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COLONIAL WILLIAMSBURG’S PEOPLE AND PROGRAMS
Online at http://intranet.cwf.org/CWNewsOnline_Archive.html
Vol. 73, No. 4
AUGUST 2020
Hundreds of signs have been posted
throughout Colonial Williamsburg’s
campus reminding guests about
COVID-19 safety requirements.
Journeyman Painter Beth Brantingham in
the sign studio.
Sign, Sign,
Everywhere
a Sign
Beth Brantingham’s work is being noticed all over Colonial Williamsburg’s campus.
The journeyman painter is part of the Foundation’s COVID-19 sign project team
comprised of Building Trades, Marketing and Historic Area Operations. The team
designs, prints and has distributed hundreds of COVID-19 safety signs that are
posted throughout the Foundation’s public areas.
While the signs convey important safety information about social distancing,
wearing face coverings and wayfinding, each one also features a distinct Colonial
Williamsburg design flair thanks to Brantingham and the collaboration team who
came together in May to meet the challenge of guest safety as the Foundation
prepared to resume public programming.
After the longest period of closure in Colonial Williamsburg’s history, it was clear
that inviting guests back to the Historic Area and Art Museums would require careful consideration of employee and guest safety. Signage played a key role in the
reopening strategy.
In this unique circumstance, hundreds of signs were needed in a relatively short
period of time. During the first half of May, the project team brainstormed signage
needs and worked to finalize templates that were then made available for employees
to post. The signs needed to convey important COVID-19 safety information quickly
and efficiently while keeping with the Foundation’s signature style.
“[The signs] reaffirm to people they need to keep social distancing and help them
understand entrances and exits so people aren’t passing each other,” said Kenny
Gulden, manager of Building Trades.
Brantingham’s primary job as a journeyman for the paint shop involves the
research, design and hand-painting of the graphic signs in the Historic Area.
The COVID-19 signage project was “a little bit of pressure, which I liked,” she said.
Sometimes, the sign shop would receive as many as 60 signs in one order. By early
July, the team had produced and issued more than 320 signs, beginning with Chowning’s Garden, which was one of the first sites to reopen to the public.
Careful consideration was given to their placement on campus.
“We plotted out where the signs should go, and as guests showed us what they
Please help protect yourself,
families, our local community,
and valued guests by following
COVID-19 safety protocols.
Popular picture taking spots require
special signage to help reduce the spread
of COVID-19.
�AU G U ST 2020
Online at http://intranet.cwf.org/CWNewsOnline_Archive.html
were going to do, we adapted,” said Jayson Belew, senior manager of Historic Area
Support.
Every sign posted on the campus is a reminder to guests that the Foundation cares
about the community’s well-being, which furthers the Foundation’s mission to share
America’s enduring story.
“I feel very proud. I like being part of a team. My favorite part was tweaking the
signs. I was able to come up with some new custom ones on my own. It was a learning curve for me,” Brantingham said.
Brantingham began working for Colonial Williamsburg in 2018 after training
under a union sign painter in Rhode Island. For a while, she worked as a design
painter for a construction company. Her former company was hired to work on
Carter’s Grove when it was sold, which brought her to Virginia and eventually led
her to the Foundation. The rest is history, and a dream job for Brantingham.
“I like that every day my job is different. No day is the same,” she said.
To order COVID-19-related signage for Historic Area sites, staff may contact
Jayson Belew at rbelew@cwf.org or Wendy Sumerlin at wsumerlin@cwf.org.
The Return
of Haunted
Williamsburg
By Robert Currie,
director of Entertainment and
Evening Programs
Haunted Williamsburg, Colonial Williamsburg’s most popular evening program,
reopened July 1 with some twists to address health risks associated with COVID-19.
The program remains as popular as ever with its July 3 performance selling out two
days after the relaunch.
It was great to finally see the Foundation’s Evening Programs team back in action.
In 2019, our plan to take the best elements of two competing Colonial Williamsburg ghost tours and combine them into one signature program was successful.
Annual sales for Haunted Williamsburg outpaced sales for both of its predecessors
and improved overall profits.
Thanks in large part to Amber Staker, business analyst for Evening Programs and
special event programming, our team has significantly increased our annual net contribution three years in a row.
For 2020, we were ready for another strong year.
Unfortunately, 2020 had its own plans, which forced the temporary suspension of
public programming across the Foundation to protect employees and the community
from COVID-19.
During the closure, we worked with apprentice pewterer and founder Layne
Chappell, sound technician supervisor Jamie Fore and content marketing manager
Sarah Lockwood to film and broadcast a selection of Haunted Williamsburg ghost
stories on Facebook featuring two of our incredibly talented storytellers, historian
Kelly Arehart and journeyman coach driver Dan Hard. This was an excellent opportunity for us to reach new audiences and advertise what makes this storytelling
program so special.
