Annual Reports

A Letter from the MCHS President

As the year draws to a close, the excitement from a successful year of educational programming and events was only heightened by the news that MCHS will receive a state appropriation of $700,000. Thanks to the efforts of Illinois State Representatives Katie Stuart and Jay Hoffman, the construction of first floor museum exhibits can begin!

We started the year with a successful Wine & Cheese Fundraiser in January, then followed up with no less than eight events or programs in the first half of the year. We had four well attended speaker series events, hosted our popular history camp for children, and had a profitable trivia night. In the fall, we held our Family History Walk, the Living History Days Festival, and, of course, Dining in History.

We made significant progress in other areas as well. Our membership is up. We are well on our way to our goal of 800 members with our current membership of just over 400. That is quite an increase over just a few years ago.

Our services have expanded, but we’ve worked hard to keep our budget static at $165,000 per year. We achieve this level of funding from memberships, personal gifts, and grants. We work at spending wisely. We can always use more members and additional personal gifts. So, if you are able to give, we will be appreciative.

After the push to open the museum in 2024, we turned our sights to the rest of the campus. We repaired water damage and painted door/window trim at both the Helms Collection Center and our rental house. We added emergency and safety lighting for all the buildings, and we began the process of replacing exit doors to improve safety in the museum building.

In 2025, we addressed one of our long term concerns. Rising electrical rates and the physical makeup of our historical building created a drain on our finances. We addressed this in two ways:

First, our treasurer meticulously researched the most efficient, low cost, electrical carriers. His diligence resulted in a noteworthy cut in the cost per kilowatt hour.

Secondly, we installed 54 solar panels on the library roof, dedicated to off setting the museum’s electricity costs. The solar panels began producing power in February and have resulted in significant savings. In fact, during two months, we had no electricity costs for the museum. The solar panels will pay for themselves in four years.

Next year will be exciting and challenging as well. We have a multitude of events planned, and buildings to maintain and improve. We can begin to install the much anticipated first-floor contemporary museum exhibits, and we hope to hire a museum director. We owe much to our members, donors and volunteers. We could not do what we do without your help.

We ask for your continued support.

Fred Faust, MCHS President