The holiday season is a great time for museums to create special memories for their staff, their visitors and their community. In today’s episode, Amy shares lots of ideas that you can use at your museum to make this time of year special and meaningful.

Blog Posts mentioned:

Giving Thanks at Work

Giving Back at Work

Holiday Magic at Your Museum

More free resources:

Join the Love my Museum Facebook Group

Download the free planning calendar here: https://bit.ly/2025museumcal

The holiday season is a great time for museums to create special

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memories for their staff, their

visitors, and their community.

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And today's episode, I'm sharing ideas

that you can use it, your museum to make

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this time of year special and meaningful.

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Let's get started.

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Welcome to the love my museum podcast.

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I'm your host, Amy Kehs,

and I love museums.

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I'm also a brand strategist

and the creator of the love,

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my museum, suite of services.

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Free and affordable resources like this

podcast designed for museum professionals.

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I can't believe it, but we're

getting close to the end of the year.

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And I thought today, we'd

talk about the holiday season.

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At your museum.

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I have some ideas that will help you

make this time of year more meaningful

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and special for your staff, your

visitors and your community too.

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First, let's talk about your team.

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In the United States.

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November's when we celebrate Thanksgiving.

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We gather around the table with

family and friends to give.

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Thanks.

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At my Thanksgiving table,

we go around and ask.

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So, what are you thankful for this year?

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And the answers of course are usually

giving thanks for the things on the table

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or the people sitting around the table.

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But we don't often think about giving.

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Thanks at work to.

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After all, we spend a significant

part of our lives at work.

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Often side-by-side with colleagues who

support us, challenge us, inspire us.

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And so I think November should be

a time to show gratitude for the

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people in our work lives as well.

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Of course you could send an email,

but I challenge you to level up your

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gratitude, even if it's just a little bit.

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For example.

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Say it in person.

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In this age of texting and emailing, it

can really mean a lot to take the time to

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stop by someone's desk and say, thank you.

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Genuine.

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Thank you for staying late last week.

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To help me wrap up that project.

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Can go a long way and

making someone feel valued.

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You never know what kind

of impact that might have.

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What bad day you may.

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Be giving a boost.

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You could also write a note of gratitude.

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Yes.

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I mean, actual pen and paper.

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I am a big lover of paper and I

still have sticky notes and cards

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from bosses and coworkers for.

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Helping with a project or

doing a great job on a project.

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If you're the receiver

of these notes of things.

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Keep them all in one place,

like a folder to look through

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when you're having a bad day.

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I'm.

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Actually looking at one right

now from my friend, Maryland.

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And it is an orange

sticky note and hangs out.

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In the bottom of my desk drawer.

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And it pops up at the darndest

times often when I need it most.

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So never underestimate the power of a

handwritten note, whether it's a sticky

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note or a postcard or a formal thank you.

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Card.

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The gesture has a lasting impact.

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You could also bring them a small token

of your gratitude and appreciation.

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It shows them that not only

are you grateful for them,

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but that you also see them.

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And that you have taken note of

what they like and who they are.

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One last note about gratitude

while I'd love for you to make

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it an annual holiday tradition.

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There's no reason why you can't carry this

habit of gratitude throughout the year.

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Make it a habit to jot down the

people that made it possible.

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Write down the people

that helped you every day.

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And the people that swooped in

to rescue you when you need it.

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Post.

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After a big project is over consult

your list and sends me emails or.

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Bring in a treat.

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So why is all of this important?

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Why all the gratitude.

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Studies show that expressing gratitude

increases performance and also makes for

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happier and healthier work relationships.

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Gratitude can also be contagious,

appreciating someone can set emotion,

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a domino effect of gratitude.

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And couldn't the world use a

little more of that right now.

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So as you gather around your Thanksgiving

table this year, Don't forget to also

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set a place for gratitude at your desk.

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Start with a small gesture

and watch how it grows.

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Next let's talk about

the visitor experience.

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You know that I think every

museum needs to work to create.

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Annual events and traditions

for its community.

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You want visitors to come back to your

museum and bring a friend and establishing

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an annual event is a great way to do that.

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It's also a chance to showcase your

museum's collection in a different way.

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I have a lot of ideas for this one.

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I'll actually link a blog post in

the show notes with the complete

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list, but here are just a few ideas.

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The first of course is

seasonal decor and exhibits.

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Welcoming visitors with

festive decorations

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that reflect your museum's theme can be.

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Such a great way to just change

things up during the holidays.

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If you're a historical museum,

maybe use traditional holiday decor.

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That.

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Transport guests to another era.

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If you're an art museum.

