Today we’d like to introduce you to Cheryl Alleman
Cheryl, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
As early as I can remember I loved retail. When I was in Elementary School I set up a book shop at the end of my driveway instead of the usual lemonade stand. By my twenties I operated my own shops in Santa Barbara Ca. My retail career was interrupted when I married and moved to Florida. My father was a philanthropist and he had museums around the country and offered me to open and manage one in Florida. I did this for 14 years before going back to my original roots of retail.
Since then I have operated a few retail concepts from online thru Amazon and other sites to a gift shop and a wholesale warehouse. In 2022 my father passed away leaving my siblings and I to oversee the museums. I found myself back in the museum world! In my new position as COO of the Karpeles Manuscript Library Museums I had to back off from much of my retail ventures so decided to keep a vendor booth at a couple of gift and home decor malls.
I currently am in Trader Maes Home Decor in Apopka Fl and also Starrdust Antiques in Daytona Beach, Fl. This allows me to keep my creative retail side while running 5 museums.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Working for yourself has many benefits but can be tricky if life gets in the way. I had to have brain surgery for a benign but growing tumor on my pituitary causing Cushings Disease and threatening my eyes and more. It turned out to be a long recovery as I suffered from damage to the pituitary causing secondary adrenal insufficiency. This made my blood pressure run very low for a long period of time and it took a long time to resolve it and it turned out costing my half my kidney function. In all, I lost much of two years fighting to recover.
Today I am doing fantastic! While I cannot get back the kidney numbers I am stable and that will do. I worked through this period but it was difficult at times.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I am the COO of the Karpeles Manuscript Library Museums, free admission venues across the US showcasing our family collection of famous historical original writings that have changed or shaped our collective history. Google the museum please. The museum is famous for holding the largest private collection of original manuscripts relating to arts, music, science, history, religion, politics, literature, philosophy and more. We are currently renovating a new location in Saint Augustine, Fl in the heart of the tourist district. This museum branch will also offer free admission. It is a special opportunity for the general population to get up close and personal with the original writings of the likes of George Washington, Albert Einstein, Thomas Edison and so many more. We have over 10,000 collections comprising over a million pages in all.
We’d love to hear about any fond memories you have from when you were growing up?
I have so many fond memories of my carefree childhood. I was a precocious young girl always trying something different. I threw myself into anything that caught my attention. In High School it was art. I did pen and ink architectural style drawings. After High School I got my real estate license and managed 100 single family rental homes while also opening a clothing boutique in Santa Barbara. I always had energy.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://Www.karpeles.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sprinklesjewelryandgifts?igsh=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ%3D%3D&utm_source=qr
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sprinklesgifts
