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Friday, May 15, 2020: Museum Season Update

Dear friends,

As we navigate the unprecedented situation brought on by COVID-19, the team at Lake Champlain Maritime Museum is charting a new course for 2020. With the safety of our visitors, staff, volunteers, and community in mind, it has become clear that we cannot open the museum site as we normally would this year. We have made the difficult decision to remain temporarily closed to the public. Instead, we will introduce new programming—both onsite and online—that lets us serve our community and keep everyone safe.

Our work of building a healthy future and community for Lake Champlain is core to our mission. Some of our new community-focused offerings for 2020 include:

  • Free Virtual Lake Adventure Camps: A new virtual learning experience will encourage campers to get outside every day to explore their environment. Campers will receive activity kits in the mail and meet for a physically distanced group gathering each week. Registration opens May 20.
  • Interactive Digital Exhibits: Visit our new Digital Museum, including a digital exhibit to open July 1 celebrating our 2020 focus on “Women at the Helm.”
  • Virtual Shipwreck Tours: Tour a shipwreck site in the Vermont Underwater Historic Preserves. New tours will be released weekly throughout the summer.
  • Small outdoor group experiences: New small group experiences will start on site and on the water once we have clear guidelines on best practices.

While much continues to be uncertain, we know that people will still need opportunities to connect with each other, our history, and our environment so that they can feel recharged and ready to figure out the future together.

In almost every way, we are open. We will continue virtual education programs, research projects, archaeology work, collections management, fleet and site maintenance, and planning for the future. Together with you, we are building a community that will ensure a strong future for our region and our lake…and I am glad that we get to do that together.

We are here for you! Please feel free to contact us if you have any questions – or to just let us know how you’re doing – by email at info@lcmm.org. And stay tuned for new ways that you can join us in connecting with our history and our environment this year.

We wish you the best and we look forward to seeing you online, on the water, and back at the Museum again soon.

Sincerely,

Susan Evans McClure
Executive Director, Lake Champlain Maritime Museum

Monday, April 6, 2020: Museum Season Update

Dear Friends and Members of Lake Champlain Maritime Museum,

As we all adjust, stay home, and work together to follow guidelines from the CDC and the State of Vermont to help slow the spread of COVID-19, we have also been assessing the best path forward for Lake Champlain Maritime Museum in 2020.

Our priority is to keep our staff and audiences safe. With that in mind, the Museum will delay opening to the public until July 1, 2020. Our Lake Adventure Camps and Teen Expeditions will run as scheduled, starting in mid-June. All other workshops, events, and classes scheduled before July 1 are postponed or cancelled. More specific information is listed below.

This change allows us to concentrate our efforts and follow federal and local guidelines so we can ensure the safety of the public, our partners, and our staff.

Below is a summary of the changes included in this adjustment:

  • The Museum will open to the public on July 1

  • Lake Adventure Camps will run as scheduled, with the first sessions starting on June 22. We have updated our policies for this year to ensure a full refund in case of COVID-19-related cancellations or changes. More information is listed at www.lcmm.org/LakeAdventureCamps

  • Teen Expeditions will run as scheduled, with the first expedition experience starting on June 17. We have updated our policies to ensure full refunds in case of COVID-19-related cancellations or changes and to allow for a flexible “pay-what-you-can” tuition deposit program. Full details are listed at www.lcmm.org/Expeditions

  • Metal Arts Workshops (Bronzecasting, Bladesmithing, Blacksmithing) are cancelled through July 1. If you registered for a course during this time period, you will receive a refund. We will be adding more workshops to our late summer and fall calendar and hope you will join us then. New workshop dates will be posted at www.lcmm.org/MetalArts.

  • Champlain Longboats Youth and Adult Rowing seasons and events between now and July 1 are either cancelled or postponed:
    • April-May: Spring Youth Rowing Season – Cancelled
    • May 28: New Boat Launch Day – Postponed (date to be announced later)
    • May 30: Spring Wave Youth Championship Race – Cancelled
    • May-October: Adult Rowing Clubs – Postponed to start on July 1
    • June 27: Hope for TomorROW-a-thon – Postponed (date to be announced later)
    • June 28: Lake Champlain Challenge Race – Postponed (date to be announced later)

  • The following workshops, events, and classes are cancelled or postponed:
    • May 20: Fish Processing Workshop – Cancelled
    • May 25-June 12: Archaeology Field School – Postponed to 2021
    • June 2: Cyanobacteria Training – Postponed (date to be announced later)
    • June 20-21: Abenaki Heritage Weekend – Cancelled
    • June 22-25: Learning from the Lake: Using Primary Sources to Teach Key Proficiencies – Postponed (date to be announced later)
    • June 26: Aquatic Invasive Species Training – Postponed (date to be announced later)
    • July 20-24: Special Topics in Lake Champlain Natural History – Postponed to 2021

  • The Lois McClure 2020 Tour will not be traveling. Instead, the Lois McClure will be open to the public at the Museum from July 1 to October 12.

Our team continues to work safely at home – in wonderfully creative ways! – and we are sharing their work, projects, and more online. Enjoy Lake Champlain Maritime Museum virtually by following us on social media (Find us on Facebook and Instagram) or subscribing to emails (Sign up here).

We are living with many unknowns at this moment in our history. What we do know is that feeling connected to our environment and our community has never been more important. Lake Champlain Maritime Museum is committed to building our community together, and we will continue to be here for you and with you.

We will continue to share updates as needed. Please feel free to contact us if you have any questions – or to just say hi to our staff while we all work from home – by email at info@lcmm.org.

We hope you and your families stay safe during this time and we look forward to welcoming you back to the Museum or on the water this summer.

Sincerely,

Susan Evans McClure
Executive Director
Lake Champlain Maritime Museum

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