Uniquely Ada

So Much To Do…

So Little Summertime

Tuesday, July 4 – Fourth of July parade & festivities

Keep an eye out for AHS’s own “Kitchen Band” marching in the parade!

AHS will have coffee and water available along the parade route. 8:30-

11:30am for parade and festivities.

Tuesday, July 11 – Music On the Lawn

Tony Reynolds will play popular pop, standards, light jazz hits

of the ‘60s-‘80s. 7pm at the museum.

Friday, July 21 –Beers At the Bridge

Great Scott will play the best from the ‘50's to the new millennium. 6pm

at the Ada Covered Bridge & Leonard Field.

Tuesday, July 25 – Garden Event & Music On the Lawn

Come early to stroll the gardens, then stay for Music On the Lawn. This

year we feature the farm garden. Garden Event is 5:30-7:00pm on

museum grounds. The Adams Family will play acoustic folk & rock.

7:00-8:30pm at the museum.

Tuesday, August 1 – Music On the Lawn

Boogie Woogie Kid will play piano - boogie woogie, jazz, ragtime - with

a bit of history thrown in. 7pm at the museum.

Friday, August 4 – August in Ada

We’ll enjoy the dog days of summer with our littlest friends at

Ada’s annual children’s festival. Look for the AHS booth amid the

rides, activities, nibbles and fun. 10:00am-2:00pm at Ada Township Park.

Tuesday, August 8 – Music On the Lawn

Peat in the Creel will play traditional Irish music. 7pm at the museum.

August 8, 9, 10 – Pioneer Days summer camp

We are excited to offer another year of summer camp with the Ada Parks

department. Kids get the chance to step back in time and live like the

pioneers did! To join the fun, please pre-register through the Parks

Department at 616-0250. 9:00am-3:00pm at the museum.

Friday, August 18 –Beers At the Bridge

Thirsty Perch Blues Band will play rockin’ blues. 6pm at the Ada

Covered Bridge & Leonard Field.

Thursday, August 24 – Quilt show & program We feature a quilt exhibit from Aug. 14 - Sept. 2 and a lecture entitled “A

Story of Quilts & the Underground Railroad" presented by Joan Moran on

August 24th with Cascade Historical Society. 7:00pm at Roselle Park

Friday, August 25 – Music On the Lawn

Stone Hedge will play classic rock. 6pm at the museum.

Saturday, September 23 – Antique Appraisal Event

More details to come!

● July 13, August 17, & September 14 - Board Meetings ●

Meetings are open to all. 1:00pm at the museum.

JULY, AUGUST, AND

SEPTEMBER 2017

SOCIETY OFFICERS

Bernard Veldkamp-

President

Marie Vierson-

Vice President

Marilyn Thompson – Secretary

Kevin Moran—Treasurer

BOARD MEMBERS

Betty Jo Crosby

Marilyn DeGood

Ken Dixon

Frank Hoover

Al Mracna

Sandra Sefton

Kristen Wildes

The Averill Historical Museum of Ada

is open for tours Friday and Saturday from 1:00-4:00 p.m.

and other times by appointment.

Newsletter of the Ada Historical Society and the Averill Historical Museum of Ada

www.AdaHistoricalSociety.org 616.676.9346 AdaHistoricalSociety@gmail.com

Historic Changes

Have you been in Ada Village recently? There is a lot going on! The "sky line"

has been changed forever. Have you passed the Averill Historical Museum and

noticed the "Coming Soon" sign in the yard? We, too, are part of the changing

scene.

The Ada Historical Society, with major support from Ada Township, has kicked

off a fund-raising campaign to raise $669,000 to expand and update our facility.

This will include a new meeting/classroom, climate-controlled archival storage

and other enhanced amenities. We won't change our style, but the museum will be

a far more effective facility and community resource.

It IS time to have a better means of preserving Ada's past for the future! Stop by.

Look at the plans. And pitch in to help us reach our goal. Construction is targeted

for early 2018.

- Betty Jo Crosby and Barbara Mieras, AHS members and Campaign Co-chairs

Project Highlights:

• 1,876 square feet of new, controlled, archival storage

• accessible for cataloging, preservation, and storage

• looks like a separate village building with a connecting hallway to

the museum

• collections storage secure and separate from public spaces

• a multi-use room for lectures, classes, programs, and visits by

scouting groups, school groups, retirement homes, civic and historic

organizations, etc.

• double the number of current restrooms, more conveniently

accessed

• museum exhibit space separate from community meeting spaces

• a kitchenette for event use, welcome desk, and office space

Uniquely Ada

After a fantastic June start—which included the 150th

birthday celebration for the Ada Covered Bridge—

Music On the Lawn is rockin’ and rollin’ along.

