Henry County Heritage Trust looks ahead at annual meeting

Henry County Heritage Trust held its annual membership meeting on March 29 at the Henry County Heritage Center (old Saunders School building) in Mt. Pleasant.

Charlene Seggerman was welcomed as a new member of the board of directors. Officers for the upcoming year were selected: Patricia Richenberger, president; Ken Vandevoort, vice president; Waunita Gibbons, secretary; and Pat White, treasurer.

Activities and accomplishments of the past year were highlighted: HCHT website was launched; Arts & Industries Room was renovated and opened, with displays focusing on the mills of Henry County and Henry County industries; artifacts from the National T.T.T. Society were accepted and put on display; numerous artifacts from the Waunita Hobbie Estate were received; upgrades continued on the Van Allen House; several well-attended programs were held monthly; volunteer workdays were held Thursday afternoons; and hundreds of people were welcomed to tour the HCHT complex during the year.

This past year, to further its mission, HCHT was fortunate to receive grant funding from the William M. and Donna J. Hoaglin Foundation, the Enhance Henry County Community Foundation and the Pennebaker Foundation.

Future goals, programming and planned events were scheduled, to include a book sale (free will donation) on April 23; a Celebration of Life for Terry McNair at the Van Allen House on May 7 (details to come), and several history-themed presentations.

The following is a partial list of programs slated for 2022, with exact dates to be determined: Mt. Pleasant’s Old City Cemetery (Pat White), The Remarkable Van Allen Family (Susan Loescher) and Iowa Civil War Images (Michael Huston).

The mission of Henry County Heritage Trust is to transform community landmarks into civic spaces; to preserve historic memories and artifacts; and to promote and celebrate Henry County and its people. Please contact 319-385-4983 if you have questions, want to volunteer or want to learn more about Henry County Heritage Trust.