A Bubble Off Plumb

Well, slap me naked and hide my clothes. I was wrong and I have seldom been so pleased to admit it.

Watonga City Council last night determined that there was a path forward for the partnership between the city and the Friends of the Ferguson Home Museum.

At the crux of the matter was who should own the once-glorious 1901 home and be on the hook for the massive cost of restoration.

Apparently, city council members believed the Friends wanted the city to foot the bill. Once that was cleared up, the members became very open to continued ownership, providing insurance and taking care of the utilities. Basically, about $10,000 per year, give or take.

What remains now is for the two parties to hammer out an agreement that is satisfactory to both, and for the Friends’ fundraising to catch another gear.

What must not happen now is for residents who were ready to die on the Ferguson hill to wash their hands of the endeavor and move on to other fights.

The Friends might have come out of this battle relatively unscathed, in a true truce that is now shaping up to be an alliance, but the battle is yet to be won.

There is still the elephant in the room. We – full disclosure, I am the president of the board of the Friends – need money. We need a lot of money, but we don’t need it all at once.

We are seeking grants, but we need a grant writer who knows the ropes. We need a volunteer coordinator who can divvy up the enormous workload and send the appropriate worker bees to the right place at the right time. Our site director, who is part time and whose salary is paid through a partnership with the state, has done a magnificent job, but he is only one person.

So, we need more volunteers. I have been overwhelmed by the outpouring of concern and offers of assistance. Now those people have a goal, something concrete they can do to help reach that goal.

It’s like Clay Zahn, who is a wonderful resource for restoration, said. “We have to consider not why we can’t do it. We have to consider why we can do it.”

That’s the attitude we need to move forward and I am so very thankful to those who spoke for the Ferguson and for city council who now seems ready to come alongside us and move ahead.