Atty. Arthur Weinshank, President
Debbie Kiederer
Julianne Bailey
Charles B. Barlow
John Harris
Art Kerber
Marie O’Neill
Tom Pilla
Mark Principi, Vice President
Paula Walsh
Roy Young
Timothy Riordan, Treasurer

Liba H. Furhman, Executive Director
Nancy Stuart Ploch, Assistant Cooking School Director
Kimberly Prange, Store and Membership Manager

Ruth & Skitch Henderson founded the Hunt Hill Farm Trust in 2004. As a couple, their collaborations have included such successes as the restaurants, Daly’s Dandelion and Daly’s Daffodil, and the New York Pops. Ruth & Skitch have been incredible supporters of the arts and the community for many, many years. Their tireless work for preservation has earned them recognition throughout Connecticut. 

Ruth Henderson grew up in Germany during the second World War. ‘As a little girl I lost everything. Now I want to make something last.’ Early on she had dreams of being a forester, and now she is certainly doing more than her part to preserve Connecticut’s natural beauty. A former model, Ruth met Skitch at NBC. Together they were a dynamic team. Ruth is an entrepreneur and has tremendous vision, which, teamed with her practicality, ‘moves mountains’. Skitch often said that without Ruth none of his dreams for an orchestra would have come to fruition. We, too, can say that without Ruth none of this would have happened.

Skitch Henderson, née Lyle Russell Cedric Henderson, was an exceptionally gifted individual. A talented pianist as early as age five, he made his name as an accompanist for MGM studios. Literally. It was there that he received the moniker ‘the Sketch Kid’, which was inevitably shortened to Skitch. After serving both England and the United States as a pilot during World War II, he returned to music, accompanying Frank Sinatra on recordings, on the radio and in the ballrooms of New York. When NBC decided to explore the world of television, Skitch became their Music Director, a position he held for 15 years (1952-1967). During that time he was the ‘band leader’ for both Steve Allen and Johnny Carson. While traveling across the country and around the world, serving as a guest conductor in many of the greatest orchestras, Skitch was also setting down roots here at Hunt Hill Farm. The farm was his home for almost 40 years, his ‘Valhalla’, and his impression can still be seen everywhere. From the DeHaviland propeller at home in the barnyard, the steam engine in the driveway, and the old buildings he loved so well to his collection of banks, his library of music, and his scarf still casually draped across his favorite chair … Skitch is here.