At the same time, our team was working hard to develop a plan to relaunch
Haunted Williamsburg once Gov. Ralph Northam eased Virginia’s reopening guidelines. The health and safety of our staff and guests are paramount, so we knew early
on that we would need to make significant program changes to be successful.
Some of the things that made many of our evening programs so attractive suddenly
became insurmountable obstacles. All hands-on experiences including Spies & Lies
in our escape room and Drop Spindle needed to be suspended indefinitely. Our
theatrical trial programs and evening dance programs could not return because they
require physical contact between cast members or cast members and guests.
�AU G U ST 2020
Online at http://intranet.cwf.org/CWNewsOnline_Archive.html
Daniel Hard, journeyman coach
driver and evening/special programs
interpreter, is one of many popular
Haunted Williamsburg storytellers.
We focused instead on transitioning evening programs to fully outdoor experiences. Haunted Williamsburg was the first program we redesigned since its footprint
in the Historic Area afforded opportunities to make the necessary adjustments while
preserving a quality experience.
While going inside the buildings at night is one of the primary features that guests
love about our tour, the small, confined interior spaces of the Peyton Randolph
House, George Wythe House and James Geddy House presented a serious challenge
in the age of COVID-19. Instead, we created exclusive outdoor spaces in the yards
and gardens of our historic sites and installed cressets at each stop to supply lighting
for safety and atmosphere.
We reduced the capacity per tour from 25 to 15 guests and changed the way guests
are separated into groups before the tour launches. Smaller groups allow us to maintain social distancing protocols while creating a more intimate guest experience.
Also, with the walking tour completely outdoors, we were able to make it fully
ADA accessible.
Ramona Vogel Hill, manager of Evening Programs, drafted a detailed operations
plan and FAQ that guided our returning Evening Programs staff through all the
logistical changes. Ramona and I worked closely with Lindsey Foster, the creative
lead of Haunted Williamsburg, to prepare our storyteller guides for the relaunch.
Lindsey worked directly with each team member, conducting refresher training
workshops and addressing questions and concerns from the team. Listening to the
staff helped us refine our relaunch plans. Ramona and Lindsey provided excellent
leadership for our team during this challenging time and worked together to ensure
that we have a safe and positive work environment for everyone.
With the success of Haunted Williamsburg, our team is now focusing on new
programs and revamping our current lineup to safely entertain and educate guests
while bringing the 18th-century streets to life at night.
Haunted Williamsburg runs nightly with tours launching from the Play House
Stage at 7 and 8:30 p.m.
Lantern in hand, Evening Programs
Interpreter Iris Kilmon awaits
guests for a night of ghost stories.
Evening Programs Interpreter Sam Miller entertains guests as night
descends on Colonial Williamsburg.
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Online at http://intranet.cwf.org/CWNewsOnline_Archive.html
Historic
Trades on
Temporary
Loan
Trades Programs Fill
Empty Gallery
Spaces at the Art
Museums of Colonial
Williamsburg.
Master of the shop Jay Howlett, military artificer, pauses to check his work.
Living history is taking on new meaning at the Art Museums of Colonial Williamsburg with several Historic Trades setting up shop in the museums to entertain and
educate guests due to reduced Historic Area site operations and many trade shops
being closed due to COVID-19. Since the Foundation resumed public programming
in mid-June, bookbinders, cabinetmakers, engravers, gunsmiths, joiners, milliners,
tailors and wigmakers have transferred part of their shop operations to the museums’
galleries.
Though born of necessity, moving elements of the trades program into the museums brings many guest benefits. Tradespeople can point out pieces in the museums
connected to what they are working on. For example, the tailors—master Mark
Hutter, journeyman Michael McCarty and apprentice Tim Logue—were working on
a summer suit of cream-colored linen for Daniel Cross, who portrays a young
George Washington in the Historic Area. The suit’s design and inspiration came
from a similar garment on display in the museums.
Though trades staff rarely set up shop operations in the museums, they routinely
participate in symposia, conferences and other programs held there. At a woodworking conference held at the Art Museums earlier this year, apprentice joiner Scott
Krogh showed his work on a reproduction of a food safe that also featured tin panels
made by master tinsmith Steve Delisle. Krogh has continued to work on the piece
while stationed in the museums, and guests can see the original right around
the corner from him.
The move to the museums has presented some challenges.
“In the shop we’re nested, surrounded by what we need,” said journeyman
engraver Lynn Zelesnikar. “This is a very different experience.”
Hutter agreed.
“As tradespeople, we like our stuff,” he said. “Our shop is visually rich and very
hands-on, intentionally arranged to let people touch and sometimes even try on garments. We had to carefully pick and choose what objects to take with us to the
museum.”
Journeyman joiner and supervisor Brian Weldy and his colleagues perform most
of the noisy chopping and pounding at their shop and transfer items between the Historic Area and the museums.
“What we’ve done is to bring over small projects while leaving bigger ones at the
Taliaferro-Cole Shop,” he said.
Social distancing has also been a challenge.
