June/july 2011

Village Faire Rained Out

By Kay Kennedy and Bonnie Curry

The Village Faire on June 4th was slated to be a wonderful event with several dog rescue groups in attendance, a K-9 Dog demonstration by the Wayne County Sheriff’s Dept., pony rides, kids’ games and food galore, as well as the Pie Baking contest, the alpacas, the Ore Bed Express, and our traditional bake sale.  Unfortunately the rain that was forecast for the morning, lasted until mid-afternoon.  By that time, the ponies the Ore Bed Express, and the K-9 demonstration had cancelled out.  However, the dog rescue groups and the people selling food stuck around, and the bake sale did well.  Even with the poor attendance, the Community Band, directed by Craig Wert, performed and those who were there thoroughly enjoyed the music. 

Many of the attendees enjoyed buying slices of pies that were offered for sale after the Pie Baking Contest concluded.  Winners this year were 1st place Carol Malcolm who received $50 for her red raspberry pie, 2nd place was Nancy Panneitz who received $35 for her strawberry rhubarb pie, and 3rd place was Therese Vascukynas who received $20 for her 5-fruit pie.  Congratulations to our three winners and we hope to see them enter pies again next year.  Our thanks to our three judges Chris Butler, Paula Priest and Dick Clark who had a very difficult job in tasting and judging eleven different pies.

Our sincere thanks go to our many volunteers without whom the event would not have been possible:

Bill and Lee Slocum, Carol Boughton, Judy Powley and Nancy Cleveland who took care of the food; Marilyn Larson who organized the dog event;  Paul Diesenburg and the scouts from Troop 127 who directed the parking and ran the kid’s games; Jim Graves for taking pictures; Roger Keymel and his alpacas; Craig Wert and the Community Band; Jason Ruffell who provided the Ore Bed Express; Little Dude Ranch and their ponies; Beth Howard, Arlene Michelsen, and Katie Scott who manned the Bake Food Sale; Vera Graves, Nell McClenin and Pam Friedler who handled the Pie Contest and our judges who judged the pies; Jim Codding, Jim McClenin, Zach Miller and Jim Switzer who filled in where needed; Joan Micha and Bonnie Denison for clerking in the Gift Shop; Herm Auch for all the posters; Shirley Kushall for the wonderful publicity; and last but not least our guides who manned the buildings, Billie Lochner, Jean Johnson, Ann Vanderbrook, Bonnie Doyle, Gail Fannis, Alayna DiSanto, Coleen Miller, Dick Clark, George Mandery, Carolyn Rittenhouse, Luke Loomis, Barb Frost, Pat Chakalis, Pat Codding, Bonnie and Dick Denison, Ann Welker.  If we have left anyone out, please forgive us but do know that your help was appreciated. 

Thanks to Our School Tour Guides

Without the talents, expertise and dedication of the following folks, our tour program at Heritage Square Museum would not exist.  We are truly grateful to all of them.

Liz Albright               Kate Alessi

Pat Chakalis             Bob Davis

Jean Davis               Jody Dehn

Richard Denison       Alayna DiSanto

Barb Frost                 Jim Graves

Kay Kennedy            Billie Lochner

Luke Loomis             Sue Loomis

Joyce Lyke               John Lynd

George Mandery      Judy Powely

Mabel Risley             Carolyn Rittenhouse

Pat Smith                   Paul Sucher

Mary Gwen Todd       Ann Welker

And our young BRIT (Bell ringers in training)….Liz Albright’s granddaughter, Catie Carnahan; Alayna’s grandson, Sammy DiSanto; and Ann’s granddaughter, Gabby Welker.

This coming September Heritage Square Museum will host six school tours.  Our newest guides, George Mandery and Tricia Yoder, will be joining our group of guides on these tours.  We look forward to having our Katie McNally and Lyn Reville touring with the group in the fall as well.

