As promised last week, this week’s post looks ahead to what’s coming in 2026.

Our Christmas trees will be coming down next week, so if you haven’t had a chance to see this year’s display, you still have time—through Monday. Around this point in the season, we are almost always asked the same question: “What’s coming next?” While planning is still underway, we expect to have two new exhibits in the south gallery, hopefully by the beginning of February.

One of those exhibits will feature dental equipment belonging to Doc Lottes and possibly some items from Dr. Fischer as well. Over the years, we’ve accumulated a substantial collection of Doc Lottes’ equipment, and it seems like the right time to bring it out of storage and into the gallery. If you’re not familiar with Doc Lottes, Warren wrote about him in an earlier post, “The Dreaded Doc Lottes.” Dr. Fischer was likewise highlighted in a post titled “Hometown Doc.” Together, these artifacts tell a story of medical care and experiences many visitors will remember firsthand.

The second exhibit, at least for now, carries the working title Portraits from the Past. Over the years, families have donated many formal portraits to the museum—photographs that once hung prominently in homes but have since lost their personal connections. Rather than keeping them tucked away in boxes, we felt it was time to let them be seen, even if only for a little while.

Some of these portraits are identified; many, unfortunately, are not. Over the next few weeks, we’ll spend time trying to put names to faces and reconnect these images with the families and stories they represent. Even so, we’re sure some will remain mysteries. Still, there is something meaningful in giving these faces a moment once again—to be seen, wondered about, and remembered.

More details will follow as plans take shape, but we look forward to sharing these new exhibits with you in the weeks ahead.

Looking a little further ahead, the south gallery will host Ann Hazelwood’s Red & White Quilt Collection in April and May. This striking collection is one you definitely won’t want to miss, and we’re excited to welcome it to the museum this spring.

Beyond our exhibit schedule, we also have several larger projects underway.

The Missouri Humanities Council (MHC) has awarded the museum a $5,000 grant in support of a project titled “Welcome Video.” The MHC is the only statewide agency in Missouri devoted exclusively to humanities education for citizens of all ages and has served as a state affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities since 1971. These grant funds will allow us to create a short video to greet museum visitors and provide a brief overview of the Saxon immigration and the history of the Lutheran Heritage Center & Museum.

In addition, I plan to refresh several exhibits along the Main Gallery hallway to better highlight the story of immigration and early settlement in East Perry County. This space offers a natural opportunity to tell that story more clearly and cohesively, especially for first-time visitors.

The final major project currently in the works is the development of a driving tour, complete with GPS coordinates, that will guide visitors to significant historic sites throughout the area. Our hope is that this will help connect what visitors see inside the museum with the landscape and locations that shaped the history we preserve.

As always, plans continue to take shape, and we look forward to sharing more details as these projects move from idea to reality.

Until next week! Denise Hellwege, Director