the c mpass - explorebuffalo.org
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Explore Buffalo Volunteer Newsletter April 2018
EXPLORE BUFFALO STAFF
Brad Hahn, Executive Director
Olivia McCarthy
Assistant Director
Paige Melin
Education Coordinator
Cheryl McDonald
Administrative Coordinator
Welcome to our newest staff member! Colleen Kwiatkowski Accountant [email protected]
Contact information for all
Explore Buffalo volunteers can be
found on the Explore Buffalo
volunteer site:
Volunteer Directory
Photo above from the recently renovated North Park Theatre
EXPLORE BUFFALO STAFF
Brad Hahn, Executive Director [email protected] Olivia McCarthy Assistant Director [email protected] Paige Melin Education Coordinator [email protected] Cheryl McDonald Administrative Coordinator [email protected] Colleen Kwiatkowski Accountant [email protected]
Click here for the contact
information of volunteers:
Volunteer Directory
CHECK THIS OUT!
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THE C MPASS
CENTRAL PARK EXPERIENCE & HOME TOUR
H ome tours are nothing new in the Buffalo area, but this one is different! This is an “experience”. Just in time for spring, four local women owned businesses will be presenting workshops from how to create your own sanctuary space to mindful living, including mind-ful eating. Plus, Chuck LaChiusa will be presenting the history and architecture of Central Park.
We guarantee spring will be here by then, so purchase your tickets early (click here) and enjoy a walk through one of Buffalo’s most beautiful neighborhoods then learn exactly what Feng Shui is!
11 AM The History & Architecture of Central Park with Chuck LaChiusa
12 PM Creating Your Sanctuary Space with Sue and Ciara Morreale
1 PM Plant Power in your Home with Paula D’Amico
2 PM How to “Master” the Feng Shui in your Bedroom with Linda Ellson
3 PM Mindful Living with Megan Callahan
SPOTLIGHT TOURS SELL OUT!
H ere’s an insider tip for you—Spotlight Tours sell out! Both SunCliff Tours for May 6 sold out within two weeks, so when you see a Spotlight Tour coming,
grab your tickets right away! And don’t forget, unless you are working at a Spotlight Tour, please purchase a specially priced volunteer ticket. The next Spotlight Tour will be the Buffalo Maritime Center on June 4 at 6 PM. See Buffalo Maritime Center for more information. The July 10 Spotlight Tour is Shea’s Seneca and 27 tickets have been sold already!
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Explore Buffalo
Board of Directors
Chuck LaChiusa, President Cindy Gorski, Vice President Robert Wetter, Treasurer Ann Palmer, Secretary Jenna Bichler Hadar Borden Ron Eaton John Fagant Paul Gorski TinaMarie Kumiega Margaret Logan Wayne Minear Thomas Mudra Kathy Pollack Michele Siwinski
Explore Buffalo
Committee Chairs
• Fundraising
Brad Hahn
• Docent Training
Jim Mayer
• Education Advisory
Cindy Pearson
• Finance Michele Siwinski • Governance
Tom Mudra
• Marketing Advisory Olivia McCarthy • Strategic Planning
Cindy Gorski
• Tour Advisory
Ann Palmer
• Volunteer
Paul Gorski
MARK YOUR CALENDARS
T abling is a great opportunity to introduce Explore Buffalo to the rest of Western New
York, plus the prize wheel draws people to our table where we collect their email address in ex-change for a chance to spin the wheel. This year we have some exciting new prizes, making your tabling experience even more fun! Upcoming tabling opportunities: May 19—Elmwood Farmers’ Market
June 9 & 10—Allen West Festival
More events will be posted soon. Email Brad if you would like to volunteer for
a tabling event.
TABLING OPPORTUNITIES
Special Volunteer-Ony Events
May 17 @ 6:30 PM FREE
Hull House Tour
May 31 @ 6:00
New docent graduation party. ALL Volunteers are invited.
See the Volunteer Page for more information and to RSVP to volunteer events.
