How We Got Here
The History of Vermont’s First Children’s Museum
2010 - The idea for a children’s museum in Rutland was born at a Creative Economy forum in March 2010. Local businessman and philanthropist Paul Gallo led the charge to make this museum a reality working with the committee and the board each step of the way. That summer, a committee consisting of Keri Franzoni, Judy Louras, Sherri Durgin-Campbell and others surveyed the community and began laying the groundwork for starting a children’s museum, including obtaining the “how to guide” from the Association of Children’s Museums.
2011 – In March of 2011, local politician Chris Ettori and Myra Peffer, a professor at Community College of Vermont with a background in museums, joined the committee and began attending Creative Economy meetings to help set the vision for the museum. That summer, the committee tested the idea of a museum at six Friday Night Live Events and limited hours on Saturday mornings. They used the space at 5 Center St (the old King’s Furniture Store) thanks to a generous donation from Ryan, Smith & Carbine Law Offices.
Winter 2012 - In February, the committee officially incorporated Wonderfeet Kids’ Museum with the State of Vermont with the original board consisting of: Myra Peffer - President, Kristen Rackliffe - Vice President, Christopher Ettori - Treasurer, Keri Franzoni - Secretary, Candace Lewis and Kevin Kiefaber - members at large. That same month, Keri Franzoni branded the museum with the Wonderfeet name and created the iconic foot logo. In March, Heritage Family Credit Union began an annual fundraising 5k, Shiver Me Shamrocks, and committed to donating the first five years of proceeds to support the museum and to fund the creation of a credit union exhibit.
Spring/Summer 2012 - In May of 2012, Donald Billings, owner of Roots the Restaurant, began hosting a pig roast for the museum which ran for three years and raised over $3,000 each year to support the budding new museum. That summer, Wonderfeet used the 5 Center St. location to provide experiences during Downtown Rutland’s Friday Night Live Events, hosting over 1,200 guests. After a second successful summer, Green Mountain Power donated funds for a full feasibility study for the Wonderfeet Kids’ Museum concept.
2013 – In the spring, Wonderfeet Kids’ Museum received official 501c3 status with the help of Professor Joanne Pencak. That summer, the GE Aviation Employee Fund gave a $5,000 grant and many hours of volunteer time to help renovate a new, short-term rental location at 17 Center St. That space opened in August with open hours Thursday through Sunday. New board members Martha Rideout and Susanne Engels provided most of the volunteer hours to run the space. Over 300 people visited on the first day of opening. As Wonderfeet continued to prove itself as a feasible concept, the Downtown Rutland Partnership offered a $10,000 matching grant if the museum could raise $10,000 from the community. Of course, the Rutland community answered the call!
Spring 2014 - That May, a massive hail storm hit Rutland on the evening of a major Wonderfeet fundraising initiative. Despite the weather, the first major donors agreed to support creating a permanent downtown location for Wonderfeet Kids’ Museum. Donors including Mark Foley, Heritage Family Credit Union, the GE Aviation Employees Fund and several private donors committed in-kind and monetary pledges reaching over $200K. Chris Ettori worked with the Rutland City Board of Aldermen to secure a $75,000 grant from the City’s Zamias Fund, giving the final boost to a permanent location.
Spring 2014 - That May, a massive hail storm hit Rutland on the evening of a major Wonderfeet fundraising initiative. Despite the weather, the first major donors agreed to support creating a permanent downtown location for Wonderfeet Kids’ Museum. Donors including Mark Foley, Heritage Family Credit Union, the GE Aviation Employees Fund and several private donors committed in-kind and monetary pledges reaching over $200K. Chris Ettori worked with the Rutland City Board of Aldermen to secure a $75,000 grant from the City’s Zamias Fund, giving the final boost to a permanent location.
Fall 2014 - Myra Peffer was hired as the first Executive Director of Wonderfeet Kids’ Museum with Susanne Engels serving as the board president. New board member Dean Pierce negotiated the lease with the Housing Trust of Rutland County for the space at 11 Center Street in the historic Tuttle Block building and helped to arrange for a consultant to create an official business plan. Mike Gauthier of Green Screen Graphics in Rutland introduced Myra to retired Disney Imagineer, Yoshi Akiyama. This began the years-long journey to design a unique set of environments and exhibits representing our community. Early exhibits that were being designed for the space included the Diner funded by the Wing family and the Steam Train Locomotive funded by the Costello family. Jim Becker and Ray Pratt were hired to build the designs Yoshi had drawn for the Diner, Credit Union and front desk Train Station.
