GRAHAMSVILLE, NY — The Time and the Valleys Museum has announced its event schedule for 2018, offering a wide array of subjects about the region’s community, history and the far-reaching impact of its ecosystem. “The museum is dedicated to water, people and the Catskills. So it’s not just a local museum about Grahamsville or the Neversink watershed area. It’s really much broader than that,” says Donna Steffens, the museum’s director. “[And] we have things to touch, things to do. We have a whole selfie exhibit, where people can actually get into the exhibits themselves, and touch things and take photos and things like that. So it’s very interactive.”

The Time and the Valleys Museum, located at 332 Main St., is open from 12 noon to 4 p.m. on Thursday to Sunday on Memorial Day through Labor Day; 12 noon to 4 p.m. on weekends in September; and all other times and dates by appointment. During this appointment and event season, the museum hosts groups and individuals alike. “We have 90-odd kids coming up from New York City; they’re learning where their water comes from,” Steffens mentions. “[Two weeks ago,] I had a group of high school students from the Bronx—I asked them, and they knew nothing [about it]. We’re really trying to educate people, especially from the city… and the fact that people had to really sacrifice, and still sacrifice, to provide them with that water.”

The museum has worked hard to give dedicated attention to both the natural and human history of the region. “We always try to bring different, interesting programs to people,” says Steffens. “Last year, we got record [numbers of] people coming to our programs, they absolutely love them. I had people telling their friends, and their friends would come to the next one, so people like what we’re doing. I think because it’s diverse—we go from gardening to Indian programs, to something on New York City’s water system, to local history.”

Among its upcoming attractions, the museum plans on opening a period farm on its grounds sometime in September, featuring a farmhouse, a milk house, an 1870s barn, a working waterwheel and other sights illustrated with videos and interactive displays. “Anything to get people involved, and learning, and interested in our history,” Steffens says. “So it’s not going to be where you just walk through and look at these old dusty things on the walls, but they’ll actually be able to touch those dusty things.”

The museum’s 2018 event series, planned through November, begins on Sunday, March 4 at 2 p.m. with “Return of the Eagle,” featuring historian Tom Riley in a discussion about the recent history, endangerment and recovery of the American Eagle. Upcoming programs also include “From Garden Plot to Kitchen Pot” (Sunday, March 25, 2 p.m.), about the herbs used in cooking; the concerns and projects pertaining to “NYC’s Water Supply” (Sunday, April 8, 2 p.m.); and “Honey and the Bee” (Sunday, April 22, 2 p.m.), featuring the proprietors of Grahamsville honey shop Son of a Bee. Admission to each event is free to members, and costs $3 for non-members. For more information about further events and exhibits, visit www.timean dthevalleysmuseum.org or call 845/985-7700.