Posted on Dec 6, 2006

There is an Albany flavor to an ornament that hangs on this year's official White House Christmas tree.

But at least one hometown booster thinks it leaves a bad taste in the mouth.

Peter Hess, president of Albany Rural Cemetery, where President Chester A. Arthur is buried, is upset with the negative depiction of Arthur in a biographical sketch that accompanies the 2006 White House Christmas ornament.

The ornament commemorates Arthur's administration and hangs on the official White House tree, an 18-foot Douglas fir grown in Pennsylvania that stands in the Blue Room.

But Hess wrote to the White House Historical Association, which produced the ornament, calling the group's description of Arthur “an absolute disgrace.''

Said Hess in a strongly worded e-mail: “The positives are all but eliminated while the negatives are exaggerated to the point of outright lies.''

Hess was outraged by several statements in the historical sketch accompanying the ornament. Namely, he objected to a focus on charges of political corruption against Arthur and this summary assessment: “Arthur's notable achievements as president were few.''

The 3-inch filigreed golden collectible ornament sells for $16.95. It is part of a series of White House ornaments designed since 1981 for presidential administrations.

This year's White House tree features crystals and iridescent glass ornaments in keeping with a decorating theme set by First Lady Laura Bush, “Deck the Halls and Welcome All.''

The 2006 ornament does not mention Arthur by name, but the bauble's ornate design highlights the lavish tastes Arthur brought to the White House as the 21st president, from 1881 to 1885.

Arthur commissioned famed American artist and decorator Louis Comfort Tiffany to create a large screen of red, white and blue glass that stood in the Entrance Hall of the White House. He made other expensive upgrades to the presidential residence.

That Arthur gilded the lily on Pennsylvania Avenue is not in dispute. Neither is the notion that he hosted extravagant dinners and rode about Washington in a luxurious horse-drawn landau with a liveried driver and footman.

In political cartoons of the period, Arthur was, after all, lampooned as “The Dude President.''

What irks Hess most is the attention given in the ornament's brochure to Arthur's lax work schedule and his association with cronyism and a tolerance “for an astonishing level of corruption.''

Hess fumed in his e-mail: “With `honors' like you give, no one would be in need of a character assassin.''

“We'd consider President Arthur ostentatious by today's standards,'' said William Bushong, historian of the White House Historical Association. It's a private, nonprofit organization that raises money for preservation projects at the White House.

“President Arthur spent elaborately during his time in the White House and demanded furnishings that were considered state-of-the- art,'' Bushong said.

Bushong called Arthur “a lesser president,'' which makes his task of composing a biographical summary that much tougher compared to chronicling presidential giants.

“It's actually more fun to write about a president people don't know much about,'' he said.

Although the Vermont-born Arthur is lightly regarded among presidential historians, he cut a dashing figure while a student at Union College. An exhibit on the college's famous alumnus last fall showed Arthur in all his over-the- top accouterments.

“Chester Alan Arthur: The Elegant President'' was the show's title and it displayed some of his vast wardrobe (he was said to own 80 pairs of trousers), the extravagant muttonchops and Arthur's large appetites as a gourmand.

“We had a large turnout for the exhibit, but we did get some comments saying we didn't give a full view of the man,'' said Rachel Seligman, curator of the Arthur exhibit at Union.

“I wasn't trying to be critical, but you can never show the whole picture with limited space,'' she said.

Seligman called the 2006 White House Christmas ornament on Arthur “a nice gesture and a beautiful design.''

Seligman felt the Arthur biography that comes with the ornament “does brush the surface lightly, but there's pitiful little out there about Arthur and his accomplish ments.''

Hess, a self-taught historian who has read biographies on Arthur, e-mailed what he felt were overlooked highlights to the White House Historical Association.

In particular, Hess said that Arthur took unpopular stands as a civil rights attorney and represented slaves in lawsuits as part of his strong abolitionist stance.

Hess said the biographical sketch “demonstrates an alarming lack of good judgment.''

