from the Foundation

When we emailed you in December, we were excited to report the transformative gift by Brainerd and Anne Mears to the University of Wyoming Geological Museum. Thankfully, that gift was matched by Wyoming state matching funds, and the fund now totals $1.4 million.

Another fund was created in 2009—the Geological Museum S. H. Knight Memorial Fund. $74,000 has been raised to date, and this amount is now also eligible for matching funds. “If we can develop an endowment of about $2.5 million,” says Art Snoke, UW Geology and Geophysics Department Head, “then the Geological Museum can have a yearly operating budget of about $100,000.” The hiring of professional personnel, the renovation of displays, and the construction of new displays all hinge on private fundraising and the resulting matching funds in order to successfully reinvent the museum. If we don’t reach this goal, the museum may be hampered by limited hours, antiquated displays, and an undersized staff.

This is where you come in. Your support can make this venerable geological museum a success—consider giving to the Samuel H. Knight Memorial Endowment. With your help, all things are possible. To donate to this fund, go online to www.uwyo.edu/giveonlione or contact Jane Barghothi, Major Gift Officer at the University of Wyoming Foundation, at (307) 766-1803 or jbarghot@uwyo.edu.

Fundraiding update

UW Geological Museum Accepted into Museum Assessment Program

Feb. 12, 2010 -- Two important deadlines have been outlined in the process of reinventing the University of Wyoming Geological Museum.
The committee charged with reinventing the Geological Museum, comprised of UW faculty and administrators, at the end of 2009 submitted an application to the Museum Assessment Program offered by the American Association of Museums, and it was notified not long after that it had been accepted into the program.
The program is designed to help museums develop plans for effective operations and management - the same task assigned to the committee, headed by UW Geology and Geophysics Department Head Art Snoke.
Both a self-study and a site survey are scheduled to be completed in the first half of the year.
"The Museum Map Assessment Program through the American Association of Museums is designed to provide professional input into how a museum of any size can meet its mission given its financial situation, personnel, physical facilities and display materials," Snoke says. "This type of advice from museum professionals is exactly what the committee needs to move forward with a plan to reinvent the UW Geological Museum."
What comes after that is key to the museum's future success, Snoke says, and it depends on private fundraising.
The museum closed briefly last summer due to budget cuts to public funds, drawing attention from fans of the museum from around the world. When the museum reopened in August with a part-time schedule, it was with the help of private funds from the UW Foundation. Shortly after that, noted UW supporters Brainerd "Nip" and Anne Mears donated $570,000 to support the museum. Matched by Wyoming state endowment funds, the gift now totals $1.14 million.
A second fund, in memory of noted geologist S.H. Knight, was created later in 2009. To date, $74,000 has been raised, and because of fund matching rules, it is now eligible for matching state funds.
"For the perpetuity and overall success of the museum, it is essential that the available state matching monies associated with the Geological Museum S.H. Knight Memorial Fund are used to their fullest extent. If we can develop an endowment of about $2.5 million, then the Geological Museum can have a yearly operating budget of about $100,000," Snoke says.
"If we don't reach that endowment goal, we will continue to have limited hours, will not be able remodel antiquated displays, and will not be able to hire professional personnel for the museum. We sincerely hope that the supporters of the UW Geological Museum, both individuals and corporations, will step forward with generous financial donations to help us reinvent the Geological Museum."

Please contact the UW Foundation if you can help.

$50K met for matching funds

We have met the $50,000 requirement for receiving matching funds for the reinvented museum. Make your check payable to: SH Knight Memorial Fund, and send it to the UW Foundation, 1200 E. Ivinson, Laramie, WY 82070, and your contribution will be matched.

Update on the museum itself:

1. The museum committee applied for and was accepted into a Museum Assessment Program (MAP) sponsored by American Association of Museums. This process will include evaluation, goal setting and recommendations. It will take about six months to complete. But will help provide direction and a strategic plan for the Geological Museum moving forward.

