Helen and Herman Melton are being honored by the Pittsylvania Historical Society, which is creating a DPC Foundation grant in their name to fund research and preservation. (Photo by Susan Worley, Star-Tribune.)
The Pittsylvania Historical Society today announced the establishment of the “Herman and Helen Melton Historical Fund” to honor the Chatham couple who have contributed significantly to the research and documentation of county history.
County civic leaders, historians and authors, the Meltons will be leaving Chatham this month for retirement in South Carolina.
“In recognition of the great impact that Herman and Helen have had on our community through their tireless devotion to the Pittsylvania Historical Society and their outstanding contributions to local historical research, the board of directors of the Historical Society has established the Herman and Helen Melton Historical Fund,” said Historical Society board member Glenn Giles.
The fund will be established through the DPC Community Foundation. As an endowment, it will generate grant monies which will be awarded to charitable organizations and individuals for projects supporting historical research and preservation in a href="http://www.victorianvilla.com/sims-mitchell/virginia/pittsco/">Pittsylvania County.
As an advised fund, the foundation will work with representatives of the Historical Society to solicit and screen grant applications and select and approve recipients.
The Historical Society is making an initial $10,000 investment to establish the fund and additional monies have been earmarked over the next three years to build the fund.
Organizations and individuals are encouraged to enhance the fund with additional donations.
Born and raised in the Texas Panhandle, Herman spent his adult life in the natural gas industry. He came to Pittsylvania County as plant superintendent for Transco Gas Pipeline in 1959.
He holds a master's degree in education from the University of Virginia and an engineering degree from the United States Merchant Marine Academy.
His love for the area is best summed up in a bumper sticker on his truck, “I wasn't born in Pittsylvania County, but I got here as quick as I could.”
He published his first book on Pittsylvania County history in 1989. His titles include:
Herman is past president of the Society and has edited its quarterly magazine The Packet. He has been president of the Chatham Rotary Club and the Pittsylvania County Chamber of Commerce.
Helen Louise Dunn Melton, who writes as Kenyon McCann, grew up in Kansas. She graduated from Garden City High School and Junior College before continuing her education at Adelphi College in New York.
Her early career was spent in education working in both public and private sectors in the U. S. and abroad. She has a bachelor's degree from Averett College and a master's degree from the University of Virginia.
She has published two fictional novels based on Pittsylvania County history — Ride Into Darkness and A Cruel Wind Blowing.
The couple met in Garden City, Kansas, Helen's hometown. They were married in New York City while he was in the military. They have been mrried 59 years.
Donations to the Melton Historical Fund may be made to the DPC Foundation at P. O. Box 1039, Danville, VA 24543.
The DPC Community Foundation celebrates is seventh anniversary this month has has more than $10 million in assets.