"The Stowe Center is a place where I feel that the time I give is appreciated and worthwhile."
Mary Murray seated next to the statue of Harriet Beecher Stowe at the Stowe Center for Literary Activism.
In 2008, retired literacy educator Mary Murray was looking for ways to use her time productively. "I thought, 'I could volunteer at any historic house, or I could volunteer at a house where a woman lived—a woman who did something very difficult, courageous, and still doesn't get the credit she deserves.'" Mary started volunteering in the administrative office but was quickly introduced to Beth Burgess and began her work with the Stowe Center collection.
"I've learned a lot about the purpose of historical museums and enslavement. It has opened my eyes," Mary shared.
In the Day House, there is a room named in Mary's honor. When I asked her about it, she laughed. "That was the result of a little interaction with former staff member Brian Cofrancesco," Mary shared. "We used to kid around a lot when he was here. Under Beth's direction, I went through all the boxes with the materials about the founding of the Stowe Center, organizing the archival materials to assure there was enough room for them to 'breathe,' then create a label for each box and arranged the boxes by subject and year. I was up in that room for hours in the hot summertime."
"When you've come to the end of a collection, and you've organized it, you feel like you should do something," Mary continued. "So, Brian decided to dedicate the room to me." On the door, there is a picture of Mary right as she finished the project. Victorious!
Mary takes great pride in her work preserving our historic collections. "This is something that I have learned more about while volunteering at Stowe—the importance of preserving history. For a lot of reasons, especially what we're going through now as a country."
And she's patient about the payoff: "This is the kind of work where it's not certain. It's possible that someone might never open the box. But it's possible that someone might find something very significant in one of those boxes, so you just keep going at it." After the recent discovery of the Phillips Manuscript in the Stowe archive, I couldn't agree with her more.
Mary is passionate about education, having spent her career in the classroom, as a school administrator, and an Assistant Professor for teacher preparation in literacy training at the college level. In addition to her work at the Stowe Center, Mary volunteers at one of the preschool classes in her hometown of Ellington.
"The Stowe Center attracts bright, educated people which is interesting to me," says Mary. "It's not a place where you go if you need a job. You need a commitment to the mission. I've learned a lot from the people who work here and their dedication."
What's wonderful is that those relationships endure. When Beth Burgess became the Museum Curator at the Museum of Connecticut History, Mary called her up and asked to volunteer. Brian Cofrancesco is the Director of Connecticut's Kid Governor program, another organization where Mary volunteers her time.
Since 2008, Mary has volunteered for more than 3,500 hours, coming in every week to take on the next archival project, now under the direction of Cat White, our Director of Historic Collections. "The Stowe Center is a place where I feel that the time I give is appreciated and worthwhile." Is it ever!
We are so grateful to Mary and for her gift of time. Our volunteers and our supporters are an essential part of our community, ensuring the legacy of Stowe and the true stories of American history endure. Thank you, Friends of Stowe, for all you do.
