A REVIEW OF 2024: A Very Busy Year!

If you haven’t already noticed, the Spring-Ford Area Historical Society has stepped up its game in recent years.  Visitation is up, the number of events and programs is up, artifact donation is up, and membership and monetary support are both up!  Our Board of Directors is leading us, our volunteers (including our all-volunteer board), are making program offerings at the museum and community programs and events possible, and the broad-based generous support that we enjoy from members and the community is gratifying.  Whatever role(s) you play, thank you for being a part of “making history happen” in 2024 and beyond!  Here is an encapsulated summary of 2024:

Membership at end of 2024:  278, including 34 Life Members.

Seventeen non-board member volunteers donated more than 600 hours of their time to museum projects.  A “Thank You” luncheon was held on January 11, 2025 to recognize our volunteers and each received a certificate showing the number of hours they volunteered in the previous year.  An outstanding volunteer, with 300 volunteer hours, was Cindy Henson!   

Our volunteers were on hand to make sure 19 programs and events throughout 2024 were appropriately set up and staffed. 

Two non-board member volunteers, Ashley Mealing and Hudson Thomas,  joined the Museum Committee.  This committee meets monthly.  The addition of non-board members to this committee represents our growth and vision for the future, as Hudson is one of our  Jr. Volunteers.  He also volunteers as a tour guide during open hours and special events. 

In addition to our Jr. Volunteers, in 2024 we also added a new group of volunteers, “Apprentice Volunteers”, who are age 12 and under.  If you stopped at our tables on Community Day or attended any of the summer programs you may have seen them signing in guests, handing out literature, and “manning” stations for hands on activities.   

Our Board of Directors grew by one member, Jane Reedy, in 2024.  Jane brings her computer savviness, attention to detail, and planning skills to the society.  Her talents are well appreciated. 

A major accomplishment in 2024 was the completion of new and updated display spaces in the farmhouse and gallery.  All display cases were updated, and several displays moved to new spaces during this three month renovation.  Our  displays highlight the designer touches of Amy Demchik, Diane Flogaus, and Jane Reedy.   The relocated school room was created by Dave Willauer and invokes memories of school days past.  This project to update the museum could not have been completed without the work of our board members and dedicated volunteers, and we were especially fortunate to have an outstanding craftsman in our board member, Dick Marshall.  Dick crafted all the specialty items needed for our exhibits.   Our grand re-opening was held on April 7th, with 69 visitors in attendance.  Plans were made for an Entertainment Hall in the gallery and this project was kickstarted in 2024.  Whenever painting was needed to spruce up an area, Lori Anthony was there to help!  Additionally, displays are now protected from sun damage with film installed on windows in exhibit areas.   

Two rotating exhibits, Photography in the Boroughs and Disasters in the Boroughs were presented in 2024.   These exhibits provided an opportunity to bring artifacts, documents,  and photos from our archives out for visitors’ enjoyment and also provide a unique opportunity to explore local history.   

In May and September, we were pleased to have Spring-Ford High School reunions for the classes of 1959 and 1964 include time at the museum in their reunion activities.  Our volunteers made souvenir booklets for each class.  Volunteers were available in all display areas to answer questions for our visitors.  The yearbook for each class was available for perusal – a popular activity that prompted many memories and discussions. 

Volunteers helped with the four Summer Family Programs held in June, July, and August and our four quarterly programs held in April, June, September, and November.  They set up and cleaned up, checked in  registrants in and handed out literature.  For some programs they manned activity stops for kids.   We “stepped out of the box” and held programs at the Royersford fire station and Scoup-de-ville rather than at our regular venue of the Royersford VFW.  Our program at Scoup-de-ville attracted more than 150 folks!

Programs and Events in 2024 

January -March	Museum closed for updating exhibits
February 25	Program at VFW   Joe Evans – The picture taker talks about “A Fan’s Journey”
April 7	Reopening Event
April 10	Program at VFW  Limerick Historical Society - William and Mordecai Evans House
May 8	Program at Royersford Fire Company  Bill Baldini speaks about Pennhurst
May 23	SFAHS host the Class of 1959
June 10	Quarterly Program at VFW  Ryan Conroy – Sherwood Hallman, Medal of Honor Winner
June 24	Family Program  Betsy Ross
July 8	Quarterly Family Program  Bicycles
July 9	SFAHS hosts the 4-H Exchange Club from Wisconsin with our Jr. Volunteer, Hudson Thoms
July 22	Quarterly Family Program  SOAP Radio
August 5	Family Program  Mystery Hunt
August 19	SFAHS and Royersford Public Library  Story Hour and Vintage Games
September 7	Community Day in Royersford
September 18	Quarterly Program at Scoup-de-ville  Nelson’s Ice Cream
September 28	SFAHS hosts the Class of 1964
November 13	Quarterly Program at VFW  SFAHS – 40 Years as Royersford’s Attic
November 17	Military Room Event  Ryan Conroy
November 17	Holiday Decorations
December 14	Joe Evans, The Picture Taker & Santa

In July the historical society hosted a group of teens from a 4-H Exchange Club from Wisconsin.  This was arranged by our Jr. Volunteer, Hudson Thomas, who is a local 4-H club member.

