Grateful for Amazing Friends

As we hurl headlong into the final hour of The Amazing Raise, Richmond's 36-hour giving challenge, we at VAM are so grateful for all the support we've seen in the past day and a half. Our Circuit Riders program supports conservation efforts throughout Virginia and DC, many times at the smallest and most vulnerable collecting institutions. As the Heritage Health Index Report points out, 50% of US collecting institutions do not have a written, long-range plan for the care of the collection; and nearly 80% of archaeological collections are in unknown condition or in need. We know that you understand the importance of collections care and conservation, and we thank you for trusting us to be good stewards of your donations.

For those of you who may still be considering whether, or how much, to give, please consider the following:

• Circuit Rider sites do not have to pay for the Circuit Rider visit. We'd like to keep it that way.
• We are currently funding 10 Circuit Rider visits per year through an IMLS Connecting to Collections Statewide Implementation grant. When the grant period is over, the visits will end without your support.
• Each Circuit Rider visit costs $500, which covers the cost of sending an archivist and a curator to a site visit at a collecting institution, and provides the institution with their written report to help the organization's leadership set priorities for collections care.
• The Circuit Rider program addresses many of the same stewardship areas as the American Association for State and Local History’s StEPs program and is based on the American Association of Museum’s Collections Stewardship Assessment Program (CSMAP) and Heritage Preservation’s Conservation Assessment Program (CAP); consequently, participating in Circuit Riders can help collecting institutions prepare to pursue the StEPS program or determine your readiness for a more comprehensive CSMAP or CAP. 
• Circuit Riders helps small collecting institutions develop preliminary strategies for improving collections care by identifying and prioritizing actions to implement improvements.

Plus, your gift is tax deductible and supports conservation throughout Virginia and Washington, DC.
If you make a tax-deductible gift of $50 or more, VAM will send a coupon code (via email) good for $25 off of conference 2013 registration. Conference 2013 will be held at The Homestead from March 9 - 12th. The Homestead is generously offering conference-goers the super-low room rate of $95 a night.

So as we head into the final "Procrastinator's Hour" of The Amazing Raise, we thank those of you who have already shown your support, and we ask the rest of our fantastic friends to consider giving if you can. Give online by 6pm at VAM's Amazing Raise Donation Site.