Despite the Christmas ornament brouhaha, the Chester Arthur grave site remains the most visited spot in Albany Rural Cemetery.

“Tourists come from all over to see Arthur's grave,'' said Joseph Germaine, the cemetery's general manager.

Two of Arthur's great-great nieces, Jessie Cogswell and Elizabeth McCahill, live in the Albany area. Cogswell is a longtime cemetery board member.

“We promote President Arthur's grave site in our brochure, but we still get people who ask us, `Chester who?'‚'' Germaine said.

  

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Posted on Dec 6, 2006

 

One year after their classmates spent an emotional week in New Orleans helping victims of Hurricane Katrina, a second group of Union College students has traveled to New Orleans for a week during their winter break to help build homes for displaced musicians.

The 22 students are working with Habitat for Humanity and staying at a renovated elementary school called Camp Hope in St. Bernard Parish. They are helping to build a Musicians' Village in the devastated Upper 9th Ward. It's a project of modest houses conceived by the New Orleans musicians Harry Connick Jr. and Branford Marsalis.

Today, the Times Union on its Web site, http://timesunion.com, will begin publishing a daily journal by the students. It will appear through Sunday.

Last year, the students gutted homes that had been flooded, befriended residents who had lost all their possessions, slept on floors in cold houses, cooked their own meals and gained insight into their own lives. They learned that their concerns and problems were minuscule compared to people whose lives had been devastated by wind and floods.

The students pledged to make such a trip a regular part of winter break, which runs from Thanksgiving through December. Janet Grigsby, a sociology professor at Union in Schenectady who is accompanying the students, said that this year 60 students applied for the 22 openings. Among the students in New Orleans are two who made the trip last year, Libby Johnson and Meagan Keenan.

The trip is being funded largely by a donation from an alumni of the college. The students also raised money, and the parents of one student donated gloves, goggles, masks and other supplies.

“The situation down there is so overwhelming, even a year-plus after Katrina, that I think it's going to be equally as emotional as it was last year,” said Grigsby on the eve of the journey. “At this point we're all eager to get down there and help.”

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Posted on Dec 5, 2006

Twenty-two Union College students and two faculty members departed Sunday, Dec. 3, for a second visit to New Orleans as part of a Habitat for Humanity clean-up and renovation project.

More than a year after Katrina ravaged the city, neighborhoods like St. Bernard's Parish, just east of the city, are still trying to rebuild. Camp Hope, a renovated elementary school in the Parish, was used as a dorm and staging area for the more than 9,000 volunteers who have passed through to help. The camp is staffed almost entirely by volunteers, a large constituency from AmeriCorps of South Carolina.

Union students were charged with documenting and recording their work in the hopes of producing a core of students who will continue the efforts each year. Accompanying them were Molly S. MacElroy, assistant director of Residential Life; Janet P. Grigsby, visiting associate professor of Sociology; and Gribsby's 23-year-old son, Matthew. Libby Johnson '08 and Meagan Keenan '09  volunteered for their second time.

Johnson participated as part of a peer ministry project arranged by Campus Protestant Minister and Interfaith Chaplain Viki J. Brooks-McDonald, who attended last year, met with Johnson weekly throughout the fall term to reflect, theologically, about what the experience would mean.

“Last year's trip inspired students to change their major and their life direction,” said Brooks-McDonald. “There's something about being immersed in the culture and doing service simultaneously that profoundly affects people.”

The week-long schedule included work on the St. Bernard's Recovery Project and the Habitat's Musician Village, a new housing project for displaced musicians. The Village was the brainchild of Harry Connick Jr. and the Marsalis brothers. When completed, it will include a music center named for the Marsalis brothers' father.

The $12,000 funding for the Union trip was paid by the same anonymous Union alumnus who funded last year's efforts. Lew Dubow, father of Risa Dubow '07, donated safety goggles, masks, gloves and other essential equipment. Dubow's NYC-based hardware supply company donated equipment after 9/11, and he was eager to contribute to this year's trip.

