President’s report – A Year of Recovery
HEART’S CONTENT MIZZEN HERITAGE SOCIETY INC.
PRESIDENT’S REPORT FOR YEAR ENDING 2022
For presentation to the 2023 Annual General Meeting, March 13, 2023
A Year of Recovery
After having most of our activities cancelled in 2021 because of COVID, 2022 became the year when our government started lifting anti-COVID regulations and we began to return to life more like it was before.
2022 Membership
At our AGM last year, at the recommendation of our Membership Committee, we changed our membership structure to include the following categories and fees:
Individual (one person) -$15
Family/Household (one or two named adults and children up to 16) – $25
Corporate (business or organization) – $150
Lifetime – $250
We also have an additional category, that of Honorary Life Membership Award, which is awarded through a nomination process with a maximum of no more than two recipients annually.
Our individual and family membership numbers grew slightly during 2022 from 44 members in January to 47 in December. We have 1 Honorary Life Membership and we also added 3 corporate memberships and 1 lifetime family membership to our group. Of our 47 individual and family members, 24 live in the Heart’s Content region, 17 have seasonal homes here and frequently visit; and 6 support us to varying degrees from their homes elsewhere, even as far away as British Columbia and Florida. A current list of members with contact information is available upon request.
Unfortunately, and with great sadness, last fall we lost one of our long-term members as Jane Tavenor passed away as the result of illness. We remember Jane with great kindness and appreciation for the time she spent with us and the wonderful support she gave us.
2022 Activities and Highlights
For the most part, our activities during 2022 returned to normal except for the Mizzen Heritage Museum which we decided to keep closed as renovations are badly needed. We currently have a Museum Restoration Committee which is hard at work in partnership with the Heart’s Content Community Development Corporation in efforts to secure the funding necessary to restore and improve the Museum facility. We are hoping to be able to reopen the Museum in 2024.
Here are the highlights from a busy year:
- We conducted nine regular monthly meetings, several separate Executive and Board of Directors meetings, many committee meetings, and meetings with our Town Council and other community groups to discuss ongoing issues and mutual interests. The phrase “met to death” comes to mind.
- We hired 2 summer students to do maintenance work such as grass mowing, cleaning, painting, etc. Thanks to Noel and Derek from the Town’s maintenance staff for supervising our students this year and to Alice our Treasurer for handling the payroll and paperwork involved.
- Our Membership Committee, under Chair Jeanette Jobson, were very active last year. They revamped our membership categories, developed new procedures, printed membership brochures and new membership cards, and generally worked to expand and strengthen our membership base, work that continues. Thanks to Jeanette and her committee for all their hard work.
- We held 8 concerts and 7 coffee houses at the Arts Centre and also had 2 rentals. Thanks to John Warren and his Arts Centre Events Committee for their hard work in planning and organizing the Arts Centre Events.
- In June, member Ted Rowe was awarded a Manning Award by the Historic Sites Association of Newfoundland and Labrador for his outstanding contributions to our province’s history and heritage. We were proud to nominate Ted for this prestigious award and prouder again when he won it. Congratulations Ted! Very well deserved.
- 2022 was a provincial “Come Home Year” and the NL government made grant money available for groups to organize “Come Home Year” projects. We applied for, and were successful in receiving funding to restore the Rendell Forge as a working blacksmith forge. The project cost $20637.35 with $16362.90 coming from the province and $2274.45 from Heritage NL. We funded the remaining $2000, and we now have a functioning forge to honor the history of blacksmithing in our town. Thanks to Darlene King, Barry Langer, Dale Jarvis and Heritage NL, Ian Gillies (The Newfoundland Blacksmith) and, of course, the provincial government, for making this project possible.
- The Town of Heart’s Content declared a “Come Home Out of It Week” and we were invited to participate. We did so by having a concert at our Arts Centre featuring Jim Payne and Fergus O’Byrne and a Saturday Night Kitchen Party in the big outdoor Come Home Out of It Tent. Both events were very successful and once again thanks to our Arts Centre Events Committee and all our volunteers for their wonderful help.
- We continued to support and aid the Heart’s Content Community Development Corporation in their endeavors. Eight of our members continue to serve on the Corporation’s Board of Directors and we had many members involved in the Corporation’s major fundraising event, an auction, which raised approximately $42000 last fall.
- Vice President Paulette Cumby applied on our behalf for a Canada Arts and Culture Recovery Program grant from the federal Dept. of Canadian Heritage. She was successful in receiving $12000 for our group to go toward operating costs incurred at our Arts Centre. Thanks Paulette.
- In December, our Museum Restoration Committee was successful in securing a Consulting Advisory Services contract from the Community Business Development Corporation (CBDC) in Carbonear. Consultant Crystal Brae has been hired to research and develop a plan for our revisioned museum. CBDC will pay 75% of the consultant’s costs ($5000 plus HST) with MHS paying the remainder. Once completed in May, we hope to be in a position to approach ACOA and apply for funding to restore and improve the museum.
