Tag: Donors

ovenstown registration building 1971 canvas print
Museum

Moving Forward

Clayton McLain Memorial Museum

NEW TECHNOLOGIES COMING THIS WAY

ovenstown registration building 1971 canvas print
Ovenstown Registration circa 1971, canvas print hanging in the Duvall House

Back in the day, people carried cash or wrote cheques for admission to the CMMM. Donations, again, either by cash or cheque, were delivered in person or via Canada Post. There are many individuals who still carry cash and write cheques, but there are many, many others who don’t, and the Museum sees the difference.

Museum Admission

Admission is by donation and includes a guided tour of the Heritage buildings. Tours ensure the safety of visitors and the preservation of artefacts. Comments in the Visitors’ Book often express delight and appreciation for the tour, and for the guide who provided answers and shared additional anecdotes.

Visitors who arrive without cash in their pocket are still offered a tour. Some will make a quick trip to a cash machine and return momentarily. Others will leave with regrets. Those without cash-on-hand also miss the opportunity to purchase one of the local histories or gift items on display in the Duvall House.

Donations

The CMMM continues to receive annual contributions by cheque from long-time donors. Cash donations also come in at the Duvall House during Coffee Afternoons or with an Admission. All of these are put to good use: some on building repairs, some on exhibit maintenance; some on supplies i.e. printer ink, paper, laminating plastic, and so much more.

Alternatives to Cash & Cheques

Auto-deposit: This past fall, around the time of the Brick Fundraiser, the Museum enabled auto-deposit. No more security questions / answers required. It’s a relief for everyone. Use cmmmcutknife@gmail.com. One long-time donor used it recently for an annual contribution!

Canada Helps: This is a charity set up to facilitate online giving. Board members who have used it in the past recommend it as very user-friendly. To donate once, or monthly, click on the blue/green DONATE button on the Museum website to take you to the form, or visit our Canada Helps page here. Payment options are credit card, PayPal, or Google Pay. Canada Helps provides the tax receipt.

P.O.S. System (i.e. tap): We’ve done our research for internet service to the Duvall House and are eagerly awaiting its installation (date to be determined). It will enable a point-of-sale system to be available to visitors for admissions and / or donations. We’ll be announcing it’s arrival. Stay tuned!

As always, we are grateful for monetary donations of any amount but the community’s support also means so much i.e. attendance at events, word-of-mouth support to neighbours and friends, purchase of gift-shop items, sharing our posts on social media, and volunteering your time and energies to help with projects. Thank you!

~ Debbie M.

Museum

What’s Happening Here?

Clayton McLain Memorial Museum

In 2020, a foundation wall on the Ovenstown building washed out due to record-setting rains. The building was subsequently demolished. Utilities to the site were relocated to the opposite side of the road, and some rough landscaping was done to make the area serviceable for the 2021 season. This year, we’re now able to complete the clean-up of the former Ovenstown site and make a few additional improvements on the grounds.

loads of top soil on the former ovenstown site
A few loads of top soil sitting on the former Ovenstown site

Five loads of top soil were delivered to the Museum on Thursday, June 30. We are sending our sincere thanks and appreciation to these generous community members: Rick Bullerwell and Veikle Agro Inc. for the soil; the R.M of Cut Knife for trucking it in, and the Town of Cut Knife for spreading it for us.

The soil will be used to finish up the Ovenstown site, top up the trenching, fill up some low spots, and add some good soil for flowers around the Duvall House. The Museum is going to shine!

topsoil and low spots to fill
One of the low-lying spots needing fill

~ Debbie M.

Board

Opal Margot’s Bequest

Clayton McLain Memorial Museum

Recently, the Clayton McLain Memorial Museum and Archives was the surprise recipient of a bequest of $5,000 from the Estate of Opal Margot. The Board of Trustees is so very grateful she thought that highly of the Museum to want to support it in this way. It will take some serious discussions to decide the use for which this gift will best be utilized.

Opal Margot

Opal Margot arrived in Cut Knife in 1942 to begin work at the Hospital, fresh from training in Regina. She spent a few years at the Salt Spring Island Hospital during the War but returned to Cut Knife in 1946 to marry Lou Margot. They spent their married life operating a succession of stores, from a general store to a self-serve store of dry goods and groceries, and later a variety store. After Lou died, Opal worked as a Visiting Homemaker with the Hiway 40 Homemaker Service. She passed away on April 11, 2021 at 101 years.

In spite of all the ups and downs I have always found the people of Cut Knife the greatest and if home is where the heart is – then Cut Knife is surely home to me and I am proud to be a part of the community that my husband and his brothers and sisters and parents have played such a vital role in developing.

Opal Margot, Where the Cut Knife Waters Flow, vol. 1, 1980

Over the years, many, many individuals and families have also decided that the Clayton McLain Memorial Museum is worth supporting financially. It’s worth the price of their admission, the purchase of a raffle ticket or a coffee and slice of pie, or the donation of their hard-earned dollars. We are very thankful that so many with a connection to the Cut Knife area recognize the value of having a Museum and Archives in their community and want to keep one here.

~ Debbie M.

Board

Royal Purple Donation

Clayton McLain Memorial Museum

In June, the Clayton McLain Memorial Museum was one of five local organizations that received a $1000 donation from the Cut Knife Royal Purple. The museum is thankful for their recognition of our role in the community and very grateful for their support.

The other recipient organizations were the Cut Knife Municipal Library, the Cut Knife & District Recreation Board, Cut Knife Country Lanes, and the Cut Knife Senior Citizen Recreation Centre. All five organizations have been recognized as vital to the community.

Twila Loranger presented the cheques at the Innovation Credit Union on Broad Street.

president of cmmm receiving royal purple donation
Twila Loranger, Royal Purple, presenting Colton Stapley, President of the CMMM (and son) with cheque.

“The Cut Knife Royal Purple is a fun-loving, dynamic, dedicated, group of volunteers. We are proud to work towards helping children and our community.”