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Colonial Dames are pas-sionate
about their society,
its mission and how they
can further that mission,
and they do not join or
consider their membership
and volunteer obligations
lightly.
That includes Joy Allen,
the executive director of the
North Carolina Society.
“Since I was a little girl,
I have loved old houses,”
Allen says. “The adult ‘me’
is passionate about historic
preservation, so this job
gives me the opportunity
to make a difference in an
arena I care about.”
Because of the ancestral
requirement, Allen isn’t
an official member of the
Colonial Dames. But she
has enjoyed her position in
the organization for the past
five years just the same.
“I love my job for a few
different reasons,” she says.
“I enjoy working with the
members so much, I often
have said that I am the
president of their fan club.”
In fulfilling its educa-tional
mission, the North
Carolina Society maintains
state archives contain-ing
information on its
properties, how it became
involved with specific sites,
and genealogical informa-tion
to assist members. The
Burgwin-Wright House
maintains local archives
containing books and
documents, membership
seals and family records
donated by members. The
archives are “open to aca-demic
research to universi-ties,
other museums and
other historical societies,”
Lamberton says.
Lineage restrictions prevent them from joining the Colonial Dames, but Christine Lamberton, museum director
for the Burgwin-Wright House, and Joy Allen, executive director of the North Carolina society, are committed to
the mission of historic preservation.
PHOTO BY ALLISON POTTER