Play, Learn, Discover: Children’s Museum Tucson celebrates 40th anniversary | News

This year marks the 40th anniversary of the Children’s Museum Tucson and the 35th anniversary since it found its new home at the former historic Carnegie Library. In part to recognize the milestone, the Children’s Museum invited the community to celebrate its first Discovery Day. 

“We’re so excited to be celebrating this 40th year and we decided to take advantage of the occasion by revamping all of our community events,” Director of Marketing Teresa Truelsen said. “We want to celebrate how far we’ve come, but we’re also really looking forward to the next 40 years and what we can bring to the community through expansion and growth.” 

The Children’s Museum’s Discovery Day unfolded on Saturday, April 11, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. — kicking the year off with a renewed version of its Earth Day Festival, as Truelsen described it.

“This is more about the place that we live — the Sonoran Desert — not just the environment, but the culture and the creatures and everything that comes with living here,” the director of marketing said.  

For the duration of the event and the rest of the day, the Children’s Museum offered a “pay what you wish” admission. Truelsen said that while all donations are appreciated, they were not required for entry on the event day. 

The focal point of the event was the formal unveiling of its Tree of Life mosaic mural, which was designed, donated and installed on the front of the building by Maggie Mae Mosaics. The multicolored piece of art depicts a Palo Verde tree, serving as a home for various birds, rabbits and other animals and insects.   

According to Truelsen, Discovery Day serves to celebrate and learn about the diverse cultural history of the Sonoran Desert alongside the plants and animals that call it home. Reservation Sensation is a Tohono O’odham food truck that served fry bread, alongside Mexican food options and other selections.   

Gertie and the T.O. Boyz performed traditional waila music to highlight Native American and indigenous culture, as well as performances by Ballet Folklórico de Desierto showcasing Hispanic culture and the Yoemem Tekia Cultural Center facilitated a traditional Yaqui crepe paper flower activity. Other organizations in attendance included the Santa Cruz Valley National Heritage Foundation, Tucson Cactus and Succulent Society, Cooper Center and Flandrau Science Center and Planetarium — each calling on their respective fields of expertise to offer various educational experiences to the children. 

“It’s really important to us that the activities that are here are hands-on for the kids and give them the opportunity to learn through play and fun,” Truelsen said. “Play is kind of our key word — we want kids to learn, play, learn and discover, so everything that we do here is hands-on.”

She added that the tactile learning experiences offered by the museum encourage children to engage with multiple subjects — including engineering, art and environmental sciences. 

The next 40 years at the Children’s Museum Tucson, Truelsen said, include various plans for growth of its programs and offerings, but also physical expansion of the building itself. She said she hopes the community will continue to support the museum and all of the events and experiences on the horizon. 

“We really look forward to seeing the community come out and support us and we want to support the kids as they’re coming up — help them get that play experience that they don’t get anywhere else,” Truelsen said. “We are planning for the next 40 years and we hope to make this place better than ever.”