Bigger, better musuem just around the corner
Saturday, 15 August 2009
By Rusty Nixon
Correspondent
PLYMOUTH — There is one thing that Marshall County Museum Director Linda Rippy is looking forward to. "The space,” she said. “We’ll have the place to put things and be able to spread out and put everything on the main floor.”
Renovations on the Museum’s building has had things crunched for quite awhile, but as the construction nears a close, Rippy is beginning to realize the wait was worth it.
“In the beginning you don’t know what you’re getting,” she said. “Everything is just gutted and torn up. Then they bring in the paint and the flooring – I’m very pleased with what I’m seeing. It’s even better than I imagined it would be.”
Now the hardest part is waiting. “I’m sure they’re tired of me asking ‘When are you going to be done?’”, said Rippy with a laugh. The expansion and reconstruction of the buildings housing the Museum are a good reason for Rippy to be excited. The larger space will allow Rippy to expand exhibits and bring things out of the basement, something that she has felt was a safety concern.
“I’ve always worried about people getting up and down those stairs,” she said. “I’ve always felt that was a safety concern and now we won’t have to worry about it anymore.
“We’ll be able to house traveling exhibits and have more school groups and larger school groups come in. We’ll have stations and areas to sit down with kids and actually have PowerPoint presentations and pictures of how life really was.” It will also allow the Museum to work together with other entities. “We’re hoping to do work that will coincide with the library,” said Rippy. “There are certain grants that are available if we work together and partner with them. We’re hoping to take advantage of that.”