2015 – Jimmy Brown of Artcast, Inc. was hired to build the Steam Train Locomotive which would become the signature exhibit at the Center Street location. Oliver Schemm, a local artist and professor, was commissioned to create a unique kinetic sculpture for the front window thanks to a donation from Jennifer Bagley. GE Aviation Employees again gave financial support and volunteer hours to help complete the renovation of 11 Center St. In April 2015, the 11 Center Street location held its Grand Opening. Wonderfeet thrived in this location for 8 years!
2016 - In January, Wonderfeet received a Bowse Health Trust grant from Rutland Regional Medical Center. This award allowed the museum to hire a full-time Education Coordinator, Paula Townsend, and provide a variety of programming for community partners including Prevent Child Abuse Vermont, Vermont Department of Health’s Women, Infants and Children’s (WIC), Head Start, Eckerd Family Support Services, Pediatric Physical Therapy, Rutland Mental Health, Rutland Boys & Girls Club, and the Rutland Free Library. Wonderfeet hosted its first annual “Loved Ones and Little Ones” Dance in February as part of Rutland’s Winterfest. That spring, Wonderfeet received two other significant grants: the AD Henderson Grant to develop and provide STEM programming for Head Start and the Canaday Family Trust grant to provide outreach and field trip programs for every school in Rutland County. These funds also allowed the museum to purchase a van to conduct school and community outreach programs.
2017 - The first Lip Sync Battle held at The Paramount Theatre was a smash hit for the Rutland community and became the largest fundraising event for the museum. With a packed Paramount Theater, the Rutland City Fire Department won first prize. Teams from RRMC, the Police Department and others brought the community together in a new way and raised $20,000 in one evening! At the end of 2017, Myra Peffer made the decision to step down as Executive Director and assist the board in finding her replacement.
In January 2018, Kheya Ganguly-Kiefneer became the Executive Director of the museum. Amanda Begin joined the staff as a full-time Guest Services Manager.
2019 - Danielle Monroe took over as Interim Executive Director after serving on the board. At that year’s Lip Sync Battle, Monroe was officially named as Executive Director. Danielle joined the advisory council for the Rutland Area STAMPP Grant (Supports, Treatment, and Access for Mothers and Perinatal Partners) which was working to expand programs for postpartum families. As part of this grant, Danielle was trained in Group Peer Support and began planning programming that would welcome families in their earliest days.
2020 - In January of 2020, Wonderfeet had launched a new program called It Takes a Village which would serve families with new babies and help them find and create a community of support. This program was part of a grant to Rutland County to expand perinatal and postpartum mental health supports. Then, like the rest of the world, Wonderfeet was forced to find new ways to serve our constituents when the world shut down for the Covid-19 Pandemic.
Summer/Fall 2020 - Wonderfeet also expanded our summer camp offerings to meet the needs of the community looking for programming for kids that had been out of school for months. Wonderfeet partnered with Mentor Connector, 4-H, Come Alive Outside, and other organizations to create, pack and deliver 10,000 “Out of the Boxes” at-home activity kits to kids who were missing out on normal summer camps and activities around Rutland County throughout the summer months. We also launched some creative fundraising events such as the first Purple Donut Days with Jones’ Donuts and an online version of The Lip Sync Battle that raised $20,000 that year. In the fall of 2020, Wonderfeet worked with schools and families to address needs created as schools reopened with pandemic changes. We began a successful homeschool program that would run for the next two years. We also partnered with Rutland Recreation Department to offer Wednesday camp, serving students in schools with a Wednesday remote schedule.
2021 - Wonderfeet ran on a mostly normal schedule, with occasional pandemic related closures. Popular programs like Homeschool Club and summer camps continued to grow. In June, Steve Costello of Green Mountain Power approached Danielle about the idea of relocating into the Green Mountain Power Energy Innovation Center, which was right around the corner on Merchants Row. With the board’s support, Paul Gallo, Dean Pierce, and Danielle begin preliminary planning on what an expansion and relocation might entail. By September, Myra Peffer returned to Wonderfeet as a consultant and Yoshi Akiyama returned to begin concept sketches and storyboards. The Virtual Lip Sync Battle ran online for a second year, this time as a challenge among local schools and teachers. Paul, Dean and Danielle begin meeting with prominent community members on a weekly basis to gain support and commitments for the “New Wonderfeet”. On Christmas Eve of this year, the Casella family met with Danielle and Dean Pierce at the museum to spend the afternoon playing and hearing about Wonderfeet’s vision for the future. They agreed to become the first major donor for the new project and Yoshi presented a sketch for a Casella Recycling Truck exhibit that would become a signature of the new space.
