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Article from April 12, 2009

Ex-Staffer says museum time cards falsified
by James Wynn

In an open letter submitted to the Fremont County Commission and made public, a former employee of the Pioneer Museum has accused museum director Carol Thiesse of having her staff falsify time cards.

In that letter, submitted to the commissioners on April 7, Kathy Weger accused Thiesse of not only allowing staff to falsify time sheets but also of impropriety with travel reimbursements, excessive time off for staff, the possibility of certain volunteers being payrolled, and money unneccessarily being spent on new office furniture.

8 to 5?
The former employee accuses Thiesse of telling her to put 8am-5pm on her time sheets, but in the letter Weger states that museum staff actually worked much less than that.

Though being paid for 40 hours each week, the letter states that employees at the museum actually only worked a total of 34 hours.

"We leave at 2pm on Friday and work 8am to 4pm Monday through Thursday" the letter states.

"I am a taxpayer, my property tax takes a huge chunk of my income, and to me this has been a very troubling practice."

The director was not available for comment Friday because of a county holiday. However, when contacted in the past by the Journal, Thiesse has stated that all questions regarding the museum be directed to the county museums board.

In an e-mail sent to the Journal Thursday night, museums board chairman Tom Duncan wrote: "I am unaware of any payroll improprieties and did not notice anything unusual or abnormal when the board reviewed the March payroll during today's regular meeting."

Calls placed to Fremont County Commission chairman Doug Thompson, who is also the liason to the museums board, were not returned as of press time.

Commission Review
Fremont County Clerk Julie Freese, who deals with county payroll, has stated that the commissioners are aware of the accusations.

"They are looking into it," she said. "They are just allegations currently. They are going to ask the museums board to look into it."

But the issue of payroll is not the only thing the letter says was done wrong at the museum.

"In the five months I was there," the letter reads, "not only was there an increasingly uncooperative, even confrontational attitude toward the Pioneer (museum) community, but also a lack of judgement and oversight as well."

One of the concerns highlighted in the letter was the use of Endust on artifacts, something that according to the letter is not condoned by the Wyoming Dept. of State Parks and Cultural Resources.

"We would not recommend using Endust because of the chemical residue it leaves behind," said Roger Joyce, Wyoming State Archivist and Professional Associate in Preservation for the American Institute of Conservations.

According to www.endust.com, Endust Dusting & Cleaning Spray is a blend of premium cleaners including citrus oils, solvents other oils and surfactants. While it does not contain waxes, alcohol, vinegar, ammonia or acetone, Joyce said that over time, the ingredients in the cleaner can leave a residue that could compromise materials. "For cleaning we would recommend just using a static cloth that will pick up dust," he said. "We wouldn't ever use any type of chemicals. I would hope that anyone working in a museum should have general knowledge about that. If you have had training in the museum field, you would know not to use Endust."

The letter goes on to state that Pioneer Museum curator Tracy Foutz had been using a power sander on historic road signs, that there has been indiscriminate disposal of old newspaper clippings, and that the museum failed to store or protect artifacts from months of construction dust that included wood chips from saws.

"Again, we would not recommend using any kind of belt sander on an artifact," Joyce said. "If a situation came up where we were concerned about the quality of an artifact like a metal sign, we would contact a conservator to see what recommendations they would make. Our office is available to anyone in the state for any kind of preservation question. We are happy to provide assistance."

The letter comes at a time when the Pioneer Museum is planning its inaugural opening on May 15.

The letter outlining the accusations comes on top of another letter received by the commissioners on the same day from Fremont County Museums board member Robert Wood. In that letter, Wood resigned from the baord, effective immediately.

Wood declined to comment, though in his short resignation letter offered to commissioners as "constructive notice" Wood refers to "one-sided politics on the board that make it impossible for me to continue."

A blog that debuted on Friday has been set up online at http://savethepioneermuseum.blogspot.com. According to that site, a self-described "concerned citizen" is attempting to garner more public awareness of the situation at the museum. The site includes contact information for the county commissioners, as well as a downloadable letter that can be signed and sent to the commission.

Officials with the Department of State Parks and Cultural Resources in Cheyenne have been alerted to the situation at the Pioneer Museum.

Milward Simpson, director of the SPCR said in a phone interview that his staff has been made aware of "a situation" but at this point nothing more.

"We need to get a lot more information before we get involved," he said. "But part of what we do is outreach toward other museums.

"We support the preservation of history. We do everything we can to help local museums make sure that everything works."

Simpson said it would be possible his office would become involved depending on the information it recveived, but said that it was important to keep in mind that SPCR does not neccessarily have jurisdiction on the situation.

He did say, however, that he would be happy to send staff or come himself if he was invited to lend his office's expertise. But if no invitation is forthcoming Simpson said that his office will be keeping an eye on Lander.

"I do intent to become more aware of what is going on there," he said.