Cape May MAC's Winter 2025 Newsletter

Newsletter

VOLUME LV, ISSUE 1

www.capemaymac.org WINTER 2025

Photo courtesy of

Cape May MAC

Shown here, friends

enjoy a recent winter

Cape May Wine Trail.

The Cape May Wine

Trail on Sunday, Feb.

16 features visits to two

county wineries with

trolley transportation

and lunch included.

Presidents’ Day Weekend in Cape May

features dozens of tours, activities, events

Presidents’ Day Weekend, Feb. 14-

17, includes Valentine’s Day this year, and

there’s a surprising array of things to enjoy

in Cape May with tours, activities and

events presented by Cape May MAC

(Museums+Arts+Culture). Cape May MAC’s

main mission is promoting the preservation,

This winter in Cape May enjoy four free

classical music concerts featuring unusual

instruments, original works and accomplished

musicians. Building on the success

of its inaugural season, Classical Cape

May announces its second season of programs,

sponsored by Cape May MAC

(Museums+Arts+Culture).

Adam Cockerham launched this

year’s series Sunday, Jan. 12 at the

Episcopal Church of the Advent, performing

on the theorbo and lute, to

an appreciative crowd.

Upcoming concerts are scheduled

Sundays, Feb. 9, March 9 and

April 13, from 4 p.m. to 5 p.m. at the

Episcopal Church of the Advent at 612

Franklin St. (Franklin and Washington

streets) in Cape May and admission is

free. Attendees are invited to a reception

after each program to meet the

artists.

interpretation, and cultural enrichment of

the Cape May region for its residents and

visitors. Hey! Cape May County residents,

this holiday weekend is a good time to explore

your hometown!

(CONTINUED ON PAGE 17)

Series features unusual instruments, accomplished musicians

SUNDAY, FEB. 9

Music of our Time by People of our Place

Cape May County musicians performing

Besides bringing excellent regional per-


Photo courtesy Classical Cape May

Shown here, Adam Cockerham launched this year’s

Classical Cape May series of free concerts performing on

the theorbo and lute Jan. 12 at the Episcopal Church of

the Advent. More concerts are scheduled through April.

Photo courtesy of Center for Community Arts

Nash Collection / Gift of Becki Vance Wilson

Shown here, Griffin family members in front

of Hotel DeGriff, on Corgie Street, Cape

May, N.J.: James, Georgia, James Jr., and

Patricia. The hotel was owned by James’

mother, Della Griffin, and later his sister,

Helena.

‘Routes of Black Travel:

The Green Book in

Cape May and Wildwood’

Exhibit Jan. 18-March 23

in Cape May

A new Carroll Gallery exhibit at the

Emlen Physick Estate opened Martin

Luther King, Jr. weekend and explores

how Black travelers during the Jim Crow

era used The Green Book and other


In This Issue

Coming Attractions.................... Page 3-5

From the President........................Page 6

Membership News .......................Page 7

Recent Happenings...................... Page 2

Thank You Department........Pages 8-11

The Christmas elves descended on the

Physick Estate at the end of October, starting

by decking the grounds with thousands

of twinkling lights and then they moved on

to the Carriage House, to install the Old-

Fashioned Christmas exhibit. Poet Joyce

Kilmer said “only God can make a tree” but

David and Jean Barraclough come a close

second with the lush Christmas tree they

create in the Carroll Gallery. After stringing

the boughs from the ceiling, they festoon

it with string after string of lights and hundreds

of ornaments. Once that’s completed,

it’s time to create the Dept. 56 Dickens

Village with its hundreds of accessories and

then add the train that winds through the

village. And we can’t forget the garland on

the windows, displays on the walls and gallery

of Cape May MAC members and staff

in their childhood photos. If it’s possible to

overdose on nostalgia, this would be the

place. A feature that we’ve been offering in

the Carroll Gallery during the holiday season

is a Giving Tree to benefit the US Coast

Guard recruits. Each year, members, staff,

and visitors donate a dollar or more to purchase

a paper stocking ornament to hang

on the tree. This year we were able to donate

more than $1,000, which was used for

toiletries and gift cards for the recruits.

While the Carriage House was donning

its holiday finery, Curator Ben Ridings marshalled

his crew of volunteers to make the

Physick House ready for a perfect Victorian

Christmas, with trees in the Formal and Family

Parlors and signs of Christmas preparations

in the Foyer, Dining Room, Servants

RECENT HAPPENINGS

Winter & Late Fall Wrap-Up

Bingo!

NEWSLETTER

Published by Cape May MAC, a not-for-profit corporation

P.O. Box 340, Cape May, NJ 08204 • Phone: 609-884-5404

New Jersey Relay Center for TTY Customers: 800-852-7899

Web Site: www.capemaymac.org • E-Mail: info@capemaymac.org

Editor: Jody Alessandrine • Assistant Editor: Jean Barraclough

Contributors: Sandra Adams, Maria Amin, Susan Krysiak,

Anna Marie Leeper, Eliza Lotozo, Andrea McVay, Mary E. Stewart

OUR MISSION

Cape May MAC (Museums+Arts+Culture) is a multifaceted

not-for-profit organization committed to promoting the preservation,

interpretation, and cultural enrichment of the Cape May region

for its residents and visitors.

---- v ----

OUR VISION

Preserving Cape May’s rich heritage and assuring its vitality

through superior cultural programs and events

Photo by Susan Krysiak

Shown here, Cape May MAC Director of Visitor Services Janice Corkery hands Michelle Giorla one

of her prizes at Cape May MAC’s recent Brunch & Bingo at the Bella Vida event.

Hall and Kitchen.

All this activity is to make sure we’ll be

ready to greet our guests on Holiday Preview

Weekend for our annual Christmas

Tree Lighting, which took place on Nov. 23.

This year, the John Walters Band warmed

up the crowd with holiday tunes in anticipation

of the arrival of man in the red suit on

a Cape May MAC trolley. Santa did not disappoint

and was in place at 7pm to flip the

switch, lighting the 60-foot cedar tree on

the lawn. Cape May MAC Director and CEO

Jody Alessandrine was on hand to welcome

Cape May MAC’s public history

programs are funded in part

by the New Jersey Historical

Commission in the Department

of State.

our Mayor Zack Mullock, representatives

of Sturdy Savings Bank (that sponsors the

event) and hundreds of guests who came

to participate. Holiday Preview Weekend

kicked off six weeks of holiday themed programming.

We’ll come back to holiday programming

but there were a few other events

that kept our staff busy during November.

On Nov. 14, we held our Annual Meeting at

Cape May Winery. It’s our time to report on

the organization, announce nominations for

the coming year and thank our Board and

members. This year the Honor Award was

presented to Dan Alicea and the Madison

Resorts Group. In addition to being generous

donors, they are active volunteers. Retiring

Trustees Lee Bellarmino and Ionna Iliopulos

were thanked as was Volunteer Jan

Dwyer, who was the driving force behind

the Hill House Garden. Jan and her husband

are moving away from the area. The

Board of Trustees also honored out-going

President Tom Carroll by naming the Cape

May Preservation Fund in his honor.

Sherlock Holmes and company paid

their annual visit to Cape May to lead not one

but two groups of avid amateur detectives

through their paces. Our acting troupe, under

the direction of Jackie Fazio, performed

at La Mer the weekends of Nov. 16 and Nov.

23. Both weekends were hotly contested


Page 2 • Winter 2025 Cape May MAC www.capemaymac.org

Coming

ATTRACTIONS

609-884-5404 • www.capemaymac.org

Winter Trolley Tours

Take a brisk ride in our open-air trolleys during the late winter or early spring (the sun

shines on winter days, too!) and you will see Cape May in a new light. Offered this time

of year are:

Historic District Trolley Tours

Stories of Cape Island Trolley Tour

Mansions by the Sea Trolley Tour

Ghosts of Cape May Trolley Tour


Underground Railroad Trolley Tour

Children’s Trolley Ride

Welcome to Cape May Trolley Tour

Opens Friday, April 11

Carroll Gallery Exhibit:

“Tattoos: Modern Expression & Ancient Art”

For millennia, humans have tattooed their bodies to express their individuality, chronicling

loves, losses, beliefs, victories, affiliations, hopes and dreams. The oldest human

mummy discovered — 5,300 years old — had 60 tattoos, and his contemporaries, from

the South Pacific to the indigenous people of New Jersey, were also inked. Queen Victoria’s

husband, son, and many of her grandsons and nephews, who were rulers of Europe,

were tattooed. There is a long tradition

of sailors using tattoos to chronicle adventures

at sea. Tattooing has become

increasingly popular in the last 20 years,

and today, eight out of 10 Americans

believe society is more accepting of

people with tattoos. Learn about the

range of expression and history of this

ancient art form in this Carroll Gallery Exhibit

on the grounds of the Emlen Physick

Estate. April 11-Nov. 2, 2025

Cape May Beer Trail

Saturday, March 15 • Sunday, June 15 • Saturday, Oct. 11

Cape May County is home to a selection of fantastic breweries. Board the Cape May MAC

trolley at 10:45 a.m. and visit Cape May Brewing Co., Behr Brewing, and Gusto Brewing

Co., for tasting flights of local beers. Lunch is included at Cape Square Kitchen & Craft.

