WILTON – It’s been several weeks since the Western Maine Play Museum reopened to the public and Director Joni James said they couldn’t be happier.
“It’s been strange to be here without the kids,” James said. “It’s so nice that it’s not quiet anymore.”
After several years of fundraising and planning, the museum officially opened last September. What was once a quiet building at 561 Main Street became a musical, colorful, creative destination for families across the state. The museum had such a successful first few months that they ended up hiring more staff members to keep up with the crowds of busy children. They had been open five months when all of that came to a screeching halt as the realities of COVID-19 settled into the community.
“We’ve been closed as long as we were open,” James said. “It’s been kind of a crazy first year.”
The museum’s Board of Directors was able to keep James on payroll as director, but had to let go of their recent hires. James is now singlehandedly managing the upkeep of the two-story museum, which includes grant writing, exhibit design and building, and staffing the facility during open hours.
It’s a blessing and a curse, according to James. Being small has allowed the museum to be the only one in the state that is able to open at all, but the workload can be intense for the one-woman staff. The museum has reduced its hours significantly, opening Wednesdays through Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. and only to nine visitors. Tickets have to be reserved in advance, and they go quickly. On top of that, James had to rethink every exhibit to take into consideration the increased requirements on sanitization and single-kid use.
Things may look a little different around the museum, but that hasn’t slowed families from making use of its space.
“This is a gesture to the community, to offer some normalcy,” James said.
WMPM will still be offering a variety of virtual workshops and activities, in addition to their limited hours and reservation-only tickets. All of that information can be found on their website or Facebook page.