We partnered with the Royersford Public Library in August for story time followed by kids’ games.  Our volunteers manned game stations and encouraged the kids to play and learn some new skills, like rolling a hoop and playing hop scotch! 

Volunteer bakers once again made the bake sale on Royersford Community Day a success.  This year we added carnival type games in the back yard to our Community Day activities.  We had a dunk tank and thank our Asst. Treasurer, Dan McGuigan, for volunteering to be “dunked”… and he was, many times!  This event was an all around success!

Museum Committee and Board member Mike Osiol leads an initiative to increase the number of family binders in our library.  This is ongoing with new binders added quarterly.  It is gratifying to see the work begun by Joe Forrest continue.  We now offer a service to purchase copies of family binders, and several families now have their own copy.

In 2024 our Sr. Memories Project continued with Margaret and Donald Grubb, Sandra Smoyer (nee McCorkle), and Millie Weigner (nee Andes) participating.  Transcriptions of these interviews are almost finalized and will be available to read in our library in the late spring of 2025.   Volunteers Jackie Swanson, Ashley Mealing, and Sandi VanBuren conducted the interviews.

This past year brought the  culmination of a project to digitize the hard copies of newspapers in our collections.  This project was made possible with the support of Mr. and Mrs. Donald Grubb.  Researchers today and in the future have this resource available only because of their generosity.

For the second year in a row SFAHS sold the largest number of tickets for the Pottstown Rotary’s Annual Duck Race.  Our 2024 ticket sales over 665  and our goal in 2025 is to top that number!  We have to mention this accomplishment would not have been possible without Paul Kern and his amazing salesmanship!

The porch restoration was paid off after two years of fund raising.  In 2024 the Family Games Raffle Basket fund raiser was a hit.  The winner was Molly Blackburn.   Specially made just for SFAHS candles were sold for the holiday season with proceeds going to the porch fund. 

Throughout the year Diane Flogaus and Amy Demchik made sure the museum grounds had seasonal plantings and decorations. 

The year ended with another major change in the farmhouse.  With the donation of a complete dining room set c. 1910 by Elizabeth Rutter, what was known as the “parlor” has been returned to its original use as a dining room.  The table is set with dishes belonging to Connie Willauer’s grandmother.  A china cabinet, buffet, and sideboard complete the room, which looks ready for diners to be seated. 

As always, we invite you to become a volunteer at SFAHS.  If you’re not able to volunteer, please be sure to make time in your calendar to attend some of the events we hold throughout the year and be sure to come to tour the farmhouse and gallery.  This “little” historical society has “big” visions we are anxious to share with you! 

Our maintenance committee of Tom Donofrio, Dick Marshall, and Dan McGuigan oversaw the completion of the Farmhouse Porch Project, the restoration of the Major’s Dairy cupola, and the installation of safety railings at the side porch and in order to open and make accessible emergency exits from both the third and second floors of the Farmhouse.  Dick Marshall’s skill and creativity was invested in creating tables and display bases for the new Entertainment Gallery, vintage post office boxes, AMT-made lathe, Valley Forge Flag sewing machine.  Dick also created a replica of the Penn Theater ticket window, and fabricated brackets for mounting the Nelson’s Ice Cream sign in the pavilion.  Maintenance also addressed a multitude of routine maintenance and repairs.

For our income, we exceeded budgetary expectations in the areas of membership (105%), donations (113%), and fundraising (139%).  Our expenses for the year also exceeded budgeted funds by about 20%.  Our utilities and other support service costs increased during 2024 and are continuing to increase.  Expenses for 2024 ran almost $6,500 over our budget of $30,575.  However, we were able to meet all expenses for the year.

Above and beyond our projected budget, a total of almost $44,600 was donated for designated projects and expenses.  Included in the total are funds donated for the Farmhouse porch project, newspaper digitization, sponsorship of summer programs, cupola restoration, and designated projects related to the exhibit and display revamping of the Farmhouse and Gallery.

Memorial contributions for the year totaled $550 and all were given in memory of Spencer Mead.

Fundraising proceeds totaled approximately $10,000 with about $3,000 going to the porch project and the balance to operating expenses.