“You want people to hold a piece and run their hands across it,” said Zelesnikar.
Tradespeople compensate for social distancing by using cameras and projecting
�AU G U ST 2020
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Master of Historic Foodways Frank
Clark prepares ingredients for a
sumptuous meal.
their work onto a monitor. The cameras and monitors also allow them to show
images in ways they are unable to present in the shops, such as at higher magnification, and showing period prints and documents.
Master cabinetmaker Bill Pavlak projected a curved molding he was carving onto
a screen for guests to inspect.
“I’ve had people tell me they wish we had the camera in the shop,” he said. “But of
course that wouldn’t fit in an authentic 18th-century shop.”
Master wigmaker Betty Myers has used the screen for a slideshow that includes an
18th-century print of a wig shop.
“It’s not the same as being in a shop set up for the period, and we don’t have customers dropping by with a wig to be dressed or cleaned as they sometimes do in the
Historic Area,” she said. “But the technology helps.”
By the time trade shops fully reopen, the museums’ galleries will be filled with
art. But collaborations between the Historic Area and the Art Museums will
continue.
“Working in costume supports our tie to the Historic Area, but working in the
modern space we have been able to enhance the experience with modern technology,” said Ted Boscana, director of Historic Trades and Skills. “My hope is that this
partnership will continue.”
For the Art Museums, the collaboration between tradecraft and material culture
brings together two distinct areas of the Foundation.
“The Historic Area and the Art Museums are two different tools for making the
past accessible to our guests, so our talented teams work regularly to connect the
two experiences. Having the Historic Trades staff present directly in the galleries
establishes that connection beautifully,” said Ron Hurst, vice president for Museums,
Preservation, and Historic Resources and the Foundation’s Carlisle H. Humelsine
Chief Curator.
Apprentice bookbinder Barbara Swanson works on her latest creation.
�AU G U ST 2020
Online at http://intranet.cwf.org/CWNewsOnline_Archive.html
Creating
Created Equal
By Katrinah Carol Lewis
Created Equal Cast Members: Deirdre Jones, Jeremy Morris, Katrinah Carol Lewis
and Jamar Jones.
Watch Created Equal
Online
Created Equal is a museum theater
program that explores the perspectives of enslaved African Americans amid the 1776 debate over
fundamental rights, and what the
words and ideals enshrined in the
Declaration mean today. A filmed
performance of Created Equal
aired on Facebook Live on July 29
and the cast hosted a question-and-answer session on the
social-media platform the following day. Both the performance and
the Q&A can be found at colonialwilliamsburg.org/createdequal.
Katrinah Lewis (left) and Deirdre
Jones perform in several Museum
Theater programs that explore the
contributions of free and enslaved
Blacks in the development of our
nation.
The idea for Created Equal came in the days following the Fourth of July in 2018.
As we reviewed the programming that we offered on that day, I noticed that something was missing. On one of the busiest days of the year, we needed a program
devoted to exposing, exploring and illuminating Black perspectives on the Declaration to give more context to the holiday.
What did the Declaration of Independence mean to those who were enslaved at the
time that it was written? What does it mean for descendants of enslaved people
today?
It occurred to me that movement after movement for civil rights and social justice
have been inspired by the powerful words at the beginning of the Declaration, even
as I acknowledged that those words were hollow and painful for the people I have
portrayed in the Historic Area. I went to Cheryl Ruschau, our director of museum
theater, and said, “This is what I want to write about.”
I called a meeting with Deirdre Jones, Jamar Jones and Jeremy Morris, three actor
interpreters who I knew would have amazing contributions to a program like this
and who I have been blessed to work with for years here at Colonial Williamsburg
and in Richmond.
I told them my idea, and I held my breath.
“What do you think?” I said, hoping they would see the potential in the idea. “Will
you work on this with me?”
Thankfully, they all said yes, and we began the messy magical process of creating
a piece of theater together.
I believe in the hive mind. I believe that the best work is produced when everyone
involved has the opportunity to be heard and their opinions valued, considered and
incorporated into what we are creating.
I work this way even when I am the sole playwright on a project. I devote time to
sharing multiple drafts with our ensemble to allow them to really pick it apart. I do
my best to address concerns and modify scripts accordingly.
I once worked with an associate director on a new play who introduced the concept
of “free idea” into the process. It doesn’t cost anything to share an idea, or to listen.
It may not be right for the moment we are trying to create, but it’s free! Get it out
there! It may inform some other aspect of the piece or inspire someone else’s creative
thinking.
The hive mind was certainly activated as my co-authors and I worked on developing Created Equal. We collaborated on a brainstorm document that includes poems,
primary resources, famous speeches and quotes, questions to one another, free
writing, nonsense, reflections, free association, partial ideas and fragments of
�AU G U ST 2020
Online at http://intranet.cwf.org/CWNewsOnline_Archive.html
monologues we’d written from the perspectives of the historical figures we portray.
