The Canadian Federation of Friends of Museums (CFFM) is pleased to announce that Dr. Patricia Kell will be the Carol Sprachman Lecturer on November 14, 2024 at historic Maison Forget in Montreal, Quebec. Dr. Kell's timely topic will focus on "Heritage Preservation: A Conservation Movement for the 21st Century”. 

Patricia Kell is Executive Director of Canada's National Trust, the prominent leading Canadian charitable organization promoting the preservation and use of historic sites. Dr. Kell has held senior positions with Parks Canada including the Historic Sites and Monuments Board and the Federal Heritage Buildings Review Office, the Canadian Conservation Institute (CCI) and the Canadian Heritage Information Network (CHIN).

"We are honoured to present the 2024 Carol Sprachman Lecture at historic Maison Forget, the 19th century residence of Marie Raymond Forget and Louis Forget which was saved in the 1970s from destruction. It maintains this historic presence in downtown Montreal, and has been re-purposed for office use for a variety of non-profits by the Macdonald Stewart Foundation." Bruce Bolton, President of the CFFM.

The topic of this year's Lecture, says Kell, will focus on "What makes people care about heritage places? It has been more than a century since Canada began to preserve heritage places and fifty years since the cornerstones for the current system of heritage management were put in place. Yet, despite a talented cadre of heritage professionals and the efforts of dedicated volunteers around the country, heritage places remain threatened and suffer loss. So what does an effective conservation movement look like in the 21st century? How do we make sense of saving the past, while society is hurtling ever faster into the future?"

The Carol Sprachman Lecture is presented in memory of Carol Sprachman, a long time supporter and leader of the Canadian Federation of Friends of Museums.