It was an evening of historical significance for the Cedarburg community March 23 when longtime local residents and preservationists Jim and Sandy Pape were honored as the recipients of the 2011 Civic Award by the Greater Cedarburg Foundation. A crowd of more than 225 people filled the Cedarburg Cultural Center to honor the Pape's for their devotion to historic preservation and civic involvement. Jerry Voigt, chairman of the event, said the turnout was the largest the event has ever attracted.

"Jim and Sandy Pape are pillars of the community as far as preserving the historic beauty of Cedarburg," said Ben Levy, President of the Greater Cedarburg Foundation. "We owe a lot to these two people for all they have done in making our community the special place it is." The Pape's bought and renovated the former Wittenberg Mill near the corner of Bridge St. and Washington Avenue in 1972 and turned it into a collection of shops and art galleries now known as the Cedar Creek Settlement. They also purchased several historic buildings along Washington Avenue to form the Washington House Inn bed and breakfast in 1984.

"Without the tireless dedication of Jim and Sandy Pape, Cedarburg may have become one of the thousands of small towns with featureless main streets, void of historic architecture and old world charm," said Peg Edquist, a foundation board member who made the presentation. She added that the couple also played an integral role in bringing people to Cedarburg and sharing our beautiful city with visitors.

In her remarks, Edquist traced the couple's love of historic stone buildings back to their honeymoon, where they visited the great cities of Europe. After starting a wine making business on Milwaukee's East side in the 1970s, the couple relocated to Grafton with the purchase of an old farmstead built in 1884.They lived there for 27 years before moving to another historical home from 1863 near the covered bridge just north of town. About the same time, Jim was considering locating his wine business to the Wittenburg Mill on the corner of Bridge Road and Washington Avenue. Owner Carl Wittenburg had not been able to find a buyer for the building and was contemplating demolishing the structure to make way for a gas station. Jim was approached by Mayor Steven Fisher to purchase the building, and he teamed up with industrialist Bill Welty to split the purchase price of $55,000. In 1983, Jim formed a partnership with five investors and purchased a collection of buildings on Washington Avenue which became the Washington House Inn in September of 1984.. . . Read More >>

Ben Levy, President of the Greater Cedarburg Foundation, will began the second year of his two year term beginning in June of 2011. Among the accomplishments of his first year is growing the endowment to $1.7 million which qualifies for Supporting Organization status with the Greater Milwaukee Foundation. (see related articles in the Spring 2011 newsletter)

A lifelong Cedarburg resident, Levy graduated from Arizona State University in 1985 and received his law degree from Marquette University Law School in 1988. He currently specializes in civil litigation as a member of the Levy & Levy law firm in Cedarburg and is past president of the Ozaukee County Bar Association.

As an avid civic volunteer, Levy has served as president of several associations in the area, including the Cedarburg Chamber of Commerce and Forward Cedarburg, Cedarburg's former Economic Development Board. He is a volunteer teacher in the Junior Achievement program and coaches youth basketball in Cedarburg. In addition, Levy was a board member of the Cedarburg Community Pool Association and was involved in the fund raising efforts for the Ozaukee County YMCA facility in Saukville. He is currently a member of the Cedarburg-Grafton Rotary Club and serves on the Community Scholarship. . . Read More >>

The Greater Cedarburg Community Foundation’s mission is to promote and encourage private funding in support of projects and programs that enrich the quality of life for the residents of the Greater Cedarburg Community. The Foundation awards grants to non-profit organizations within the Greater Cedarburg Community.

Foundation disbursements will be used as seed money for new efforts, sometimes as matching funds for projects, and occasionally as challenge grants.  Ordinarily the Foundation will not extend funds to cover an organization’s routine operating expenses.