Preserving the Past by Pat Mulso

September has been a busy month at the museum with classes, Autumn in the Village, school tours, a bus tour, programs, a lecture and village projects, which include the replacement of some siding on the general store, painting of the general store, painting the front of the school and other touch up painting, trimming bushes and general cleanup. Thank you to all our volunteers who helped us complete these tasks, and thank you to members of the Albert Lea Community Theatre 50th anniversary celebration committee for providing and helping us with special props and materials for exhibits at the museum in honor of their special celebration.

Wednesday was the first day of fall, and Saturday was Family Health & Fitness Day USA. There is no better time than today to become more proactive in your health and well-being. Fall is a beautiful time of the year and a walk around the lake gives you the opportunity to enjoy our gorgeous city, lakes and trees.

The museum will host a four-hour defensive driving refresher class from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Oct. 3.  The cost is $20 for AARP members or $25 for nonmembers, which includes the class materials and administrative fee. You must register ahead of time for the class and will need your driver’s license to do so. The refresher course is needed every three years after the initial eight-hour class is taken to continue receiving a discount on your auto insurance. Call or stop by the museum to register during our regular business hours.

Our next “Historically Speaking Lecture” for this fall will be at 9 a.m. Oct. 10 in the museum meeting room. The subject is: “The Drama in the Kennedy Limousine on Nov. 22, 1963.” In this lecture presenter Gary Schindler will explore the reaction of the six passengers in Kennedy’s limousine the day of his assassination. Frames of the Zapruder film will be examined to time the tragic event and the actions of the passengers. Admission is free to museum members and $5 for nonmembers. Plan to join us for a look into this tragic day in history.

October is Choose Civility Month and the initiative is committed to building a kinder community, one act of kindness at a time. Tea with Family and Friends is an event taking place at 2 p.m. Oct. 17 at the Freeborn County Historical Museum. Call Senior Resources at 507-377-7433 to reserve your space for this event. Reservations are required. Good manners are an important skill our young people need to learn in order to succeed in life and all ages will learn from a refresher course. This event is a fantastic opportunity for family and friends, young and old to learn while enjoying the art of having tea. We hope you will plan to join us. This Choose Civility Event is in partnership with Senior Resources and the Freeborn County Historical Museum.

We are accepting 2016 museum memberships. If you are not currently a member of the museum, buy your membership now and get the rest of 2015 as well as all of 2016. Individual memberships are $25 and family memberships begin at just $35. Gift memberships are also available.

Thank you to all our volunteers for making our annual Autumn in the Village a huge success last Sunday, and to Hy-Vee, Mrs. Gerry’s and Trails Travel Center for donating the food for our event. We are also receiving supplemental funds from Thrivent Financial for Lutherans, Albert Lea Chapter.

 

Pat Mulso is the executive director of the Freeborn County Historical Museum, Library and Village, 1031 Bridge Ave.