LA museum reduced to begging on GoFundMe to keep the lights on amid budget crisis after 30 years

After nearly three decades of saving the San Fernando Valley’s past, one treasured Los Angeles museum is begging the public to save its future.The Valley Relics Museum — which houses more than 30,000 vintage artifacts inside two massive airport hangars at Van Nuys Airport — has launched an urgent GoFundMe campaign as crushing overhead costs, post-pandemic deficits, and looming debt threaten to wipe out decades of local history.The quirky cultural institution has everything from vintage neon signs and Hollywood memorabilia to classic cars and long-forgotten restaurant relics, and launched a $75,000 campaign to stay afloat.

The biggest news, opinion and culture shaping California right now.Please provide a valid email.

By clicking above you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.Never miss a story Founder Tommy Gelinas faces a whopping $70,000 balloon payment due in December, leaving the once self-sustaining nonprofit scrambling for donations to avoid becoming another piece of Valley history itself.

“For over a decade, Valley Relics Museum has existed to preserve and celebrate the unique history of the San Fernando Valley,” Gelinas wrote on the campaign page, detailing how the COVID-19 pandemic closures delivered a financial blow from which the venue never fully recovered.The forced shutdowns froze public ticket sales and abruptly canceled the lucrative private events that once funded daily operations, he said.While the museum worked to rebound, costs for hangar leases, utility bills, insurance, and maintenance have pushed the nonprofit to the brink.

“We’ve worked hard – blood, sweat and tears on this passion project,” Gelinas told CBS Los Angeles.The museum is no ordinary collection of dusty antiques.

Among its thousands of treasures are Eve Plumb’s bedroom door from “The Brady Bunch,” a talking Jack in the Box head, the neon sign from defunct local landmark the Palomino Club,...