Michael Boester, Chemistry & Geosciences Department, has been enchanted with cemeteries since he was a little kid growing up in Southern Illinois -- since his mom let him ride his bike all over their small town and a sixth grade teacher showed him how to do rubbings of the headstones and what the symbols on them meant.
While Boester’s interest continued throughout high school, his passion for the subject fully blossomed in college. “When I found out that geographers look at cemeteries as evolving cultural landscapes, I was even more enthusiastic,” he says.
MCC Student Sandor Vegh’s interest in local cemeteries sprouted from a different direction. Local history and Rochester’s earliest settlers have always fascinated him. “I grew up here,” he says. “I have a natural curiosity about this place and the people who lived here.”
But while Boester’s interest stems from geography and Vegh’s from history, they share a deeply-rooted fascination for the same place. Both are members of Friends of Mt. Hope, an organization committed to restoring, preserving and encouraging the public use and enjoyment of one of Rochester’s most significant cultural resources.
On MCC’s first Scholars’ Day, Saturday, March 21, 1 p.m. – 2 p.m., they will present “Moving to Mt. Hope,” an interesting look at one of the country’s first municipal cemeteries.
MCC’s Scholars’ Day will be held 9:30 a.m. – 3:30 p.m. on MCC’s Brighton Campus, 1000E. Henrietta Road. Parking will be available in Lots E and F. For more information, contact Jodi Oriel, assistant director, Campus Center at 585.292.2533 or <mailto:joriel@monroecc.edu>. More details and a complete schedule of the day’s events are also available at https://www.monroecc.edu/go/scholarsday.
Janet Ekis
College and Community Relations
03/05/2009 |