2. In addition, there are some experts who will be on campus for special events and seminars over the next three months who have agreed to give feedback and thoughts on the museum. This will help (along with MAP) the committee with the next steps for the museum.

Funding for the Reinvented Museum

If you would like to contribute to the fundraising efforts for the reinvented Geological Museum on the University of Wyoming campus, please send your check to:

UW Foundation
SH Knight Memorial Fund
1200 E. Ivinson
Laramie, WY 82070

You can also contribute online. Go to:

https://uwsecureweb.uwyo.edu/giveonline/

Be sure to note where your gift should go.

UW Announces Donation to S.H. Knight Memorial Fund

Nov. 5, 2009 -- An endowment fund to support the UW Geological Museum has been created, and a generous gift to that fund has been announced.

The $8,000 gift of The Friends of the S.H. Knight Geological Museum, founded in the wake of the museum's closure on June 30, is the latest donation to the fund, bringing the total to $18,000. The nonprofit community benefit organization raised money last summer to raise awareness and funds to reopen the Geological Museum.

"The Friends are excited to be working with the university to reopen a fully operational museum," says Kelli Trujillo, one of the Friends of the S.H. Knight Museum.

Through the creation of the S.H. Knight Memorial Fund, all donations to this fund will be doubled by the State of Wyoming match. UW President Tom Buchanan and the UW Board of Trustees have committed to match all donations to the Knight Memorial Fund up to $750,000. The matching starts when the Knight Memorial Fund reaches $50,000.

An additional gift of $10,000 to the S.H. Knight Memorial Fund was made by John and Susan Masterson, both UW alumni and longtime supporters in memory of his parents, James A. and Mary W. Masterson.

"We're delighted with these initial gifts, and what they will help us accomplish for the museum and the university," Ben Blalock, UW Foundation president, says. "With this fund, anyone can donate to support the museum."

The fund will be used to cover a range of costs for the museum, including staff, operations, maintenance and renovations to the museum as a whole as well as to individual exhibits, equipment and supplies related to the museum's missions of teaching, research, display and public outreach.

"We're grateful to those who took the time to let us know how they felt," Chuck Brown, president of the UW Board of Trustees, says. "Without them, we wouldn't have the resources we now have to find the best potential uses of the museum facility."

The establishment of the S.H. Knight Memorial Fund follows the generous gift of Brainerd "Nip" and Anne Mears earlier this year through the Anne C. and Brainerd Mears, Jr. Excellence Fund for University of Wyoming Geological Museum. They donated $570,000, matched by Wyoming state funds for a total of $1.14 million.

The Mearses referred to their gift as a tribute to the work of "Doc" Knight, who was instrumental in building UW's geology department and who gave his time and work to create the Geological Museum. Upon the designation of their gift the Mearses spoke of the museum's influence on the thousands of people who have visited and enjoyed what it has to offer.

Blalock says the Knight Fund and the Mearses' gift are the foundation of a major fundraising campaign to support the Geological Museum with private funds.

Hand-in-hand with the two funds is the work that's now under way, supervised by Geology and Geophysics Department Head Art Snoke. He leads a committee of UW faculty and administrators that is evaluating the museum and its potential. The result will be a long-term plan for the museum that supports UW's academic mission.

Snoke says the Knight Memorial Fund and the Friends' gift are important steps in achieving self-sustaining private funds for the museum.

"If we are able to raise funds to use all the matching money, we will have $1.5 million in the S.H. Knight Memorial Fund. When this sum is combined with the Mearses' gift, the endowment funds to support the UW Geological Museum will have reached $2.6 million," Snoke says. "In the long term, we hope that even a larger endowment can be built through continued donations from the public and corporations that support the Geological Museum's mission. Such funds could facilitate developing museum displays, renovating the adjacent museum space, and hiring additional staff to carry out the mission of the museum."

These additional goals are now being considered by the task force that's studying the Geological Museum and developing a plan for its future, Snoke says.