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Maybe you play with winter

inspired installations.

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If you're a zoo or a nature center.

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Maybe you choose a theme that is

nature or conservation inspired.

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You might even want to create

a seasonal themed mini exhibit.

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The second idea.

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Is to host holiday themed tours.

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Now if your museum offers

guided tours already consider

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adding a holiday twist to them.

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Incorporate seasonal

stories or artifacts or.

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Artwork related to winter

celebrations and give visitors a

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fresh perspective on your collection.

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I love the idea of offering special.

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Evening.

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Or candlelight

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tours during this time of year.

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The third idea is to plan

interactive family activities.

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The holiday season is a time when families

are looking for things to do together.

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So consider family-friendly

activities like crafts, hollandaise,

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scavenger, hunts, or even

interactive storytelling sessions.

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These types of activities can

be fun for all ages and provide

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hands-on learning experiences

that parents and kids will love.

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Another idea is to collaborate with

local businesses for holiday events.

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Share the responsibility.

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Collaborate with those local, businesses

to create a holiday market or.

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An event series that

draws in the community.

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You could even invite local

artisans to set up booths or

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partner with a nearby bakery.

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And sell festive treats onsite and

this kind of partnership can increase

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foot traffic and make your museum a

hub for local holiday festivities.

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And it's a great way for both of

you or for all of you to share

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audiences, to borrow audiences.

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It could be a holiday open

house with free admission.

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And you can feature pop-up vendors

or live music or seasonal snacks.

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For a really fun.

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Festive day.

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Another idea.

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Is to send visitors home

with a lasting memory.

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Give visitors something to

remember their visit by.

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You could offer a small

holiday themed take away.

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It could be as simple as a holiday

postcard featuring one of your exhibits.

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Or you could set up a photo

booth where visitors could snap

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pictures with festive props.

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Small tokens like this create really

positive associations with your museum.

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And it gives the visitors

a reason to come back.

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Okay.

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So we've talked about how to

make your museum a special place.

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Bye.

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Giving, thanks for your team.

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And we've talked about things

that you can do for your visitors.

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The third thing.

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I want to talk about is working

together to give back to the community.

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The holidays are the perfect

time to focus on giving back.

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And I really think that museum teams

are uniquely positioned to make a

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positive impact in their communities.

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Working in a museum means you're

already committed to preserving

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history and culture art.

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So why not extend that commitment?

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By supporting those in need.

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I have a few ideas to help museum teams.

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Make the season a bit brighter

by volunteering together.

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The first idea is to organize a team

volunteering day you can consider

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scheduling a team volunteering

day where staff could spend a few

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hours helping at a local charity or

participating in a community event.

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You could serve meals, wrap

gifts for children, organized

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supplies at a food bank.

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Look for charities that align

with your museum's mission.

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For example, if your museum

focuses on history, volunteer with

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a historic preservation society.

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For an art museum and consider

partnering with an arts, nonprofit

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that provides free art

supplies to children.

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Another idea is to collect

donations for a local cause.

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Creating a donation drive is a simple and

effective way to support your community.

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You could create a friendly

competition between departments

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to see who can collect the most.

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Invite museum visitors to help

to, and set up a collection area.

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At your museum's entrance, you could

offer free or discounted admission.

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If museum visitors bring a donated item.

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And don't forget to use your

museum, social media and

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newsletters to get the word out.

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Another way is to adopt a family instead

of exchanging gifts among coworkers,

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consider adopting a family in need.

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Or supporting a local charity by

buying gifts from their wishlist.

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Your team can collectively purchase gifts.

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Wrap them.

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And deliver them to the charity.

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Another way is to host a workshop

or event to benefit a nonprofit.

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Museums are full of unique talents

and resources, and those can be.

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Harnessed for a good cause you

could use your space to have.

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Host a holiday workshop or a craft night.

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And then.

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Give the proceeds to charity.

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It's a wonderful way

to share your mission.

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While also giving back to the community.

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I have some more ideas in

a blog post on my website.

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So I'll also leave that in the show notes.

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To sum up.

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The holiday season offers museums.

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So many opportunities to create

memories for your staff and your museum.

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And.

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These traditions become part

of your story and they help

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your visitors and your staff.

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Fall in love with your museum.

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And having that support creates a lasting.

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Legacy.

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Per year museum.

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Thanks so much for joining me today

for this really special episode.

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If you try it and the, of these

ideas, I'd love to hear about them.

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You can join the love, my museum,

Facebook group, and tell us all about it.

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I'll leave that link in

the show notes as well.

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Happy holidays, everyone.

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I'll see you next time.