Long-time director of DPN announces his retirement

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JoAnn Ballard, who ran the Dodge Pratt Northam Art and Community Center (DPN) for a decade, recently retired from her role as General Manager.

She spent her time there adding more art, music and education programs. As she steps down, she is grateful to the team of people she has worked with over the years.

“I was definitely not the only person doing this,” she said. “I am grateful to the people who made this all possible. My board has been closely involved in all aspects of what I did there. Plus wonderful community support.

Throughout his tenure, one of Ballard’s primary goals was the meticulous restoration of the historic house that serves as a community center.

“I knew the restoration of the building was going to take a lot of work,” she said. “And we did it piece by piece. We were able to make the first floor accessible to people with disabilities for the first time. It was wonderful.

She gives credit to foundations in the area, such as the Community Foundation and the Kenneth and Jeannette Remp Sawyer Fund, for making projects like this possible. She is especially proud of the work she and her team did to open up the historic triangle at the corner of Post and Schuyler streets, removing the dilapidated building and creating parking space for the DPN and the library.

“Every time I go there, I think about the work that has been done and the benefits for the community,” she said. “It’s up there for me.”

Prior to her role as Executive Director at DPN, Ballard had a solid 25-year career as a registered dental assistant in Dr. Slavin’s office in Utica.

Ballard will stay connected to the center by doing bookkeeping and leading genealogy classes. Now she plans to spend more time with her husband, enjoying her family and her home, with her animals and on the Black River which is one of her favorite places.

Ballard was recognized at a special Friday night reception that included special guests, including the first DPN board chair, Sandra DeVisser. She was honored with a speech from the current chairman of the board and featured a crimson maple and apple trees.

The DPN, which is located at 106 Schuyler Street, right next to the Erwin Library, offers area residents the space and opportunity to enjoy locally produced, high quality and affordable cultural programs. Programs, courses and workshops are offered throughout the year for all ages, from children to adults. The organization is supervised by a board made up entirely of volunteers.

It was formed in 1974 by a dedicated group of civic-minded residents. It was added to the National Register of Historic Homes in 1975. The house was built in 1875 by Clark Dodge, who was a merchant and one of the founders of the First National Bank. His son Eugene Dodge was a banker and sold the house to Charles Pratt in 1894. His son Walter left the house to his cousin, Hazel Northam, an undertaker from Brooklyn, who died in 1972. Miss Northam bequeathed the house to the Erwin Library, which still owns it today. The house is built in the French Revival architectural style of the late Victorian period. Architect Azel J. Lathrop of Utica also designed the former First National Bank in Boonville, now the Dodge Memorial Building, the Butterfield House in Utica, and the Herkimer County Courthouse.

Ballard’s successor, Amy Simanowski, has been involved in the DPN for eight years. She has been an instructor for the STEAM after-school program, director of musical theater and coach in Lego robotics.

“Growing up here, I have always been involved in music in the community, both vocal and instrumental,” she said. “Between music and my grandmother, Nancy Trainor, who was heavily involved in Dodge Pratt, I first attended Christmas in the countryside at the Center when I was a child, and later provided music for the open day. I have always looked forward to this and also to visit all the artisans (including my aunt Diane) at the annual lumberjack craft fair there. I have always looked forward to these events, and over the past few years as an employee, it has been exciting to be on the other side.

Simanowski grew up in Boonville and graduated from Adirondack in 1993. After that, she attended the Crane School of Music and graduated with a Bachelor of Music Education in 1997.

“For now, I plan to keep all of the programs that JoAnn put in place during her tenure and continue to help them grow,” she said.

“I would like to continue to build strong relationships with other music and arts organizations in the region and work collaboratively with them to bring programming and events to the community,” she added.

Being in the center of town, we are in a unique location to host a variety of concerts, classes and programs. I look forward to continuing the successful programs at the Center and look forward to finding other ways to bring the arts and programs to the community.


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