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Photographs by Carlos F. Mendez<\/p>\n Photographs by Carlos F. Mendez<\/p>\n
Lewis \u201cMike\u201d 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.\u00a0<\/p>\n
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\u2014something 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\u2019s legacy while bringing something new to the table, Eidson would go on to bring a rare arts and culture experience to Coral Gables.\u00a0<\/p>\n
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\u2019 lives. Under Bill Colson\u2019s guidance, they reached an $8 million settlement in 1986 and a $100 million settlement in 1998\u2014all 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.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was always one basic argument. It was economically and technically feasible to make these changes, which would have prevented this death or injury,\u201d Eidson said. But traditional litigators were always telling them they could not do it, and he set out to prove them wrong. \u201cI didn\u2019t know what I was going to do when I went to work with them,\u201d he said of his mentors Colson and Bill Hicks. \u201cDean Colson is my partner\u2026but I was with his father, the guy that taught me how to do all this.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
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.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Sanctuary: a place of refuge or safety
\u201cThis is what we saved. And look at it, it\u2019s spectacular,\u201d Eidson told AQUA Pinecrest as he gave a tour of St. Mary\u2019s church. Most of the time, Eidson sees potential in things that others do not. The story of St. Mary\u2019s, the first African American church in Coral Gables, ends with a community\u2019s refuge returned. Asking the city to save a building means proposals, commission meetings and lots of red tape. \u201cMy wife and I are very big believers in community or we wouldn\u2019t be doing this and trying to make this a great place to live.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
On Martin Luther King Jr.\u2019s birthday weekend, Historic Coconut Grove church members gathered on the church\u2019s 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.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
Using his nonprofit Sanctuary of the Arts\u2019 resources, Eidson fast-tracked the restoration of the historic building and turned it into a dance studio for all the neighboring schoolchildren to use. \u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cMy best friend always says, \u2018you always see something before anybody else sees it.\u2019\u201d Eidson does not view himself as a savior of anything and sometimes quips that his part in the philanthropy \u201cdoesn\u2019t matter.\u201d But without him, residents wouldn\u2019t 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\u2019 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\u2019t often exist beyond the Adrienne Arsht Center downtown. On Jan. 23, they hosted The Cleveland Orchestra\u2019s Chamber Ensemble, and on Jan. 25, Dimension Dance Theater of Miami made their debut on the Sanctuary stage. \u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThe artists love it. I was really surprised. I was afraid that they wouldn\u2019t like the fact that we have a limited backstage, but they don\u2019t care; they want to perform. And the space itself is spectacular,\u201d Eidson says. His wife, Dr. Margaret Eidson, calls it a jewelry box\u2014the crown jewel being the spectacular ceiling with its halo glow and sheer size reminiscent of the pantheon\u2019s famous hole to heaven. \u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
Eidson did not mention architect Paist without mentioning Coral Gables founder George Merrick, who was the Christian Scientist responsible for the building\u2019s signature stucco look. \u201cMost people didn\u2019t even notice it was there. Now everybody gets to enjoy it,\u201d 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.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
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\u2019s art offerings and education. Eidson says it was as if \u201cevery arts organization in the city of Coral Gables were there.\u201d In collaboration with the Coral Gables Community Foundation, they welcomed representatives from the University of Miami, Actor\u2019s Playhouse, GableStage Theatre Company and Mayor Vince Lago.\u00a0<\/p>\n
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.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
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\u2019 and children\u2019s 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.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
Dancers are at the top of his list when it comes to collaborators. Rafi Maldonado-Lopez, Sanctuary of the Art\u2019s principal managing director and accomplished dancer and choreographer, has been Eidson\u2019s 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.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
Eidson said he is also honored to work with Edward Villella, founder of the Miami City Ballet, because \u201cIt really started with him. He knew every single thing.\u201d From putting on a ballet show, how the costumes are made, to the ideas behind famous productions, Villela answered all of Eidson\u2019s questions. \u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was incredible; it was like taking college classes.\u201d He gave another shout-out to Alice Arja, their international curriculum consultant. \u201cI couldn\u2019t do it without her.\u201d An accomplished ballet dancer from Brazil, Alice Arja is a respected teacher at Sanctuary. \u201cIn walks this woman who had created a syllabus to teach ballet in particular, all over the world.\u201d \u00a0<\/p>\n
Eidson\u2019s generosity has attracted \u201ckind and generous artists\u201d who carry the sheer weight of a packed theatre schedule, classes and interfaith experiences. \u201cWe thought it was appropriate for the arts, to leave it as a sanctuary. That\u2019s what they were. We\u2019re repurposing it without losing the original purpose,\u201d he said. That\u2019s 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. \u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThis country has gotten to where it\u2019s either friends or enemies\u2026and I\u2019m doing everything I can to change that, so that people can get along better,\u201d Eidson said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
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