West Bloomfield Historical Society, New York

What is happening at the WBHS ? Well, it's been a very busy few last weeks. Let's start with what has turned out to become the single most successful event in the WBHS history. The "History for All" campaign has been a huge success. Here is the edited treasurers report. Total raised: $4,450 including Scott Storke's challenge gift. In addition, we have Pat’s $500 gift for the water system and Mike’s donation for the sign, so the total raised this year is actually higher. ... Gifts from Non-members: 7 gifts (5 were from West Bloomfield residents or people with ties to West Bloomfield. 2 were from others: One from Laurel Wemett’s sister. One from someone who uses a walker and thought it was a good cause. Gifts in Memory of, or in Honor of the following: Helen Baker Neenan (from Margaret O’Dea); Butch Talley (from Pat Talley); Sandy Schlenker I (from the Fermans); Laurel Wemett (from Lisa Wemett). Number and Range of Gifts: 39 gifts (37 Gifts for the Ramp, plus Pat and Mike’s special donations) Amounts for the ramp ranged from $10 all the way to $500, plus Scott’s $1,500 challenge gift. I have never felt the sense of community in any other area that I have lived as much as here in West Bloomfield. And I think that sense of community is the reason that this effort was such an outstanding success. And the beauty of it is that we will in fact be able to provide much greater access for "all" going forward. A heartfelt thank you to everyone. And over the past couple of days Scott Storke, Dick Twardokous, and myself have made substantial progress in preparing to install the new handicap ramp. The ramp components were delivered a couple weeks ago. The work we have completed is the necessary footing forms and landing zone forms as well as significant drainage improvements. We will also be replacing the damaged east end sidewalk and extending the west end sidewalk. Me trying to keep up with Scott and Dick is no small challenge. We removed the unsightly gutter downspouts and have buried drainage pipe. This protects the building foundation and makes lawn mowing much easier as well. It will be nice to make mowing a little easier for Bill Washburn. We initially had planned a west side installation of the ramp, but were forced to change to the east side due to unanticipated grade changes. And we have been ultra sensitive to the fact that we will lose a small portion of our beautiful garden space. But the loss will be minimal, as we have lengthened the east side garden by almost as much as was lost. So please bear with the mess as it always takes a little time to get to the finished product. At the risk of alarming someone, I'm attaching a photo. Yes, it looks quite the mess now, but I'm confident you will be happy come spring when we are finished.

So just a few days left to contribute to our "History for All" campaign. I expect to have the exciting final results early next week. In the meantime, Dick Twardoukos and I put up the brand new WBHS sign! It looks great and hoping it will bring awareness to the community of our great organization. And it gave Dick an opportunity to try out his brand new, quite large tractor. With an attached post hole auger it made short work of erecting the sign. Thank you Dick. Always ready, willing and able to help. Much appreciated. I wanted a nice photo of Dick and the new tractor, but my camera wouldn't cooperate.

Our fund raising effort is doing very nicely and will continue until the end of the month. And we continue to take advantage of this most unusual year to push forward on several other projects behind the scenes. The WBHS board met this evening to continue working on a permanent charter status. Such a charter is quite an undertaking involving many many hours of documentation. But we are getting there. Our collections committee will be meeting on Monday to further that goal. Tw...o weeks ago, several of our members met wearing masks and socially distanced to properly archive several historical garments and other fabric artifacts. We also have a new large format scanner and will be scanning several delicate paper documents so that they can easily be accessed by the public. And just as importantly, we will then be able to securely store those original historical documents at the new Community Town Hall. A significantly larger sign has been donated and we anticipate having that installed in the next few weeks. The sign is two sided with a dark green background and gold lettering. It will be supported on a bright white framework. We think it will provide better community recognition of our society and our mission. I'll be sure to post a photograph once it has been erected. So while our public programs could not be presented this year, we will be in a much better position in 2021 to provide the type of quality programs we all enjoy. See more

Help WBHS build an accessibility ramp! Please donate to our HISTORY FOR ALL 2020 fund drive & see your gift matched dollar for dollar. WBHS is a 501 ( c ) (3) nonprofit organization and your gifts are tax deductible. Check with your tax advisor for the rules regarding these additional opportunities: IRAs - If you take Required Minimum Distributions from an IRA, you may make a tax free charitable gift from the account as part of your 2020 RMD. Tax Law for 2020 - Even if you take the Standard Deduction on your 2020 taxes, you may claim a charitable gift deduction for gifts made this year.