As CEO of the Conservancy of Southwest Florida for the last 20 years, Rob Moher has become synonymous with conservation in Southwest Florida. Now, the Moher name might become synonymous with music education.
After his daughter Amaya graduated high school, Rob and his wife Sandra faced a dilemma. Amaya is gifted musically but had difficulty finding post-secondary education because of her struggleslearning in a traditional classroom setting. They were looking for music schools that specialized in students with neurodivergence, which includes conditions like autism, Tourette syndrome and ADHD. There aren’t many–certainly none in Southwest Florida. So, they created one: the Southwest Florida Music Education Center in Naples.
The school recently acquired the former Hodges University campus for its future home and partnered with Berklee Institute for Arts Education and Special Needs to develop a curriculum for neurodivergent students ages 18 to 30. “It’s a first-of-its-kind program,” he says.
It’s also the latest success story for the native Canadian. Rob came to Naples in 1999 and made his mark as an expert fundraiser at the Conservancy before being named CEO in 2013. Since, he’shelped establish the Conservancy as a force protecting the local ecosystem.
Recently, their python program made headlines internationally for capturing a 215-pound, 18-foot-long python, the largest discovered in the state, as part of its ongoing work to study and control the invasive species. Reining in the python population is daunting, but that’s life at the Conservancy. One hour, they may be working to prevent blue-green algal blooms; the next, facing off against deep-pocketed corporate interests. Always humble, Rob credits his 60-person staff and small army of volunteers. “This is not an easy job when you’re up against powerful interests,” he says. “This team does not stop.” The Conservancy quickly stepped in to help nearly 100 misplaced and injured animals in the von Arx Wildlife Hospital after Hurricane Ian, despite power outages that spanned days.
As passionate Rob is about the local ecology and community, he may have had to leave Naples to find the best education for his daughter. “I have a rule that I tell my staff, too: ‘Family first.’ We would have gone wherever the best program existed for my daughter,” he says. “But we had the chance to create something here. And it allowed us to stay in this beautiful city.” —Justin Paprocki