City of Jacksonville Area Museum Board met Dec. 1.
Here are the minutes provided by the board:
The December board meeting was held at the Jacksonville Area Museum (Old Post Office) with a teleconferencing option available. The meeting was called to order at 5:15 p.m. by David Blanchette, Chairman. Those present included David Blanchette, Chad Boehlke, John Clancy, Diane Hollendonner, Rebecca Houston, Laura Marks, Jo Ann Nelson, and Allan Worrell. Absent were Patsy Erickson (Emeritus), Kyla Hurt, Nick Little, Greg Olson, James Pissell, Brittany Henry (Ex-Officio), and Judy Tighe (Ex-Officio). Also present was Consultant Steve Varble. Manager McKenna Servis was unable to attend but submitted a report.
The minutes of the November 3, 2022, board meeting were approved distributed.
Laura Marks distributed copies of the treasurer’s report. The checking account balance was $36,577.62 at the end of November. Expenses included monthly bills (George Alarm, I3Broadband, and garbage pickup), $5000 to museum & marketing consultant Steve Varble, $412.00 to Gaylord for preservation supplies, and $143.00 to Faith Printing for invitations and business cards. Income included the $6000.00 yearly payment from the MAC Foundation and $1147.00 in donations, memberships, and memorials.
Laura also had compiled a summary of visitor and donation totals by month and day of the week in the past year, showing 1878 visitors since opening in September 2021. A new round of prospective member letters has been mailed out. Laura reported a $1000 donation from the Jacksonville Sports Hall of Fame, which recently disbanded. She has also set up a membership list on “Constant Contact” to send out event reminders and other notifications for those who have provided email addresses.
COMMITTEE REPORTS:
Administrative: After brief discussion of the 2023 draft budget, it was voted to accept it as presented.
Chairman Blanchette read the proposed slate of officers for 2023: President, Allan Worrell; Vice President, James Pisell; Treasurer, Laura Marks; and Secretary, Diane Hollendonner. Upon hearing no further nominations, it was voted to close the nominations and elect the officers for a term of one year.
It was voted to close the museum January 2 – 8 for artifact cataloging and maintenance. The press release for the LEGO event will be amended and local media notified. Board members were encouraged to volunteer to help McKenna with tasks during the week.
In her report, manager McKenna Servis noted that nine entries have come in for the LEGO exhibit already. Tasks for the January work week include moving and organizing items from the safe room to shelves in the basement, referencing items in the textile boxes in the safe room, and refreshing the ‘WHO ARE WE?” photo. The $1500 Gaylord order should be arriving soon.
Dave Blanchette, JoAnn Nelson, and Allan Worrell will conduct McKenna’s yearly evaluation, followed by an evaluation by the MAC Foundation the following week. Dave sent out a job description for the manager position to the board.
The museum sign out front still hasn’t been installed; Ace Sign in Springfield has not responded to messages. Steve Varble displayed the new bright orange banner ($180) that had just arrived and plans to hang it above the front entrance.
Blanchette emailed a summary of items discussed at the November 13 strategic planning workshop at the Ayers Mansion. He thanked Nick Little for decorating the museum for Christmas. In preparation for the new year, he and Allan Worrell plan to discuss committee assignments and may add new committees; Laura Marks suggested a design committee to work with Steve Varble on plans for the Phase 2 area.
Exhibits: The LEGO exhibit had been discussed informally over the past few months and came together quickly after the recent Capps event. It was voted to authorize spending up to $500 for exhibit development, prizes, and promotion for the LEGO exhibit. Prizes will be three $100 gift cards, with additional participation awards. Steve Varble reported that the committee has been working on the Post Office exhibit to launch in the spring. He emphasized the importance of keeping exhibits fresh and changing to encourage visitors to return again and again.
Steve Varble, Greg Olson, and Ginny Fanning (Morgan County Board commissioner) have discussed ideas for the Morgan County bicentennial and will have a better idea of funding after the Morgan County Board sets the budget for 2023. Ideas include travelling posterboard displays and guest speakers during the year.
The Grierson Society is holding a reorganization meeting with Scotty DeWolf and Chuck Murphy on the planning committee. That will offer another opportunity to work with an area tourist attraction. The museum should also consider adding more Civil War items and stories to the collection. The county has a Lincoln letter and Dave will ask the commissioners about a possible display featuring it.
Fundraising: No updates on grants, still waiting to hear from Jacksonville Children’s Foundation and State Farm. The JAM Foundation Board has drafted a fundraising letter for Phase 2 that will be mailed sometime in December.
Collections: Donated items included Betty Query Smith’s Girl Scout uniform from the 1930s with a photo of her wearing it. It was voted to accept the above items into the collection. Steve Varble asked if the museum had an official loan document for exhibits such as the LEGO exhibit; there is a rough draft that needs to be finalized.
Promotion: Steve Varble reported that podcasts continue to be produced with a new one added every month and are receiving good comments. The Carnation/Tom Schierl podcast is still ranked #1 in listeners with 65, followed by Mark McDonald (47), the first Capps entry (47), and Judge David Bone (42). Blanchette is working on stories with Ed Wright and Dr. Dailey, with ideas for others. Additional ideas are needed for Facebook and website posts.
OLD BUSINESS: Laura Marks received a thank you note from Sid Welles with an offer to provide a car for future parades if needed.
NEW BUSINESS: Laura Marks would like to explore the idea of hosting events that would feature papers written by some of the members of local literary societies. It was noted that we need to make more room in the west hall for public events by moving some of the exhibit items out of the way to accommodate large crowds. JoAnn Nelson mentioned that an email should be sent out for board members to sign up to work during the week in January when the museum is closed.
PUBLIC COMMENTS: Dave Blanchette commented that he was honored to have served as chairman over the past years to finally get the museum open to the public.
The next meeting will be held on Thursday, January 5, 5:15 p.m., at the Jacksonville Area Museum, 301 E. State Street. Social distancing rules will be observed and call-in option is available upon request.
With no further business or announcements to discuss, the meeting adjourned at 6:25 p.m.
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