Welcome back. I hope everyone had an enjoyable Holiday Season. This may seem like the quiet time of the year for the Museum, but I assure you there is a lot going on in preparation for the upcoming season.
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Reminder: Hall of Fame Nominations
by Joe Harold
This is just a quick reminder that the AT Museum Hall of Fame Nominations will be accepted until February 28, 2014.
The easiest way to submit a nomination is by using the online form.
The easiest way to submit a nomination is by using the online form.
Nominations may also be submitted using our paper form. Instructions on where to send the form are on the form.
For more information refer to last month's article on the topic.
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For more information refer to last month's article on the topic.
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Renovation Plans - The Bottom Floor
by Joe Harold
Last year we had the Rampatheater built that enabled handicap access to the Museum's bottom floor (with the added feature of being able to give presentations out on the hillside)
This Fall, we started the building of the ramp that will gain access to the Museum's second floor, which will continue in the Spring.
Also in the Spring, we will start to rehab the bottom floor so we can add more exhibits down there. The focus of the bottom floor will be for the younger hiker and the options are many for what we will offer in that new space.
The demolition plans call for removing the old oil tank and a few other items and cleaning the place up. And the remodeling calls for adding a wall and leveling the floor and making it the perfect place to have a children's area.
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This Fall, we started the building of the ramp that will gain access to the Museum's second floor, which will continue in the Spring.
Also in the Spring, we will start to rehab the bottom floor so we can add more exhibits down there. The focus of the bottom floor will be for the younger hiker and the options are many for what we will offer in that new space.
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| Demo Drawing |
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| Remodel Drawing |
The work is scheduled to start in April and will mostly be done during the week while the Museum is closed since we will only be open on weekends during that month. Ron Bungay is the man in charge of this project and when I last talked to him, he was looking forward to getting started.
I plan on adding before, during and after pictures to this Newsletter as the work progresses.
Retail Plans
by Joe Harold
I am currently busy restocking the books and other items we sell at the Museum and I am adding a few items that I hope will be as popular to the visitors as some of our shirts and patches.
I am currently busy restocking the books and other items we sell at the Museum and I am adding a few items that I hope will be as popular to the visitors as some of our shirts and patches.
For a while now, I have been thinking of adding items to the store that could be considered "Outfitter" items. Something the hikers who come in are interested in buying to restock their packs and continue their journey. I went to a couple Facebook Groups and asked the experienced and new hikers alike what they would like to see for sale at the museum when they hike on by. I got a lot of recommendations in a very short time. Some of them, aren't possible (like ice cream and other foods) or feasible (like shoes and boots), but there were some good suggestions that I put on my list. Now, I just need to find the right source of supply for things like lighters, sewing kits, first aid items, bandanas, baby wipes... Well, you get the idea.
So far, I am planning on adding two items that not only can be interesting to a hiker, but to the other visitors as well. I received a recommendation to stock the dice game Blisters. This game was born on the trail, is very simple and easy to play and most important of all, doesn't weigh much at all.
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| Blisters the Game |
The other is hand made hiking sticks from a company down in Texas named Brazos. I plan on stocking both child size sticks along with two adult sizes, so everyone can have a nice hiking stick that they bought from the museum. We hope to supplement the stock with locally made sticks. So if that is something that you do, let me know and we can work together to have some nice (locally made) hiking sticks for our visitors.
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| Brazos Hiking Sticks |
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Contacts, Email Lists and VolunteerSpot
by Joe Harold
As we approach the re-opening of the Museum for the season, I want to ensure my emails and other notices get to all the right people and also don't bother those who don't need to see all the correspondence that I produce. I will be sending out an email to my Active Docent List in the near future. I inherited this list from Howard and I want to make sure it is as up-to-date as possible. If you don't want/need to be on that list, just let me know. Also, you might want to make sure you have the following email addresses in your address book. manager@atmuseum.org, atmuseumgreeters@gmail.com and johar923@yahoo.com. All of these addresses come to me and I use each of them at different times.
As we approach the re-opening of the Museum for the season, I want to ensure my emails and other notices get to all the right people and also don't bother those who don't need to see all the correspondence that I produce. I will be sending out an email to my Active Docent List in the near future. I inherited this list from Howard and I want to make sure it is as up-to-date as possible. If you don't want/need to be on that list, just let me know. Also, you might want to make sure you have the following email addresses in your address book. manager@atmuseum.org, atmuseumgreeters@gmail.com and johar923@yahoo.com. All of these addresses come to me and I use each of them at different times.
March 29th will be here before you know it and before too long I hope to see all you amazing Docents signing up for a shift at the museum. In fact, next year's schedule is all set to go and you can actually sign up now if you know your schedule and want to do so. You can follow the link up at the right or click here to go to the Group Page, where all of our events will be listed throughout the year.
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Spring Cleanup and Docent Orientation
by Joe Harold
The Spring Cleanup will take place on March 22nd this year. As always, every bit of effort is appreciated. More information will follow and I have set up a sign up on the VolunteerSpot Group Page, but for now, if you are interested in helping to get the Museum all spic and span for the season, mark your calendars now.
The Spring Cleanup will take place on March 22nd this year. As always, every bit of effort is appreciated. More information will follow and I have set up a sign up on the VolunteerSpot Group Page, but for now, if you are interested in helping to get the Museum all spic and span for the season, mark your calendars now.
Also, we will hold our annual Docent/Volunteer Orientation Program on Opening Day, March 29th. This session will be for the veterans and newbies alike and will be for learning the ins and outs of being a Docent at the Museum as well as sharing our ideas and suggestions on how to make every visitor's experience a rewarding one. I hope to provide some light refreshments for this event for all to enjoy.
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Things Coming Down the Trail
February 28th, 2014 - Deadline for Hall of Fame nominations
March 22nd, 2014 - Spring Cleanup
March 29th, 2014 - Docent Orientation (both experienced and new)
March 29th, 2014 - AT Museum opens for the season
April - Start remodeling the bottom floor
April - Start remodeling the bottom floor
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| Parting shot: New picnic pavilion at the Tom's Run Shelter. Right next to where the shelter burnt down. |
