SEPTEMBER 16

Founders’ Day 2026

Celebrate Sandy Spring Museum’s history and help carry its work in cultural heritage and community connection forward.

Support Founders’ Day

Why Founders’ Day Matters

On September 16, 1981, a group of visionaries gathered for Sandy Spring Museum's first General Members Meeting, which laid the foundation for the fledgling organization, founded in 1980, to begin the work of preserving our region's stories, traditions, and history.

Forty-five years later, we invite you to virtually celebrate that legacy during our Second Annual Founders' Day on Wednesday, September 16, 2026.

Today, Sandy Spring Museum is home to more than 100,000 digitized historical records and serves as Montgomery County's Regional Folklife Center, preserving and sharing the diverse stories that make our community unique. Yet there is still much work to do, from expanding access to collections to documenting the living traditions of our growing community.

Founders' Day is an opportunity to honor our past, celebrate our present, and invest in our future. Throughout the day, we'll share historic photos, special videos, collection highlights, and recognition of the supporters who make our work possible.

Whether you're a member, donor, volunteer, Strawberry Festival attendee, History Happy Hour guest, or first-time supporter, you are an important part of our story.

Join us virtually on September 16 as we celebrate 46 years of preserving history, building community, and sustaining the vision of our founders.

You can get us started with a donation today.

Support Founders’ Day
A presenter speaks at Sandy Spring Museum’s first meeting in Delmas in 1980.

Founders’ Day Stories

Draft
A Story 46 Years in the Making, and It Needs You to Write the Next Chapter
A Story 46 Years in the Making, and It Needs You to Write the Next Chapter

On September 16, 1981, a small group of neighbors sat down in a room together and did something quietly radical: they decided that the stories of our community, the everyday ones, the ones that don't usually make it into history books, were worth saving.

Read more →
Why Founders’ Day Matters
Why Founders’ Day Matters

I’ve spent most of my career as a fundraiser, and I’ve coached a lot of people who were terrified of asking for support. There’s a cultural bias many of us carry, one I understand completely, that asking for a gift means asking someone to give and get nothing back. It’s not true. It never has been.

Read more →
Support Founders’ Day

Make your Founders’ Day profile photo

Choose a square or portrait photo, position it inside the frame, then download your finished image for Facebook.

Drag directly on the photo to move it up, down, left, or right. Keyboard users can focus the preview and use the arrow keys; hold Shift for larger moves.

1. Choose your photo
Zoom out100%Zoom in
3. Save your image

Private by design: your photo stays on this device. It is not uploaded to Sandy Spring Museum or Squarespace.

Choose a photo to begin.

How long should I use my Founders’ Day profile photo?

Even one day is enough to show your support, and Facebook makes it easy. After uploading your finished image, choose Make Temporary, select 1 day, and save. Facebook will automatically restore your previous profile photo after 24 hours.

Want to celebrate with us a little longer? Keep your Founders’ Day profile photo through September 16. Afterward, we’ll send an email and share a social media post thanking everyone who participated and letting you know it’s time to switch back. If you’re not already on our email list, sign up here so we can remind you.