Preserving the Past by Pat Mulso

This past week was a busy one for the museum. Our fundraiser, the Gordy and Debbie Show, was a huge success. Thank you to all our sponsors and everyone that attended the show. This fundraiser was to help cover the shortage in operating funds due to not receiving a grant we have been awarded for many years, but received no funds from last fall.

We hosted two full days of Discover History this past week, as well. This was our 19th year for the program. We had more than 360 fifth-graders, more than 61 11th-graders, 32 mentors and around 20 to 25 other volunteers help throughout the two day sessions. This program is an excellent example of bringing history to life for our local students and giving them the opportunity to have hands-on experiences relating to local history.

Starting this week, we will begin our school tours. We are still in need of additional tour guides.  Please contact Abbie at 507-373-8003 if you are interested in being a tour guide.

The museum will host a four-hour AARP defensive driving refresher class from 5:30 to 9:30 p.m. May 17. The cost is $20 for AARP members or $25 for non-members, which includes the class materials and administrative fee. You must pre-register 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. You will receive your certificate at the end of the class. Our next class will be from 5:30 to 9:30 p.m. June 16.

You have probably figured out that I am filling in as interim executive director at the museum while the Freeborn County Historical Museum Board of Directors is in search of a new director. Anyone interested in the position should send a resume to the museum at 1031 Bridge Ave. in Albert Lea or submit a resume through the website at www.fchm.us. Please see our classified ad in today’s paper for details.

I am in the midst of planning a reunion for my family this July, where we will unite our missing link of the family with the rest of the group. It’s a bit of a logistic nightmare to plan a reunion for a large family like ours in the rural setting where we are from. My sons and their families will fly in for the event, and it was a challenge to find rooms for all of us at the same hotel — even a few months ago. We will have about a 45 to 50-minute drive to get to the reunion. I will soon begin color coding the name tags and planning the schedule of events for the day. So far we have family coming from Texas, Missouri, Montana, Colorado, Minnesota, Indiana, South Dakota, New York and Ohio.

This year will mark our 166th anniversary in America. Many families have given up on having family reunions, but my most precious memories are of those spent with my cousins, aunts and uncles and extended family. Do you recall any special occasions or just gatherings of family that have made a lasting impression on you?  If so, share it with your family before it’s too late. We celebrated my mother-in-law’s 92nd birthday this past week.  My husband, at age 71, is very blessed to have both of his parents still living. My mom has been gone now for nine years and my dad for 48 years. We never know what is in store for us in the future, so there’s no time like the present to tell our families how important they are to us and share time with them, making memories for the future.

Remember, what happens today is history tomorrow!

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