By Lookout Staff

February 9 -- The Santa Monica Historical Society Museum (SMHSM) moved closer to its fundraising goal thanks to the generosity of two long-time residents, city historians and benefactors, society officials announced Thursday.

Ann Funk, who founded the society, and her husband Ron Funk, who headed the Evening Outlook during the newspaper’s heyday, donated $100,000 to help the museum relocate to a new 5,000-square-foot facility at the Main Library later this year.

"The Funks have been personal friends for many years, as well as friends of the museum since the Historical Society’s founding in 1975," said Louise Gabriel, president/CEO of the museum. "Their continuous support throughout the years has helped us tremendously, and it will forever be remembered and appreciated."

In awarding the donation, Ron Funk praised the society’s work preserving the city’s rich history. "I believe that the only way to know the heart and soul of a town or city is through its history -- without which it cannot be understood and appreciated," Funk said. “The Santa Monica Historical Society Museum is doing an extraordinary job of compiling and preserving the history of the Santa Monica Bay area." Funk joined the United Western Newspapers, a family-owned company that published the daily Evening Outlook and the weekly West Los Angeles Independent in 1956, after having worked for several Associated Press bureaus.

Funk served as the Evening Outlook’s managing editor and was appointed editor/managing editor of the paper in 1970, staying on as its editor until his retirement in 1980. During his tenure, Funk oversaw the publication in 1975 of a special centennial edition celebrating Santa Monica's 100th anniversary.

Weighing in at 128-pages, it was the single largest and most complete history of the Santa Monica Bay area ever compiled and included more than 100 articles by the paper’s staff writers and 200 rare and unpublished photographs.

"The only way (a city’s) history can be known is to gather and preserve the records of how its people lived, of who contributed significantly and of what they accomplished, of realized and unrealized goals, and of the external forces that helped shape it,” Funk said recently.

Born and raised in Santa Monica, Ann Funk was a history major in college and a local history buff who assisted her husband in gathering historical documents and images for the special edition. She also orchestrated many of the festivities marking the city's centennial.

In September, 1975, as founding chairperson, she called the first meeting of what soon became officially known as the Santa Monica Historical Society and continued to play a key role in its early development.

In addition to his wife, Funk thanked those “who helped her found the Santa Monica Historical Society and who helped nurture its growth.” They include Louise and Bob Gabriel, former mayor Clo Hoover, Ernest Marquez, Victor Plukas, Dolores Crawford, Norton Stern, Marjorie Vawter and June Bohn.

They “can all be very proud of their efforts to preserve the city's colorful history, culture and countless attractions," he said.

The Funk’s donation is part of a $5 million capital campaign for the build-out of the new museum that was launched late last year. To date, the campaign has raised $600,000.

SMHSM is appealing to the city's residents and business owners for support, as well as others who at one time may have lived or worked in Santa Monica. Leading the museum's fund-raising efforts are Jean McNeil Wyner, chair person of the SMHSM Board of Directors, and Bob Gabriel, chairman of the museum's Permanent Home Committee.

The museum's Board of Directors also has established a Donor's Circle honoring contributors who will receive special recognition on the Wall of Legacy, a permanent fixture in the new museum.

The museum's goal is to provide public access to its extensive collections through interpretive exhibitions, on- and off-site programs, and through archival research services for youths and adults.

To contribute, or for more information, please call 310-395-2290 or visit www.santamonicahistory.org.