Historical society and museum director resigns

Mar. 8—At 10:14 a.m. Sunday, Cass County Historical Society and Museum Executive Director Thelma Conrad announced her retirement on Facebook.

Conrad had served in her position for 20 years, and her Facebook message included a call for Cass County residents to support the society, museum and board of directors.

According to her resignation letter, which she sent a copy of to the Pharos-Tribune, the resignation is effective for March.

The board of directors plans to have an executive meeting at noon Tuesday, which can legally be private because it concerns employee information.

The board members all received the resignation on Friday, but Tuesday was the first day they could meet, said Rich Voorhees, who's been on the board off and on since 1974.

They plan to release an official statement after the meeting.

He said some members, such as Board President Steve Muehlhaussen, are not in town, and Vorhees said the board members would not make a statement until then.

Other board members did not respond to an attempt to contact them.

Conrad's Facebook posting, which is on the museum's page, implores county residents to ask if they can help and donate and volunteer.

However, her resignation letter seemed less upbeat, and she wrote about things that lead to her resignation.

She stated, "After several years of having transient members of the Board of Directors, with several people joining the Board and leaving within a year, and the inconsistencies of the goals and management from the Board, I've realized I am in a no-win situation."

She was not happy with the recent purchase of former Trine University, stating that the inconsistencies of the board and officers "led to very fiscally irresponsible decisions."

The board paid $200,000 for the building at 421 E. Broadway in December 2019.

"The purchase of the downtown building was done in haste without a proper building inspection" after she expressed concerns about financial impact, she stated.

"The final decision for me to resign is that I firmly believe the current Board is making reckless decisions that are fiscally irresponsible, and I worry about the long-term financial integrity of the CCHS," she stated. "I have expressed my concerns to no avail, with newly elected members making decisions without any knowledge of our past and how some of the decisions may impact past and future donors."

The resignation letter also notes that she brought in more than $329,000 while she worked there.

When contacted, Conrad said she would respond at a later time with more information.

Former board member Paul Ulerick was willing to talk and said that everyone in the historical society should be indebted to Conrad.

"We probably wouldn't be where we were if it wasn't for Thelma," he said.

He was an on-and-off member during much of the time she was executive director, and did see some conflicts, he said.

Personalities joined the board and tried to override others, but they left the group.

During his time on the board, Ulerick never saw any wrongdoing when it came to money and funding.

However, the museum did have money on hand that the board sat on, he said.

That can be used to bring in more people, increasing membership and funding, as well as having exhibits.

"People were reluctant to spend money to make money," he said.

However, he also sees Conrad's resignation as a move to the future.

"A change was needed," Ulerick said.

Things are going into a new generation with new ways of attracting people to museums.

Reach James D. Wolf Jr. at james.wolf@pharostribune.com or 574-732-5117

Twitter @JamesDWolfJr