Holiday spirit with an eye on history

A Town of Fredonia couple has a vision of restoring two of Waubeka’s oldest buildings and celebrating the holidays to help in the process.

Jacqueline Fulcomer and her husband Daniel Bertrand have owned Willoway Farm, an eight-acre, community-supported agriculture (CSA) farm at N6850 Camp Awana Rd., since 2005. 

Jacqueline also operates Waggle Dance Flowers, which offers wedding and event flower arrangements and designs, using flowers grown on the farm. 

But this holiday season, the couple can be found just as often at N6412 Cigrand Dr., selling balsam Christmas trees and other holiday decorations.

What makes this business endeavor special is that a portion of each sale is going toward renovating two historical Waubeka buildings — the 1883 Klessig Cheese Factory and the 1850 Bidinger blacksmith shop house, the oldest in Waubeka — and getting them registered as landmarks.

Two different corporations own each building, but Fulcomer and Bertrand are part of each group. 

The first priority is the Klessig house, Fulcomer said.

“The lot itself is lovely and on the river. It’s just a beautiful place,” she said. “The riverfront here is so beautiful.”

The Bidinger blacksmith shop collapsed a few years ago, she said, but the house is restorable.

Both buildings are listed on the Chief Waubeka Trail that was established by the National Flag Day Foundation.

“We have lots of ideas” what to do with the buildings, Fulcomer said.

Being on the river, the buildings would make a lovely setting for a bed-and-breakfast inn that caters to bicyclists, canoeists and other guests, she said.

The cheese factory structure has the potential to serve as a community space, she added.

Fulcomer said she plans on holding a native plant sale on the site in the spring.

For the current sale, Christmas trees offered range from about five to nine feet tall. Tree sales are from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays and from 4 to 6 p.m. weekdays.    

“It’s been fun getting to meet people and having friends and families come up from farther away. Being on the river adds a little sweetness,” Fulcomer said, saying it provides a fun place for the couple’s children — Samuel, 10, and Summer, 7 — to play. 

“The back yard is so scenic and lovely for the kids to walk about,” she said. “I am having a great time hanging out there.” 

Fulcomer is also selling produce from the farm, floral ornaments for trees and dried floral chips, as well as promoting other local producers, she said.

The couple delayed their Christmas tree event so as not to compete with the local Boy Scouts wreath sale, she added.

This is their first year doing Christmas tree sales. She said they plan on doing it again next year and make it a Waubeka tradition.

Fulcomer said she hopes their project will encourage others to follow suit.

“We’re hoping that more people will want to invest in Waubeka, too,” she said. 

For more information, visit www.willowayfarm.com or call 692-9691.