KEMMERER — Boxes of old brochures, stacks of old magazines, garbage bags full of old ceiling tiles, empty boxes and chalkboards were just some of the trash that more than four dozen youth members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints recently cleared out of the basement of the Hamsfork Museum.

More than 50 youth and adult volunteers from three Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints congregations rolled up their sleeves and, by creating a long line, implemented the “fireman pass” to effectively and efficiently remove the items.

As one team of workers cleared the hallway and four rooms, another team moved everything from the downstairs office to the upstairs gift shop. This included four filing cabinets, bookshelves, two desks, office equipment, chairs and boxes of office supplies.

Another group worked on clearing a backroom that had been flooded. Trash went out the door to the back parking lot to be thrown away, artifacts were set aside, floors were swept, tand ables set up so the room could be used as a sorting room so the neighboring room could be cleaned. The second room was sorted, had garbage thrown out and the space cleared. Much of the heavy stuff, like taking down venetian-type walls, was done by adult leaders. 

In one hour and fifteen minutes, these youth put in more than 60 man-hours of work. It was incredible to watch. All the cleanup was carefully monitored by board members who had previously decided what to keep and what to dispose of.

“The feedback we have received has been very positive,” Deb Archibald said. “As a board, our hope was that this clean up would be meaningful for these youth and that they might have a vested interest in ‘their’ museum. When one youth was asked how he liked helping, on a scale of 1 to 10, one meaning you hated it and 10 meaning you loved it, he responded with 20. Many adult leaders thought it was a great service project and volunteered to come back and help again.” 

“A cleanup like this was much needed and will be a great jump start on getting the museum open again,” Archibald added. “Watch for the Hamsfork Museum Facebook page and please ‘friend’ us so you can keep up on the renovations and activities like this again.”

Hamsfork Museum board members also partnered with volunteers from the Kemmerer High School Interact group to work at the museum.

Cleanup work continues at the museum with the help from some great volunteers from the Interact club, a service organization of Kemmerer High School.

“Together, they worked for an hour and a half, proving that kids these days really know how to work,” Archibald said. “They moved a piano (that weighed a ton), pulled up carpet that was water damaged by the broken pipe this last spring, took down Venetian room dividers that had to be cut apart, separated and hauled to the garbage and helped to remove classroom doors. It was incredible the amount of work that was accomplished in such a short amount of time.”

“The Hamsfork Museum board would like to thank them for making a big difference and helping us reach our goal,” Archibald continued. “They truly helped the museum, which in turn helps the community, which in turn helps the members of this community. Their efforts made a huge difference, and we think that they seriously had fun doing it.”

If you or your group would like to help, please contact Caleb Ellis or Deb Archibald.