Whitehead Museum Issues "Call to Action"

Museum Executive Director Michael Diaz stands in solidarity with this staff

A beloved landmark and invaluable community resource, the Whitehead Memorial Museum, has issued a call to action. Executive Director Michael Diaz distributed a signed letter on April 2, 2025, urging Del Rio residents to voice their support. The museum faces the potential cancellation of three 2025 fall exhibitions due to the recent presidential order to eliminate the Institute of Museums and Library Services (IMLS), whose funds trickle down into grants that Whitehead has been receiving annually.

Diaz said the letter wasn’t about politics. The museum stands strongly nonpartisan. He said the letter “was a call to action.” Diaz reiterated his position on the issue, saying, “what is being done right now is affecting museums nationwide, plus the museum here in Del Rio. That letter was to ask people to call state senators, call the representatives and senators in Washington, email them and let them know it is not a good idea to cut this funding, no matter who is in office right now.”

His letter began with: “On March 14th, an Executive Order was signed by President Trump, seeking to eliminate the Institute of Museums and Library Services (IMLS). The IMLS is a crucial federal agency that supports museums and libraries across our country. Their service provides vital grant funding that plays a pivotal role in preserving our nation’s heritage, expanding access to historical documents, and strengthen communities through educational and community programs.”

Diaz clarified how federal policies impact Del Rio on a local level. He explained, “NEH is a federal program, they are the ones that trickle down the money to the state. Humanities Texas is the state affiliate of the NEH (National Endowment for the Humanities), there is one in every state. Then Humanities Texas gives the money out to the different organizations that apply for it… smaller museums like us.”

The Whitehead Memorial Museum was expecting a 2025 Humanities Texas grant, and now they are unsure if the funding will come through. Diaz said, “we get a grant from them to do a program of bringing three traveling exhibits to the museum every year... It’s not a lot of money, it’s about $2,000 a year, but still, that means that is one program we are going to have to cut out.” Diaz said, “We found out yesterday the NEH sent an email to Humanities Texas saying they were going to stop all funding, effective immediately, that’s about 60% of the Humanities Texas budget.”

The Whitehead Memorial Museum is located at 1308 S Main St, Del Rio, TX 78840

The Whitehead is not at risk of shutting down, because they don’t rely heavily on state or federal funding. He said, “the majority of funds come from Val Verde County and the City of Del Rio, and we also get funds from ground rentals, fundraisers like Cajun Fest and October Fest, donations, and tour tickets.” But he believes the loss of available state grant funding is a big detriment because “those NEH exhibits that we would bring in, are exhibits that we don’t have or that we don’t have the time to create… People from Del Rio might not be able to go to a larger museum and see that, so that’s why we were bringing them here to Del Rio.”

Michael ended his letter with a call to action. He said, “We need your help! I appeal to you now to spend 5-10 minutes today calling or emailing your state and congressional representatives to help save IMLS and the NEH. Please help secure the future of museum, libraries, and other organizations.” He provided a congress website link and directed readers to “use this site to contact your state and congressional representatives.” The full letter can be found on the Whitehead Memorial Museum's Facebook page.