By Michael Dashiell
Olympic Peninsula News Group
PORT ANGELES — Caretakers of local history plan to reopen their research center Tuesday after a recent winter storm left an unfortunate surprise.
Melting snow and rain led to a leak at the Clallam County Genealogical Society Research Center at 402 E. Lauridsen Blvd. in Port Angeles that damaged the facility’s ceiling, carpet and a conference table.
The center was temporarily closed for repairs, society board member Deborah Martin said recently, but according to the group’s website, the facility will reopen Tuesday. Its conference room is expected to remain unusable for the immediate future.
The group caught a bit of break when the leak, found the morning of Feb. 9, didn’t damage any local historical documents or artifacts, society President Virginia Majewski said.
“Fortunately, [the leak] happened in the center of the room,” she said. “All of the books in the shelving and archives in file cabinets were up off the floor and didn’t get wet.”
“[The] conference room, where we have all our Pioneer Families of Clallam County records stored, will require a new ceiling and new carpet for sure,” Martin said.
While its insurance will cover some of the costs, Martin said, the nonprofit organization has limited resources, and these repairs will make a “noticeable dent” in the group’s reserves.
“Any community donations of services or money, to help cover the repairs to this repository of local and national genealogical resources, would be most appreciated,” Martin said.
Donations are tax-deductible, Majewski said.
The group has owned the building since 2012 and hadn’t known of any issues with leaks or water damage since then, Majewski said.
Donations can be mailed to the center, 402 E. Lauridsen Blvd., Port Angeles, WA 98362. For more information, contact the Clallam County Genealogical Society via the group’s website at www.clallamcogs.org.
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Michael Dashiell is the editor of the Sequim Gazette of the Olympic Peninsula News Group, which also is composed of other Sound Publishing newspapers Peninsula Daily News and Forks Forum. Reach him at editor@sequimgazette.com.
