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No one knows the importance of preserving history like an American treasure. Cliff’s Amusement Park (https://www.cliffs.net/) in Albuquerque is one of those treasures. The park has been entertaining families in the same exciting and wholesome way as they did when the park opened in 1959. That effort to stay true to the industry now includes a $25, 000 donation to the National Roller Coaster Museum and Archives (https://www.rollercoastermuseum.org/) to preserve and protect the history of theme and family amusement parks like Cliff’s.
"We all feel the work the NRCMA is doing is important, " Gary and Linda Hays, owners of Cliff’s Amusement park said. "We are talking about the history of fun, the history of family togetherness, the history of our industry. The NRCMA has taken the lead in establishing the early beginnings of a museum for our amusement industry and we wanted to support their efforts."
The NRCMA recen
tly completed construction on its archiving building in the South Plains of Plainview, Texas. Acquisition of artifacts from the Texas Giant and the classic suspended coaster the Big Bad Wolf has already stretched the facility. Further acquisitions continue to roll into the museum’s facilities awaiting academic research and cataloging. The donation from Cliff’s Amusement Park will be used to continue to expand the capability of the museum’s archiving process. Still, a cash donation of this magnitude is inspiring.
"The donation by Gary and Linda Hays and the team at Cliff’s is an extraordinary and generous gift, " Gary Slade, NRCMA Chairman said. "We hope that this donation serves as the catalyst for more park owners and managers, ride manufacturers and brokers to step forward to assist us in the important work preserving the history of the amusement industry. We are on our way, but we need more donations to ensure the future success o f our efforts."
An official presentation of the donation will be made at the International Amusement Parks and Attractions convention in Orlando in November.
The NRCMA is an unaffiliated, 501 C3 non-profit organization dedicated to the protection and preservation of historic roller coasters and amusement park artifacts and memorabilia to document and archive the history of the amusement park industry in a dynamic environment while providing the most complete repository of information and documents regarding the amusements industry. To donate to the NRCMA to aid in the protection and preservation of historic roller coasters and amusement park artifacts, mail to: NRCMA, attention, Jeff Novotny, NRCMA Treasurer, PO Box 5424, Arlington, Texas 76005-5424
