by Samantha Carlson on 2014-04-30
The first annual Colton Area Museum (CAM) Day is going to be held in Colton on Saturday May 3rd. The event is being organized by Dr. G (Luis Gonzalez), a Colton educator, musician, and historian. He has been working with the CAM for three years and is a member of the board of directors and a museum docent.
Dr. G is a familiar sight around Colton and often walks around speaking to people and has been a community advocate for 18 years. He shared, “The history of Colton drew me to the museum. My first project was putting together the yearbooks from Colton High and it took me two years.” On Museum Day, Dr. G will take the yearbooks out of the display case and lay them out for people to look at. He said, “I think it’s a wonderful connection between the school district and the city. It relates to everyone who lives in the city of Colton.”
Dr. G wrote a book called, “City Talk Presents Veterans of World War II Living in Colton 2014, and as he wrapped up the book with the veterans he shared, “In February, I started really thinking about it, and I wanted to figure out a way to highlight these veterans. I found out International and National Museum Month are in May and that’s why I picked the month of May to host Museum Day.”
On CAM Day, the Colton Fire Truck will be displayed, two local artists will showcase their work, 13 WWII Veterans will attend, and the Colton High jazz band will perform for the community. Dr. G stated, “There was very little recognition for the museum since it’s been here [since its opening in 1991] and I want to make it an integral part and wanted to bring awareness and its role to the community and increase awareness of Colton’s history, part of doing that was to create activities to bring people in and be a part of it.”
Dr. G is very passionate about the city of Colton and speaking with city residents and shared, “I really like collaborating different groups together, and I think it’s so good for the community. The focus is on the museum and its contribution to the history of Colton through the eyes of the museum.”
The Colton Area Museum Day is going to be held on Saturday, May 3rd from 11 a.m.-2 p.m. at the Colton Area Museum at 380 N. La Cadena Dr. Colton.
For more information contact Dr. G at 909-213-3730.
The agenda will be as follows:
11:00 a.m. Museum Opens (with coffee and doughnuts)
CHS Yearbook Displays
Colton fire Truck Display (outside)
Special Art display local artists
Erick Martinez
Liz Jasso
12:00 p.m. Refreshments with classical guitar music with Dr. G
See the exhibits
12:30 p.m. – WWII Veterans spotlight to meet the veterans in person for autographs, photos, and more!
Veterans:
Salvador Centeno Ayala
Trinidad Calderilla
Jesse M. Chavez
Louie Contreras
Fred Cordova
Luis Duran
Ray Gomez
Pete Hernandez
Toshro H. Kanbara (Henry)
Tony Lemos
Robert Rosales
Socorro Rosales
Sevedo Valdez (prothusmoulsy)
James Wheatley
Gilbert Zamorano
1:00 p.m. – DR. G leading the main program
Greeting
Opening prayer
VFW Honor Guard posting of colors and National anthem
VFW 21-gun salute
Pledge of Allegiance
Official Welcome – Mr. Frank Gonzales, Councilman
Dignitaries - Mrs. Susan Oliva, Councilwoman
President – Mr. Mike Murphy, CAM Board of Directors
Special Recognition to Veterans
1:30 p.m. CHS Jazz Band performance