Passing the torch

The Warren County FCE Club has awarded a $5,000 gift to the McMinnville Children's Museum (MCM), one of the largest single donations in the club's history. The FCE typically gives $200 or less per donation, making this gift a rare and extraordinary show of support for the museum's mission to bring free and low-cost, accessible STEAM learning to children across Warren County.

"We hope other local clubs and organizations will follow our lead and join us in supporting the museum's growth," said Alda Bandy.

The initiative began when MCM was invited to speak at the club's quarterly meeting in June. Members voted overwhelmingly to support the museum, inspired in part by a personal connection: club members Sue Adcock and Alda Bandy are the grandmothers of MCM board members Lindsay Powell, Kirsten Cunningham, and Lindsay Adams — three of the young women helping lead the museum's work today. This gift means so much more than dollars — it's a symbol of women passing the torch, of the time and energy grandmothers have invested paying forward into a new generation now carrying that same spirit into their community.

"We are beyond grateful for this generous gift and for the FCE Club's leadership," said Lindsay Powell. "It shows what our community can accomplish when we come together for the children and families of Warren County."

The McMinnville Children's Museum is a volunteer-led 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 2024, providing free and low-cost, accessible STEAM learning experiences to children in a rural community that has never had a children's museum or interactive learning facility of its own.