Fall 2022 - By late fall, demolition and construction had begun on the new space. Arcana Workshop of Barre, VT was contracted to build the Casella Recycling Truck. Jimmy Brown of Artcast Inc. in Rochester, VT was tasked with building a caboose to go with his Steam Train Locomotive exhibit and transforming the old front desk into a Train Depot and Station. Green Screen Graphics in Rutland, Vt worked on the concepts for the Baby and Toddler Farmyard and the Farmer’s Market. McKernon Group Construction of Brandon, VT was tasked with interpreting Yoshi’s plan for a gazebo at the center of the museum. It was announced that Wonderfeet would be closing the 11 Center Street location at the end of February 2023 in preparation for the new location. Wonderfeet ended the year launching a new yearly tradition - Santa’s Workshop. 100 families got to spend time with the man in red, create some special holiday projects, and play at Wonderfeet. In 2022, over 700 parents and babies attended It Takes A Village. Over 700 students attended Wonderfeet programs and field trips. In total, over 13,000 visitors came through the doors in 2022 with an additional 5,000 interactions at community events.
Winter 2022 - January of 2022 started with Wonderfeet meeting with Green Mountain Power CEO Mari McClure to discuss a formal partnership between GMP and Wonderfeet Kids’ Museum in the Energy Innovation Center building. Mari and her team recognized the value that Wonderfeet would be able to provide for the community with an expanded space and resources and agreed to lease the building to Wonderfeet for just $1 a year. With a commitment from Casella Waste and Green Mountain Power, the Relocation Committee met with more community stakeholders and businesses to gain financial and in-kind commitments. Killington Resort agreed to sponsor and collaborate on an indoor play structure that celebrates the seasons and activities of Vermont’s mountains.
Spring 2022 - In March, Wonderfeet publicly announced the plans to expand thanks to partners GMP and Casella Waste Systems along with other community donors. That spring, the Rutland City Board of Aldermen agreed to grant the Wonderfeet Kids’ Museum expansion project $150,000 from the city’s ARPA (American Recovery Play Act) Covid recovery funds. Nicole Mastroeni joined the board after her formative experiences with Wonderfeet and It Takes a Village. Nicole helps to secure a grant from the Suzanne Koff Charitable Trust to fund multiple new exhibits and renovation projects.
Winter/Spring 2023 - After a busy January and February, Wonderfeet Kids’ Museum closed on Center Street on February 28. March and April began two action-packed months of disassembling current exhibits, relocating and reassembling exhibits in the new space, and moving in new exhibit pieces with help from students from Stafford Technical Center and volunteers from GE Aviation. Yoshi Akiyama designed wall murals that reflect the local landscape which are printed and installed by Green Screen Graphics. Multiple contractors and construction firms donated supplies and services to complete the renovation including NBF Architects, Russell Construction, Office Environments, George Martin LN Consulting, LaValley Building Supply, Abatiello Flooring, Bill Lohsen Plumbing, Royal Glass, VMS Construction, and Green Mountain Power.
Spring 2023 - At the end of April, Wonderfeet brought the Lip Sync Battle back to the stage at The Paramount Theatre for the first time since the pandemic. Only one week later, May 6, the new Wonderfeet Kids’ Museum opened its doors on Merchants Row in the GMP Energy Innovation Center. That spring and summer set new record attendance levels, more weeks of Wonderfeet summer camps than ever before, and more summer outreach programs than ever before.
Fall/Winter 2023 - In October 2023, Wonderfeet brought the First Annual Truck or Treat to life with over 30 unique vehicles and 3,000 attendees filling downtown Rutland’s streets. This year over 200 families attended Santa’s Workshop at Wonderfeet Kids’ Museum. In 2023, over 1,000 parents and babies attended It Takes a Village free weekly group. Over 800 students attended field trips and programs at Wonderfeet. In total, over 20,000 visitors came through Wonderfeet’s doors with an additional 10,000 interactions at community events.
Winter 2024 - The Killington Mountain Playground, built by Wood & Wood Signs of Waitsfield, VT, opened in January. Jim Brown of Artcast began installation of the Wonder in the Woods exhibit and continued to work on designs for cave and treehouse that will debut in the spring. Arcana Workshop began prototyping and preliminary construction on a 12 foot tall interactive robot that is sponsored by Green Mountain Power.
May 11, 2024 - Wonderfeet Kids’ Museum will have its official dedication and ribbon cutting. The Wonder in the Wood and GMP Robot exhibits will make their debut. This weekend will mark one year in the GMP Energy Innovation Center. Families will enjoy an epic block party with music, magic, acrobats, jugglers, and more!
