HomeMy WebLinkAbout04-17-2013Approved 511512013
White River Valley Historical Society, Board Meeting
April 17, 2013, 1:30 to 3 p.m.
Muckleshoot Room, White River Valley Museum
I. President Megan Evans called the meeting to order at 1:35. Minutes were approved as sent.
She also conducted an icebreaker of the month asking about people's geneologic origin.
Janet Wells and volunteer extraordinaire Hilda Meryhew presented on volunteers. Ms Meryhew has
volunteered at the Museum for well over a decade and has done almost everything. She was inspirational to the
board.
The question was posed the question: if one could open the museum any 20 hours per week, what would they
be? Board members pondered the question with no direct answer, but there was a consensus that adding a First
Thursday evening hours would be advantageous.
II. Committees
A. Finance Committee
Richard Artura reported for Jamie Bothell who was unable to attend. Richard reviewed the treasurer's report,
noting that we are about where expected for this time of year. The cash balances were reviewed and provided
to the board members on separate reports. Patricia Cosgrove reviewed the OPM report. She noted that the
state legislature has approved funds for the museum as part of that process. We expect to get $286,000 for the
Mary Olson Farm. We received two 4Culture grants one to support staffing needs at the Mary Olson Farm. the
other described by Rachael Burrum is for the development of an augmented reality ap for the Mary Olson Farm.
This allows for electronic viewing of pictures and data about the Mary Olson Farm. We received $10k for this
purpose from Four Culture. Patricia Cosgrove noted that the kickoff for the Endowment Campaign occurred with
the museum news letter which featured an article on the value of donating to an endowment.
B. Joan Mason and Hilary Pittenger reported on the Collections Management Committee.
They recommended the addition of two new family history files. Hilary showed us a photo of an Auburn farm
around 1925 that they are trying to identify. A motion was made and accepted to accept the items that were
presented by the Collections Committee.
C. Megan Evans reported for the Communications Committee. Staff has been reviewing our
various methods of external communication. The museum attendance is flat so we are looking for ways to
increase the visitors at the museum. We are contemplating hiring Jennifer Rice who is a consultant who will help
us identify the process of getting visitors at the museum.
III. Staff Report
Patricia Cosgrove presented a power point on the responsibilities of restoring an historic landmark such as the
barn at the Mary Olson Farm — presented so that board and staff members can become more aware of the
process, restrictions and outcomes. The farm is listed on the National Registry of Historical sites. All restoration
on the Farm must meet the Secretary of the Interior's standards, which were reviewed in a simplified way.
These standards restrict what type of changes are allowed. Repair is suggested over replacement when ever
possible. New construction must preserve the original appearance of the property, etc. Patricia presented a
process that we used to restore lights in the for the Mary Olson Farm barn. We ended up using an early
industrial style electric lamp style of lamp.
IV. Board Member Comments Around Table
President Evans adjourned the meeting at 2:55 pm.
Next Board Meeting: May 15, 2013, 1:30 to 3 p.m. Respectfully Submitted by: Ronnie Beyersdorf, Secretary