This tour is for adults ages 21 and over. CLICK HERE for tickets.

Cape May Wine Trail

Sunday, Feb. 16 • Friday, Oct. 10 • Saturday, Dec. 27

Board the trolley at 10:45 a.m. at the Emlen Physick Estate and travel to the Bellevue Tavern

in Cape May Court House for lunch. The trolley will then travel to Jessie Creek Winery for

a tasting and souvenir glass, and to Briganti By the Bay (formerly Natali Vineyards) for an

educational tasting tour. This event is for adults ages 21 and over. CLICK HERE for tickets.

Invest your time in expanding

your knowledge during these

free talks on Wednesdays at

12noon presented by Cape May

MAC educators, offered both

live and online. In person at

the Cape May Lutheran Church,

509 Pittsburgh Ave. and

available on Zoom.

For more information call

609-884-5404 or CLICK HERE

LUNCH & LEARN:

THE HARLEM RENAISSANCE

Feb. 19 at 12pm: Music, art, literature,

dance, and other highlights of African

American culture flourished in Harlem,

a city within a city, between World War I

and the beginning of the Great Depression.

Margaret Montet discusses how this

movement eventually went mainstream,

influencing American culture at large. To

register for the online Zoom, CLICK HERE

to pre-register.

LUNCH & LEARN: THE CAPE

MAY MUSIC FESTIVAL:

NOT JUST PLUG & PLAY

March 5 at 12pm: An impressive amount

of time and work goes into putting on

our Cape May Music Festival each year for

over 35 years. Cape May MAC’s Director

and CEO Jody Alessandrine hosts a panel

of the festival’s conductors and staff that

will illustrate how the magic of presenting

15 concerts in less than a month comes to

life. To register for the online Zoom, CLICK

HERE to pre-register.

LUNCH & LEARN: TELLING

YOUR STORY ON STAGE

March 19 at 12pm: Using the tools of theatre

like sets, lights, costumes and a written

narrative, Producing Artistic Director Roy

Steinberg of Cape May Stage will identify

how a story can be told for a desired effect.

Slipping on a banana peel can be a

comic moment – or a tragedy if it is you

who breaks your hip! To register for the

online Zoom, CLICK HERE to pre-register.

PHYSICK ESTATE GUIDED TOURS

Saturdays and Sundays, beginning Feb. 1;

Fridays, Saturdays & Sundays, beginning

March 7; Daily beginning March 31;

Various times: Cape May’s only Victorian


www.capemaymac.org Cape May MAC Winter 2025 • Page 3

Coming

(CONTINUED FROM PAGE 3

ATTRACTIONS

609-884-5404 • www.capemaymac.org

Climb the lighthouse at nighttime!

Since it opened to the public in 1988, more than

2.5 million visitors have climbed to the top of the

1859 Cape May Lighthouse, but far fewer have

climbed at nighttime. During the Lighthouse Full

Moon Climb, follow the light of the moon up the

199 cast-iron spiral staircase steps to the top of the

Cape May Lighthouse and see its glory from the

Watch Gallery, with a nighttime view nearly 156

feet above the Delaware Bay and Atlantic Ocean.

During Stairway to the Stars, without the moonlight,

you really see the stars shine! Climb to the

top of the Cape May Lighthouse on evenings of

the New Moon and the start of a new 29.5- day

lunar cycle, when the moon is so dark it blends

in with the night sky and is invisible to the naked

eye. Stars and constellations are more visible on

clear nights during the New Moon. Binoculars are

permitted if securely worn around the neck. Full

Moon Climbs are offered 8-10 p.m. on April 12,

May 11, June 11, July 10, Aug. 9 and Sept. 7, and

7-9 p.m. on Oct. 6 and Nov. 5. Stairway to the Stars

is offered 8-10 p.m. on April 27, May 27, June 25, July 24, Aug. 23, and Sept. 21, and 7-9

p.m. on Oct. 21. $20 adult admission; $10 children (ages 3-12). Purchase tickets from the

lighthouse keeper the evening of the event.

“Sherlock Holmes and the Familiar Face:” April 5-6

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s master sleuth, Sherlock Holmes, and his loyal friend Dr. John

Watson, follow the clues in an original mystery, “Sherlock Holmes and the Familiar

Face” by Jacklyn Fazio. Sherlock faces a difficult decision when a former adversary is

accused of a heinous crime. Will this favorite investigative team

help to prove their former adversary innocent, or determine that

they’ve been guilty all along? Join in and follow the story as

the mystery unfolds. The event is held at La Mer Beachfront

Resort, 1317 Beach Ave. Saturday begins with registration

over continental breakfast at 9:30 a.m. Act I begins at

10 a.m., followed by Saturday’s Search for Clues Tour.

Participants will be sent on their own search for clues

on the streets of Cape May and compete for the grand

prize: a weekend for two to next year’s performance. Act

II begins at La Mer Beachfront Resort at 2 p.m. with light

refreshments. On Sunday, lunch is served beginning at

11:30 a.m. and Act III begins immediately after at

12:30 p.m. A cash bar is available. Tickets are limited.

Advance purchase required. Admission is

$150 per person. Significant discounts on La Mer

Beachfront Resort accommodations are available by booking

online. CLICK HERE for tickets and information.

House Museum was named the prettiest

building in New Jersey by popular

vote on Angi.com! Take a guided tour of

the first and second floors of the 1879

Physick House Museum, for an in-depth

look at Victorian architecture and the

period, reflecting one Victorian family’s

lifestyle, detailing the way the Physick

family and their household lived,

worked and spent their leisure time.

Gain insight into architectural features

within the house, providing a unique

perspective on the ingenuity of the

past. CLICK HERE for tickets and more

information.

CAPE MAY LIGHTHOUSE

Saturdays & Sundays, beginning Feb.

1; Fridays, Saturdays & Sundays, beginning

Feb. 14; Daily, beginning April

1; Various times: Climb the 199 steps

up the original, cast-iron spiral stairway

to the top of the 1859 Cape May Lighthouse

and see an exciting view of the

Delaware Bay and Atlantic Ocean, the

surrounding nature trails of Cape May

Point State Park, and Cape May Point

Borough. Interpretive panels on the

grounds, at the base and on the climb

tell stories of Lighthouse Keepers, the

surrounding area, and how the lighthouse

functioned historically and today.

Since Cape May MAC opened it to the

public in 1988, more than 2.5 million

visitors have climbed to the top. The

Cape May Lighthouse is listed on the

State and National Registers of Historic

Places. CLICK HERE tickets and more

information.

WORLD WAR II

LOOKOUT TOWER

(FIRE CONTROL TOWER NO. 23)


April 4; Daily, beginning May 1;

11am-3pm: Fear of German attack in

1942 was real when this tower was built,

now the last freestanding World War II

Lookout Tower in New Jersey. It was part

of the immense Harbor Defense of the

Delaware system known as Fort Miles

and now helps tell the story of Cape

May’s role during World War II. Inside,

a staircase takes you to the sixth-floor

spotting gallery where Observers will

answer your questions. Visit the Wall of

Honor that pays tribute to residents who

served during World War II. Over 160

veterans’ photos are on display there.



MORE

Things to do....

with Cape May MAC

Changing exhibits highlight varying topics

of history related to the tower. Stop at

the eternal flame sculpture outside on the

boardwalk for quiet contemplation. The

tower is listed on the National Register of

Historic Places. CLICK HERE for tickets and

more information.

SATURDAY SOCIAL

AT WHALE TALE BREWING COMPANY

March 15, 12pm-4pm

Whale Tale Brewing Company Taproom

28 Indian Trail Rd #103,

Cape May Court House

Join us for a festive get-together at Whale

Tale Brewing Company in Cape May Court

House during Saturday Socials! A percentage

of sales of the brewery’s sales will be

designated to be donated to Cape May

MAC in support of its mission: promoting

the preservation, interpretation and cultural

enrichment of the Cape May region for its

residents and visitors. Come out and support

Cape May MAC and other non-profit

organizations on Saturdays this winter.

Hope to see you there! CLICK HERE for

more information.

WHALE & DOLPHIN

WATCHING


March 7; Daily, beginning April 1: 1pm

Cape May Whale Watcher Captain Jeff and

his seasoned crew take you into the Delaware

Bay and the Atlantic Ocean in search

of dolphins and whales. The Delaware Bay

Estuary has a unique confluence of fresh

and saltwater that make for a nutrient rich

area teeming with life and conducive to

whale and dolphin activity. Unlike other areas,

where the whales are a great distance

from shore, Cape May is situated such that

many of our sightings are within the Delaware

Bay or within ten miles of land. Marine

biologists, naturalists and whale lovers enjoy

Cape May because the ride time to sightings

is less. The excursion is fully narrated by

your captain who will point out local history

along with many types of marine life. CLICK

HERE to purchase tickets to this tour.

CHANNELING DINNER

WITH MEDIUM

CRAIG McMANUS

February 14, 6pm-10pm

Inn of Cape May, 7 Ocean St.

