HOPE HISTORICAL SOCIETY MINUTES
July 18, 2023

The meeting was called to order at 6:35 PM by Society President, Juanita Hunt. There were 11 members in attendance: Cindy DellaPenna, Margaret Morse, Juanita Hunt, Marie Berry, Bernice Gleason, Judith Jones, Bill Jones, Jim DellaPenna, Linda Hillgrove, Ann Leadbetter, Emily Saladino, and one guest, Haley Moore.

There was a motion to accept the minutes of our May 16, 2023 meeting, which had been emailed to all members and posted to the Historical Society's website; the motion was seconded and approved.

There was no Treasurer's report as our treasurer was not present, but the report for May 31, 2023 to June 30, 2023, made available at a recent executive meeting, was passed around - there were no questions.

Marie discussed the upcoming True Park 25th Anniversary celebration coming up on July 22nd. There will be free BBG at 11:30 for all residents of the town of Hope, children's activities, a used book sale, lemonade & popcorn at the HHS display. The HHS Raffle box will be on display with tickets - she also encouraged members to take some tickets to sell. The contents include maple syrup, blue jelly, blueberry sauce, a birdhouse, crafted earrings, a tee shirt, Hope General Store glasses, knit stockings, pot holders, pet services, and more. Tickets are $1.00 or 6 for $5.00 and will be on sale until November.

Jim DellaPenna, a building committee member, was asked to discuss his recent meetings with contractors in regard to outside house maintenance. Bids were obtained for possible exterior painting in 2024. It was learned that the house proper was stained, and all trim is painted. One contractor gave a whole house paint quote of $28,000, way too much; a second quote was $11,500 for stain with painted window trim and $14,500 if all paint; a third quote from last year came in between $14,000 and $15,000. Jim explained he had provided the quotes during an HHS executive meeting, which he was invited to attend, and that it was determined that only the trim on the ell and garage and the garage doors should be painted at this time. He is waiting for a call from Randy Merrifield, to learn if Randy would be interested. The other item he working on is a quote from Horch Roofing regarding rain gutters - we have not canceled the installation by Midcoast, but they have been promising installation since last year and appear to have other priorities.

Margaret spoke about the September 19th cranberry bog outing to Moody's in Lincolnville and recipes for cranberries - she would like to follow up the tour with a sampling of cranberry treats back at the historical society home. Our August 15th evening meeting will feature guest speaker Jane Radcliffe. President of The Center for Painted Wall Preservation, out of Hallowell. Jane will discuss the itinerant stenciler that decorated our HHS parlor walls and other muralists who traveled throughout early New England.

Juanita advised us we are still waiting for the electrician to install the outside garage corner light - the light is in a marked box in the garage. Juanita also asked for cleaning volunteers, to help dust and sweep floors.

The meeting concluded before 7:00 PM and we proceeded to view the contents of the traveling trunk.

The trunk was assembled by Emily Saladino several years ago for the Hope Elementary School with items contributed by HHS members - it is full of treasures. Emily was able to find miniature replicas of many items that illustrate colonial life and life as it progressed into the 19th and early 20th centuries; the trunk's contents enhance the associated narratives of what life was like in Hope and the surrounding area. There are also full-size items - an early herbalist doctor's vial pouch, magic show items, a topographical puzzle map of Hope, etc. The trunk is a treasure trove to whet the mind of curious children as well as adults. We had fun going through it and should offer to open it if we have visitors who wish to spend time perusing the contents.

The evening concluded with refreshments provided by Marie and Juanita.

Respectfully submitted,
Cindy DellaPenna, HHS secretary