SAPFM will hold its annual Members Meeting on January 25, 2018.

Our tireless president, Dale Ausherman, has been working to define a list of duties required for the executive function at SAPFM.  In order to create more seamless succession and distribute duties more formally among board members, Dale has led the process of defining all the duties of the president, and then parsing them among three people- the president, the vice president and the immediate past president.  Part of the idea here is to create a succession path that smooths out the work flow, and concentrates less of it on the current president.  As always, in the process of defining all the work that needs to be done, he has identified opportunities for streamlining and possible outsourcing of some workflow.

For the past several months Joel Goodwin has led an effort to ensure continuity of SAPFM functions by arranging backup support for each essential function.  These functions include:  Corporate Finance (Accounting), Business Office (membership/Pins&Tails e-Magazine/Purchases/Mailing/Postal Services, etc.), and Information Technology (website, forum, PayPal, etc.).  We need to ensure this emergency replacement person has had the complete coaching and support they need to succeed and that the current Subject Matter Expert (SME) in these departments is working to provide this backup person with the appropriate training required.  The idea is to put this in place while there is no emergency, just in case!

SAPFM will hold an election for three representatives on the Board of Directors(Board) this year. The election will be held electronically via a web site, from October 15 - November 1. Candidates must submit their biographical information electronically to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. by 5PM EST October 1.

As SAPFM has grown, its requirements for skills possessed by Board members have evolved. First and foremost we are an educational organization dedicated to period furniture. So the need for a strong interest in that subject has not changed. We also continue to need Board representation of accomplished makers of period furniture including professionals.  While that was originally the main skill needed, we now have additional needs for more managerial, operational, marketing, fund raising and board experience and skills.  This is of course is not an exhaustive list, and many other abilities will no doubt enhance the Board's effectiveness.

Serving on the board is a great way to meet and collaborate with others who want to make SAPFM as good as it can be.  You’ll gain satisfaction from helping preserve the art and skills we are all interested in, and make good friends in the process!

SAPFM is primarily a member-run organization. While we recognize the importance of outside experts to ensure we are compliant with regulations, we want the diversity of managerial and business execution skills in our own governing body to allow SAPFM to thrive.

To date most of our personal statements submitted by members seeking election to the Board have been our journey to and within period furniture making. While this is helpful, we’d like to ask that personal statements also emphasize business and other relevant skills and experience that candidates can bring to the Board to help make SAPFM successful.

This past year SAPFM established a Nominating Committee to help in the identification, recruitment and  vetting of possible Board candidates.  That committee is actively seeking candidates at this time.  The Committee welcomes all SAPFM members in good standing to submit their information for election.  The Nominating Committee will provide a list of candidates for membership consideration on September 20 that will be sent via email.  If you would like to ask questions, submit your name for consideration or nominate others, please contact the Nominating Committee at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Of course, any member in good standing wishing to stand for election may do so regardless if they have submitted their information to the Nominating Committee or of their skills or experience.

SAPFM is your organization. We hope you will consider ways you can be of service by committing time and sharing your expertise.

Ken Johnson

Chair, Nominating Committee

SAPFM Vice President

The SAPFM journal, American Period Furniture, is typically delivered sometime between late in the calendar year and early the following year.  We have reviewed the publication schedule and can now ensure that it comes out before the Holidays each year. Doing so will solve a number of issues including allowing members to enjoy having the Journal to read over the holidays.  In concert with this change, we are revising the date at which members must be active (dues paid up) in order to receive it.

Prior to this year a copy of the journal was mailed to all SAPFM members who were active on December 31st of the year of publication.  For 2016 and beyond this will be changed to members who are active (dues paid up) as of October 31st of the year of publication.  In order to enable mailing the journal by the second week of December we have to prepare a mailing list early in November.  Prior to this change we required either guesswork in November as to who will have paid up by year’s end and/or a second and more expensive mailing to account for membership renewals which would come in after early November and before December 31st.  This change will eliminate these costly complexities.  With this change, all members continue to receive a journal mailing for each year of membership.

So that members do not miss receipt of a journal, it is important that each member ensure that their membership is current as of October 31st.  While we make every effort to notify members when their membership is about to expire those efforts are not always successful. You can log into the member area of SAPFM.org at any time to see your date of renewal. If for any reason your membership has lapsed on or before October 31st, you will not get a journal for that year. Those who join on or after November 1st, will not receive their journal until the next edition is mailed.

The meeting was held in the auditorium of the DeWitt Wallace Decorative Arts Museum 326 West Francis Street Williamsburg, VA on January 21 2016,  2 - 4 pm.

Agenda:

1. Approval of New Bylaws
2. New Chapter Support Committee
3. New Nominations Committee
4. Treasurer’s Report
5. Highlights from Board Meeting
6. 2016 Midyear Plans
7. Call for Volunteers

The SAPFM Executive Council (Board of Directors) prepared revisions to our existing by-laws. Working with our legal advisers, we have attempted to clarify and codify the SAPFM by-laws to be consistent with best practices and our historical procedures.

The proposed updates to the by-laws can be found here.

Members were asked to ratify these changes at the annual members meeting being held on January 21, 2016 in Williamsburg, VA.

It's time to submit your nominations for the 2016 SAPFM Cartouche Award. The deadline for submission of completed applications is September 1, 2015.

The guidelines have been updated to clarify information needed in the various sections of the application, the number of photographs, size of photographs, and the number of pages submitted.

Good luck to all applicants!

Alyce Englund has resigned from the SAPFM EC board, due to the time constraints imposed by her appointment to a new position at the Metropolitan Museum of Fine Art.  

The SAPFM President, with unanimous support from the EC, has appointed Richard B. Reese of Centerville, OH to fulfill the remainder of her term.

After a 35-year career, Dick retired in 1995 from his position as Senior Vice President of Corporate Customer Services at National Cash Register (NCR).  He is a major presence in the Dayton area woodworking community, energetically supports the Ohio River Valley chapter, and is an extraordinary builder of period furniture.

Please join the President and the EC in thanking Dick for his generous efforts to help ensure a great future for SAPFM.

Former EC board member Alyce Perry Englund, Richard Koopman Associate Curator of American Decorative Arts, Wadsworth Atheneum Museum, has accepted in new position as Assistant Curator of American Decorative Arts at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

During her tenure at the Wadsworth, she was involved in securing a number of important aquisitions, including the Bingham secretary,  the Howard fall-front desk, and the Stephen Gray Arts and Crafts Collection.  She was also involved in the museum's storage renovation project and the reinstallation of the museum's American decorative art galleries.

Please join the President and the EC in thanking Alyce for her work on the EC, and wishing her well in her new endeavor.