John T. Hickey Preservation Fund
The Friends’ Annual Preservation Fund - now the John T. Hickey Preservation Fund - was established in 1995 as a separate fund to support the ongoing extraordinary maintenance, repairs and restoration of Holyoke’s precious Merry-Go-Round including its horses, 1929 Artizan band organ and building. Our challenge is and has always been to maintain and operate the Merry-Go-Round at the same standard of reliability and safety, which is why donations to this fund are so critical. Donations received have been used to support our horse restoration program, address mechanical breakdowns, paint the building, preserve building signage, repair the antique organ, replace hundreds of colored lightbulbs and for other extraordinary repairs. While we have successfully restored 15 of our antique hand-carved horses since October 2003, due to generous donations received from individuals and grant funding, we continue to have inner and middle row horses that need to be restored to their original magnificence. The cost of restoration ranges from $3,000 to $3,500 per horse.

John Hickey is no longer with us, but we will always treasure his words about his vision for saving his “beautiful Merry-Go-Round” - “This noble undertaking will add enduring beauty to our city and create a background sound of old-time band organ music, mixed with children’s laughter, for generations to come”. Your gift will help us to keep John’s dream alive. .

Operating Fund
The Holyoke Merry-Go-Round Operating Fund was established to offset continually increasing energy, insurance and other expenses required to keep our Merry-Go-Round spinning. These expenses are more than our ticket, merchandise and party sales can support. Operating funds play a key role in helping us to keep the cost of a ride affordable at just $1, which it has been since opening in 1993.

We hope that you will consider a generous tax-deductible donation to help us continue to keep our beloved Merry-Go-Round spinning away for young and old alike. In addition, you may want to consider making a donation of $100 to recognize a special person, family or event with an inscription on our permanent Donor Board.

How to Make a Donation
If you would like to make a tax-deductible donation to either the Preservation Fund or to the Operating Fund, please make your check out to the Holyoke Merry-Go-Round, indicate the fund you wish to make your gift to and send it to the Holyoke Merry-Go-Round, 221 Appleton St., Holyoke Massachusetts 01040

Create a Memorial
For a donation of $125.00, you can honor a friend, relative, colleague or organization at the Holyoke Merry-Go-Round. An engraved plaque will be created with the name you choose and will be permanently affixed to our Donor Board. If you would like to memorialize someone in this way, e-mail us at friends@holyokemerrygoround.org or call us at 413-538-9398

If you would like more information about restoring one of our antique horses, please
e-mail us at friends@holyokemerrygoround.org, note “horse restoration” or call 413-538-9838.