Museum's Community Involvement

I get excited about the SLV Museum being a community museum.  I can't help it.  I love it when visitors stop by, especially when it's on the spur of the moment.  Take today for example - a mother stopped by with her 6 year old son.  They have been driving by time and time again, her son asking to stop, and today was the day that they did!  I enjoyed walking around with the two of them, explaining the differences between our several clothes washing machines (even the hand operated one), letting the young boy grind some coffee beans, and going through some of the old logging photos we have laminated for visitors to view.  We stood in front of the 1902 framed photo of Boulder Creek and the young boy located his school, BC Elementary, on the hill top looking down on the town.  We looked at the turn-of-the-century grooming items and the hand-cranked phone, discussed how the church building would have been heated by a wood stove and I pointed at the patch in the roof where the wood stove stack went through the roof back then.  Lots of fun and a visit to remember. 

However, a community museum also goes out INTO the community.  One way is to participate in other community events.  I've been busy getting our booth ready for the annual Redwood Mountain Faire on June 1st & 2nd.  Volunteers are being scheduled, books are being ordered to stock our booth, and a pack list of literature, canopy/tables/chairs, and other materials is being compiled.  We will have San Lorenzo Valley history books as well as Santa Cruz County history and exploration books, and BC 1902 panoramic photos for sale.  Sign up to be on our Constant Contact list for future event announcements and take a newsletter to learn more about new exhibits, upcoming events, and what our mission is, but most important, just stop by and say Hi!!