Secrets of Radar Museum Celebrates its 20th Anniversary

On May 22, 2023, we celebrated our 20th year open to the public. The museum held a rare Holiday Monday opening to open its doors, free, to the public. Visitors were treated to tours that highlighted the new additions and sophisticated new display materials, lunch, and (brief) speeches. Theresa Armstrong, MPP for London-Fanshawe was on hand to deliver kind words and hansard, and cut the cake. She did both with enthusiasm and skill! Guests included former staff and Board Members, volunteers past and present, and family members of Jim Sands, one of the museum’s founders. There was even a well-behaved pupper who joined the fun. Thank you to Theresa Armstrong and the London Amateur Radio Club for joining us in our merry-making.

Goodbye? Hello! to Elizabeth

Elizabeth Grayson leaning on a display table in the Secrets of Radar Museum, August, 2022. Used with permission.

Sometimes a summer job contract or university intern really clicks with us and our mission and over the years we’ve had several employment contract staff and interns return to us or stay on as volunteers, sometimes for several years.

We are delighted to announce that following the conclusion of her summer Young Canada Works contract, during the Annual General Meeting, Elizabeth Grayson stood for election to the Board of Directors. She was unopposed and the membership unanimously accepted her election. She has taken on the job of handling memberships, among other things, and we couldn’t be happier.

During her three-month summer contract, Elizabeth worked diligently to catalogue, cull, and house several archival collections, attended museum network events, and developed her own interpretive approach to our exhibit material to provide excellent tours. Elizabeth is in the process of completing a Bachelors in Museum Studies at Western University and is brimming with ideas and enthusiasm. Welcome aboard, Elizabeth. We hope you enjoy your term on the Board!

Our President's AGM 2018 Address

Grand Reopening, September 16, 2017.                                                      Photo: C. Lippert

Dear Members, Staff, Volunteers, and Sponsors,

On behalf of the Board of Directors of the Secrets of Radar Museum I extend warm greetings to you all. It is with deep and sincere gratitude that I thank you for your ongoing commitment to keep the museum and the incredible story it tells alive. Since taking over from past president Mr. Peter Garland, I have learned a lot about the very slim margin upon which we stake our existence. I have learned that through sheer will and determination we can persevere and continue to tell our story. The going can be very tough for a small museum, but I have seen camaraderie, collaboration, cooperation, generosity, patience and understanding from all of you. For that I am grateful. We could not exist without all of those positive attributes which you have shown us in spades.

The 2017-2018 Fiscal Year saw us faced with the loss of our home and the Herculean task of moving an entire museum. Though the generous support and volunteerism of members of The 427 Wing of the Royal Canadian Airforce Association and the London Amateur Radio Club, we were able to move into our new location. We are looking forward to building on the synergy of being in an aviation district with several like-minded museums and groups. Early signs are promising as our number of visitors has increased in the first months of 2018 over last year.

Through financial support from the London Heritage Council we received funding to develop a new strategic plan. The Board of Directors put in the overtime needed throughout the longest and coldest winter in recent memory to collaborate and set a path forward that will see the museum continue to develop, modernize, focus, and become more accessible. Our hope is to find others who share in our vision who can make contributions as museum members, board members, and sponsors to help us achieve our short and long-term goals.

Together we have survived a very challenging year and it is my pleasure to continue to work with you and for you toward a brighter future.

Sincerely,

Corbin Lippert, President

Press Release Announcing our New Home!

Secrets of Radar Museum

Museum Announces its Relocation

London, ON – After 14 years at its original site, the Secrets of Radar Museum is on the move!

The Secrets of Radar Museum is moving and expects to reopen for the public at its new home in August, 2017. Inventory and packing are well underway, with the first stage of the move expected to occur in mid-June. The Museum is excited to enhance and re-imagine its exhibitions for the new location in a way that will make greater use of its archival and oral history collections.

Support in the form of advice, materials, and funding have been received from other local museums, the London Heritage Council, and individuals; however, relocating a museum is a big project and additional offers of assistance are welcome.

The new site is located at 2155-B Crumlin Side Rd, London, ON N5V 3Z9, which is directly adjacent to the Royal Canadian Air Force Association 427 (London) Wing and shared with the London Amateur Radio Club (LARC). The new site will make for exciting cross-programming and partnerships with the Wing, LARC, and nearby Jet Aircraft Museum.

 

About the Museum: During the Second World War, at the request of the British government, almost 6,000 Canadians were trained in all aspects of radar operation and loaned to the Royal Air Force (RAF). By the war’s end, thousands more had been trained and sent into every theatre of conflict. Sworn to an oath of secrecy that was not lifted until 1991, it was only recently that these men and women were able to share their experiences. Canadian radar personnel were a crucial part of the war effort. Many of these early radar veterans went on to have leadership roles in the development of radar during the Cold War and in the Canadian telecommunications industry. Our museum is dedicated to collecting and preserving their stories and remembering their important contributions. It’s no joke, radar helped win the war!

