Sylvia Faust sits on an Amphitheater bench gifted in memory of her late husband David Faust Wednesday on the porch of her home on Ames Avenue.
PATRICIA BEAGLE
Staff Writer
Sylvia Faust first heard about Chautauqua Institution from her mother, Frances Montini, who had worked as a cook in Chautauqua in 1930 and later graduated from the Chautauqua Literary and Scientific Circle. Sylvia’s husband, David, had visited as a child. In 1967, the Fausts were living in West Palm Beach, Florida, and David decided to introduce Sylvia to a lovely week in Chautauqua.
“We stayed on Miller in a terrible apartment that no longer exists,” she recalled. “Back then, the houses were not in good shape. The apartment was dirty, and there were mice running around!”
Undeterred, the Fausts returned the next summer. “We stayed at the Gleason for the next six years and kept increasing the number of weeks we stayed,” Faust explained. “After that, we bought a home here.”
The house they bought had been relocated from the east side of the Colonnade to its present location at 17 Ames. “I was told it was hauled up Ames in 1907 using railroad ties,” Sylvia said. “We bought the house in 1973. Next door was an Institution dormitory at 15 Ames. Boys used to jump off the second-floor balcony,” she recalled.
Faust said she met many interesting people while David served as chairman of Chautauqua Institution’s Board of Trustees from 1986 until his sudden death in 1988. David helped then-president Daniel Bratton and others to organize Chautauqua’s 1986 conference between U.S. and Soviet citizens. The Fausts attended the conference and related events in Riga, Latvia and Moscow, Russia. David also worked on planning a 1988 conference to occur in Tbilisi, Soviet Georgia. He passed away before it took place, and Sylvia attended with her daughter, Susan.
After David’s untimely death, colleagues at his law firm wanted to memorialize him. Sylvia asked that donations in his memory benefit Chautauqua Institution, and they established the H. David Faust Leadership Fund.
Debbie Moore, executive director of Chautauqua Foundation, expressed her appreciation. “Sylvia has been such a wonderful partner with the Foundation, serving on the Planned Giving Committee for several years. She is a tremendous advocate in the community about the importance of endowment through planned giving. The H. David Faust Leadership Fund has been a beautiful memorial to her husband, providing broad flexibility in its support of programs.”
Faust wanted the endowment to be unrestricted, allowing the Institution to determine how best to use the fund. It sponsored many performances and lectures. She especially enjoys 10:45 a.m. events in the traditional lecture format. The symphony is another favorite of hers.
Family members have attended many events supported by the fund. Son John, his wife Meg and their children Sarah and Anna, as well as daughter Susan Alexander, her husband Jack and their children Kate, Will and Lilly, are all Chautauquans.
In addition to arranging the fund in David’s name, Faust has supported the Institution with annual gifts and arranged planned giving to Chautauqua through her own charitable remainder trust.
“Chautauqua has meant a lot to our family,” she explained. “We’ve made wonderful friends all the years that we’ve been here. My kids and grandchildren all went to Club. I like that children can go on their own. When our children were young, they had to be home at noon, 6 o’clock and when the streetlights came on. Those were our rules. It was great for them growing up here.” She added, “Susan, Jack, John, Lilly, Kate and Will all worked at various Institution jobs. Susan and John both had their weddings in the Hall of Philosophy, and David’s funeral was there.”
Despite a busy family life, Faust has devoted an incredible amount of time and talent to serving community organizations. A highly organized person, she holds a Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education from Muskingum College and a Master of Education in special education from the University of Florida. In addition to teaching children with disabilities, she worked seasonally as a tax preparer for 39 years. She has led Road Scholar spring and fall programs in Chautauqua for 17 years and currently serves as the head leader for those events.
While holding leadership roles in multiple organizations, Faust also rolls up her sleeves for fundraising and other projects. She has been a member of the Chautauqua Volunteer Fire Department Auxiliary for more than 20 years. Twice, she served as the organization’s treasurer. She regularly works at the Memorial Day bake sale, summer chicken barbecues, the annual Christmas bazaar and the annual food drive. Recently, she was elected to a five-year term as a fire commissioner.
Amy Snyder, president of the CVFD Auxiliary, expressed admiration for Faust. “Sylvia is one of our most reliable members. She is always ready to pitch in, does it with a smile and does it with grace. She is delightful in every way and is a lovely human being,” Snyder said.
Faust currently serves as chair of the Chautauqua Utility District. The CUD manages local water and wastewater systems, including water treatment systems and local utility infrastructure maintenance. CUD board member Jim Rovegno remarked, “As Chair of the CUD Board, a service truly critical to Chautauqua’s functioning, Sylvia brings the faithful vigilance essential to overseeing of this civic necessity.”
Faust is also a board member at the Presbyterian House, a role she has held several times. In years past, she spent many days helping to scour yard sales and second-hand stores to find respectable yet affordable furniture to decorate the house’s guest rooms with style.
Having organized and participated in community clean-ups of the Chautauqua Cemetery, Faust also serves as the president of the cemetery’s board.
Faust is a board member of Chautauqua County’s Habitat for Humanity. Her involvement with Habitat began 35 years ago while living in West Palm Beach. On her first build, she was given a choice between climbing on the roof or putting up wallboard. She kept her feet on the ground and hammered and taped wallboard.
She has traveled internationally on multi-week trips to build Habitat houses in villages in Papua New Guinea; townships of Durban, South Africa; Pokhara, Nepal; Budapest, Hungary and the outskirts of Amman, Jordan. Here in Chautauqua County, Faust paints, does clean-up and performs record-keeping of hours worked on houses. “We had 90 volunteers on the last house I worked on in Jamestown,” she said.
Outgoing local Habitat president Maureen Rovegno remarked, “Sylvia has been a dedicated volunteer for the Chautauqua Area Habitat for Humanity organization for over two decades, much of that time serving on our Board, where her wisdom and caring and her ‘can do’ spirit have been invaluable!”
Faust’s past volunteer work has included serving as president of the Junior League of the Palm Beaches and as a board member of a West Palm Beach bank branch. She served as a trustee for Chautauqua Institution from 1990 to 1998, a member of Chautauqua’s Architectural Review Board, a member of the Chautauqua Foundation’s Planned Giving Committee, a board member of the Chautauqua Women’s Club and member of its Endowment Committee and treasurer for the CLSC Class of 1990. That CLSC class selected the late David Faust, who had planned to graduate with his wife, as its honoree. Sylvia later went on to become a member of the Guild of Seven Seals.
Travel has taken Faust to 44 countries and 48 states. “Chautauqua is my favorite place,” she said. “You can go to lectures or sit on your porch all day.” Her porch includes an original yellow bench from the choir loft of the old Amphitheater, onto which her family has placed a plaque memorializing David. When sitting on her porch, though, the fireball octogenarian is more likely to be doing volunteer work than taking a nap. Nobody sets a finer example of how to share time, talent and treasure. If you want something done, just ask Sylvia Faust.
