CAPE BLANCO HERITAGE SOCIETY

Photo: CBHS Archives

The mission of Cape Blanco Heritage Society is to provide interpretative and educational services for the Cape Blanco Light Station, Historic Hughes House and Ranch and the Port Orford Lifeboat Station. Preserving the heritage, culture and living history of the area is our goal; a history that reveals itself with new stories every day. We're dedicated to working with our collaborative partners at each of our three sites to tell a more inclusive and accurate history.

Our board members are elected annually in November. A board membership lasts for a period of three years.

CBHS Board - Current Members

PRISCILLA LANG, President — Priscilla is a long-time resident of Port Orford and businesswoman having owned and operated her own popular antiques store, Dad's Antiques Coins and Collectibles, in town for decades. She organizes the annual ESA Christmas Bazaar, is a member of the Port Orford Rotary, and chairs our Accessions committee. She is a retired employee from the 2CJ District and a much-loved member of the Port Orford Community.

REBECCA MALAMUD-EVANS, ED/VP — Rebecca is the Executive Director and Vice President of CBHS and also curates the Port Orford Historical Photos site with the local community. She has been working on web and Internet projects for over 30 years and was a founding team member of Internet Archive’s Open Library Project. She and her peeps create at Point.B, a gallery and art studio in the heart of Old Town Port Orford.

BARBARA KNAPP, Secretary — Barbara brings a wealth of experience as an educator and valued volunteer with the Sixes River Fire Department. She has lived in the area all her life and graduated from Pacific High School. She went on to study at Western Oregon University and is a member of Langlois Community Church. She is an avid gardener and enjoys leading children's games and activities during the summer at the church, Camp Fircroft, and in P.E. classes at Driftwood School.

SUSAN WHISMAN, Treasurer — Susan is the Treasurer of CBHS. Before moving to Port Orford, she was a broker with Merrill Lynch in Boston and Hartford, CT, for 17 years. She is an active volunteer at the Hughes House since 2011. She lives in Port Orford with her husband, Harry, who is a retired commercial fisherman now enjoying driving local kids to school for the 2CJ District.

MAYBELLE GROFF, Director — Maybelle attended college in Iowa and studied medical technology in Chicago with dreams of pursuing a career in medicine on the mission field. With her medical technology degree, she went to a tiny clinic in the hills of Puerto Rico and then to Castaner Hospital where she met her husband, Wayne. They retired to Port Orford where they listen to the rhythms of the sea and feel very blessed to be here.

ALAN JOHNSON, Director — Alan’s been with the group since 2019, when he and his wife, Tammy, had the good fortune to move to a home across the street from our immediate past president. He’s a recent transplant from Dayton Ohio and newly retired from a 36-year career in the US Air Force. He got his Oregon coast addiction from his mother who was from Portland/Lincoln City.

LORIN KESSLER, Director — Lorin moved to Port Orford in 2018 and is an active member of the Port Orford community. He has served on City Council, is a member of the Port Orford Rotary, delivers food to those in need with Meals for Neighbors, and is a substitute teacher in the 2CJ School District building on his past teaching career.

SCOTT McKENZIE, Director - Scott McKenzie is a descendant of Robert and Georgina McKenzie who were among the first settlers in the Port Orford area. The couple founded Seaview Dairy in 1874 which he continues to own and operate as a cattle and sheep farm. In the 1960s, Scott's family began growing cranberries and in 1996 they founded McKenzie Seaview Cranberry Farm. His family business is known internationally for the quality of their products.

DEB MYSIEWICZ, Director - Formerly a publisher in the bioscience field, Deb looks forward to further historical research uncovering fascinating facts and stories that highlight the cultural treasures of the Cape Blanco/Port Orford area and the beauty of Oregon in general. Projects for 2024 include an ongoing series on shipwrecks, rescues and coastal life. In addition, she will be publishing poetry in shared projects with local poets.

JIM PROUTY, Director — Jim joins us from Oroville, CA where he and his wife Jill were actively involved with the Butte County Historical Society. Jim is an Army Veteran and worked for thirty years in a corporate environment as a CPA/CFO. The Proutys are a great addition to CBHS providing unique insight and experience to our operations.

STEVE ROEMEN, Emeritus — Steve served as President of CBHS for many years. He has been involved with the original Point Orford Heritage Society since 2003 before it merged in 2011 with Friends of Cape Blanco to become CBHS, and has seen it through many changes. He has extensive experience in engineering and he and his wife, Elaine, are actively involved in the Port Orford community.