PROGRAMS | Quest for Excellence | Award Recipients

MMA Recognizes 2001 Quest for Excellence Award Recipients

The Michigan Museums Association is pleased to recognize the winners of its 2001 Quest for Excellence Awards, recognizing exceptional programs, graphic projects and professional activities of Michigan museums. Presentation of the awards was made at the Gathering of the Michigan Museums Community at Henry Ford Museum & Greenfield Village in Dearborn on Thursday, November 29, 2001.

According to the Awards Committee Chair Greg Whittkopp, "The MMA Quest for Excellence awards program not only honors significant achievement in museum work, but also brings public recognition to the opportunities for museums and historical societies of all sizes to make contributions in this arena."

Join us in congratulating the recipients of this year's Quest for Excellence Awards.

Graphic Design Awards

"Exhibition Rack Card for "Lost on the Lakes: Shipwrecks of Berrien County"
Berrien County Historical Association, Berrien Springs

"Cobblestone Circle"
Detroit Historical Society, Detroit

"Annual Report 2000"
Grand Rapids Children's Museum, Grand Rapids

"Botanica: Contemporary Art and the World of Plants"
Kresge Art Museum, Michigan State University, East Lansing

"2000 National Folk Festival Program Book"
Michigan State University Museum, East Lansing

"Century 2: New Glass and Paintings Catalog"
Muskegon Museum of Art, Muskegon

"Off the Record: A Pictorial History of Saugatuck in the 40's and 50's/The Unpublished Photographs of Bill Simmons"
Saugatuck Douglas Historical Museum, Saugatuck

"In Human Touch: Photographs of Ernestine Ruben"
University of Michigan Museum of Art, Ann Arbor

Institutional Achievement Awards

"Adeline & Julia Growing Up in Michigan and on the Kansas Frontier: Diaries from 19th Century America"
Berrien County Historical Association, Berrien Springs

The 19th century diaries of Adeline and Julia Graham of Berrien Springs are the focal point for a major permanent exhibition and publication, Growing Up in Michigan. To date, more than 800 copies of the publication have sold.

"The Days of Detroit Calendar"
Detroit Historical Society, Detroit

Assembled by dedicated volunteers, the calendar provides interesting historical visuals while providing an historic item from Detroit's history for each day of the year. Over the past three years, more than 16,000 copies were sold raising more than $95,000 for the Society.

"Time Traveler-Group & Tour Planning Guide"
Henry Ford Museum & Greenfield Village, Dearborn

Time Traveler Magazine is the first group sales piece of its kind to not only promote the museum it represents, but also other cultural tourism opportunities in the region it surrounds.

"Community Archives & Research Center Phase I"
Public Museum of Grand Rapids, Grand Rapids

Through heroic and collaborative efforts with city and county government, the staff of the Public Museum of Grand Rapids was able to relocate nearly one million cultural and natural history objects from a building slated for demolition to a newly developed state-of-the-art collection storage facility with public access

"Smithsonian in Tecumseh: Yesterday's Tomorrows: Past Visions of the American Future"
Tecumseh Area Historical Museum, Tecumseh

This all-volunteer, 18 month process incorporated exhibitions of local artifacts and nine public programs complementing the Smithsonian exhibition's six week run in Tecumseh and brought more than 5,000 visitors to town.

President's Award for Distinguished Service to Museums

Susy Heintz-Avery Director of Public Affairs, Governor's Office, formerly Vice President of Travel Michigan

In recognition of her path-breaking work to connect the Michigan museum community to the State's travel programs and infrastructure, thereby serving tourists to and within Michigan, improving economic opportunity to cultural tourism initiatives, and helping Michigan museums become a vital part of the State's second largest industry.