- Our Municipal Heritage Advisory Committee recommended that the Roman Catholic Cemetery off the old trailway path be approved as a municipal heritage area. This recommendation was accepted by our Town Council bringing to 4 the number of designated Municipal Heritage Structures and Properties so approved to date. These heritage buildings and areas are in addition to the provincially designated heritage structures which all together help tell our town’s story. Thanks to our Municipal Heritage Advisory Committee, under co-chairs Paulette Cumby and Brian Fitzpatrick, for their hard work in this area.
Recommendations
Some of these are repeated from last year as they have not yet been achieved and remain important to do. Some others are new.
- During 2022, we were asked to meet with the Grand Provincial Lodge of the SUF (Society of United Fishermen), our local SUF group and our Town Council with the view to having the Mizzen Heritage Society become owners and operators of the Heart’s Content SUF Lodge No. 1. These meetings resulted in our Town agreeing to buy the building from the Grand Lodge, and I expect we will be asked to meet with our council during this year to discuss the next steps. I recommend that we accept ownership of the SUF Lodge if it is offered but with the condition of council providing an annual operating grant sufficient to cover the cost of insurance at least. This would be our fourth property and although our bank balance looks healthy at present, it cannot sustain the present and future costs of insurance, utilities, maintenance, etc. for the four properties. While it would be most desirable to own the historic SUF Lodge No. 1 and operate it as a Fishermen’s Museum, we could not do it without financial help and improved revenues from all our operations.
- When we assume ownership and operation of SUF Lodge No. 1, and when we have restored and repurposed our museum into a Museum / Welcome Centre with tourism and retail components, together with the Arts Centre and Rendell Forge, we will then be operating a business with four interrelated properties in close proximity to each other. More than ever, we will need a full-time hired staff person to plan, manage, organize and supervise our operations (e.g. Heritage Programming Administrator?). We must investigate and apply for whatever grants and programs we may qualify for that can help us transition toward this goal. For example, we should investigate the Young Canada Works program (https://young-canada-works.canada.ca/) and MUN’s Co-operative Education Program as possibilities.
- Our Arts Centre Events Committee has already started planning concerts, coffee houses and other events at the Arts Centre and it is important that all of us give them the support and help they will need. Although I wrote much the same recommendation last year, I have to say we must do better. Once again, a successful Arts Centre season is crucial this year and we need more volunteer support for our concerts and coffee houses. Remember that each event planned by our Events Committee involves many jobs before, during and after the event. For example, cleanup, setup, distribution of posters and tickets, advertising, various jobs during the event, cleanup again, etc. We cannot expect the same 5 or 6 people to do these jobs every time.
- We must continue to search for and collect historical documents, photos, and artifacts at our Archives Room in the Town Hall.
- Now that we have restored the Rendell Forge into a functioning blacksmith shop, we must improve the landscaping around the area and work with Heritage NL to offer demonstrations and training, especially during the tourist season. There is potential for the forge to become a revenue stream through offering training sessions and items for sale.
- We should continue the process of restoring our cemeteries. Perhaps we should seek to have 1 or more of our ten cemeteries designated historical archeological sites. This may help in the recovering and restoring of our oldest headstones which date back to the 1700’s.
- We must continue to encourage, advise, and support the town’s “Municipal Heritage Designation Program”, enforcement of the “Heart’s Content Heritage Regulations”, and improvements to our Heritage District.
- The good work undertaken by our Membership Committee must continue as our future as a successful organization will depend on an expanded and active membership base. We must continue to search for and encourage new members.
- Again, this year I recommend that we purchase a multi-media projector for the Arts Centre to take advantage of our large retractable stage screen. The ability to provide visual background and video effects would add a lot to our concerts and other events.
- Finally, I once again recommend that we erect new signage on all our properties but especially on the inside and outside of our Arts Centre. As we erect new signs on all our buildings, they should be coordinated in terms of using the same font style and size relative to building, same coloring, etc. We should form a 2-3 person group to talk to sign professionals for ideas and costs and bring forward a plan.
Thank-You
- Most importantly, a big thank-you to you, our members, who pay fees, attend meetings, plan and organize our activities, donate time, money, talent, skill and energy to help make our society strong and our town a better place. Without you we simply could not do what we do.
- Special thanks to the Executive who have given me great support and help again over the past year. Your dedication to this organization and its goals, and your cooperation and encouragement to me are very much appreciated.
- To Mayor Piercey and our Town Council for their tremendous support and encouragement.
- To other organizations such as the Fire Department and the Rec Centre Committee for their continued support.
- To all those others in our community who are not members but volunteer their time, skill and energy to help make our Coffee Houses, Concerts, and other events successful.
Respectfully Submitted,
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Ed Arnott, President
Heart’s Content Mizzen Heritage Society, Inc.