President’s Annual Report

May 1, 2010 to April 30, 2011

The Mission of the Town of Ontario Historical and Landmark Preservation Society is the education of residents, students, and visitors to the rich cultural heritage of the area by collecting, restoring, and displaying those items which reflect the life and growth of the Town of Ontario.”  This mission is our guide.
This has been a very active year.  Over 15 different groups toured the Museum at Heritage Square with a total of about 650 people. This included nine area school tours, the Garden Club, a retired teachers group and a senior group from Cherry Ridge Assisted Living Center.  The museum was also the site for a family reunion, a 13th birthday party and a bridal shower.   Also, about 250 people chose to visit on the weekends bringing our attendance to well over 900 people. This, plus the Barn Sale visitors, the Village Faire Day, the Fiddlers of the Genesee concert, and the Harvest Festival added another 700 people bringing the total visitors to Heritage Square Museum to an approximate 1600. All of these events were facilitated by our vital, faithful volunteers! 

Committee activities
Audit Committee. George Cataldo and Nolan Powell have completed the 2010-2011 Audit and found the books in good order.  Also, tax forms were filed by Jim Graves.

Corresponding Secretary: Katie McNally, Sympathy and get-well cards were written to members of the Society.  Thank-you letters were written to many people who donated time and products for events at Heritage Square.

Curatorial Committee: Jim Graves has continued to work on the accession of donated items. The accession listing is available in the binder in each building.

The Custodial /Grounds Committee Jim Codding, chair.  The Warner House was repaired, scraped and re-painted.  The Rotary Club scraped and re-painted the Lock Up and replaced the bridge over the creek.

Exhibits: Displays continue to be rotated both at the Museum and at the Town Hall.  Liz Albright and Judy Powley continue to take care of the display at the Town Hall. 

Finance Committee: Vera Graves, chair. Devised a budget with projected income of $24,120 and operating expenses of $19,354.  Actual income was $27,724 and actual expenses were $23,991.

Gift Shop:  Beth Howard, chair. The gift shop continues to be a success thanks in part to the volunteers who work in it and members who donate items for sale.  Total sales were $1,241.27, expenses $679.66, leaving a net profit of $561.61.

Grants:  A $1,500 grant was received from Wayne County Endowment Fund of the Rochester Area Community Foundation and $1,500 was received from the Hoffman Foundation. Both of these grants were used to develop a Time Line on the History of the Town of Ontario which will be displayed at Heritage Square Museum. A $150 grant was received from the Community Chest to apply toward shades for the buildings to protect from ultraviolet rays. 

Guide Service: Jinny Loomis and Billie Lochner scheduled the guide service for the weekends.  Alayna DiSanto and Ann Welker scheduled guides for the school tours. Over 30 volunteers provided this service.

Membership Committee: Jim Graves, chair.  A renewal membership mailing was conducted and the membership list is kept current.  We ended the year with 57 Life members, 22 patrons, 42 family, 12 individual, and 132 seniors for a grand total of 265.  We instituted a business category and had 8 businesses sign up. Membership dues are an important source of income to the Society

Nominating Committee: Shirley Kushall, chair.  Proposed a slate of nominees to fill the positions of officers and trustees whose terms had expired.

Programs: General meeting programs:  George and Jean Bell gave a presentation on Writing Your Family History in May, the July general meeting followed the Fiddlers of the Genesee performance, the September general meeting had a program provided by Herm Auch of a DVD showing various events that have taken place over the years at Heritage Square as well as the moving of the various buildings to the Square. The November general meeting was held in conjunction with the Ontario Library and had a program on the Iroquois Nation at Ganondagon.

Publicity:  Shirley Kushall, chair.  A bookmark giving the schedule of events at Heritage Square was created by Herm Auch and was distributed to all members as well as area businesses, tourist sites and other Historical Societies.  Flyers covering each special event created by Herm Auch were included in the newsletters.  Posters were distributed around town and ads were placed in local papers covering the special events.  Shirley also submitted press releases to various papers. Herm Auch assumed responsibility of the web site, www.heritagesquaremuseum.org.  Mary Jane Auch assumed the job as editor of the Newsletter assisted by Herm Auch and Vera Graves.

Telephone:  Jean Johnson, Marian Mazura and Carolyn Rittenhouse provided telephone service to members for the bake sales.

.Tours: Alayna DiSanto and Ann Welker coordinated the 13 school tours and Vera Graves coordinated 4  individual tours. 

Treasurer: Jean Tsepas, our very capable treasurer, has done a wonderful job.  Our Endowment Fund is now $61,271.41. Of this Fund $60,162.37 is administered by the Rochester Area Community Foundation.  The auditors commended her on the outstanding job she does maintaining the accounts of the Society.

