GRANT OR LOAN
APPLICATION
Preserving,
Perpetuating, and Using MMUUS Historical Information
Project Description
May Memorial Unitarian Universalist Society (MMUUS) members have
preserved much of the church’s history since its inception nearly 170 years ago. In addition, Rev. May’s prestige as a national
religious figure has meant that considerable information about him has been
preserved, too (see an MMUUS web site link devoted to him at http://www.mmuus.org/sjmay/). [Attachment A summarizes the WWW links
shown in the proposal.] Some of this historical material is stored in the
MMUUS church building, some is at the Syracuse University Arents Library (see http://home.twcny.rr.com/hiemstra/suarchives.html
for a depiction of the material there), and some is located in various other
places or formats (see http://home.twcny.rr.com/hiemstra/sjmayreferences.html).
Also stored in the MMUUS basement is a large marble tablet honoring Reverend
May that hung on a wall in the former
Unfortunately, much of the material
at MMUUS is deteriorating rapidly and the marble tablet is broken (see
information on the tablet in Attachment B). In 1994 Dr. Suzanne Etherington, Certified
Archivist, carried out a survey and made several preservation recommendations
(these suggestions are shown at http://home.twcny.rr.com/hiemstra/etherington.html).
She noted the information’s precarious nature due to inadequate storage facilities
(old, unsecured filing cabinets and cardboard
boxes), material in various church locations, no acid free containers, and
ongoing damage due to insects, rodents, light, and moisture (see http://home.twcny.rr.com/hiemstra/archivestorage.html
for a narrative and pictorial portrayal of the material and basement location).
Most recommendations for the material still at MMUUS have not been addressed
because of inadequate financial and human resources.
There also have been few efforts to
gather and preserve historical information during most of the past decade.
Fortunately, several people in their 70s and older living in
Project Objectives
Therefore, this project has the
following objectives:
Project Activities
Related to the Six Objectives
Preservation Suggestions
Encourage Use of Historical Material
Create a New Web Page Link
Enhance the Samuel J. May Heritage
Interview Current and
Develop an Information Gathering
System
The project director (Roger Hiemstra) will carry out
appropriate management of available funds, have overall responsibility for
volunteer and interviewer training and recruitment, coordinate the various
project activities, provide periodic reports to the church board and minister,
and complete all progress and final reporting as required by the NYSCU. He will
donate 25 to 40 hours per month in these oversight activities. See http://home.twcny.rr.com/hiemstra/resume.html
for Hiemstra’s resume showing relevant work experience. The MMUUS Office
Administrator and Webmaster also will donate some time to the project.
Project Value
Although this project seeks funding
to assist in an enhancement of historical information and related data
gathering for only one institution, it is anticipated that the efforts will
promote an overall growth of Unitarian Universalism. By creating and
implementing a system that increases knowledge about the history of MMUUS,
current and future church members will have a better understanding of the
heritage they have received as well as their own stake in leaving a heritage
for others.
Furthermore, by disseminating this
history via the WWW and other means to people throughout
Project Budget: Estimate cost of each applicable
category. (See Attachment C for a detailed budget)
Category (e.g., honoraria, publicity,
travel, copying, etc. [please specify])
__Equipment_________________________ ___1322____
__Miscellaneous_____________________ ____250____
__Preservation______________________ ____511____
__Restoration_______________________ ___1000____
__Stamps____________________________ ____117____
Total Request (should equal amount on p. 4) __$3200____
Please provide a summary budget for
the present year for your
congregation or UUA affiliated organization.
Income (2005-2006 Budget)
Pledge Income ___194,800______
Endowment Income _____2,000______
Other Income (e.g. Bldg. Rental) ____71,900______
Fundraising _____8,000______
TOTAL ___276,700______
Expenses
(2005-2006 Budget)
Salaries ___184,600______
Administrative Expenses _____8,500______
Maintenance (& utilities) ____62,000______
Religious Education _____3,800______
UUA and District Dues ____19,000______
Other ____21,000______
TOTAL ___298,900______
Number of members _246__ Number of pledge units _156__
Change in pledge income this year
___+18,000__________
Change in membership this year
__________-11_______ (voting members = 246)
Number of “Chalice Lighters” ____40 pledge units (50 people total)
Fair share congregation (past year) UUA:
Yes__X__ No____ District: Yes__X__ No____
Identify organizational
participation in training programs relative to leadership, canvass, growth,
religious education, or long-range planning.
