Photographs by Carlos F. Mendez
Lewis “Mike” Eidson cares about his neighbors. Before he became the historic philanthropist he is known as today, he was a budding lawyer trying cases to make our streets safer. In the areas of advocacy and public service, his impact is deeply felt, yet his name is not always recognized in Miami.
His last name, however, is one of three at Colson Hicks Eidson, a top firm located in Coral Gables with a 50-year legacy. Around the corner from the firm is the iconic bookstore and cafe, Books & Books. Its arched windows and textured walls are reminiscent of Italian architecture—something Eidson considered when restoring the old building into the landmark it is today. He was inspired by the original architect of Coral Gables, Phineas Paist, who designed several of the iconic stone buildings seen in the planned community. By maintaining Paist’s legacy while bringing something new to the table, Eidson would go on to bring a rare arts and culture experience to Coral Gables.
The law of the land
It was his first big case in 1975. Colson Hicks won $3 million for families after a young woman died in a Ford Pinto explosion. Eidson joined the firm after serving in Vietnam and began learning just how much he cared about protecting consumers and how to use his newfound power as a lawyer to change victims’ lives. Under Bill Colson’s guidance, they reached an $8 million settlement in 1986 and a $100 million settlement in 1998—all in the name of lost family members or wronged hospital patients. As Eidson became a more established trial lawyer, he helped shape litigation tactics for taking on large companies.
“It was always one basic argument. It was economically and technically feasible to make these changes, which would have prevented this death or injury,” Eidson said. But traditional litigators were always telling them they could not do it, and he set out to prove them wrong. “I didn’t know what I was going to do when I went to work with them,” he said of his mentors Colson and Bill Hicks. “Dean Colson is my partner…but I was with his father, the guy that taught me how to do all this.”
Now with his successes as senior partner of the firm and a champion of the arts, he has established himself among the great men that created Coral Gables and the generations of faith leaders in the city.
Sanctuary: a place of refuge or safety
“This is what we saved. And look at it, it’s spectacular,” Eidson told AQUA Pinecrest as he gave a tour of St. Mary’s church. Most of the time, Eidson sees potential in things that others do not. The story of St. Mary’s, the first African American church in Coral Gables, ends with a community’s refuge returned. Asking the city to save a building means proposals, commission meetings and lots of red tape. “My wife and I are very big believers in community or we wouldn’t be doing this and trying to make this a great place to live.”
On Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday weekend, Historic Coconut Grove church members gathered on the church’s new dance floor to celebrate Dr. King in an annual theatre performance. But before 2023, it was known as the dilapidated church marked for bulldozing.
Using his nonprofit Sanctuary of the Arts’ resources, Eidson fast-tracked the restoration of the historic building and turned it into a dance studio for all the neighboring schoolchildren to use.
“My best friend always says, ‘you always see something before anybody else sees it.’” Eidson does not view himself as a savior of anything and sometimes quips that his part in the philanthropy “doesn’t matter.” But without him, residents wouldn’t see small kids walking from school to the church to dance after school. He purchased the building for $860,000 when the roof was caving in, replaced the roof and floors and made it an extension of Sanctuary of the Arts’ reach as an umbrella arts organization. Their operation, however, is stationed mainly at the historic Christian Science Church building on Andalusia Ave. This is where locals have been experiencing a remarkable arts experience that doesn’t often exist beyond the Adrienne Arsht Center downtown. On Jan. 23, they hosted The Cleveland Orchestra’s Chamber Ensemble, and on Jan. 25, Dimension Dance Theater of Miami made their debut on the Sanctuary stage.
“The artists love it. I was really surprised. I was afraid that they wouldn’t like the fact that we have a limited backstage, but they don’t care; they want to perform. And the space itself is spectacular,” Eidson says. His wife, Dr. Margaret Eidson, calls it a jewelry box—the crown jewel being the spectacular ceiling with its halo glow and sheer size reminiscent of the pantheon’s famous hole to heaven.
Eidson did not mention architect Paist without mentioning Coral Gables founder George Merrick, who was the Christian Scientist responsible for the building’s signature stucco look. “Most people didn’t even notice it was there. Now everybody gets to enjoy it,” he said. Sanctuary for the Arts has continued to make upgrades, and now the space has enough speakers and lighting to host Broadway-style theatre productions.
The building also cultivates community by hosting the annual State of the Arts meeting. On Jan. 21, about 150 people gathered there over breakfast to discuss how their respective organizations could work together and advance the city’s art offerings and education. Eidson says it was as if “every arts organization in the city of Coral Gables were there.” In collaboration with the Coral Gables Community Foundation, they welcomed representatives from the University of Miami, Actor’s Playhouse, GableStage Theatre Company and Mayor Vince Lago.
Freedom of movement
Eidson loves to gush about the dancers. As former president of the Miami City Ballet board and chair of the Adrienne Arsht Center, this comes as no surprise.
Sanctuary of the Arts took popular dance shows like Carnival of the Animals and Men Who Dance to Broward Center for the Arts and Latin America. During the summer, there are choreography series’ and children’s dance classes. Choreographers and dancers who come from other countries stay at the hotel next door and walk back and forth from Sanctuary like it is their home.
Dancers are at the top of his list when it comes to collaborators. Rafi Maldonado-Lopez, Sanctuary of the Art’s principal managing director and accomplished dancer and choreographer, has been Eidson’s good friend since their days working with the Miami City Ballet. He is responsible for taking Men Who Dance and his take on Carnival of the Animals to places like Canada and Brazil.
Eidson said he is also honored to work with Edward Villella, founder of the Miami City Ballet, because “It really started with him. He knew every single thing.” From putting on a ballet show, how the costumes are made, to the ideas behind famous productions, Villela answered all of Eidson’s questions.
“It was incredible; it was like taking college classes.” He gave another shout-out to Alice Arja, their international curriculum consultant. “I couldn’t do it without her.” An accomplished ballet dancer from Brazil, Alice Arja is a respected teacher at Sanctuary. “In walks this woman who had created a syllabus to teach ballet in particular, all over the world.”
Eidson’s generosity has attracted “kind and generous artists” who carry the sheer weight of a packed theatre schedule, classes and interfaith experiences. “We thought it was appropriate for the arts, to leave it as a sanctuary. That’s what they were. We’re repurposing it without losing the original purpose,” he said. That’s why Mosaic Miami, a longtime interfaith community nonprofit, works and uses 18 classrooms in the buildings every day. Partnering with Sanctuary for the Arts and other local theater programs resulted in film series and conversations that brought people closer together.
“This country has gotten to where it’s either friends or enemies…and I’m doing everything I can to change that, so that people can get along better,” Eidson said.
Connect To Your Customers & Grow Your Business
