Texoma Connect

Thursdays in October will be STEM days at the Northeast Texas Children’s Museum.  Science will be presented in a fun and exciting way for children and hands-on experiences (with COVID 19 safeguards) will be provided.  Classes will be offered for Primary students (Pre-K and Kindergarten) and Intermediate students (1st and 2nd Grades) at 1:00 PM each Thursday.  Thursday classes are open to families and home school groups.  School groups can also attend by reservation on Tuesdays October 6, 13, or 20.

Elements of Water will be the topic for October 15.  The Primary Class will study Water Friction and the Intermediate Class will have Experimenting with Water.  The last class on October 22 will be Amazing Magnets with the Primary Magnets for the younger group and Magnetic Fields for the older group.

Each class will be limited to 10 students so that students will have social distancing.  Visitors’ temperature is taken each day at the Children’s Museum, and each visitor is asked to wash their hands before entering the museum.  Reservations are required for attendance.  The class fee for each child is $4.00 not including the $6.00 price of admission.  Region 8 will cover the fee for any child and family living in Region 8 on these October days.   Reservations can be made by calling 903-886-6055 or by going to netxcm.com.

 The Northeast Texas Children’s Museum is beginning its 18th year of operation.  The museum purchased a building and seven acres and moved to the new site at 100 Maple Street, Commerce, Texas, one year ago.  The Children’s Museum has over 50 play areas and includes an outdoor area with the State Farm Ship, a dry river bed with sharks’ teeth, a musical area, and a sandpile.

The indoor area includes the Amazing Airways, a L-3 Harris plane, a Kidsteam Train, and a Main Street with Hunt Regional Hospital, Family Smiles Dental, Lone Star Eatery, Commerce Veterinary Clinic, Cypress Bank, and a Re/Max/Castlerock Realtors playhouse.

The Children’s Museum is open to the public Wednesday through Saturday from 9:30 to 4:00.  The museum is closed from 12:00 to 1:00 each day for cleaning.  Private events for family groups can be scheduled.  Private Birthday parties can also be scheduled with the museum closed to other visitors.  Reservations for all events can be made by calling 903-886-6055 or by going to netxcm.com.

The Northeast Texas Children’s Museum will host its first virtual event. This event is a Virtual Auction and bidding will begin on October 12 at  8:00 AM and end on October 17 at 8:00 PM. The 2020 Virtual Silent Auction will reflect the changes created by COVID-19. The social gathering of previous Silent Auctions will be replaced by an online bidding platform. Pictures of each item will replace the hands-on approach of the physical Silent Auction. Friendly, in-person bidding competitors can now bid with a click of a phone, tablet, or computer to update each bid. The Virtual Silent Auction will be sponsored by Charles Schwab of Greenville.

“Although we will miss seeing our friends and supporters, there are advantages to the online Silent Auction. We hope to reach bidders who might not live close enough to attend the Silent Auction in Commerce. For some this will be a more convenient way to bid. We will have items displayed at the Children’s Museum for anyone who would like to see them” said Becky Adams, co-chair of the event.

The Virtual Silent Auction will also celebrate one year for the Northeast Texas Children’s Museum at 100 Maple Street.”  A year ago we were challenged with moving and opening a new building. Now a year later we are challenged with all the changes caused by COVID-19. It has been a tumultuous year for the Children’s Museum as well as so many others. The Virtual Silent

Auction will hopefully provide funds to meet these challenges”, said Beckey Thompson, also co-chair of the event.  Bidders at the auction will find all kinds of items for bidding. Handcrafted, one of a kind items, have been donated by talented local people. Original artwork will be available for bidding. Other items will include floral arrangements, furniture, home accents, holiday décor, and jewelry as well as unique experience packages, and much, much more. Children’s experiences and items will also be a highlight. The event will be limited to 100 items.

Raffle tickets are also on sale for $5.00 each or 5 for $20.00. In addition to purchasing these from a member of the Board of Directors, tickets can be purchased online from the Children’s website at netxcm.com. There will be four $250 gift cards given to four different winners. These gifts cards have been donated by Cypress Bank, Inwood Bank, Guaranty Bank and Trust, and Alliance Bank. The drawing will be at 4:00 PM on October 17.

The museum is currently open to the public Wednesday through Saturday. Private groups can be scheduled Wednesday through Sunday. If scheduling a private group, no other visitors will be permitted to enter the Children’s Museum. Attendance is by reservation only for the morning session from 9:30 to 12:00 or the afternoon session from 1:00 to 4:00. Visitors can reserve their spot online at netxcm.com. Over fifty play areas for young children are open for creative and imaginative play.

The Northeast Texas Children’s Museum is beginning its eighteenth year of operation. The Children’s Museum experienced great success during the first 2 1/2 months of 2020 with over 8,000 visitors. Although the current COVID environment halted this growth, the Children’s Museum is looking forward to 2021. For questions, call the Northeast Texas Children’s Museum at 903-886-6055.