Looking Back & Looking Forward
With 2019 just days away, it’s hard to believe how quickly 2018 went by, and how much has happened!
The Fashion Show, 2018
From the Member Potluck and St. Patrick’s Day dinner last January and March, through the June Tag Sale fundraiser, the Fashion Show, the Summer Archaeology Lab, the busy autumn with two sets of cemetery programs and Four Centuries in a Weekend, and tours all year long, to our recent Holiday Candlelight Evenings, it all just zoomed by!
A spooooky shot from the Lantern Lit Cemetery Tour, 2018
And now as we get ready to celebrate another new year, I have exciting news to share on several fronts.
As you may have heard, 2019 will be the 50th Anniversary of the museum association purchasing the historic 18th-century building and saving it from demolition! Of course we will be celebrating this milestone all year, and will keep you updated about special anniversary events.
One of our Ghosts of the Past, 2018
More good news: I am pleased to announce that the museum has been awarded a 2019 Incubation Grant from the New Jersey Council for the Humanities. This grant will enable us engage the knowledgeable folks from Museum Partners Consulting, to bring fresh perspective on our site and what it can tell us about the past. But we will want that plan to be informed by your perspectives too – so keep an eye out for surveys and other opportunities to tell us what you want from your museum in the coming years!
Meanwhile, our Collections Committee has started processing some of our backlog of archives, and we will soon have a number of fascinating historical records and photos digitally scanned, as a first step to making them available on-line. The committee is building on the work of our Archaeology Lab participants, who, over the past two summers, helped process a backlog of dig artifacts.
And yes, we’re still busy collecting memorabilia and stories about the building’s time as the Girl Scout House. You may have already viewed the preliminary display on the third floor, and we are planning a more-professional installation for later this year.
A full parlor for the Candlelight Evenings, featuring Linda Russell, 2018
2019 is indeed shaping up to be a busy year, and that’s not even counting all of the regular annual programs and events. The first of those will be the 2019 Member Dinner on January 19 (this is a members-only event, with limited space – please call to reserve if you haven’t already). The dinner event will be followed by a special new fundraiser on March 30th of this year, when MDTMA partners with a professional sommelier to present a 50th Anniversary Wine Pairing Fundraiser (tickets available soon).
And finally, if you haven’t yet made a donation to the museum, there is still time to get your 2018 tax-deductible gift in under the wire! You can donate securely online via Paypal!
As always, many thanks for your continued support.
Wishing you all the best for the new year,
Annette