EAGLES participation in 2005
Ongoing
attendance at St. Lawrence District conferences
Representation
at the General Assembly in 2005
Worked
with Jerry King on Stewardship in 2005
Ongoing
participation in Chalice Lighters
Ongoing
donations to the UUSC
Take part
in the regional food bank
Ongoing
meetings with Tom Chulak in 2004 and 2005 to discuss
future of the District
Ongoing
participation in and support of Unirondak
Ongoing
utilization of District resource for our ministerial search activities
ATTACHMENT A: A SUMMARY OF THE NOTED WEB LINKS
1. http://www.mmuus.org/sjmay/ - This is link
in the MMUUS web page for the Samuel J. May material. Among the information in
that link is a number of other links to material written by or about Rev. May.
2. http://home.twcny.rr.com/hiemstra/suarchives.html
– this is a description of the various items that are already contained within
the Syracuse University Library’s Arents Archives.
3. http://home.twcny.rr.com/hiemstra/sjmayreferences.html
– this is a description of the various materials written about Rev. May, only a
portion of which is shown in no. 1 above.
4. http://home.twcny.rr.com/hiemstra/etherington.html
– this is a report developed by Certified Archivist, Dr. Suzanne Etherington,
in which she makes various recommendations related to the archival material
stored at MMUUS.
5. http://home.twcny.rr.com/hiemstra/archivestorage.html
– this is a description of the historical material remaining at MMUUS and two
photos of the storage containers in the basement location.
6. http://home.twcny.rr.com/hiemstra/resume.html
– this is online version of Dr. Hiemstra’s resume, and it depicts his past work
with archives and his management experiences relating to the oversight
requirements for directing the proposed project.
ATTACHMENT B: THE MARBLE TABLET STORED AT MMUUS
A large marble tablet (approximately
7 feet by 2.5 feet by 1.5 inches) honoring Sam May was installed in our old
ATTACHMENT C: BUDGET DETAILS
(Prices, rounded to nearest dollar, from Gaylord Bros., Home Depot, Joanne
Fabrics, and Staples)
Key: (E) = Equipment; (H) = Honoraria;
(M) = Misc.; (P) = Preservation; (R) = Restoration; (S) = Stamps
Preservation Suggestions
2 5-drawer
baked enamel finish, lockable filing cabinets @ 300.00 ea. (E) 600.00
1 2-drawer
baked enamel finish, lockable filing cabinet (legal size) (E) 180.00
1 Desk
for researchers who use the historical material (E) 150.00
1 Adjustable
chair on rollers (E) 90.00
1 4-bulb
(48”) florescent light fixture (E) 60.00
8 Florescent
bulbs (includes 4 replacement bulbs) @ 6.00 ea. (E) 24.00
1 Ott true color desk lamp (E) 50.00
200 Letter
size acid free file folders (P) 63.00
100 Legal
size acid free file folders (P) 30.00
25 Letter
size acid free storage envelopes (P) 17.00
25 Legal
size acid free storage envelopes (P) 18.00
2 Photo
boxes acid free (small size) @ 7.00 ea.. (P) 14.00
1 Photo
box acid free (large size) (P) 12.00
6 Curator
boxes acid free, 3 inch thick, for magazines/pamphlets @ 4.50 ea. (P) 27.00
2 Metal
reinforced print boxes acid free (small) @10.00 ea. (P) 20.00
1 Metal
reinforced print box acid free (large) (P) 15.00
84 ft. Acid free lace for binding photo albums and scrapbooks (P)
6.00
3 Memory
scrapbooks with expandable spines (10 pages with
polypropylene sheet protectors) @ 27.00 ea. (P) 81.00
2 Archival
glue pens @ 2.00 ea. (P) 4.00
1 Package
of 12 white cotton gloves (medium) (P) 17.00
1 Package
of 12 white cotton gloves (large) (P) 17.00
1 Package
of 10 UV light filter wraps for florescent bulbs (P) 48.00
1 Disaster
recovery kit (flashlight, paper towels, sponges, polyester sheeting, etc.) (P) 75.00
1 Single
sided acid free scotch tape (2500 ft) (P) 30.00
1 Double
sided acid free scotch tape (1300 ft.) (P) 17.00
Subtotal 1665.00
Encourage Use of Historical Material
300 Mailings
to churches, universities, seminaries, etc. @ .39 (S) 117.00
300 Envelopes,
necessary paper, etc. (M) 50.00
300 Brochures
advertising the MMUUS historical material (M) 100.00
Subtotal 267.00
Enhance Samuel J. May Heritage
Repair and hang marble table in
MMUUS building (estimate) (R) 1000.00
Subtotal 1000.00
Interview Current and
1 Olympus
DM-10 digital recorders @ 131.00 with batteries @ 17.00
and with power adapter @ 20.00 (E) 168.00
Subtotal 168.00
Other
Miscellaneous expenses (M) 100.00
Subtotal 100.00
Grand
total $3200.00