Events:  Carol Boughton and Judy Powley chaired the Barn sales with a wonderful team of volunteers.  Beth Howard chaired the two successful Bake Sales held in conjunction with other events.  Jan Yantch provided barn quilt courses that brought in $900 to the society. June saw our second Village Faire Day, chaired by Jinny Loomis and July the Fiddlers of the Genesee performed.  The season ended with a Harvest Festival in October with Horsey Bingo and an antique/craft sale.  Barb Frost chaired the Harvest Festival.     

Our Thanks to Jan Yantch and Her Family

Our very own talented, Jan Yantch, has once again held two barn quilt classes which benefited Heritage Square Museum.  This past spring Jan held the classes which had two sessions each with a total of twenty students.  The profit from these two classes amounted to $516.85 as Jan donates her time (and her husband, Walt’s and son, Mike’s as well).  Jan stated that she has received enquiries about another barn quilt class or possibly a floor quilt class.  However, future classes have not been scheduled at this time.  The Board of Directors would like to thank Jan (and her family) for all the time they devote to providing classes at Heritage Square.  Please refer to our web page for news of any future classes www.heritagesquaremuseum.org.

Minutes of the Annual Meeting

Wednesday, May 18, 2011, 7:00 PM at Brick Church Hall

  The following members and guests were present: Vera and Jim Graves, Duke and Mabel Risley, Bonnie Braun, Alayna DiSanto, Alice Rankin, Sharon Pray, Marilyn Larson, Walt and Janet Yantch, Billie & Bill Lochner, Thelma Russell, Barb Frost, Bill Krause, Chris Butler, Martha McGory, Carolyn Rittenhouse, Bob & Char Davis, John and Judy Lynd, Katie McNally, Beverly Wooster, Jean Davis, Floyd and Ann Welker, Pat and Jim Codding, Fred and Joan Micha, Richard and Bonnie Denison, Kay Kennedy, Jim Switzer, Liz Albright, Shirley and Ed Kushall, Dick Clark, Jean Tsepas, Carol Boughton, Beth Howard. This list is from the Sign In sheets available at the meeting.

The gathering started with a pot luck dinner at 6:00 pm and at 7:00 pm we listened to and joined in the singing of “Dotty and Friends” from their selection of patriotic and historical songs

MEETING AGENDA

The general meeting was called to order at 8:00 PM.

Minutes of November 4, 2010 meeting: The draft minutes were published in the April/May 2010 newsletter and copies were made available at the meeting. The motion to accept the minutes as written was made by Katie McNally, seconded by Barb Frost and passed by voice vote.

Treasures Report: Copies of the reports were available at the meeting. Jean Tsepas gave a summary of the reports to the attendees. She answered a few questions; no comments were raised when requested. A motion to accept the reports as given was made by Jim Switzer and seconded by Duke Risley. The motion was passed by voice vote.

Annual Report: Vera Graves gave her annual report. Copies of the annual report were made available at the meeting and the report is to be published in the next newsletter and is available for viewing.

Audit Report: Vera Graves gave the audit report as prepared by George Cataldo and Nolan Powell. The auditors commended Jean Tsepas on the fine job she does of handling the Society’s financial records.

Election of Board Trustees:
The following slate was presented by the Nominating Committee. The table below shows the nominees, who made the motion to close the nomination after others had been asked for and result of voice vote.

Position    Nominee    Motion    Seconded    result

Vice President    James Switzer    Duke Risley    Katie McNally    Pass

Secretary    James Graves    Jim Switzer    Marilyn Larson    Pass

Trustee    Dick Clark    Duke Risley    Katie McNally    Pass

Trustee    James Codding    Jim Switzer    Katie McNally    Pass

Shirley Kushall, Chairperson, requested the Secretary cast a single vote for the nominees presented. James Graves cast said vote and Mrs. Howard presided over the installation of the new board officers and trustees.