We developed these monologues (really the core of the play and the work that we
do on a regular basis as actor interpreters) and discovered how they could complement one another. Then we incorporated other free ideas that we had thrown into the
creative pot as connective tissue. And voilà! Most of a play.
The ancestors are with us. I know this because I can feel them and hear them.
Their voices call to me when I walk the streets of the Historic Area and stand in the
homes enslaved people were imprisoned in, or walk past the whipping post by the
Courthouse, or sit in front of the Raleigh Tavern or reflect behind the Coffeehouse
where we perform.
Sometimes their voices fall into my heart and my mind. They speak to me. This
happened as we wrote the end of the play. Two young women, girls really, Jenny and
Kate, spoke to me with all their innocence and beauty and asked if all men are really
created equal. How can they be when society and circumstance are so far from
exhibiting that? I imagine children from yesterday and today must look at the world
and wonder.
Your Story:
Katrinah
Carol Lewis
For each issue of CW News, volunteer Chuck Reusing interviews one of our many talented staff members to give us a sense, in their own words, of who they are, what they do
and why their work is important.
JOB TITLE: Artistic Director of Museum Theater
YEARS OF SERVICE: I began my career with The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation in July 2011 as an actor interpreter. I have been serving as artistic director of
Museum Theater since 2016.
Katrinah Carol Lewis
JOB RESPONSIBILITIES: I have multifaceted roles in my employment with
Colonial Williamsburg, including writing, directing and performing in various theatrical productions that appear throughout the Historic Area, including on the Charlton’s Coffeehouse stage, in the Apollo Room at the Raleigh Tavern and in the
Hennage Auditorium at the Art Museums of Colonial Williamsburg. I have worked
as playwright, actor and director in many programs including Created Equal, Journey to Redemption, Joy in the Morning and Resolved: An American Experiment. A
lot of my work focuses on the stories of enslaved Blacks in colonial Virginia, a topic
very relevant in today’s world. In Williamsburg in the 18th century, more than half
of the residents were enslaved, and we have many stories to tell visitors. I directed
our production of Created Equal and perform in the play with my fellow playwright/
performers Deirdre Jones, Jamar Jones and Jeremy Morris.
I also try to be a conduit for other actor interpreters, seeking their collective and
individual creative ideas on how to best capture the essence of colonial Virginia by
creating stories that we can offer to the thousands of visitors who come here each
year. In addition to our theatrical productions, which generally run 30–45 minutes,
I also work with our Museum Theater ensemble on how they might engage our visitors with street interpretation, creating moments of improvised and planned connections with guests and each other. These can be effective teaching moments as we
engage our visitors in the Historic Area.
Since 2013, I have performed as Lydia Broadnax, a woman who lived more than
45 years of her life enslaved to George Wythe in Williamsburg and as a free businesswoman living in Richmond during the later years of her life. I also perform as
Jenny from Martin’s Hundred plantation, an enslaved woman who was owned by
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Peyton Randolph and later by Elizabeth Randolph. She most likely tended tobacco
on the Randolphs’ plantation.
WHAT I DO TO IMPROVE THE GUEST EXPERIENCE: As actor interpreters
we are on the front lines of engaging and educating visitors about colonial life in
Williamsburg and Virginia. We want to help them gain a better understanding of
where we were and where we have come from since our nation’s very beginnings.
In many of our theatrical productions, we hope that our visitors will gain a better
understanding of enslavement and its inhumanity.
We always request guest feedback following each of our productions, many times
by offering a question-and-answer session at the conclusion of the production. Frequent guest surveys are conducted asking visitors what their likes and dislikes were
during their visit.
MEMORABLE EXPERIENCES: In 2012, as I was preparing to perform as Jenny,
I spent a couple hours once or twice a week at Great Hopes Plantation during the
planting season between March and September planting tobacco and corn. Working
in the hot sun, operating the plow, tilling the soil and planting the seeds gave me
firsthand experience on what it must have been like for Jenny as an enslaved tobacco
farmer in the 18th century. This was a very emotionally, spiritually and physically
enlightening experience for me and better prepared me for my characterization of
Jenny.
In 2016, seven members of our Museum Theater department traveled to Denver,
Colorado, to perform Journey to Redemption at the annual International Museum
Theatre Alliance conference. We were able to share our process and connect with
other museum professionals using theater to teach and engage. It was wonderful to
represent Colonial Williamsburg and learn about what others in the field are
creating.
BIGGEST ACCOMPLISHMENTS: I am very active in Richmond’s vibrant theater community and have been nominated for best actress in a play four separate
times by the Richmond Theatre Critics Circle. I received the Best Actress in a
Musical Award from this same group in 2016 for my performance in Lady Day at
Emerson’s Bar and Grill. I also share the Ernie McClintock Best Acting Ensemble
Award for 2013 with my ensemble for our work in Gidion’s Knot.
