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The Holland Land Office Museum's 2020 Wonderland of Trees is open to the public during regular business hours until Dec. 31. The annual event this year doesn't include the usual gala opening but visitors are still welcome to enjoy the holiday cheer of more than 20 trees decorated by local organizations and businesses.

As many as 25 people at a time will be allowed into the building to view the trees. Masks are required inside the building.

This year's sponsors include Tompkins Bank of Castile, Batavia Downs, and The YNgodess Shop.  

This is a major fundraiser each year for HLOM and to help in that effort, there is a basket raffle. The winners will be drawn on Dec. 18.

The Genesee Symphony Orchestra will provide musical performances on the evenings of Dec. 4, Dec. 11, and Dec. 18.

"Immigration and the Southside of Batavia" is an event being sponsored by the Holland Land Office Museum featuring a genuine ethnic food buffet and traditional music from Poland and Italy.

It will be held starting at 12:30 p.m. on Sunday, April 10, at Ascension Parish Hall, 15 Sumner St., Batavia. Cost is $20 per person. Tickets on sale now at HLOM. Reservation deadline is NOON Wednesday April 6. Call 343-4727.

Come celebrate immigration from Europe to Western New York. Guest speaker is local historian and teacher Gregory Kinal.

The buffet will include: golumpki, polish sausage, spaghetti, Italian sausage and more!

Live music will include traditional polkas, tarantellas, and other ethnic music!

Press release:

"A Night of Irish Music" to benefit the Holland Land Office Museum will take place at St. James Episcopal Church on Main Street in the City of Batavia from 7 to 9 p.m. on Friday, March 13.

Cost is $8 per person. Light refrehsments will be provided.

Irish music will be performed by the music duo No Blarney -- Don Bouchard and Rich Conroy.

For more information or to make a reservation, call the Holland Land Office at 343-4727.

Marilyn Drilling has been named museum director of the Holland Land Office Museum.

Her appointment was approved by the board of directors last night, according to a press release we received this morning.

Drilling replaces Patrick Weissand, who held the position for 11 years before accepting a position as a branch manager with the Bank of Castile.

Drilling was hired by the museum in July to create a marketing and membership program.

A totaly of 49 people applied for the position, according to the press release.

Drilling is a 1983 summa cum laude graduate of St. Bonaventure University with a degree in Mass Communication. She has held fundraising and public relations positions in both Genesee and Wyoming counties, including the director of development for the Medina Health Care Foundation, development director for Notre Dame High School in Batavia and Crossroads House. She was also the director of the Genesee Country Mall and has worked in the newsrooms of WBTA, WRTK in Rochester and WBTF in Attica.

"I am excited to begin implementing an integrated marketing program for the museum," noted Drilling. "The public will soon notice new life and new  programs coming from our doors. There is renewed interest in history and the younger generation especially wants to know more about our past and how it can affect our future."

Full press release after the jump

Marilyn Drilling of Batavia has accepted the position of Museum Director at  the Holland Land Office.  The Board of Directors made the offer after final  interviews last night (Tuesday, Sept. 22).

Drilling was initially hired by the Board in July to create a marketing and  membership program for the West Main Street Museum.  She submitted her resume  to the Board during their search for a replacement of long-time Museum  director Patrick Weissand, who resigned in June to join the Bank of Castile  in Medina as its branch manager.

49 resumes were reviewed for the position, according to Barbara Toal,  President of the Holland Purchase Historical Society.

Drilling is a 1983 summa cum laude graduate of St. Bonaventure University  with a degree in Mass Communication.  She has held fundraising and public  relations positions in both Genesee and Wyoming counties, including the  Director of Development for the Medina Health Care Foundation, Development  Director for Notre Dame High School in Batavia and Crossroads House.  She was  also the director of the Genesee Country Mall and has worked in the newsrooms  of WBTA Batavia, WRTK Rochester and WBTF Attica.

