Hello again to the WCG membership! The 2019/2020 year is in full swing. Let’s take a moment to appreciate the exciting work being done by our Communications and Outreach Committee. They are creating some terrific opportunities for all you lovely volunteers.
February 22th is the next to last Saturday of African American History Month. We are tentatively scheduling that day for our next Community Partnership Project with the African American Civil War Memorial.
Many of you will remember AACWM as our hosts for the Tips Session last year and a worthy recipient of our time and expertise. AACWM depends heavily on volunteers as they are getting ready to open in a larger new space next year and need help with condition assessment and rehousing in preparation for this move. More details will be forthcoming as we finalize our plans but, in the meantime, please do plan to volunteer.
If February 22 doesn’t suit, you have an opportunity to volunteer in April. In a new partnership, WCG will be working with the Fairfax County Public Library for a Conservation Fair held during Preservation week. The tentative date is May 2. This event is for the whole family. We are planning kids’ activities, lectures on conservation and preservation, a conservation clinic for the public to bring in their treasured heirlooms for evaluation, an informal rehousing workshop and possibly even a conservation demonstration. (Are you as curious as me to see what that will look like?)
Our Outreach team needs volunteers now to plan for this event. If you have ideas or experience with any of these activities, please contact us!
Here is something you can do right now from the comfort of your computers: please take a moment and email 3 to 5 PowerPoint slides of recent projects that we could use in our public lecture. AIC has a good general presentation that we can start with, but we’d like to focus the presentation on DC area projects.
To make volunteering even easier: send an email to volunteer@washingtonconservationguild.org and let us know which events you’d like to volunteer for. Pro tip: volunteer early so you can have your pick of jobs.
While WCG continues to focus on reaching out to and educating the public, let us not forget that, first and foremost, we are a community. A big part of our reason for existing is mutual support and fellowship. To that end, we will be hosting several events for the membership:
- The ring workshop with Michael Brehl is back! Tentatively March 29 or April 5.
- A possible Materials Exchange event for area private conservators is in the early planning stages. Anyone interested in helping with this, please come forward!
- And last of all, the Holiday Party is coming up at the Hill Center! Our December 5th meeting will feature a behind the scenes look at the conservation and care of the White House collection over the years. The presenter is Dr. Lindsay Chervinsky, Historian for the White House Historical Association. Look for details on our website!
Sadly last year we lost two much beloved members of our community, Beth Richwine and Jahnvi Desai. Our community marked the passing of both these conservators with memorials. The Board has decided to pay formal tribute to them one more time this year: we will be dedicating the April Intern Talks to both of these members in recognition of their stature in our community as both conservators and mentors.
Be sure to follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram! Check out images from our previous events on Flickr (which you can find on our website). We can all agree it is important to spread the word to the general public of the need to preserve our material heritage. Encourage your non-conservation friends and family to follow us, too.
I’m looking forward to seeing you all at the Holiday Party in a couple weeks on December 5. Festivities start at 6 pm. As always, be sure to introduce yourself to me when you see me!
Jayne
Jayne Girod Holt
President, Washington Conservation Guild
jholt@washingtonconservationguild.org
