Coolidge Foundation Director Retires

The Calvin Coolidge Memorial Foundation announces the retirement of its Executive Director, Cyndy Bittinger. Her retirement will mark her 18th year as director, in which time she helped lead the Foundation from a local organization, to one of national importance and prominence. Ms. Bittinger points to education programs and events at the historic site along with fund raising efforts as among her proudest achievements for the Foundation.

The Foundation was created to develop programs and publish materials to preserve the legacy of our 30th President, Calvin Coolidge. As part of her job Ms. Bittinger organized and promoted talks by major historians and journalists such as Richard Norton Smith and David Shribman. She also encouraged scholars to submit original material to be published in the Foundation series, "The Real Calvin Coolidge."

But Ms. Bittinger went beyond seeing that scholarship got published. She researched and wrote material herself on President Coolidge and especially on First Lady, Grace Coolidge. Her biography, "Grace Coolidge Sudden Star" came out in 2005 and drew heavily on Coolidge family letters donated by Jerry Sayles.

As part of her efforts to give more national exposure to the Foundation, Ms. Bittinger has lectured at the John F. Kennedy Library, the National First Ladies Library in Canton, Ohio and at the annual meeting of the American Association for State and Local History, and the National Council for History Education. She also serves on the Presidential Historic Sites task Force for the American Association for State and Local History and is on the Editorial Board of "White House Studies" put out by Nova Science Journals.

Listeners to Vermont Public Radio have heard Ms. Bittinger's commentaries on Coolidge, especially around July 4th, when Coolidge's birthday is celebrated at Plymouth Notch, Vermont. Her 2003 series on VPR, "Documenting the Coolidge Legacy" received the "Leadership in History Award" at the 2004 national conference of the American Association for State and Local History. Also in Vermont, she has given talks about Calvin and Grace Coolidge at senior centers, retirement homes, bookstores, historic sites and homes, and at Elderhostel courses. In addition she has taught classes on Women's History and Vermont History at the Community College of Vermont and plans to teach a Vermont History class there this fall.

At the Coolidge office at the Union Church in Plymouth Notch, Ms. Bittinger has worked closely with the Vermont Division for Historic Preservation, which owns and operates the other buildings at President Calvin Coolidge State Historic Site. The two organizations have cooperated in celebrating the July 4th anniversary, the August Old Home Day and the September Cheese and Harvest Festival. This public/private cooperation has been to the benefit of both organizations and continues to grow.

The Vermont Division also makes the Historic Site available for school groups to come to the Notch. Under Ms. Bittinger's leadership, the students have seen and appreciated the influences on Calvin Coolidge as he grew up, and how he learned and absorbed the traits of honesty, reliability and the need for hard work. Following on these efforts of Ms. Bittinger, the Foundation plans to build facilities to offer school tours beyond when the Site is open, currently from Memorial Day through Columbus Day.

Jennifer Sayles Harville is Vice-President of the Board of the Calvin Coolidge Memorial Foundation and also a great-granddaughter of Calvin Coolidge. She says about Ms. Bittinger: "She is very enthusiastic about introducing us, the Coolidge descendants, to the public because she truly believes in people's interest in learning about our family and heritage. After the death of my grandfather and mother, she gently encouraged me to become more visible and involved in Coolidge events. I am amazed and so proud of all Cyndy has accomplished and I am thankful to have made a lifelong friend."

Coolidge Foundation President, Charles Buell commented "It is bittersweet for me to have to search for her successor, when it was Cyndy who persuaded me to come on the Board in 2003. She will be very difficult to replace."