Column: Preserving the Past, by Pat Mulso

With 15 school tours already scheduled for May, as well as Discover History, we are busy planning and preparing for the nearly 2,500 students that will visit the museum during the month of May. Some of the classes will need as many as seven or eight tour guides, and that is where you can possibly help.

We will be holding our annual tour guide orientation at 1:30 p.m. Thursday, April 18, at the museum. Please call or stop by to register for the orientation. At the orientation new guides will receive a packet of information about our buildings in the historical village and will be given a tour of the museum and village. Each guide brings new insight to our tours as everyone has different life experiences to draw from. This year will also have some challenges as we continue with the completion of our building expansion. If you have questions regarding tour guide orientation you may call us at 507-373-8003.

We will host a four-hour refresher defensive driving class from 12:30 to 4:30 p.m. on Monday, April 8. The cost per participant is $19, and participants must pre-register. We will need your name as it appears on your driver’s license, your address, date of birth and driver’s license number. This four-hour refresher course is needed every three years after the initial eight-hour class is taken to continue receiving a discount on your auto insurance. We will also host a class from 5:30 to 9:30 p.m. on Tuesday, May 14.

The Freeborn County Genealogical Society will have their monthly meeting at the museum at 10:30 a.m. on Monday, March 11. Visitors welcome. They begin with a brief business meeting followed by a program.

The defensive driving classes and genealogical meetings are two ways the museum serves the community. The Golden K II Kiwanis Club meets weekly here at the museum and we also host other meetings and events upon request. Most years we host gatherings of class reunions and maybe a wedding or two in our village church.

With the completion of our addition we will have additional space for meetings and gatherings.

We have reached 82 percent of our goal of $1,700,000 to complete our building expansion. We need your help now to reach our goal and complete our project. We will have the best history complex in our region and one you can be very proud to have in your community. Please make a donation now and help us to continue protecting and preserving the history of Freeborn County and its people. If you are not a member of the museum I encourage you to become a member. For just $25 per year you can purchase a household membership. This will permit any member of your household to visit the museum, library and village as often as they like during the year.

Plans are in progress for Eddie Cochran Weekend, a vintage Style Show, Echoes from the Past, a Journey into History, Autumn in the Village and other events such as bus tours, library lock-ins and the annual Christmas Gathering. We are also planning a Christmas Tour of Homes. Don’t miss out on any events this year, become a member of the Freeborn County Historical Society now.

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