John Brown, acting president Wolfville Historical Society, told town council on Jan. 8 about three months of work by an ad hoc committee to reinvigorate the society.
Key financial issues have been dealt with and Brown reported that the financial picture for the operation of Randall House has improved with “rather handsomely donations, grants and savings due to the loss of paid staff.”
He said it is now reasonable to expect a “surplus of perhaps $5,000. Better days are ahead and new members are adding energy.”
The society plans to make a formal request for the continuation of financial support from the town.
Derek Watts offered that Randall House is the second-oldest house in Wolfville with a 71-year history of preserving collections. He added that the clothing and textile collection is considered the finest in province.
He said digitization is currently the focus.
Antony Harding discussed the challenges facing the society and new reasons for visitors to come to the house.
Harding called the museum an “overwhelming asset” to town and suggested that the community will likely be engaged by an exploration in 2014 of the First World War.
Three new board members have stepped forward, he noted.
