September 2025 Newsletter

At APT-DVC, we Peale back the curtain. (Image: Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts)

in·sid·er \inˈsīdər\ n : a person within a group or organization, especially someone privy to information unavailable to others.

Happy Fall!

As we look back on the summer and our year thus far, we at APT-DVC can count among our accomplishments a series of events we have dubbed "insider's tours."

From our first gathering and spring social at Lemon Hill (in partnership with the Fairmount Park Conservancy), to last week's tour of the receiving vaults at Laurel Hill West Cemetery (organized in collaboration with Lower Merion Conservancy), we've worked to offer our current and prospective members opportunities to peek behind the curtain of preservation in action.

Several of these tours were led by current or previous APT-DVC board members,  including Shofuso Japanese Cultural Center, St. George Greek Orthodox Cathedral, and the magnificent Fallingwater designed by Frank Lloyd Wright. We thank those involved for allowing us to gain a level of access that is often not available to the general public.

The opportunities continue this fall, as APT-DVC member Desmond Cheung and the Philadelphia Ship Preservation Guild welcome us aboard the Gazela tall ship for a waterfront networking event the evening of October 9. See our website for details, or register here.

I want to thank you all for being members and supporting our chapter. If you enjoy being an insider, consider joining a committee or running for a board position when elections come later this year. If you are a practitioner with access and information about an ongoing project in the chapter's region, perhaps you can suggest an insider's tour of your own. Contact me to share your ideas, and enjoy the rest of the season.

Chuck DiSanto, Chair