Become a Member

The Bedford we love today wouldn’t exist without the Bedford Historical Society. And the Historical Society can’t exist without members who support it. Join us and help continue our mission of preservation.

The Bedford Historical Society is governed by a Board of Directors whose 21 members are elected by the general membership at its Annual Meeting in May. Members of the Board serve terms of three years and officers are elected annually by the Board. The Board meets monthly, usually on the second Monday of the month. The bylaws of the organization are available on request.

Peter T. Michaelis, Chairman
Kirtley H. Cameron, President
Stacy E. Albanese, Vice President

Dina L. Clason, Treasurer
Robyn F. McCree, Secretary

Katherine Bang

Casey Brooks

Whitney Brown

Paula M. Desperito
Melissa S. Fleming
S. Parker Gilbert, Jr.
Timothy M. Ghriskey

Benjamin H. Ginnel

Kurt B. Harrison
Russell T. Hernandez
Ann G. Hoffman

John C. Horn
Erik P. Jacobsen
Frederick E. Jones, III
Tricia Swift
Email: board@bedfordhistoricalsociety.org

Lloyd Bedford Cox, Jr., Director Emeritus
John J. Stockbridge, Town Historian

“Being involved in the Bedford Historical Society has given me the opportunity to satisfy my love of history and also have a direct impact on how to preserve the historical assets we cherish. When I’m asked why I live in Bedford, I usually respond that it is the furthest south I can live and still feel like I live in New England. We have much to be thankful for here in Bedford and it makes me feel good to be able to keep Bedford looking as it has for more than 230 years.”
Peter Michaelis, Chairman Board of Directors

Peter and his wife, Victoria, have lived in Bedford for over 20 years. Raised in Cambridge MA and Washington, DC, Peter is a graduate of Concord Academy and Brown University where he received his degree with honors in Political Science.

Peter worked for 13 years as a television producer at both ABC News and CBS News, traveling extensively and working on shows like West57th, This Week with David Brinkley, Nightline and World News Tonight. After leaving CBS, he worked as a freelance producer before leaving television all together. He then became the founder, President and CEO of WINDTech Int’l LLC, a producer of low-wind, water pumping windmills for use in developing countries.

Peter enjoys being involved in Bedford and has served the community in various capacities. In addition to serving on the Board of the BHS, Peter is a Trustee of the Friends of John Jay Homestead and serves on the Town of Bedford’s Zoning Board of Appeals. He spent three years working on the Town of Bedford’s Master Plan and is a CERT member. He is the chairman of the Town’s Communications Commission and a member of the Town’s Tree Advisory Board. He is also a member of the Westchester Land Trust and the Bedford Riding Lanes Association.

A dedicated and involved father of his two sons, Peter (17) and Drew (15), Peter has also coached Little League and youth soccer in the community and enjoys tennis and photography in his free time.

Staff

“Preservation has become my passion and I’m deeply committed to keeping Bedford’s historic vista intact. Sharing Bedford’s unique heritage allows me to share my love of all things old – objects, architecture, art, landscape – and to connect the history of those things with the living village that Bedford is today. One of my favorite parts of my job is seeing the reaction of a new visitor to the 1787 Court House; I open the door, they walk in, pause, and say “Wow, this is cool.”
Lynn Ryan, Executive Director

Evelyne (Lynn) Ryan joined The Bedford Historical Society part-time in 1996 and became the first full-time Executive Director in 2001. Raised in the tri-state area around New York, she attended Dana Hall School in Wellesley, MA, Kirkland College in Clinton, NY and St. Peter’s College, Oxford, England. She is a cum laude graduate of Boston University where she was elected to Phi Beta Kappa and received her degree with distinction in English Language and Literature.

She enjoyed a nine year career as an Assistant Vice President at Sotheby’s New York, working first in Oriental Rugs and Carpets and later as a Business Manager for five decorative arts departments before assuming responsibility for the Fine Arts Division. After the birth of her first child she returned part-time to the office of the Sr. Vice President of Finance and Operations where she was responsible for streamlining administrative systems and procedures in expert departments and training department staff. She later became responsible for numerous special projects in many aspects of Sotheby’s business.

She left Sotheby’s when she moved to Westchester in 1987 and devoted the next years to raising her three children and becoming active in the community. When not running around the Village Green, camera in hand, she can be found on a tennis court, deep into a book, or casting a dry fly.

Sophia Bernier, Communications, Events & Administration
Sophia Bernier recently joined the Bedford Historical Society after taking time off from her career to raise her children and manage a Marketing Consulting business. Born and raised in Connecticut, Sophia attended college there and worked in Connecticut until relocating to New York in 1991. She has been in the personnel, career counseling, events management, advertising, marketing and grant writing fields. Sophia enjoys the challenge of new adventures and hopes to learn to knit someday.

Benjamin C. Branch, Properties Consultant

Estelle Chojnicki, Buildings Superintendent