Education, metaphors and shared philosophies bring two organizations together
When People’s United Bank agreed to sponsor the American Independence Museum’s evening and afternoon lecture series, Executive Director Emma Bray was thrilled.
“It is more than a fiscal sponsorship,” she said. “It’s a partnership.”
In describing ‘partnership,’ Bray went on to explain that Marc Ouellette, vice president, senior market manager at People’s United Bank, attended nearly every lecture last year when they also presented the lively educational talks.
“It was great to have Marc here and talk with our guests and get to know them as people,” she said. “Their support enables us to put on a first-class event and promote it effectively…the high attendance numbers this year support that.”
For Ouellette, partnering with the museum makes sense in several ways.
“I see the bank and the museum as branches on the same tree,” he said. “The community is this tree, and each of us have our roles. It is a wonderful partnership.”
Bray agreed and extended the metaphor of a tree a bit further. “People’s United Bank enables us to branch out into the community,” she said.
In reflecting on the partnership as a whole, Bray said it is “immensely important.”
“I tremendously value our partnership with Marc and the bank,” she said. “Their support enables us to continue to develop programs and opportunities for experiential learning that are really very important. Understanding history and its relevance to today gives us all a much needed sense of place.”
Tavern Talks are additionally supported by a Humanities-To-Go grant from the NH Humanities Council.