VEGREVILLE, Alta. – Modern museums need more than volunteers and the smell of an oily rag to survive, said the executive director of the Alberta Museum Association.
A lack of money is the number one problem facing the association’s 200 member museums, said Gerry Osmond.
A few museums, such as the Vegreville Regional Museum, employ a full-time director, but still rely on a team of volunteers to keep the museum functioning. Museums that rely only on volunteers to keep the doors open will struggle to survive, said Osmond.
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“Running a museum with volunteers is on the way out,” said Osmond, whose association distributes $780,000 in provincial grant money to museums.
The federal government recently announced it is cutting its funding to museums from $9 million to $4.6 million over the next two years.
“The cut really hurt and surprised us,” Osmond said. “We had no indication the cut was coming.”
The limited funding means museums must rely more on money from other government grants, bingos and casinos to restore equipment and offer education programs and events. Money from casinos usually can be used only for capital expenses and not for staff wages.
Without trained staff to offer interpretive programs and community outreach education, Osmond said museums are little more than antique stores.
“We’re not just storage facilities for old stuff.”
Lorraine Giebelhaus, executive director of the Vegreville museum, said events such as the threshing bee are important because they allow community members to be part of the museum.
