In Yesterdays News: Society raising funds for Upton renovations Joseph Benavidez News Staff Writer #WESTMINSTER — As spring approaches, the Westminster Historical Society is gearing up to host fundraisers to offset the cost for renovating the 101-year-old Upton building as a new headquarters for the nonprofit organization. “The total estimated cost is somewhere near $2.5 million dollars,” Society President Betsy Hunnla said. “We’ve already raised over $100,000 and while the project seems daunting — with so much more to raise — we have great support from the community.” In a town-wide citizens survey, responses said that the Upton building was one in the top five buildings that needed to be preserved — a task which matches the society’s mission of saving and sharing Westminster’s history. “We hired architects to assess the damage and the whole building needs touching-up,” Ms. Hunnla said. “Plus, we want to add an elevator to make the building handicap accessible.” The renovations will be completed in phases, with the first step being to protect the exterior from water damage. Work will include laying down a new roof, replacing the broken parts of brick wall — an expensive process called ‘pointing the brick’ — restoring the windows and updating the drainage system. Ms. Hunnla is hopeful the society will move into the Upton building within the next five years. She said the group always liked the idea of being based in Upton, but the process has been long and hard. “In 1997, we realized we were running out of space,” Ms. Hunnla said, regarding the society’s current location on Main Street. “Back then, we held a meeting and decided we wanted the Upton building not only to preserve the building, but also because of its location and its size.” Ms. Hunnla said that it took nearly 11 years to secure the 6,000 square-foot site, but the society was able to purchase Upton and the land on Sept. 10, 2010. The building is nearly twice the size of the society’s current headquarters and, according to Ms. Hunnla, the society has big plans for that space. “Once the renovations are done, we’ll finally have a proper meeting room, permanent workshop space, an actual library and archive system and storage and display space for our artifacts,” she said. The society has over 15,000 items in their collection from various time periods in Westminster’s rich history — such as coins, letters and official documents. Ms. Hunnla said once the group has moved, the items can be taken out of storage and displayed for the whole town to enjoy and use for research purposes. “Plus, with the elementary schools so close, we’ll be able to host field trips easily,” she said. John R. Briggs Elementary School is within walking distance to the Upton building. “We recently received a grant for $50,000 for the roof, but there’s still a lot more to gain,” Ms. Hunnla said. “There are a couple of great events coming up to help reach our goal.” On March 22, the society will partner with Rutland’s Finnish Heritage Society Sovittaja to tell stories around the fireplace. The organization plans to share tales of growing up in the area as first generation Fin-Americans, including stories such as realizing parents did not speak English or living in a multi-lingual household. “Those ‘awakening moments’ that really demonstration our history,” Ms. Hunnla said. “We’re also hosting our annual Tea Party soon.” The tea party will be laid out in traditional manner similar to colonial times with an exhibit of clothing items from the early 1700s and 1800s on display.
Posted on: Tue, 11 Mar 2014 16:56:51 +0000
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