The roots of the Geological Museum reach back to 1887, the year the University of Wyoming opened; it was a small natural history museum that consisted of the personal collection of J.D. Conley, a professor who taught a range of courses including geology, astronomy, physics, commercial arithmetic and bookkeeping, among other things.

As UW grew and expanded, so did the museum, its collections and its displays. Wilbur Knight, hired in 1893 as a professor of mining and geology, succeeded Conley as curator of the museum. It was for Knight that the small fossil fish Knightia was named.

Eventually, the collection outgrew its home in the Hall of Language (now Old Main), and most of it found a new one in a wing of the Mechanical Building. When the Hall of Science was completed in 1902, the museum moved there. It stayed there until 1956, when the current structure was built on the east wing of what is now the S.H. Knight Geology Building.

By that time, Knight's son, Samuel Howell Knight, had worked at the university for more than four decades. In that time, he had developed the UW Geology Department into one of the nation's best, and he started the nationally renowned Summer Science Camp -- the camp that brought Nip and Anne Mears to Wyoming. Knight designed the terra cotta bas-relief Stegosaurus and Triceratops panels on the front of the museum, built the copper Tyrannosaurus rex that guards the museum's entrance, and even painted several of the displays inside the museum. He was also responsible for the initial mounting of the Apatosaurus skeleton that is the centerpiece of the museum.

S.H. Knight was celebrated as Wyoming's "Citizen of the Century" in 1999, and his legacy will live on in the fully funded and operational museum that will result from donations to the S. H. Knight Memorial Fund.

To help reach the matching threshold, visit www.uwyo.edu/giveonline.

Photo:
Museum Friends -- University of Wyoming officials met recently with the Friends of the S.H. Knight Geological Museum to accept an $8,000 gift to support the museum. From left are Geology Department Head Art Snoke; museum friends Kelli Trujillo and Lisa Cox; UW Foundation President Ben Blalock; and museum friend Beth Southwell.

Y'all Come Back

Hi, all. There is a momentary lull in activity surrounding the museum, but please keep coming back to check the blog here because we will have news within a week or so.
Thanks!

Thanks to Mears Family

Casper Star-Tribune, September 10, 2009
Editor:
Being delighted about the recent large donation for the S.H. Knight Geological Museum at the University of Wyoming, I am writing this letter. Dr. Brainerd Mears and his wife, Anne, have enriched the lives of the people of Wyoming by their generosity. I am also grateful to the citizens of the state of Wyoming, by reason the grant of the state of Wyoming in matching funds.
This museum is a tribute to the history of the state of Wyoming, and it will be enjoyed by future generations. Finding and displaying fossils from the state of Wyoming and from the historic past of the world is an integral part of the state's heritage. Wyoming is one of the places where dinosaurs roamed and their skeletal remains have become well known through the museum.
When I was much younger, I studied one summer under Dr. S. H. Knight, who worked hard to establish this museum. He was enthusiastic about his subject, and passed a great deal of knowledge to his students. I especially recall his geological drawings and their accuracy. What a tribute to this great man and the state of Wyoming has been given by this gift.
Thank you for allowing me the privilege of publicly showing my appreciation for this very special museum and the benefactors who have assured its continuance.
RUTH CLARE YONKEE JOHNSON, Thermopolis

Museum Supporters Visit Trustees Meeting

On Thursday. September 10, Jonathan Rader, Beth Southwell, and Lisa Cox attended the public speaking portion of the UWYo Trustees meeting and spoke in support of the geological museum on campus. Rader, a recent grad, gave a personal testimony of his undergraduate research under former curator Brent Breithaupt's mentorship, emphasizing that as a result of his experience, he will be presenting at the upcoming SVP meeting in Bristol, England. Southwell outlined monetary concerns about the way the museum's closing was handled, as well as Breithaupt's particular qualifications and how important internationally-relevant projects had been stopped short because of his firing. She called for a timely return to a fully-operational museum. Cox testified on behalf of the public and the Friends of the SH Knight Geological Museum, who have been continuously ignored by the administration, and urged trustees and President Buchanan to remember their leadership roles at a public, state-funded, land grant university include transparency and accountability to the public served.