Enjoy a three-course prix fixe dinner at the

Inn of Cape May followed by a two-hour

channeling session with Medium Craig Mc-

Manus. McManus will read the energies in

the room and channel messages from the

spirits of departed family and friends. While

he does not read everyone present and cannot

control where messages come through,

he will bring through as many messages

from spirits as possible during the two-hour

channeling. This event is not recommended

for people under the age of 16. No refunds

within 14 days of the event. CLICK HERE to

purchase tickets for this event,

BRUNCH & BINGO

AT THE INN OF CAPE MAY

Feb. 15, 9am-11am

Inn of Cape May, 7 Ocean St.

Laugh along with your friends as you play

a little bingo, compete for prizes and enjoy

a fashion show by Lace Silhouettes/Cotton

Company. It’s all over a scrumptious breakfast

buffet at The Inn of Cape May. CLICK

HERE to purchase tickets for this event.

BRUNCH & BINGO

AT BELLA VIDA

March 15, 9am-11am

406 Broadway, West Cape May

Laugh along with your friends as you play

a little bingo, compete for prizes and enjoy

a fashion show by Lace Silhouettes/Cotton

Company. It’s all over a scrumptious breakfast

at Bella Vida Restaurant. CLICK HERE to

purchase tickets for this event.

PINT NIGHT

AT CAPE MAY BREWERY

Feb. 21, 4pm-8pm

1250 Hornet Road, Rio Grande

Raise your glasses to Cape May MAC with

us! Join us at Cape May Brewery for our

designated Pint Night, and $1 from every

pint and flight will be donated back to Cape

May MAC. Hope to see you there!

For more information

about any of these events

visit capemaymac.org or

call 609-884-5404


FROM THE PRESIDENT

Happy New Year to all!

As the new, incoming President of the

Cape May MAC Board of Trustees, I want

to wish everyone a very happy and healthy

New Year. I am very honored to have been

elected the President of MAC’s Board of

Trustees for 2025.

I would like to give a very sincere “thank

you” to our outgoing President, Tom Carroll.

Tom has just finished his fourth Presidency.

He has been an exceptional role

model for all of us, and we are very grateful

for his leadership and contributions. I have

learned a great deal from him, and I look

forward to continuing to work with Tom as

he continues on the Board as 3rd Vice President.

For those of you I have not yet had the

chance to meet, I would like to introduce

myself. My husband Warren and I bought

a Victorian era home here in Cape May

in 1998, and embarked upon a very

lengthy, historically-sensitive restoration.

After spending most of my career in the

insurance industry, retiring as Executive

Vice President of Corporate Development

and Technology, I joined Cape May MAC

and became a volunteer and Physick Estate

interpreter and trolley guide in 2008, and a

member of MAC’s Tour Advisory Team. In

2021, I accepted an invitation to join the Cape

May MAC Board of Trustees as Secretary, a

position I held through 2023. I was elected

First Vice President of the Board of Trustees

in 2024. Along the way, I authored several

of MAC’s successful tours. I served as the

Curator of MAC’s 50th Anniversary Exhibit,

established MAC’s Archival System and

am currently MAC’s Volunteer Archiving

Manager. I also serve as the Chair of the

Membership Committee, and I am an active

member of the Exhibit Planning Team, the

DEAI Team, the MAC Training Team, and

the Restoration and Collections Committee.

Also, I very much enjoy teaching a Victorian

Architecture and Historic Preservation class

to MAC staff and volunteers.

Cape May MAC’s

programming is supported in

part by a grant from the New

Jersey State Council on the Arts

Janet Coupland, President

Cape May MAC Board

But my favorite part of being at Cape

May MAC is having the chance to interact

with our managers, staff, volunteers and

members who provide the tireless efforts

which make this such an outstanding organization.

I truly value their contribution very

much.

2024 was a very busy and successful year

for MAC. We welcomed 208,046 visitors

to our three historic sites, tours, and events.

And the holiday season was one of the

Routes of Black Travel

(CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1)

publications to more safely travel in the

United States, including travel for vacation or

business to Wildwood and Cape May, N.J.

“Routes of Black Travel: ‘The Green Book in

Cape May and Wildwood” is presented by

Cape May MAC (Museums+Arts+Culture) in

association with Center for Community Arts

(CCA) at the Carroll Gallery, Emlen Physick

Estate, 1048 Washington St. The exhibit

opened Saturday, Jan. 18, with an opening

reception on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day,

Monday, Jan. 20, from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m.

“The Negro Motorist Green Book,”

later renamed “The Negro Travelers’

Green Book,” was an annual guidebook

first published in 1936 that gave African

American travelers essential information

about safe places to stay, dine, and obtain

services while traveling in the segregated

United States during the Jim Crow era. Jim

best ever. With less than a month between

Thanksgiving and Christmas, our staff and

volunteers really stepped up to fill hundreds

of shifts for our Holiday Preview Weekend

and Tree Lighting, three Candlelight Tours,

five Lamplighter Tours, and various Physick

Estate and Trolley tours. We are very grateful

to the 180 MAC volunteers who gave up

holiday time with friends and family to help

during our holiday season. And, of course,

a big “thank you” to the managers and staff

who commit their energy to MAC’s success

each and every day.

If you have been on the grounds of the

Physick Estate recently, you have probably

seen the scaffolding on the Physick House.

2025 will be a very busy year for the Physick

Estate as we continue to invest in capital

projects, the most notable being the

long-awaited (55 years!) HVAC project. We

are now moving into the installation phase

on the first and second floors of the house

museum, which will be completed by late

spring. Another major house museum project,

installation of a fire suppression system,

starting in the basement, was completed

late last summer.

If you see me on the grounds of one of

our historic sites or on a tour or at an event,

please stop and say hello. I very much want

to hear from our visitors and supporters.

Warmest regards,

Janet

Crow laws forced racial segregation and

were enforced harshly, often with violence.

The laws lasted close to 100 years until the

Civil Rights laws of the 1960s. The Green

Book and similar publications helped keep

Black travelers safe during this time and

provided them some measure of freedom

of movement.

Learn how Esso stations created safe

havens for Black motorists to fill their gas

tanks and how hotels such as the Banneker

House, the Hotel Dale, and Richardson’s

Hotel, among others in Cape May, along

with guest houses in Wildwood, gave Black

visitors safe spaces to relax at the seaside on

holiday or for business.

The exhibit is open through Sunday,

March 23. Admission is free.

For information on hours, CLICK HERE.

-- SK


MEMBERSHIP NEWS

Welcome new members

Platinum Business: Cape May Seashore

Lines of Tuckahoe, NJ.

Benefactor: Keith & Dena Lambie of

Cape May, NJ.

Sponsor: Sandra Baldino of Malvern, PA.

Gold Business: ABECKERT Art Studios

of Cape May, NJ.

Family/Grandparent: Shawn &

Catherine Beckowski of Drexel Hill, PA;

Frank & Donna Buonadonna of N. Cape

May, NJ; Christopher & Allison DeInnocentiis

of Reinholds, PA; Slawka & Taras Osadchuk

of Cape May Court House, NJ; Brian &

Shannon Spring of Garnerville, NY; George

& Dana Supinski of Jackson, NJ.

Joint: Kevin & Brenda Ardis of Warminster,

PA; Bruce & Ellen Asam of Elkins Park,

PA; Elizabeth Bugaighis of Bethlehem, PA;

Manuel & Gina Cabrera of Hazlet Township,

NJ; Joseph Dillon of Cape May, NJ; Lisa Ellis,

of Wildwood Crest, NJ; Brian & Wendy

Gilbert of Gilbertsville, PA; Michael & Bethan

Grim of Cape May, NJ; James & Jolynn

Hagin of Cape May, NJ: Nick & Rosalie Hershfield

of New York, NY; Charles & Susan

Link of Morristown, NJ; Vince & Theresa

Lopopolo of San Jose, CA; Mary March &

Vivian Ayers of Cape May, NJ; Doug & Mary

Ellen Montesano of Belleville, NJ; David &

Jody Muldowney of Pine Grove, PA; Michael

& Susan Norcross of Manahawkin, NJ;

Chris Noyes of Moorestown, NJ; Emma Olivo

& Richard Wolf of Wallington, NJ; Kurt &

Maria Perkins of Springfield, Pa; Kevin & Lori

Roberts of Cape May, NJ; Jennifer & Carli

Scelfo of Point Pleasant Boro, NJ; Stephen

& Deborah Stanley of Matawan, NJ; Josh &

Brittany Stoker of Somers Point, NJ; Michele

Tiedemann & Virginia Keating of East Brunswick,

NJ; Jennifer & Michael Zingaro of N

Cape May, NJ.

Individual: Susan Kennedy Burgos of

Cape May, NJ; Annmarie Papa of Glenside,

PA; Glen Stone of Roebling, NJ; Julie Trainer

of Philadelphia, PA.

Staff: Robert Cunningham of Villas, NJ.

Volunteer Joint: Ken & Janet Holland

of Whitehouse Station, NJ.

Our sincerest condolences to:

The family and friends of Gail Capehart,

former Cape May MAC Curator; Cindy Huf,

on the death of her husband, Bill; Zack &

Justine Mullock, on the death of Justine’s

father, Martin Malloy; the family and friends

of Mary Elizabeth Tharp.

Our warmest get well wishes to:

Cape May MAC Retail Associate Leslie

Baker; Cape May MAC Interpreter Barbara

Lamont; Member and volunteer Mary Ann

Mosso; Cape May MAC Registrar Donna

Szemcsak.

