WE ARE STORYTELLERS
Our projects forge creative connections among people, ideas, and communities.

We love to research! We’re professional writers who collaborate with designers to develop outstanding visitor experiences that conserve cultural and environmental legacies.
The Hands-on Heritage team has a professional and educational background in history, science, conservation, anthropology/archaeology military, sports, art, religion, politics, technology, and mass communications.
Our abilities include researching, writing, interviewing, and digital storytelling. We are adept at planning and implementing projects, collaborating with team members, developing measurable goals, and monitoring progress.
HANDS-ON
HERITAGE
Our mission is to find and share stories that bind the past, present, and future, and use these stories to help create connected and resilient communities.

WHAT WE DO
We are storytellers, and we collaborate with other creative people to develop outstanding visitor experiences. We specialize in researching, writing content for exhibits, and books. Our projects connect communities and conserve cultural and environmental legacies with an emphasis on interpretation and education.

PARTNERS & PROJECTS
It’s our pleasure to work with distinguished partners, both locally and nationally, on legacy projects that honor the residents and communities in which they serve. The projects in our portfolio include researching and writing creative content for museum exhibits, to helping to develop heritage and nature parks.

WHO WE ARE
Hands-on Heritage is the professional communications team of Robin Van Auken, a registered professional archaeologist, and Lance Van Auken, a museum specialist. The team is unique for embedding itself within communities, developing relationships with citizens, and finding the unheard voices, the unseen images.