New Director of Rehoboth Beach Museum Named
A nationwide search for a new director at the Rehoboth Beach Museum brought the Historical Society right back home! The new Director of the Rehoboth Beach Museum is Heidi Nasstrom Evans, Ph.D. – a resident of Rehoboth Beach with knowledge of the museum community – not just Rehoboth Beach. Before moving to Rehoboth Beach, Evans spent 25 years at the Smithsonian, but her emphasis now is on local history.
Additional information from the Rehoboth Beach Historical Society:
The Board wants Evans to help them expand their level of community engagement, “to be out and visible, meet and greet. We want more promotion of our activities, to expand our horizons in terms of fundraising, to institute a planned giving program, and increase our endowment,” according to Board President J. David Mann.
Evans spent 25 years at the Smithsonian before moving full-time to Rehoboth. Since then her professional focus has been on local history. “This is the most exciting time of my career. In D.C., I was an expert on a narrow moment in time. Now I never know what topic I will be working on. These days I see myself more
as a storyteller rather than an expert. The people I work with bring me topics and I enjoy figuring out interesting ways to realize them in 3-D museum spaces.”
“I dreamed of running the Rehoboth Beach Museum,” Evans said, “but never thought the position would open up because former Director and friend Nancy Alexander did such a great job. We planned to collaborate on an exhibit I was hoping would be about integration.”
Evans looks forward to working with the Rehoboth Beach Museum staff on creative exhibits and programming. She is a Governor’s appointee on Delaware Humanities’ Board of Directors, sits on the City of Lewes Public Arts Committee, and Board of the Delaware Museum Association. Her recent projects include exhibitions at DelTech’s Senator John J. and Elsie Williams House Museum and Conference Center, the Delaware Agricultural Museum in Dover, the Fort Miles Museum in Cape Henlopen State Park, and the Milton Historical Society.
