Letter from the President D ear F rie n ds,
Spring is one of my favorite times of the year. Not only because I once again have the chance to photograph the wildlife and landscape as they awaken from their winter slumber, but because The Finger Lakes Museum progress also begins to “spring” forward by leaps and bounds. The Museum’s activity during these past winter months however, was far from dormant. The accomplishments and milestones achieved to date have once again left me humbled and thankful to all of you for your endless encouragement and support. The most notable achievements of all being that we successfully reached our Founders Campaign goal and were granted Governor Andrew Cuomo’s award of $2.3 million through his Regional Economic Development initiative. In January, we announced the success of our Founders Campaign. The Board of Trustees had established a goal of raising $1 million by last December 31st and it was exceeded by nearly $14,000. My personal thanks go to all of you who were so generous and instrumental in helping us to get there. As you read on the front page, the funding from Governor Cuomo will transform the former Branchport Elementary School into The Finger Lakes Museum Discovery Campus. Ground-breaking is tentatively scheduled for this summer with a ribbon-cutting ceremony slated for Earth Day - April 22nd, 2013. Earlier this year at 81 Brown’s Race in the historic High Falls district of downtown Rochester, the Museum opened it’s first satellite office. This location is being used primarily for project development, allowing staff and board members to meet with potential donors, sponsors, and supporters from the Rochester area. In February of this year, six-year-old Broden Herron, a first-grader at Frank Knight Elementary School in Seneca Falls, won the Museum’s Name the Eagle contest This program was the first school-based program led by the Museum’s Education Committee. See page 7 to learn more about our Education Committee’s future plans. I was encouraged to see the involvement of so many schools and students in the Finger Lakes region and look forward to their continued involvement in the months to come. We recently launched our 2012 Annual Campaign, Preserving your Passions. The funds raised will help the Museum create and deliver educational programming, develop the Discovery Campus, and much more. The goal is to raise $450,000. Please consider giving to this campaign or visit our additional ways to give page on our website, www. fingerlakesmuseum.org, to support the Museum in more ways than one. To donate to the Museum’s Annual Fund, again, visit our website or use the enclosed envelope. Your continued support is needed and greatly appreciated! In deciding on this year’s program series, “Vine to Wine: Savor our Finger Lakes”, we agreed that the history of grape-growing and winemaking was just the right choice. The program is being developed by SUNY Geneseo professor emeritus Dr. Gary Cox and his team of wine historians. If you would like to help underwrite the cost of this program, please contact me at jadamski@fingerlakesmuseum.org to discuss sponsorship opportunities. Saving the best for last, I am pleased to announce the Board’s appointment of Richard Lane (pictured at right) from Salt Lake City as The Finger Lakes Museum’s new Development Director. Richard brings over 20 years of extensive senior level experience in the non-profit sector to our project. While serving four nationallyrecognized organizations, he has worked on major capital campaigns, including construction projects that ranged from $12 million to $18 million. He has broad experience in community outreach and advocacy, and has worked diligently with non-profit boards to accomplish those projects. Please join me in welcoming Richard aboard and supporting him in a very challenging task. A big Thank You again to all of you and to Governor Cuomo and his staff, for believing in and supporting The Finger Lakes Museum!
- John Adamski
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