Town Crier Articles

 

We found Ken Fones-Wolf minding the pot of gold at the Spring potluck gathering at Chelsea Green Park. 

 

OK, so the reality was he was minding hot dogs sizzling on a kettle grill. But he was helping his wife, Elizabeth, with the affair, underscoring Fones-Wolf’s desire to meet people in New Town – or elsewhere – via a variety of volunteer activities.

 

But first, some background on Ken and Elizabeth, both originally from the D.C. area. 

 

They came to Williamsburg following 30-year careers in the History department at West Virginia University. Ken specialized in labor and social history, particularly the intersection of religious belief and working-class activism. Elizabeth, a former department chair, focused on different aspects of 20th century political, economic, and social history, especially the struggle between organized labor and business to shape the ideas and images that constituted America’s political culture.

 

Their co-authored work, Struggle for the Soul of the Postwar South: White Evangelical Protestants and Operation Dixie won the Organization of American Historians David Montgomery Book Prize, and was among numerous articles, books and editing works in which both were engaged.

 

In retirement, they were looking to settle in a place conveniently located to their daughter in Virginia Beach and their son in Northern Virginia. Having come from a college town, coupled with their interest in history and proximity to Colonial Williamsburg and William & Mary, made New Town an appealing option.

 

“We came down, and it just seemed like the perfect place for us,” he said.

 

Ken believes there is value in volunteering – for several reasons. There’s the obvious, contributing to the community in which you live. But it is also an excellent way to meet new people.

 

“We’ve always felt very fortunate in our professional lives,” he said. “But it made us aware that we wanted to give back – and (volunteering) helps us stay active, keep our minds going.”

 

In the past he has volunteered at the Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation as a gallery docent and done archival work for the Yorktown branch of the operation. Last winter he traveled twice a week to Virginia Beach to help his daughter coach his grandson’s basketball team.

 

“That was a great chance to do something with my daughter,” he said. “I’d (previously) coached her in basketball, and she called and asked if I wanted to do this. I wasn’t crazy about driving to Virginia Beach twice a week, but it was a great experience.”

 

He’s also an avid participant in a senior softball league that plays twice a week, and once that season concludes he plans to volunteer at a local food bank.

 

“One of the guys I play softball with is involved in the House of Mercy,” he said. “His wife is, too. I’ve thought about that because there’s a real need. That was one of the things that surprised me because you walk around, and you don’t see much evidence of need.”

 

“You ask people what they do, and they say they play pickleball or they play golf. I love to play softball, but if that was the extent of what I did, I’d feel like I wasn’t giving much back. That would be hard for me.”