There was little available parking on Saturday morning at the Stettler Town and County Museum as people gathered to peruse a barn full of donated items for sale and enjoy a pancake and ham breakfast.
The annual fundraisers are usually held separately, but a cool and slow spring led the museum’s manager, Karen Wahlund, to combine the two during the first weekend in June.
The June 4 garage sale brought in about $880, and the pancake breakfast nearly $1,100, Wahlund said, a generous amount considering the number of events going on the same day.
Without the fundraisers, Wahlund said the museum wouldn’t be able to offer the programming it does, and would have to scale back some of its displays.
There are 26 historic buildings and new buildings on the 10 acres of land devoted to the museum, buildings which host exhibits and displays that pay tribute to both the Town of Stettler and the communities that make up the County of Stettler.
This year, a new agricultural building will be hosting a display of Minneapolis tractors, and a special exhibit is coming in from Edmonton featuring the history of the Estonian settlers who settled much of Central Alberta.
The largest congregation of Estonian settlers was in the Linda Hall area, which is south of the Town of Stettler.
The museum is also running a special Canada Day event, and admission that day is free for everyone, making it a perfect day to bring the family to learn about the area’s history and enjoy some of the special games and activities set up by museum staff and volunteers.
Another special project in the works at the museum is the creation of a market area, meant to be used by local merchants to display hand-crafted items. The market would be for people to show off their handiwork and would run during the summer months, if not longer, depending on the market’s success, Wahlund noted.
“Without our volunteers, we couldn’t run,” Wahlund said, adding that about 12 people came out and volunteered their time to make the garage sale and pancake breakfast a success. The museum hosts a special volunteer appreciation day in August to thank their many volunteers.
The Stettler Town and County Museum is open during the summer seven days a week between 10 a.m. and 5:30 p.m. Admission is $5/adult, $4/seniors, $3/students (kids 6-16) and under six admitted for free.