By Karen Haave
Beloved Monee Historical Society President Emeritus Christi Holston was honored during the village’s Sesquicentennial birthday party, as she stepped down from the helm this fall.
A self-described history buff from the age of 12, when she started the Saturday Afternoon History Club with a small group of her neighborhood friends, she is credited – along with her husband, David – with the preservation and restoration of the century-old Creamery building that became the Monee Heritage Center. The Holstons also founded the Save the Creamery grassroots group that ultimately emerged, many pancake fundraisers later, as the Monee Historical Society.
Christi Holston was given a handsome plaque, engraved with the village’s thanks, along with a glass vase created especially for her by master gaffer George Machert. Holston is an enthusiastic fan of Machert’s artistry.
“Yes, he made it especially for me, so I am very honored,” she said later. “He shows his pieces all over the world and specializes in vases, paperweights, Christmas tree ornaments, as well as other objects. His studio is on Egyptian Trail in Monee and he grew up in Monee. He has a Facebook page, and we carry some of his pieces at the Heritage Center.
He always makes a special ornament at Christmas time.”