Centennial Celebration Recap
BRDC Executive Director Lisa Benish welcomes guests to the Centennial Celebration.
The Historic Konnarock Training School Schoolhouse (BRDC’s headquarters) has been standing for 100 years, and we threw a party on November 16 to celebrate!
All in all, the Centennial Celebration was a huge hit! Roughly 65 people joined us for the program and potluck dinner. Two Konnarock Training School alumni were present, including local artist Bonnie (Norris) Hurley of Green Cove (class of ‘50). Several other folks in attendance had family connections to the school.
Professor of Geography and Environmental Science Geography Ed Davis of Emory & Henry University gave a brief overview of the history of the schoolhouse:
1925: Construction on the Schoolhouse was completed.
1936: the Cottage was added to support the medical needs of the School and local community.
1943: Konnarock Training School gains accreditation as a high school and accepts students from Konnarock Public School.
1950: The School’s name is changed to Konnarock Lutheran School.
1959: Due to improved roads and better access to surrounding communities, Konnarock Lutheran School closes.
After Ed Davis’ presentation, Sarah Collie read Patsy (Campbell) Chambers’ account of attending KLS as a boarding student in 1953. Patsy had planned to share herself, but was unable to make it. Following this account, Patsy’s daughter Sandy Chambers read an expert from her father Herbert Chambers’ memoir. Herbert attended KLS as a day student and graduated in 1953. Patsy and Herbert met at KLS and were married in the Chapel on Christmas Eve 1955.
As guests arrived at the Schoolhouse they stopped to deposit items into the BRDC Time Capsule. The Time Capsule will be placed underneath the Chapel stage, along with an inventory of the items inside and a plaque with instructions to open the time capsule in 100 years—that’s 2125! Some of the items in the time capsule included:
A butterfly and moth field guide
A wildflower field guide
Two nature journals from students
A vial of 100 different native seeds
A coin commemorating the anniversary of Helene
Handmade wooden Christmas tree decorations
A BRDC hat
Notes and pictures, and many more personal mementos!
We have so much to be grateful for this Thanksgiving. We’re thankful for a generous and supportive community and likeminded people who are passionate about furthering nature education and conservation. We’re thankful for our history, for the threads that connect our stories through space and time. And above all we’re incredibly thankful for the Blue Ridge Mountains, and the opportunity to be stewards of this incredibly biodiverse, beauitful place we get to call home.
