The Carnegie Hall Guild is pleased to announce that a new bench, placed on the Ivy Terrace of the Hall, has been dedicated to Janie Kirk. Janie is the founder of Carnegie Hall Guild which has been active since 2007. She also served as president of the Guild for two years. The mission of the Guild is to provide interest in the Hall and to provide financial and volunteer support.
Greenbrier County is fortunate that Janie and her husband Ron moved to Lewisburg in July 2006 following their retirement. Janie was raised in Claremont, CA. She and Ron met in California following Ron’s transfer to California from Kansas City, MO. Ron, being a native of Nitro, WV, brought Janie to visit family there and soon discovered Lewisburg. They were impressed with how alive it felt and decided to put roots down here. And we are grateful they did.
They immediately became active in all the cultural activities and began volunteering at Carnegie Hall and at the North House Museum. Janie served on the Carnegie Hall Board of Directors as secretary for five years. She and Ron contributed countless hours developing and refining administrative procedures which have been invaluable to the Hall, management, and staff. Janie discovered that Carnegie Hall did not have an organized “support” group – such as a guild. She quickly drew upon her volunteer experiences in Southern California where she was membership chairman for the first “Guild” in support of the young Orange County Pacific Symphony. She garnered support from two additional couples, Pam and Jeff Graham and Liz and Jim Jeter (and of course, from Ron) and proceeded to organize the Carnegie Hall Guild.
In May of 2007, she formed an interest group which pledged their support of Janie’s endeavor. By early fall of that year, the Guild had nearly 80 members. Close to half were active members and the others, patron members. Janie became the first president and was instrumental in organizing the Guild’s first fundraising event – a fancy tea – along with former charter Guild member, Pam Graham. It was a huge success and attended by over 100 men and women realizing a profit of approximately $5,000. The rest is history!
Janie has been instrumental is so many of our fundraising successes and has taught members invaluable information on leadership and organization. We sincerely attribute the Guild’s ongoing success to Janie’s vision and leadership. The Guild has raised approximately $80,000 towards items needed by the Hall that are visible to the public. Examples of these gifts over the years include providing financial assistance to bring a symphony to Carnegie Hall to execute the Carnegie Hall New York Link-up music education program for 4th and 5th grade students in Greenbrier and neighboring counties, as well as providing recorders needed for each student. Additional items include the historical marker in front of the Hall, elegant and versatile Board Room tables and chairs as well as a new floor, large planters for the Ivy Terrace, hearing-assistance devices and a new stage lighting board for the Hamilton Auditorium, efficient window blinds, acoustic ceiling tiles for the Old Stone and Board Rooms, tall café type tables for receptions, the replacement of hammers for the Hall’s Steinway grand piano, updated sound equipment etc.
To learn more about the Carnegie Hall Guild, or to become a member, refer towww.carnegiehallwv.org or contact current president, Mary Leb, at 304-646-1450 or maryleb@frontier.com.
