This Thanksgiving and during the beginning of the holiday season, we give thanks for being with the family and friends we love and with whom we share values. As director of the Monmouth County Historical Association (MCHA) and on behalf of the Board of Trustees, I give thanks for the broad base of community support and partnerships that help us in our mission to interpret the rich diversity of our county’s heritage. Since 1898, the MCHA has preserved and interpreted the history of Monmouth County, giving voices to those who have gone before us through what they have left behind.
On behalf of our Board of Trustees and newly formed advisory committee, I give my thanks for partnerships that promote and value history, and assist our nonprofit in the presentation of historically significant moments in Monmouth County.
From the image of George Washington at the Battle of Monmouth emerging as a powerful military leader, to a corncob and shell left in the eaves of MCHA’s Marlpit Hall by the enslaved Africans who lived there as an expression of their religious and cultural traditions, the depth and range of Monmouth County’s history is interwoven and makes us who we are today. The role of the Lenni Lenape is as important as the contributions of the Dutch and English, who were among this area’s first European settlers. These first European immigrants have left us architectural treasures like the Covenhoven House in Freehold and the Holmes-Hendrickson House in Holmdel, two of MCHA’s six historic properties.
The partners and supporters who share our passion for history include the Monmouth County Board of Freeholders, especially Freeholder Ted Narozanick, the Monmouth County Historical Commission, and individuals such Congressman Rush Holt, state Sen. Joseph M. Kyrillos Jr., state Assemblyman Steve Corodemus, state Sen. Ellen Karcher and state Assemblyman Sean Kean.
Foundations like the Riverside Children’s Foundation and PNC Foundation join with state and federal agencies like the New Jersey Historical Commission and the Institute of Museum and Library Services in helping us communicate history. Our corporate friends like Credit Suisse First Boston, Commerce Bank and King BMW, as well as many generous individual donors, and our valued MCHA members, help us keep our historic homes open for public awareness programs. For these friends and many, many others we are thankful.
This past year, the New Jersey Cultural Trust became another one of our partners when they awarded MCHA a grant to create a community advisory board, which is working to increase our visibility, expand our views of history beyond that of colonial forefathers and help us forge new collaborative partnerships. We thank these individuals for their commitment and enthusiasm, and take seriously the challenge of representing our county’s diverse history.
Like every nonprofit, we, too, struggle to maintain world class and award-winning displays while making ends meet. So, fund-raising is especially important to our survival and success.
Therefore, we invite all of you who share a love of history to celebrate the holidays with us at two special events at the Taylor-Butler House in Middletown that will benefit the MCHA.
The holiday boutique, to be held on Nov. 30 and Dec. 1, and the Victorian Holiday Party on Dec. 11 are two ways to have fun while giving. The proceeds will help keep MCHA’s services available to over 9,000 school children annually and for scholars and family historians to visit our archives and learn about the rich historical tapestry we call Monmouth County’s past.
Please join us to “Rediscover Monmouth County’s History.”
Lee Ellen Griffith
director
Monmouth County
Historical Association
Freehold