July 14th Article THE SIGNATURE

The Bigger Picture

One of the important roles of Francisco Fort Museum is to foster community pride, and preserve local history. What is perhaps lost to some is that this is not the ONLY role of the Francisco Fort Museum. Our mission statement emphasizes our desire, as an organization, to communicate this history and educate the public.  La Veta, simply put, has more to offer the greater society than a grandfather’s watch or a cousin’s petticoat.  What we have to offer is the story behind our artifacts, and significance of our heritage’s unique perspective on state and national history.

Take for example, the timing of John Francisco’s involvement in Colorado history. His initial presence in the Cucharas Valley is prior to Colorado’s existence as a territory (it was part of the New Mexico Territory until 1861). Francisco and Daigre begin building Francisco Plaza parallel with the recognition of Colorado as its own territory. Later, Francisco becomes one of our first Town Board Trustees, in 1876, with La Veta becoming a town as Colorado becomes a state of the Union, admitted by none other than Ulysses Grant.

As we all know, our museum holds more than the story of John Francisco and his heirs. We tell beautiful stories each day to the public through pictures, artifacts, and information – of the United States as a Melting Pot. Students learn each year of Ellis Island, but they needn’t go further than our very own Francisco Fort Museum to see firsthand the myriad of ancestry our community boasts. Polish history, Mexican history, French history … the list goes on and on, and we have access to this knowledge at our fingertips.

So, yes – come on by when your family’s in town to see your grandmother’s baking mitt; we welcome you. Remember, however, that when operations and governance decisions are made, they are made in accordance to a grander obligation: local heritage, global perspective.

July 7th Article THE SIGNATURE

A Celebrity Visit

Miss Teen Colorado-World will be joining the town of La Veta to celebrate Francisco Fort Day, on July 23^rd. Victoria Korthius, of Highland’s Ranch, was crowned on the evening of April 30^th, 2011 and began a year-long journey of appearances, charity work, and preparation for the national pageant (Miss Teen United States World). A senior in high school this fall, Korthius is working hard to use this experience to prepare her for a career in the modeling industry.

While not required, Korthius has chosen to commit herself to a specific cause during her reign, “bullying awareness and prevention”. Once a victim of bullying herself, Korthius transferred high schools to avoid negativity, and is thankful now for the experiences that brought her to stand up for others and encourage other young people as they face similar struggles.

Miss Teen Colorado-World’s visit to La Veta will include a ride in the Francisco Fort Day parade, a visit to the museum, and an afternoon of “meet and greet”, where she will offer autographed photos.  Korthius’ day will be featured on her popular blog, where others can learn about La Veta and Francisco Fort Museum. A recent letter to the Town of La Veta from Korthius states, “I look forward to meeting all of you at the Francisco Fort Days celebration on July 23rd and enjoying the beautiful surroundings of La Veta!” For more information on Francisco Fort Day, call 719-742-5501.

June 30th Article THE SIGNATURE

For June 30th

Plans are underway for an outstanding 2012 Francisco Fort Day, and I am so pleased with what Friends of the Francisco Fort Museum has in store for you and your family! It has been such a joy to hear of past festivals, and the memories so many have about this exciting day!

There are lots of volunteers, vendors, and community members gearing up for a great day, but there’s still a little job I have for you, as La Veta citizens. Get. On. The. Phone!!! You can make an incredible difference in the success of Francisco Fort Day, and the fundraising efforts of Friends, by simply committing to inviting three people. We want this to be the BIGGEST and BEST Francisco Fort Day EVER!

Until then, come by and see what the museum is up to! Mention this article, and see the museum for $3! We desperately want local citizens to come and see what it new, as well as to enjoy all the memories we know you have from the times you have visited before. It is so exciting to meet people from Switzerland, England, and Israel (yes, we draw a diverse crowd!), but we also love seeing and chatting with the folks that live right around the corner. This is YOUR museum, come and experience it!

