The QQA, has finalized plans for their second hands-on restoration workshop to be held in Little Rock, June 12-16, 2023.  This “Great Unveiling” workshop will take place at the Ernest Green House and the participants will remove non-original siding, make wood repairs and paint the exterior siding and trim.  Nationally recognized instructor, Bob Yapp, will provide hands on instruction to a group of up to 18 craftspeople. The workshop will take place at the National Register listed Ernest Green House in the historic Dunbar neighborhood.  Ernest Green was one of the Little Rock Nine and the first African American graduate of Little Rock Central High School.  By the end of the weeklong workshop the participants will have removed all of the artificial aluminum siding and restored as much of the original wood siding as possible.

This workshop will not only restore this significant property, it will also train students in best preservation practices with respect to historic wooden siding.  We are recruiting students from throughout Arkansas, to include cities, towns and rural communities and candidates affiliated with public and private preservation organizations as well as contractors interested in the appropriate treatment of historic fabric. 

We will provide lunch each day at the construction site.  There is a $500 registration fee. However, the QQA does not want the registration fee to limit participation and therefore, scholarships are available to assist with expenses due to the generosity of our program sponsors: The National Trust for Historic Preservation, Preserve Arkansas, and the QQA.    

We are looking for a diverse group to train.  Ideally we will have a mix of men and women, as well as geographic and cultural diversity.  Each attendee must commit to participating every day. We will accept applications through a letter of interest.  In the letter of interest please include the following:  candidate information, age, gender, ethnicity, hometown, level of experience with rehabilitation of historic properties, interest in historic rehabilitation, affiliation with sponsoring organization, and ability to cover registration fee.

Please submit the letter of interest by Thursday, June 1, 2023 to [email protected].  All of the applications will be reviewed by the program’s steering committee and participants will be notified of their acceptance by Friday, June 2, 2023.  

Additional sponsor opportunities are still available.  Please reach out to QQA Executive Director, Patricia Blick, if you are interested in supporting this important work.  [email protected] or 501-371-0075 ext. 4.

Last year, the QQA coordinated a Window Restoration/Weatherization Boot Camp at the Ernest Green House and about half of the original windows were restored.  Here is a link to the article in the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette about last year’s boot camp:  14 artisans apply window-saving skills at boyhood home of Little Rock Nine’s Ernest Green (arkansasonline.com)

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Founded in 1968, the QQA’s mission is preservation of greater Little Rock’s historic places.