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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2023-09-20 Minutes Cape Fear Museum Advisory Board Meeting Minutes Wednesday, September 20, 2023 4 pm, Williston Auditorium & Teams 2023-24 Board Board Members Present:Susan Barbee,Stephen Fortlouis, Lucy Holman, Ben Ivey, Kevin Maurer,Stewart Moon, Eileen O’Malley Rick Andrews 2015-16 Board Susan Barbee Gwen Brown OthersPresent:Dane Scalise, Tim Pinnick, Aaron St. Juste, Becker Seifert David Ball Dana Crater Stuart Borrett Stephen Fortlouis Gwen Brown Absent: Rick Andrews, Gwen Brown, Dana Crater, Jhaniqua Palmer Melissa Collins Lucy Holman Will Oden, III Ben Ivey Dan Owen Staff Present: Kate Baillon, Barbi Baker, Kitty Yerkes, Heather Yenco Kevin Maurer Tim Potter Stewart Moon Nancy Pritchett Eileen O’Malley The Cape Fear Museum Advisory Board held its monthly meeting on Wednesday, Bill Terrell Jhaniqua Palmer September 20, 2023, in the Williston Auditorium and via Teams. The meeting was Allen Trask, III called to order by Eileen O’Malley at 4:04 pm. Dane Scalise Rob Zapple NHC Commissioner Consideration of Absences: Eileen O’Malley NHC Commissioner Andrews, Brown, Crater & Palmer were unable to attend. Ex-officio: Katie Gloe Ex-officio: Approval of Minutes: Eileen O’Malley CFMA, Inc. Mike Hudson A motion to accept the July 19,2023, minutes was made by Moon, seconded CFMA, Inc. Jessica Loeper by Fortlouis, and approved without opposition. Assistant County Manager Associates Report:Kitty Yerkes The annual STEM event will take place on February 8, 2024, from 5 to 8 pm. Kate Baillon Interim Museum We are currently working on the sponsorship brochure. Director nCino has expressed interest and will likely be the presenting sponsor again. Yerkes introduced Becker Seifert. He works at UNCW and is volunteering in Barbi Baker the development office. Marketing & PR Specialist Other Introductions: Kate Baillon Baillon introduced Aaron St. Juste. She also shared exciting news that Palmer has accepted a promotion to the YWCA national office. She will remain on the board and is working remotely from Wilmington. Collections Report: Kevin Mauer Maurer reviewed new acquisitions to the collection that include handbags, quilts, a bicycle, a desk used in the Atlantic Coast Line railroad offices, personal archives and family memorabilia from a local family, a New Hanover High School yearbook and more. A report was shared with all board members that detailed the new items with pictures and descriptions. Ivey asked a question about yearbooks. Baker noted that many of the yearbooks are now digitized and may be accessed from the Museum’s website: https://www.nhcgov.com/1314/Digital-Yearbooks Ivey made note of a 1942 New Hanover High School class ring that he is researching as part of his role in the alumni association. He will share updates with the Museum as they are available. Project Grace Update: Kate Baillon Baillon mentioned that commissioners and several county staff including herself went to Raleigh last Tuesday, September 12 to show support for Project Grace at the LGC meeting. The project is expected to be calendared for a vote at the next LGC meeting on Tuesday, October 3 in Boone. Baillon mentioned sharing email addresses of the LGC members if there are any board members that would like to send a message of support. Please dale@nctreasurer.com; beth_wood@ncauditor.net; find the list here: jbaughman@sosnc.gov; mdphilbeck@carolina.rr.com; vcharvey@novanthealth.org; johnburnsnc@gmail.com; nancyjhoffmann@gmail.com; earn_this@ec.rr.com; ronald.penny@ncdor.gov. Scalise commented that he is feeling confident that the project will be approved by a majority vote. Commissioners and county staff will travel to Boone on October 3for the next LGC meeting. Evaluation Update: Barbi Baker Baker noted that the Museum is working with an evaluation consultant to test and prototype ideas for the new Cape Fear Museum. Testing is taking place over three weekends in September and invitations have been sent to the community to sign up for various time slots. We are testing with adults and families with children of various ages. A couple of examples include solar energy for our Science Matters gallery and sand exploration for our Curious Nature exhibit. We are also testing an Explore the Evidence touch table that allows visitors to delve deeper into the history of documents, photos and newspapers. Once the evaluation process is complete, notes will be incorporated into the ongoing design. Stewards of Children Training: Kate Baillon Several Museum staff completed a training through the Carousel Center to help recognize the signs of child sexual abuse and how to prevent it. The Carousel Center is encouraging the community to be a part of the solution to help end child abuse. Workshops and online trainings are available and more information may be https://carouselcenter.org/preventchildabuse/stewards-of- found here: children/ Registrar Position: Heather Yenco Yenco noted that the Museum needsadditional full-time staff and a Registrar position was recently approved by the county. This is an internal opening and two part-time candidates have applied. Interviews will take place later this week. Ivey asked a question regarding what a Registrar does at the Museum. Yenco noted the Registrar is responsible for paperwork and storage. They make sure everything is catalogued and securely stored. This position will give the Museumthree full-time people in collections and fill a needed gap in our operations. Upcoming Events: Barbi Baker Baker noted that the Take A Child Outside event scheduled for Saturday, September 23 has been postponed due to the threat of inclement weather. Baker also mentioned an upcoming Firefighter Panel Discussion on Sunday, October 1 at 2:30 pm and encouraged board members to attend. Other October events were also shared. Old Business: Eileen O’Malley No old business was noted. A motion was made by Barbee, seconded by Moon to adjourn the meeting. With unanimous consent, the meeting ended at 4:38 pm. The next board meeting will be held on Wednesday, November 15, 2023,at 4 pm in the Williston Auditorium and via Teams.