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Changing of the guard at the Museum

Shannon Jorgenson, first manager of the LCMA

The Board of the Lake Country Heritage and Cultural Society regretfully accepted the resignation of Shannon Jorgenson, the Manager of the Lake Country Museum and Archives. Shannon was the first manager of the Museum and was thus responsible for establishing many of the procedures for operating the Museum. Her work was multifaceted. She managed the day-to-day operations and she trained and supervised museum volunteers, summer students, and occasional researchers. Shannon was a very successful grant writer and project manager, especially for exhibitions published with the Virtual Museum of Canada, including the Japanese-Canadian Pioneers of Lake Country and Applebox Belles: The Women of Lake Country’s Packinghouses. She edited and published two significant booklets for the Museum, Spirit of Lake Country: Heritage and Culture and Kakonosedai: A Century of Community. The latest successful grants are for the digitization of the Rainbow Ranche collection held by the Museum. Shannon has worked diligently on community outreach through such projects as History Pins, the Heritage Driving Tour, school programs, historical panels in the Oyama Community Hall and strong collaboration with UBCO.

We thank Shannon for her diligence and initiatives in her more than seven years as Manager. Shannon has accepted the position of Managing Director of the Central Okanagan Heritage Society based in Kelowna. Those of you who would like to send Shannon your good wishes in her new position could contact her at sjorgenson.cohs@telus.net.

Julie Trewartha, current manager of the LCMA

The Lake Country Museum and Archives now welcomes Julie Trewartha, as our new Manager, who started her new position at the beginning of May. Julie has a strong background in the non-profit and cultural sector. While living in Ottawa her most recent position was with Habitat for Humanity. There, she was responsible for fundraising and grant applications as well as volunteer management. Prior to that, she assisted the Director of L. A. Pai Gallery, and was a Resource Coordinator for the Ottawa School of Art.

Julie, her husband and her young son, moved to Lake Country at the end of January in order to enjoy the outdoor lifestyle, and to experience what the Okanagan has to offer. We are very pleased that she accepted the position of Manager of the Lake Country Museum and Archives.

Julie begins her immersion in the work of the Museum and Archives with a major funded project to supervise: preparing the extensive range of Rainbow Ranche records for digitization. These records document the Rainbow Ranche from 1906 to its sale in 1949. There are ledgers, payroll records, farm diaries and an extensive range of correspondence, kept by the manager and part-owner, James Goldie. This project, funded thanks to a grant from the Central Okanagan Foundation, with further support from UBC’s Irving K. Barber Learning Centre, is the central focus for the work of one of our two summer students. In addition to overseeing this project, Julie will be ensuring that the Museum is open and ready for our six day a week summer opening schedule, and preparing to welcome summer visitors.

1 Comment

  • We are sorry to hear Shannon is leaving us and wish her well in her new position in Kelowna. She has been a wonderful asset to our Museum while she has been here.
    Welcome to Julie and her family. We look forward to meeting her.
    Sincerely, Peter and Joyce Short

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