$5K grant will replace window for Santa School Museum in Albion

Photo by Tom Rivers: This photo from March 6 shows icicles on the bronze statue of Santa at Waterman Park on Main Street in Albion. A building in back in center is owned by the Albion Betterment Committee and will be turned into a Santa School Museum. Charles W. Howard ran the first Santa School in the world on Phipps Road in Albion from 1937 until his death in 1966. The school continues in Howard’s name in Midland, Mich. The Betterment Committee dedicated the statue, created by Brian Porter, during the Strawberry Festival in June 2023.

ALBION – The Albion Betterment Committee is a step closer in its goal of developing a Santa School Museum in downtown Albion.

The Betterment Committee has been awarded a $5,000 grant from the Rochester Community Foundation to replace a front-arched window on the second floor of 128 North Main St. The window will be replaced with wood at the exact dimensions as the existing window which has rotted wood.

This is the first grant from the Rochester Community Foundation for the Betterment Committee, said Natasha Wasuck, one of the committee’s board members.

The committee purchased the building in November from the estate of Henri Pulley. The site is 6,600 square feet.

The Betterment Committee is working to turn the vacant two-story site into the Santa School Museum. It will pay homage to the late Charles W. Howard, who created the first Santa School in the world. He ran it on Phipps Road in Albion from 1937 until his death in 1966.

Howard continues to be revered among the people who portray Santa. The Santa School continues in his name in Midland, Mich. Howard also was well known as the Santa in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade from 1948 to 1965. Howard also was inducted as an inaugural member in 2010 of the International Santa Claus Hall of Fame.

The Betterment Committee wants to make the Main Street site into a tourism center that celebrates Santa. The group wants to develop an interactive tourism center with displays about the Charles W. Howard Santa School and Christmas Park, which Howard ran for many years near his farmhouse on Phipps Road.

The Betterment Committee envisions the first floor as interactive exhibits and displays, as well as room for a bakery and food operator. The site could also offer services, including showers, for canal boaters, cyclists and other visitors.

The second floor is envisioned to offer space for artists – painters, potters, and others in need of studio space. The second floor has large windows that let in natural light that would be ideal for artists, Wasuck said.

The group is seeking grants to help with building upgrades, especially a new roof that will cost an estimated $50,000. The Betterment Committee welcomes donations.

“The roof is the most important part,” Wasuck said about the building’s pressing needs. “We need to raise the money to replace it.”

The group is a 501c3 organization that accepts tax deductible donations. Donations can be sent to Albion Betterment Committee, c/o Joe Gehl at 14487 Baker Rd. in Kent, NY 14477.

“This project is built on belief — in our history, our community, and the magic of what’s possible,” she said.