“With every golden leaf waiting in the wings, summer bows out gracefully.” ~ author unknown

Dear MMCM friends:

Things are winding down as summer is ending. Have you ever wondered what the team at Mid-Michigan Children’s Museum does the week of Labor Day when we are closed through Friday?

We start the week out with a day of team building – something fun, relaxing, and memorable. The team at MMCM works hard all year long. Everyone carries a heavy load of things that need to be done, and they do it with a passion for the museum and the many children who visit. This is a great way to show the team how thankful we all are for what they do.

Next, the museum is cleaned - a deep cleaning. The carpet gets a good scrubbing by a professional. The windows and the doors are cleaned. The galleries are deep cleaned, and anything broken is repaired. New items are put out, and some walls are redesigned. In the end, the museum looks shiny and new!

Here is a piece of trivia:  The museum opened its doors in 2008. The carpet has not been replaced, and we follow the strict cleaning protocol in hopes of keeping it for another 18 years!

Enjoy the remaining days of summer, and we hope you will visit MMCM soon. We want to see your smiles.

Ann Doyle

Help make this the best TAT yet! Sponsor TODAY!

(click the button below!)

Hosting your child's birthday party at the museum is a great way to celebrate their special day. Our dedicated team ensures that your party room is thoroughly cleaned before and after the party, allowing you to relax and enjoy the celebration without worrying about the mess. You have the flexibility to personalize the room with tabletop decorations and create lasting memories with your family and friends.

Our versatile rooms are available to rent for a wide range of occasions, including meetings, baby showers, family reunions, and holiday parties. Also, the museum can be exclusively rented for private after-hours parties or events, providing a unique and memorable experience. You can easily schedule a birthday party or rent a room in person or via phone.

For more information, please visit our website at michildrensmuseum.org or give us a call at (989) 399-6626. Please be aware that as the weather gets colder, our birthday party rooms fill up fast! We recommend booking a few months in advance to secure your preferred date and avoid disappointment.

We are looking for new team member!

We are looking to fill our Reception/Facility Manager position. If you think you might be a good fit for our team, apply by clicking the purple "Apply Here!" button.

With my busy summer season coming to an end, I have been working hard to update the museum with new items, big and small. Although our main areas stay the same, I try to add new things when I can. Amazing Tot Spot has a new sign designed by Jeff and a new 3-piece wooden kitchen set. Mind Unwind has a new sensory wall, and more is being added. The train table will have new pieces after we reopen. The pieces were donated to us by a member. Thank you! I have slowly been adding name plaques to both of the tall kids in the middle of the museum. The gold plaques are in memory of someone, and the silver plaques are in honor of someone. They can be purchased at any time on our website using the button below or in-person at the museum.

Also, please bear with us as we try to keep our conveyor belt in the farm going for another month or two before we get our new one! We are so grateful to Michigan Sugar for donating the funds needed for the new conveyor.

Lastly, I will be restarting Toddler Time on Tuesdays at 11 am on September 15th and running until the end of May 2027. Hope you will join me!

September starts MMCM’s busy season with special events returning in full swing. Volunteers play a vital role in hosting a successful event for visitors. Each date has a variety of shift times and activities available. For more information for each date, please visit MMCM’s volunteer page on the website https://michildrensmuseum.org/volunteers/ or contact Whitney, Volunteer Coordinator, using the button below.

Wednesday 9/9/26 Museum Beautification & Deep Clean

Friday 9/18/26 Touch-A-Truck Event Set Up

Saturday 9/19/26 Touch-A-Truck. MMCM’s largest event of the year!

Friday 9/25/26 Gabby’s Dollhouse Meowseum & Worldwide Day of Play event setup

Saturday 9/26/26 Gabby's Dollhouse Meowseum & Worldwide Day of Play Event

Sunday 9/27/26 Gabby’s Dollhouse Meowseum Discovery Days

Friday 10/2/26, Saturday 10/3/26, & Sunday 10/4/26 Gabby’s Dollhouse Meowseum Discovery Days

If you are interested, please contact Whitney (Volunteer Coordinator) by e-mail with the button below or by phone: (989) 399-6626.

Rev up those engines and honk those horns! Our annual Touch-A-Truck is almost here! Join us on Saturday, September 19th from 10:00 am until 3:00 pm in our parking lot and get close to all sorts of cool and interesting vehicles. The outdoor portion of this event will be free, and admission into the museum will be reduced to just $3 per person for everyone ages 2 and older all day! Kids under the age of 2 are always free. 

