NEWS RELEASE: Historic Huguenot Street to Host Inaugural Farm-to-Table
Fundraising Dinner October 1

NEW PALTZ, NY (September 15, 2016) –  Historic Huguenot Street will host an inaugural Fall Harvest Celebration on Saturday, October 1. The signature event will draw attention to and raise funds for the vital education and preservation efforts that go into making this ten-acre National Historic Landmark District an American icon.

The event will be held from 6 - 9:30 pm and will open with a reception at the DuBois Fort Visitor Center. During this cocktail hour, dinner guests will be treated to a special viewing of Marking the Occasion: 17th- and 18th-Century Dutch Silver Spoons from the Collections of Jonathan Z. Friedman and George Way. The exhibit centers around a selection of ornate spoons catalogued by Kevin Tierney, Silver Consultant with Sotheby’s NYC.

Following the reception, guests will cross the street for a farm-to-table dinner with wine pairings under an illuminated tent on the sweeping lawn of the Deyo House. Guests will enjoy farm-to-table cuisine provided by the Hudson Valley’s Harvest Real Food Catering with wine pairings selected by celebrated author and wine teacher Kevin Zraly. Following dinner, guests will be invited back to the visitor center for chocolates and champagne.

Throughout the evening, guests will have the opportunity to visit the Deyo House and the Jean Hasbrouck House, for which the organization is currently raising funds for the later replacement of the historic cedar-shake roof. Historic preservationist Ken Follett, the project manager for the Jean Hasbrouck House roof restoration, will be in attendance to provide his perspective on the state of the roof and the steps needed to preserve this historic structure.

During the Fall Harvest Celebration, Historic Huguenot Street will honor Robert (Bob) W. Hasbrouck, Jr., President of the Hasbrouck Family Association (HFA). A direct descendant of New Paltz Patentee Abraham Hasbrouck, Bob Hasbrouck grew up in Washington, DC, the son of U.S. Major General Robert Hasbrouck, Sr. who commanded crucial actions in WWII. Following his father’s footsteps, Bob also graduated from West Point and went on to become an artillery officer serving three years on the East German border during the Cold War.

Bob inherited his interest in his family’s heritage. His father Robert, Sr., a long-time member of Historic Huguenot Street and an early member of the HFA, helped to arrange the purchase of the Abraham Hasbrouck House in 1961 for its preservation. In 1992, HHS Board President Kenneth Hasbrouck encouraged Bob to become an HFA officer. He has now served as HFA President since 1994 and remains a passionate and committed supporter, donor, and friend to Historic Huguenot Street.

G. Angela Henry, Arts Mid-Hudson Board Chair, will serve as co-host for the evening. A founding board member of Black Women of Influence, Ms. Henry holds a BA from Tufts University, where she graduated magna cum laude, and a Master’s degree in education from Harvard University. She produces historic graveyard tours at the St. James' Chapel in Hyde Park where Franklin D. Roosevelt was baptized, and is the artistic director of the Spoken Word Café. Being a multi-lingual trained actor and professional voice actor, Ms. Henry provided the narration for Historic Huguenot Street’s mobile app launched earlier this year.

Those interested in attending this inaugural dinner and supporting the organization’s preservation efforts may register at huguenotstreet.org/2016harvestdinner by September 23.

A National Historic Landmark District, Historic Huguenot Street is a 501(c)3 non-profit that encompasses 30 buildings across 10 acres that was the heart of the original 1678 New Paltz settlement, including seven stone houses that date to the early eighteenth century.  It was founded in 1894 as the Huguenot Patriotic, Historical, and Monumental Society to preserve the nationally acclaimed collection of stone houses. Since then, Historic Huguenot Street has grown into an innovative museum, chartered as an educational corporation by the University of the State of New York, that is dedicated to protecting our historic buildings, conserving an important collection of artifacts and manuscripts, and promoting the stories of the Huguenot Street families, from the sixteenth century to today. 

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Contact
Kaitlin Gallucci
Communications & Marketing Manager
(845) 255-1660
media@huguenotstreet.org