What if you had a birthday party and nearly 100 people showed up?
That was the case last May 28, when the Greater Kent Historical Society had a party to celebrate the city’s big 120th birthday.
Approximately 96 people came for the shindig, which was good news indeed to the staff at the Kent Historical Museum.
“We were actually quite surprised,” said Linda Wagner, director of the museum. “We had 96, I believe. That’s a lot and we were pretty pleased with that.”
There was birthday cake to be had, as well as a city birthday card for participants to sign. And in addition to the museum exhibits (a pictorial history of Kent’s mayors, a history of local football, and a collection of vintage spring fashions) historical-society members had an awards presentation, where they honored several attendees for their participation in keeping Kent history alive.
Kent Mayor Suzette Cooke received a certificate of appreciation on behalf of the city.
“They do give us between 25 and 30 percent of our budget,” Wagner said of the support the museum gets from Kent, noting the Bereiter Mansion, the home of the Kent Historical Museum, also is owned by the city, as are the home’s grounds, all of which the museum maintains.
Jim and Suzanne Berrios, owners of the Golden Steer Steak ‘n Rib House, were given lifetime memberships to the historical society, for their long history of contributions to museum functions.
“The Golden Steer has provided us with so much support; it’s been at least 10 years,” said Wagner, who noted the restaurant has regularly catered museum functions for low cost, as well as hosting museum events. “They’re awesome.”
Also honored were members of the Reitan family, representing two of Kent’s pioneer clans, as well as being the organizers of the Kent Historical Society. At least two generations of the Reitan family were represented at Friday’s event.
Wagner said the Reitan family came to the Kent area in 1904, while the Ramsey side of the family came in the 1870s to the area, predating Kent’s 1890 incorporation.
In addition, the late Raye and Ed Reitan, the parents of museum society board member Ed Reitan, started the Kent Historical Society in 1992.
Also getting plenty of attention at Friday’s event was the Bereiter Mansion, the historical society site that was the home of Emil Bereiter, Kent’s mayor from 1912-1913. In addition to the exhibits, the mansion’s back room and laundry area received recent facelifts, making them look more like the vintage rooms they began as.
“We took everything out, and basically started over,” Wagner said of the rooms, noting she received lots of positive feedback for the project at Friday’s event. “It made for a better visual, and people were really amazed.”
To learn more about the Kent Historical Museum, go to www.kenthistoricalmuseum.org or call 253-856-5185. The museum is open noon to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. It’s also available on a rental basis for private functions, by calling Wagner.
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