"I am excited to begin implementing an integrated marketing program for the  Museum," noted Drilling.  "The public will soon notice new life and new  programs coming from our doors.  There is renewed interest in history and the  younger generation especially wants to know more about our past and how it  can affect our future."

New board-approved programs include History Heroes, a series of programs and activities for the younger generation.  A Membership campaign will kick-off  on October 5th and new events have been added to the calendar.

Organizations and businesses are also encouraged to utilize the meeting room  at the Holland Land Office Museum for their gatherings.  "The Meeting Place"  is available at no charge and can be reserved by telephoning the Museum at  343-4727.

"We're also very excited about our newest exhibit," said Drilling."  "52  handsewn quilts are now on display...each unique in design and each has its  own story.  Members of the Museum Quilt Guild are celebrating their 30th  anniversary this year by showcasing some of their finest creations."

The public is invited to a special Quilt Exhibit Opening on Friday, September  25th from 6 to 9 p.m.  complete with entertainment and refreshments.  Members  of the Museum Guild will be there to share their quilting stories.

"This is a beginning of new and exciting displays for the Museum," said  Drilling.  "We're ""Making History Happen"" in Genesee County."
 

I spent a good portion of the morning reading about Barber Conable. What a good man.

No wonder he made number two on the list of 25 Things that Made Genesee County Famous.

Not only did Conable give us the term "smoking gun" (during the Watergate Scandal), but he was regarded by his peers as the most respected member of Congress (he never accepted an individual campaign contribution for more than $50); he also "put the 'K' in 401(k)" when he helped rewrite the tax code to help protect pensions at Eastman Kodak; and. as president of the World Bank, he transformed the organization into an institution that assisted women and children in poor nations.

Throughout his career, Conable maintained his connection to Batavia, returning home every weekend to meet with his friends and constituents.

My favorite passage in articles I read about Conable came from historian Yanek Mieczkowski:

I noticed framed, meticulous pencil sketches on some walls, and he explained that they were just doodles that he had made while a congressman.

Just doodles? They looked beautiful, and they had been enough to impress Ronald Reagan. The president had heard about the congressman's drawings, and asked to have some. Conable sent a few samples to the White House. In return, the president sent a page of his own sketches, on White House stationery, to the congressman. "Barber," the president wrote. "These are just doodles. Yours are art."

Mieczkowski's piece on Conable is outstanding, I recommend reading the entire piece.

I also found these two notable quotes from Conable:

"He (the first President Bush) thought I should be supporting an American agenda (as World Bank president). I thought I was there to help the poor people. So I got the reputation of not being a team player, and that was the one thing George wouldn't stand for."

"I could have stayed in Washington at six figures if I had wanted to. I considered it. But they wanted a stuffed exhibit and not a lawyer, and I didn't want to be a stuffed exhibit. They wanted to use my name and put me in the firm and give me a special 'of counsel' status. At the appropriate time the senior partner would push a button and I would come into the consultation he was having with his client and he'd say, 'You remember former Congressman Barber Conable, don't you? Remember the great role he played in Ways and Means?' That image frightened me."

Not only did Conable help make Genesee County famous, he should be at the top of any list of things to make Genesee County proud.

The Holland Land Office Museum announced on its blog yesterday that on June 13, it will begin an "online exhibit" series of 25 things that made Genesee County famous.

For this online exhibit, a panel of 15 people spent six months sifting through 100s of things know world wide. It was the panel's job to come up with a list of 25 things that made Genesee County famous. Every week, until November 28, 2008 the Holland Land Office Museum will release another item.

Cool idea, and it's interesting that this physical museum has chosen the digital world to highlight such a potentially fascinating list of events, people and items.

Anybody want to guess what some of these 25 things might be?  Leave a comment.  (I'm guessing #1 is anti-masonry and the Morgan Affair. Joseph Mancuso and the business incubator have to be pretty high up there, too.)