Get Involved
Are you interested in the history of Scouting and our local council? Do you enjoy working with historical artifacts? How about teaching others about the significance of those artifacts? There are lots of ways you can help make the SRAC Museum of Scouting a great place to learn about the tremendous impact Scouting has had on our area. Here are some of the tasks we need help with at the moment. Several of them can be completed remotely from home. If something appeals to you, contact Museum Director Dr. Josh Goodman at info@sracmuseum.org and let us know how you’d like to help.
Donate photographs of your unit in action.
Scouting history is happening all around us--in every troop, pack, and crew. Help the Museum collect and maintain that history by donating photos from your unit or council events you attend. All donations will be properly credited, as will the photographer(s) if that information is available. Modern photos are just as welcome as historical photos--after all, the photos you take today will be "historical" before you know it! For "born-digital" photos, Museum staff can set up a digital dropbox for transferring the collection. For print photos, the Museum can either accept the original prints as a permanent donation or it can borrow the prints long enough to make digital copies and then return them to you. Contact us at info@sracmuseum.org for more details.
Become a Museum guide.
Our goal is for the Museum to be open during as many Council functions as possible, and to offer programs that help Scouts and Scouters better understand the history and impact of Scouting in our area. Museum guides are volunteers who monitor the Museum when it’s open and answer basic questions visitors might have about the exhibits. No need to be an expert! Museum guides usually work in pairs, and have the opportunity to work with Scouters who are familiar with the exhibits and the stories they relate. This is an onsite task.
Help teach Scouting Heritage merit badge.
The Museum has some of the best possible tools for teaching Scouting Heritage merit badge--historical photographs, dozens of Scout handbooks dating back to the 1920s, hundreds of copies of Boys Life, and much more. The one tool we still need is YOU! If you're enthusiastic about the history of Scouting and would like to become one of our Scouting Heritage merit badge counselors, let us know!
Catalog and identify people, places, and landmarks in historic photographs.
The Museum has a large collection of print photographs, negatives, and slides covering the history of Scouting in our area, especially since the mid-1960s when Wallwood was established. Cataloging these photos makes it easier for us to find what we need for exhibits, or to help a visitor find photos of their troop or a specific person or event. Catalogers look at the photos and try to record as much information as possible about them--where they were taken, who is in them, what units are represented, the date, etc. People with a good knowledge of Wallwood geography are especially encouraged to help with this task. Cataloging can be done remotely from any computer with an Internet connection, and you can choose the kinds of photographs you’d like to catalog. Work at your own pace.
Catalog objects like patches, pins, and neckerchief slides.
The Museum holds thousands of these items, and while many of them are already on display, there are many more that have yet to be completely identified and incorporated into our exhibits. Thankfully, many online and print guides exist to help with the identification process; it’s just a matter of entering the information into our database so we can find these items more easily when we need them. This task can be done remotely from any computer with an Internet connection, and you can choose the kinds of items you’d like to catalog. Work at your own pace.
These are just a few examples of ways you can help. If you’d like to know more, contact us at info@sracmuseum.org.