| ANTIQUE DEALERS HELP OUT STRUGGLING HISTORICAL GROUPS by Steve Lord (11.30.09)
Something I wrote led to something good happening. That's always a good feeling to those who write for a living, and often get the idea no one is out there on the receiving end.
A few weeks ago, I wrote a story about the trouble historical organizations are having making ends meet, particularly those dependent on money from their respective city governments, or from private donations.
Two of those in dire straits financially are the Geneva History Center, entirely dependent on private donations, and the Aurora Historical Society, which has had its funding from the city of Aurora cut dramatically.
As a result of the article, the Chicago Suburban Antiques Dealers Association has decided to kick in grants of $1,000 to each of the organizations.
The association is made up of antique dealers from throughout the Chicago area, and even from beyond, who do business in the Chicago area. The organization holds two big shows a year -- one in March and one in October -- that benefit the association and help them put together money for grants.
The grants often go to historic organizations.
"We feel we have a kinship," said Debbie McArdle of Crystal Lake, a member of the organization. "We are all trying to preserve history."
According to its Web site, the Chicago Suburban Antiques Dealer Association is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to "education, preservation, and the promotion of antiques." As McArdle said, they often construe that to include historic museums and organizations.
Historical groups the association has helped include: Garfield Farm Museum in LaFox; Preservation Partners of the Fox Valley, which oversees the Japanese Gardens, villa museum and windmill at the Fabyan Forest Preserve in Geneva, as well as the Beith and Durant houses in St. Charles; the Farnsworth House Museum in Plano; and Delnor Hospital in Geneva.
"On a tombstone, you have the date of birth, and you have the date of death, and there is the hyphen in between," McArdle said. "You often hear the hyphen is what's important -- not the beginning or the end. That's what we do with antiques. We help fill in the hyphen. So do historic museums."
The Geneva History Center and Aurora Historical Society will receive the awards at the Dec. 8 Christmas dinner the antique association holds.
The grants came together as a result of Fred Mitchell, who, with wife Lurena, runs Ancient Argosy Antiques, based in Oswego. Mitchell read The Beacon-News story about the plight of the historical organizations and called the association to see if they could help.
The group ran its most recent show in October at the Kane County Fairgrounds, and Mitchell thought some of the money could go toward the organizations.
"He called it to our attention," McArdle said.
While Mitchell is based in Oswego, he, like many antique dealers, does not have a regular store, but rents space in other stores, or goes to antique shows throughout the area. Mitchell rents regular space at the Olde Timers Antique Centre in Sandwich.
It is cheaper for antique dealers to work that way, rather than pay rent for a regular store. Still, any visitors and shoppers in Geneva and St. Charles can attest to the wonderful stores some antique dealers do maintain in both towns.
"We are also hurting these days," McArdle said. "Kids don't have an interest in history; it seems they only are interested in the moment."
That's why helping museums such as those in Geneva and Aurora is a natural for the antique dealers. Both Geneva and Aurora run significant youth education programs. Genevans know well the sight of the Geneva History Center educator leading groups of school children on historic tours of the city.
They are all partners in trying to preserve history and bring it alive -- helping each other fill in those hyphens.
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