Tinker Track is opening at the Mid-Michigan Children’s Museum thanks to the generous sponsorships from:
In this hands-on exhibit, kids and families will get a first-hand look into the racing world and investigate the science behind building and repairing bikes and cars.
Visitors can build their own bike and race to the finish around Tinker Track! The fastest family member to pedal wins and can proudly take their place in the Winner’s Circle. Kiddos can make repairs to their bikes in the garage and learn to change tires with lightning speed in Pit Lane. The Tinker Track will challenge kids to use their problem-solving skills and creativity as they build their bikes and race along the track’s many obstacles.
Gallery activities include:
– Competing to see who has the fastest bike
– Testing tire-changing speed in Pit Lane
– Making bike repairs in the garage
– Experimenting to see how bike design affects their speed and performance
– Racing around the track with stop lights, speed bumps, inclines, and curves
– And more!
Check out a super special sneak peek of the gallery at the bottom of this page and make sure you’re following MMCM on Facebook for the latest updates on Tinker Track and reopening. 
Excitement is brewing at the Mid-Michigan Children’s Museum in Saginaw as officials prepare to re-open a beloved gallery where kids can play while learning the story of agriculture in the Great Lakes Bay Region.
A ribbon cutting and dedication ceremony for the recently upgraded Aunt Sugar’s Farm & Uncle Pickle’s Barn gallery takes place from 3-4:30 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 21, at the museum, 315 W. Genesee Ave. The public is invited to attend.
The gallery was established when the museum opened in 2008 through gifts from Michigan Sugar Company and Hausbeck Pickles & Peppers. Both companies have again made significant financial gifts to upgrade the gallery.
Support for the project also comes from DHT Group (Dave Hausbeck Trucking), the Michigan Farm Bureau, and Star of the West Milling Company. The centerpiece of the gallery upgrades is a loft constructed inside the barn where children can play and access a new spiraling slide coming out of the barn. Additionally, there is a new conveyor system and chute children may use to move foam sugarbeets and pickles from the field to the market.
“The entire upgrade is designed to help better tell the story of agriculture, specifically how crops like sugar beets and pickles get from the farm field to your table,” said Rob Clark, Director of Communications and Community Relations at Michigan Sugar Company. “We wanted to create a space that has some layers and new spaces for kids to play and explore.
Plus, a slide is just fun for kids. We’re very excited to see how they interact in this refreshed space.”
Mid-Michigan Children’s Museum officials worked with ZENTX Media Group of Freeland to complete the upgrades.
The changes to the barn come on the heels of another significant addition to the gallery – a mural painted on the wall behind the barn that helps tell the story of agriculture in Michigan and the Great Lakes Bay Region.
The mural, painted by Grand Rapids artist Michael Pfleghaar, features fields of crops typically found in Michigan, including sugar beets, pickles, corn, soybeans, wheat, potatoes, hay, pumpkins, and apples, as well as a farm with livestock and horses.
Lori Hausbeck, Executive Projects Manager at Hausbeck Pickles & Peppers, said she envisions families interacting with the mural in fun ways.
“I can see parents and their children playing little eye-spy and counting games for sure,” she said. “A parent might ask their child, ‘how many clouds do you see,’ ‘can you find the fox in the painting,’ or ‘point to the pumpkin patch.’ There are endless possibilities and what’s really great is that all of this interaction will not only be fun for kids, but it will be educational.”
Mid-Michigan Children’s Museum President Ann Doyle said she could not be happier with how the upgraded gallery has come together.
“We are so excited to cut the ribbon and re-open Aunt Sugar’s Farm and Uncle Pickle’s Barn, and we know area families are equally looking forward to exploring the new space,” she said. “We’ve had many visitors over the past month asking when the exhibit would be opened because they want to come just for that. We know it is going to be a very popular space.”
Doyle said the project wouldn’t have been possible without the significant gifts made by the contributors.
“We are grateful to Michigan Sugar Company, Hausbeck Pickles & Peppers, DHT Group, Michigan Farm Bureau, and Star of the West Milling Company for their incredible commitment to our museum and this gallery,” she said. “Together, we are Making Life Sweeter for area children and their families, while fulfilling an important mission of the museum – to combine fun with education.”
Michaela Witgen started this Eagle Project by sodding the outdoor pavilion area in 2021. Once the sod was established the signage was finished and installed. These new signs showcase “Leave No Trace” and it’s 7 principles, The Outdoor Code, and information about solar energy and how it’s used. You will have to come see them for yourself out in our pavilion.
This installation earned Michaela her Eagle rank in scouting. 
Excitement is brewing at the Mid-Michigan Children’s Museum in Saginaw as officials prepare to re-open a beloved gallery where kids can play while learning the force and fluidity of water.
The gallery was established when the museum opened in 2008. In the years since, hundreds of thousands of children have controlled the flow and direction of water by building with pipes, going fishing, and racing boats as fast as they could. Now kids can continue to experience all of those things with some new elements as well. A new fishing hole, a new window graphic, and even a new fish tank and fish are making a big splash in the Water, Water Everywhere Gallery. One of the most notable updates to the gallery is the new floor. The new design has a beautiful blue color with a gritty texture to help prevent slips. The floor also addressed the ongoing drainage problem so water has the proper flow to the drain holes.
This update would not have been possible without the generous support of the Saginaw Community Foundation, the Bay Area Community Foundation, The Rehman Foundation, the Alice Turner Trust, Nexteer Automotive, the Yeo & Yeo Foundation, Blue Thumb, and other private donations. Mid-Michigan Children’s Museum officials worked with Morley Company and Stonhard to complete the upgrades.
Mid-Michigan Children’s Museum President Ann Doyle said she could not be happier with how the upgraded gallery has come together.
Alongside MACC were these great donors:
Thanks to Harvey Randall Wickes Foundation and Nexteer Automotive, this years-long project has come to fruition, and we invite all who come to our STEM Day event to join us at the ribbon cutting of our newest exhibit, the Car Works Cadillac.
This exhibit feels like a real car because IT IS a real car! Along with a movable steering wheel,working lights, reactive gas pedal, and working fans, it also has touchscreen tablets.  These tablets let children call various fictitious people in their lives, listen to a few tunes, and even watch short safety videos! Thanks to Caveman Auto the interior has been gutted and retrofitted to be safe for little hands!