Spring Wrap-Up

There was a definite uptick in activity around the Physick Estate in early April. The Kara Group, our partners in Vintage BYOB, the restaurant at the Physick Estate, were here in full force, getting ready for their long-awaited season opening. We were also turning over the Carroll Gallery for our major summer exhibit, “Quackery: The Age of Questionable Medical Marvels.” Victorian medicine is the common thread between the exhibit and the new Physick House Tour. The tour, The Doctor Is In, looks at Dr. Physick’s influence on the Cape May medical community, including his mentoring the first woman doctor in the area. The exhibit looks at medical hucksterism, curatives that were sometimes ineffective and frequently downright dangerous. Hundreds of advertisements for these so-called remedies line the gallery walls, promoting worm syrup, clean tape worms, bloodletting, electromagnetism and more as the cures for what ails you. A feature of the exhibit is a snake oil salesman’s wagon, created for us by Bob Hudzik and stenciled by Steven Olszewski. The exhibit is co-curated by Ben Ridings and Elan Zingman-Leith and designed by Jean Barraclough. It runs through October. Don’t miss it!

We offered our first Sherlock Holmes Weekend of the year April 14 through 16. Jacki Fazio is back at the helm, writing and directing “Send in the Clowns” to entertain (and possibly confuse) our guests. The event is now hosted by La Mer Beachfront Resort and again features refreshments at each act of the play. Congratulations to our win- ner, Lori Salowe from Dayton, New Jersey.

We had some wonderful volunteers help us whip the Lighthouse and Physick Estate grounds into shape for the season. In honor of Earth Day, our friends from Cape May Stage, led by Roy Steinberg and Wendy Collins, spent the day on the Lighthouse grounds. Back in town, the folks from the Madison Resorts (Montreal Inn), led by Dan Alicea, held a planting party at the Physick Estate. We’re extremely grateful for the time

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, Sara Kornacki, Susan Krysiak, Anna Marie Leeper, Evelyn Maguire, Mary E. Stewart and Anne Walsh

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 and effort they donated to us.

Volunteerism is a theme for us, particularly in April, as we celebrated our Volunteer Acknowledgement Reception. We gathered this year at the Inn of Cape May to honor the hundreds of folks who turn out for us on a regular basis. It was a chance for our new Manager of Volunteer Engagement, Anne Walsh, to meet the members of the volunteer corps and for all our staff to express our gratitude. We’re grateful to our legislative team in Trenton for arranging for citations for generous people and also to Cape May Mayor Zack Mullock for joining us in the recognition. There’s a saying, “Many hands make light work.” Our volunteers proved that to us over and over again. Anne hosted a Volunteer Recruitment on May 8 and successfully expanded our ranks even further!

Local community arts activist Chase Jackson treated us to a glimpse into the history of beach life among African Americans on May 5 at Cape May Stage. Titled “Black Footprints on White Sand,” the program examined how race and leisure intersected as Black Americans by necessity created their own beach communities. Local artist Chanelle Rene also contributed to the event with several paintings from her Grant Street

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