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Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend February 13, 2006 KIDS museum to be open daily By BUFFY POLLOCK for the Mail Tribune MEDFORD — After a few too many visitors left the Kids Imagination Discovery Space in tears — on days the doors were locked shut — coordinators have expanded museum hours to seven days a week and launched a $3.5 million capital campaign to ensure the center’s future. "We were noticing more and more calls coming in, people wanting to come in on days we were closed," said acting Executive Director Sunny Spicer. "And there were so many times we had little kids who were peering in the windows, then leaving in tears because they didn’t get to come inside. We just thought it was important to get our doors open every day." While KIDS only opened last summer for a short-term preview, demand didn’t taper off when kids headed back to school in the fall. Rather than shut its doors to focus on fundraising, KIDS board members opted to forge ahead, staying open several days each week while brainstorming grant opportunities and new exhibits. Advertisement The concept for KIDS initiated in the early ’90s by KIDS founder and board president Sharon Bolles, who saw a lack of educational opportunities for Rogue Valley kids. Bolles rallied a small band of community members in the late 1990s and, seven years later in 2004, unveiled the KIDS concept through a temporary exhibit in the Rogue Valley Mall. After negotiating a $2 million purchase price for the 16,000-square-foot former Moose Lodge at McAndrews and Ross Lane last year, KIDS opened as an indoor getaway for children on summer break. Summer led to fall. Since fall, volunteer efforts and public demand have increased exponentially and grants have trickled in. Recent grants include $35,000 in December from the Oregon Community Foundation to go towards infrastructure. A $14,950 grant in January, from the Meyer Memorial Trust, will create a dedicated Toddler Space, while $10,350 from the Cow Creek Umpqua Indian Foundation in recent weeks will create a permanent art space and classroom for the museum. A partnership with the Oregon State University extension office has paved the way for a number of natural-resource based activities — indoors and out — to be developed as funding permits. Ideas for the nature-based exhibits include KIDS hosting astronomy nights and enhanced features for a stream table and outdoor attractions. Spicer said an official launching of KIDS’ capital campaign — $3.5 million will cover the purchase of the site, exhibits, salaries and other costs — will begin in March. "We’ll be looking for local businesses to take part in the design and implementation of exhibits that reflect the future career opportunities available in the Rogue Valley," Spicer said. Career-oriented exhibits, thus far, include a contractor’s loft, a hospital area, grocery store, bakery, pizzeria, restaurant, puppet theater and music and art areas. Planned exhibits include art areas for clay, weaving and painting. A newspaper-themed exhibit, sponsored by the Mail Tribune, will give KIDS visitors a chance to take photos, write stories and play with layout to create a newspaper. As part of the capital campaign, board member Charlie McHenry said KIDS hopes to attract family oriented businesses to establish on property just outside the 16,000-square-foot space. "We’re basically looking for partners that might be interested in locating on the fourth-busiest corner in all of Medford," he said, referring to the museum site on Ross Lane between McAndrews Road and West Main Street. "We’re leaving no stone unturned. We’re hoping for somewhat of a west Medford community square. � "We need to leverage that property to ensure that the museum happens — and stays open." McHenry said while KIDS seems to have taken off since its summer debut at the sprawling location, board members and a steadily growing corps of volunteers are setting no limits on KIDS’ potential. "We’re delighted that the community has responded to our opening with the attendance numbers we’ve seen. This demonstrates to us that we’re headed in the right direction," said McHenry, who joined forces with KIDS six years ago. "If anything, we were kind of hoping it would happen faster. But to start with a vision like this that just a few people had, and to move to a reality that involves a 16,000-square-foot building � the potential is unlimited. Sometimes we feel like we’ve been condemned to forever be like Sisyphus, (a character in Greek mythology) pushing the boulder up the hill. But it’s getting closer to the peak now." Buffy Pollock is a freelance writer living in Medford. E-mail her at [email protected]. If you go: Kids’ Imagination Discovery Space is at 226 N. Ross Lane, Medford. Hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Saturday, and 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sundays. KIDS offers a storytime with craft activities at 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. on Saturdays, in addition to a child-size grocery store, water works, a construction zone, arts and crafts and a dress-up area. Admission is $5 for kids and $2 for adults, and free for members. Family memberships (for up to four people) start at $35. For more information, call 772-9922. Mail Tribune Home | Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life | Opinion AP News | Archives | Site Map | Community | Classified Copyright © 1997-2006 Mail Tribune, Inc. All rights reserved. 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