By David F. Rooney
The Revelstoke Museum & Archives experienced some tremendous successes in 2015, President Jan Morehouse and Curator Cathy English reported at the institution’s Annual General Meeting on Tuesday, January 12.
Its activities for children, such as the Heritage and Pre-Teen Explorers and Christmas Traditions programs, were heavily attended, as were its events and projects for adults. The high point of the year was the successful completion and inauguration of the Land of Thundering Snow exhibition, a multi-media show that included a comprehensive web-based exhibit for the Virtual Museum of Canada. This ambitious and fascinating project was completed with a $221,532.37 federal grant from Museums Canada. Its success clearly demonstrated that the Revelstoke Museum & Archives is not your typical small-town community museum.
This past year also saw the completion of the first volume of the Brown Bag History — Revelstoke Origins. 400 copies have already been sold and Cathy said she is already at work on the second volume. Ten volumes are anticipated over the coming years.
The museum continues to be popular with both visitors and locals. 11,993 people visited the museum down slightly from 2014.
Financially, the museum is in good shape, although revenues and net income were down slightly from 2014. It had revenues of $206,593.81 ($241,398.87 in 2014) and expenses of $189,236 ($218,947.74), leaving it with a net income of $17,357 ($22,451.52).
Its budget for this year is set at $309,805.
Jan capped the meeting by thanking all of the volunteers, especially Laura Rooney who was treasurer for the last five years and who has recently moved to Kamloops. She also noted that “Cathy achieved the distinction of being voted the most respected woman in Revelstoke” and wished office manager Daria Cater success in her new job at Revelstoke Mountain Resort. Harumi Sakiyama is the new office manager.
Lastly, she thanked the City for its ongoing support and Councillor Linda Nixon for her efforts as the Council liaison to the Museum & Archives.
