CHARITY BEGINS AT HOME
CHARITY BEGINS AT HOME Trusteeship In Lockdown Britain
Hoghton Tower - Skytech Imagery
Lockdown is impacting the way we live our lives as it moves around the planet, and people in every country are finding themselves in different stages of this global pandemic, responding in different ways. It seems that once a community is over that ‘deer caught in the headlamps’ initial shock, they are having to cope and survive as they chart a new path for the way forward towards the ‘new normal’ that awaits us all. No one is left untouched. One of my joys as a long-term American expat in Britain is my volunteer activity with UK charities. During the past 30 years, I have served as a Trustee for 7 charities and foundations, and presently I am a Trustee for three: The London International Gallery of Children’s Art, Hoghton Tower Preservation Trust, and Friends of Cricklewood Library. I was part of the team that started LIGCA in 1995 – a charity dedicated to educating children and others about the world around them through children’s art. Originally based at Southbank International School, LIGCA moved to the O2 Centre in Swiss Cottage, and most recently to Waterlow Park in Highgate until Camden Council WWW.THEAMERICANHOUR.COM
withdrew our lease in favour of another charity. LIGCA now operates in partnership with organisations, for example, the Islington Museum, The Scuola Italiana da Londra in Holland Park, the Italian Institute in Belgravia, and the Nehru Centre in
Hoghton Tower Preservation Trust is charged with maintaining and preserving the grounds, gardens and ‘historic fabric’ of Hoghton Tower
Mayfair, where we exhibit art and organise educational workshops. Hoghton Tower Preservation Trust is charged with maintaining and preserving the grounds, gardens and ‘historic fabric’ of Hoghton Tower, making it available to the community through house tours, and supporting educational, cultural and research activities. ‘The Tower’, a 16th Century Early English Renaissance Fortified Manor House (we Americans would call it a ‘castle’), is the ancestral home of the de Hoghton family who came to Britain with William the Conqueror. It has associations with King James I, Lady Godiva, Shakespeare and Charles Dickens, among others. It is also linked with Harvard University (Houghton Library), Corning Glass, and Alanson Houghton, US Ambassador to Britain during the 1920, was a member of the American branch of the family. Hoghton Tower is a place of significant historic and environmental significance visited by thousands of people each year. The Friends of Cricklewood Library is a new charity started by a group of residents when the local council vowed to close their public library. The volunteer committee WWW.AMERICANINBRITAIN.CO.UK
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