It’s not too late to join us with your truck or vehicle! If you are interested, please contact us at specialevents@michildrensmuseum.org or call the museum at (989)399-6626 by September 16th to participate. Can’t participate with a vehicle this year? We are also looking for sponsors still! Commitments for sponsorships to be promoted in the museum on the day of the event are due by September 14th. 

“Pinch on the left, pinch on my right, grab Pandy’s hand and hold on tight!”  We’re excited to announce that the Mid-Michigan Children’s Museum is joining Gabby’s Dollhouse MEOWseum Discovery Days from Friday, September 25th until Sunday, October 4th in partnership with DreamWorks Animation and the Association of Children’s Museums. Located in the lobby of the museum, guests will be able to snap a picture with a magical Gabby’s Dollhouse backdrop and life-size Gabby standee! In addition to this awesome photo opportunity, MMCM will be hosting a 2-week-long scavenger hunt. Hidden throughout MMCM’s galleries will be pictures of Gabby and her friends.

At the end of the trail, scan the QR code for a cat-tastic photo filter to use on your pictures! Please note: there will not be a live Gabby character for kids to meet with, just the cardboard prop for photo purposes.

This photo opportunity and additional crafts and activities relating to Gabby’s Dollhouse will be included in regular museum admission. Keep an eye on our Facebook and website for more information about the paw-some extras we have in store. See the dates and times below:

Friday, September 25th
Kitty Ear Headbands
12:30pm-2:30pm

Saturday, September 26th
Tambourines & Maracas and Dancing with DJ Catnip

10:00am-4:00pm

Sunday, September 27th

TP Tube Puppets & Story Time

1:30pm-2:30pm

Friday, October 2nd

Mermaid Slime

1:00pm-3:00pm

Saturday, October 3rd
Kitty Ear Headbands & Cat Wands

11:00am-1:00pm

Sunday, October 4th
Memory Game Tournament
1:00pm-2:00pm

September's reciprocal membership month is with Grand Rapids Children's Museum! That means our members get into Grand Rapids Children's Museum for free, and Grand Rapids Children's Museum members get into Mid-Michigan Children's Museum for free, for the entire month of September!!! Remember, we will be closed from Sep 6th until Sep 11th, but to make up for it, we are doing a second reciprocal membership month with GRCM in November!!! We can't wait to see all our Western Michigan friends, and we hope you go show them some love!

Hey *{{First Name}}*,

I've said it before, and I'll say it again; it feels like I just did this a couple of days ago! Welp, welcome back to the newsletter. I hope you found a bunch of cool and useful info in here. There was a lot to look through, but you did it! You learned a bunch: from Touch-A-Truck sponsors to parties, from gallery updates to volunteer opportunities. You can now consider yourself in the know! Good for you!

As a reward, why not treat yourself to a word search? This one is a little different from others. This one has multi-word "words" to search for, you know, just for a little extra pizzazz! Which is just tired pizza, by the way. Mmmmm pizza... 

And thanks, as always, for making it to the end of the newsletter.

For those of you who are new here, I like to include something fun and interactive at the end of the newsletter. This year, I’m doing word searches! The words can be horizontal, vertical, or diagonal, and they can appear forwards or backwards to make it a little more challenging. Clicking on the image should take you to a website where you can complete it digitally! Enjoy!

Luke Hendrick (Board Chair) - RC Hendrick & Son, Inc.
Ryan Shepard (Board Vice Chair) - Garber Management Group
Marisa Ahrens (Treasurer) - Yeo & Yeo CPAs & Advisors
Kristen Opperman (Secretary) - Hemlock Semiconductor
Erika Ardouin (Immediate Past Chair) - Garber Management Group

Dennis Barlow - Saginaw Intermediate School District
Dr. David Cline - Saginaw Valley State University

Kosta Povich - Braun Kendrick Finkbeiner PLC

Stacie Quast - Remax Results

Adam Root - Nexteer

Paul Sanderude - Dow Chemical Company

Karen Stiffler - MyMichigan Medical Center Saginaw

Domingo Vasquez III - Musico Lessons LLC

Chris Young - Dow Chemical Company

Michelle Youngstrom - Trinity Lutheran Preschool

*{{Organization Address}}*