By SHANNON HAUGLAND
Sentinel Staff Writer
A couple from Texas has made the single largest financial donation to the Friends of the Sheldon Jackson Museum in the organization’s 36-year history.
The $25,000 contribution from Carvel Glenn and Randall Lamb will go toward capital improvements and exhibition upgrades, and be used to leverage additional funds for those purposes at the Sheldon Jackson Museum.
The two, who live in Houston, spoke to the Sentinel Friday on a Zoom call with museum curator Jacqueline Fernandez-Hamberg, and Friends of the Sheldon Jackson Museum president Rosemary Carlton.
“We just want to take some time, and reiterate that Rosemary, the whole board, the staff here and myself - we really want to acknowledge what you’ve done and celebrate,” Fernandez-Hamberg said. “And to let people in Sitka know, because it’s really an immense deal. It’s very significant.”
Carvel Glenn, left, and Randall Lamb discuss their donation to the Friends of the Sheldon Jackson Museum on a Zoom call last week. (Photo provided)
The Sheldon Jackson Museum is the oldest museum in the state, going back to 1887. It houses close to 6,000 artifacts, about 2,500 of which are on exhibit. The current structure is the oldest concrete building in Alaska, completed in 1897.
Enthusiasts of indigenous art and artifacts from around the globe, Glenn and Lamb originally came to Sitka in 2018 as the final stop on an Alaskan Dream Cruises trip, and found their way to the museum.
“We spent most of an afternoon there,” Lamb said. “It made a lasting impression on us. ... We liked the breadth of the collection and the depth of the display. I was struck by the beauty of the utilitarian pieces - the natural beauty of the implements was astounding to me.”
In their walk around the concrete structure, taking in the exhibits from around the state, they opened the drawers full of artifacts.
Their immediate reaction was one of delight but also the start of an idea: was there a way they could help improve access to the trove of exhibits, and visual quality of the displays.
“It was kind of an inspiration for the gift, to help display things better,” Glenn said. “Because every drawer was worth a museum.” He cited a few examples of the items he had seen in the drawers, including a fishing lure with scrimshaw.
Glenn, a former architect, was also impressed by “the concrete structure that had been there forever. ... It was the breadth and depth of the collection. It was hard to see everything because it was all crammed together so tightly in that small space.”
Since their visit, they have stayed in touch with the museum, making donations to the Native Artist Residency Program, a gift toward exhibits, an unrestricted gift, and this latest gift of $25,000.
Fernandez-Hamberg hopes the donation can be used to raise more funds to cover a number of upgrades in the space.
She said the exhibits and gallery are in need of a major “refresh,” possibly planned over a period of phases. That could include replacing lighting, adding lighting to the lower levels of the cases in the gallery, repainting the gallery cases, and patching and repairing cases, which have small paint chips and wood chips missing.
Fernandez-Hamberg also would like to see mounts for many of the artifacts redone. They were in line with best practices when originally displayed but need to be brought in line with today’s standards.
Upgraded labeling, new plinths - she said the list goes on. Alaska State Museum staff members Jackie Manning and Aaron Elmore, and conservator Ellen Carrlee created a long list of items, Fernandez-Hamberg said.
“This major gift is the first step toward getting us closer to this project and we want to celebrate the incredible generosity of the donors and acknowledge their kindness and philanthropy,” Fernandez-Hamberg said in an email.
Glenn and Lamb also would like to see greater access to the collection by those not in Sitka, which could be through a catalog of displays and artifacts, or a website.
The two came to Alaska on a trip with Rice University’s Traveling Owls program, which took them around Southeast.
Lamb is from a small town in southwest Arkansas, and grew up fascinated by the structures built by the Caddo Indians.
Glenn’s dad worked for Conoco, and the family moved around the country, and Canada. In Glenn’s early childhood, while living in Denver, the family spent time in the Four Corners area.
“So I kind of glommed onto their interest in Southwest American Indian art, pottery and rugs,” he said. His interest in other indigenous cultures and their art grew when he attended Rice University.
The trip to Sitka was their second to Alaska. In Sitka, they heard about the “totem pole park,” but didn’t learn about the museum until they got here.
“People ought to know about it,” Glenn said. “There’s more to Alaska than glaciers.”
Glenn and Lamb sent their initial donation through Vanguard Charitable Trust, and Fernandez-Hamberg started communicating with them about how to use their various contributions. Some of the contributions have supported the artist residency programs.
“It’s really important for people to have an understanding that these traditions and cultures and ways of being and living are still very important for Alaska Native peoples, and that these traditions continue to evolve and to innovate, as does the art form,” Fernandez-Hamberg said. “We really want to celebrate that and celebrate the artists and obviously give them some financial support.”
The artist residency programs not only pay artists to continue their work but to share their knowledge, language, and their cultures with the public, she said.
“Since this is one of the very few museums in all of Alaska that focuses on all Alaska Native cultures and peoples, and the only museum that has the kind of 19th century collection that we have, this is the ideal place to have that kind of a program,” Fernandez-Hamberg said.
Carlton worked at the museum from 1985 to 2010, and has volunteered for the Friends organization since then. On the Zoom call, she thanked Glenn and Lamb for their gift. She explained that the Friends organization acts as a pass-through for donations to the state museum.
“We are extremely grateful for the $25,000 donation,” Carlton said. “It’s going to help tremendously to get some of the things that Jackie talked about. Thank you again.”
Fernandez-Hamberg said the nonprofit Friends of the Sheldon Jackson Museum is an important partner for the museum, and enables the museum to apply for grants and obtain funding for the initiatives she discussed earlier. She added that those interested in contributing to any of the projects can contact the Friends of the Sheldon Jackson Museum at 747-6233, or by emailing friendsofsjm@gmail.com.