Sheila Keane, Lorrie Clark, Vicki Warhol
O n March 10, seven Explore Buffalo volunteers par-ticipated in the Fight for Air Climb at One Seneca
Tower. We are pleased to report that everyone made it! A total of $5,893 (special shout out to Paul Gorski!) was raised by Team Explore Buffalo for the American Cancer Socity
We are pleased to announce that we will once again be taking part in the United Way Day of Caring. Last year was the first time we participat-ed. It was a wonderful experience out at Camp Seven Hills where we stained new and old build-ings. This year’s date is Wednesday, August 15. We are scheduled for a half-day (9 AM to 12 PM).
Please email Cheryl McDonald by May 15 if you are interested in this event.. Please also include your T-Shirt size—small to 3X-large.
GIVING BACK
Top to bottom: Denise Prince, Brad Hahn, Paul Gorski David Rock, Bree Gibson Shawn Wright, Beth Lenz
2017 United Way Day of Caring Team
Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn't do than by the ones you did. So throw off the bowlines, sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sail. Explore. Dream. Discover.
Mark Twain
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A ttendance at the 2018 Season Kick Off event totaled over 100 enthusiastic old and new Explore
Buffalo aficionados. Attendees enjoyed a tour of the church, including our Education Center where they were able to see how our Education donations are being used. Guests also had the opportunity to do some shopping in the Serendipity Shop as well as shop for books at the Buffalo Heritage Table and Elizabeth Licata’s book 100 Things to Do in Buffalo Before You Die.
Tell us more!
SKIP AND BETTY JOHNSON
Contributed by Barb Peterson
E xplore Buffalo’s Spotlight couple this month are Skip and Betty Johnson. They began their involvement with Ex-
plore Buffalo last August when they took a tour for Skip’s birthday. They both trained to be docents for our winter tours and have given the Downtown North tour to rave reviews.
Skip is retired after 36 years with Exxon Mobil Corp. in the Controller’s Dept. Betty has been working at UB since the 1980’s in various administrative positions. They both grew up in Tonawanda and went to school together but went their separate ways for college and careers (they actually met in the E. B. Green designed Tonawanda Middle School). They re-connected a few years ago and married in 2015.
They have both done some considerable travelling. Skip has visited 47 out of 50 states and 5 out of 7 continents. Their trip this summer to Africa will leave Skip with just one more continent to visit: Australia. If you think he forgot Antarctica, he visited there about 10 years ago! They both choose Paris as their favorite city.
Betty recently completed an undergraduate degree in French and is active with l’Alliance Francais. She is also involved with church activities and the Historical Society of the Tonawandas. When people ask her what she wants to do when she retires, she says “piano, organ, voice, clarinet and French.” There is never enough time.
Skip leads neighborhood walking tours in the City of To-nawanda. His main hobby is collecting 1/43 scale model cars. His collection now totals 1600. He also enjoys running and reading. Skip also volunteers with the Historical Society of the Tonawandas, helps staff the museum, and serves on their Board.
Betty and Skip had an interesting experience as docents. In January, they were informed that Channel 2 would be filming their tour. They were terrified. Things went well until the Genesee Bldg. (Hyatt). A security guard wanted to confis-cate Channel 2’s film. Fortunately, the situation was resolved and Channel 2 was able to keep their film and Explore Buffa-lo got some good publicity. Skip and Betty got their 15 minutes (actually 10 seconds) of fame.
KICK OFF EVENT
Ann Palmer leading the tour.
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COMMUNITY EVENTS
QUESTIONS? Ask Clara
Q What do I do about a guest who talks a lot? Sometimes a guest will know some of Buffalo’s history/architecture and want to share and contribute what they know to the tour.
A First, listen. Do not interrupt the guest, but as soon as you have an opening say something like “That’s very interesting” or “Thank you! I’ll look into that.” Don’t get into a big discussion with just one guest and leave the rest of the group hanging. If people are talking to each other or murmuring in the background all you can do is just keep going. Tempting, but don’t scold them!
D o you have an event you’d like to share with Explore Buffalo? We’d like to post the information here. But remember, the Compass only comes out once a month (usually the last day of the month) so any events you’d like to share must be in to the Compass by the third week of the month for events in the following month.
