Rock Island, IL-– The Rock Island Library is seeking volunteers to help install the Smithsonian Exhibit, "Hometown Teams," when it arrives at the Main Library in early September.
The six-person installation team will help put together the national exhibit on the 2nd floor of the Rock Island Main Library on Sept. 9 and 10, and take it down on Monday, Oct. 27. Installation requires no special skills. A step-by-step guide and video from the Smithsonian Institution Museum on Main Street program is available.
"If you've ever put together kit furniture, you can do this," said Lisa Lockheart, hometown teams project coordinator for the Rock Island Public Library. She is also searching for volunteers who can serve as exhibit guides. Training will be available on Sept. 11, at a time to be announced later.
If you can assist with either need, please contact Lisa Lockheart at the Rock Island Public Library by calling 309-732-7303 or emailing lockheart.lisa@rigov.org.
Hometown Teams is a celebration of hometown sports, and its impact on nearly all aspects of American culture. The Rock Island Library is also looking for local memorabilia to display alongside the national exhibit from Sept. 13 to Oct. 25. Focus areas include :
- Photos of high school teams, past and present, for "Hometown Teams" photo walls;
- Softball items from traveling tournaments held at Douglas Park in Rock Island, and
- Items from the Rock Island Independents football team and the Tri-City Blackhawks basketball team.
Donated items will be displayed in locked cases, and will be returned to their owners after the six-week run of the exhibit. To discuss what you have, call the library's Hometown Teams project coordinator Lisa Lockheart at 309-732-7303, or email lockheart.lisa@rigov.org.
Hometown Teams will be displayed at the Rock Island Main Library from 11:00 am, Saturday, Sept. 13 to 4:30 pm, Saturday, Oct. 25. Free public programs on the area's unique sports heritage will also be offered. Additional local sports displays may also be viewed this fall at Moline Public Library, Rock Island County Historical Society and the Karpeles Manuscript Museum.
Hometown Teams is part of the Museum on Main Street (MoMS) program, a partnership between the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service and the Illinois Humanities Council (IHC). MoMS brings Smithsonian-quality exhibitions to local museums, historical societies, libraries, and community centers. Other Illinois towns chosen to host the exhibit are in Cobden, Mattoon, Nokomis, Waterloo, and Nauvoo, IL.
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