In this week’s update: New gift shop items, volunteer social, free historical speaker series this Saturday, and more!
In our weekly update, keep up to date on what staff and volunteers at the Lindsborg Old Mill & Swedish Heritage Museum are working on to lift up the history of Lindsborg and the surrounding region. This weekly update both looks back at what happened last week and looks ahead at what’s coming.
For September 3-8, 2024:
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- We have new items now available to order on the online gift shop!
Check out:
–Children’s Illustrated Swedish Dictionary
–The World of Cajsa Andersdotter
–Raw Honey from AJ Honey Farms
More items are on the way this week!
- About 30 people attended our Volunteer Social last Friday. Thank you to all of our wonderful volunteers who help to make the work we do possible!
- Our next presentation in the Historical Speaker Series about Alma Swensson will be on THIS Saturday, September 14.
The Historic Speaker Series is a set of online talks in partnership with the Smoky Valley Historical Association featuring great historical figures in Lindsborg and Smoky Valley History. Registration is completely FREE to the first 100 to sign up and is made possible with a grant from Humanities Kansas. Registration is open now online at: www.oldmillmuseum.org/historical-speaker-series/#AlmaSwensson
- Bidding is currently open for building an ADA accessible walkway from Mill Street to the front entrance of the museum. Details are HERE; and the deadline for bid submissions is this Saturday, September 14. This improvement is one of the projects made possible thanks to the $250,000 SPRINT Grant that the museum received last year.
- We are just past the halfway mark with 51% on fundraising under the Community Service Program (CSP) Tax Credits through the Kansas Department of Commerce. Read about all the latest here and let us know how much you are interested in contributing: www.oldmillmillmuseum.org/save-the-pavilion!
We’ve had 29 individuals, families, and businesses contribute to this progress to the tune of $121,384.25. We need about another $45,000 before the funding for the essential structural repair is secured.
Any Kansas resident (or out-of-state resident who files a Kansas income tax return) can qualify to receive back a 70% fully refundable tax credit on their Kansas return with a donation of $250 or more to the project! The available tax credits will be used to enhance fundraising efforts for the Pavilion Restoration & Improvement Project. The credits are expected to raise $238,000 in donations, which will fully cover critical stabilization repairs to prevent collapse of the historic structure and will partially cover installation of a new, more historically accurate roof.
This will be a successful initiative only if individuals, families, and organizations step forward to give under the program’s tax credit opportunity. Please carefully consider your own ability to give to this project, and to share this opportunity with your own friends and family!
(Historic photo of the Pavilion under construction at the 1904 St. Louis World’s Fair.) - Adam worked on several grant applications.
- Lenora worked on SPRINT Grant paperwork, sorting donated Svensk Hyllningsfet materials, and processing artifact donation paperwork.
- Museum staff met for planning the next Heritage Christmas and Millfest 2025.
- Our next online Swedish Genealogy Workshop is scheduled for October 26 and is now open for registration HERE. The popular workshop has four sessions and runs $50 for non-members and $30 for members (look for the code in a recent email). Registration is limited to 100 attendees, so register today!
- “Old Family Photos: Trash or Treasure?” is an hourlong online presentation on photo identification and preservation planned for Saturday, November 2. Registration is $10 or free with code for museum members. Register at the museum gift shop HERE.
- We have new items now available to order on the online gift shop!
- NOW OPEN: “Skeleton-Of-Dog… Selected Geology & Natural History Artifacts from the Bethany College Collection Archives” is a temporary mini-exhibit at the museum featuring some unique artifacts not seen in public for decades!
- Our Endowment Campaign 2025 is ongoing to add $1 million to our endowment in supporting our annual operational budget to make sure that not only do we preserve these historical treasures, but we can also “keep the lights on.” Read more on the flyer and giving form below, or visit to www.oldmillmuseum.org/donations to learn more!
Thank you to our museum volunteers!