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The Museum on Main in downtown Pleasanton is welcoming a new executive director next week, the second change in top leadership for the nonprofit since 2022.
Current Executive Director Sarah Schaefer announced her upcoming departure publicly to museum supporters via newsletter last week. But with the resignation already on the board’s radar behind the scenes for multiple months, the directors were able to identify a top candidate as a successor to start soon after Schaefer leaves — local nonprofit professional Tony Cruz.
“The Museum on Main will not be the same without Sarah Schaefer,” board chair Linda Garbarino told the Pleasanton Weekly.
“In her short tenure as our executive director, Sarah increased our fundraising, built our Ed Kinney lecture series after COVID, developed a successful plan to increase the storage of our burgeoning collection among her many strengths, Sarah was an excellent representative for the face of our museum,” Garbarino added.
Museum directors conducted interviews throughout June and selected Cruz for the position, according to Garbarino. His first day is scheduled to be next Thursday (Aug. 1).
“We hired an enthusiastic candidate, Tony Cruz, who comes to us with strong nonprofit experience, is local to the area and knows our community,” Garbarino said. “Tony comes to us with a background that will allow us to grow our revenue, build program strength and continue the welcoming style that is part of our museum culture.”
Looking forward to the new role, Cruz told the Weekly that he is particularly “excited to be a part of all of the wonderful programs that Museum on Main offers the community. The one that caught my attention is the Ghost Walk that we do in October.”
Cruz, a Tri-Valley resident who started his nonprofit career as the Pleasanton director of YoungLife, most recently worked as director of development for Pacific Community Ventures starting in 2024 and before that served nearly two years as executive director of Friends of Oakland Animal Services, according to his LinkedIn account.
He recalled his fondly time running an after-school program for students of Amador Valley and Foothill high schools. “The highlight of my time with YoungLife was when I went to an Amador football game and a bunch of students invited me to sit with them in the ‘Purple Pit,'” he said.
“My wife and mother-in-law both work for the Pleasanton Unified School District, I am excited to be a resource for PUSD and hope to build on an already strong relationship between educators and the museum,” he added.
Cruz’s arrival makes him the third executive director for the museum in less than two years. Schaefer, who had been the museum’s education director since August 2015, took the reins in the fall of 2022 following the retirement of Jim DeMersman after 13 years.
Schaefer, whose last day is this Friday (July 26), confirmed her resignation with reflections of “sadness” and being “proud of what we accomplished together” in the email newsletter on July 19.
She later told the Weekly among her favorite achievements during her entire tenure at the museum were creating Family Days, the annual Celebrate Community collaborations, the new permanent history gallery and the collections storage improvement project.
“When I reflect on my time, I will think about all the programs and exhibits I was proud to be a part of and how we made history fun for so many people, but what I know will stick with me the most is the relationships I made with our members and visitors,” Schaefer said, declining to elaborate on the reasons for her departure, other than to confirm it was not for another job.
“I loved being a part of their lives and listening ear for their stories and memories,” she added. “I have learned so much from the thousands of conversations I have had over the years, and I have been given so much love and support. I will be forever grateful for all this community has shared and given back to me. Leaving is certainly bittersweet.”
Sarah’s presentation at the first session of the Chamber of Commerce’s Leadership Pleasanton 2024 was a sheer delight, and it set the tone for the remainder of the year-long program. Her sparkling delivery of what could have been a dull and dry history lesson had us interacting and getting to know one another and our city in one fell swoop. And she clearly knew the material, which she presented with a twinkle in her eye.
Sarah will be truly missed, as will her canine sidekick, Beatrice the Bulldog. We look forward to welcoming Tony and wish him the best as he begins his own tenure at Museum on Main. As Sarah has said, the moment is bittersweet, but a new chapter in the museum is beginning. We look forward to welcoming new adventures as we bid the fondest of farewells to Sarah and Beatrice.
It was a joy and the experience of a lifetime to work for Sarah as a museum volunteer. She will be missed immeasurably, but I wish her all the best in her future adventures.