On September 27, [log in to unmask] wrote that s/he had heard of troubles at
the Denver Art Museum and at the Valentine Museum in Richmond, VA, and asked
for enlightenment.

I cannot speak to the Denver Art Museum, but perhaps I can shed a little
light on Pfantom's question about the Valentine.  The Valentine recently
underwent a financial separation of its hundred-year old museum site in the
Court End neighborhood from Valentine Riverside, an eight-acre history park
that opened in May 1994.  The Riverside site is expected to be governed by a
new Board of Trustees, and while it is currently closed to the public, we
hope that it will reopen in the near future.  In addition, the Valentine has
recently restructured and has suffered considerable staff layoffs.  These
changes, along with the hard work of the Board of Trustees, are putting the
Valentine back on firm financial ground.

Many of our colleagues in the museum world have sent messages of
encouragement during what has been a difficult time for the museum.  We at
the Valentine have taken great comfort in the good wishes of our fellow
museum folk, and we thank you for your thoughts.

Farar Elliott
Director of Public Programs
The Valentine Museum
Richmond, VA