WHAT WILL YOU DO FOR MAYDAY?

Cultural Institutions Prepare for Emergencies

WASHINGTON, DC�Libraries, museums, archives, and arts and historic preservation organizations across the nation will set aside May 1, 2009, to participate in MayDay, a national effort to prepare for disasters.

Sponsored by Heritage Preservation and other members of the Heritage Emergency National Task Force, MayDay encourages organizations to take one simple step to protect the art, artifacts, records, and historic sites they hold in trust.

Any organization can participate in MayDay. Last year, staff at the Tacoma Art Museum and the Museum of Glass in Tacoma, WA, met to share their collection emergency plans. Lycoming College's library in Williamsport, PA, partnered with the college's security department to organize a building tour for first responders. The Central New York Library Resources Council in Syracuse, NY, sponsored a discussion on health and safety issues for archives.

Heritage Preservation is collecting examples of creative but practical measures like these to share online. This year, any institution submitting a MayDay story will be entered in a drawing for disaster supplies donated by Gaylord Brothers. Four winners will be announced on June 1, the beginning of the 2009 Atlantic hurricane season. Brief descriptions of 2009 MayDay plans or accomplishments should be submitted to taskforce(a)heritagepreservation.org by May 22, 2009, to be eligible for prizes.

Heritage Preservation will also be offering its award-winning Field Guide to Emergency Response and Emergency Response and Salvage Wheel at special MayDay prices from April 15 through May 31.

Visit www.heritagepreservation.org/mayday/index.html for project ideas and information on prizes and the publications sale.

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The Heritage Emergency National Task Force is a partnership of 40 government agencies and national service organizations formed in 1995. An initiative of Heritage Preservation and the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the Task Force has helped to protect cultural heritage from the damaging effects of natural disasters and other emergencies. Find valuable disaster resources at the Task Force Web site, www.heritageemergency.org

For more than 30 years, Heritage Preservation has been the national, nonprofit advocate for the proper care of the objects and sites that embody our history and enrich our lives. Heritage Preservation partners with institutions, organizations, and concerned individuals who care about preserving our past.