June 23rd Article THE SIGNATURE

For June 23rd

Hold on to your seats – I have some crazy news! I am currently working on plans for the … 2012 season! Yikes Stripes! As I continue to tinker with the 2011 season, I am learning every day what works, what doesn’t work, and what I still need help with. Our 2012 budget is taking shape, as well as ideas for tours, marketing campaigns, and museum displays.

For anyone who hasn’t had the chance to come by and check our Francisco Fort Museum this summer, we have up a number of new exhibits. The idea is to rotate new exhibits, so that each season there is something new to see, but that we are able to keep up with the process. For example, the exhibits that were opened this year will remain until the portion of the West Wing they reside in cycle through again (probably around four to six years from now).

The new exhibits went through a number of ideas before becoming what they are. A few months of planning resulted in some great ideas and results, and I can’t wait to see what a year’s worth of planning yields for La Veta in 2012. This is where I need YOUR help. During the month of July, I am going to hold a “Collections Collaboration Contest”.

Please call me at 742-5501 or email me at Jen@franciscofortmuseum.com and set an appointment to be part of this exciting adventure. If you’re interested, you will be invited to visit the museum at no charge to gather information and ideas. Do some research, sketch some ideas, and then turn in your favorite exhibit ideas for 2012. Submissions will be taken from now until July 20^th, and winners will be announced at Francisco Fort Day (July 23^rd). If chosen, your exhibit will be named after YOU and the Francisco Fort staff and board will be working alongside you to make your ideas a reality.

Looking forward to working with all your ideas! Remember, this is not just for adults, any kids and teenagers who want to enter are welcome to!

June 16th Article THE SIGNATURE

One of my favorite quotes is St. Augustine, “In essentials, unity; in non-essentials, liberty; in all things, charity”. In fact, if you’ve ever been bored enough to read my blog, you’ll recognize it as a key component to a piece I wrote about “red rules” and “blue rules”. Red rules, I assert, include not stepping out in front of moving traffic or smoking in front of an oxygen tank. Blue rules include making sure your whites are washed separately from your darks, and that your oil is changed every 3,000 miles or three months. If you’re having trouble distinguishing the two, ask this simple question, “If I break this rule, will someone die, go to prison, suffer dismemberment …?” If the answer is, “no”, you’ve got yourself a blue rule.

While this is a simple enough concept, the complexity comes in determining whose version of dangerous and red is acceptable and should act as the litmus test. For example, red with my daughter includes anything that would harm another child, be it emotional or physical. For another parent, red might only include something that would cause a broken bone. And thus, two parents who are both willing to let go of the “little things” find themselves squabbling over what is or isn’t little in the first place.

As a museum director, I am charged with setting the boundaries for what must be looked at, what can be looked at later, and what can be ignored when it comes to the operation of our organization. Drawing these boundaries requires a great deal of erasing, retracing, and being confident enough to say, “Yes, that is my final answer”. And while I am absolutely from here, appreciative of my roots, and respectful of the small-town way of life, there are times when tradition must be replaced with logic and law. The endlessness of redoing and adjusting for personal loyalties is overwhelming and hard to conceptualize, and I therefore MUST create a system based on objective, proven, and ethical standards when establishing guidelines for Francisco Fort Museum.

This said, there are few processes that will look different at the museum in the coming weeks, months, and years. No, they will not all be comfortable to those of you who remember “the way things were”. But know this, any rules and regulations that you find suddenly in place are not to hinder you, to hurt you, or even to bum you out; they are for your protection, and for the protection of your community’s heritage.

If you want to donate something, you cannot simply drop it off at my office – it causes too many legal questions down the road when your cousin wants it back and we have no legal documentation of the initial exchange. It is also possible that we do not have storage space or need for the item. If you donated something thirty years ago, then you did just that - you donated it, and nonprofit law says it is now the property of the museum, to be used as we see fit, in a way that honors our mission. You may make suggestions, you may come by and take a look – but you simply cannot demand that I display it to your exact liking (assume for a moment I were to try meet the demands of every single donor?!).

