Carrie [et. al]: I was faced with this kind of dilemma at the Minnesota Historical Society. I reached the conclusion the plaques generally only have value to the giver, and usually not to the receiver. That being said, there are often plaques that do have meaning for the recipient. I tried to identify these only, and dump the rest. (I was also willing to make an exception for plaques with some artistic merit, but those are few and far between.)
I know that at least at one place (the Bob Dole something or other center in Kansas) they just stuck all the plaques on one huge wall--together, they make a statement that they do not individually.
I suggested to people working with donors that they tell the plaque recipient to have a silent auction for his/her supporters, and give the money to us or another worthy charity.
This is always tough, dealing with these things.
Good luck.
Claudia
Claudia J. Nicholson
Executive Director
North Star Museum of Boy Scouting and Girl Scouting
651-739-8857
www.nssm.org
The Museum-L FAQ file is located at http://www.finalchapter.com/museum-l-faq/ . You may obtain detailed information about the listserv commands by sending a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "help" (without the quotes).
If you decide to leave Museum-L, please send a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "Signoff Museum-L" (without the quotes).