Oliver House event reflects Paris to a tea
Raschel Guy, who dressed in a French-themed outfit and hosts her own tea parties, attends the tea with her husband Richard. Photo by Tanvi Kulkarni
Emma Sham, 12, works on her painting. Photo by Sandy Quadros Bowles 
Leilani Dalpe, chair of the Middleboro Tourism Committee, with her husband Glenn Montapert, who is dressed fittingly in French attire. Photo by Tanvi Kulkarni
Leilani Dalpe leads the class in painting a depiction of the Eiffel Tower. Photo by Sandy Quadros Bowles 
The event was Alyssa Bellardino’s first time at the Oliver Estate. “This place is absolutely amazing,” she said. Photo by Tanvi Kulkarni
Raschel Guy, who dressed in a French-themed outfit and hosts her own tea parties, attends the tea with her husband Richard. Photo by Tanvi Kulkarni
Emma Sham, 12, works on her painting. Photo by Sandy Quadros Bowles
Leilani Dalpe, chair of the Middleboro Tourism Committee, with her husband Glenn Montapert, who is dressed fittingly in French attire. Photo by Tanvi Kulkarni
Leilani Dalpe leads the class in painting a depiction of the Eiffel Tower. Photo by Sandy Quadros Bowles
The event was Alyssa Bellardino’s first time at the Oliver Estate. “This place is absolutely amazing,” she said. Photo by Tanvi Kulkarni
MIDDLEBORO -- One of the most important colonial houses in the state was the backdrop to a plein air painting class and a Parisian tea party this weekend.
The Middleboro Tourism Committee organized a Paris-themed tea event at the historic Oliver Estate on Aug. 30, which included an outdoor painting class of the Eiffel Tower inspired by Impressionism, a period of art history.
Marie Blotner and Bridget McDonald, who have a seasonal tea tradition, attended the event together for a twist on their typical outings.
“The painting was just an exciting addition to having a Parisian tea,” McDonald said. “We’ve not gone to tea in Paris before.”
Richard and Raschel Guy attended the event as a couple’s date, with Raschel dressed in a Paris-inspired head-to-toe outfit.
“The spread is amazing. Decorations, the historical aspect of it, walking through the gardens — it was stunning, and the artwork was a great experience,” Raschel said.
However, the estate is impressive for more than its appearance. According to Leilani Dalpe, the tourism committee’s chair, everything in the house is original and integral to the history of our nation.
“It’s so important to our American Revolution, this house,” Dalpe said. “Sons of Liberty seized it and sold it, and it paid for the beginning of the American Revolution. Benjamin Franklin stayed here. John Adams and Abigail Adams stayed here all the time.”
Dalpe said the events hosted by the committee attract nearby residents, who then ask questions and learn more about the history of the house and revolution. The Oliver family sold the house to the town in 2013 at a significant loss, she said, so it could be open to the public for events like these.
“Once history’s gone, it’s gone,” Dalpe said. “So if you don’t keep talking about it and keep having it open to the public with all kinds of events that bring in all kinds of people and tell them about it, it’s going to disappear.”
One of the attendants, Colleen Evers, said she loved that the Oliver Estate was being used.
“I also live in a 300-year-old house, so this is really a fabulous way to keep it in repair, keep people coming to see and to learn about the history of Middleboro…I think it’s really important to remember that this country’s founding was a struggle, and keeping that history alive is just so important,” Evers said.
