Dec. 31 Deadline!
ACE MCGives 2024 Campaign Issue
Dear Friends:
As you may know, ACE was accepted to join the MCGives Campaign for 2024. Over the past decade we have been collecting photos, artifacts, and oral histories from Salinas Chinatown contributors. Our Big Idea is to continue expanding and developing our archival collection to museum standards.
Our newly formed Archival Committee (Charlotte Hirahara, Jean Vengua, Kathleen Slattery) has begun identifying, cataloging, and labeling items to upload to an archival website. This will become our “virtual museum” and community resource, showcasing portions of our collections for educators, students, and local historians. We’ve been struck by the enormity of the project—which is ongoing—a project that will continue long after we are gone. Therefore, it is important that we build a solid foundation of archival practices for collection, inventory, cataloging, and sharing the items that are so important to the history of Chinatown and Asian Americans in the Salinas Valley.
In recent months, we have visited three museum archives and one library collection: Merced County Courthouse Museum, Los Banos Milliken Museum, CSUMB Archives and Special Collections, and the Heritage Museum of the Monterey JACL. At each site, we engaged in lengthy discussions with the directors and archivists. Our visits were very informative, and made us even more excited to move forward with our archival process. We are grateful to the people we met for sharing their expertise and advice, specifically: Sarah Lim and Donna Lee Hartman (Merced County Courthouse Museum), Dan Nelson (Los Banos Milliken Museum), Robin Guthrie and John Brady (CSUMB Special Collections), and Tim Thomas (JACL Heritage Museum).
As part of our Big Idea, ACE seeks funding to hire a consultant archivist to guide our archival process; we will also need to purchase equipment and software for the archival project.
Since we moved into our office, ACE has been expanding its programs and public outreach. Computers and websites are an important tools for us to communicate our mission. Our Big Idea also encompasses funding for equipment upgrades (a new office computer and hard drive tower) and website development (for a new website) are sorely needed; such funds will help ensure that our historical and cultural programs will continue to serve the community.
There are only a few days left until December 31st. We hope you will help ACE improve our operations. Join those who have already donated (see below) and donate soon to our MCGives Campaign. It’s easy! Just go to the ACE MCGives page. And please share this page with those who may want to donate.
A BIG THANK YOU TO THOSE WHO HAVE DONATED TO OUR 2024 MCGIVES CAMPAIGN:
Susie & Stanley Brusa, Jennifer Williams, Juan & Mayola Sanchez, Melanie Wong, Patricia Fashing & Kurt Brux, James & Lila Thorsen, Linda Gin, Terry Kosaka, Donna Van Noy, Joyce Lowe, Charlotte Hirahara, Denise Green, Alan Uy, Cathy Chavez-Miller & Mike Miller, Elizabeth & Steven Wilson, Rina Benmayor, Alice Lum, Larry Hirahara, Laurel Lee-Alexander, Renee Franken, Douglas Holtzman & Jennifer Smith, Michael & Gloria Ipson, Marilyn & Mark Dorman, M. Mariko Yamashita, Ken & Jill Allen, Herb & Sandy Wong, Robert Rivas, Dominic Dursa, Efren & Angelita Iglesia, Larry Smith, Mark Cazem & Soledad Brown, and Mary Pommerich.
Reminder of Coming Events:
2024 is the Year of the Dragon! ACE will have a table at CSUMB’s Lunar New Year Celebration, Feb. 10 (details TBA).
Theodor S. Gonzalves, scholar, musician, and a curator for the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of American History (Asian Pacific American Archives), will be giving a talk for ACE on his new book, Smithsonian Asian Pacific American History, Art, and Culture in 101 Objects. April 2024, Salinas Buddhist Temple (details TBA).
ACE is already planning the 2024 Asian Festival, scheduled for April 27th! If you are a food vendor, would like to have a booth or table to sell art and/or crafts, or provide information about your organization, contact Cathy Chavez-Miller at
meankitty132@gmail.com or Larry Hirahara: seedyguy@aol.com. Non-Profit, Educational and Service Groups will not be charged booth fees. $25 for 10x10 ft. vendor spaces; $10 for student vendor tables.
The Buddhist Temple of Salinas will be celebrating its 100th anniversary in 2024! This is big and there will be multiple events; keep an eye out for more information.
JOIN US
ACE continues to receive grants for historical, cultural, and neighborhood projects; we work with service-learning students and partner with many local organizations, presenting opportunities for historical pop-up events and exhibits; we continue to work towards revitalization of Chinatown, and a community based cultural center and museum in the Republic Cafe building. If you are interested in the multicultural history of Salinas, please join us! Help us to develop and expand our programs! Become a member and volunteer of ACE and/or donate to ACE today.
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