Fallingwater as a Cultural Centerpiece
Marlene McCann became a
Fallingwater volunteer this year
because, as she put it, “When
you have the time to volunteer, you
want to be at a place that makes you
feel good about what you’re doing,
teaches you something you didn’t
know and is fun. Fallingwater is all
of that.”
Marlene worked in Washington,
D.C. for many years before settling in
Fayette County where she and her
husband could live nearer to their
mothers. She contrasts Fallingwater
to the monuments in our nation’s
capitol. “The Conservancy could have taken the Frank Lloyd Wright
house and presented it as just
another tourist attraction. Instead,
they’ve turned it into a learning
environment, where you can hear
lectures, see exhibitions and engage
students in wonderful activities.”
Facilities like the Barn at
Fallingwater and the pavilion provide a
unique opportunity to present new
works of art and new ideas. Even the
meadow that lies just south of the
house plays host to the annual
Fallingwater Twilight Tour picnic and
evening jazz concert.
Marlene brought her book club to
Fallingwater to hear a recent lecture
by Loving Frank author Nancy Horan.
She called it a “great experience for a
reader to actually get to talk to the
author about passages in her book.
We all found it enlightening.”
Uniontown resident Tom Seighman
became a Fallingwater volunteer five
years ago. One of his first projects
was helping to put together the
exhibit “A Fallingwater Homecoming”
which celebrated the work of the local
craftsmen who built Fallingwater. “Growing up in Fayette County,
there was nodiversity of culture,” Tom said. “When Fallingwater opened to
the public it gave us a strong cultural
center. In my five years here, I’ve seen
that center expand. Today we’re
seeing youngsters here on a yearly
basis, involved and interested. That, I
think more than anything, will certainly
improve the culture of the community.”
In recent years, Fallingwater has
become a learning resource for
Fayette County students. This past
spring, Fallingwater’s Wright in Our
Backyard program provided visits and
a unique, hands-on educational
curriculum (at no cost to the schools) to more than 2,700 students ranging
from kindergarden to 12th grade in
Butler, Fayette, Somerset, Greene
and Washington Counties. Schools
were also reimbursed for the cost of
transportation. Ben Franklin Junior
High student Matthew Daniels said, “Seeing that wonderful house, I
realized that even in the smallest of
towns, amazing things can happen.”
Fallingwater offers a variety of
volunteer opportunities for local
residents interested in contributing
their time and talents to this important
architectural landmark located in our
own backyard. For more information on volunteer opportunities at
Fallingwater, call Jennifer Hiebert at
724-329-1441, ext. 1204 or email her
at jhiebert@paconserve.org.
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