HEARD MUSEUM GUILD MEETING
Wednesday, February 19, 2014
The meeting was called to order by President Rod Passmore at 10:00am. He thanked the Shop for providing the refreshments. He welcomed new members. He informed the membership that David Mowry had been in a serious accident and that Jerry Bryan is continuing his treatment. We wish them both well.
INTRODUCTION OF SPEAKER: David Rothberg
David Rothberg introduced our speaker, Stephen Lekson, Curator of Anthropology at the University of Colorado and the Museum of Natural History in Boulder, Colorado. He gave a wonderful talk on the topics of Hohokam, Ancestral Pueblo and Mimbres cultures. He also answered questions from the audience.
About 200 members were in attendance including Circles members, staff and general public. Afterwards an additional Q and A session was held in Encanto with Stephen Lekson and about 60 people attended.
In a change of order, we had the speaker portion of our Guild meeting first and the Business portion after a short break.
APPROVAL OF MINUTES
Diane Leonte moved that the minutes from the January 15th meeting of the Guild be accepted. The motion was seconded by Millie Wesley and approved by a majority.
TREASURERS REPORT
Jack Brock, Treasurer, reports a total of $254,414 in our accounts. There is $10,544 in the restricted Special Events, $14,257 in Student Workshop, and $44,695 in Scholarships and Grants. The Endowment account has a balance of $238,805 as of September 30, 2014. The Treasurer’s Report is available online and posted in the Guild Room.
INSTITUTIONAL STRATEGIC PLANNING
Dave Newark , Chairman of Strategic Planning, reviewed the Guilds part in a three year plan being undertaken by the Heard Museum and Director James Pepper Henry as of November 2013. It will be designed to change institutional perspective and support development of staff and other critical resources. The plan will be comprehensive and flexible. An independent consultant, Bob Berendt, has been hired to assist with this.
The Guild has been included in this plan. Committee members are Rod Passmore, Susan Kolman, Jack Brock, Linda Muzzy Stu Passon and Dave Newark as well as James Pepper Henry and Bob Berendt. Several meetings have been held in December, January and February. Meetings are on hold until after the Fair. A survey/questionnaire will be sent electronically on 2/20 to the membership of the Guild. Answers may be submitted online following the instructions. Paper copies are available from Dave today. Please have them returned by 2/28. This survey/questionnaire will help to decide the direction of the Museum and ideas for improvements in all areas of the Museum experience. They will be used to help consolidate the findings during March. In April a working draft will be put together. In May and June the plan will be presented to the Board of Trustees.
DIRECTOR’S REPORT:
James Pepper Henry continued with the discussion of the Strategic Plan saying that we need to working on obvious things such as increased attendance and increased membership and obtaining revenue from other sources. The Heard has experienced a decline in attendance over the last decade. There has also been a 50% retention rate for members. He would like us to work on ways to improve visitor experience. He said that the Guild is an important part of the Heard with 457 members. He and the committee are very interested in hearing input and suggestions from the Guild on all of these areas.
Members are all encouraged to contribute their ideas and suggestions using the survey sent out by Dave Newark.
Along these same lines, JPH spoke of the upcoming plans for the Lego exhibit opening on May 24th and running through September 28th. It is designed to bring in younger and local visitors during the summer months. It is coming to us from the Longmont Museum in Longmont, Colorado where it broke attendance records. It will be combined with summer camp programs. Caesar Chavez of the Heard design staff presented some of the ideas for the exhibit which will be located in the Lincoln Gallery and will have a transportation section as well as Super Heroes and action comic characters. The name Lego will not be used but the phrase “Build Toy Brick Art” will be used and a display of large blocks will be used near the signage on Central Avenue. As a part of the show, children will build things and have a chance to make rugs, masks, and baskets with input from local Native American artists on design ideas.
There will be an additional $5 charge to the Lego Exhibit plus regular admission. It is hoped that families will see the advantage of purchasing a membership so that they are able to come several times. Social media will be included and there will be a chance for a photo to be taken. Members are encouraged to see the new Lego movie, as it is very interesting and coincides very well with our new show.
ANNOUNCEMENTS
- Sara Lieberman, Spring Luncheon Chairman, announced that the luncheon will be held on Wednesday, May 7th at Scottsdale Conference Center. She invites everyone to get their tickets and to remember to donate items for the Silent Auction. The Information Desk volunteers will be honored at that time.
- Sally Nuerenberg of IF+M Hospitality said AM and PM snacks are still needed, especially healthy snacks like veggies, lemons and pickles.
- Dorothy Sullivan of the Speakers Bureau requested volunteers who would be interested in presenting the Heard programs at schools and before small groups. Volunteers must be experienced guides. Contact Dorothy if you are interested in being a part of this worthwhile program.
- Shelley Mowry gave an overview of Heard trips including the Copper Canyon trip in two weeks, the Canyon de Chelly and Hubbell Trading Post from May 1-4, the Tucson trip from Oct 6-9 and the trip from Nov 10-16 to Santa Fe. Lots more details are available online and in Artifacts.
- Lucille Shanahan who is in charge of Service Hours reminded all that the service year ends on March 31, 2014. At this time 35,500 have been logged in with six weeks to go. The program will be down from April 1-7 for Lucille to complete this job.
- Sue Snyder of Student Art encouraged people to sign up for this year’s events if they have not already done so. Co-chairs were available at the tables in the back. Student Art will start receiving items on March 27th with Opening Night on Friday, April 4th. The Opening will coincide with the Openings of the Houser Show and Ledger Art. The show will again be in Monte Vista and the Silent Auction will be in Lincoln.
- Indian Fair and Market Chair, Pat Kilburn talked about the exciting new events at the Fair and reminded us that admissions are the drivers of all revenues. So, encourage all your friends to attend.
Meeting adjourned at 11:55.
Respectfully submitted,
Sue Snyder