Grab a lawn chair, family and friends and join us for a

variety of wonderful outdoor concerts. The Music On

the Lawn series will feature two more Beers At the

Bridge events.

July 11 – Tony Reynolds 6pm at the museum

July 21 – Great Scott, 7pm at the covered bridge

July 25 – The Adams Family, 7pm at the museum

Aug 1 – Boogie Woogie Kid, 7pm at the museum

Aug 8 – Peat in the Creel, 7pm at the museum

Aug 18 – Thirsty Perch, 6pm at covered bridge

Aug 25 – Stone Hedge, 6pm at the museum

Celebrate Good Times

Ada will continue to celebrate

150 years of the Ada Covered

Bridge all summer long with a

birthday banner hung on the

side of the bridge.

HUGE thanks to Ada

firefighters (l-r) Dave Murray,

Peggy Ferguson, and Nick

Dewey and Nicole Horton

from the Ada Parks Dept. for

their significant efforts to

hang the banner.

Stop by and check it out!

Uniquely Ada

Dahlias on the Move

A healthier spot was needed and has been found

for the Dahlia Garden at the museum. Dahlias

need well drained soil, plus 6 to 8 hours of sun.

Over the years, the trees have put our dahlias in

a very shady and damp spot. It was time to move

them. They are now growing in a much sunnier

and drier environment.

It may sound like a huge job, moving 40+

dahlias to a new garden. But it's not. Dahlias are

a zone 8 to 10 perennial and the museum is in

zone 4 to 5. Every fall the tubers are dug up and

put in storage for the winter. In the spring, they

are replanted by the daughters, grandchildren

and great grandchildren of Gene Vader. The

garden is dedicated to Vader for her work at the

museum, in Ada, and because of her love of

dahlias. Erhardt Construction lent a hand in

moving the garden’s stone

monument.

You will find the garden at

the west end of the picket

fence along Headley Street.

We hope you enjoy the dahlias and other flowers

and plants being added. Feel free to walk

through the gate and enjoy the ongoing beauty

of this gift from the Vader family.

-Carol Penninga, AHS member and Master Gardener

On July 18th, we will have our catered lunch and program at the Belrockton in

Belding. Our speaker will be Ron Rademacher, who has written five books

about road trips to out of the way places in Michigan and he will tell about

some of his adventures.

On Thursday, September 28th we will have another bus trip to visit several

museums. We will visit the Ziibiwing Center of Anishinabe Culture and

Lifeways in Mt. Pleasant. Then the bus will go to the Big Rapids area where

we will visit the 1873 Bergelin House, the Mecosta County Old Jail, and the

Mecosta County Historical Museum. The cost per person is $50.00, which will

include a box lunch. Please contact AHS if you would like more information

on joining either program.

-Marian Bolhuis

Thank you to our garden superheroes!

Carol & Dave Penninga

Aleisha Boersma

Joanne Wood

Jo Tuttle and the Vader Family

Please stop by, wander around, and

enjoy the beautiful work of these

dedicated volunteers.

Be sure to stop by the museum and see our temporary exhibit

Capturing the spirit of change in the village, the exhibit

explores three past periods of growth and development in Ada.

The exhibit will be up through the summer.

Museum hours are Friday and Saturday, 1-4:00pm

Volunteers are the heart and soul of the Society! Please circle any areas that interest you:

Programs/Events Collections Gardening Research Education Fundraising

Docent Lecturing Children’s Events Special Projects Other __________

Membership Level

AdaHistoricalSociety@gmail.com

616.676.9346

www.AdaHistoricalSociety.org

Ada Historical Society Membership Form

Name ___________________________________________________________________________

Address__________________________________________________________________________

City _______________________________________ State ___________ Zip_________________

Phone ___________________________ E-mail _________________________________________

Ada Historical Society

Averill Historical Museum of Ada

7144 Headley St.

PO Box 741

Ada, MI 49301

The Ada Historical Society

preserves, shares, and celebrates

the unique history of the Ada community.

If you would like

to help preserve

Ada history,

please fill out this

form and return

along with a check

to the address

below.

Personal Membership

_____ Individual - $15.00

_____ Family - $25.00

_____ Senior - $10.00

_____ Friend - $35.00

_____ Settler -$100.00

Business and Benefactor

_____ Business - $100.00

_____ Lyon - $250.00

_____ Bradfield - $500.00

_____ Robinson - $1000.00

Additional tax-deductible gift ________

_____ I have items I would like to donate to

the museum’s collections