Geary County Historical Society Endowment Fund

Goal: $15,000.00

Specific Need

The Geary County Historical Society Endowment Fund focuses on the longevity of the Geary County Historical Society through investment, with the goal of one day being able to entirely self-fund the Historical Society's annual budget. As of 2026, the Historical Society receives roughly 1/3 of it's annual funding from the Endowment Fund, but with your help, this fund could grow and the dream of full support can be attained.

As the Geary County Historical Society faces an additional $15,000 budget cut from County (down over $50,000 since 2020), it is more important than ever to help the Endowment Fund reach it's goal of self-sustainment for the Historical Society by donating during Match Day!

What does the Geary County Historical Society annual budget support?

Care and upkeep of 6 historic buildings across the county including: the Old Junction City High School Building (the museum), Starcke House, Spring Valley Historic School, Wetzel Cabin, the Little Cabin, and St. Joseph's Historic Church on McDowell Creek Road. Costs associated with care and upkeep of all six buildings average around $50,000 a year

The three floors of exhibits located inside the museum building at 530 N. Adams and free museum entry for all visitors. New exhibits cost $2000 a year.

More than 40 educational programs for 3,500 school aged children and their families each year.

Historic preservation of over 100,000 locally important historic items including every newspaper ever printed in JC, yearbooks dating back to 1900, military uniforms from local veterans, the mirror out of the original Bartell House bar, items from past JC businesses, items from the Brinkley Hospital in Milford, and over 8,000 photographs.

The Museum staff consists of two full time roles (Executive Director/Curator and Director of Programs and Education) and one part time custodian. An additional full time Curator role was eliminated in 2021 following a $30,000 budget cut from the County.

Mission

To solicit, receive, invest and administer gifts of money, securities, annuities, leases and other property, whether real, personal or mixed, or any interest in such property; and to hold, manage, invest, reinvest and administer all such money and other property and to apply the same and the income therefrom only for the benefit and furtherance of the charitable and educational purposes and interests of the Geary County Historical Society and Museum of Junction city Kansas.

Profile

The Geary County Historical Society Endowment Fund of Junction City, Kansas was incorporated on January 22, 1988 by Harold Deever, former U.S.D. 475 Superintendent, and John A. Strain, CPA. It is an IRC 501(c)3 tax exempt nonprofit corporation and is completely independent from the Geary County Historical Society, which has its own IRC 501(c)3 tax exempt nonprofit status.

The purpose of the Endowment Fund is to solicit, receive, invest and administer gifts of money, securities and other property from the general public and to apply the income from these investments for the benefit and furtherance of the charitable and educational purposes and interests of the Geary County Historical Society and Museum of Junction City, Kansas.

The donations received over the years since 1988 have been invested locally and the income from those investments has been paid over annually to the Geary County Historical Society. The invested funds are considered principal and because it is an Endowment Fund, only the earnings can be paid over to the Geary County Historical Society. The invested principal funds are not available to the Geary County Historical Society. They are the assets of the separate Geary County Historical Society Endowment Fund.