BONNYVILLE – The Bonnyville museum provides tourists and locals alike with the opportunity to learn about the History of Bonnyville.
According to Museum Supervisor Danna Kamaleddine, the museum has been experiencing a bustling summer with lots of groups, tours, camps, and curious locals stopping by.
“We’ve been keeping busy with fun activities like our outdoor movie nights, new scavenger hunts, and new exhibits,” says Kamaleddine.
The museum is hosting another outdoor movie night on Aug. 24.
“We also have exciting plans for next summer, including hosting a farmers’ market once a month and potentially bringing in more attractions to fill our lot,” said Kamaleddine.
Kamaleddine describes the museum as a peaceful place where people can take their time exploring. For $5 or less, it’s an inexpensive way to enjoy an outing.
“Our museum is unique in that it's 90 per cent outdoors, which you don’t see often. We have 15 buildings, three of which are original structures that were moved here... We showcase items used in the Bonnyville area, so visiting can be a great way to experience something you might not encounter elsewhere, like unique artifacts and rare exhibitions. You might even find something related to your family,” said Kamaleddine.
While most of the museum traffic is from non-locals, the museum sees a lot of families looking for kid-friendly entertainment, which Kamaleddine loves to see as the kids really enjoy their time exploring the museum.
“I love the variety of visitors we get and the way they interact with the exhibits. It’s always rewarding to see the surprise and delight on people’s faces, especially when they discover something related to their own family history. I also enjoy seeing families engage with the exhibits, especially the kids who find it fun and educational,” said Kamaleddine.
Kamaleddine has been the Museum Supervisor since 2022 but has worked at the museum since 2019 when she started at 16 years old.
“I have seen this museum grow and it honestly has made me so happy that I'm able to make a difference in the community... I believe we are slowly becoming more integrated into the community, and it’s exciting to see. I love being involved and hearing everyone’s ideas on how the museum can grow,” said Kamaleddine.
“Walking through the museum, especially the hospital, general store, fire hall, St. Anne’s, and the cultural pavilion, you can really feel the sense of community. The history and stories of Bonnyville and its settlers are truly fascinating, and I enjoy hearing about visitors’ favourite parts of the museum.”
Kamaleddine has also been enjoying the new team of staff members at the museum.
“It's been fun watching them experience the museum and bring fresh eyes and ideas on things we can do.”
Kamaleddine has big plans for the future of the museum.
“My goal for the museum is to increase collaboration with other local small museums... and to host more events, like our movie nights. I’m also working on involving more local companies, especially those with artifacts in our collection.”
Thanks to Kamaleddines efforts, the museum is now 80 per cent bilingual in French and English.
“We are a bilingual community. I am very excited to say that we just finished our new brochures and those are in French as well and almost everything is up to date.”
