A 24-hour giving challenge that takes place June 6 – June 7, NH Gives will involve hundreds of nonprofits, including the American Independence Museum (AIM), which will use the campaign to launch two initiatives.

“It’s a day that begins an agency-wide push to support our efforts to educate children and youth and better care for our historic structures,” explained AIM Executive Director Jennifer Carr.

These efforts, according to AIM’s Robert Levey, are part of the museum’s new three-year inclusivity and diversity theme, We Are One. Launched earlier in 2023, We Are One represents AIM’s organizational focus on developing programs, exhibits, and tour experiences that honor many perspectives, including those often marginalized in history.

“We Are One is our belief that all perspectives and all voices matter,” he said. “NH Gives is a terrific opportunity for us to advance our education and preservation efforts, which fall under our We Are One theme.”

This emphasis on inclusivity, according to AIM’s Maddie Beihl, reflects her curatorial work at the museum, as she develops a new exhibit at the Ladd-Gilman House (c. 1721) that will open by early summer. As part of her work, she will meet with representatives of the Pennacook and Abenaki community, members of the Indigenous New Hampshire Collaborative Collective, and other community stakeholders.

“We cannot tell inclusive stories without the input of diverse stakeholders,” she said. “It is very important that we acknowledge the Indigenous heritage of the region and the specific impacts of Exeter’s colonial history on Pennacook and Abenaki independence.”

AIM’s fundraising goal for NH Gives is $20,000, a number Carr said is “desperately needed.” “We are a small museum with big ambitions,” she said. “We need to raise this money, or some of our plans this year will need to be adjusted.”

According to Levey, corporate support has already played a big role in helping AIM advance as an organization. “Service Credit Union and Kennebunk Savings are two organizations that have recently come on board to support our vision,” he said. “We hope their support and NH Gives can serve as a rallying cry behind the need for all of us as a society to come together…We are all unique in some way, but we are also one nation. Our differences can serve as our strength.”

Click here to learn more about AIM’s NH Gives campaign.

About American Independence Museum

Located in Exeter, NH, the American Independence Museum features a rare collection of historic artifacts that shed light on the Revolutionary War. Examples of popular items in our exhibits include a dragoon pistol, brown bess musket, and 18th century powder horn. Many of our programs offer insight into civic duties, civic engagement and civic responsibility, while we also feature a variety of things to do in NH, such as camps for kids, festivals, summer festival, reenactments, and homeschool programs. Perfect for a day trip or weekend trips, we believe in inclusivity and inclusive history and the spirit behind the phrase, ‘we the people’.

A $30,000 grant from The Eppes-Jefferson Foundation has enabled the American Independence Museum (AIM) to replace the roof on Folsom Tavern (1775).

The award could not have come at a better time, according to AIM Executive Director Jennifer Carr. “Water was beginning to damage clapboard siding, wood trim around doors, and the attic,” she said .

According to David Ward, co-executive director of The Eppes-Jefferson Foundation with his wife Sharon, the project resonated with their philanthropic objectives, especially after they visited the property. “When we visited and talked with Jennifer, we really sensed her authenticity and the credibility of the American Independence Museum—it struck us both,” he explained.

Sharon said the project also reflected an area of interest of William D. Eppes for whom the foundation was named. Born in 1918, Eppes formed the private foundation to support the arts, historical preservation, and education. “We generally like to fund projects that check two of those boxes,” she said.

Expressing appreciation for AIM’s broader mission to tell inclusive stories through its recently launched We Are One initiative, David said The Eppes-Jefferson Foundation is interested in helping others tell their stories, too.

“One of the programs we are trying to get off the ground is Looking Forward, Looking Back,” he explained. “It’s a program basically designed to get people to preserve their family stories.”

He said their hope is to launch the program by hosting workshops in which participants will learn basic skills in how to tell their life stories. “People can choose their format—whether it be a legacy letter, brief story, or spoken word recording,” he added. “We are excited about this program.”

Carr said she is also excited about Looking Forward, Looking Back, as she cited storytelling as fundamental to the human experience, an idea she said they will increasingly explore at AIM. “Everyone has a story to tell and everyone’s story matters,” she said. “We appreciate being part of Mr. Eppes’s story and that of his foundation.”

Home to a world-class collection of 3,000 historic artifacts, AIM develops programs, events, and exhibits that honor and invite inclusive and diverse perspectives. In 2023, guided tours of Folsom Tavern and the Ladd-Gilman House take place Wednesday through Saturday at varying times.

About American Independence Museum

Located in Exeter, NH, the American Independence Museum features a rare collection of historic artifacts that shed light on the Revolutionary War. Examples of popular items in our exhibits include a dragoon pistol, brown bess musket, and 18th century powder horn. Many of our programs offer insight into civic duties, civic engagement and civic responsibility, while we also feature a variety of things to do in NH, such as camps for kids, festivals, summer festival, reenactments, and homeschool programs. Perfect for a day trip or weekend trips, we believe in inclusivity and inclusive history and the spirit behind the phrase, ‘we the people’.