The Oneida Daily Dispatch (Oneida, NY)
Community fundraiser to save log cabin
Fundraiser aims to save log cabin at elementary school
The community is rallying around the Durhamville Elementary School to help preserve a unique educational tool.
Back in 1975, students, parents, educators communitymembers worked together to build a log cabin on school grounds to be used as a museum for the district. It had a fireplace, loft, furniture and artifacts fromthe Erie Canal. Now, 40 years after being built, the cedar roof shingles on the building need to be replaced so the cabin can continue to be used by students at the school.
Durhamville PTO president Jennifer Stanhope Stone has started a GoFundMe page to raise $5,500 to repair the cabin’s roof. “These are the original shingles and have been on the cabin for 40 years now, which is actually pretty amazing!” she writes. “However, the shingles are in very bad shape, some have fallen off and the cabin is in dire need of a new roof.”
She says Campany Roofing in Oneida has agreed to replace the roof for free, but will need the materials, which is where the $5,500 comes in. She hopes the roof can be replaced before the snow falls. The GoFundMe currently sits at $2,180.
“The community support has been overwhelmingly positive,” said Margaret Visalli, Durhamville principal. “We are just so fortunate to have people value the log cabin.”
She said several nowgrown community members helped build the cabin during their childhood, and there’s a “sense of pride” in making sure the cabin remains part of the commu- nity.
The cabin gets regular use throughout the year, with kindergartners making stone soup over the fireplace every Thanksgiving, and the Hobbies, Interests and Professions program using it during the spring, Visalli said.
“We usually have someone who shares their love of the great outdoors,” she said. “Last year they shared animal skins and it was just so neat because it was just so appropriate to be in the log cabin.”
Visalli said Stanhope Stone has led the charge in renovating the cabin, with help from several others, including Sue Fidler, who requested money from various organizations in the community, including the Owls and Elks clubs. “They’ve been very supportive,” she said. “We appreci- ate that. Without our whole community supporting, it’s difficult to achieve a task.”
“Please help us preserve this historic and special building to so many,” Stanhope Stone writes.
Anyone interested in making a donation can do so through the GoFundMe at www.gofundme. com/2qpm838, or send checks to: Durhamville PTO 5462 Main St. Durhamville, NY 13054