Foreword

In writing the foreword for the combined journal this year I was pleased to read in the news media, that the Nelson City Council along with the Nelson Museum are planning a new Museum to be built right in the heart of Nelson. Along with the recent extensions to the Marlborough Provincial Museum and Archives Centre at Brayshaw Museum Park, this really says something for those people involved in planning for the future care of the top of the south's Historical Heritage.

It is also good to see all the museums in the top of the south co-operating together, and forming a closer liaison with each other. This can only benefit all museums concerned, big and small. Several meetings have already taken place with some of the museums in the region and in the future I would like to see more attend these meetings. After the initiative taken by the Marlborough Historical Society, in the building of the magnificent Marlborough Provincial Museum and Archives Centre, the next on the agenda for the Society is convincing the Marlborough District Council that it has obligations towards ongoing annual funding for the running of the complex. There is a strong demand for two or even three full time employed staff to work in the complex, but trying to convince the council to direct funding in this direction is quite another matter. Round table discussions have taken place with the Council, and in the not too distant future, more negotiations and discussions will take place and hopefully this matter will be resolved to the benefit of the preservation of our Historical Heritage. There are many willing voluntary workers helping in the vast spheres of protecting, preserving and conserving our Historical Heritage. These workers now have to face a new dimension to their voluntary work and that is one of becoming voluntary politicians!