A 24-hour giving challenge that takes place June 6 – June 7, NH Gives will involve hundreds of nonprofits, including the American Independence Museum (AIM), which will use the campaign to launch two initiatives.
“It’s a day that begins an agency-wide push to support our efforts to educate children and youth and better care for our historic structures,” explained AIM Executive Director Jennifer Carr.
These efforts, according to AIM’s Robert Levey, are part of the museum’s new three-year inclusivity and diversity theme, We Are One. Launched earlier in 2023, We Are One represents AIM’s organizational focus on developing programs, exhibits, and tour experiences that honor many perspectives, including those often marginalized in history.
“We Are One is our belief that all perspectives and all voices matter,” he said. “NH Gives is a terrific opportunity for us to advance our education and preservation efforts, which fall under our We Are One theme.”
This emphasis on inclusivity, according to AIM’s Maddie Beihl, reflects her curatorial work at the museum, as she develops a new exhibit at the Ladd-Gilman House (c. 1721) that will open by early summer. As part of her work, she will meet with representatives of the Pennacook and Abenaki community, members of the Indigenous New Hampshire Collaborative Collective, and other community stakeholders.
“We cannot tell inclusive stories without the input of diverse stakeholders,” she said. “It is very important that we acknowledge the Indigenous heritage of the region and the specific impacts of Exeter’s colonial history on Pennacook and Abenaki independence.”
AIM’s fundraising goal for NH Gives is $20,000, a number Carr said is “desperately needed.” “We are a small museum with big ambitions,” she said. “We need to raise this money, or some of our plans this year will need to be adjusted.”
According to Levey, corporate support has already played a big role in helping AIM advance as an organization. “Service Credit Union and Kennebunk Savings are two organizations that have recently come on board to support our vision,” he said. “We hope their support and NH Gives can serve as a rallying cry behind the need for all of us as a society to come together…We are all unique in some way, but we are also one nation. Our differences can serve as our strength.”
About American Independence Museum
Located in Exeter, NH, the American Independence Museum features a rare collection of historic artifacts that shed light on the Revolutionary War. Examples of popular items in our exhibits include a dragoon pistol, brown bess musket, and 18th century powder horn. Many of our programs offer insight into civic duties, civic engagement and civic responsibility, while we also feature a variety of things to do in NH, such as camps for kids, festivals, summer festival, reenactments, and homeschool programs. Perfect for a day trip or weekend trips, we believe in inclusivity and inclusive history and the spirit behind the phrase, ‘we the people’.