An article in the Casper Star-Tribune, linked below, tells more of the story. Following is a link to a letter from Cheyenne from a member of the public also calling for a return to a fully functioning museum, with Breithaupt at the helm.

http://trib.com/news/state-and-regional/article_3b0e142c-7522-5abe-a3ff-0f69908c2861.html

http://trib.com/news/opinion/mailbag/article_edb31bb7-1c4a-5cd1-ae80-a03d0eddb0b7.html

Casper Star-Tribune Editorial: Two Separate Issues

Monday, September 7, 2009 6:34 AM MDT

Star-Tribune Editorial Board

It appears as if the University of Wyoming's S.H. Knight Geological Museum has a future, after all.

But it may not be enough to quell criticism by supporters of the museum who have railed against university officials all summer.

The museum was closed July 1, one of the victims of a 10 percent budget cut at the institution. It lost its entire $80,000 annual budget, including veteran curator Brent Breithaupt's position and two part-time staff members.

After the initial uproar, UW made the misstep of announcing it would reopen the museum part-time with the hiring of a security guard. Supporters viewed it as a meaningless and, in many ways, insulting gesture.

Instead, the facility reopened Aug. 24 with a graduate assistant available to guide visitors. But to some of those who view Breithaupt as synonymous with the museum, nothing short of his reinstatement could ever correct the error of his abrupt dismissal after nearly 30 years on the job.

The latest news on the museum front, however, is encouraging. Longtime UW professor Brainerd Mears and his wife, Anne, started an endowment for the museum with a $570,000 donation. With state matching funds approved by the Legislature to encourage private donations, the endowment will total $1.14 million. It will support general operations, purchase new articles and pay for essential travel expenses.

The fund will also be used to redesign the museum on the Laramie campus. UW Foundation President Ben Blalock said the Mears' gift will be used to ignite major fundraising for the museum.

This is a step in the right direction. For at least a time, the university wasn't at all interested in encouraging private donations to the museum. A June offer by a member of an energy industry association to raise funds for the museum received this e-mail response from UW Provost Myron Allen: "I ... appreciate your willingness to consider soliciting donations that would keep the Geology Museum open. However, I hope you'll consider directing any fundraising initiatives toward other measures -- preferably those that support UW's degree-granting departments.

"We won't hire people into permanent positions using temporary funding, and even if permanent funds became available every dean and department head in the institution can name positions that rank more highly than those lost in the Geology Museum."

Between June and September, that attitude appears to have changed, no doubt in large part to the protests of museum supporters. Some suggested alumni withhold donations to the university until the museum is reopened full-time and Breithaupt is given his position back. That doesn't seem likely to happen.

UW appears to have treated Breithaupt shabbily. He was on a business trip to Switzerland when he learned -- from his family, not the university -- that the museum was closing and his position was one of 45 at UW to be terminated. In the eyes of many people, UW officials may never atone for that mistake. The loss of Breithaupt's expertise is immense.

But the Geological Museum is bigger than any one person, and the new endowment will give it a new life. We hope supporters will be persuaded to set aside their anger at the institution and encourage donations so its existence is never again placed in jeopardy.

What Next?

All of you who have visited the blog or visited with us in person and via e-mail, we would like to thank you for your vocal and continued support of the museum through closure. Because of you, we will have a geological museum again, a unique historical, scientific and educational Wyoming gem on the University of Wyoming campus.

We would especially like to thank the Mears family, who have made such a generous gift to the museum so that the ball can roll in the direction of reinvention. Imagine; finally, after years of talking and wishing, those who visit and use the museum will have one that is even better than before. It's unfortunate that a crisis had to arise in order for the magnitude of importance of the museum to be realized by the upper echelon of university administration, but they finally seem to understand.

