BIRTHDAY WISHES. The Children's Museum of Eau Claire is celebrating its 20th birthday with Birthday Palooza and Birthday Encore celebrations. 

Happy birthday, dear Children’s Museum. Happy birthday to you! Through moves and remodels, the Children’s Museum of Eau Claire has been a staple for children and families in the Chippewa Valley for two decades. To celebrate this milestone, the museum is holding a Birthday Palooza and Birthday Encore on Saturday, March 16.

The Birthday Palooza will be held from 10am-1pm at the museum (126 N. Barstow St. ) and will be a fun daytime event featuring comedy disco duo Koo Koo. Later that evening from 5-9pm, the Birthday Encore will be held at the museum for “donors, volunteers, and difference-makers.”

Events highlights at the Birthday Encore are a silent disco with multiple DJs spinning different genres, fire and aerial performances by the Torch Sisters, food and drink vendors, auctions and raffles, and other games and activities. Tickets for the event are $60 and can be purchased on the museum’s website.

Since opening its doors in 2004 at 220 S. Barstow St. in downtown Eau Claire (currently The Reboot Social), the museum has seen highs and lows during its 20-year tenure, always aiming to offer unique, interactive fun for kids.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the original location was forced to close, reopened for one month in 2020, and was then forced to close again indefinitely until its new location was completed. Still wanting to serve the community, the museum’s board of directors opened Play Spaces in Eau Claire, Menomonie, and Chippewa Falls. After the new location on North Barstow opened in January 2023, the Play Spaces were closed.

Now enjoying the immense and growing features of its new space on Barstow Street, the Children’s Museum of Eau Claire serves more than 4,300 families in the area while continuing to foster the social and academic growth of children.

Learn more and purchase tickets for the Birthday Encore at childrensmuseumec.com.