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America 250 state committee hears partner spotlights, readies July 4 and museum programs
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Summary
At a virtual meeting, the state America 250 committee heard four local partner spotlights — from Colville to Quincy — and received staff updates on statewide museum projects, a July 27 Freedom Plane stop, a June volunteer Day of Service and an expanding partnership network now topping 825 organizations.
The state’s America 250 committee met virtually and heard short presentations from community partners around Washington detailing plans for local semiquincentennial events, volunteer campaigns and museum exhibits ahead of the July 4 milestone.
The lieutenant governor opened the meeting and turned the program over to staff, who introduced four partner spotlights from Northeast Washington, Pacific, Cowlitz County and Quincy. Laurie Matlock, fair manager for the Northeast Washington Fair in Stevens County, said the fair’s July 4 celebration will include a parachute flag drop, musical performances and a drone show, capped by a fireworks display funded in part by the City of Colville. “The City Of Colville… they said, ‘we'll give you $15,000 for fireworks, and we'll give you $15,000 for whatever you think is needed,’” Matlock said, adding she arranged a prepaid vendor punch‑card system to keep activities affordable for attendees.
From the City of Pacific, Council Member Ray Helms described a community campaign called “250 acts of service,” in which residents report small volunteer actions to a local committee that tracks progress toward 250 collective acts. Helms outlined a calendar of events including a May historical demonstration, a July fair appearance and a semi‑quincentennial time capsule project.
Joseph Govetnik, museum director at the Cowlitz County Historical Folk Museum in Kelso, said his county is leveraging existing events and partnerships on a limited budget to present local history panels and related programming; Govetnik highlighted archival materials, including 1942 records documenting property confiscations of Japanese American residents, that will be featured in local exhibits. Harriet Weber of the Quincy Valley Historical Society described school programs, traveling exhibits and a planned fall festival with living‑history presentations and an October veterans display called “America 250 in Uniform.”
Dylan, staff coordinating statewide museum initiatives, gave program metrics: the “Out of Many 1” museum project had 38 submissions representing 16 counties, the “Moments That Made Us” panel exhibit has been downloaded by about 45 organizations, and Museum Day on Aug. 8 lists 51 participating museums across 22 counties. “We currently have 38 submissions to date,” Dylan said, and staff are continuing to accept entries for the statewide events map.
Lorraine, who oversees partnership outreach, told the committee the Partnership Program has grown rapidly and now includes more than 825 community partners; she also noted the launch of an in‑kind media partnership program and urged committee members to promote a June Day of Service tied to national volunteer efforts. Nick, a committee organizer, recapped a March Secretary of State’s Office event and announced that the Freedom Plane will land at Boeing Field on July 27 with original documents to be displayed at MOHAI for a two‑week public showing. He also said the committee will include a letter from the lieutenant governor and the governor’s proclamation in the project time capsule.
The meeting ended with gratitude for local organizers, a reminder to use the events calendar on the America 250 website and a scheduling note: the committee’s next quarterly meeting is set for July 9, after July 4 activities conclude.