Hull Family Home & Farmstead Grand Re-opening
Sunday, June 3 @ noon to 4 PM, 5976 Genesee St., Lancaster NY
See the meticulously restored interior and hear plans for the future of the Hull Homestead, built in 1810 to house Revolutionary War Veteran Warren Hull, his wife Polly and their children.
Noon – 4:00 PM—Explore the grounds, including the Hull home and family cemetery Noon – 2:00 PM—Informal complimentary picnic lunch includes hotdogs, hamburgers, salads, drinks and desserts 2:00 PM—Grand Re-opening Ribbon Cutting Ceremony at the front entrance to the house
This event is free and open to the public. For more information visit hullfamilyhome.com or call 716-837-0893.
Learning the Scandalous Tour Future Elmwood Village Victorians Docents
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B ecoming Elmwood: Buffalo’s Olmsted Parkway Neighborhood tells the story of the Historic Elmwood District for the first time, from the arrival
on the Niagara Frontier of Joseph Ellicott, through the role of Fredrick Law Olmsted in the parks and parkways, and into the modern era. This beautiful book educates and enlight-ens readers to the history and origins of Elmwood Village’s enduring character.
NOTE: The book is currently out of stock at Amazon. Keep checking!
Meet the Author with Lauren Belfer was a beautiful event this past Saturday. A little drizzle did not deter 75 City of Light fans. Ms. Belfer spoke on her inspiration for the novel, how she researched this novel as well as her two other books, (And After the Fire, and A Fierce Radiance) and even pointed out the bench next to the Lake where the story of City of Light all began! Thank you, Helen Brady for your hard work in putting this together.
BOOKS & VIDEOS
EDUCATION COORDINATOR’S CORNER
TIPS AND NOTES:
Is it a monkey? A lion? A mad dog? A gargoyle or a grotesque? Well, here’s your answer:
Gargoyles vs. Grotesque. Check out BuffaloAH for local gargoyles, grotesques, and monsters!
Docent Tip: Tom Landahl uses a different colored sheet for each stop on his tours. How genius is that?!
Have a tip you’d like to share? Let me know. Cheryl
W e are jumping into a great start to our tour season! We have 28 school tours on our calendar right now for May & June – with more requests still coming in! With all this activity, our school docents
are stepping up to the task & bringing their enthusiasm and their love of Buffalo to every tour. Thanks to our school docents, we’re able to share Buffalo’s incredible history & architecture with curious students all across WNY!
Our Winter History Course just wrapped up its final session. It was a wonderful, engaged class, many of whom asked me about ways to stay involved with Explore Buffalo through volunteering and our Explorer Passes. Many thanks to John Fagant for his expert teaching!
Speaking of Explorer Passes – remember that these are a great option to promote to your tour-goers! In-dividual and Family passes pay for themselves after only 2 or 3 tours, and are a wonderful way to keep people who enjoyed your tour interested & coming back for more.
Stay curious! Paige
“Keep your face to the sunshine and you cannot see a shadow.”
The City of Light tour crew: L to R—Michele Siwinski, Lauren Belfer, Denise Prince, Deb Hall-Stonish
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2018 DISCOUNTS Discounts Available: 2018 Tour Season
Subject to change; any new discounts will be communicated via email.
Arts Access Pass:
• FREE Admission to $10 or $15 tours for
Arts Access Pass holders
• Administered by Arts Services of WNY
• Do not collect this card
Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus Neighbor-
hood Explorer Program:
• Save $3 on any walking or bike tour admis-
sion
• Available to Medical Campus employees;
sticker on the back of their employee ID
card
• Do not collect
Visit Buffalo Niagara & Buffalo Sports Commissions:
• $5 discount on any tour admission
• Distributed to visitors at conventions, athletic compe-
titions, tournaments, etc.
• Do not collect this card
Olmsted Parks Members:
• Save $5 on one $15 tour
• Received with Olmsted membership
packet
• Collect this card & return to office