We would also like to thank Department of Geology and Geophysics Head Art Snoke for the effort he has expended in concert with Foundation Director Ben Blalock to establish a fund using the Mears gift that will be used exclusively for the museum.

As specifics are yet unavailable regarding the fund, we caution you not to cut a check to the University of Wyoming. You cannot be assured the money will be used for the museum. The Friends of the SH Knight Geological Museum maintains our nonprofit status through the Laramie Community Foundation. This is a safe place for you to send a check; all money received in that account will be applied to the museum once the red tape is removed.

Please make your check payable to: Laramie Community Foundation, Memo: Friends of the SH Knight Geological Museum, 505 S. Third, Suite 100, Laramie, WY 82070.

Remember, a battle was won, but the terms of agreement are not yet secure. We will continue to pursue the details and report back to you.

Additionally, now is a great time for you to let the Friends know: What do you think is important for the museum's future? Paleontologists, geologists, educators, museum specialists, families, all of you who know the importance of the geological museum, know why it is significant and must be revived. Please comment here on this blog post, or send your thoughts in writing to dinos82071@gmail.com or Friends of the SH Knight Geological Museum, PO Box 1928, Laramie, WY 82073.

The committee convened to reinvent the museum is composed of several people of varied expertise. Your suggestions to the Friends will be shared with that group as we move forward.

Thanks as always for your continued support of the geological museum as we move forward.
Respectfully,
Lisa

Couple gives museum dino-sized donation

The state will match the Laramie couple's $570,000 gift, giving new life to UW's geological museum.

By Bill McCarthy
bmccarthy@wyomingnews.com

CHEYENNE -- A retired University of Wyoming geology professor and his wife have donated enough money to give new life to the S.H. Knight Geological Museum.

Brainerd "Nip" and Anne Mears of Laramie contributed $570,000 to establish an endowment to support the UW geological museum.

The long-time university benefactors' latest donation will be matched by the state, creating an endowment of $1.4 million.

"Nip" Mears, a professor emeritus of geology, retired after 40 years with UW. He came to UW in 1949.

Anne Mears is a UW alum.

The couple's support of the museum is a tribute to Samuel H. "Doc" Knight, a legendary geologist and early museum curator who is credited with bringing the UW Department of Geology into national prominence.

"Continuing his legacy, I think, was important to a great many people," Anne Mears said.

The museum closed to the public June 30 as part of an $18.3 million state budget cut that took effect July 1. It reopened part-time Aug. 24 without a curator.

A group called Friends of S.H. Knight Museum has been raising money to reopen the museum full-time with a curator on a sustainable basis.

Members of Friends of S.H. Knight Museum said they are excited about the Mearses' gift and will continue to raise more money.

Friends spokeswoman Lisa Cox said, "I can assure you that the Friends is thrilled the endowment will go forward so those who have been concerned can contribute knowing the money will be used exclusively for the geological museum.

"The public gets their unique scientific, historical and educational treasure back, though the former curator will not be at the helm at this time."

"Friends is very pleased that the Geology Department, and (Geology Professor) Art Snoke specifically, was able to secure this gift for the museum, and we are very hopeful for the future of the museum," said Kelli Trujillo, another active member of Friends.

UW President Tom Buchanan appointed a task force led by Snoke to develop a long-term plan.

The plan will focus on redesigning the museum to bolster the reputation of the Department of Geology and Geophysics, enhance opportunities for training the next generation of Wyoming science teachers and expand its coverage of Earth sciences.

In a news release, Snoke said, "The new museum will maintain all of the aspects that have made it beloved by the people of Wyoming and will expand into the fields of energy and environment."

The Mearses' gift will help to launch a major fundraising drive to support the museum.

