How might one take a Bradford Area Chamber of Commerce business after hours event to the stage?
By holding it in a museum dedicated to a world famous opera star, of course.
On Thursday, the chamber’s popular networking event was set at the Marilyn Horne Museum and Exhibit Center.
“We do these several times a year,” said chamber Executive Director Kara Kennedy. This one came about during a conversation with the museum’s manager, Matthew Hileman. She said the two discussed that it would be nice to hold the event there “to showcase what the museum has, as well as the cafe, and the facility in general.”
Hileman added, “I wanted to offer the museum because so many people haven’t seen it.”
Kennedy agreed, saying near the beginning of the well-attended event Thursday that several people had mentioned this was their first visit.
“That’s kind of the idea of our business after hours is to show people a business maybe they haven’t seen,” she said. “Obviously, this one is open to the public anyway, but sometimes people need an excuse to get in there and see something. It’s nice for our members to be able to showcase what they have.”
Hileman said the visitors to the museum since its opening have been a mix of locals and tourists from elsewhere.
“As of January, we’ve had about 6,000 people who have come through, visitors and also to events” that the museum has held, such as concerts. “That’s a lot of people for less than two years in a small town,” Hileman said.
And the “Grande Dame” herself is pleased that people are coming out to see the museum in her honor.
“Marilyn is happy with that. I saw her just two weeks ago and she’s ecstatic,” Hileman said.
Referring to the museum’s visitors, he explained, “We get people from all over. We’ve had people from Switzerland, from Italy. A lot of people from Europe — of course — know her.”
Some visitors came for the coffee, and couldn’t believe what else was in the building.
“We’ve had a few people who came because they Googled Starbucks,” Hileman said, explaining the cafe in Marilyn Horne Hall is a Starbucks. When the visitors arrived, they found so much more than they expected.
“They saw the name on the windows and thought ‘well that can’t be THE Marilyn Horne,’” he said. “And then they come in and they are surprised and realize the collection is here.
“It’s doing what it’s supposed to do, and that’s bring people to Bradford.”
Hileman said that May will be two years that he’s been at his post, and he’s loving it.
“I have the best job in Bradford and nobody’s going to have it for awhile,” he said, laughing and knocking on wood. “It’s fabulous.”
He explained he met Horne for the first time last January, and they hit it off right away.
“She’s a fun person to talk to,” Hileman said. “She’s very, very interested in everything that happens here. She loves to talk to me about Bradford. She loves to ask about people. She talks about it like she lived here yesterday. It’s always been in her heart and that’s why the museum is here.”
