Graduation Day

Last night Aliatte graduated from the Grand Turk Community College with an Associates Degree in Elementary Education.

Aliatte has been working at the museum for six years. She has been a great help over the last three years and has grown in her accomplishments and responsibilities.

This summer she will be leading the museum's Children's Club activities. Involvement with the Children's Club is in fact why she decided to become a teacher.

Too Much Time at the Museum?

A family from New York came by the museum today to spend a few minutes, but wound up being here so long they could not catch a cab back to the cruise center.

After going through all of the exhibits, Keven and his son Keion struck up a conversation with the director of the museum about spoiled children and the benefits of foreign travel. Seeing the world sometimes allows your children to see how really spoiled they are in the US.

This discussion turned into a discussion about life, internet, and connection. This turned into everyone getting to check their email in the museum offices which is just a little difficult on the cruise ship.

Finally, Laurell and Deloris came back to say they were still sitting in the heat waiting for a cab!

After such a great day at the museum and a great conversation, we drove the family back to the cruise terminal with plenty of time to look around before re-boarding.

How could we not do this...It was also Deloris' birthday today!

Happy Birthday, we are glad you had a good time with us today.

Jessica’s Last Blog

Some of the after school regulars knocked on the office door last week. They had brought me their grade cards to see. Each one of them had raised a letter grade this term. One of them was in the first position for her class.

They also asked to use the offices to study for an exam. I explained to them how proud I was of all their hard work, but they knew that the program had ended. I asked them where they went to do their homework before they came to the museum.

“We didn’t do it,” they said in unison.

Well, we can’t have that. I let them up to the office one last time.

Today I left Grand Turk -- again. And once again I reviewed all that we had accomplished.

The past few months has seen a lot of hard work and a lot of successes. I think we’ve averaged completing one big project per month while I’ve been on-island. I’m always astounded at what can be accomplished with a little resourcefulness and a lot of outside support. From the GT-4 excavation to the March 20^th event to the Children’s Club program to the conservation projects now underway, everything relies on the support of the museum’s extended community.

It has been a true privilege to work with the museum staff and volunteers and interact with its members. The passion here is contagious and inspiring and I will carry its example throughout my career. Having played a small part in this community, I certainly can’t leave it - tomorrow I will become a member.

Best to all,

Jessica

British Library Grant Awarded

by Jessica Brody

These past months in the archives has been a real treat. I've gotten to discover the rich history of the Turks and Caicos through the records in our collections. As a visitor it's been fascinating to uncover what I think is a new fact only to encounter people at the museum seminars or around town who already know the story and tell me more about the story and how it relates to broader TCI history.

This is why I was excited when the Museum's application to the British Library's Endangered Archives Project was accepted. The project's focus will be to collect pre-1900 records from around the Islands. It's exciting to think that soon, not only new comers like me, but generations into the future will be able to re-create the stories of early Turks and Caicos Islanders.

Rainy Day Games

There was a massive downpour on Grand Turk today. It may have put a damper on some of the
of the cruise passengers' visit, but not for the museum visitors.

Even when the rain caused a power outage across the island, disrupting a Historic Homes Tour that had just arrived, the Museum staff saved the day by giving a behind the scenes tour instead.

At the end of the tour, the visitors commented that they loved the behind the scenes tour and couldn't imagine a better rainy day activity.