Earlier this year, we were temporarily moved out of McDowell House to allow for some maintenance to occur. As with any move, we discovered a lot of things we didn’t know we had or thought we had lost long ago. There was a significant amount of boxing and unboxing. We also had to come to terms with the way we’d been using the space.
As the move back in date approached we had a lot of conversations about how we wanted to maximize our use of this wonderful house and how we could use it to better serve our mission. We decided to convert the parlor from an exclusively research-based space to a multi-use space. This involved relocating a lot of furniture, files, and supplies. In the end we decided to work with folding tables and chairs, so the room can be easily emptied to accommodate programs, events, and other activities.
We also wanted to showcase some of our collections, so we moved in an exhibit cube. We’ll be using this for rotating displays throughout the year, highlighting particular areas of interest for our volunteers, members, and staff.
Finally, we installed some photo ledges to share our various educational boards. These boards are usually brought with us to off-site programs and stored out of the way when not in use. But we thought - why not store them and display them at the same time!
We can’t wait to share the new and improved parlor with you at our upcoming Membership Meeting!
