Dear TCMU Friends and Family,
I hope this note finds you and your family safe and well. On behalf of all of us at The Children’s Museum of the Upstate, we miss learning with you, creating with you, playing with you and most importantly, we miss dreaming with you!
Over the past months, connection and imagination have become increasingly important—especially for our children. Though we have closed our doors temporarily for the safety of our community, TCMU stays committed to its vision of
creating a world for our children where no barrier is bigger than a dream.
We have called upon our own imaginations to “dream the dream” of how we might better serve you and your families now, and in the future.
Today, we wanted to share a few general updates with you:
What have we been up to while closed?
The museum’s staff has been hard at work curating real-time resources for your families to learn, and play, together at home. We hope you have tuned into our
daily themed virtual programming
, purchased a
mobile birthday party
, or taken advantage of our
parenting tips
for our youngest learners! As schools remain closed for the duration of the academic year,
the museum is here to help fill the learning gap our children will undoubtedly face.
When will we reopen?
TCMU is committed to the highest standard of health and safety for our community. As public health information changes daily, we are working to best determine our next steps. As state officials continue to review metrics of declining new infections, testing, social distancing and a phased reopening, we, too, are evaluating best practices.
As a gathering space for children of all ages—as well as parents, grandparents, educators, artists, and community members—
we take seriously our role in protecting our visitors and our staff.
We are outlining new safety precautions and cleaning measures—from entry flow, reimagined public hours, cleaning schedules, to enhanced sanitizing stations—in order to confirm a safe reopening for our community. We remain committed to following CDC guidelines, and hope to share confirmed details, for both our
Greenville
and
Spartanburg
locations, with you very soon!
Will summer camps happen?
We are actively assessing the safest way to host TCMU summer camps, and are so appreciative of those of you who have already submitted your registration materials! For those of you who have already registered, please be on the lookout for an email with detailed information very soon.
What about my membership?
To our valued members,
please note that we will be extending all memberships for the length of time that TCMU remains closed due to COVID-19.
If you would still like to renew your membership, you can
renew online
or you can contact Debra Plosky at
dplosky@tcmupstate.org
.
Above all, whether you are receiving this email today because you are a member, a donor, or a part of the Upstate community, we are so grateful for your support. With the museum temporarily closed,
we forgo much needed admission revenue
which helps support our vital services. If you would like to support TCMU during this challenging time, please consider
making a donation here
.
Your generous support ensures that together, we can continue to shape our children’s lives, reopen our doors in a refreshed and safe environment, and continue dreaming.
As we navigate the coming days, weeks and months, I encourage you to be in touch with any ideas, questions, concerns, and most importantly—
with your very own dreams
—for the safety, the well-being and the vision of our museum.
We look forward to sharing more information soon and we are so excited to see you again!
With best wishes and big dreams,
Hillary Spencer
CEO, The Children's Museum of the Upstate