MICHIGAN HUMANITIES PRESS RELEASE
August 31, 2017
For Immediate Release:
Water Explored through MHC Grants and Smithsonian Exhibit
NEWS
119 Pere Marquette Drive, 3B
Lansing, MI 48867
Contact: Carol Taggart
Michigan Humanities Council
ctaggart@mihumanities.org
517.372.7770
– Water/Ways comes to Michigan in 2018-19
Lansing - The Michigan Humanities Council(MHC) is pleased to announce the selected host sites for a 2017-
2018 tour of a national Smithsonian Institution exhibition throughout Michigan. Water/Ways is a unique exhibit
that explores the essential role that water plays in our environment and society. Throughout the globe, water
holds extensive cultural value as a symbol of power and force, grace and fluidity, and healing and cleansing.
Water is also a natural resource that has dictated migration patterns, affected economic prosperity, and shaped
communities throughout time, and continues to be one of Earth’s most defining resources. Here in Michigan,
the value of water as both a human resource and a cultural symbol is both understood and treasured, and we
are thrilled to be bringing this exhibit to the Great Lakes state.
“Water and its story in Michigan is a fascinating theme, and we are delighted to work with six sites to bring to
life the Smithsonian Exhibit Water/Ways,” said Shelly Hendrick Kasprzycki, Executive Director of Michigan
Humanities Council. “This exhibit and the programs that go with it will explore how water plays such a role in
all our lives in Michigan.”
Host sites will complement the exhibit with public programming focused on the local history of water for each
area. This may include development of an additional exhibit, discussion programs or community-based
documentaries. The Michigan Humanities Council supports host communities with grant funds, program
planning workshops and tour logistics.
A statewide Great Lakes-specific exhibit will also travel to each host location, as part of The Great Lakes
Water Heritage Project, offered by The Office of the Great Lakes, Michigan Humanities Council, Cranbrook
Institute of Science, Kalamazoo Nature Center, and Michigan State University. It will feature regional and local
Great Lakes history, facts, and simple ways for people to be everyday water stewards. A grant from The Fred
A. and Barbara M. Erb Family Foundation to Michigan Humanities Council will support 3 years of funding for
this portion of the program.
The Water/Ways exhibit will begin travel in June 2018 and close in April 2019, stopping at each site for a sixweek
period. Water/Ways is funded by Michigan Humanities Council and The National Endowment for the
Humanities, and sponsored by WATTS.
The six host sites and dates of the exhibit are
Beaver Island
(North) Charlevoix County Venue: Beaver Island Historical Society will host at St. James Township Hall, 37735 Michigan Ave.
June 23 – August 5, 2018
HOURS: 11 A.M. - 5 P.M. Monday - Saturday, and 1 - 4 P.M. Sunday
East Jordan (North) Charlevoix County
Venue: Raven Hill Discovery Center
August 11 – September 23, 2018
Big Rapids (West Central) Mecosta County
Venue: Artworks
September 29 – November 11, 2018
Harrisville (East Central) Alcona County
Venue: Alcona Public Library
November 17 – December 30, 2018
Niles (Southwest) Berrien County
Venue: Niles Public Library
January 5 – February 17, 2019
Owosso (East Central) Shiawassee County
Venue: Shiawassee Arts Center
February 23 – April 7, 2019
###
About Museum on Main Street / Smithsonian Traveling Exhibits
The mission of Museum on Main Street is to provide access to the Smithsonian for small-town America.
Museum on Main Street engages small-town audiences and brings attention to underserved rural communities.
To build grassroots participation, Museum on Main Street works with state humanities councils and more than
1,400 institutions in rural towns across the nation. For these communities (with an average population of
8,000), the opportunity to work with the Smithsonian is much more than a quality educational experience.
Through community programs and creative activities, Museum on Main Street exhibitions and research are a
launching point for storytelling and local pride. Constantly evolving digital projects, such as the Stories from
Main Street collecting portal and the digital student history initiative, are bringing more of the Smithsonian’s
resources to people in small towns across the nation.
About the Michigan Humanities Council
The Michigan Humanities Council connects people and communities by fostering and creating quality cultural
programs.
In carrying out its mission, the Council encourages and supports, through advocacy, fundraising and
community engagement, a variety of activities which bring humanities scholars and the public together to
examine culture. Moving forward, the Council will:
119 Pere Marquette Drive, 3B
Lansing, MI 48867
Contact: Carol Taggart
Michigan Humanities Council
ctaggart@mihumanities.org
517.372.7770
– Water/Ways comes to Michigan in 2018-19
Lansing - The Michigan Humanities Council(MHC) is pleased to announce the selected host sites for a 2017-
2018 tour of a national Smithsonian Institution exhibition throughout Michigan. Water/Ways is a unique exhibit
that explores the essential role that water plays in our environment and society. Throughout the globe, water
holds extensive cultural value as a symbol of power and force, grace and fluidity, and healing and cleansing.
