Image of a basket from Southern Panama found at the Alamosa Cultural Center & Museum and viewed online at MuseumTrail.org

The Del Norte Team had tourism in mind when they set the goals for their MIRA team. The idea to create a San Luis Valley Museum Association had been around for years. However, because the museums of the San Luis Valley are spread over such a great distance, an association did not seem feasible. The Del Norte Team decided that the MIRA program was a perfect opportunity to utilize technology in order to turn the dream of a museum association into a reality. The team decided to create a web page that would unify, promote and maintain existing museums and historical associations within the Valley

Representatives of each museum and historical society in the area were invited to join the association and to have a presence on the web page. The web site the team created, MuseumTrail.org, contains links to information on each of the museums in the San Luis Valley, links to information on San Luis Valley history and art that can be utilized by teacher, researchers and history buffs, and links to information for people interested in mapping their genealogy. The site also contains pages for a calendar of events and gift shop items that will be hosted at an eCommerce site. These pages are still in the works.

Over time, the team members hope this association and web page will help to increase the attendance at the museums of the San Luis Valley. They also hope it will lead to increase in communication between the museums so the museums will be able to coordinate events and share information.