For the first time in a very long time, the Mission Inn Foundation will not be giving tours of the Inn this holiday season. The Mission Inn Hotel has replaced the Foundation's docents with newly hired tour guides. The Inn is still beautiful, holds aesthetic and historical value, and stands proudly at the physical and cultural center of downtown Riverside, but the experience and knowledge of the Mission Inn Foundation docents will not be there and can not be easily replaced.
If there is a bright side to the battle that ended in the eviction of the Museum and Foundation, it is that the docents have coalesced around their collective love of the city. Their love for downtown is bigger than the Inn, and the beauty of Downtown Riverside is much bigger than the Mission Inn.
You could say the docents were given lemons. The lemonade is coming in the form of new tours. This is unambiguously good news. Steve Lech, Director of Docent Training with the Mission Inn Foundation, says. "The Mission Inn Foundation is embarking on a new episode in our history as we expand tour offerings to downtown Riverside. We are seeking people who want to discuss Riverside's historic buildings as they take tour guests along Mission Inn Avenue, Main Street, and around the Mission Inn. Training lasts for 3 weeks, will be informative, and a lot of fun."
I want the docents back in the Inn. Hopefully, that can happen soon. It is a treasure that deserves the skill and expertise the docents uniquely provided. This is the best possible outcome, and it doesn't include the Foundation returning to give tours of the Mission Inn. Employing the knowledge and experience of the docents to tell new stories of new places is a tremendous benefit to the city. This opens the door to an ever-expanding menu of tours and solidifies the position of the Mission Inn Foundation as the premier teller of the history of the city.
