Kelowna Museums is in the process of putting together a new exhibit on ranching and rodeos in the Okanagan. 

Curatorial Manager with the Kelowna Museums Society, Amanda Snyder, said they chose this topic for an upcoming exhibit to run at the same time the Canadian Country Music Awards are in the city. 

"We get ideas from all kinds of different places," Snyder said. "Sometimes it's collections based, sometimes there's something going on... Sometimes there's some kind of anniversary."

Once a topic has been chosen, staff get to work researching and going through previous public donations to see what pieces can be used for displays. 

"We do not buy things, we rely on donations from the community."

The museum recently received a large donation of documents, photographs, and other items related to the Black Mountain Rodeo that started up in 1975 and ran on-and-off until 2008. 

"This is amazing that we've gotten this," Snyder commented. "I had no idea that this even existed. That's often the case that we don't know what gems the public has."

Members of the public are required to sign paperwork giving permission to the society to utilize the materials. Older or damaged materials can be resorted through use of the Ursula Surtees Regional Conservation Laboratory. "It's one of the only labs of its type in the Interior." The lab will also work with members of the public looking to restore heirlooms and other items. 

Snyder said if time wasn't a constraint the museum would take a year to put together one exhibit.

"Minimum we need three months to put something together," Snyder added that she works with the head of exhibitions, the head of archives, conservation associates, collections associates, researchers, and other experts in putting the displays together. 

The Kelowna Heritage Museum has a feature exhibit display on the upper floor that rotates exhibits every three to four months. 

The exhibit featuring the history of ranching and rodeos in the Okanagan is expected to be on display at the end of summer or the beginning of fall. 

Anyone with historical documents or artifacts related to history in the Central Okanagan and willing to donate to the museum is encouraged to reach out by . Learn more about current and upcoming exhibits by visiting .