Pursuing more community engagement for the Red Deer museum, and eventually, more space for its historic displays and artifacts, is on the agenda of the facility’s new operations director.
Chandra Kastern said she’s excited to take on her new role at the Red Deer Museum and Art Gallery, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary.
The Thunder Bay native, who has lived in Red Deer for 18 years feels “honoured” to be part of this cornerstone community organization. “I truly believe that the MAG has something to offer anyone spending time in Red Deer,” said Kastern, who’s eager to work “with the incredible staff in preserving Red Deer’s cultural repository.”
She feels the museum tells “our collective story,” while also delivering diverse programming and exhibitions.
Besides her day-to-day role in overseeing operations, she said she plans to help the museum’s staff and board carry out their shared vision and strategic plan.
In the shorter term, Kastern wants to keep developing museum programs to expand community engagement and do some fund development to increase revenues and expand the budget.
She also plans to assist with the complex job of organizing the collections storage and do more digitizing of museum records and artifacts so that people browsing the website can get a more comprehensive idea of the kinds of things that are being kept for posterity.
Further down the road, Kastern wants to look at getting more space for the museum, either through a building expansion, or other options. She said there needs to be room for growth.
“I love Red Deer and doing things to help Red Deer be a great place to live,” said Kastern, who has a self-employed business background, as well as working with the government and non-profits in policy development, management and grassroots advocacy.
After moving to the city with her son in 2005, she became executive-director of the Red Deer Symphony Orchestra. Kastern said her work with the RDSO allowed her to develop an understanding of the role of the arts in providing for enlightenment, discussion and a sense of belonging and social connection.