Our heartiest congratulations to:

Jack Fichter, on his retirement as editor of

the Cape May Star & Wave; Volunteer Trudy

Gilfillian, on becoming a citizen of the United

States; Volunteer Scott Griffith, on the

publication of his new novel; Volunteer Janis

Washington White, on the publication of

her book “Erasing Bias from the Classroom;”

Gretchen Whitman, on her retirement as

Director of the Nature Center of Cape May.

Our thanks and best wishes

to the following Volunteers

who have recently moved away:

Jan Dwyer and Sue Wiggins.

Cape May MAC’s 2025 Fundraising Auction begins

Let the bidding begin! Many gifts and

experiences have been generously donated

by dozens of organizations and individuals

and now the 2025 Cape May Preservation

Fund Online Auction is officially live.

During the month of February, Cape

May MAC is auctioning off fun and unique

items to raise money for our

annual capital campaign supporting

the Cape May Preservation

Fund. Proceeds are

already earmarked for continued

restoration at the Emlen

Physick Estate — the historic

landmark whose preservation

launched the founding of Cape

May MAC over 54 years ago.

We have secured grant funding

to install much-needed

HVAC and Fire Suppression

systems within the Physick House Museum,

and continue to raise funds to match these

grants. Every day we operate the museum

without climate control systems puts over

6,000 Victorian-era artifacts at risk of deterioration.

Of course, a fire without a fire

suppression system installed could destroy

these artifacts and the iconic Frank Furnessdesigned

mansion that houses them.

Thank you to our generous donors who

have provided some fantastic items to bid

on.

Bidding items include:

• A two-night stay at Cape May Cottage

• An antique cherry mirror

• A 2025 Cape May Music Festival

Subscription Package

• Cape May MAC Private Ghost

Tour

• Roundtrip on Cape May-Lewes

Ferry

• Vintage Glassware

And much, much more! CLICK

HERE for a complete list.

Again, bidding ends Friday,

Feb. 28 at 10am!

-- AM


THOMAS E. CARROLL CAPE MAY MAC

PRESERVATION FUND

ANNUAL APPEAL DONATIONS

• $2,000 and up Donors: Jonathan & Daphne

Fleck, Laurie & John Orem.

• $1,000-$1,999 Donors: Vincent & Denise

Degiaimo, Eunice & David King, James Moffatt.

Paul Stridick & Janice Wilson Stridick.

• $500-$999 Donors: William & Tina Angstadt,

Daniel Barbera, Joseph & Paul Bogle,

Joseph & Eileen Cassidy, Annie Chan, Nancy

Lofredo, John-Michael Maas & Gwynne Osterbaan,

Peter & Kathy Manzetti, Bob & Karen

McClennen, Michael Picariello & Irene

Darocha, Margaret St Pierre, Don & Alethia

White.

‘THANK YOU’ NEWS

• $250-$499 Donors: Bernard Bittner, John

& LIsa Boecker, Roy & Ruth Brader, Carolann

Gaites, Janet Kerney, Rita Modesti, Wayne &

Theresa Rusch, Richard Sterner & Diane Degurian,

Sanford & Mary Stewart.

• $100-$249 Donors: Charles Antinori, David

& Patricia Ann Baver, Laura Benevento,

Donna Benton, Camelot Motel (Sherry Kejzman),

Cape May County Amateur Radio

Club, Corbin & Lynda Cogswell, Paul &

Margaret Cromelin, Richard & Patricia Cummines,

Stephan & Paulette De la Veaux,

Thomas & Pamela DePaulis, Beti Derbyshire,

Frank & Ellen DeRose, Michael & Karen Eldredge,

Brian & Virgina Falconer, Elizabeth

Feeney, Fred & Rosemary Fellmeth, Joseph

& Christianne Freiert, Roger & Heather Furlin,

William & Adrienne Gallagher, Peg Gillies,

Debra Glessner, Susan Greene, Carl

& Carole Hoetzl, William & Eva Elisabeth

Hohman, Robert & Carole Irwin, Ray &

Cheryl Jablow, Leigh & Carol Johnson, Ronald

& Caroline Kane, Charles & Margaret Kealy,

William & Karen Kurtz, Mary Ann Leeper,

Jayne & Bob Lester, Anthony Marino, Peter

& Carol Mastrola, Glenn & Patricia Matis,

Matthew & LIsa McClane, Susan Migatz,

Robert Miller, Carols & Nancy Moreira, Eric

Muck, Peter & Kathy Novak, Francis & Nancy

O’Hanlon, Colette Perri, Michael Quinn &

Nancy Tocco, Susan Reilly, Karen Russell,

Bruce & Jane Ryan, Christopher & Carol Saracco,

Thomas & Carolyn Schwartz, Robert &

Mary Ellen Scott, Mark & Nancy Shumeyko,

Barbara Sorenson & Robert Tacket, Mary

Swartz, J. Denise Stryjewski, Victorian Motel

(Sherry Kejzman), Jack & Arlette Wright,

John & Lou Zmroczek, Thomas & Susan Zug.

Photo by Frank Scott

The first snowstorm of the year Monday, Jan. 6 brought substantial snowfall to Cape May. Close to

eight inches fell on the Emlen Physick Estate, shown here, and the rest of the city, closing schools

and businesses for the day.

• Under $100 Donors: Mark & Linda Clemente,

Bruce & Robin Corini, Lynne Cutler,

Gary & Nancy D’Atrio, Michael Decesare,

Robert Gerlough & Cyndy Cesena, William

& Anne George, Donna Madronal, Frank &

Jeanne-Marie McCall, Martha McCormick,

Robert McLaughlin, Kenneth & Nancy Miller,

Mark & Ann Mulholland, Patricia Roode,

Robert & Elizabeth Troxell, Ruth Wells.

MYLES MARTEL LESSONS OF HISTORY

ENDOWMENT DONATIONS

• $1,000-$1,999 Donors: Eunice & David

King (in honor of Myles Martel, in grateful

appreciation of the enormous contributions

he has made to the cultural life of Cape

May.)

• $500-$999 Donors: Richard & Susan Foxx.

• $250-$499 Donors: David & Barbara

Schindler (In honor of Myles Martel).

CAPE MAY MUSIC FESTIVAL DONORS

• Solo Sponsor ($4,000-$9,999): Brown &

Brown of New Jersey, LLC.

• Duo Sponsor ($2,000-$3,999): Barbara &

Jane Morris & Stephanie Exarhakis (In Memory

of Mary Morris).

• Quartet Sponsor ($500 - $999): William &

Tina Angstadt.

• Conductor’s Circle ($100-$499): Craig &

Donna Rothman.

MAJOR DONATIONS

• The David R. Atkinson and Patricia D. Atkinson

Foundation for a $15,000 donation

($10,000 to Music Festival, $5,000 to Education).

• Philippa Campbell, for a $1,500 donation

to the Physick Estate.

• Tom & Sue Carroll, for a $10,000 donation

to the Thomas E. Carroll Cape May MAC

Preservation Fund.

• Fins Bar & Grille (Andrea Slabinski), for a

$2,033 donation to the Emlen Physick Estate.

• Craig & Gail Fitz, for a $500 donation to

Operations.

• Stan & Peggy Gora, for a $1,500 donation


Preservation Fund.

• Sharon Kewish, for a $5,000 donation to

the Thomas E. Carroll Cape May MAC Preservation

Fund’s annual appeal.

• Patricia Jo Kiraly, for an in-kind donation

of Stocks to the Emlen Physick Estate for a

new garden.

• Jeannie & Jim Morris, for a $5,000 donation


Preservation Fund.

• Eleanor Roman, for a $1,000 donation to

Operations.

• Patricia Valas, for an $8,000 donation to

the Physick Estate.




Cape May MAC volunteer and professional photographer Frank Scott photographed this rare and

lovely view of the Physick House Museum blanketed in snow Jan. 6.

• Joy Wadleigh, for a $5,000 donation to


Fund.

• Barbara Zicari & Jay Kloosterboer for a

$500 donation to Operations.

• Jennifer & John Zambri, for a $500 donation

to Operations.

DONATIONS

• Mary Beth Adamchik, for a $100 donation

to the Cape May Lighthouse in memory of

Jan Curry.

• Tom & Sue Carroll, for an in-kind donation

of a pump and a circular saw.

• Bill & Sharon Caufield, for a donation of

$75 to the Cape May Lighthouse in memory

of Mary Tharp.

• Dennis Johnson, for a $250 donation to

Operations.

• Nancy Mackenzie Johnston, for a donation

of $50 to the Cape May Lighthouse in

memory of Mary Elizabeth Tharp.

• Andrea Kennedy, for a $50 donation to


Fund in memory of Patricia “Pattie”

MacDonald.

• Janet Kerney, for a $25 donation to Lunch

& Learn.

• Malcolm & Dottie Knapp, for a $100 donation

to Operations.

• Donna Levy, for a $40 donation to the

Thomas E. Carroll Cape May MAC Preservation

Fund in memory of Mary Elizabeth

Mackenzie Tharp.

