Albany’s, Wetherbee Planetarium and Science Museum chosen for 31st Easterseals ornament

ALBANY — The official 2023 Albany Easterseals Christmas ornament glittered with a golden shine in front of the Thronateeska Heritage Center’s Wetherbee Planetarium and Science Museum Monday as Albany Mayor Bo Dorough presented it to community leaders.

The 24-carat gold over brass ornament, engraved with the historic planetarium, joins a 31-year-old collection of Christmas ornaments. The ornament is a longstanding tradition with Easterseals, an organization that provides services for education, outreach and advocacy for individuals with disabilities.

The ornament carries the official Albany-Dougherty County Chamber of Commerce endorsement, Dorough said in a proclamation. He urged “all citizens young and old” to support this project and be receptive to the Easterseals program.

“It’s great to see the support the Albany community has given us for so long and especially during this time of the year,” Easterseals President and CEO John McCain said.

The organization has five affiliates across the state and 72 across the country. The affiliates began selling ornaments to reflect the communities they serve 31 years ago, he said.

“It’s always been Easterseals serves the community, and the community supports Easterseals,” McCain said. “So the idea was how do we show that we’re a part of the community?”

Officials with Easterseals try to find places and organizations that have a strong connection with Albany residents — both current and former.

One of the greatest selling ornaments to date was the one with Albany High School, McCain said. Another was engraved with Jimmie’s Hot Dogs, a mainstay in the community since 1947.

This year’s ornament depicts the Wetherbee Planetarium. The planetarium is a part of the Thronateeska Heritage Center, which is also home to the Georgia Museum of Surveying and Mapping, local history and science museums, a historic railway exhibit and the South Georgia Archives. The center was created by the Thronateeska Heritage Foundation, which resulted from the merger of the Southwest Georgia Historical Society and the Albany Junior Museum Inc. Its creation came about when concerned community members championed the revitalization of the historic downtown railroad depot area, where the center sits, in 1974.

Albany’s Railroad Depot Historic District was listed in the National Register in 1982.

The planetarium is in a new building constructed between the old Railway Express Agency and the Fryer-Merritt House in 2008, according to a news release that accompanied the unveiling. The building incorporates architectural features of the original 1926 Central Georgia Roundhouse.

“We try to choose places, where if you’re from Albany, you immediately point that out and say, ‘Yes, I remember that,’” McCain said.

Ornaments sell for $25. Five hundred ornaments are made each year and can be pre-purchased online at Easterseals.com/southerngeorgia, by phone at (229) 439-7066, extension 1214, or in-person at Easterseals’ Albany office at 1906 Palmyra road.

There are many ornaments from past years still available for $20 as well. All proceeds from ornament sales benefit those living with disabilities or special needs in the Albany area.

Most of Easterseal’s services are funded through Medicaid, McCain said, but there are many that have no funding whatsoever.

Megan’s House, an overnight residential home for children and adults with special needs, is the largest of these. Proceeds from the ornaments will primarily go to this service, he said.

Staff Photo: Lucille LanniganStaff Photo: Lucille Lannigan