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The
Annual Fund is the Martha's Vineyard Museum's yearly appeal to members and friends
for contributions that help support the programs and operations of the organization.
The MVM does not receive support for its operational budget from any local or
state government agency. The MVM is a private non-profit organization that is
reliant on its members' support. Indeed, over the past five years, strong member
support has allowed the MVM to operate with a balanced budget every year.
Gifts
to the Annual Fund are placed in the MVM's "unrestricted" accounts.
These funds are vital to supporting such activities as the mounting of exhibits,
the development of educational resource packets, the implementing of new technology,
as well as the conserving of our image collection. For more information, please
contact Development Director Amy Houghton at 508-627-4441, ext. 121 or email her
at
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Help Martha's Vineyard Museum by making a donation:
MVM Endowment: To ensure
the MVM's future, the Museum must continue to develop its endowment fund. The
fund will aid the organization as it faces increasing operating costs. The MVM
accepts donations of cash, property, and stocks that can help us expand our endowment.
For more information, please contact Amy Houghton at 508-627-4441, ext. 121 or
email her at
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MVM Collections: Members can help "grow" our collections through the
donation of photographs, personal papers, scrimshaw, and logbooks. These gifts
can be made during your life or through your will. We recommend that you contact
the Museum's curatorial staff or library staff. For information about our collecting
policy, please refer to the MVM' Collections Development and Acquisition Policy
(link).
A gift of remembrance is a way to
honor or acknowledge a family member or special friend by investing in the mission
of the Martha's Vineyard Museum. These gifts can be given to celebrate a family
event such as a birthday, anniversary, or graduation. Or, these
gifts can also be given as an act of remembrance for a friend or family member.
For more information, please contact Susan Wilson at 508-627-4441, ext. 117 or
email her at
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Mapping the Future for the MVM
For
83 years, the Martha's Vineyard Museum (previously the Martha's Vineyard Historical Society, and Dukes County Historical Society) has
collected and
| "Martha's
Vineyard history is a measure of all American History . . . from the time of the
glaciers (and before) to the arrival of the first English Settlers in the seventeenth
century, from the Revolution to the Gold Rush, the Civil War to the civil rights
movement, from issues of race, education, the environment to the worlds of literature
and the arts.
History
is all around us here . . . in many historic buildings in every town . . . in
the number of old families that continue to play a vital part, and yes, in the
collections and programs of the Historical Society …"
David
McCullough
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written about the multifaceted
history of Martha's Vineyard. Through the foresight of the founders of the Museum,
people such as Francis Foster, Emma Mayhew Whiting, Minnie Vincent and Edward
H. Pease, we are able to trace family trees, clarify property lines and gain perspective
into the Vineyard's connection to the world. The collection reflects not only
the history of Martha's Vineyard but of America.
Whether chronicling the
annual Martha's Vineyard Striped Bass and Bluefish Derby, the filming of Jaws
or recording oral testimonies of Islanders, we are actively collecting our recent
histories, as each item offers clues about our past and helps us understand the
way we live today.
Today our Museum is at a crossroads.
With the rapid pace of change on the Island and in the world, it is critical not
only to collect and preserve our history, but also to make it an active, stimulating,
engaging part of our Island's present and future. Our current campus can not possibly
keep pace. We lack sufficient exhibition space and technology to properly protect,
display and store our current collection, let alone, to add future collections
and meet the demands for our many programs.
Seizing
the Opportunity
Since 2000, the Board of Directors and staff have
worked alongside community leaders to transform the Museum from a small research
library with a few exhibits to an engaging regional museum.
In
2003, the Museum completed an assessment and strategic planning process, which
defined a new "course" for the future. The assessment reinforced our
responsibility as stewards of a remarkable collection and highlighted the opportunity
we have to become an essential ingredient of Island life. A major finding was
that our present Edgartown campus is not adequate to fulfill our Mission. Our
facilities lack sufficient space to display and store our current collections
and cannot accommodate increased demand for our adult and family education programming.
While wrestling with this problem, the board was offered an exceptional opportunity
to purchase 10 acres of land in West Tisbury. The decision to purchase the land
was made easier for two reasons: the demonstrated improvement in the organization's
financial position and the generosity of an anonymous donor who allowed the organization
to purchase the land outright.
After months of intense work
by the staff, the Board, museum experts and community partners a new vision for
the organization emerged. This plan envisions a new campus, centrally located
in West Tisbury, that will offer all of our audiences an outstanding, accessible
museum experience and transform the organization and its programs into the cultural
community resource we should be.
Transformation
Building
and sustaining this new Museum will require support from the entire community.
The decision to embrace our vision was made after careful consideration of market
research, evaluation of detailed financial models, and discussion with community
leaders from all towns.
By building a new museum campus,
we believe the MVM will accomplish the following important goals:
- Transform our museum into the critical community resource our collection and stories
should be
- Build our capacity and accessibility to provide meaningful educational
experiences for families
- Improve access to programs, collections and
staff on the campus and via web-based programs and exhibits
- Expand exhibits,
increase storage capacity and properly preserve artifacts
- Strengthen the
Museum's volunteer and staff leadership
- Achieve long-term financial stability
to support our vision
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