Historic Cherry Hill
Contents -- December 2005
- A Sunday in Pine Hollow
- Where in the World?
- It's the Real Thing
- Their Generosity is Striking
- Thinking Ahead
- From the Director
- Welcome
- Mark Your Calendar
Jupiter Circle, including composer
Elizabeth Woodbury, Jonathan Greene
and Brian Mooney, provided
beautiful music for the Pine
Hollow Arboretum Tour and Reception.
Beverly and Edwin Tobin (second from
right and right) chat with Carolyn
Gaynor and Joyce Grogan at the Pine
Hollow Arboretum Tour and Reception.
John Abbuhl talks trees with Suzanne
Walsh. John Grogan is in the background
and Cherry Hill Volunteer interpreter
and Receptionist Marjorie Brague is at right.
The Honest Weight Food Co-op donated
an array of gourmet cheeses and other
fare for the event.
A Sunday in Pine Hollow
Historic Cherry Hill's September 25 Pine Hollow Arboretum Tour and Reception was a rousing success by all measures. Guests enjoyed informative tours of the site provided by Arboretum founder John W. Abbuhl and assistant Doug Fleischut. The arboretum features 11 ponds, numerous trails, naturally wooded areas, and nearly 20 separate areas including Metasequoia, Magnolia, and Azalea fields, Western and Oriental glades, and Silverbell and Fir trails. There are more than 2,500 specimens on the site. With support from Dr. Abbuhl, the Honest Weight Food Co-op, Yankee Trails World Travel, Albany Broadcasting Company, and chamber music ensemble Jupiter Circle, the museum raised nearly $4,000 through the afternoon event.
The museum would like to acknowledge the planning committee including Dr. Abbuhl, Michael Beiter, Kathleen Quandt, and Beverly Tobin, as well as event volunteers Linda Dunkerley, David Getman, Arlene Mencarelli, Paul Mueller, Anthony Opalka, Edwin Tobin, and Kathleen Toombs. The Pine Hollow Arboretum is a collection of trees and shrubs arranged esthetically while maintaining a natural setting. The collection contains plants from the temperate climates of the world and represents the horticultural potential of our own climate. For more information on future plans for the Pine Hollow Arboretum, write to Dr. Abbuhl at 34 Pine Hollow Road, Slingerlands, New York 259; or call him at (58) 439-6472.
[contents]Where in the World?
We're always interested to see where our visitors come from and how they find their way to Cherry Hill. During our 2005 season, domestic visitors came from Arizona, California, Colorado, Delaware, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, and of course, New York. Visitors from abroad came from Canada, England, France, Japan, South Korea and Sri Lanka. On-site school programs were provided to students from nearly 30 schools in the City of Albany and six counties, including Albany, Columbia, Greene, Rensselaer, Saratoga and Schenectady. Overall, Cherry Hill's visitation remained level from last year, and visitors learned about the museum through a variety of guidebooks, our rack card and website, other museums in the region, the Albany Visitors Center and Albany County Convention and Visitors Bureau.
[contents]It's the Real Thing
Voices from the Hill, 1787-1963, Historic Cherry Hill's newest school program, has been officially launched after a successful pilot phase, previously reported on. One observer of the new program recently commented that it does a "good job of tackling some challenging issues." Those issues include class, refinement, privilege and changes in people's beliefs over time.
Teacher evaluations have begun to come in, and following are some comments from them:
The student participation is outstanding. Your program is well thought out and completely relevant to New York State Learning Standards. Thanks…keep up the great work!
All the pre-visit activities were very good. Well thought out and organized. "Reader's Theater" was very effective in giving the students a sense of the characters. I felt even the "weaker" readers were able to read all parts. Great job! A fine addition to your museum.
Education Director Becky Watrous, with Volunteer Coordinator/Program Assistant Linda Dunkerley and volunteer Museum Teacher Sharon Vergura who helped pilot the program, are currently training others to lead this program. Three training classes were held in September and October to introduce volunteer Museum Teachers to the historical themes and the teaching strategies used in the program. Tamara Plakins Thornton, PhD, Chair of the History Department at SUNY-Buffalo was the special guest speaker at the first training session, providing historical perspective on the Van Rensselaer family of Cherry Hill and their reactions to a dramatically changing world. Through classes, background readings and practice at Cherry Hill, the museum teachers will be ready to teach the new program in December.
[contents]Their Generosity is Striking
The lightning rod system at Cherry Hill -- estimated to have been in place for 40-50 years -- was clearly in dire need of upgrades. In researching potential contractors however, HCH staff found very few qualified installers, and the quotes received made undertaking the project cost prohibitive for some time.
