The Centerville Rotary Club met at The Golf Club at Yankee Trace at noon. President Peachy (Mark) Metzner led the Pledge of Allegiance; Harvey Smith gave the prayer; and Brian Hayes led a great rendition of God Bless America, sung by club members.
GUESTS at this week's meeting included:
Dave and Beth Cusack of the Beavercreek Rotary; Kent Dimbath, CFO of Dorothy Lane Market; and our speaker for the day, Martha Boice. All four are pictured either above or below.
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
President Peachy Metzner welcomed everyone.
President Peachy reminded everyone that the MLK Breakfast will be held at Yankee Trace on Jan. 15 at 7:30 a.m. The club always reserves a table for 10. A show of hands counted up to 10 planning to go, though others are still able to show up and attend.
Peachy said the Rotary District Grant requests require attendance at the Feb. 6 Normandy Church training event. Chuck King and Joyce Young and Frank Perez showed an interest in attending. There is a free dinner at 5:30 p.m., Peachy said. The meeting runs from 6:15-8:15 p.m.
Peachy said the District 4-Way Test Speech Contest will be held April 8 and that Brian Hayes is working on that for the club. He did a great job last year, so no less is expected this year. Thanks, Brian.
The District Conference will be held April 27-28 at the Hollenbeck Baylay Center in Springfield. Instead of last year's basket presentations from each club, they want to do a district project and put together hygiene kits. Each club, if they choose to participate has to choose a certain item to provide. He said Joslyn Smith of the Fairborn Club is the chairperson for assembling the kits. Each club can then choose a charity to distribute the kits to. Peachy said last week that he thought Hannah's Treasure Chest might be an apt choice for our club. Club member Sofie Ameloot also noted that Artemis is in need of soaps, body lotions, and other toiletries for the women who have been victims of domestic violence. Such items may be brought to the club next week, if you have any you've collected and have not used at home.
Peachy said he received a Thank You from the Victory Project that helps young men get their lives back together. They said our $1.031.25 donation has been a big help.
Peachy mentioned that the next Board meeting for the club is Jan. 16 from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. at WesBanco at 1691 Wilmington Pike, across from Arby's. That's a Tuesday. Any new member who has not attended a board meeting should consider attending, as it's one of the requirements for having the new member yellow ribbon removed from one's member badge.
Below you see the two people who collect our Happy Bucks: Erich Eggers and Gerry Eastabrooks.
HAPPY BUCKS: The Happy Bucks go to help Brigid's Path this quarter. The organization works with addicted neo-natal babies and their mothers. They took in their first baby this past week.
Erich Eggers mentioned that Kent Dimbath of DLM has been talked into joining our club, and then went on to mention DLM's recent newsletter giving the 70-year history of the store, including a bankruptcy along the way, missteps, and successes. In celebrating their 70th anniversary they are having seven $1 specials on the 7th day of each month this year. This month's included Dairy Farm cheese, some special bread, corn chips, coffee drinks, etc. Erich gave a $10 donation for his oration and praise of the family-oriented store, where everybody learns to call you by your first name. Cheers to all.
Then he gave another $20 for Brigid's Path and for Alabama beating Georgia. His wife is from Alabama, they say.
Jeff Senney gave $25 in Happy Bucks and Pat Beckel gave for Christmas toys that he can keep and play with (hoverboard, etc.) He said they have new plans for the Heart of Centerville events this year. That group meets Friday mornings at Panera Bread at 8:30 a.m., he said.
Mark Gerken gave for being happy to be here and noting that Brigid's Path has broken pipes that will take $60,000 to repair.
Brian Bergmann gave for our Guest speaker Martha Boice...and it was mentioned by Erich that Brian did not have his badge on, but Brian said he couldn't find it, but later found that someone had misplaced it in the badge box after collecting it from him at the past meeting.
Sivaji Subramaniam gave for the sad news that his youngest sister, whom he had visited over Christmas in Vienna, Austria, passed away Dec. 31, and that he would be traveling back for her funeral, but be back here for next week's meeting. We are all sorry for your loss Sivaji and know that you touch people's hearts wherever you go.
