Summer 2007 is a perfect time to take a deep breath and reflect on the remarkable successes that our museum has enjoyed since the last newsletter. The Burke Museum, as the Washington State Museum, has played a central role in the intellectual lives of Washingtonians for more than a century. This museum’s importance was resoundingly acknowledged by the State Legislature this spring with the inclusion in the budget of a new $1 million biennial allocation to expand the Burke’s teaching-of-science mission for our K-12 children and their families. This funding rewards the tireless efforts of Burke staff, who braved I-5 traffic every Wednesday morning at 5:30am for three months to meet face-to-face with our legislators in Olympia. Clearly, the message of the Burke’s innovative excellence in science education was heard loud and clear by our legislators.

On the heels of this extraordinary legislative victory, our curators hosted a Curator’s Dinner and Auction in April that exceeded our wildest expectations. The generosity of the Burke’s patrons truly shone that evening as the bidding for a suite of special curator-led adventures reached a frenzied pace. These new funds, along with our record-breaking annual-fund efforts, have supplied the Burke with a pool of new resources with which to create and implement a host of exciting and transformative programs to bring science and culture to Washington’s children. You’ll be hearing much more about these programs in the upcoming months.

Have a wonderful and sunny summer.

More Information: