‘She’s a walking encyclopedia’

Lois Cunningham doesn’t see anything special about her several years of volunteer work at the Spokane Valley Heritage Museum.

She certainly doesn’t see it as anything deserving recognition, though she was awarded the fourth annual Heritage Preservation Award by the museum for her work.

“I don’t feel like I’ve done that much work here,” she said. “I think they’ve done more for me than I’ve done for them. You just never grow old if you stay interested in things.”

Cunningham shows visitors through the museum, cooks for the volunteers whenever there’s a meeting or work to be done and has donated many, many pictures taken by her late husband, Jack Cunningham. He owned Cunningham Studio from 1952 to 1984 and died in 1998. The couple had been married 49 years.

“I’ve given them albums of things,” she said. “Whatever I can dig out in the way of pictures, they get.”

Cunningham, 82, has lived in the Valley since 1949. She learned everything she knows about the area’s history from her husband. “Jack talked to me a lot about the Valley,” she said. “It was his Valley. He was so proud of it.”

She usually spends at least two days a week at the museum helping out. She has been involved with the organization since before it began in 2002. “I just kind of fell into it,” she said. “Jayne asked me for pictures. I didn’t want to climb on scaffolding or paint, so I cooked.”

Museum director Jayne Singleton said the museum’s board of directors was unanimous in its selection of Cunningham for the award. “They all know who is here cleaning and cooking and doing the paperwork,” she said.

Every year the award is given to a person, organization or business that has made an effort to preserve history. “She’s a walking encyclopedia on the Valley,” Singleton said. “She has shared everything Jack collected and photographed.”

At the end of the day, Cunningham still thinks she’s getting the better end of the bargain. “I find this a real enjoyment,” she said. “I find out things I never knew before.”