Quarterly Members Update: March 2025
Dear Friends,
Starting this year, I’ll be writing quarterly insider updates on the Museum’s operations and strategic planning, so you can stay informed about what’s happening now and what’s on the horizon for us. I hope you will send along questions, thoughts or ideas you may have – your input and advice is always appreciated!
Winter 2025 Updates:
2025 Exhibitions Scheduled
We have been working behind the scenes these past few months to schedule a broad slate of exhibitions planned for 2025! They include:
- Kennebunk Collects! A Community Collectors’ Showcase, now open through May 25
- New Acquisitions, including infamous Dollhouses recently donated by Suzanne Stohlman, now open through April 20
- The American Revolution Experience, a traveling exhibition sponsored by the DAR and American Battlefield Trust, April 26 – May 9
- Rotary Century: 100 Years of Kennebunk Rotary, May 22 – July 27
- Ocean World: Perspectives of the Sea, June 7 – December 20
- The Art of Brick: Legos at the Museum, August 2 – November 9
Upcoming Programs & Events
The staff and volunteer team has been working away on educational programs and events for the year ahead. I’ve linked our fresh-off-the-press Events & Programs Guide here!
For Museum Members and Donors especially, we are planning quarterly Gatherings to go behind the scenes and up-close to artifacts and stories in the collections and archives, complete with appetizers and fun during a “night at the museum.” We’ll be in touch soon with upcoming dates!
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Committees Formed & Your Input Sought
As you know, the Brick Store Museum is able to do what it does because of generous donors, like you, and volunteers who give their time and expertise. This year, we’re working to become a Service Enterprise organization, which means we become even more professionalized in our way of working with volunteers to make big strides in our work as a museum. I thought I’d mention our committees here in case this might be of interest to you – I’d be happy to talk more with you about this, should you be interested in joining! Right now, we’re looking for help with:
- Finance Committee
- Facilities & Maintenance Committee (for upkeep of the Museum’s buildings!)
- Historic Preservation Awards Committee (this is a new committee – we’re looking to build a local Preservation Prize to recognize the work of local homeowners and businesses that seek to preserve the past, and can use advisory help to start this work)
- Events Committee – the Museum puts on a variety of events throughout the year and if you like planning, details, baking or cooking, or logistics, this is the committee for you! As we grow these events, we are in need of multiple perspectives and advice on how to carry out successful public programs.
- Board of Trustees – the Museum is always looking for people who are invested in the Museum’s success to join the Board of Trustees. If you have an interest in taking part, please let me know!
Outside of committees, we’re always looking for weekly or on-call volunteers to help with a variety of work at the Museum. If you’re interested in learning more about upcoming volunteer projects, please let me know.
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Campus Planning
Over the past year, the Brick Store Museum has been collaborating with CambridgeSeven, a renowned team of architects and museum planning strategists from Cambridge, MA, to creatively address challenges that the Museum faces. This partnership is helping us think through thoughtful solutions as we continue to grow and evolve.
Our Museum of five historic buildings came together in the 1950s, and has served the community in these same spaces over the course of eight decades. As you can imagine, this has led to spaces that were “Frankensteined” together, with these historic spaces shaped by the needs of the moment and the resources available. In 2023, we welcomed experts through the Conservation Assessment Program (CAP), funded by a grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services. Much like our accreditation review in 2022, the CAP assessors praised the work we do, the number of programs we offer, and the care we provide for our vast collection—all accomplished by a small but dedicated staff and volunteer team.
The number one priority identified by the CAP assessors was for the Museum to create a comprehensive Master Plan for our campus. This plan will help us better understand the best uses of the spaces we have and plan for what we’ll need in the future. To illustrate the types of needs we’re considering, in just a few short years, the Museum’s attendance has grown from 4,900 visitors in 2019 to an anticipated 10,000 in 2024. Yet we’re still operating in the same spaces designed for half that amount of visitors, staff, and programming.
The Board and staff have worked closely with CambridgeSeven this past year to reimagine our spaces and plan for future needs, and I’m excited for you to see more of this work unfold in the year ahead.
Your support means a lot to the Museum and fuels its ability to continue operating since 1936. I know you’ve made a decision to support this local Museum and because you do, we continue to deliver programs and learning opportunities. I truly appreciate your generosity towards the Brick Store Museum each and every day.
Thank you so much once again for your incredible & continued support.
Cheers,
Cynthia Walker
Executive Director