• Patricia Mackenzie, for a $100 donation

to the Cape May Lighthouse in memory of

Mary Elizabeth Tharp.

• Mallory’s Eats, for a $140 donation to Operations.

• Raymond McKay, for a donation of $100

to the Cape May Lighthouse In memory of

Mary Tharp.

• Barbara Morrison, for a $100 donation in

memory of Elizabeth Brodt.

• Mary Paskor, for a donation of $50 to the

Thomas E. Carroll Cape May MAC Preservation

Fund in memory of Bruce Klastow, who

loved Cape May.

• Joseph Reilly, for a $25 donation to the

Emlen Physick Estate in honor of Dory Coe.

• James & Marlo Vandegrift, for a $200 donation

to the Cape May Lighthouse.

• Ticket Buyers who added a donation

when purchasing tickets: Ellen Albert, Judy

Albrizio, Carrie Aloi, Al Amato, Seth Amdur,

Kelly Andre, Christine Antonini, Lucille Aquilone,

Brian Archibald, Andrea Avila, Joseph

Bakes, Craig Balzano, Maria Baum, Timothy

Bayruns, Eileen Bedatsky, Barbara Bennett,

Jessica Bertollo, Diane Betz, Mark Brennan,

Helene Brochon, Carmel Buonadonna, Irma

Burgos, Javier Camacho, Celeste Campos,

Susan Camuto, Mary Pat Cardinale, Judith

Cardona, John Casmirri, Mary Cermignano,

Elaine Charney, Genna Cimo, Tatyana

Coletti, Jeannette Patricia Combs, Karen

Comly, George Conklin, Kristina Conner,

Loretta Croop, Susan Cusack, Vito Danna,

Renee Davis, Christian Dehmelt, Patricia

De Jesus, Dan DelPrato, Michael Der Linn,

JoAnne DeTorrice, John Di Lonardo, Dawn

DiMiero, Frank DeNigris, Janine DiPaola,

Leonard Dipisa, Kristen Donahue, Catherine

Doyle, John Dunn, Steven Dyl, Sharon Eastburn,

Jennifer Eastwood, Karen Eisele, Randolph

Escobar, Bryce Fager, Veronica Farrell,

Michael Fodor, Megan Foell, Margaret

Foley, Marie Fortunato, Lindsay Harris Friel,

Lauren Frullo, Christopher Furnari, Patrick

Garvin, Sherry Geardino, Cecilia Geraghty,

Theresa Gibbons, Nancy Gibson, Gwen

Glattes, Martha Goni, Melissa Grant, Marietta

Grother, Robin Guidotti, Leah Gunning,

John Gyza, Colleen Hackes, Michele Hadley,

Lisa Haiges, Ellen Hanley, Jeff Harrison,

Domenica Hart, Alexander Hepp, Mantha

Hershey, Megumi Hill, John Hobson, Timothy

Hofmann, Rachel Hooper, Kelly Hurley,

Joelle Hutcheon, John Ireland, Stacey Irey,

Gabriella Ivancu, Janice Ivins, Dwight Jenson,

Kristin Johnston, Mark Jordy, Jill Joyce,

Maureen Kaman, Leonhard Keck, Scott

Keller, Maura Kilroy, Marie Kneidinger, Stacie

Koroly, Kathy Kraeck, Michele Kremer,

William Labrum, Nadia Legorreta, Monica

Leipold, Jennifer Little, Stephanie Long,

Devon Lucchesi, Kimberly Luciano, Chris

Lynch, Michelle Lynch, Lauren Mammucari,

Paula Mariniello, Marie Massa, Mary Kay

Matarazzo, Lauren Mayer, Kathy McAleer,

Betty Ann Mcanany, Daniel McCabe,

Joshua McCann, Kelly McCarthy, Laura Mccarthy,

Rob Mcdowell, Todd McGowan,

Marlene McKenna, Michael McManiman,

Joanne Meehan, Christine Miller, Thomas

Millichap, Joe Modestine, Robert Moran,

Carole Mueller, David Muldowney, Lawrence

Mustico, Theresa Myers, Samantha

Nash, Lori Neitzel, Sharon Nicastro, Jeffrey

Nicholls, Robin Nolan, Michael Norcross,

Alexis Novak, Ellen Okeefe, Quinn Omalley,

Karen Papps, Michelle Parker, Rebecca

Parker, Jennifer Pena, Heather Peters, Kathy

Pietras, Jennifer Pirrotta, Megan Poad, Kimberley

Portuondo, Kate Ranalli, Tammy

Rappa, Patricia Renz, Tiffany Rhine, Dianne

Rieth, Brenda Riggleman, Tyler Robinson,

Terri Rocco, Gina Rosado, Colleen Ryan,

Brian Saggiomo, Clare Sapienza-Eck, Carolyn

Shaw, Jeffrey Shields, Law Shillington,

James Shimalla, Kathleen Sifer, Beth Smith,

Madeline Snyder, Jill Spelina, Pat Staley,

Brenda Stallard, Linda Staropoli, Dean

Stiles, Cindy Sutter, Jacquelyn Swayze, An-




drea Swift, Heather Tedesco, Yvette Terry,

Cindy Thatcher, Michele Tiedemann, Mary

Toogood, Ashley Torlucci, Michele Torre,

Gioia Tremitiedi, Colleen Truitt, Susan Ust,

Patricia Van Bergen, Lee Van Horn, Stacey

Vanhorn, Sara Velasquez, Kathy Visocki, Jan

Wakeley, Kathleen Wallace, Roberta Weber,

Barbara White, Heidi Williamson, Beverley

Wilson, Sharon Woolbert, Kristin Zaccagni,

JoAnne Zito.

ASSISTANCE


• Joyce Barth, for assistance on the Christmas

Candlelight House Tour and Holiday

Trolley Tours.

• Janet Coupland, for help with the Cape

May MAC archiving project.

• Pastor Jeff Elliot and Cape May Lutheran

Church, for use of the church hall for staff

and volunteer training and Lunch & Learn

sessions.

• Karen Familletti, for polishing the museum

silverware.

• Mary Fox, for help on the Spirits Tour.

• Peggy Gora, for transcribing the Advisory

Council notes.

• Camille Llewellyn, for administrative assistance

with research and data entry.

• Meterologist Joe Martucci, for a Lunch &

Learn program on the “Cape May Bubble.”

• Kathy Morais, for help with brochure and

poster distribution.

• Rick Sasse, for a Lunch & Learn program

on Presidential Inaugurations.

VOLUNTEERS

Advisory Committee Volunteers: Jill Connell,

Janet Coupland.

Brunch and Bingo Co-Host Volunteer: Sue

Currie.

Christmas Candlelight House Tour Volunteers:

Janice Ablett, Sharon Agin, Cheryl

Alessandrine, Bill Angstadt, Tina Angstadt,

Cindy Baldacchini, Jean Barraclough, Joan

Bauer, Bill Brown, Patricia Brown, Mary


Lillian Rozin, shown here in the

Carriage House at the Emlen Physick

Estate, was one of a number

of volunteers who helped greet

and guide visitors during Cape

May MAC’s annual Christmas Tree

Lighting on Nov. 23.

Burke, Janet Coupland, Sue Currie, William

Currie, Jane Donnelly, Chris DuBois, Hope

Gaines, Christine Gaudry, Lynne Glasser,

Candace Glenn, Scott Griffith, Alexander

Hager, Mary Beth Hager, Victoria Heimall,

Lisa High, Janet Holland, Ken Holland,

Kimberley Ivins, Kathleen Janits, Dagmar

Jelincic, William King, Steve Kirkpatrick,

Terry Kirkpatrick, Jennifer Kramer, Anna

Leeper, Bonnie Liddane, Susan Lotozo,

Joe Mammarella, Peter Manzetti, Richard

Mayer, Diane Meza, Clive Morgan, Melissa

Motz, Tricia Nolfi, Elaine Ottaviano, Therese

Porzio-Kwiecinski, Jan Randle, Joan Ryan,

Phil Ryan, Frank Scott, Amy Shimalla, Jim Shimalla,

Mary Stewart, Carole Sick, Mandeep

Talwar, Hannah Vaught, Donna Wicker, Jim

Yingst.

Christmas Candlelight House Tour Properties:

25 Ocean Street (Aaron Sackstein), 721

Franklin Street (Patricia Ternove), The Abbey

(Jake Pashelinsky), Angel of the Sea (Theresa

Stanton), The Avalon House (Adrienne

Scharnikow), Beauclaire’s (Joe & Joanne

Giovanetti), The Bedford Inn (Paula Murray),

Cape Island Baptist Church, Cape May United

Methodist Church (Reverend Heyyoung

Horton), The Dormer House (Bob Mullock),

The Episcopal Church of the Advent (Reverend

Alan Leonard), The Firefighter’s Hall

History Museum, Franklin’s Keys (Marla &

Andrew Bonner), Highland House (Dave

Ripoli), John F. Craig House (Lori Lazan),

Judson Bennett House (Anna & Mike Dedominicis),

Kurtz Residence (Karen & Yogi

Kurtz), The Macedonia Baptist Church (Reverend

Kathleen Smallwood Johnson), The

Mainstay Inn (Esther & Peter Scalone), Mason

Cottage (Kimberly Gilbert), The Montreal

Resort (Dan Alecia), The Norris Smith

House (Richard Hudson & Joy Wadleigh),

Queen Victoria (Jamie Harvey), Our Lady

Star of the Sea Church (Father John Dolan),

Wilbraham Mansion (Doug Carnes).

Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony: Sharon

Agin, Tina Angstadt, Bill Angstadt, Jean

Barraclough, Donna Flegal, Hope Gaines,

Janet Holland, Ken Holland, Steve Kirkpatrick,

Terry Kirkpatrick, Jennifer Kramer, Anna

Leeper, Kathy Morais, Lillian Rozin, Amy Shimalla,

Jim Shimalla.

Craft and Collectibles Volunteers: Lisa High,

Kimberly Ivins, Dagmar Jelincic, Jennifer

Kramer.

Grounds Crew Volunteers: Walt Gabriel,

Carol Lindsay, George Macaluso, Hannah

Vaught, Rita Wade, Stephen Ward, Deb Yamashita.

Holiday Décor Volunteers: Joyce Barth, Eileen

Cassidy, Jill Connell, Janet Coupland,

Karen Familletti, Carol Hartman, Janet Hol-


Exploring Literature with Cape May’s Poet Laureate

Three online

seminars will focus

on Emerson, Thoreau

and Alcott, Emily

Dickinson and Helen

Hunt Jackson, and

Hawthorne, Poe

and Melville

Cape May’s Poet Laureate Sylvia Baer

hosts three 1.5-hour interactive online seminars

via Zoom this March that delve into

American literature of the Victorian age.

“The Concord Gang” on Monday, March

10 highlights Emerson, Thoreau and Alcott.

“The Amherst Gang” on Monday, March 17

features Emily Dickinson and Helen Hunt

Jackson. “The Fear Gang” on Monday,

March 24 delves into Hawthorne, Poe and

Melville.

These seminars are designed for those

at any level of knowledge and experience

who wish to learn more about and discuss

literature. This will be an engaging, interactive

learning experience. Seminars will not

be recorded, but video cameras shall be on

to encourage the energetic flow of ideas

and active participation. Reading selections

will be provided in advance at no extra cost

and are not required reading.

land, Kathy Genzoli, Peggy Gora, Jennifer

Kramer, Steven Olszewski.

Holiday Inns House Tour: Pixie Angelo, Tina

Angstadt, Barbara Bonner, Susan Crean, William

Currie, Donna Flegal, Robert Gorgone,

Roe Gorgone, Kelly Gray, Jean Grazel, Scott

Griffith, Alexander Hager, Mary Beth Hager,

Janet Holland, Ken Holland, Kathleen Janits,

Megan Kately, Terry Kirkpatrick, Peter Manzetti,

Diane Meza, Mary Stewart, Jim Yingst.

Holiday Inns House Tour Properties: 721

Franklin Street (Patricia Ternove), Beauclaire’s

B&B (Joe & Joanne Giovanetti), The

Bedford Inn (Paula Murray), Cape May Stage

(Roy Steinberg), Casablanca (Andrew Bares

& Kelly Lavorgna), The Colonial House Mu-


seum (Greater Cape May Historical Society),

The Duke of Windsor (Clara Ziman), The

Norris Smith House (Richard Hudson & Joy

Wadleigh), Queen Victoria (Jamie Harvey).

Lamplighter House Tour Volunteers: Eileen

Coyle, Martin Coyle, Chris DuBois, Donna

Flegal, Hope Gaines, Robert Gorgone, Roe

Gorgone, Victoria Heimall, Janet Holland,

Ken Holland, Dagmar Jelincic, Megan Kately,

Terry Kirkpatrick, Jennifer Kramer, Tina

Lawson, Diane Meza, Kathy Morais, Melissa

Motz, Mark Nathan, Tricia Nolfi, Mandeep

Talwar, Hannah Vaught.

Lamplighter House Tour Properties: Beauclaire’s

B&B (Joe & Joanne Giovanetti),

The Bedford Inn (Paula Murray), Cape May

Stage (Roy Steinberg ), The Cedar House

“America through the 1800s was an adolescent

country — finding its identity and

its direction. The ideas of self-reliance, independence,

reverence for our own natural

environment, and concepts of fitting into

the larger world of the arts were really all

explored in our literature,” said Baer. “These

ideas keep being examined even today.

Join me in wandering through some writings

from this exciting time in our history.

You can read the material in advance or wait

for the Zoom seminar where we’ll provide

excerpts to focus on and discuss.”

Seminars are offered Mondays, March

10, 17, 24, 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. and preregistration

is required. Each seminar is sold

separately at $15. For more information and

to register for one, two or all three seminars,

visit our website. https://capemaymac.org/

exploring-american-literature/. After purchase

each participant will be sent Zoom

registration information and additional information.

Seats are limited.

Dr. Sylvia Baer has been a professor of literature

for 51 years and is also the Poet Laureate

of Cape May, a playwright, a memoirist,

a writer of scholarly works, a translator of

Spanish poetry (into English), and a Fellow

at Yale University. She has curated haiku and

photography exhibitions at Rowan University

and Yale University, been founding editor

of international academic journals, and

presented at conferences and workshops

throughout the country. In Cape May she

is the creator of The Poet-Tree where she

hangs about 60 poems written by a whole

panoply of writers, and with signage encourages

passers-by to pick any poem that

appeals to them and to take it with them. So

many folks enjoy this that each day the tree is

replenished once or twice. Her latest book,

“Building Life, A Memoir,” published in June

2024, is the second volume in an unconventional

memoir that began with “Learning

Life, a Memoir, published in August 2022.

Both are published by Nostos Press. She has

deep connections to Cape May MAC, spanning

five decades, and is proud to say that

her father was the first president of Cape

May MAC Board of Trustees in 1971.

-- SK

SYLVIA BAER

(Kevin & Jill Bremer), The Colonial House

(Greater Cape May Historical Society), The

Hammerman/Sayer House (Kevin & Karen

Hammerman), The Harrison (Jacob & Peter

Dwyer), Inn at the Park (Susan & Carl Spatacco),

Kurtz Residence (Karen & Yogi Kurtz), The

Norris Smith House (Richard Hudson & Joy

Wadleigh), Queen Victoria (Jamie Harvey).

Membership Mailing: Kathy Genzoli, Ruth

Anne Stewart.

Old-Fashioned Christmas Exhibit Volunteers:

Jean Barraclough, Mathew Barraclough,

Eileen Cassidy, Janet Holland, Eunice

Hudzik, Jennifer Kramer, Steven Olszewski.

Trolley Maintenance: Mark Nathan, Deb Yamashita.


A Cape May

Photos by Frank Scott

and Susan Krysiak

Cape May

MAC featured

close to 600

scheduled tours,

activities and

events during

the Christmas

season!


Christmas


Historical Commission recognizes ‘Line in the Sand’ exhibit

Cape May MAC (Museums +Arts+Culture)

and partners, Center for Community Arts

(CCA), Chicken Bone Beach Historical

Foundation, and artist Chanelle René,

have been selected as recipients of the

Award of Recognition from the New Jersey

Historical Commission to acknowledge

the collaborative exhibit “Line in the

Sand: Segregated Beaches in Cape May

and Atlantic City.” The exhibit was open

to the public at the Carroll Gallery, on the

grounds of the Emlen Physick Estate, 1048

Washington St., Cape May, from Jan. 13 to

March 25, 2024.

The Line in the Sand exhibit explored

Cape May’s Grant Street Beach through

historic photos provided by West Cape

May families and original artwork by Cape

May County artist Chanelle René, along

with Chicken Bone Beach in Atlantic City

through historic photos provided by the

Chicken Bone Beach Historical Foundation.

Visitors to the exhibit learned how people

of color enjoyed their time at these

segregated beaches on the Jersey Shore

despite the harsh racial divide of the Jim

Crow era. Prior to the 1960s civil rights era,

Black persons were limited to recreation

on certain beaches because of the color

of their skin. Beaches had been racially

segregated at resorts like Cape May and

Atlantic City for decades through the 1950s,

with boundaries that sometimes moved

from season to season, but which were

clear, even when they weren’t publicly

advertised.

The New Jersey Historical Commission

award is given to organizations and

individuals for their contributions to

and preservation of New Jersey history.

The Commission has said a recognition

ceremony is planned in March 2025 to

honor the award recipients.

“For over two decades, the Center for

Community Arts and Cape May MAC have

partnered and curated annual exhibits on

the history of Cape May’s African American

community,” said CCA Director David

McKenzie. “The Commission’s recognition

is especially rewarding because it elevates

our work to the state level and shows other

communities how they, too, can preserve

and advance their own community’s

history.”

“The Chicken Bone Beach Historical

Foundation (CBBHFI) was excited to be a

part of the Line in the Sand exhibit,” said

President Henrietta Shelton. “CBBHFI is

Photo courtesy of Center for Community Arts

Shown here, ca. 1955, waitresses and other workers had Sundays off and would often take time to

enjoy the beach.

committed to supporting the historical

narrative of African American experiences

throughout American history. Being a part

of the Line in the Sand exhibit continues

to serve as motivation to preserve and

educate our audiences on the contributions

of African Americans to American culture.”