I received a bachelor’s degree in fine arts from Virginia Commonwealth University, majoring in theater, and also studied voice at Levine School of Music in
Washington, D.C., while growing up in Northern Virginia. I have a lifelong passion
for singing and acting, and I am so happy to be able to bring my creative talents to
Colonial Williamsburg.
INTERESTS/HOBBIES: My interests are many and varied. I am a soprano singer,
certified yoga instructor, juggler and guitar/ukulele player, and I love to go dancing.
�AU G U ST 2020
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If These Walls
Could Talk:
Pine Tar
By Steve Chabra,
Architectural Preservation Project
Supervisor
Have you ever noticed a sweet, smoky, slightly pungent odor while walking around
the Historic Area? If you follow your nose, you very likely will discover a freshly
painted fence or building coated with pine tar-based paint.
Pine tar was a common and inexpensive paint used in colonial Virginia. Plain pine
tar is dark brown and has the consistency of heavy molasses. It could be used
straight or mixed with linseed oil or turpentine. Painters often changed the color by
adding different earth tone pigments, which most often created varying shades of
dark red.
Pine tar was commercially produced in many of the southern colonies where
yellow pine trees grew during the 18th century. It is made by slowly burning large
piles of yellow pine in a controlled manner. The process involves making a tar kiln
by digging a large funnel-shaped pit with a drain at the bottom. Finely split resin-rich yellow pine roots, stumps and knots are carefully stacked inside. The pit is
then covered with sod and turf. Air vents allow the wood to be ignited and are used
to control the airflow. As the pine slowly burns, tar renders out of the wood and falls
to the bottom of the pit where it flows through the drainpipe into a waiting barrel.
Pine tar paint preserves and waterproofs wood. It is often used to prolong the life
of wooden roofs and siding. Tar paints have been used on many different buildings.
Some you may expect, like clapboard-covered plantation outbuildings; others you
may not, like cypress-shingle church roofs. Tar paint is very useful in preserving the
life of a building, but it needs to be reapplied every two or three years.
Colonial Williamsburg currently has many buildings coated with pine tar paint.
The shingles on the newly constructed market house have a red-brown pigmented tar
paint coating. The kitchen and tin shop at Anderson’s Blacksmith Shop and Public
Armoury have red-brown pigmented tar-covered clapboard walls while the privy
and south storehouse are covered in unpigmented tar. At the Peyton Randolph property you can find red-brown pigmented tar on the north storehouse, granary, garden
toolshed, chicken house and fencing. The Gateway Building got a fresh coat of
unpigmented tar in March 2020.
The next time your nose catches that sweet, smoky scent, look around and maybe
you will see a freshly tarred building.
Anderson Armory Privy in
winter 2019 with a coat of plain
pine.
The Anderson Armory Kitchen with
a new coat of red pigmented tar as
it appeared in winter 2019.
This February 2016 image of the Market House shows off its tar-painted roof.
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Online at http://intranet.cwf.org/CWNewsOnline_Archive.html
Ed
Chappell’s
Lasting
Legacy
Ed Chappell
The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation lost a dear friend with the death of Ed
Chappell on July 25, 2020. Chappell retired in 2016 after more than three decades
serving the Foundation, most recently as the Shirley and Richard Roberts Director of
Architectural Research and Archaeology.
Chappell led Colonial Williamsburg’s architectural research program to document
historic structures through extensive notes, photographs and drawings. Under his
leadership, architectural historians guided the reconstruction of buildings like the
Peyton Randolph outbuildings, R. Charlton’s Coffeehouse, James Anderson’s Blacksmith Shop and Public Armoury, and the Market House. Chappell’s passion for architectural history went beyond these familiar structures, however, and often focused on
lesser known buildings and the important stories contained within their walls.
“Ed taught me that the study of buildings was the study of humanity,” said Conser
vator and Materials Analyst Kirsten Moffitt, who worked on more than one hundred
architectural paint research projects with Chappell starting in 2010, the year she joined
Colonial Williamsburg’s Architectural Research Department as a graduate intern.
Chappell was a pioneer in American architectural history who reinvigorated the
field beginning in the 1980s to combat criticism that Colonial Williamsburg’s buildings were not accurate reproductions of the original structures. Much more than his
predecessors, Chappell focused his work on so-called ordinary buildings that often
sat behind extraordinary ones. Through extensive fieldwork conducted throughout
the English-speaking world, Chappell and his team documented structures such as
tobacco barns, slave quarters and privies. Their work influenced how the Foundation
constructs buildings today, and Chappell’s advocacy to let the buildings themselves
serve as teaching tools helped redefine how the Foundation tells stories about the
people who lived and worked in and around them.
“He was a leader in the sense that he was a powerful advocate for the idea that we
study buildings to understand social life. People look to his work as a model of how
to do this sort of field recording. And he did it very, very well,” said Jeff Klee, Colonial Williamsburg’s Shirley and Richard Roberts Architectural Historian. “He was
really committed to telling a much broader story.”
