This group’s dreams of a Tri-City children’s museum are in peril

An exhibit at the East Benton County Historical Museum lets children and their parents see a piece of all of the states.

From Maine’s lighthouses to California’s redwoods, children have the chance to play and learn about all 50 states.

But the $18,000 that Hands In For Hand On Tri-Cities still needs to raise to pay for the Trivial Pursuit 50-State Adventure exhibit may prove to be the swan song for the organization and its dreams of opening a new children’s museum in the Tri-Cities.

They have a little more than a month and a half to come up with the money, or the six board members will each be stuck with a $3,000 bill, said President Stephanie Button. The structure of the nonprofit leaves the people running it personally responsible for the debt.

“I will say that this is scary,” she said. “We care so much about this idea of a children’s museum. ... Right now we’re asking for the community’s help.”

They would also need to sell the exhibits they’ve already created, putting them back to where they were before they started, Button said.

The group began its mission 3 1/2 years ago when founders grew tired of traveling to Spokane or Seattle to find a science-focused museum geared toward children.

While the Tri-Cities is home to Columbia Basin College’s Bechtel Planetarium and The Reach interpretative center, there are limits to how they allow kids to interact and learn about scientific principles.

Previous Hi-Ho President Lara Hastings recruited a team of educators, scientists and parents to begin work on opening a discovery center.

They started small with A View from Space at Columbia Basin College. The Oregon Museum of Science and Industry cost $9,000 and attracted 1,000 visitors for the 80 hours it was open.

They spent about double that amount to bring Amusement Park Science to Gesa Carousel of Dreams last winter. Button said that exhibit was equally popular.

They had already set the plans in place for the Trivial Pursuit exhibit last year, and Button said they were confident that there was enough support in the community.

“It’s a really great. It’s scaled to life. We have lighthouses from Maine. We have a hot air balloon from New Mexico,” she said. “There are puzzles and games. You can really travel around the United States.”

Visitors can ride a mule in the Grand Canyon, guide a sled dog team on the Iditarod Trail and climb Mount Rainier.

Since it opened in September, the display has drawn a steady stream of people to the museum at 205 W. Keewaydin Drive, nearly doubling the museum’s attendance, she said. It’s attracted parents play dates, encouraged people to buy memberships.

But the obscure location behind Kennewick City Hall, may have deterred people, Button said.

One of the easiest ways to support the group is to stop by the museum. Tickets are $5 for an exhibit that keeps children engaged for more than two hours, Button said.

The museum is open noon to 4 pm. on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, noon to 6 p.m. on Thursdays and Fridays, and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturdays.

The group is also hoping for donations at hihotc.org/donate/ or for a corporate sponsor willing to sponsor a day at the exhibit.

Finally if people don’t have any money to give, the group is organizing a Goodwill collection outside of the museum starting at noon on Dec. 11 and running through 5 p.m. Dec. 15.

“We’re open every weekend,” she said. “We don’t want it to be the end of a children’s museum in the Tri-Cities. We have this fight in us..”