Posted: Thursday, May 22, 2014 6:30 am

Joe Keiper

You have been reading recently about the Virginia Museum of Natural History and our aspirations to create an interpretive center associated with Downtown Waynesboro. Many people ask me “Why Waynesboro?” and I have good answers.

Your region has tremendous natural resources that can help us, as an informal learning institution, underscore valuable science lessons for children. We work hard to help teachers prepare students to succeed in the sciences. With tremendous water resources, the Shenandoah National Park, the South River, Constitution Park, and other natural features, we will conduct our mission within a short distance of the natural wonders that drive our science lessons.

 Working with the non-profit Center for Coldwaters Restoration, as well as City Council and Waynesboro Downtown Development, Inc., we feel very welcome in Waynesboro. The museum will fit into the renaissance of your city and compliment all that is going on in your region. Our goal is not just to reach more citizens with our science, but to draw people into the downtown from surrounding areas such as the Shenandoah National Park and the Blue Ridge Parkway. This benefits the city and the museum. We can touch a different audience with exhibits and education programs while these visitors support shops, restaurants, and other downtown venues.

I need your help to move forward. You may have read we are in the process of raising $25,000 to hire a design firm to create what is essentially the master plan that will illustrate what our exhibits and programs will look like, define what kind of building we will need, and help us determine the optimal location for an interpretive center in Waynesboro. I have done a lot of homework over the past three years working with CCR, interested citizens, and city officials. Sometimes the steps seem painstakingly slow, but there is a right way to proceed and patience is always needed. I hope to reveal to all of you what an interpretive center will look like in the Downtown. Couple that with the feasibility study my colleagues and I conducted last year, and you will all see that we can do this and that we will succeed hand-in-hand.

Please consider supporting this effort in any way you can. You can do so by searching for the Virginia Museum of Natural History on kickstarter.com or you can mail a tax-deductible contribution to Virginia Museum of Natural History, PO Box 839, Waynesboro, VA  22980. Please make checks payable to VMNH-Waynesboro. We’ll send you a charitable contribution letter for your records, and you will have my deep appreciation.

To that end, I will be at the Waynesboro Farmer’s Market on Wednesday, May 28 from 4 to 6 p.m.  Please consider stopping by and learning more about our project, what it will mean for local tourism, and what a resource it will be for your teachers and school children. I look forward to seeing you there.

Joe B. Keiper

Executive Director

Virginia Museum of Natural History