Column: Preserving the Past, by Pat Mulso

Hopefully you didn’t eat too much turkey on Thanksgiving, and you have survived the biggest shopping day of the year, Black Friday!

As I was growing up we did a lot of window shopping. I attended a high school located just a couple blocks from downtown Dayton, Ohio, and nearly every day I would walk to the retail store area and browse through the department stores looking at the newest styles and fashions before heading to the library to work on my homework until it was time to walk to where my mother worked to head home for the evening. In those days there was no impulse buying; you would need to save for nearly every purchase. You know, I think we appreciated what we had more then, even though we didn’t have as many material things.

The museum recently hosted a great bus trip to Kansas City, and everyone enjoyed visiting with Marion Ross. The play was great, and she was fabulous! The play, “The Game’s Afoot or Holmes for the Holidays” by Ken Ludwig will be running from now through Jan. 20, 2013, at the New Theatre Restaurant in Overland Park, Kan., with performances daily except Mondays and Christmas Day. There are matinees on Sundays and Wednesday as well as some Saturdays. If you are looking for a weekend getaway this is a fine choice. Marion is planning a visit to Albert Lea in July of 2013, watch for details in the spring of 2013.

Please mark your calendars for Dec. 2. The museum will be hosting its annual Christmas gathering. The event will be from 1 to 3 p.m. We will have photos of the building expansion progress, coffee, cider, homemade Christmas cookies, and I’ve heard Santa will be there to listen to your Christmas requests. We will have a photographer available to take your picture with Santa for just $3.

This is a fundraiser for the museum. Admission will be only $1, and children 11 and under get in free. Please join us at this annual event, enjoy visiting with friends, looking at our Christmas decorations and joining in the fellowship of our museum family — hope to see you next Sunday!

This is membership time, so if you have not renewed your annual museum membership, you may do so while here for the Christmas gathering or mail or stop by anytime with your renewal. We appreciate your continued support to the museum and our programs. Also, if you would like to make a donation to the museum building fund just indicate what amount is for membership and what you want to go to the building fund and we will get it to the right account.

The museum and library will be closed from Dec. 21 until Jan. 1, 2013, for the Christmas and New Year’s holidays. We will open at 10 a.m. Jan. 2, 2013, and resume our regular hours at that time.

Remember as we enter the holiday season that it is more blessed to give than receive. There are many individuals and families who are struggling in today’s lagging economy, and sometimes we are so busy in our own worlds that we forget to look around and notice the needs around our own community. Take the opportunity to help where you can, some small gift, donation or kindness may brighten the life of a person in need.

Have a safe and happy holiday season! And remember, what happens today is history tomorrow!

 

Pat Mulso is the executive director of the Freeborn County Historical Museum in Albert Lea.