2023 Annual / Financial Report
CLICK HERE FOR 2023 ANNUAL / FINANCIAL REPORT
Dear Friends of Historic Florissant,
Thanks to you, our donors, and volunteers, Historic Florissant experienced another successful year. We remain strong and fiercely committed to the mission of historic preservation in our community focusing on protecting, preserving, and restoring local history.
You may have seen us on the KMOV News last November as volunteers removed debris from the fire and water damaged Reeb House. The 1870 Reeb House was set fire by an arsonist in February of 2022. Historic Florissant is saving the house from demolition by purchasing and restoring it. Many local businesses and contractors have agreed to help by providing services for cost of materials and Women in Trades have volunteered to rebuild the fire damaged areas. We are privileged and honored to work
with these talented professionals. Although The Pit Crew and various donors have helped raise funds for this project, the need for funding continues, especially for building materials, electrical wiring, and plumbing. Once the restoration is complete, Historic Florissant plans to sell the house as a single-family dwelling.
As the Missouri Department of Transportation and Millstone Weber worked on the 270 Project, vibrations from heavy equipment and bedrock accelerated to the point of displacing soil near the foundation of the Gittemeier House. This caused “new” settling and cracking of the plaster walls and ceilings and created an unsecure foundation. After much documentation and numerous meetings MODOT and Millstone Weber lived up to their promise to be a “good neighbor” and are now providing funds for the Gittemeier House to have the foundation secured and two rooms repaired and painted.
Our work continues as we help families and businesses with research, scan documents and photographs, and provide special events. The Green Line Tour Booklet; a self-guided tour and history of 80 different historic properties, was published and gained community interest. We were fortunate to have Steve Frank present at a Coffee Talk sharing his experiences growing up in the Florissant area before his untimely passing.
Restoration work continues at the Wiese House. This past year donations were used to rebuild every window, recreate functional storm windows, and paint the exterior of each. The second story needs additional cleaning, caulking, and painting which is scheduled for this winter. The City of Florissant and Jost Builders will complete the restoration by rebuilding the back porch and adding a new back door. It is our hope the Wiese House will become a restaurant with a patio area.
Fundraising efforts for 2023 included the Annual Holiday House Tours, Ghost Tours, the Annual Benefit Dinner, Golf Cart Races, the Wake of Franz Gittemeier, and thanks to local musicians Angy Bean, Trish Treble and Nat and Chris Turdo, a successful Parking Lot Concert.
Tours included the annual holiday tour, log cabin tours, private tours of the Gittemeier House and a full day bus tour for Meramec College. Historic Florissant continues to collaborate with 27 additional historic properties in the St. Louis area. This consortium is called Historic Saint Louis. The purpose is to promote visits to area historic sites. Visit HistoricSaintLouis.org to learn more.
Community outreach is an important aspect of our work. Gina provided history presentations to the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) and the St. Louis County Library. She also advocated for the preservation of St. Stanislaus by asking Hazelwood’s City Council for their diligence moving forward with decisions regarding the property. Lynn Burkhart, Kris Sonthiemer, and Gina Siebe presented landmark homeowners with Zimmerman Awards, and attended events held by our partner
organization, the Florissant Valley Historical Society.
Requests for donations from nonprofit organizations such as ours, come quite frequently, yet we ask you to consider a gift to Historic Florissant, Inc. as resources allow or consider a memorial donation. We cannot do our work without donors like you. We are volunteers. We have no paid employees or dues paying members. We rely on your financial support and please know that the Board and volunteers are very grateful for donations of any size. Donations support our mission in preserving, enhancing, and promoting the architectural and rich heritage of Florissant. We cannot do our work without support from people like you.
With gratitude,
Gina Siebe
President, Historic Florissant, Inc.
314-565-1468
historicflo@aol.com
