Stuhr Museum, (Brian Neben, Central Nebraska Today)
The Nebraska State Historical Society Foundation (NSHSF) is pleased to announce the grant recipients of the 2024 Statewide Grants Program.
This program helps local organizations across the state with projects that preserve the history of their communities. Forty-nine organizations representing 42 Nebraska communities received grants this year including the Anna Bemis Palmer Museum, Scotts Bluff National Monument, Plainview Historical Society, Front Street Cowboy Museum, Battle Creek Community Development, Custer County Museum and Stuhr Museum Foundation. The full list of recipients can be seen on the website.
These quotes demonstrate the impact the grants have on these local communities:
“Please accept our immense thanks for being selected as a grant recipient. We look forward to accomplishing tasks over this next year. All the best to you and the Nebraska State Historical Society Foundation team. Organizations like the Otoe County Museum of Memories in Syracuse couldn’t do it without you!”
– Deb McWilliams, a volunteer with the Otoe County Museum of Memories
“I just wanted to thank NSHSF again for funding AHSGR’s Disaster Cart last year. On July 6, when Lincoln suffered from flash flooding, AHSGR had some water leakage in our basement. Thanks to our Disaster Cart, I and the rest of the staff were able to respond quickly and efficiently because we had everything we needed at our fingertips. I sucked up almost 5 inches of water in the wet/dry vac NSHSF funded. We also put our new fans to good use and used the water absorbent socks (aka PIGs) in case we had more water through that rainy week. We were very lucky that no artifacts or books were damaged, but so grateful we had everything we needed to take care of it if it did.”
– Karen Keehr, Archivist, American Historical Society of Germans from Russia
NSHSF received 84 grant applications in the 2024 grant cycle to fulfill needs such as conservation of collections, public programming, outreach, exhibits, promotion of the facility and services,
promotion of tourism and visitation, school programs and resources for the classroom. After reviewing these applications and analyzing the needs of the organizations, NSHSF is excited to announce a second grant cycle for 2024.
The Special Projects Fall Grant Cycle will assist local historical efforts on the part of historical entities by awarding grants up to $1,000 for special projects such as speakers; education materials for project acquisitions that enhance content or the visitor’s experience; fees for students to visit a museum; gas expenses for school bus transportation; registration costs for conferences and statewide meetings; and grants for professional development conferences and webinars. Preference will be given to non-profit organizations operating in and serving local communities.
“We are excited to support these local organizations in preserving their community histories,” said Leslie Fattig, Executive Director of NSHSF. “Reviewing the applications and witnessing the widespread need for these grants strengthens our commitment to expanding the program to fund even more projects.”
The fall grant cycle is now open. Applications can be found on the NSHSF website and are due by September 15, 2024. Recipients will be announced in October.
The Statewide Grants Program was developed in July 2020, with the guidance of Michael J. Smith, former CEO of Nebraska State Historical Society, to fulfill a funding need for local historical and educational organizations in Nebraska. The grants from this program help organizations such as museums, historical societies, and libraries with core education preservation, and interpretive programs about community history.
Many of these organizations are also included in the NSHSF WanderNebraska travel adventure program which kicked off its third year on May 27th. This year’s program features 195 sites across the state of Nebraska, including 33 new locations, and will run through November 30, 2024. Visitors can order the WanderNebraska booklet through the NSHSF website at NSHSF.org. Booklets contain information about each site, and include a map showing seven different Nebraska regions, which can be used to help visitors plan their trip.
Prizes have been brought back for the 2024 program year. Prizes include magnets, keychains, T- shirts, socks, ballcaps, books, and more. Prize levels are awarded by the number of stops visited. The top 5 visitors will receive a special gift basket from NSHSF. Participants register their site visits by using the booklet or scanning a QR code located at each historical location. Visit WanderNebraska.com or see the booklet for more information.
