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MILK WAS A BAD CHOICE: Will Ferrell in a scene from Anchorman filmed on 6th Street in Downtown San Pedro. (photo: Dreamworks)

When we decided to create the San Pedro Heritage Museum, we knew that we were building for longevity and not speed. This meant slow and sustainable growth with a virtual presence. Back then our idea of a virtual museum was holding in-person history talks and pop-up exhibitions at various locations around town. The COVID-19 pandemic has forced us all into a more literal definition of virtual with most of our personal and business interactions happening through conferencing programs like FaceTime, Skype, and Zoom. It’s not ideal, but I wouldn’t have been able to get through the last few weeks without it.

Times of crisis are hard for everyone, but they are also times of great creativity and ingenuity. I’m sure you’ve heard how Sir Isaac Newton invented calculus and came up with his theories on gravity while social distancing during the plague. No one is expecting us to discover a new type of math, but I’ve enjoyed seeing how locals have tried to stick together while staying apart. The San Pedro Chamber of Commerce has switched their wildly successful Friday breakfasts to a virtual event; Grand Vision Foundation held their virtual open mic on First Thursday; and Pat Carroll, San Pedro’s premier First Thursday art guide, hosted the virtual Armchair ArtWalk Tour. This is all happening over Zoom. Obviously, this separation is temporary, and we’ll eventually be together again, but until then, I’m ready to join the party.

Beginning on Wednesday, May 20 at 7 p.m., the San Pedro Heritage Museum will host a weekly Heritage at Home event via Zoom. We will kick it off with a fun look at one of my favorite subjects—filming in San Pedro. Wednesdays will be our day to come together as a community to have discussions about our heritage, but I will also include other virtual Heritage at Home content that you can enjoy at your own leisure. This will include some of the talks I had already planned for the year.

 One of the events I’m really looking forward to hosting is called San Pedro Show & Tell. Most of us have a lot of time on our hands and are looking for things to do. Quarantine is a perfect time to dig out your boxes of photos and trunks of family heirlooms. One of the museum’s first initiatives was San Pedro Built, a crowd-sourcing photo database of homes and commercial buildings in town. I’d like to invite you all to scour your family photos for pictures to add to our database. We can also talk about the historical significance of photos and artifacts if you’d like to submit them. To submit photos and register for our first Heritage at Home event on May 20, please email info@sanpedroheritage.org.

There are so many ways we can interact, and I’m excited about all the fun we’ll be having. We chose Wednesdays at 7 p.m. because we plan on it being our best way to engage with the community for the foreseeable future, even when some of the restrictions are lifted. Hopefully, you’ll come to look forward to our Heritage at Home programming. So far, we’re looking at Heritage Discussions, San Pedro Show & Tell, Trivia Nights, maybe some virtual bingo and Ask Romee—where you get to ask me all your burning Pedro questions. If you have any programming suggestions, please email me at angela@sanpedroheritage.org. I can’t wait to put the “we” in Wednesdays with you all. spt

May Heritage at Home Events:

San Pedro on Film: Best Characters – Wednesday, May 20 at 7 p.m.

San Pedro on Film: Favorite Couples – Wednesday, May 27 at 7 p.m.

All Heritage at Home events can be found at sanpedroheritage.org. Pre-registration is required for each event; please email: 

info@sanpedroheritage.org.

Angela Romero is the founder and president of the San Pedro Heritage Museum. For more info, visit sanpedroheritage.org.

 

Angela Romero

Angela Romero is the founder of the San Pedro Heritage Museum. She can be reached at angela@sanpedroheritage.org.

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