Chappell took fastidious notes, often scribbling them on scraps of paper with a red
pen to satisfy his insatiable appetite for collecting information about important buildings. The documents, drawings and photographs the team collected over his 36-year
career at the Foundation fill 15 4-foot-wide file cabinets in the Collections building
and John D. Rockefeller Jr. Library. Another 10 flat file cabinets containing drawings
are stored in the architectural and engineering wing of Bruton Heights School.
“He absolutely refused to leave an old building without learning something from
it,” Klee said.
Klee and his colleagues frequently consult Chappell’s notes, typed from his longhand scribbles, when conducting their own architectural history research. For the
team of architectural historians charged with continuing his work, his files are a
physical reminder of his legacy to advance scholarship and to let buildings tell a
more complete story about the lives of people living in colonial Virginia.
Colonial Williamsburg’s Matt Webster counts Chappell as a friend, a colleague
and a mentor who guided him throughout his career starting in 1997 when Webster
interned at Historic Kenmore in Fredericksburg, Virginia, and continued when he
joined Colonial Williamsburg several years later. Webster serves as executive director for the Granger Department of Architectural Preservation and Research and
worked closely with Chappell over the years. He last spoke to him in mid-July, just a
few days before his death.
“I was told by a very wise person that it is our job to assure the next generation is
prepared to continue our work. Ed did just that, mentoring generations of architectural historians that will continue to care for the historic resources of the nation and
world,” Webster said.
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Celebrating July 4th
Tavern performers Patrick Rooney, Wayne Hill, Christopher Hartman entertain guests at historic Shields Tavern on July 4. Special
Independence Day programming included a public reading of the Declaration of Independence from the Capitol’s west balcony. In
the dramatic program Created Equal, performed at the Charlton Stage, Colonial Williamsburg actor interpreters explored the
perspectives of enslaved Blacks amid the 1776 debate over fundamental rights and what the words and ideals enshrined in the
Declaration mean today. At 5 p.m. bells tolled along Duke of Gloucester Street and at community locations including the city’s
historic First Baptist Church to reflect on the events of the day and salute those who, throughout our nation’s history, have
endeavored to meet the challenges of their times.
Lowe’s
N95 Mask
Donation
Dave Bjorkman (right), Colonial
Williamsburg’s manager of facilities
services, receives 500 N95 masks
from Lowe’s of Williamsburg to
support the Foundation’s mission
and operations. The warehouse
team is distributing the masks to
employees as needed to limit the
spread of COVID-19.
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Local Chapter
of The Sons of
The American
Revolution
Honors CW
Employees
Congratulations
Anna Cordle Harry
And William
Schermerhorn for
Being Awarded Bronze
Good Citizenship
Medals
Pictured, left to right, are Thomas Campbell, former manager of Williamsburg Chapter
Events, Virginia Society of the Sons of the American Revolution; William Schermerhorn;
Roger Cross, president of the Williamsburg Chapter; Anna Cordle Harry; and Jeffrey
Wooldridge, manager of Williamsburg Chapter Events.
Anna Cordle Harry, Community Affairs manager, and William Schermerhorn,
creative director of Signature Events, both of The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, were each awarded a Bronze Good Citizenship Medal by the Williamsburg
Chapter of the Virginia Society of the Sons of the American Revolution during a
ceremony at the Capitol on July 16, 2020. The award was given in recognition of
their noteworthy contributions to the community in designing, organizing and conducting historical and patriotic events as well as their continued support of the
Williamsburg Chapter in promoting patriotism, preserving American history and
educating future generations.
Sophie
Freiling
Receives 2020
Williamsburg
Community
Foundation
Scholarship
The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation sponsors an annual scholarship
through the Williamsburg Community Foundation awarding a minimum of $1,000 to a graduate of
Lafayette, Jamestown or Warhill
high school who is employed by or
related to an employee of Colonial
Williamsburg. This year’s scholarship recipient is Sophie Freiling,
daughter of Paul Freiling, director of
principal gifts. Sophie graduated
from Lafayette High School and will
pursue a degree in political science
at Vanderbilt University this fall.
Congratulations, Sophie!
Sophie Freiling
�AU G U ST 2020
Online at http://intranet.cwf.org/CWNewsOnline_Archive.html
This column of CW News will continue to introduce members of Colonial Williamsburg’s
senior leadership team in their own words. The senior leadership team is responsible for
directing the Foundation’s overall strategy to share America’s enduring story
Henry Lai
Vice President of Finance
Meet the
Senior
Leadership
Team
I came to Colonial Williamsburg in 2017 after
working for many years at public and private
companies in the consumer and retail space. I oversee Colonial Williamsburg’s financial planning,
business analytics and accounting teams. In my
position, I use my financial management skills to
strengthen the Foundation’s finances as my contribution toward advancing our mission to share
America’s enduring story. Working at the Foundation has been a change of pace for me, and I particularly enjoy collaborating with the dedicated and passionate professionals who care
so deeply about this place.
