Building Campaign
Washington County Historical Society is Growing
Dear Friends,
We ask you to join us in preserving our local history in a significant way.
We represent a proud group of supporters of the Washington County Historical Society. WCHS has been the official historian of Washington County for more than 50 years. As business owners who have had a lasting impact on the county's development, we believe, as you probably do, that we must do everything we can to preserve our local history and heritage.
The Problem: Our Museum is Out of Space
The Washington County Museum has outgrown its 25-year-old building on the Rock Creek Campus of Portland Community College. The 5,000 sq. ft. building can no longer accommodate the Museum's collection and archives of over 40,000 artifacts. The collection continues to grow at a rate of more than 500 artifacts a year, yet the Museum's shelving is now completely full. People space is another problem, as the building's single 1,400 sq. ft. gallery is too small for large group tours, exhibits and educational programs.
The building also lacks sufficient staff and volunteer workspace.
The Solution: A Well-Planned Expansion
As a result of four years of planning and "quiet" fund raising, the Museum has raised over $1.5 million toward a $2-million expansion and remodel of the building. The expansion will add 7,000 square feet, double the archive and collection storage, triple the exhibit space, add a 1,000 sq. ft. classroom, as well as a new public research library, museum store, outdoor plaza, parking and grounds. Once completed, the Museum will be able to serve thousands of children, families and seniors with exciting interpretive exhibits, high-quality history education programs, and state-of-the-art archive research library services.
How You Can Help
Here's where you can help. We need local individuals, families and businesses to make generous pledges toward this building campaign. Simply cut out the pledge form on the opposite page and mail it to WCHS. There are naming gift opportunities, starting with bricks at $50, up to very large gift opportunities (see the naming gift chart on the opposite page.) Each building donor pitching in will insure that the county has a strong Museum, and that our local history is securely preserved for future generations to learn from and enjoy.
Will you please consider a generous pledge toward the Millennium Makeover of the Washington County Museum? (Pledge form - Adobe Acrobat Reader required)
In return, you will receive recognition and tax benefits for your gift (WCHS is a private 501c (3) non-profit organization), and you, your family or business will be permanently recognized on a beautiful donor wall in the new Museum lobby.
In addition, you or your company will automatically become a member of the Society, be recognized in its Historian magazine, and, of course, enjoy the good feeling of knowing that you made a long-lasting gift to the community.
How You Get Involved and Answering Your Questions
To arrange a time for a guided tour of the Museum, or if you have any questions regarding the building plans and how you could get involved, please contact the museum at (503) 645-5353.
If everyone joins in, and we sincerely hope you will, we can help the Museum continue its outstanding efforts to preserve, interpret and educate. Thanks in advance for doing something important to help in the preservation of our local history!
Al & Pat Reser
Reser's Fine Foods
Randy Robinson/Rick Yeo
Robinson Construction
Kelly Ritz
Venture Properties
David Lintz
Meadowlark Partners
David Welsh
CIDA
Bert Waugh
Prudential NW Properties
Larry Teufel
Teufel Nursery
John Chamberlain
Arrow Mechanical
Bobsy Graham
Millennium Makeover Campaign Naming Opportunities
| Facilities | Gift Size | Donor |
|---|---|---|
| Main Exhibit Gallery | $300,000 | |
| Pioneer Classroom | 150,000 | Merrill Family Foundation |
| Outdoor Plaza | 150,000 | |
| Changing Exhibit Gallery | 100,000 | The Collins Foundation |
| Visitors Square/Entry | 100,000 | Reser’s Fine Foods - Al and Pat Reser |
| Outdoor Stage | 100,000 | |
| Museum Store | 100,000 | |
| Research Library | 100,000 | |
| Collections Room | 100,000 | |
| Archives Room | 100,000 | |
| Outdoor Kalapuya Hut | 100,000 | |
| Outdoor Exhibit Areas (3) | 50,000 | |
| Conservation Laboratory | 50,000 | Baker Trust |
| Catering Kitchen | 50,000 | |
| Director’s Office | 50,000 | |
| Board and Volunteer Room | 50,000 | |
| Kalapuya Exhibit | 50,000 | |
| Logging and Timber Exhibit | 50,000 | |
| Log Jail Exhibit | 50,000 | Bobsy Graham |
| Silicon Forest Exhbit | 50,000 | |
| Spirit Mounain Community Fund | 50,000 | |
| Pioneering Business Exhibit | 50,000 | Robinson Construction |
| Collections and Exhibits Department Office | 25,000 | |
| Education Department Office | 25,000 | |
| Membership and Marketing Dept. Office | 25,000 | |
| Volunteer Department Office | 25,000 | |
| Museum Office | 25,000 | |
| Dirt Room | 25,000 | |
| Donor Wall | 25,000 | Ritz Family Foundation |
| Library Research Carrels (5) | 10,000 | |
| 33’ Row of Mobile Artifact Shelving (7) | 10,000 | |
| 10’ Row of Mobile Archive Shelving (8) | 5,000 | |
| Outdoor Plaza Benches (many) | 1,000 | |
| Antique Classroom Desks (20) | 500 | |
| Plaza Bricks (many) | 50 |