Water is also a natural resource that has dictated migration patterns, affected economic prosperity, and shaped
communities throughout time, and continues to be one of Earth’s most defining resources. Here in Michigan,
the value of water as both a human resource and a cultural symbol is both understood and treasured, and we
are thrilled to be bringing this exhibit to the Great Lakes state.
“Water and its story in Michigan is a fascinating theme, and we are delighted to work with six sites to bring to
life the Smithsonian Exhibit Water/Ways,” said Shelly Hendrick Kasprzycki, Executive Director of Michigan
Humanities Council. “This exhibit and the programs that go with it will explore how water plays such a role in
all our lives in Michigan.”
Host sites will complement the exhibit with public programming focused on the local history of water for each
area. This may include development of an additional exhibit, discussion programs or community-based
documentaries. The Michigan Humanities Council supports host communities with grant funds, program
planning workshops and tour logistics.
A statewide Great Lakes-specific exhibit will also travel to each host location, as part of The Great Lakes
Water Heritage Project, offered by The Office of the Great Lakes, Michigan Humanities Council, Cranbrook
Institute of Science, Kalamazoo Nature Center, and Michigan State University. It will feature regional and local
Great Lakes history, facts, and simple ways for people to be everyday water stewards. A grant from The Fred
A. and Barbara M. Erb Family Foundation to Michigan Humanities Council will support 3 years of funding for
this portion of the program.
The Water/Ways exhibit will begin travel in June 2018 and close in April 2019, stopping at each site for a sixweek
period. Water/Ways is funded by Michigan Humanities Council and The National Endowment for the
Humanities, and sponsored by WATTS.
The six host sites and dates of the exhibit are
Beaver Island
(North) Charlevoix County Venue: Beaver Island Historical Society will host at St. James Township Hall, 37735 Michigan Ave.
June 23 – August 5, 2018
HOURS: 11 A.M. - 5 P.M. Monday - Saturday, and 1 - 4 P.M. Sunday
East Jordan (North) Charlevoix County
Venue: Raven Hill Discovery Center
August 11 – September 23, 2018
Big Rapids (West Central) Mecosta County
Venue: Artworks
September 29 – November 11, 2018
Harrisville (East Central) Alcona County
Venue: Alcona Public Library
November 17 – December 30, 2018
Niles (Southwest) Berrien County
Venue: Niles Public Library
January 5 – February 17, 2019
Owosso (East Central) Shiawassee County
Venue: Shiawassee Arts Center
February 23 – April 7, 2019
###
About Museum on Main Street / Smithsonian Traveling Exhibits
The mission of Museum on Main Street is to provide access to the Smithsonian for small-town America.
Museum on Main Street engages small-town audiences and brings attention to underserved rural communities.
To build grassroots participation, Museum on Main Street works with state humanities councils and more than
1,400 institutions in rural towns across the nation. For these communities (with an average population of
8,000), the opportunity to work with the Smithsonian is much more than a quality educational experience.
Through community programs and creative activities, Museum on Main Street exhibitions and research are a
launching point for storytelling and local pride. Constantly evolving digital projects, such as the Stories from
Main Street collecting portal and the digital student history initiative, are bringing more of the Smithsonian’s
resources to people in small towns across the nation.
About the Michigan Humanities Council
The Michigan Humanities Council connects people and communities by fostering and creating quality cultural
programs.
In carrying out its mission, the Council encourages and supports, through advocacy, fundraising and
community engagement, a variety of activities which bring humanities scholars and the public together to
examine culture. Moving forward, the Council will:
- Award grants for public humanities and cultural programs;
- Conduct public humanities and cultural projects of statewide importance;
- Initiate collaborations and partnerships to broaden and strengthen the organizational and institutional
- Provide the humanities with leadership and a public voice in Michigan.The Michigan Humanities Council will be known as a unifying force throughout Michigan, whose programs help people connect with one another and the places where they live, by fostering a greater understanding and engagement in the cultures, histories, and values which tell us who we were, are, and hope to be.
A link to a map with exhibit pins of Michigan's six host sites and dates.
https://drive.google.com/open?id=12jd1fUzSpbNzOh-BBWPyF4GFdds&usp=sharing