I work every day alongside team leaders from across the organization to drive
financial performance and make decisions that support the Foundation’s long-term
finance strategies. I am committed to providing financial stewardship that ensures
Colonial Williamsburg’s continued financial health and to maintain the highest
level of integrity and financial transparency when working with my colleagues and
the board of trustees.
Prior to joining Colonial Williamsburg, I held a range of corporate and operations finance roles at Lumber Liquidators, Sony Corporation of America and illiamsW
Sonoma Inc. I earned a Master of Business Administration from Cal Poly, San
Luis Obispo, and a Bachelor of Science in hotel administration from the University
of Nevada, Las Vegas.
“The distinctions between Virginians,
Pennsylvanians, New Yorkers, and New
Englanders are no more. I Am Not A Virginian,
But An American!”
― Patrick Henry
�AU G U ST 2020
Online at http://intranet.cwf.org/CWNewsOnline_Archive.html
Kevin D. Patrick
Senior Vice President, Chief Financial Officer
and Treasurer
Meet the
Senior
Leadership
Team
I have worked in finance and business strategy for
more than 30 years with extensive experience in
corporate development, business turnarounds,
financing and financial management. I have led and
participated in more than $30 billion of international
and domestic acquisitions and divestitures in the
telecom, beverage, retail and energy industries with
activities including preliminary discussions of interest, purchase agreement review, valuation development/deal structuring, bid strategy, negotiation of key deal points and business
integration.
As senior vice president of finance, chief financial officer and treasurer for The
Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, I am responsible for driving the Foundation’s
operating and financial performance, as well as for setting the Foundation’s financial
direction by implementing a return on investment, analytics based, strategic finance
discipline across the enterprise.
Prior to joining Colonial Williamsburg, I served as vice president and CFO for
Marcus Lemonis, of The Profit on CNBC, a private equity investor with a portfolio
of more than 25 businesses, spanning several industries including manufacturing,
restaurant/bar, franchise and retail.
I have a bachelor of business administration in finance from the Connecticut
State Universities and a Master of Business Administration from the University of
Connecticut. I also studied international business and marketing at Ecole de Management Lyon in France and successfully completed the Executive Development
Program at the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania and the Program
on Negotiation at Harvard Law School.
Additional prior roles
• Executive Managing Director, Blackwater Strategic Advisors
• Chief Strategy Officer, South Jersey Industries
• Vice President and CFO, Albertsons Eastern Division
• Assistant Vice President of Corporate Planning and Development,
Brown-Forman Corporation
Various financial positions with Frontier Communications and AT&T
• Community Service/Boards
• Franklin Bioscience, Advisory Board, Philadelphia, PA
• Faith in the Future, Board, Philadelphia, PA
• Mayor’s Manufacturing Task Force, Executive Committee, Philadelphia, PA
• Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce, Board, Philadelphia, PA
• Philabundance Food Relief, Board/Treasurer, Philadelphia, PA
�AU G U ST 2020
Online at http://intranet.cwf.org/CWNewsOnline_Archive.html
Beth Kelly
Vice President of Education, Research, and Historical
Interpretation
Meet the
Senior
Leadership
Team
I
grew up in a family of storytellers. By hearing their
life experiences through stories (often humorous), I
had a more complete understanding of my parents,
grandparents, aunts and uncles. My father also had a
keen interest in our nation’s history, so we spent our
vacations visiting forts and historical sites. I remember vividly some of the guides we met at Gettysburg
and Mount Vernon and in Colonial Williamsburg’s
Historic Area. They were masterful storytellers and
teachers, and they inspired me.
My own passion for history steered me toward an undergraduate degree in American history, but my father persuaded me to get a degree that was “practical” and
would ensure I was able to support myself, so I pursued a degree in business. After
graduating from college in New York, I still longed to do something involving history. While interviewing for several positions in Richmond and Norfolk, I came
through Williamsburg and spent the day touring the area. I spoke with many of the
interpreters who encouraged me to apply for an open interpreter position. The rest is
history (pardon the pun).
I will never forget my first days working here as a visitor aide and the pride I felt
being part of a nurturing community that was doing such important work. As a
member of the senior leadership team, I want all employees to feel the same sense of
pride and community that I have enjoyed in my more than 30 years at the Foundation. We have more work to do, but together we will improve our workplace culture
so that everyone feels that their voices are heard.
Together, we are raising the profile of our museum. We are reshaping how we tell
the important stories of our 18th-century counterparts through relevant programming that reflects many of the issues we still face today. This work is at the heart of
our mission, and through it we are reaching new audiences as we fill gaps in our
research to present full, complex and inspiring stories of our founding generation.
I
am grateful for the opportunity to serve in my position. When I face a decision,
I always think first how it would affect me if I were an interpreter, a supervisor, a
manager and so on. I have been fortunate to hold all these positions, and those perspectives help me understand the work we do and the work we must do going forward to remain relevant as the Foundation heads into its second century. That being
said, while I take my work very seriously, I do not take myself seriously.
