West Chester Public Library is pleased to announce that Dr. Timothy Vance Blair, court-appointed administrator of the J.M. Blair Family Trust, has set up a generous annuity in perpetuity to benefit the Library. This perpetual gift fulfills Dr. Blair’s pledge to the Library’s capital campaign, The Next 150, and will continue after the campaign concludes. Dr. Blair states that he has made this gift “to benefit in perpetuity the West Chester community, in particular the young readers, and to honor his friends on the Library Board.”
Lance Nelson, President of the Library Board, remarked “West Chester Public Library values and appreciates all of our patrons and donors. Dr. Blair has been a champion of numerous Chester County charities including the library for many decades. The library is honored that he chose it to be a beneficiary of his family’s trust.”
Dr. Blair, Dean and Professor Emeritus, served for 30 years in higher education, 27 years at West Chester University. While there, he served as dean of the School of Music, then as founding dean of the College of Visual & Performing Arts, and finally, as founding dean of the College of Arts and Humanities. A Steinway Artist, Dr. Blair is Board President of the Kennett Symphony and serves on the board of Philadelphia’s Grammy-award-winning Crossing Choir, chosen by Musical America as the 2023 ensemble of the year. He is also an educational partner and professor for Steinway Asia Pacific, headquartered in Shanghai, and recently served as the American judge for Steinway Asia Pacific’s Southeast Asia International Youth Piano Competition. He was inducted into the Steinway Teacher Hall of Fame by Steinway/New York. In addition, he serves as Board President of the Alexander & Buono Foundation of New York. Dr. Blair is married to Sally Marie Coveleskie, former music industry executive and children's author.
The J.M. Blair Trust was founded by John McConnell Blair of Blairs Mills, PA, a successful 19th century entrepreneur who engaged in numerous enterprises in his hometown in the Tuscarora Valley. A storekeeper, surveyor, postmaster, developer, railway president, and banker, he established the trust from Tuscarora Bank stock. Dr. Blair, J.M. Blair’s closest living descendant, brought the trust to the Chester County Community Foundation in celebration of its 100-year anniversary in 2019.Through The Next 150, the WCPL Board of Directors seeks to improve the Library’s environment and offerings for patrons of all ages in three ways: To reconfigure the interior spaces in the 1888 Queen Anne building to meet contemporary needs; to retire the remaining building mortgage to free up resources for books, music, movies, digital materials, STEM and craft kits, and programs of all kinds for children and adults; and to create a stewardship fund to ensure qualified staff receives competitive wages, respond to unforeseen needs, and have the resources to remain relevant to the community in the future.