Committee Reports
Baked Food sale – Beth Howard reported the first sale will be at the June 4th event, so please bring your baked goods to Heritage Square between 10am - 12 pm.
Barn Sale – Carol Boughton reported that all is in place for the sale next day.
Buildings And Grounds – Jim Codding reported that clean up has been done at the Square and the Rotary Club has asked for projects ( Painting the inside of the school house, staining the bridges and possibly cleaning the woods west of Pease Lane.). He is working with plans to update the Shed/Voting booth and place a tabletop and flower pot on the stump near the log cabin.
Collection - Jim Graves. Two primary tasks are in progress a) looking at the various stored items around the square and verifying they are recorded in the collection. Adding the unrecorded items into the collection catalog (the database). b) Approximately 250 of the current 4351 items in the collection catalog have been photographed; he will continue photographing items in the collection as time permits. Any help would be appreciated; a digital camera is available for use.
Finance – Vera Graves reports that the 2011-2012 budget development is under way and will be presented to the Board at their next meeting.
Gift Shop – Vera Graves reports that the shop took in $2521 last year and made a profit of $1012.
School Guides – Alayna DiSanto and Ann Welker: There were 25 people at the orientation earlier in the month. Alayna and Ann. have done a wonderful job with scheduling school tours and arranging for docents. They still need a few docents, please contact Alayna if you can guide for a school tour. We have tours booked in June, July and Sept.
Weekend guides – Jinny Loomis and Billie Lochner:   June and July weekends are scheduled but guides are needed for weekends in Aug. and Sept.  PLEASE contact Jinny or Billie if you can guide. Vera Graves reminded everyone that there are guide books and she can get you one if needed.
Membership – Jim Graves reported current membership is 180. To date 163 members have renewed with 38 still outstanding from the previous year.
Publicity - Shirley Kushall reported the bookmarks for specials events are done and being distributed.  The museum brochures have been reprinted and are also being distributed.
Special Events –

The Village Faire, Kay Kennedy, Chairperson, reported that everything is going well and guides are scheduled for the buildings.  Plans for the new dog event under Marilyn Larson handling is coming along very well. Pony rides, games for children, the traditional bake sale as well as the pie contest are all planned.

The Mid-Summer Soiree being planned by Shirley Kushall and Jim Switzer is proceeding very well. The Farmer Market permit for the Wine & Cheese tasting has been taken care of and they have managed to obtain four businesses to help sponsor the event. The Ice Cream Social, chaired by Vera Graves, will also be held during the event. Konstantinou’s Restaurant has offered to supply the ice cream and toppings.

The Harvest Festival on October 1st is not that far away. Planning by Barb Frost and Judy Lynd is going well. There will be a craft sale and vendors will be sought.  Ann Welker stated she has a procedure jotted down from her work on the farm market from last year if they would like to see it.

Other Business: None

Adjournment: The meeting adjourned at 9:05 PM.

Respectfully submitted,

James Graves, Secretary

Board Members

Vera Graves is pleased to announce that the following people have accepted the responsibility for individual buildings at Heritage Square. This includes cleaning and preparing the building for opening weekend and periodically sprucing it up over the summer.

Apple Dry House – Dick & Bonnie Denison

Barn – Carol Boughton & Judy Powley

Lock Up – Pat Codding

Log Cabin – Duke & Mabel Risley

Meeting House – Jim & Nell McClenin

Ore Miner’s House – Alayna DiSanto & Billie Lochner

School House – John & Judy Lynd

Train Station – Barb Frost & Vera Graves

Warner House – Bonnie Curry & Carolyn Rittenhouse

It is with deep appreciation that we thank these people for helping to keep our museum appealing for our visitors.

Harvest Festival to be Held, October 1st

The Harvest Festival will be held Saturday, October 1st at Heritage Square.  According to Barb Frost, chairman, the festival will run from 12 noon to 4 pm.  However, the craft show will open at 11 am according to Judy Lynd who is chairing the show.  If you are interested in having a space, contact Judy at 585-271-4925.  Indoor space is $20 and outdoor space is $15 and your application and money must be to Judy by September 2nd.  Indoor space is limited so contact her at once if that is what you wish.

We will also be holding Horsey Bingo (watch your mailbox for your tickets) which is one of our biggest fund raisers along with the barn sales.  Pony rides, children’s games, a mini farm market, and food will be offered for sale. Back by popular demand from previous years is the famous Heritage Square Chili. If you would like to make chili to donate for the sale, following is the recipe.  Please contact Carol Boughton 524-8487 and let her know you will be making some chili.

