News

NEWS RELEASE

SPRINGBOARD FOR FAIRBAIRN HOUSE

(This News Release may also be viewed by downloading the PDF version)

Wakefield - April 20, 2012: Thanks to new financing, the Fairbairn House Heritage Centre will be able to complete interior renovations this summer, in time for a special preview opening in the autumn.

This has been made possible by a $105,000 grant recently received from Economic Development Canada and another for $70,000 from the Department of Canadian Heritage both supporting interior renovations, landscaping and a new outdoor stage. Also, additional funding from the Municipality of La Péche will come in incremental payments over the next 10 years. This year's payment of $15,000 will ensure that the Centre can continue with the final renovations and plan for a special preview opening in the fall for visitors to see what it will be offering.

"These new funds will allow us to complete renovations to the structure of the house as well as the required work on its environs. Now the Centre must turn funding efforts to the development of exhibits to get our programme underway," said Michael Cooper, president of the board of directors.

"In order to have some exhibits ready for a fall opening, we are in the process of looking for other grants, as well as more donations from Fairbairn House members and other supporters," Mr. Cooper said. He made reference to the special Premier Partners Program, being offered only until the house officially opens its doors. Under this program the donor pledges monthly installments to total $1000 - the amount required to be named a Premier Partner. Other partnering plans to support the heritage centre include opportunities for supporters to be named Fairbairn Founders, Fairbairn Partners, and Fairbairn Friends.

"We are eager to give the public a taste of what lies ahead in terms of exhibits and programmes on the rich heritage of the Gatineau Valley" said vice-president Jean laFlamme.

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For more information: www.fairbairn.ca Michael Cooper: 819-459-2787 cooperm@wakenet.ca

Maison Fairbairn House Newsletter No. 9

(This newsletter may also be viewed by downloading the PDF Version)

Summer/Autumn 2011

Dear Members:
Fairbairn House renovations have been more or less in a holding pattern in recent months, as we await results from two promising government grant applications the board has been working on over the spring and summer. A restriction on both these grants is that none of the work for which they are intended can commence prior to final approval of the funding. In the meantime, we have raised funds locally to install the well and septic systems for the house, and do some landscaping on the grounds. Also, the paper work has started on an application to the Quebec government for Fairbairn House to be chartered as a non-profit organization, this being required for signing a long-term lease on the house with the Municipality of La Pêche.

Exhibits:
Meanwhile, planning for our first exhibits has been underway, so they will be ready when the house interior is completed next year. The topic Settlers and Settlements has been selected for the opening exhibit, and we are taking inventory of the numerous donated artifacts now in storage to ascertain which of these can be used in this first exhibit. Although the house is not open, there has been an interest from local groups to present special exhibits at Fairbairn House and in Hendrick park. On the sunny week-end of September 17th and 18th a two-day exhibit on river-related history was presented on the wrap-around verandah of Fairbairn House. It was entitled Sacred River and was organized by Patrick and Erika Connor, with our blessing. As a centre piece for the show, they constructed a three dimensional diorama of the Gatineau River valley, surrounded by works of art inspired by the history of the river and its watershed. The displays included historical maps, artifacts, music, photographs, literature, and river folklore. Hundreds of visitors came by to see these exhibits. Other groups have called us, eager to get board approval and book events at the house in the summer and fall of 2012. These are encouraging signs of the excitement and anticipation that is building in the community.

Fund-raising:
Board members are still in fund-raising mode to cover the many expenses involved in opening a new facility. We have had good responses to the "Guide for Giving" we introduced in our last newsletter. To recap, there are three levels: Fairbairn Founders ($15,000 and over); Fairbairn Partners ($1,000-$14,999); and Fairbairn Friends ($10-$999). Since then, contributions and pledges in these three categories have reached $31,000, many through monthly payments to reach their total amount pledged. For more details please visit www.fairbairn.ca

Community Events:
On Saturday, August 6th, the Larrimac Golf Club in Chelsea organized a golf tournament to remember the late Norma Walmsley, Wakefield resident and long-time golfer at the club, generously naming Fairbairn House as a beneficiary. There was a good turnout of golfers, and afterwards about 70 guests sat down to a delicious dinner. With proceeds from the golf course games, a silent auction and private donations, Fairbairn House realized $2,000 more for its renovation fund. We thank the Club and all players and dinner guests for their support. Fairbairn House's Outreach with two local schools, in cooperation with the Quebec Anglophone Heritage Network, in early summer earned Fairbairn House another $2,000 grant. The Gatineau Valley Historical Society (GVHS) has announced that it plans to hold a special social event in aid of Fairbairn House sometime after the New Year. We thank the GVHS for its support.

Media coverage:
During the summer and fall two Montreal magazines, Luxury Report and Urban Expressions ran stories on Wakefield and Fairbairn House, both written by Susan Campbell, a descendant of William Fairbairn Sr. Both magazines featured our heritage project, as well as the village of Wakefield and the old Wakefield mill to great advantage.

Fairbairn House was also featured in a colourful tourist handout, produced by the West Quebec Post and distributed to local businesses in Wakefield Village and surrounding areas.

Radio-Canada TV program "Changer d-air" ran a half-hour program on the Wakefield area with special emphasis on heritage and Fairbairn House; co-president Jean La Flamme was interviewed along with our municipal councillor, Louis Rompré.

Also, Ottawa's french-language daily, Le Droit, ran a story on Wakefield and the Fairbairn House in a recent issue.

Correspondence with members:
George Fairbairn of St. Catherines, Ontario, has become the 149th member of the Maison Fairbairn House project, and has donated a large picture of his ancestor, William Sr.'s son George (1824-1910), in an antique frame. His ancestor established the Fairbairn farm on Mountain Road in Wakefield Township, on the east side of the Gatineau River.

Another descendant of George, Ted Fairbairn of Ottawa, sent us a note and a CD of his father, Harry, playing his old-time fiddle music at family gatherings.

We have also heard from Janis Ulstein, a descendant of William Sr.'s, daughter, Frances, telling us of a new headstone erected in her memory at Vancouver's Mountain View Cemetery (604-325-2646). It reads Frances FAIRBAIRN, wife of David Stewart and John Lovett, 1829-1915. It was erected on February 20, 2008.

Artifacts:
Recently, the Dominic Newton family of Wakefield donated a century-old handmade wooden bread box for display at the heritage centre. It was made for Dominic's mother, Donalda Emond, by her husband Andrew Newton, at their Lac-Ste-Marie home in 1907. Patrick Connor of Chelsea has donated his three-dimensional diorama of the Gatineau River and surrounding hills, prepared for the Connors' recent exhibit, to be available for display at Fairbairn House when it opens.

For further information please e-mail us at info@fairbairn.ca - write us at Box 195, Wakefield, QC J0X 3G0 - or telephone Michael Cooper at 819-459-2787.

(With special thanks to Fairbairn House member Mary Montague for her help formatting this newsletter.)