Your support is helping to make the dream a reality!

Community Support

The support from our community has been amazing!  From children gathering donations to the museum at their birthday parties, to local businesses supporting our fundraising efforts, to volunteers helping at our events, we've made great strides toward our goal!

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Photo from a birthday party donation from a local child.

We have received multiple donations from local children who asked for donations to the museum in lieu of birthday gifts.

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Children from our local elementary schools have held fundraisers for the museum as well.

Cresendo-level sponsors at the 2023 Dueling Pianos fundraiser

For our Dueling Pianos fundraiser this year, we raised $30,000+, which included over $11,000 through sponsorships by 31 local businesses.

Photo of some of the volunteers at the 2022 Halloween House fundraiser.

Our volunteers were essential in making our 2022 Halloween House haunted house fundraiser a success. For two weekends leading up to Halloween, we hosted both family-friendly and scary haunted houses with entry by donation. Spooky fun was had by all!

    Photo of the storefront of the Soo Locks Children's Museum, including a banner recognizing MACC for funding the interior demolition work.

    The storefront of our space at 223 W. Portage Avenue in Sault Ste. Marie, MI, one block from the Soo Locks main entrance and Visitors Center.

    Demolition in the east half of the museum space

    Demolition in the east half of the Soo Locks Children's Museum space.

    Demolition in the west side of the museum space

    Demolition in the west half of the Soo Locks Children's Museum space.

      Current Status

      Our museum space is currently in the "demolition" phase. Funded in part through a Capital Improvement grant from the Michigan Arts and Culture Council in Fall 2022, we have been able to embark on demolition of the interior in order to prep it for the next phase.

      Phase II: White Box Construction

      Our next phase is completing the "white box construction" of our space. Watch this video to get an idea of what our space will be like when the white boxing is complete.

      Phase III

      Once Phase II has been completed, we will be able to open to the public and begin serving our community; we will have a selection variety of temporary exhibits, two birthday party rooms, and the initial stage of our Maker Space that children and their families will be able to enjoy while we are working to raise the funds needed to complete the fabrication and installation of our planned permanent exhibits.
      Child playing at a train table
      Photo of a child drawing on a glass drawing board
      Young boy playing with engineering exhibit
      Sketch of the Birthday Party Room

        Our End Goal

        Our planned permanent exhibits will engage children in a wide variety of ways: from large motor play to imaginative play to STEM-based learning, our young visitors will easily find something they enjoy.
        Sketch of the Science/Engineering themed water table

        Our science and engineering water table will have an interactive hands-on Soo Locks and boat-building station.

        Sketch of the nature-themed water table exhibit and other interactive stations.

        The science and engineering water table will transition to a nature-themed water table; our nature-themed exhibit will also include interactive tree activity stations, a fish-matching exhibit, and...

        Sketch of Northern Lights area of Nature Exhibits room

        ..a Northern Lights exhibit.  Exhibits in the nature-themed space will change seasonally, and Anishinaabe cultural connections will be woven throughout.

        Sketch of the Toddler-Infant play area

        An infant-toddler play area will provide a safe yet interactive space for our youngest visitors and their caretakers to engage in learning together.

        Sketch of the Sensory Room, a space with calm and quiet lights and sounds

        Our sensory room will provide a quiet space for engagement with soft elements and visual, auditory, and tactile elements that facilitate sensory modulation and coping skills.

        Sketch of multi-level climber

        An indoor climber will give children a safe place to get big energy out during our long, cold winters.

        Sketch of the Town and Construction areas

        The Main Street exhibit will give children the opportunity for imaginative play in a child-sized grocery store, bank and medical clinic.
        The Jacobsville Sandstone construction exhibit will let kids build with large foam blocks while connecting to the historical use of the sandstone excavated in the construction of the Soo Locks and the city's power canal.

        Sketch of the Maker Space room

        The Maker Space will engage children in STEM-based play and exploration. Guided and self-guided activities will be provided, including a 3D printer and robotics.