FW: PPS January E-Newsletter

In This Issue Preservation Education Events Letter from the Executive Director Volunteer Opportunity Community Notes Quick Links Become a Member PPS Website Preservation Nation Upcoming PPS Events January 8 MEP Traveling Exhibit Gallery Reception at Brooklyn Coffee & Tea House   January 22 Annual Meeting and Preservation Lecture   February 7 Preservation Awards Ceremony & Winter Bash   January 2009 News Preservation Nominate a Property for the 2009 Most Endangered Properties List PPS relies on YOU, our members and the public, for nominations to our annual Most Endangered Properties List. If you know of an historic property that is threatened, neglected, or underused, nominate it to this year's list. Nomination forms and criteria will be available soon on our website. If you would like to be added to the Most Endangered Properties email list and have a nomination form sent directly to your inbox, contact Sara Emmenecker. Most Endangered Properties Traveling Exhibit The second annual Most Endangered Properties Traveling Photography Exhibit has moved to the Brooklyn Coffee & Tea House, an alternative coffee house and event space, in the Smith Hill neighborhood. The exhibit features photographs of the ten Most Endangered Properties in Providence. Each building has been creatively captured by Rhode Island photographers.   Please join PPS at a Gallery Reception THIS THURSDAY, January 8, 5:00-7:00 p.m. at the Brooklyn Coffee & Tea House, 209 Douglas Avenue, Providence. Stay after the reception for Brooklyn Coffee & Tea House's Filmakers' Showcase Night, 7:00-9:30 p.m. Event is free and open to the public. Stay tuned to www.ppsri.org for updates on where the show will travel next.   MEP Traveling Exhibit Schedule: February: Everyman Bistro in Valley March: Reflections Café in Fox Point April: Three Sisters in Hope Education   PPS Thanks Docents at Annual Luncheon   On December 11, 2008 PPS's Education Program launched its monthly Children's Heritage Education Program Docent Continuing Education Lecture/Site Visit Series with a keynote lecture by Dr. Seth Rockman of Brown University's History Department at PPS's Annual Docent Luncheon. His topic was the Northern Manufacture of Plantation Goods.  Dr. Rockman was very informative and the research he presented was very stimulating to the audience, which was made up of docents in the PPS Education Program; interns, volunteers, and work-study students working specifically on education initiatives; lecturers who have previously supported the program by presenting at various trainings; Education Committee members; and PPS staff.  The goal of the series is to provide information to our docents that directly and indirectly help them present as full a tour experience as possible. We received very positive feedback from attendees, specifically docents, and look forward to hosting Dr. Rockman again when his research has revealed more.    Providence Public Elementary Schools Receive Books On December 15, 2008, Education Coordinator Kathleen McAreavey personally delivered fourteen copies of The Elementary Common Sense of Thomas Paine, books donated by author Mark Wilensky, along with fourteen copies of the PPS/AIA-RI Guide to Providence Architecture signed by author Mack Woodward, to Providence Public Elementary Schools. Seven of the schools were recommended by Kim Luca at the Providence Superintendent's Office as schools that rarely receive donations. The other seven schools were chosen from the list of schools that participated in the former Neighborhood Schools Walking Tour Program where PPS staff and docents conducted tours based at each school. The schools were very grateful for the donations to their school's library. Later this month, PPS will donate a signed copy of the PPS/AIA Guide to the remaining Providence Public Elementary Schools. Events PPS Annual Meeting and Preservation Lecture featuring Donovan D. Rypkema   The Providence Preservation Society is proud to announce its 2008 Annual Meeting and Preservation Lecture featuring Donovan D. Rypkema, a National Speaker and Author on the Economics of Historic Preservation to be held at 5:30 p.m. on Thursday, January 22 at the Providence Public Library (150 Empire Street). Mr. Rypkema is principal of Place Economics, a Washington, D.C.-based real estate and economic development-consulting firm specializing in services to public and non-profit sector clients who are dealing with downtown and neighborhood commercial district revitalization and the reuse of historic structures. For more information on Mr. Rypkema visit, www.ppsri.org or Mr. Rypkema's blog.   PPS would like to thank its Preservation lecture sponsors: Durkee Brown Viveiros and Werenfels Architects, Grow Smart Rhode Island, John Nicholas Brown Center, Roger Williams School of Architecture, Art and Historic Preservation    This event is free and open to the public.   2009 Winter Bash PPS Unmasked: The Carnivale Winter Bash February 7, 8:00-midnight Sharpe Building (25 Holden Street, Providence) Celebrate Carnivale 2009 without traveling to Venice or Rio de Janeiro at PPS Unmasked: The Carnivale Winter Bash as we transform the Sharpe Building for a masquerade night to remember right here in Providence. Featuring fabulous entertainment by Santa Mamba in the Carnivale spirit and festive hors d'oeuvres. This is the Winter Bash everyone will be talking about until spring 2010. Full cash bar. Tickets are $30 in advance and $35 the day of the event. For more information or to purchase tickets, visit www.ppsri.org/winterbash.   Invitation and logo design by Watermark Design. A Letter From the Executive Director   Change has been an oft-heard refrain this past election cycle, and now that the results are in, preservationists are strategizing to make sure that our values are included in whatever happens after the upcoming Presidential inauguration.   A recent meeting with my colleagues from around Rhode Island at the Preservation Roundtable touched on what is at stake. To address what some are calling the deepest economic downturn since the 1930s, the new administration is planning a massive Federal spending package to put people back to work and stimulate the economy.   Providence already stands to benefit from the Housing and Economic Recovery Act, adopted last year, making moneys available to acquire abandoned and foreclosed properties...To read the full letter, click here. Volunteer Opportunity General Office/Clerical Assistant PPS seeks a volunteer to assist with general office/clerical tasks, including but not limited to answering a multi-line phone, greeting visitors, working on special projects, mailings, and attending and assisting with various major events. Experience with Microsoft Office programs necessary. Help needed weekdays 2-5:00 p.m. Must be pleasant on the phone and able to handle multiple tasks at once. Please email your interest and availability to info@ppsri.org. Community Notes Available for Rent: Shakespeare's Head, 21 Meeting Street   Commercial tenant sought for lovely garden-level office space in historic building. Office approximately 400 square feet, it features a row of windows with a view of the tranquil Shakespeare's Head Garden and plenty of natural light. Monthly rent is $650. Terms: Long-term, triple-net lease. Contact Kristi Agniel at 401-749-5008.    Location: Convenient to Downtown, Courthouse, State House, College Hill and RISD. Owner:  Shakespeare's Head Association.  Availability: Immediate. The mission of the Providence Preservation Society (PPS) is to improve the quality of life in the city of Providence through historic preservation and the enhancement of the built environment. PPS is a nonprofit membership organization, exempt from federal income tax under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, and is recognized as a charitable organization.