"This gift is not the only gift that is expected," UW spokeswoman Jessica Lowell said.

http://www.wyomingnews.com/articles/2009/09/04/featured_story/01top_09-04-09.txt

Mearses' Gift Bolsters UW Geological Museum's Research and Education Mission

Sept. 3, 2009 -- Long time University of Wyoming benefactors Brainerd "Nip" and Anne Mears of Laramie have contributed $570,000 to establish an endowment to support the UW Geological Museum. Matched by the state of Wyoming, the $1.14 million endowment will elevate the museum's national prominence in geological research and education.

For more:
http://www.uwyo.edu/news/showrelease.asp?media=y&id=34401

Montana's News Station Got It Right

Short and to the point, KTVQ's article, linked here, listed the facts of the recent AP release.

http://www.ktvq.com/Global/story.asp?S=10984907

Article and Corrections

Here is a link to an article in today's Wyoming Tribune Eagle:

http://www.wyomingnews.com/articles/2009/08/25/news/20local_08-25-09.txt.

Please note that I have added a couple corrections in the form of a comment, which should appear after the article on the comments board.

Respectfully,
Lisa

Correction on Hours

Here is a correction of the hours listed by the University of Wyoming press release of 8/22 and the Sunday Boomerang article, per Art Snoke, Department Head, Department of Geology and Geophysics:


...article on the front page of the Sunday (8/23), Boomerang lists incorrect information about the opening hours of the UW Geological Museum. The UW Geological Museum will be open TWThF from 1:00 pm-4:00 pm, Sat. 10:00 am-2 pm, and Sunday, noon-4:00 pm. Please note that there are different opening hours for Saturday and Sunday. I realize that the UW News Release of August 22nd titled: "UW Geological Museum Opens Tuesday" also listed incorrect hours for Sunday. We have posted notices on the doors to the UW Geological Museum to inform visitors of the correct opening hours.

Statement and Thanks

First, thanks to the folks at Turtle Rock Coffee for collecting $35 donations for the Friends of the SH Knight Geological Museum effort. You can find a link to Turtle Rock's website on our "Supporting Businesses" sidebar. This has been a preferred location for Friends meetings this summer.

In response to the many questions asked of us with the advent of the fall semester and announcement of part-time museum hours in a Saturday, August 22, university press release, the Friends of the SH Knight Geological Museum issues the following statement:
 University of Wyoming administration decided to close the geological museum on campus effective July 1. A nonprofit community benefit organization, the Friends acknowledges the public’s general disagreement with this decision, expressed in letters to state and university leaders and newspaper editors, signing of petitions, and direct correspondence with the Friends.
 A Saturday, July 18, university press release announcing the decision to reopen the museum part-time with security in place resulted in further outcry from the general public, university alumni and scientific , education, and museum communities through additional letters, editorials, professional statements and participation in an online newspaper survey.
 In direct response to the August 22 press release stating “the UW Foundation provided funding for a part-time security guard to ensure the safety of the collection,” the Friends understands that in the 122 years of existence of the geological museum, those visiting from the university and wider communities had done so for the learning opportunity and that the museum display collections must be protected for the people, not from the people. In addition, presence of a curator during those years enhanced visitors’ interaction with the displays.
 University administration has stated that state budget cuts were the sole factor in the closure of the museum. State block grant funding had provided the museum’s entire $80,000 annual operating budget, including curator and office assistant salaries, utilities and other operating expenses. The museum itself did not have a development director and was prohibited from seeking larger outside financial contributions over the years.
 Despite these constraints, the curator was able to maintain a museum recognized not only locally and across the State of Wyoming, but nationally and internationally as well, as a topnotch scientific, educational and research facility.
 The museum brought uncalculated economic benefit to Laramie and the state, including from tourists all across the country who planned vacations to Wyoming just to see Big Al.
 With the sudden June announcement that the museum would close on July 1, those of the general public and scientific, educational and museum communities who know firsthand the value of the museum have helped bring awareness to the administration of its importance.
 Now that administration has agreed to convene a university group and to allow the Department of Geology and Geophysics to pursue a plan for a fully staffed reopening of the museum in the future, the Friends looks forward positively. We will continue to collect and hold contributions to this effort in our nonprofit account through the Laramie Community Foundation, 505 S. Third Street, Suite 100, Laramie, WY 82070.
 The Friends does not agree with the present part-time solution and has not relinquished monies given the organization to the part-time opening of the museum with a security guard. As we maintain our mission to pursue fully functional status of the museum, we will turn over those funds only to an option in which monies are insured to be used solely for this purpose.
Questions may be directed to dinos82071@gmail.com

