Welcome Incoming FS President Adam Manley

It is with great pride, and excite­ment that I step into the role of Furni­ture Society Board Pres­i­dent in this most unusual of summers. I am a rela­tively new board member but have seen in the past two years that this is an orga­ni­za­tion poised to take big steps forward. I have worked closely with Exec­u­tive Direc­tor, Monica Hampton, and outgo­ing pres­i­dent, Bart Niswonger, and truly appre­ci­ate all the work he has done at the helm over the last two years, as well as his will­ing­ness to continue to work with us as we wrap up some impor­tant projects. His exper­tise and level head have brought us through so much and we are stronger and more flex­i­ble as a result. I find great satis­fac­tion and cama­raderie in working with Exec­u­tive Direc­tor, Monica Hampton, and the rest of the board and member­ship, and can see that I am step­ping into this role with the most capable and talented of part­ners. Together with Monica, incom­ing vice pres­i­dent, Karen Ernst, and the board, I hope to adapt and grow in this moment of uncer­tainty and upheaval. Our orga­ni­za­tion and our member­ship are ready to do what is needed to be the change that we want to see in our field: to spear­head mean­ing­ful program­ming and become a guide­post for the role of member­ship orga­ni­za­tions in a chang­ing world. We are excited to expand beyond what we have known in the past — becom­ing more acces­si­ble, accept­ing, and inclu­sive. This means embrac­ing our long­stand­ing loyal members while opening our arms to new groups who will repre­sent our excit­ing future. We look forward to taking our skills in design, making, cura­tion, etc, to people who need them. 

I believe in the power of craft to restore and empower people. I am a teacher and a maker, and I see the two as intrin­si­cally inter­twined. The Furni­ture Society repre­sents a wonder­ful and growing galaxy of people and prac­tices, and we want to share those with the world. I am over­joyed to be step­ping into this new (and intim­i­dat­ing) role, because I believe that this orga­ni­za­tion and that galaxy have the poten­tial to make real change in people’s lives, both within and outside of our member­ship. I love this group of people, and I want to see it expand to repre­sent the world that we see around us. I know that we can do this, and I look forward to working with all of you.