Recognizing the importance of an updated system, former Cherry Hill Board member and long-time supporter Barry Blenis made a generous financial donation to encourage the museum to undertake the project. Through the power of the internet, the museum came across a new company, Armor Lightning Protection, located in Manchester Centre, Vermont. After emailing photographs of the house and existing system, the museum was visited by Armor's J. Michael Manning and Alexa Ragozin. The president of the company, Manning has more than 20 years experience in installing a variety of lightning protection systems at sites as diverse as mansions in Newport, Rhode Island, churches, mountaintop estates and Boston's Logan Airport.
Recognizing Cherry Hill's limited financial resources and its significant need for improvements to the existing system on the wood-frame house, the company provided upgrades at a greatly reduced cost. In the end, Blenis' donation covered the entire cost of needed upgrades.
Historic Cherry Hill appreciates the generosity of Barry Blenis and Armor Lightning Protection. The improved system is integral to the long-term preservation of Cherry Hill. For more information on Armor Lightning Protection, visit their informative website at www.armorlp.com.
[contents]Thinking Ahead
Historic Cherry Hill has received a Get Set! grant for $2,500 to assess the structure of the museum's current human resources, including volunteer and paid staff. Evaluation consultant Catherine Harris will assist the institution in determining staffing needs as it plans for continued institutional growth over the next several years. Ms. Harris has worked at the Shelburne Museum, Plimoth Plantation and Colonial Williamsburg Foundation and has extensive experience in program development, staff planning and volunteer recruitment and management.
Since its founding in 964, Historic Cherry Hill has evolved from an all-volunteer organization to one staffed by three full-time professionals, six part-time support staff and 40 active volunteers. With the recent construction of The Edward Frisbee Center for Collections & Research and the development of several new educational programs, the museum is at a crossroads and must think strategically about how the institution structures and allocates its human resources as it plans for the future. The museum has always considered its volunteer interpreters as professionals who have been critical in carrying out the museum's mission and they often help to shape museum programs. The grant will facilitate discussion among board members, staff and volunteers in order to clarify roles within the organization and plan for new programs, publications and other services in the future.
In the short term, recruitment of volunteer interpreters to conduct tours for adult, family and school groups remains a top priority for the museum. Interested individuals may contact the museum's Volunteer Coordinator, Linda Dunkerley at (518) 434-479; or at linda@ historiccherryhill.org. Historic Cherry Hill's retention rate for volunteers is unusually high, with many citing the ongoing training, unique stories told and camaraderie at the museum as their reasons for staying involved.
The Get Set! program is administered for the Museum Program of the New York State Council on the Arts by the Upstate History Alliance.
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From the Director
As 2005 draws to a close, Board, staff, volunteers and supporters can be proud of all that's been accomplished during the year. From implementation of major collections care initiatives addressing the needs of the textile and manuscript collections and development of a new education program and murder focus tour to -- meeting the preservation needs of the historic structure and presenting successful special events including the history fair and arboretum tour -- we have much to point to in gauging our success.
A great number of special projects are made possible by competitive grants from such agencies as the New York State Council on the Arts and Institute of Museum & Library Services, or through individual support, such as Barry Blenis' and Armor Lightning Protection's recent underwriting of the lightning rod project. Indeed, support for special initiatives enables the museum to continue to mature and provide an ever wider array of programs and services.
As important to support are Cherry Hill's more mundane financial needs, which is why our recently mailed annual appeal focused on "turning up the heat". Heating bills, staff salaries and benefits, and volunteer program costs -- while essential -- are not so easy to raise money for, but comprise a major proportion of annual operating costs.
I was recently asked to raise money from family and friends for a health-related organization which I happily did since its work is important to me and many others. During my effort though, I was also struck by how important Cherry Hill is to me. Historic Cherry Hill is more than an employer or a volunteer opportunity to all of us who work here on a regular basis. We share a passion for the site's mission, and enjoy a special camaraderie in fulfilling that mission. In the coming year, we will begin to focus in earnest on fund raising for our ongoing needs, and we recognize that we need to become more sophisticated in the way we approach fund raising in general. We want to give our current and potential supporters the opportunity to help sustain Cherry Hill's operations for many years to come. Perhaps you've already considered remembering Historic Cherry Hill in your will, or are interested in supporting the museum for the long term through planned giving, but are not sure how to go about it. Our work in the coming months will identify such opportunities and provide the necessary tools so that we can all have a lasting impact on an institution that has meant so much to us and the broader community.
[contents]Welcome
Historic Cherry Hill would like to welcome Danielle Swanson, recently hired as part-time Facilities Support Assistant. Danielle, a senior at Bethlehem High School, began at the museum as a volunteer, supporting Curator Erin Crissman in a variety of projects. In her new position, Danielle will be responsible for the day-to-day care and cleaning of public areas and offices at the historic house and in the Edward Frisbee Center for Collections & Research.
[contents]Mark Your Calendar
The Seventh Annual Albany History Fair will be held on Sunday, May 7, 2006 at the Albany Visitors Center. On the same afternoon, the museum will also present a Cherry Hill murder focus tour…May 7 was the date in 1827 that the event took place.
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