Heritage Square Chili Recipe on page 10

Do You Know That the Following Businesses Are Members of Our Society?

We would like to publicly acknowledge and thank the following businesses who have renewed their membership in the Society and ask that you patronize them whenever possible.

1. Choice One Motorsports Inc., 1531 State Route 104, tel. 585-672-5512
   

2. Konstantinou’s Liquor LLC, 2024 State Route 104, tel. 315-524-301
   

3. Konstantinou’s Restaurant, 2030 State Route 104, tel. 315-524-8238
   

4. Joe’s Meat Market, 6845 N. Slocum Rd., tel. 315-524-8252
   

5. The Lyons National Bank, 6256 Furnace Rd.,  tel. 315-524-9661
   

6. The Original Door Store, 1712 State Route 104, tel. 315-524-3776
   

We also would like to welcome a new business member:  Sparky’s Cans & Bottles, 6341 Ontario Center Rd., Ontario, tel. 315-524-2267.  When you take your cans and bottles to Sparky’s, if you wish you may donate the amount you would receive to the Historical Society’s account which Sparky’s maintains for us

Membership Report

By Jim Graves

The renewal memberships have continued to come in since the mailing in April.  However, there are still 35 members who have not sent in their checks.  If you are one of the 35, won’t you please send in your application and check today.  If is very costly and time consuming having to send out reminder letters. We truly appreciate those who have renewed their memberships as without this support, we could not keep Heritage Square Museum or the Historical Society running.

At this time we would like to welcome four new members who have joined the Society: Barbara Boyce, Paul Sucher, and David VanWagnen of Ontario and George Mandery of Walworth.  We look forward to seeing you at a meeting or an event at the square.

Barn Addition Update

We are happy to report that the site work has been completed at the Square and Fingerlakes Construction Company is anticipating being able to start construction on the addition on June 29th providing the weather cooperates.  As a result of donations from members we have accumulated $1,224 toward the amount needed.  We are still shy $1,873 to cover the cost of construction. Unless we receive donations to cover this amount, the balance will have to come from the general fund.

Meat Raffle Report

The meat raffle sale is going very well.  $918 worth of tickets have been sold as of June 24th.   If you have not purchased your tickets, call Kay Kennedy at 315-524-2557, as she has some to sell or stop in at Sue’s Hair Trends, 2015 Ridge Rd, or Sparky’s Cans & Bottles, 6341 Ontario Center Rd.as they also have tickets to sell.  Remember, first prize is over $70 worth of meat and second prize is over $50 worth of meat, all supplied by Joe’s Meat Market, 6845 Slocum Rd. The drawing will be held during the Blue Ridge Country Rambler’s concert at the mid-summer soiree on July 30th at Heritage Square Museum.

Results of the 2011 Spring Barn Sale

Even though we had rain, the spring barn sale was the largest to date.  We sold items totaling $3,612.20.  Thank you to everyone who donated items, worked the sale and supported us with your purchases. These sales would not be possible without your continued support and the operation of Heritage Square relies on your contributions.  Thank you again.

*Remember the fall barn sale will be held on September 15th – 17th under the chairmanship of Ann Welker and Liz Albright.  Thank you Ann and Liz for taking on this tremendous responsibility.

Longtime Barn Sale Chairs Retiring

As many of you know, Carol and I are officially retiring from the Barn Sale.  We would like to extend our heart-felt thank you to ALL of our past and present volunteers.  Without you we could not have been so successful in raising funds for the operation of Heritage Square Museum.  We had many laughs at our own expense and enjoyed our time working with and getting to know you all.  We must give special thanks to Bill Slocum, he brought us heat when we were cold, put up shelves when we were tired and helped us mop up the flood when the rain poured in.  Also, thanks to his grandchildren who are always willing to help.  Jean Johnson has provided our Thursday lunch for the last few years and scheduled all of our sale volunteers, thank you Jean, it was always delicious.  I wish I could mention you all by name but Vera would have to put out a special edition of the newsletter.  We are sending you all a BIG HUG and applaud your willingness to help keep Heritage Square going.—Carol Boughton and Judy Powley