The End of World War Wednesdays?

       Hi there, history lovers! I'd like to start by apologizing for the couple of missed weeks, and for those of you who missed out on links to this summer's posts due to a privacy mishap on Facebook. Ever since I graduated from my undergrad at uOttawa, things have gotten quite chaotic, quite fast!
   
       Which brings me to a sentence I've long dreaded having to write: this is looking like the end of the road for World War Wednesdays. We have had three full, incredible years together exploring the fine details of the First and Second World Wars each week, and I'm incredibly proud of the personal and professional growth I was able to cultivate through this medium. More than anything, I am eternally grateful to all of you for your continued support and readership and hope it's been at least half as enjoyable to follow along as it has been to write. I also can't thank Angela Bobier and the THS enough for giving me this outlet and allowing me to publish through their platform.

         That being said, by bringing this chapter to a close, I am not ending my entire internet presence! As part of my grad school classes, I've started my own history blog which you can follow here: https://givethepastforapresent.wordpress.com It's exciting to be able to write about a broader range of subject matter, and I look forward to chronicling my grad school experiences and research. Of course, all of the past WWW posts are archived on the THS blog site, and you can revisit them all through the labels and date options on the right hand side.

       I really do hope to return to this blog someday in a new format and continue to talk about the local histories I love so much. As Winston Churchill said, this isn't the end, nor is it the beginning of the end. It's just the end of the beginning! Thanks again for coming on this journey with me (especially you, Dad) and for all the opportunities you've sent my way.
       Onward and upward,
Delany (@DLeitchHistory on Twitter)

Farewell from Lori

Dear Friends, Colleagues, Tyrconnell Heritage Society Members,

As some of you may already know I have resigned my position as Cultural Manager here at the Backus-Page House Museum. My last official day on site was June 14th. I wanted to say thank you to all for your friendship and/or support over the years. It has been an honour and a privilege to have had the opportunity to contribute to the preservation of the Backus-Page House and to uphold and promote the mandate and mission statement of the Tyrconnell Heritage Society.

It has been an enriching experience albeit a very busy one. As I spent my final two weeks onsite, mentoring my replacement, I was reminded of the many benchmarks achieved during my tenure as Cultural Manager. The publishing of seventeen newsletters (expanded from the original 1 or 2 page format), the creation of a THS blog, the continuing upgrade of our website and the institution of a social media program including Twitter and Facebook are a reflection of a commitment to engage the public and the THS membership through all available avenues of communication. Since 2008 the administration has overseen volunteer contributions that have been estimated at well over 12,000 man-hours and seventeen local youth have been employed in seasonal positions. For the past two years the Backus-Page House site has enjoyed the distinction of qualifying for the CMOG program by meeting official Ontario community museum standards. The restoration of the rectory barn and the redesign of the Carriage House office area have provided additional display, administration and programming space.

The museum has welcomed thousands of guests each year who have enjoyed tours, teas, arts and craft shows, workshops on period cooking and corsetry and spinning, sumptuous meals of period cuisine, and lectures on the history of the fur trade in Canada and the effects of the local climate on the lifecycles of butterflies. The museum collection has grown through the accession of hundreds of artifacts and the program has been benefited by the digitalization of our collection registry. Looking to engage a broader demographic, an interpretative program for Carolinian flora and fauna was instituted.

 Over the past 4 and a half years our exhibit program has treated guests to “A Peek at Victoria’s Secrets”, a broad look at the industrial revolution, the secrets of midden treasures, interpretations of spinning and textiles in the Talbot Settlement, the community of signature quilts, the 150^th anniversary of the Wallacetown Fair and then the St Peter’s Church’s celebration, along with an overview of The War of 1812. By the way, don’t forget to stop by and see the current exhibit “Get Stuffed~ A Whimsical Look at the Victorian Anthropomorphic Taxidermy Tradition”. I hope you have as much enjoyment visiting the exhibit as I did researching and putting it together.

I have helped host meetings, special events, family reunions and weddings both large and small. I have welcomed summer day-campers, car tours, dedicated birders and Sunday drivers. I have spoken to guests who have travelled clear across the globe and marvelled that they had found their way from somewhere as far away as India, to this small site along the northern shore of Lake Erie. I hope you all will continue to find your way to “Little Ireland” on the Erie coast.

There have been many challenges along the way but it has allowed for a tremendous amount of growth. I have had the good fortune to encounter and work with some truly talented and dedicated people and for that I am grateful. I bid you all a fond farewell. I wish you all the very best in the future and once again thank you for your support over the past four and a half years. 

Sincerely,

Lori Milos-Ivanski