He said in flying back his bags got lost and he spent an overnight in a Holiday Inn.
Deb Dulaney gave and Brian Hayes gave, noting that his $2 were for the two days of good weather in the 50s we enjoyed before Friday's ice storm and snow.
Ron Hollenbeck gave $10 for Brigid's Path and said something about new membership.
Carol Kennard gave, stating that Brian Bergmann has offered to be her back-up photographer.
Arnie Biondo gave $3 for the three new Rotary Youth Exchange students selected.
Ann Blackburn gave for missing the Christmas dinner, etc.
Harvey Smith gave $10 to help out Brigid's Path.
Ed Flohre gave to thank Erich for his advertisement of DLM.
Dave Cusack gave $5 for borrowing our aprons, and $5 for Brigid's Path. "I have a sister who's a nurse there," he said.
Wayne Davis gave $5, and said something about paying off a bet for the Alabama game.
Lee Hieronymus gave, noting that last week he moved 36 bales into a barn in the frigid temperatures and was sorry the group missed all the fun.
Jenn Gibbs gave for the two guests from her old Rotary group and Mike Wier gave for being happy to be back and having his wife home from rehab and doing better
Joyce Young said it was good to see Martha Boice, and said she was giving a reminder to all those in Washington Twp., that if there's any re-zoning for an important landmark, they'd better come to Martha Boice first.
Kim Senft-Paras gave for "our local treasure" Martha Boice, and our other guests. She said she planted cherry trees together with them. She also gave $2 for Brigid's Path.
Chuck King gave for Martha and telling his wife it would be a cold day...in...when his son ever got married and his son got married recently on a very cold day.
John Beals said he was honored that Martha Boice was here at the club, and Sofie Ameloot gave to say she is collecting packages or full containers of toiletries for Artemis. A few people might have gotten skipped accidentally, but we appreciate all.
Our Speaker of the day is: Martha Boice, an award-winning preservationist, known for helping preserve numerous historic sites and buildings in Centerville and Washington Twp. and beyond.
And here our Speaker of the day, Martha Boice, is seen with our Vice President Chuck King
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Chuck said Martha would be speaking about preserving Centerville's history. She graduated from Ohio Wesleyan University with a psychology major and from the University of Michigan School of Social Work, and has lived in Washington Twp. and now Centerville for almost 50 years.
He said he was honored last fall by receiving two statewide awards for her half-century in historic preservation work. One was for being Preservation Hero awarded by Heritage Ohio, a Main Street organization. the other was a Public Education and Awareness Award by the Ohio Historic Preservation Office.
Martha was also honored by the city of Centerville and Washington Twp. Trustees by presenting proclamations, and the sponsoring group, the Landmarks Foundation of Centerville-Washington Twp,. celebrated with a party.
Martha's bio is missing all the hours and years she spent looking up information to save historic sites, but hopefully she will be nominated for the Walk of Fame in Dayton for all she's done and continues to do.
Martha said this is the second time she's talked to the Centerville Rotary. The last time was in the 70's and what she remembers most about her visit was that someone threw a pie in member Harvey Smith's face. There have been no other pie throwing incidents of recent vintage, and she could not recall what the occasion was that it involved. The 70's were the start of a loss of historic sites in the city, she said. A demolition permit was granted for the Stage Coach Inn, a two or three story brick building with a wrought iron fence around it that stood at the southeast corner of Main and Franklin street, across from what is now Graeters. A gas station was put in its place. There was palpable sadness when this happened, she said. They had to find a way to prevent such a loss in the future. As a result, by 1972 legislation was in place for a Board of Architectural Review, which has been ongoing. The Historical Society created a National Registration Landmark Committee. She passed out a map showing the original historic district for the city. Mayor Paul Hoy invited Sue Studebaker and her to his house to work on matters. She had two books on early midwestern houses, but they were "next to worthless," she said. They needed to describe the houses to help set up an ordinance and to get them put on the National Register. They hired Gale Brooks, an architect from Cincinnati to help them, she said. Roger...took photographs and they made the first application in Montgomery County. The Oregon District thinks they are the first, but they were only the first in Dayton, and the second in Montgomery County, she said. Lyndon Johnson started things moving in 1966 with the Historic Preservation Act, she said.