“Patriotism is as much a virtue as justice, and is as
necessary for the support of societies as
natural affection is for the support of families.”
― Benjamin Rush
�AU G U ST 2020
Online at http://intranet.cwf.org/CWNewsOnline_Archive.html
Kaylee S. (July 2020)
Guest
Feedback!
Guest comments are unsolicited
and received via CW’s online
comment card.
My boyfriend and I visited Colonial Williamsburg for the first time on Saturday, July 18,
and were blown away with the kindness and knowledge of the reenactors we met, most
notably Ginny at the Randolph Kitchen and Yard and Cathy, Brandon, and Eve at the
Colonial Garden. Ginny in particular was an excellent historian – she answered all of
our questions (and then some!) in great detail. Neither of us had known anything about
Peyton Randolph before we toured the property and left having learned so much about
the man and his household. All of them made our experience unforgettable and we look
forward to visiting again in the future.
Alli, S. (July 2020)
I wanted to take the time to write a positive message of encouragement and support
to CW! I have been to your site more times than I can count on my fingers and this
place was what inspired me into a career in museums. I cannot commend you all
enough for your incredible social media presence during the pandemic, for the support
you provided your staff in keeping them on board and also highlighting their talents
(loved that!), your rich diversity of content, your support of BIPOC and LGBTQIA+
communities and being vocal about it.
I visited your site a year or so ago and was a little dismayed at the lack of vibrancy
I experienced (I also was there during an off-season time) but the work you have done
to be present online has completely changed me around. Keep up the incredible work.
Thank you for continuing to be leaders in the history and living history community and
thank you for showing how you value your talented staff. I will be visiting and donating
in the near future!
Through Optima Health Management, Colonial Williamsburg’s Employee Assistance Program provides a wide range of online resources to help manage a variety
of life’s challenges.
Here’s what you need to know about this FREE resource for all employees:
HR Benefits
Do You Need Help?
• Topics: COVID-19, family matters, marital concerns, parenting, stress, personal
development, health, child and eldercare resources, legal and financial infor
mation, and other topics commonly addressed through employee assistance
programs
• Confidential access from your home computer anytime
• Does not require any personal identifying information
• URL: http://www.OptimaEAP.com/
• Username: CWF
Colonial Williamsburg News is published by the Office of Internal Communications for Colonial Williamsburg employees. Send email
correspondence to Kevin Crossett at kcrossett@cwf.org.
Editors Catherine Whittenburg, x7726 and Kevin Crossett, x7286
Contributors Katie Appel, Paul Aron, Steve Chabra, Kevin Crossett, Robert Currie, Thomas Green, Tracey Gulden, Anna Cordle Harry,
Henry Lai, Beth Kelly, Katrinah Lewis, Jen Losik, Jody Macenka, Katherine McDonald, Kevin Patrick, Wayne Reynolds, Chuck Reusing, Joe
Straw, Angela Taormina, Amy Watson.
�
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
CW News
Description
An account of the resource
<p>The <em>Colonial Williamsburg News</em> was the official newspaper of the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation. Publication began November 1940 under the title <em>The Restoration News</em> and was published under that name until February 1942. The title changed to <em>The News of Colonial Williamsburg</em> from February 1942 to May 1950. The name changed again in May 1950 to <em>Colonial Williamsburg News</em>. It is often collectively referred to by the abbreviated title <em>CW News</em>. Production switched to a digital-only format in 2018. The newspaper ceased production in 2020.</p>
<p>When using the <em>CW News</em>, it is important to remember that it reflects the realities of its time. For example, columns in the 1940s issues reported on the “News of the Colored People.” Separate reporting of African American and white social events was indicative of the segregation that was the legal norm in Virginia at the time.</p>
<p>The number of issues published every year varies. No papers were published between January 1943 and June 1, 1948. From August 1979 through May 1992, a supplemental publication titled <em>Colonial Williamsburg News Extra</em> was sometimes published to include additional information for staff, especially during those periods when the paper was published every other month. There are occasional Public Relations-style news releases published as <em>CW News Telenews</em> or sometimes just as <em>Telenews</em>.</p>
<p>The publication was produced principally for employees to inform them of important and relevant goings-on in a timely fashion. Although distributed fairly widely at CWF properties and now online, the paper covers topics including Restoration (and later Colonial Williamsburg Foundation) building openings, new programming, Historic Trades, special events, historical and architectural research, archaeological discoveries, new employee hires and retirements, employee activities and achievements, employee profiles and personal milestones, employee benefit and charity concerns, donor activities, museum exhibitions and acquisitions, film productions and book publications, educational initiatives, celebrity and VIP guest visits, restaurant and hotel news, product and reproductions releases, Merchant’s Square shopping, and relevant local area news.</p>
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Colonial Williamsburg News, volume 73, number 4, August 2020
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Colonial Williamsburg Foundation
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
Colonial Williamsburg Foundation
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2020-08