Opportunities to sit and rest are rare for Florida State University College of Medicine medical and physician assistant students and staff.

An idyllic setting, under the oak trees outside the Fort Pierce Regional Campus buildings, now has a special place when those opportunities do arise.

As a final philanthropic gesture before disbanding, the Treasure Coast Seminole Club presented Fort Pierce Regional Campus Dean Juliette Lomax-Homier, M.D., with a hand-crafted, 350-pound concrete bench at an Oct. 25 dedication ceremony.

The shaded resting place, nestled within the Indian River State College’s main campus, will serve as a perpetual remembrance of the Treasure Coast Seminole Club, which at one point was recognized as the state’s best for three years running. The group has also been a supporter of Fort Pierce campus, which began training third- and fourth-year medical students in 2007.

Club member Chris Berkeley brought the idea to Fort Pierce campus officials in the spring and donated funds to commission a local artist, Anita Prentice, to create the bench. Adorned with her signature glass, title and stone mosaics, the bench features the Florida State University seal over a heart rhythm signature. A pair of plaques commemorate the gift.

College of Medicine Interim Dean Alma Littles, M.D., who was visiting the campus, joined Lomax-Homier and a half-dozen Treasure Coast Seminole Club members at the dedication.

Caption: College of Medicine Interim Dean Alma Littles, M.D. and Fort Pierce Regional Campus Dean Juliette Lomax-Homier, M.D., flank Treasure Coast Seminole Club members (left-to-right), Chris Berkeley, Kathy Pancoast, Richard Pancoast, Garrison Dundas, Jean Bridges and Jack Bridges, behind the commemorative bench. Top right, Artist Anita Prentice, poses with the bench she was commissioned to design. Bottom right, the bench includes dedication plaques to the FSU College of Medicine's Fort Pierce Campus and from the Treasure Coast Seminole Club.