Dossier 5 - Friends of the Museum Membership Committee

Formally incorporated on December 23rd 1977, the Friends of the Museum of Anthropology at U.B.C. (University of British Columbia) was a society that had four main objectives:

• To promote interest in, and acquaint the public with the Museum of Anthropology at U.B.C.
• To provide for the holding of educational lectures, exhibitions, public meetings, classes and conferences on the subject of anthropology
• To acquire, accept, solicit or receive any gift or real or personal property as a contribution or addition to the funds of the society
• To receive, hold, distribute, invest and reinvest contributions from donors for the collections of and operation of the Museum of Anthropology at U.B.C.

The operations of the society were physically carried out in the museum. The affairs of the society were managed by a board of 24 directors; six were directly tasked with its initial establishment, while another 18 were elected at the first annual general meeting. Various committees and sub-committees were established, including the executive committee, who had the power to exercise the will of the board. Other committees included the membership committee and the sub-committees on Finance and Fundraising. Michael Ames, then-Director of the Museum of Anthropology, worked as the secretary for the society for most of its life-span. The society was directly involved with a 1981 benefit concert that took place in the Haida House to raise funds for a special gallery for a Haida canoe they wished to acquire. The friends’ peak of activity was from 1978-1982, after which time it became less and less active; dissolution occurred sometime around 1985.