Most importantly, if you begin to feel that your “red” is different than mine and the board’s, please discuss it with me or come to a Francisco Fort Board Meeting. But, remember that I am new and learning and working A LOT of hours, and will love you forever if you error on the side of grace.

June 9th Article THE SIGNATURE

Kids at the Fort!

We’ve all had it, that gut-wrenching, heart-pumping feeling as you wake up in the middle of the night terrified. It’s the … history nightmare! The dates! The useless information! The stories from a teacher with a bun and a ruler! AAAACKKKK!!!

Yes, it’s true. History tends to be passed over for the “cool award”. Let’s just say the history-major parties in college weren’t that happening (as in … they weren’t happening … at all). The truth is, however, history, especially for kids, is pertinent to their understanding of everything that IS cool to them.

Do your girls love sports? Great; do they understand the history of Title IX? Or maybe your son is a jazz connoisseur; I bet he’ll listen with new appreciation when he ties it to black history in America. What about your little ones? I bet they’ll think it’s really “neat” that grandma didn’t always have a cell phone! Gasp!

Francisco Fort Museum is dedicated to insuring that local youth are welcome at the museum, and that they connect to local history in a meaningful way. We have recently set up children’s activity booths; we offer fun old time photos, and ALL LOCAL STUDENTS ARE FREE, with the admission of a parent or guardian.

So, here’s to the dates, to the multiple choice questions, to the Mrs. Bleighs of the world (my very own 11^th grade history teacher!), and to the geeky folks like me with history degrees …  may all the cool things become even cooler with a story behind them.

MAY 19th Article from THE SIGNATURE

Learning About Legacies

I had a professor once who rolled his eyes each time someone suggested the reason we study history is to “learn from our mistakes”. If this were true, he suggested, wouldn’t we have overcome war and famine by now? The quest to find the “whys” of a particular subject’s importance is a difficult one, and one that is often answered by those who don’t need an answer. Enthusiasts of any subject can rattle off statistics, opinions, and other evidences of the inherent value of their arena. And yet, the continued existence and protection of a given study is often dependent upon the acceptance of its significance among the general population.

The question for me then, as a museum director, is, “Who cares?” Who cares about old stuff, about past memories, and about trinkets of lost generations?  The burden of adequately, efficiently, and appropriately communicating the vast significance of our community’s history is not a light one.  And though I know I have the continuous backing of incredibly devoted individuals who need no explanation for what history does for us as a people, it is perhaps those who do not understand I am obligated to dedicate myself to.

New exhibits, gimmicks, advertising … yes, all of these tools can be incredibly effective methods for making Francisco Fort Museum accessible to the general public. A fellow completely uninterested in general history may want to visit to see a new exhibit on technology … maybe a mother of young children will stop by to take a few old time photos … and a passer-by may take a detour when she sees a sign out on 160. But … then what? If people leave our community’s museum no more aware of their mortality, no more aware of the story they are living, no more attentive to the tales told by a grandmother over Thanksgiving … have I failed?

My heart-filled prayer is this: not that I might find the answers to these questions, but simply that I never stop asking them. Yes, my position is many days about policy and procedure, budgets, board meetings, and exhibit design. Ultimately, though, I am in the business of legacies. Learn alongside with me, dare to ask yourself why anything matters at all, and commit yourself to the support of organizations just like Francisco Fort Museum ... places that push us to ask, “Who cares?”

Interested in diving in deeper? Visit the museum this Saturday, May 21^st, for a FREE Open House to see new exhibits. Then, join us for a celebratory reception at The Parkside, from 6-8pm. The requested donation for admission to the reception is $25. Join us, however, with a donation of any amount. Here’s to the legacies we will make as we join together as a community to rejoice over our shared story! See you there.