Irving Heritage Society Celebrates Valentine’s Day

Irving—The Irving Heritage Society hosted a Virtual Valentine’s Day Tea on Sunday, February 13.

“The Irving Heritage House, home of C.P. and Virginia Schulze, was built in 1912,” Mary Higbie, a member of the Irving Historical Society, said. “They didn’t hold their housewarming until 1914, and it was with a Valentine theme.

“When the Irving Heritage Society formed in 1978, they held a Valentine Tea as a membership event to attract new members.Some same decorations as well as recipes from that 1914 tea were used.A Valentine Tea has been held each year since 1978.

“Usually at the Valentine Tea, the guests arrive and enjoy a very festive tea table filled with wonderful tea sandwiches and sweets.They enjoy browsing through the house, and then mid-afternoon, we sing “Let Me Call You Sweetheart” and the Sweetheart is announced. It is a very popular event and well attended. Some come in hats, many wear red attire, and occasionally someone will come in costume.”

“This is only our second virtual event,” Karen Martin, community chair for the Valentine’s Tea, said. “Typically it’s at the Heritage Society House and honors the Sweethearts.It’s always a surprise, live in front of a crowd.

“But we’re not going to get to do that [this year]. We are going to look down memory lane at the prior Sweethearts and honor them. We will announce this year’s Sweetheart.

“There’s a committee that annually decides who [the Sweethearts] are. It’s someone that has given over and above service to the Irving Heritage Society,” Martin said. “We’ve had Sweetheart since 1980.”

This year Carol Little, the president of the Irving Heritage Society, presented the Sweethearts, Rick and Melanie Stopfer.

“Melanie and I are just extremely fortunate to be able to work with each other, and everyone of you,” Mayor Stopfer said. “It’s really a privilege and an honor to do the things that we do within the community.

“The Heritage Society is so important to our community. We always want to remember where we came from to determine how we are going to go forward. On behalf of Melanie and I, thank you so much for this great honor.”

The Irving Silver Tones performed their rendition “Let Me Call You Sweetheart.”

“We will also have a silhouette artist, Sharice Williams,” Martin said. “She has done a cutout, a silhouette, and those are historical. She has done a silhouette of one of our Sweethearts.”