I was a ghostwriter for Conner Prairie President and CEO Norman Burns. I wrote the copy, below, for his e-newsletter (Norman’s Notes) that went out to board members, city officials, and staff.
If you haven’t experienced our new Nature Classroom – get here soon!
We’ve just opened something that is sure to inspire your curiosity! Check out our new River Lookout and Nature Amphitheater at Treetop Outpost, which has recently been named an official Nature Explore Classroom. The Nature Explore Classroom Certification Program is a national initiative recognizing organizations that help children learn about nature.
The River Lookout is quite a sight if you haven’t been out there yet, and I continue to be amazed by the beauty of the White River. In our quest to provide new pathways to learning, this proves to be a huge step forward by letting guests immerse themselves in nature. We’ve also been hard at work on our Nature Amphitheater that will soon host nature chats, performances and more. I encourage everyone to come out an experience these important new additions firsthand.
We’re offering even more opportunities to learn about our top-notch rare breeds program
At Conner Prairie, we pride ourselves on being the very best at bringing awe and wonder to adults and children alike. One of the many ways we do that is with our incredibly important rare breeds program. There’s nothing else quite like it in this area, and I’m happy to announce that we’ll be making several enhancements to the Animal Encounters barn that you’ll see pop up in July. These enhancements will include new information about our rare breeds with refreshed signage and exhibit panels.
The exhibit panels will change seasonally to show the different types of experiences taking place in the barn throughout the year. Guests will be able to explore our new breed book and Baby Arrivals Board to learn all about the types of rare animals that call Conner Prairie home. In addition, there will be a new hand-washing station, a dedicated staff storage space and new light fixtures to enhance the guest experience as they meet our four-legged friends. I am excited to roll out these new improvements and upgrades to one of our most-cherished pieces of Conner Prairie
Conner Prairie’s communications team is going above and beyond to get our news out to national audiences
Our communications team has been hard at work making gigantic media gains at break-neck speeds. 2018 has been a record-breaking year so far for brand awareness. News about our Arapawa goats, as well as our First Responders Day announcement made national headlines. Yahoo! Finance, Dowjones MarketWatch, Markets Insider and a slew of other publications who ran our stories allowed us to reach a potential audience of 164 million people. On the social media side, our Instagram following has jumped from just 4 thousand followers to over 10 thousand in just 4 months! We now have the ability to tell our story and drive website engagement by using Insta Stories direct linking feature. I’m proud of how our team is leveraging technology to get the word out about all the great things we do here at our museum.
Increased web traffic indicates high interest in Curiosity Fair
Curiosity Fair is just around the corner – June 9 and 10 – and we’re set to take it to new heights with some high-flying BMX’ers, a group of unique animals from the Columbian Park Zoo in Lafayette, science shows, art activities and much more! If there’s anything that embodies the spirit of igniting your curiosity, this event is it. Our webpage views are up 43% from last year, so there’s every indication that interests are high for this one-of-a-kind program. I can’t blame them; this event keeps getting better and better every year.
Conner Prairie to honor our First Responders on Aug. 4 with free admission
It is with great honor that I announce Aug. 4 as First Responders Day at Conner Prairie. Those who protect our community will receive free admission on this day; it is our small way of saying thank you to all the men and women that serve us and keep us safe. For once, we want to be the ones that serve you. The family of first responders will receive a 50% discount on admission on Aug. 4.
We’ll start the fun with celebratory remarks at 9:30 a.m. followed by opening the museum at 10 a.m. As part of the celebration, special programming will be held throughout the day and a Civil War band will play in 1836 Prairietown. Check our website for more details on these activities closer to the event date.
It fills us with joy that we continue to live our values through events like these, where we’re able to have “A Heart for the Past, A Head for the Present, and An Eye to the Future.” We’re not the only ones excited about this event, as Gov. Eric J. Holcomb recently stated: “We can’t do enough to thank and recognize Indiana’s first responders for their service to Hoosiers in need. I hope they and their families are able to take advantage of this fun day in their honor.” Thank you Gov. Holcomb. We couldn’t agree more.