DEL NORTE— After four and a half months of cleaning, sorting and building repairs, Rio Grande County Museum is now open. Exhibits are being worked on for the upcoming season and a calendar of events will soon be available.
The museum staff would like to thank the following people who gave their time to the museum during this disaster: The Rio Grande County road and bridge crew, the Rio Grande County custodial staff, Steve and Mark Nicolais, Alex Colville, Gene Glover, Karla Shriver, Roni Wisdom, Mike Hurst, DeAnn Jacobs, Lil Davis, Mark Niederquell and David Yoder. They all waded ankle deep, cold water to move and protect the artifacts and fixtures. Fellow museum directors Sue Getz, Jane Rhett and Peg Schall came to the museum as advisors to help start the clean-up process. There were others who gave their time and support during this process as well.
During the last four months Kyndra Powell sorted, boxed and labeled the clothing, quilt, cultural blankets and linens collection. The Nicolaises and Steve’s grandson, Braden Whitehill have placed shelves into the appropriate areas for the boxed artifacts, moved boxes and cleaned up the museum rooms to ready them for the exhibits.
The High Valley Community Center children are volunteering time in the mentoring program to assist with the next phase of getting the exhibits in place and the collections in order.
It has been a community project to get the museum up and running and the staff are looking forward to a fun and successful year. Museum hours are Tuesday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m  For more information, please contact the museum at 657-2847 or at [email protected]. Follow them on Facebook for weekly stories and more information.