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Heart of America Glass Collectors Kansas City |
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Club History
The first National Depression Glass Association (NDGA) National Convention was held in Washington, DC, in 1975 and the second was in Oklahoma City in 1976. A group of friends from the Kansas City area attended the second NDGA convention in Oklahoma; they were dazzled by the booths and displays, fascinated by the seminars, and caught up in the enthusiasm and fellowship of sharing the event with fellow collectors. By the Spring of 1977, the group knew that it wanted to form a collectors club and eventually host the NDGA convention in Kansas City. A dozen collectors attended the organizational meeting in May 1977 at the home of Gene Loveland. The Heart of America Glass Collectors was born! Over the next couple of months the club drafted and adopted by-laws, elected officers, incorporated as a nonprofit educational organization, and developed a proposal for hosting an NDGA convention. The club included the following founding members:
Over 30 years later, Gene & Helen Allen and Gene Loveland are still active members in the club! The following members were the first elected officers of the Heart of America Glass Collectors, Inc.:
Pat McGrain (a friend of the Heart of America Glass Collectors, Inc. from Springfield, MO) attended the third NDGA National Convention in Buena Park, CA, in 1977 and presented a proposal on behalf of the Heart of America Glass Collectors, Inc. to host the 1978 convention. The proposal was accepted and the Heart of America Glass Collectors, Inc. was proud to host the fourth annual NDGA Convention in Kansas City in July 1978. (Click this link to see details of the1978 convention in Kansas City on the NDGA web site.) Gene Loveland was the Convention Coordinator and Show Chairman. The convention was held at the Hilton Plaza Inn at 45th and Main, overlooking the Country Club Plaza. After the convention, the club looked for a way to promote collecting and to share their love of depression era glass and pottery with the community. Meanwhile, in 1972 Fern Angus (from Springfield, MO) established a depression glass show in Independence, MO. Fern later sold the show to Scotty’s Antiques. In 1984 and 1985, the Heart of America Glass Collectors, Inc. sponsored a depression glass show at the Holiday Inn in Lenexa, KS. In 1986, the Heart of America Glass Collectors, Inc. bought the promotion rights to the Independence show from Scotty’s Antiques and continues to promote it in the Spring and Fall each year.
The Depression Era Glass & Pottery Show & Sale sponsored by the Heart of America Glass Collectors, Inc. is the longest-running depression era glass and pottery show in the Kansas City area. (Click the Glass Show button on the left to learn more about the show.) The club has been an active supporter of the National Depression Glass Association through the years, promoting membership in the national organization and hosting the annual convention several more times. In lieu of a local club, Pat Rose, a long-term member of the Heart of America Glass Collectors, Inc. hosted the 20th annual NDGA Convention in nearby Topeka, KS in 1994. A National Glass Collection was proposed and created at the 25th annual NDGA Convention in Little Rock, AR in 1999. Members of the Heart of America Glass Collectors, Inc. were among the first to contribute to the National Glass Collection at the convention. The Heart of America Glass Collectors, Inc. proudly hosted the 28th annual NDGA Convention in Lee’s Summit, MO, in July 2002. (Click this link to see details of the2002 convention on the NDGA web site.) The Convention Chairperson was Bev Harris. Two founding members of the Heart of America Glass Collectors, Inc., Gene and Helen Allen, have the distinction of exhibiting at the most NDGA conventions (28 and counting). They have missed only two conventions since they started doing them in 1978. The Heart of America Glass Collectors, Inc. has provided several major officers in the National Depression Glass Association, including the following members:
In the 1970s and 1980s, the club regularly participated in a program with the Kansas City Chiefs and Kansas City Royals in which club members ran a concession stand during a game and were able to keep a percentage of the profits for the club. This early seed money allowed the club to purchase the promotion rights to the local show, to develop a reference library of books and video about the glass and pottery, and to make regular donations to charities (both local and national) and disaster relief organizations. Since its inception, the Heart of America Glass Collectors, Inc. has regularly supported a wide variety of charitable causes, including the American Red Cross, Harvesters-The Community Food Network, Kansas City’s City Union Mission, the Salvation Army, and relief funds set up after specific floods, hurricanes, and tornados. Club members enjoy travelling together to shows, factories, and antique malls. Planning the trips is half the fun, but sharing the excitement of treasure hunting with fellow collectors provides many enjoyable memories (and quite a few stories). Club members have caravanned in vans “back east” to the Fenton glass factory and “down south” to the Rosenberg, TX show (stopping at every antique mall along the way). They travelled by train to the Belleville, IL show and have enjoyed several antique mall junkets via tour bus. Over the years, the Heart of America Glass Collectors, Inc. has participated in a variety of opportunities to educate the Kansas City community about depression era glass and pottery, to instill an appreciation for the craftsmanship and skill of the manufacturers, and to foster a love for collecting.
New members are always welcome. If you would like to check the club out to see if it is right for you, please join us at an upcoming meeting. Check out the Club Info on this web site.
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