Article in Sunday Boomerang

UW Geological Museum reopens this week

By PETER BAUMANN
Boomerang Staff Writer

After being closed for nearly two months, the S.H. Knight Geological Museum will reopen its doors to students and the public at 1 p.m. Tuesday.

But things won’t be exactly as they were before: When the museum was overseen by former curator Brent Breithaupt, the facility operated on an $80,000 annual budget which allowed it to be open 40 hours per week. That funding came to UW in the Wyoming Legislature’s block grant of nearly $200 million.

Now, the museum will be open 20 hours per week: from 1-4 p.m. Tuesdays through Fridays and from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays during the academic year.

It is also being funded by monies provided by the University of Wyoming Foundation to the tune of $8,000 per semester, UW Communications Director Jessica Lowell said.

“The plan is to have someone there during those hours (of operation). These were funds that the foundation could spend on anything, so the foundation and (UW Foundation President) Ben Blaylock stepped up and found this money so we could staff it and get it open to the public again,” Lowell said.

The funds provided will pay a part-time security guard to oversee the museum and collections.

The Geological Museum was closed as just one of the many steps that UW took to cut 10 percent — or $18.3 million — from the annual budget at the request of Gov. Dave Freudenthal.

Peter Baumann’s e-mail address is lbedit9@laramieboomerang.com

Another Saturday Press Release

News Release

UW Geological Museum Opens Tuesday Aug. 22, 2009 --The University of Wyoming Geological Museum will be open on a part time basis beginning Tuesday, Aug. 25. The museum hours will be 1-4 p.m. Tuesdays through Fridays and from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays during the 2009-0 academic year. It will be closed Mondays. The museum is able to open because the UW Foundation provided funding for a part-time security guard to ensure the safety of the collection. UW President Tom Buchanan has thanked the Foundation for its support in securing funding to make the collections accessible for public viewing. The museum closed June 30 as one of a series of steps taken to meet an $18.3 million state budget cut that took effect July 1. Posted on Saturday, August 22, 2009

7th Grader's Petition

The Friends of the S.H. Knight Geological Museum had a V.I.P. stop by the booth at Farmer's Market on Friday, August 21st.

Kyle Gonzales, the 7th Grader who started the petition to "Please reopen the geological museum"; stopped by the booth to say hello. We were able to show him that 1363 individuals, many from out of state as well as out of the country have signed the petition.

We would like to thank everyone that has taken the time to sign the petition and support Kyle in his wish to reopen the museum. The Friends would also like to thank Kyle for his initiative in starting this signature drive and giving the people of Laramie an opportunity to show their support.

Apologies

All, my laptop crashed last week before I was able to save the database on an external hard drive. I have three letters written and ready to send to people saying thank you for your recent donation to Friends of the SH Knight Geological Museum; unfortunately, I no longer have the addresses for these folks so cannot send them. Therefore, I will thank you all publicly and ask that you e-mail Friends with a mailing address for future reference. I apologize for the inconvenience.

Thank you:
Mr. and Mrs. Burns
Ms. Bahnsen and Kenworthy
Mr. Capozella

A quick reminder that Friends will be set up at the Laramie Farmers Market this afternoon from 3-7 with new t-shirts for sale to show your support of the museum. Stop in and see us!

Respectfully,
Lisa