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We Need You

November 11, 2024

Dear Friends and Supporters,

As we approach the end of 2024, our primary focus must be looking forward to 2025 and beyond – the future of Historic Onancock School.

In August of this year, Friends of Onancock School completed 17 years of caring for the Onancock High School, a derelict town owned facility on 14 acres in the heart of Onancock that is filled with a rich Eastern Shore history. This was no easy task, but the alternative – to do nothing- would have presented the town and taxpayers with a major liability that would surely have become boarded up and eventually demolished as many other fine historic buildings on our Shore have been.

Fast forward through years of dedication to a vision and mission, securing the building and grounds, recruiting tenants who contribute to the vitality of our community, and providing a venue for all to pursue their dreams, brings us to where we are today. We would not have achieved these objectives without the wisdom, service and dedication of past and present board members, legions of volunteers and staff focused on success. Yet, now is a pivotal point in our history as we forge ahead into new territory with new beginnings. This includes a recharged board and a state-of-the-art performance pavilion that will offer important partnership opportunities with local and regional organizations supporting the arts and cultural experiences and be open and available to everyone.

Imagine the future! Along with these vital changes and support from you, our generous donors, through membership, donations and sponsorships, HOS will be ready for the future. Your continued support is essential. As we have always done, we will direct your donations to the preservation and maintenance of our facility to ensure a safe place. This includes our care and upkeep of Onancock’s largest green space, park and playground open for locals and visitors alike.

Just as we are indebted to those who came before us, we need our current board, staff, volunteers and supporters to maintain the momentum in a spirit of unselfishness as we confront upcoming challenges.

The key to our future success is YOU. We need YOUR continued support. We need YOU to renew your memberships and encourage others to become members. We need YOU to attend our events and sponsor our programs.

We are proud of our accomplishments here at HOS, but we cannot be complacent. If we all work together, Historic Onancock School can be even greater into 2025 and beyond.

On behalf of our dedicated Board, hardworking staff and committed volunteers, our generous stakeholders and partners, we thank you for past support and hope you will continue to be engaged with HOS and support our efforts to protect this special place and soar into the future.

Yours sincerely,

Joani Donohoe, Executive Director