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In Memoriam – Jan Argo – Lifetime Member of Mattawa Museum

.. of Jan Argo

Garry Thibert, President, Board of Directors

I had come to know Jan as a dedicated and hard-working individual. She was proud of her native culture and always attended at the museum, in full regalia, when we had huge groups visiting. She loved being a member of the museum board and was very strong in her belief in the preservation of the history of our beautiful little town.  She will be missed.

Judy Toupin, Curator

Jan was one of the first people to greet me in my new position as Curator at the Museum and it was with one of her great big hugs and that beautiful smile.  Her joy, enthusiasm and passion for life translated to us at the Museum, whether it was at a Board meeting, bringing a tour group through or just popping by to visit ‘her’ museum 😊. She is dearly missed.

Kim Duschene, Board of Directors

Jan Argo was the best at welcoming people young and old alike to our museum.  She always had a warm smile and had so much knowledge about Mattawa. I didn’t know her before I became a member of the museum board but I did get to know her bit by bit in the last few years. Her strength and belief in using natural remedies left me in awe.  She was one of a kind for sure.. Love, Kim

Tom Gibson, Vice-President, Board of Directors

Jan Argo and I met over 30 years ago, when I was a brand new Director, and Byron Casselman was President. Knowing her mostly from board meetings over the years, Jan was real serious about our museum. She was a real Life Member to me, and a wonderful person to know. Jan had a way about her that made you think in a different way… to smell the air and smile. She taught everyone she met, and all Mattawa knows that.

Bernie MacDonald, Board of Directors

Jan Argo. it was an absolute pleasure to be a board member at the museum with Jan. She always had a big smile lots of good ideas. She promoted the museum every chance she got.  She was very proud of it. I am sure she will be keeping an eye on us. Rest in peace Jan.

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A New Season…

Hello everyone
It’s been a whirlwind couple of weeks as we begin a very different season, but one that will introduce you to some fun and interesting types of exhibits.

While COVID-19 still does keep us closed to the public, we are keeping very busy. It is with great pleasure that I introduce your Archival Assistants at the Museum this summer. Mariah and Alex make a great team and I know you will enjoy hearing about their journey this summer.

Thank you, everyone, for your wonderful support and enthusiasm. I know you will continue to encourage our team.

And now …. please welcome …

My name is Alex Guscott and I am an emerging museum professional. I am from North Bay, but have also lived in Guelph, Barrie, and Gravenhurst. I graduated from UofG with a B.A in History and a minor in Political Science. After that, I moved to Barrie to attend Georgian College’s postgraduate Museum and Gallery Studies program which prepared me for the wonderful world of museum work. Currently, I am enrolled in Algonquin College’s online postgraduate Human Resources Management program. My main goal is to work in museums to preserve history for future generations which is why I am pleased to now be working with the Mattawa Museum.

I have now experienced my first week working at the Mattawa Museum. From this first week, I’ve already learned many interesting facts about Mattawa and the surrounding area’s history. I am personally interested in learning more about Dr. Monestime and making connections to current times. My main role will be digitizing 35 years of catalogue cards into Past Perfect, a museum software that helps greatly with collection management. However, I will also be writing blog posts, helping with our new Instagram account, coming up with ideas for exhibits, and cleaning.

My first three days were spent at the museum both exploring the collection and cleaning. While cleaning sounds boring, it is giving me a chance to get a closer look at the many artifacts in the museum collection which I find very interesting as an emerging museum professional. On Thursday and Friday, I worked from home which gave me the chance to organize and prioritize my tasks for the coming weeks. As well, I started making a small (very small) dent in my main project to digitize the museum’s collection.

All in all, I find museum work very interesting and am excited for the coming weeks at the Mattawa Museum despite it being closed due to COVID-19. Look out for other “Week at the Museum” blog posts in the coming weeks!

Hi, my name is Mariah Lejambe and I am from Mattawa. I am a second year Biopharmaceutical Science student at the University of Ottawa and currently working as Archival Assistant at the Mattawa Museum. Some of my hobbies include golfing, skiing and reading. The Mattawa Museum is currently closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, work at the museum has not stopped, we have started this blog to let you know what we’ve been up to. Alex and I have just started our new jobs as Archival Assistants. Our first week at the museum was to familiarize ourselves with the exhibits and start cleaning. This summer I will be doing research and working on the Instagram page for the Museum. I look forward to learning more about the incredible history of our town.

They will be part of amazing projects this summer!

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Check out the new submissions for the Garden of Strength and Hope!

People are having some fun painting some rocks for the Garden of Strength and Hope! Since it might be a while before we can get together to add our rocks, get your photos in for the album of your creations so that people can enjoy them.

Take a photo, send it to info@mattawamuseum.ca, include the name of the artist, and we will be pleased to add another page to the album.

Updated album, so inspiring…

Click the Full Screen icon (2nd from right) to make the album larger

The challenge is out there!