Dear Friends of the Meeting House,
You will want to make sure that you have these terrific fall events on your calendar!
Carolyn Cruso in Concert
Nationally acclaimed singer/songwriter Carolyn Cruso will appear in concert. at the Meeting House on November 20 at 7 PM. Cruso is a multi-instrumentalist and composer. She has toured widely in both the United States and Europe, and has produced eight CDs. Equally at home on hammered dulcimer, flute, and guitar, Caruso performs a diverse array of original tunes and songs as well as traditional material. Her instrumental compositions are inspired by her strong connection to nature as well as her extensive travel and the cultures she’s encountered along the way. Her unusual and lyrical approach to the dulcimer especially delights audiences and has even won over curmudgeons who swore they hated hammered dulcimer! In addition to all of her accolades, Carolyn is the daughter of board member Patricia Cruso and her husband Tom.
Tickets are $17 in advance (at www.jamesportmeetinghouse.org or 631-909-3744) or $20 at the door. Light refreshments will follow the performance. Don’t miss this opportunity to hear this talented singer in the intimate and acoustically rich setting of the Jamesport Meeting House. This will be her only Long Island appearance.
Cookies and Carols
After just one year, this has become a beloved seasonal event at the Jamesport Meeting House. The East End Arts Council Chorus, under its new conductor Ann Webb, will join us again for a combination performance and audience sing-along. And all of this will be followed by a sampling of cookies baked by community members! Mark you calendar for Friday, December 17 at 6:30 PM.
Christmas Gospel Concert
On December 4 at 4PM, South Jamesport postmaster Kevin Ford will be bringing Just B’ Cause, his group of gospel singers, back to the Meeting House for a Christmas concert. Watch for details.
House Tour a Big Success
The second annual Historic Jamesport House tour on September 25 was a big success. Again this year, we were blessed with beautiful fall weather. The nearly three-hundred visitors who toured the thirteen homes open for the day had trouble picking their favorites. They also enjoyed Nathan Corwin’s costumed tours of the Meeting House and dining in Jamesport’s many participating restaurants and eateries. Like last year, we heard nothing but accolades from visitors, volunteers and homeowners alike.
Update on the Steeple
Thanks to a generous grant from Suffolk County arranged by County Legislator Ed Romaine and a successful “SOS” (Save our Steeple) fundraising campaign, we have been able to undertake much needed repairs on the steeple. After a century-and-a-half of service, the tin roof at the base of the belfry has reached the end of its useful life. Serious leaks threatened to rot the main support beams and compromise the structural integrity of the steeple. Jeff Hallock has been working with Fred Klatt of Klatt Sheet Metal to do the roofing work and contractor Rob Gabrielsen and Joe Minic have erected the scaffolding to get this project done before winter arrives. You may have noticed the scaffolding recently erected on the building. Everyone involved has donated some of their services. Please thank these friends of the Meeting House when you see them.
Our Shutters are coming back
Thanks to a lot of organizational effort and hard work by aspiring Eagle Scout Matthew Ireland, our 150-year-old shutters have been beautifully restored and painted. These shutters were installed when the Meeting House was rebuilt by Rogers Aldrich in 1859. Of the original 20, only 9 survive. When we removed them last year to allow the building to be painted, they were in such bad shape that we despaired of being able to reinstall them. However, our young Eagle-Scout-to-be did a fantastic job. Can’t wait until we can get all the shutters back up on the building.
A new piano!
One final bit of good news. The Meeting House has a new piano. It is a beautiful 1922 August Forster 5’ 3” baby grand made in Austria. The piano is a gift of Paul Ebbitts, whose lovely South Jamesport home was on last year’s “Historic Jamesport House Tour.” The instrument is a real beauty, has been fully refurbished and has a wonderful sound that, with the Meeting House’s excellent acoustics, will nicely fill the place. It still needs a little work, but we expect it will make its debut at the December 17 “Carols and Cookies” event.
The Jamesport Meeting House needs your help
The survival and restoration of the 1731 Jamesport Meeting House depends on contributions from the community — which so far have been very generous. Thank you! We have nearly completed urgent steeple repairs, but we need to address a deteriorating roof on the east side of the building and the beautiful windows need major reglazing and painting. We also dream about new pew cushions, upgrading and modernizing the heating and ventilating system, and maybe even adding air conditioning to make the place more usable in the summer months. The Jamesport Meeting House is a 501(c)3 tax exempt organization.
Please send
contributions to:
Jamesport Meeting House
PO Box 330
Jamesport, NY 11947
