UNI Museum Will Live On, Supporters Hope, As They Gather to Say Goodbye

It was bittersweet.

That's how several supporters of the described an open house Thursday that marked both the museum's last week in its building and it's 120 year anniversary on campus.

"It's the end of an era and the beginning of the next," Chad Swanson, president of the Friends of the UNI Museums, said. "I think the university administration needs to get out to take the lead and tell us where the museum is going."

The museum's aging building is being closed as part of at the university. For now, much of the museums 110,000 items are going into storage, with in buildings around campus. But the loss of a central building means the public won’t have access to the collection, which was used most prominently by visiting school groups.

Swanson said the Friends organization currently has over 100 members. He said the group is holding onto hope that, in the future, there will again be a dedicated museum space on campus.

"It's unfortunate the collection will be less available to the public, but we're hopeful we as a community will understand the value of the museum," Swanson said. "We're Iowa's attic."

At the open house Thursday, long-time museum supporters mingled and exchanged memories, while children got UNI Museum temporary tattoos and took a last look on display.

"I'm sad because this is a good museum," Galen O'Brien-Carlstein, 7, said. "It has a lot of cool stuff."

Lindy Stohman was there with her children, Tyler, 7, Jade, 6, and Cody, 2, who pointed with excitement at a wolf on display, exlaiming, "The big bad wolf!"

“The kids are having a great time. They’re excited to be here, so it’s kind of sad it’s going away now,” Lindy Strohman said.

Museum director Sue Grosball didn’t mince words as she talked about the museum’s closure. “

"I've had 20 wonderful years at the university, but I'm extremely disappointed this building is being closed," she said. "Its important for there to be a campus-community connection, and the museum has been a big part of that over the last 120 years.”