Plans For Children’s Museum Move Forward

By Nancy K. Crevier

Kristin Chiriatti, president of the everw?nder children’s museum foundation, said she was pleased with the turnout Wednesday evening, April 4, at the C.H. Booth Library for an informational meeting designed to introduce the public to plans to build a 16,000–20,000-square-foot children’s museum in Newtown. An overview of the vision was presented to invited town officials, community leaders, and educators at an earlier meeting held Thursday, March 1.

“People had good comments for us [on Wednesday evening],” Ms Chiriatti said. “At the meeting in March, a few people mentioned that it would be nice to incorporate programs for the middle school-aged children, and that came up again at this meeting. We are exploring those ideas now,” she said.

There was a palpable sense of excitement at the April 4 meeting, Ms Chiriatti said.

Incorporated in January 2011 as “everw?nder children’s museum,” Ms Chiriatti, president, her husband Chris, and board members Kerrie Glassman, Karen Smiley, and Karlee Winkler envision a space that can be divided into areas to include exhibits on motion, sound and electricity, water play, and that will allow for an arts creativity center and workshops, as well as a “challenge corner,” where children will be pushed to “think outside the box,” explained Ms Chiriatti.

The museum would be staffed by a limited number of paid employees and rely heavily on volunteers of all ages.

The Chiriattis were surprised when they moved to Newtown just over two years ago that a quality children’s museum was not to be found nearby. As parents of two small children, they know that traveling any distance for an outing is not always convenient.

The Chiriattis and board members see Newtown as a town that values children’s education and children, and believe that the everw?onder children’s museum will become a popular destination. They see everw?nder children’s museum as a place in which the community could come together, and hope to draw in an audience from surrounding towns, as well.

“We’ve had such an outpouring of help, that we have formed three committees,” said Ms Chiriatti. The fundraising, outreach program, and public relations committees attracted a number of sign-ups from attendees at the Wednesday meeting, she added.

She is also buoyed by the positive feedback she has received from local educators.

“Now, it’s the matter of raising the funds,” said Ms Chiriatti. The organization estimates that approximately $4.5 million will be needed to bring the dream to fruition. “We received our 501(c)(3) nonprofit status as of the end of February, and have started applying for grants. We can also start to look for some larger donors,” she said.

The organization continues to eye Fairfield Hills as the optimum place to build the children’s museum, said Ms Chiriatti. “I’m speaking to the Fairfield Hills and Economic Development committees in May. I have sat down with Elizabeth Stocker [director of economic and community development in Newtown]. She would really like to see us [at Fairfield Hills], so we’re going to try to make that happen,” she said.

To find out more about everw?nder children’s museum, or to make a tax-deductible donation, visit www.everwondermuseum.com.