Brooks-McDonald said she hopes this is an ongoing College effort. “Students can benefit from both academic and service opportunities in New Orleans and elsewhere.”

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Posted on Dec 4, 2006

More than a year after Katrina ravaged New Orleans, neighborhoods like St. Bernard's Parish, just east of the city, are still trying to rebuild. Twenty-two Union College students, accompanied by two faculty members, departed Sunday, Dec. 3 for a second visit to the devastation as part of Habitat for Humanity's clean up and renovation project.

Camp Hope, a renovated elementary school in the Parish, is being used as a dorm and staging area for the more than 9,000 volunteers who have passed through to help. The camp is staffed almost entirely by volunteers, a large constituency from AmeriCorps of South Carolina.

Union's group includes seven young men and 15 young women who are charged with documenting and recording their work in the hopes of producing a core of students who will continue the efforts each year. Accompanying the students are Molly S. MacElroy, assistant director of Residential Life; Janet P. Grigsby, visiting associate professor of Sociology; and Gribsby's 23-year-old son, Matthew. Students Libby Johnson '08 and Meagan Keenan '09 are volunteering for their second time.

Johnson's trip is a peer ministry project arranged through Union Campus Protestant Minister and Interfaith Chaplain Viki J. Brooks-McDonald, who attended last year and helped organize this year's trip. Brooks-McDonald met with Johnson weekly throughout the fall term to reflect, theologically, about what the experience would mean.

“Last year's trip inspired students to change their major and their life direction,” said Brooks-McDonald. “There's something about being immersed in the culture and doing service simultaneously that profoundly affects people.”

The week-long schedule includes working in the St. Bernard's Recovery Project on Monday, with the remainder of the week dedicated to the Habitat's Musician Village, a new housing project for displaced musicians. The Village is the brainchild of Harry Connick Jr. and prominent jazz artists the Marsalis brothers, and when completed, it will include a music center named for the Marsalis family patriarch, pianist Ellis Marsalis.

The $12,000 funding for the Union trip was provided by the same anonymous Union alumnus who funded last year's efforts. Lew Dubow, father of Risa Dubow '07, donated safety goggles, masks, gloves and other essential equipment. Dubow's NYC-based hardware supply company donated equipment after 9/11, and he was eager to contribute to the Union effort.

Brooks-McDonald said she hopes this is an ongoing College effort. “Students can benefit from both academic and service opportunities in New Orleans and elsewhere.”

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Posted on Dec 1, 2006

A holiday favorite, the Thursday Belles, return to Memorial Chapel Sunday at 7 p.m. for their annual Community Carol Sing.

The Thursday Belles were formed in 1959 by the late Helen Henshaw, who first introduced English Handbells to the area. The 11 ringers, directed by Judy Brackett Moore, hail from all over the region and have increased their musical range from two octaves to four.

Accompanied by Elinore Farnum, organ, and Joan Nikolski, piano, the Belles invite audience members to join in by donning Santa hats and festive clothing. This year, the ladies have even gone high tech.

“We're going to have the lyrics projected via PowerPoint for the first time,” said ringer Norma Lovell. “Our carousel projector finally broke, forcing us to upgrade our technology.”

The group performs at area schools and nursing homes throughout the Christmas season and again in the spring. Handbell selections include “Were You There That Christmas Night?,” a Christmas medley, “Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer” and “Savior of the Nations Come,” using windchimes along with the English bells.

The 90-minute performance features dozens of holiday carols and culminates in the classic “Twelve Days of Christmas,” sung round-robin style, with the Memorial Chapel audience divided into 12 choral sections.

Henshaw was part of Schenectady's Thursday Musical Club, which performed its annual Holiday Concert Dec. 1 at Memorial Chapel. The choral group, founded in 1913 in the home of Mrs. Arthur W. (Elsie) Jones, gave its first performance on Jan. 22, 1914, in the ballroom of the Mohawk Golf Club of Schenectady. Since 1931, most performances have been in Union's Memorial Chapel. 

The Thursday Belles have been performing at Union since their inception.

The event is free and open to the public.

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