II era (inside following the lunch.
The event coincides also with what will be monthly events scheduled through December honoring the museum’s past.
The lighthouse is located in Point Fermin Park, 807 W. Paseo del Mar, San Pedro.
