We are at a milestone that I am certain our ancestors could not have imagined. This is a milestone that we as the collective community, Jewish and non-Jewish, have been building toward for the past century.

No, it’s NOT the celebration of the past hundred years, but rather the start of the next hundred. I wonder what the bicentennial year 2110 will look like. I am certain that none of us living today can come close to imagining that world. I do know one thing for certain. We here at the JHM have been planning for the next one hundred years for some time and that planning is ongoing.

What will the museum of the future look like? No one can predict but we do know that demographic trends, changes in the geopolitical and economic landscape, shifts in technology and communica- tions, volatile energy prices and the rise of new cultural expectations will certainly dictate the museum‟s direction. We know too that museums will, as they have in the past, fill an important role in educating the public on how past societies coped and adapted to monumental shifts in their lives.

How will the JHM address these issues? The JHM is currently looking at the long term minimization of energy costs and is aggressively pursuing a “disconnect from the power grid.” When approved, the JHM will become the first historic building in the United States with the capacity to be completely solar, thereby drastically cutting our carbon footprint and minimizing operational costs. In the coming months and years your Jewish Museum will become more “virtual.” The future of information, just as the future of the Museum, lies in its increasing interconnectedness.

While sensitive to the importance of an on site museum experience, the JHM will be establishing a “Museum Road Show” taking history on the road utilizing both speakers and exhibits. Becoming more integrated with the community will make it easier and more cost effective to share the heritage and pride of our Arizona Jewish culture.

In an effort to “make every inch count,” the JHM is converting our unused catering kitchen to the “Kitchen Theatre”, an intimate space where visitors and researchers may view and/or listen to our growing library of oral histories.

This same space will now allow for easier collection of oral histories. It will also give us the opportunity to capture those impromptu thoughts and ideas that always seem to happen with visitors.

Recently the JHM received funding to start the archival process which will eventually make virtual access to the museum‟s collections a reality.

Long term, the strategic plan is to build a state-of-the-art Jewish History Museum adjacent to the original building. With the help of a favorable mortgage, land has been secured and. as always. funding will determine when construction will begin.

So there it is, our future is your future.

Join us as we start the historic journey to the bicentennial, 2110!

Eileen