Welcome to the San Diego Natural History Museum 2005-2006 Annual Report. This year we take you through the exciting, exhausting year that culminated in the opening of Fossil Mysteries, the first permanent exhibition installed since the new building was completed in 2001. Every member of the Museum's staff and hundreds of volunteers lived through the dust, noise and anxiety of construction. It was all worth it when Fossil Mysteries opened to rave reviews July 1, 2006. In the days leading up to the opening we celebrated with our own families, the artists, construction workers, donors, member families and civic leaders who teamed with us to create this extraordinary exhibition for San Diego.

As all consuming as Fossil Mysteries seemed to be, it was not the only major project at the Museum during 2005-06. It also was a year of major planning and preparation. The Dead Sea Scrolls exhibition will not open until June 29, 2007, but the preparations were a major theme of the year just past. The physical plant is currently undergoing heating, air conditioning and security systems upgrades that were designed during 2005-06. The new timed-ticketing system, Patron's Edge, has been in the works for a number of months under the watchful eye of a cross-divisional team from accounting, membership, education, visitor services, information systems and the web team. These significant upgrades position the Museum to welcome an unprecedented number of visitors in 2007 and to add an impressive list of future major exhibitions.

Please take the time to look over the section of updates on the Biodiversity Research Center of the Californias. The productivity of the Museum's research scientists under the leadership of Dr. Exequiel Ezcurra will remind you that research continues to be one of the primary foci of the Museum's mission. Similarly, in the midst of all this activity, the Public Programs Division offered a rich mix of lectures, classes, trips and camps, enticing people of all ages into rewarding science education activities. We also added a new volunteer group, the Whalers, who took their knowledge out onto the high seas.

And finally, we would be remiss if we did not point out the generosity of the Museum's many friends and supporters. A significant portion of our development efforts were focused on matching the extraordinary California Cultural and Historic Endowment grant of $2.88 million for Fossil Mysteries. We also saw a real increase in annual giving, new President's Circle members and the addition of a new endowment in Botany. Many thanks.