Tours of Ellen White’s former home, Sunnyside, will resume this month after they were temporarily halted due to the coronavirus pandemic. A student group from Avondale Primary School will be the first to tour the heritage home, and more groups will be welcomed in coming months.
The reopening of Sunnyside coincides with a number of significant initiatives by the South Pacific Division (SPD) aimed at preserving Adventist heritage. These include the establishment of an Adventist Heritage Project committee and the appointment in the next month of an Adventist Heritage director who will develop and implement an SPD-wide Adventist Heritage strategy.
An investment by the SPD in new technology is modernizing current archive processes, with a more streamlined system leading to greater efficiencies and time savings and enhancing future accessibility of historic material.
Significant investment also continues into Sunnyside to support the maintenance needs of the building and redevelop the adjacent hall into a visitors’ center. All artifacts inside Sunnyside are currently being indexed and cataloged with the aim of restoring the interior décor and furniture to accurately reflect the time of Mrs. White.
“We are very blessed to have such a unique collection of artifacts from around the South Pacific,” said Pastor Glenn Townend, SPD president.
“We place great value on the collection and are thankful for the many people who have donated items. We are also thankful for the volunteers who have supported this important heritage work in the past and who continue to do so today. We look forward to showcasing the collection well.
“The SPD remains committed to ensuring the Adventist story and contribution to the South Pacific [are] shared with the wider community.”
If you have a group interested in touring Sunnyside, please visit https://sunnyside.org.au to register your details.
This article was originally published on the website of Adventist Record