German-American Club Harmonie Naples FL

German-Americans are the single largest national heritage group in the United States, and their presence has shaped American culture at the local as well as the national level. One of the most pervasive musical institutions of the late nineteenth century was the German singing society, which continued a tradition, which the immigrants brought with them from their homeland. However, in the American environment, these societies did not only organize musical performances but also served as social clubs, which provided multi-generational fellowship to their members and helped them to develop their new cultural identity. Present-day German-American societies have more the flavor of social clubs and less that of singing societies, but the singing of German songs is still an important part of their gatherings.

As the Floridian population grew over the years, many citizens of German descent also made Florida their new home. Not surprisingly, many German-American clubs sprang up all over the state. Together, they formed the United German American Society of Florida.

In Naples, a German-American Club named “Gemütlichkeit” was founded in 1969.  As that club grew, 32 of its members found it desirable in April 1989 to have another German club in Naples. A founding meeting for a new club was held on June 25, 1989 at the multi-purpose room of the First Federal Bank of Fort Myers in Naples. It was resolved at this meeting that the new entity would be known as the “German-American Club HARMONIE of Naples, Florida”.

At the same meeting, the following officers were elected and installed: Hans G. Meyer, President; Michael Schmidt, Vive-President; Edith Chronkhite, Secretary; Cathy Seim, Treasurer; Toni Lay, Ida Loebardt and Kurt Steinmaier, Directors. A Harmonie club emblem was designed by Hans G. Mayer.

At the first Annual Meeting on February 5, 1990, Eiisabeth Schmidt was elected President. She was succeeded by Werner Samlowski on February 5, 2001, who in turn was succeeded by Ralph Brand on February 6, 2006.

The German-American Club Harmonie of Naples was incorporated under the laws of the State of Florida on April 5, 2004 as a 501(c)(3) organization, whose purpose is to educate the public on aspects of German-American culture. It pursues this goal by creating, promoting, or participating in various events, which will bring together people of diverse backgrounds to learn about and to enjoy, among other things, the music, food, and traditions of German-Americans. Club membership is available to all persons who are at least 18 years old. Knowledge of the German language is not required, but many members enjoy to converse with each other in German.

The Harmonie Club is a member of the aforementioned United German-American Society of Florida and has throughout the years participated in the Society’s annual Heritage Festival. Harmonie is also a founding member of the German-American Heritage Foundation in Washington D.C. and was represented there at the grand opening of the German-American Heritage Museum of the USA on March 9, 2010.

Since its inception in 1989, the Harmonie Club has hosted many Dinner Dances, Fasching Balls, and Oktoberfests at various locations throughout Naples. Currently, the regular events hosted by the club are monthly meetings and dinner dances from November trough April.  Other social gatherings and outings are held from time to time during the remainder of the year. For more information about present club activities, please refer to the respective pages of this website.