“It was a powerful experience having

my Grant Street Beach paintings included

in Cape May MAC’s 2024 winter exhibit,”

said Chanelle René. “My work illuminates

the story of nostalgia, belonging, and Black

joy on the historically segregated beach

in Cape May. I’m honored to be a part of

this award-winning exhibit and thank the

New Jersey Historical Commission for this

accolade.”

“At Cape May MAC, we’re proud of all

our annual and winter exhibits since so

much consideration, time, and effort are

placed into the entire process for each,”

said Cape May MAC Director and CEO Jody

Alessandrine. “We’re especially pleased

and honored that the subject matter and

presentation of our 2024 winter exhibit, as

our partners agree, rose to the level of such

prestigious acknowledgment from the state

Historical Commission.”

-- SK


Intern taps into passion for history to forge

deep connection with Cape May MAC

Jocelyn Duquette’s 2024 summer internship

at the Emlen Physick Estate was coming

to an end Aug. 14, but there was obviously

time left for an exciting find by this bold explorer

of history: a set of old keys hidden in

the back of a desk in the Curatorial Office.

“Right before I got up to leave yesterday,

I was cleaning-up at the front portion

of my desk and the drawer, and when I realized

that there was a back portion of it, I

pulled it out further and I found a bunch of

keys,” she said. “And some other stuff -- but

the keys are exciting!”

Cape May MAC (Museums+Arts+Culture)

Curator Ben Ridings studied the keys carefully.

“Well, we have one skeleton key for the

house,and I wonder if one of these is a different

one, like another set,”

he said. “But also in the Victorian

era, pretty much every

piece of furniture within reason

had a lock on it.”

Preserving, caring for and

uncovering old objects and

new pieces of historic information,

all to make better sense

of the past and learn new insights

into previous generations:

this drives this energetic

and personable college student

from Ocean City, who is

aiming her career toward curatorial

work in museums, or

perhaps law. Cape May MAC

hosted her as an intern in the

summer of 2024 and as a volunteer

since 2022, and has

benefited from her knowledge,

drive and enthusiasm.

She returned to Gettysburg

College this past fall, where

she majors in history, but she

says she has found a second

home here at Cape May MAC.

After graduating from high school, Duquette

took a gap year prior to heading off

to college. As a volunteer with Cape May

MAC during that time she made herself a

valuable resource at the organization, impressing

staff with her independence, empathy,

intellectual curiosity, drive and enthusiasm.

Duquette was not only nominated by

Cape May MAC as Volunteer of the Month,

for extraordinary effort as a volunteer. She

was recognized in 2023 by the New Jersey

State Governor’s Office with a Youth in Ser-

... we saw how

beneficial it was to the

curatorial department

to have the additional

help from someone

with a lot of

intellectual curiosity

and capability.”


Shown here, the Cape May MAC Curatorial Team, from left, Curator Ben Ridings,

President Janet Coupland, Intern Jocelyn Duquette, Volunteer Jill Bellarmino and

Registrar Donna Szemcsak.in the Physick House Museum.

vice Award for her volunteer work at Cape

May MAC. The New Jersey State Governor’s

Volunteerism Awards were established to

honor individuals for their achievements

and contributions through public and community

service.

But her internship in summer of 2024

was an especially intensive learning experience

for all involved and included some

impressive accomplishments.

Duquette counts her favorite internship

project as using the internet to find and follow

an information trail that ultimately led to

locating an expert in the United States who

professionally restores lincrusta.

CLICK HERE to read more about lincrusta

on Cape May MAC’s blog.

This was “the great white whale,” as Ridings

describes it. Duquette found a company

that formed just six months after Ridings

had taken a pause from looking, after a frustrating

five-year search.

“It turned out that the year that Ben

stopped looking, about six months after

that, this company formed,” Duquette said.

“So, Ben got unlucky and then I got super

lucky.”

Now, the restoration of damaged lincrusta

panels in the museum is that much

closer.

One of Duquette’s main projects this

past summer was working on

interpretation of the cook’s

bedroom in the museum.

“It’s all about revamping

and updating it,” she said.

“Originally everyone agreed

it was a cook’s bedroom,

but then it was made into a

nursery at some point, even

though there were no kids

that were ever proven to live

in the house. It didn’t really

make sense for a nursery to be

here. And then (it was) transformed

back to the cook’s

bedroom. But it’s outdated.”

She conducted research

on what the room would have

been like during the era.

“I made a presentation

to the restorations and collections

committee about

things that I would, in a

perfect world, be able to

change, and what I would

like in it. It went really well,

and I was really happy with it. We were able

to buy a hot comb, which is what African

American women would definitely use at

the time, to straighten their hair. We also got

a historic alarm clock, because she’s a cook.

She’s working. She’s got to get up.”

Duquette also did research into a product

of the time, Madame C.J. Walker’s Wonderful

Hair Grow. It was made in the late

1800s/early 1900s for African American

women’s hair, as a conditioner.

(CONTINUED ON PAGE16)


Intern


Classical Cape May



Shown here, a replica of the container for Madam C.J. Walker’s hair treatment product, researched

by Intern Jocelyn Duquette, designed by Cape May MAC designer Steven Olszewski and intended

for display in cook’s bedroom in the Physick House Museum.

“This amazing woman, Madam C.J.

Walker, came up with this product that

would help them, and it would cause their

hair to grow longer and be healthier. I asked

Steven (Olszewski) to make a reproduction

of a box so we can also put that in the cook’s

bedroom.”

In addition to many more curatorial projects,

Duquette tackled a mammoth one:

creating a searchable index of Cape May

MAC archives on the third floor of the museum,

so they will be more easily accessible.

It was thanks to Board President Janet

Coupland and husband Warren that the

internship was established and funded, enabling

Duquette to learn and earn last summer.

“Jocelyn’s volunteering with us really

sparked the idea of creating the internship,

because we weren’t sure she would be interested

or willing to come back as an intern,”

said Coupland.“ But we saw how beneficial

it was to the curatorial department

to have the additional help from someone

with a lot of intellectual curiosity and capability,

and I could certainly use assistance in

moving to the next level in the archive. So,

we drafted this internship position … It all

worked out and it’s been beyond expectation,

absolutely beyond expectations of

what we hoped it would be.”

Duquette returned to help in the Curatorial

Department again this winter during

her winter break from college.

“Jocelyn was so generous to come back

in December and January and dive back

into helping Ben and the curatorial team

at the museum,” said Coupland. “We plan

to offer another museum internship for the

summer of 2025, and are hoping very much

that she is interested in returning to join us

again this year.”

-- SK

formers to our area, Classical Cape May’s

mission includes showcasing the best of local

classical artists. This year our local musicians

are focusing on works written during

the past century, featuring vocal performances

and pieces on the piano and organ.

In addition, Brenda Leonard will be playing

a new piece for unaccompanied cello by a

talented local composer, Koren Cowgill.

SUNDAY, MARCH 9

Romantic Love Songs

PolyVoce sing the

Brahms Liebeslieder Waltzes

Co-director Robert Bullington brings

one of his ensembles for the March program.

PolyVoce is an ensemble of four

singers — soprano, alto, tenor and baritone

— and two pianists. Brahms Liebeslieder

Waltzes are a collection of love songs for

voices and piano, four hands (two pianists,

one piano). Not all of the waltzes use all four

voices; there are solos and some pieces featuring

two voices.

SUNDAY, APRIL 13

Piano Quintets

Main Street Chamber Players of Fairfax, Va.

The final concert of the 2025 season

features the Main Street Chamber Players

of Fairfax, Va. Cellist Kenneth Law teaches

at the Main Street Music Studios in Fairfax,

teaching and mentoring excellent young

cellists from the Washington, D.C. area, including

one who was recently featured on

NPR’s national program “From the Top.”

The Main Street Chamber Players include

violin, viola, cello, double bass and piano.

The musicians will play as a quintet and as

various smaller ensembles. On the program

is the rarely heard Vaughn-Williams Piano

Quintet, as well as works by three women

composers: the early 20th century composer

Rebecca Clarke, Belize-born composer

Errolyn Waller, and one of Argentina’s

most celebrated young composers, Adriana

Figueroa Manas.

Classical Cape May is co-founded and

co-directed by Brenda Leonard and Robert

Bullington. The mission is to bring a variety

of free classical performances to Cape May

during the winter season, and to celebrate

local and regional classical music talent. The

series is open to all ages and interests, and

donations are appreciated.

The Classical Cape May series is in partnership

with the annual Cape May Music

Festival, now in its 36th year, presented by

Cape May MAC and supported in part by a

grant from the New Jersey State Council on

the Arts. CLICK HERE for more information

on the Cape May Music Festival.

-- SK


Wrap-up


with the group of Josh Daigle, Rebecca

Monroe, Jim Vomero, Monique Vomero,

Karl Monroe and Sue Monroe taking home

honors the first weekend and first-time participants

Andrew Reiss and Emily Klein, successful

on the second weekend.

Now back to Christmas as promised! Every

day from Nov. 22 to Jan. 4, except for

Thanksgiving and Christmas, there were

multiple things to do. For the smaller set,

we provided Breakfast with Santa at the

Inn of Cape May and Santa’s Trolley Rides

with special guest Mrs. Claus each weekend.

