The Corporators of the Springfield Museums, at their annual meeting on September 22, 2010, elected two new Trustees to three-year terms. They are Kathleen Kane and Wayne E. Phaneuf.

Kathleen Kane is a managing director with the Springfield Group of the Northwestern Mutual Financial Network. In addition to serving on the Finance Committee of the Springfield Museums, she is also a board member of the Sisters of Providence Health System/Mercy Medical Center in Springfield, the Springfield Chamber of Commerce, the Women’s Fund of Western Massachusetts, the Springfield Renaissance High School, and other organizations. She is also past president and a founding board member of Dress for Success Western Massachusetts. In 2009, she was named a “Difference Maker” by BusinessWest.

Wayne Phaneuf is executive editor at The Republican in Springfield. He began his career in journalism in 1969 for the Springfield Daily News and began his long-running “Looking Backward” column on local history in 1971. He also co-authored “Bringing Home the News,” a 175-year history of the Union-News and Sunday Republican.  Phaneuf was a founder of the Springfield Historical Society and received a historic preservation award from the Springfield Historical Commission. His previous volunteer work for the Springfield Museums includes serving on the Museums Committee, the Collections Committee, the Automotive Task Force, and as chairman of the Museum of Springfield History Committee. He currently chairs the Public Relations Committee.  He is also an honorary trustee at Old Sturbridge Village and a member and past president of New England Associated Press News Executives Association.

Reelected to the Springfield Museums board for three-year terms were Dr. Ruth S. Njiiri, John M. O’Brien, III, and R. Lyman Wood.

The annual meeting of the corporators was followed by the organizational meeting of the Board of Trustees at which the following officers were elected for one-year terms: Peter F. Straley, chairman; Robert Sullivan, Jr., vice chairman; R. Lyman Wood, treasurer; Michael Rollings, assistant treasurer; Frances M. Gagnon, clerk; and Dr. Ruth Njiiri, assistant clerk.