We're Moving !

You've heard the rumours and seen the posts on Facebook...

Well, it's true:

we're on the move!

That's right, the rumours are true, Secrets of Radar Museum is relocating.  We can't give give you the details, yet, as the paperwork hasn't been signed, but we're pretty sure you'll understand our excitement.  You can expect an announcement soon.

As was reported in our last newsletter, the Western Counties property, our home for 14 years, is changing ownership.  Unfortunately, the age of the buildings means that in order for the new owners to upgrade, everything has to be removed to clear out asbestos and address long-standing structural problems.  While we're sad to leave our idyllic location by the Westminster Ponds, we're happy to say that the new owners have great plans to restore and re-purpose the buildings. 

And we're even more excited about the plans for our new home!

Three great ways to help us out:

Moving is hard enough, but moving a whole museum (even a little one like ours) is a really big job!

• Volunteer to inventory and/or pack artefacts

• Donate packing supplies (bubble wrap, packing foam, plastic totes, packing tape)

• Donate money to help us re-imagine our exhibits in our new home!

The museum's final day open to the public is May 13, 10AM-4PM.
Inventory and packing will occur throughout the month of May.  The collection will be moved early June with the museum re-opening at its new site mid-summer.

Contact us to volunteer !

Winter 2016 Volunteer of Note

At the changing of each season, after some discussion, we select one volunteer to recognise as our "Volunteer of Note".  We have chosen volunteer and member of the Board of Directors, Corbin Lippert, as our Winter 2016 VoN. 

Corbin represents the London Amateur Radio Club on our Board of Directors, but has become quite dedicated to the Secrets of Radar Museum.  Corbin not only brings technical radio knowledge to the museum, but he actively engages the LARC membership with the goings-on of the museum.  He's enthusiastic, enterprising, a bit of a handyman, and always looking for new ways to help both organisations thrive.

Thanks for everything you do, Corbin !

Corbin Lippert, December 2015.  Courtesy of the London Amateur Radio Club

Autumn 2015 Volunteer of Note: Michelle Rosenblat

Michelle joined us in September through an internship program at Western University.  Very quickly she made herself at home and has become an integral part of the curatorial team.  Eager, dedicated, creative, and responsible, Michelle has continued work on an unfinished virtual exhibit initially researched and written by a previous intern. This includes editing segments of oral history from our archives, and sourcing photographs and artefacts. Her time with us has had her researching equipment necessary for the EMC Grant digitisation project, and digging through the collection for cool things to put on our Twitter.  In a pinch, she can even give a tour.  Michelle finishes with us in early December, but has promised to come back in January. 

Thanks for all you do, Michelle!

Summer Volunteer of Note: Sunny Kim

Congratulations to Sunny Kim, our Summer 2015 Volunteer of note!

Sunny has been a dedicated member of the museum's collections management team, tirelessly pursuing our catalogue backlog.  Aside from her attention to detail and diligence, Sunny brings cheer and humour to her work.  Thank you, Sunny, for all your hard work!

Thank you Volunteers and Staff!

On August 29th, we celebrated our marvellous Volunteers and Staff and were astounded by the amazing turn-out.  Sometimes we forget how many of us are invested in the life of this museum and it's important to recognise everyone who makes an impact.

Many thanks to the incomparable Brenna Ardiel, our phenomenal summer Museum Assistant and Interpreter, for planning and organising our first Volunteer and Staff Appreciation Luncheon. Thank you to everyone who helped out with the barbecues (Corbin and Don) and side dishes, to Kathy for assisting with the decorations, and to everyone who came out. Brenna's experience with us was made possible by Canada Summer Jobs in Heritage.

Many thanks to Evelyn Hayes, our Summer Experience Program student, who has worked on creating a new vision for our old exhibits. Next time you're in, check out her Teletype Machine display and activity.

We're delighted to announce our Summer Volunteer of Note is Sunny Kim, who has put in an enormous amount of time and effort into digging into the collection backlog.

Below are some photos from the event, courtesy of Kathy Kozell.

Spring Volunteer of Note: Bethany Hayward

Bethany helping out on Canada Day, 2014, in Harris Park, London, ON

Bethany has been with SORM for two years as our volunteer Collections Manager. With few exceptions, she devotes one day a week to the museum in which she puts order to chaos, inputs artefact and archival data into the collection database, and oversees the work of multiple young cataloguing assistants. You can often find her working the SORM booth at community events such as Canada Day in Harris Park, DoorsOpen London, and Remembrance Day.  Her background in archaeology and museum management make her a great asset to any museum and we felt strongly that her efforts should be rewarded with our inaugural Volunteer of Note award. 

Thank you, Bethany, for everything you do!