Kimiko Hawkes: keeping the SC Museum in our future

Kimiko Hawkes, with Heather McEadie, great grandaughter of George Gibson

Every time I get an email, Facebook message, or calendar event posting request, I am reminded of how lucky the Sunshine Coast is to have attracted – and retained for almost 4 years now – Kimiko Hawkes as the Manager & Curator.

Kimiko seems to have boundless energy, and a contagious enthusiasm for history, culture and art as it relates to places and people. Even in the dead of winter, in the no-stat-holiday wasteland that is February there’s a couple of great events scheduled: the Puppet Making Workshop & Play Day Extravaganza on February 17 & 18 at the Museum, and the 11th Annual Antiques Roadshow Fundraiser and Heritage Fair on the 25th in the Sunnycrest Mall.

The SCMA Facebook page is both active and relevant, including content from the Museum’s blog, YouTube, quizzes and polls, archival footage – I’m off shortly to watch the interview with Robert Clothier (Relic from ‘The Beachcombers’ iconic TV series) – and gifts from the breadcrumb trail from staff research out in the vast and fertile Internet.

I’ve also run into Kimiko at the Annual Powell Street Festival in Vancouver where she ran a booth of hand-crafted art and gifts, which explains her knack for creating great looking posters and collateral for SCMA events, and her smile loses none of its wattage off-Coast.

Curatorial Assistant (and musician) Matthew Lovegrove at Gibson Day 2011

Also a boon to the coast is Curatorial Assistant Matthew Lovegrove, who joined the SCMA in the spring of 2011. He has a background ranging from English, Parks Officer, Educational Assistant, and runs a consultancy business offering heritage consultation services. He is a big fan of new technologies powering older stories:the SCMA blog announced today that Matthew is ‘in the process of developing a digital heritage walking tour’ – a great combination of high-tech and rock solid history, and something to watch for.

Of course, curators and staff are only as good as the Board behind them, and the SCMA board is no exception. Just take a look at any of the Sunshine Coast Museum & Archives Society publications (Connections) and you’ll see how active they are in our community, and of course many community individuals and businesses have also stepped up to the (historical keepsake) plate and supported the various exhibits every year.

Because of the people involved, the energy surrounding the Sunshine Coast Museum & Archives Society and public presence through the physical location in Lower Gibsons, there are many ways the average person can become involved in retaining our vibrant cultural identity through understanding our own history. Be a greeter, keep the artifacts and displays looking their best as a cleaner, transcribe oral stories into digital form, super-sleuth both the easily recognizable and obscure to expand the collection, get involved in annual events, help tend the garden outside the building, or throw a couple of hours in once in a while on building maintenance tasks.

It’s through the work of you and I, our neighbours and businesses around us, and through the magic of staff with their insight, enthusiasm and vision, that we best honour and protect our way of life in our itty-bitty, gritty with history Sunshine Coast.

SCMA CONTACT INFORMATION:

Open: Tuesday to Saturday 10:30am to 4:30pm

716 Winn Road, P.O.Box 766
Gibsons, BC Canada V0N-1V0
604-886-8232
scm_a@dccnet.com