She said he set up a state-wide organization, with each state having it's own preservation office. People ask how that was paid for, she said. "I said they were paid with off-shore oil money." In keeping the National Register, that's how they're paid, she said.
People also think that being on the National Register is very restrictive, that it doesn't let you move something, or add on, or paint, but you can do what you want, and then you can be run out of the National Register and not get funding that's available.
She said she learned that much of the housing is called Vernacular and so she looked up vernacular in the dictionary, and it said "ordinary rather than monumental."
She went to a Vernacular Architecture Forum meeting. She found that the yard stick measuring was used on stone buildings. A carpenter came and made measurements with an isosceles triangle. He would measure off one side to the opposite side to corners and make equal size to the side of the house. Yards don't have seven and a half or five and three thirds. They are an even number of yards, with no fractions left.
An example of a stone house is at 78 N. Main St, the Aaron Nutt Cottage. The front room is 9 yards across and the room behind is 8 yards. It has two yard measures in one home.
Centerville is said to have the largest collection of early stone buildings in Ohio.
Judith Kitchen of the Ohio Preservation Office said that Sandusky had Civil War vintage buildings but that they're "pretty well gone." The city of Centerville has the most remaining. The Asahel Wright House dates to 1805 or 1806, according to the Nutt family, she said. They said that was when it was platted and that the house was built at the same time. But in the Recording Office it said the platting took place in 1817, so it's hard to date things accurately, she said.
"I wish I'd have a seance with somebody sitting down and telling me how this happens.
She talked of another form of preservation coming from a protective easement in a deed.
Fred Smith, who lived on acreage on Mad River Road across from the Windmill property, said he wanted to be carried out of his house in a long glass box, and wanted to put an easement on his property, so it would not end up in apartments or condominiums. He wanted to give an easement to a preservation organization.
He found the house had to be more than 100 years old to get into the National Register before he could get an easement.
She said Smith worked for two years to get the property on the National Register and the cost could be from $1,000 to $10,000 she said. Martha said she would often meet Smith downtown at his office to work on the issue. She said a couple from Columbus couldn't believe Smith, close to his 90s, got up every morning and went to his downtown office. "That man is crazy," they said.
Preservation Ohio finally accepted the easement and Smith got a tax right off for it, but he never said how much, Martha said. The value of eight acres was what would take to build 25 condos, or if you have to keep some buildings, you subtract from the others. There are six easements for buildings in Ohio and Fred's is the only one that is a residence, she said.
From the Web:
Over the years, Martha has documented hundreds of properties through Ohio Historic Inventory forms, National Register nominations, and independent research. The John Belville House, constructed c.1835, and Fox Hollow (Frederick Smith House), constructed 1815 with a 1926 addition, are two of the National Register nominations that she authored or contributed to the historic documentation. Listed in 2006, the Fox Hollow nomination was the result of direct contact from the owner at the time, who wished to have the property protected after he was gone. Martha connected him with Preservation Ohio, which accepted an easement for the house, and led him through the easement and National Register processes. Published in 1977, Martha co-authored A Sense of Place, a book dedicated to Centerville and Washington Township’s historic houses. She notes that the book, which was readily available, “was very helpful; people started to pay attention because of it.” After two years of research and coordination, she directed the effort to have two historic markers dedicated to Mad River Road. Traversing Washington and Miami Townships, the last intact segment of the earliest road, connecting Dayton to Cincinnati in the 1796, was recognized on Ohio History Connection markers in 2001.
This is only a small part of Martha's participation in preserving our history. Much more can be found on the Internet and past stories from the local newspapers.