Visitors looking for tours of inns during

the week had their pick of daytime Holiday

Inns Tours or evening Lamplighter Tours.

We offered two newly-imagined trolley

tours this year, the Spirited Cape May Trolley

Ride with tales of Christmas long ago

and the All That Glitters: Victorians Ring

in the New Century Trolley Ride with festive

snippets of New Year celebrations. The

single most popular offering of the season

was the Holiday Lights Trolley Ride, with almost

7,400 riders during the holiday season,

but the highlight of the season is always the

Christmas Candlelight House Tours, which

attracted nearly 4,000 visitors, not quite as

many as we had in 2023.

During this season, in addition to our

public schedule, we maintain a regular

schedule of group tours, providing tours

and lectures. Our Victorian Holiday Traditions

lecture was a popular choice. Our staff

also arranges meals and shuttles the groups

around town. We were happy to be able to

provide several trolley tours with American

Presidents’ Day Weekend


Cape May Wine Trail

Cape May County vineyards are producing

delicious wines and here is your chance

to enjoy them with round-trip transportation

via Cape May MAC trolley! Board the

trolley at the Emlen Physick Estate, 1048

Washington St., and travel to Bellevue Tavern

in Cape May Court House for a satisfying

lunch. Then it’s back on board the trolley

for an afternoon of touring and sampling

wine selections at Jessie Creek Winery and

Natali Vineyards. Guests will receive a souvenir

tasting glass at Jessie Creek Winery

and an educational tasting and tour at Natali

Vineyards. Offered Sunday, Feb. 16 at 10:45

a.m. This event is for adults ages 21 and over.

CLICK HERE for ticket information.

Sign Language interpretation during the

late Fall, as well.

We were also surprisingly busy at the

Cape May Lighthouse. During the holiday

season, more than 2,600 visitors climbed

the tower. We offered one Full Moon Climb

for 77 hardy visitors and hosted one marriage

proposal!

Last spring, Cape May was abuzz as it

was transformed into 1965 Newport, RI, for

the filming of A Complete Unknown, the

Bob Dylan biopic, now up for Academy

Awards. Cape May MAC and the City of

Cape May collaborated on a viewing party

on Jan. 2. The City hosted a premiere party

in Convention Hall and then the group was

chauffeured (by Cape May MAC Trolley) to

Rio Grande.

Once the Old-fashioned Christmas exhibit

is dismantled, our Maintenance crew

and exhibit team gets busy preparing the

Carroll Gallery for our annual Winter exhibit.

Our exhibit designer Steven Olszewski,

working with Rachel Dolhanzick and

Hope Gaines from the Center for Community

Arts, spent the last several months researching

and writing the labels for Routes

of Black Travel: The Green Book in Cape

May and Wildwood. The exhibit illustrates

what it was like to travel as a Black person

when the country was segregated. We held

our official opening ceremony on Jan. 20,

Martin Luther King Day, with assistance from

Mayor Zack Mullock. Janis Washington

White joined us as well, to autograph her

newly published book, “Erasing Bias from

BRUNCH & BINGO

AT THE INN OF CAPE MAY

Laugh along with your friends and make

new ones as you play a little bingo, compete

for prizes and enjoy a fashion show by

Lace Silhouettes/Cotton Company. It’s all

over a scrumptious breakfast buffet at The

Inn of Cape May, 7 Ocean St. Cape May.


CHANNELING DINNER

WITH CRAIG MCMANUS

Enjoy a three-course prix fixe dinner at

the Inn of Cape May followed by a twohour

channeling session with Medium Craig

McManus. McManus will read the energies

in the room and channel messages from

the spirits of departed family and friends.

the Classroom.” Janis retired from Lower

Cape May Regional High School and volunteers

on our DEAI Team. The exhibit is open

through March 23 and puts a spotlight on

some of the area’s little-known history.

We continued to offer our Lunch &

Learn programs through the holiday season.

Meteorologist Joe Martucci joined us

to speak about The Cape May Bubble and

attracted one of our largest audiences ever.

Dr. Brenda Leonard’s program on Dec. 1

was entitled Handel: Beyond the Messiah,

followed by Curator Ben Ridings offered

a program on Christmas traditions around

the world. We started off the new year very

appropriately on Jan. 15, with Rick Sasse

exploring the evolution of our presidential

inauguration from the first one to the present

and taking us behind the scenes to understand

the work that goes into putting

these events together. We also continued

our visits to the Blind Center of the Jersey

Cape and Victorian Towers.

Jan. 12 found us at the Episcopal Church

of the Advent for a new to us event. This year

Cape May MAC is sponsoring Classical Cape

May as part of the Cape May Music Festival

educational outreach. Classical Cape May,

now in its second year, is a four-concert

series offered January through April, organized

by Artistic Director Dr. Brenda Leonard

and Executive Director Robert Bullington.

The first concert feature Adam Cockerham

on theorbo, lute, and baroque guitar in

a program of music from the 16th and 17th

centuries.

-- MES

While he does not read everyone present

and cannot control where messages come

through, he will bring through as many

messages from spirits as possible during

the two-hour channeling. Inn of Cape May,

7 Ocean St. This event is not recommended

for people under the age of 16. No refunds

within 14 days of the event. CLICK HERE for

ticket information.

HISTORIC DISTRICT

TROLLEY TOURS

Take this classic Cape May trolley tour

and enjoy this seaside resort in winter! Tour

guides will explain Cape May’s history and

architecture and how and why it has sur-

(CONTINUED ON PAGE PAGE 18)


Presidents’ Day Weekend


vived and thrives to this day. Begins and

ends at the Ocean Street Trolley Stop. Bring

a blanket to snuggle in! CLICK HERE for

ticket information.

EMLEN PHYSICK ESTATE

GUIDED TOURS

Gain insight into architectural features

within the 1879 Emlen Physick House and

learn about the lives of one Victorian family,

as you tour Cape May’s Victorian House Museum,

voted New Jersey’s prettiest building

by popular vote! For the fullest experience,

combine this tour with a Historic District Trolley

Tour. CLICK HERE for ticket information.

UNDERGROUND RAILROAD

TROLLEY TOUR

Cape May was part of the Underground

Railroad and this trolley tour, part of the National

Park Service’s Network to Freedom

and one of just 13 sites nationwide on the

Park Service’s Travels with Tubman app,

tells of those dangerous days. Hear how

legendary anti-slavery fighter, Harriet Tubman,

walked these streets, as did prominent

railroad businessman and former enslaved

person, Stephen Smith, whose railroad cars

carried hundreds to freedom. Portions of

this tour are not accessible. Offered Monday,

Feb. 17 at 11 a.m. Begins and ends at

Ocean Street Trolley Stop. CLICK HERE for

ticket information.

CAPE MAY LIGHTHOUSE

Bundle up! Challenge yourself to climb

the 199 steps up the original, cast-iron spiral

stairway to the top of the 1859 Cape May

Lighthouse this winter and see a staggering

view of the Delaware Bay and Atlantic

Ocean, the surrounding nature trails of

Cape May Point State Park, and Cape May

Point Borough. CLICK HERE for ticket information.

MANSIONS BY THE SEA

TROLLEY TOUR

You’ll hear how the rich lived in the early

1900s in the most elegant part of town on

this trolley tour that includes the eastern

beachfront. Today, new, beachfront second

homeowners have continued the tradition,

running the gamut from the mere wealthy

to the fabulously rich. Offered Saturday,

Feb. 15 at 11:45 a.m. Begins and ends at the

Ocean Street Trolley Stop. CLICK HERE for

ticket information.

GHOSTS OF CAPE MAY

TROLLEY TOUR

What was that shadow? Was it the undead

of Cape May’s past wandering their

beloved haunts? You might scoff, you might

shudder, but rest assured: on board this

evening trolley tour with an experienced

guide you will begin to wonder what’s beyond

when you hear the tales of hauntings

unearthed in Cape May by renowned psychic

medium and author Craig McManus.

Begins and ends at the Ocean Street Trolley

Stop. CLICK HERE for ticket information.

STORIES OF CAPE ISLAND

TROLLEY TOUR

Hear how whalers centuries ago eked

out a dangerous but lucrative living near

Town Bank and how the area’s rich farming

heritage continues to be a source

of tremendous community pride. Learn

about the Union Bethel community in 1831

in which Black residents thrived and the

diverse community that continues to contribute

to the vibrancy of island life today.

Offered Sunday, Feb. 16 at 10:30 a.m. Begins

and ends at Ocean Street Trolley Stop.


CRAFTS & COLLECTIBLES

IN WINTER

It may be chilly outside, but Cape May

Convention Hall will be warm and bustling

during the annual two-day Crafts & Collectibles

in Winter show. Saturday and Sunday,

Feb. 15 and 16, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Admission

is $2.

For more information and to purchase

tickets online visit capemaymac.org or call

609-884-5404. Cape May County residents

may use a Museum Pass for free admission

to some tours, activities and events, available

through the Cape May County library.

For more information, ask at your local library

branch.

-- SK


The Cape May MAC’s maintenance team had much to do to clear the estate of snow after the Jan.

6 storm. Shown here, a pathway to Hill House begins.


Cape May MAC's Winter 2025 Newsletter

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