St. Nicholas Annual Appeal 2009

Dear Friends and Family:

On Sunday, September 20, Dr. Jan Peter Balkenende, Prime Minister of the Netherlands began his 400th anniversary celebration of the Dutch arrival in New York with a visit to our home. He was joined by Mrs. Regina Jones-Bos, Ambassador of the Netherlands to the U.S.; Mr. Maxime Verhagen, Minister of Foreign Affairs; Mr. Gajus Scheltema, Consul General of the Netherlands; and their delegates.

It was a magical moment that underscored just how remarkable our house is. It is the oldest Dutch building in America. The house sparkled with a fresh coat of paint. The weather was perfect. The building never looked better, but what provided the magic was the 60 children from Brooklyn Public School 119, known as the Amersfort School, that had come to sing a Dutch song for our visitors.

Indeed it was all the children, these and the many others who had come to participate in our annual Apple Festival, that highlighted our most important asset: our education programs, which touch the lives of thousands of inner city school children each year. Hardly a school-day goes by without at least two, and sometimes three, school buses pulling up out front and children bursting forth to learn how our ancestors lived here and tilled the soil over 350 years ago.

I attended two such sessions on Friday November 6. I wish you could have been there. The kitchen of our old house was full of children sitting on the floor asking questions about how Mrs. Pieter Claesen Wyckoff prepared the family's food. They were amazed that a family with so many children could live in such a tiny house. They were all eager to take a hand at churning butter or squeezing apples through a press. As it was on September 20, the house was alive with young voices.

At this time when budgets are being battered across the board, every school district in Brooklyn, as well as many in Queens, the Bronx, Manhattan, and Staten Island, continue to make visiting the Wyckoff House a priority even though their ability to make school visits has been severely cut. Why? Because we have an exceptional staff that brings history alive. Because our house is a perfect size for children, they can relate to it, and because of the quality of our educational materials and the information given.

I am writing to ask you, in the spirit of Saint Nicholas, to help us continue to make this program possible. Your individual contributions to support our educational activities enable us to touch the lives of many children, nearly half of whom have at least one immigrant parent. Our story inspires them. They learn about the American dream and the values of hard work, having a vision, the significance of education, and the importance of serving others.

Our children are our future. In a world where half the population lives in an urban environment, we help kids remain in touch with the soil, help them understand that food comes from the earth, and that our natural environment is precious. Please be as generous as you can and help us inspire and educate the future generations on whose shoulders the future of our planet rests.

Thank you for your support, 

Naj Wikoff
President