George Phillips' sons, Charles and Marty,  at the entrance of the gallery named after their father – photo 250News

Prince George, B.C. – A triple celebration at the Exploration Place  in Prince George.

A full house was on  hand last evening to  see the  two new exhibits;   the new sturgeon tank (show at right)  the Kids Celebrate exhibit   and to  officially open the George Phillips Exhibit Gallery.

The  late George Phillips was the catalyst for  changing a stagnant museum  with  a handful of members, into  the Exploration Place  that  has become home to  interactive, educational  exhibits and  an ever increasing membership.

He  was hired in 1992,  and  was  successful in  securing  funds  for the construction of the current facility.    Although he  would later move his family to Markham Ontario to  tackle another museum in need of  rejuvenation,   his  impact on the Exploration Place in Prince George would be his legacy to  the  community of Prince George and the Regional District of Fraser Fort George.

The first exhibit  in the newly named gallery,  is  the “Kids Celebrate”  exhibit from the Canadian Museum of Civilization.

( at left,  two  young folk explore one section of the  Kids Celebrate exhibit)

The  interactive   exhibit explores how children and their families from across the country  celebrate a variety of  occasions. The National Museum of Civilization describes the exhibit as one that  will  “help children discover both commonalities and differences among various celebrations and realize that the tradition of celebrating is something everyone shares. The exhibition Kids Celebrate! shows them how celebrations are more than just fun and games — they are community and family rituals derived from ancient traditions”.

To welcome the  exhibit,  Exploration Place celebrated  by  welcoming  the Lheidli T’enneh Khast’an Drummers,   a First Nations  Jingle Dress  Dancer,  a classic Thai dancer and the  Raqqaset Al Qamar Dancers.