The folk song “Big Yellow Taxi” by Joni Mitchell has a great lyric: “You don’t know what you’ve got, till it’s gone.”

That’s how I felt when I first saw the devastation that took place at Cassidy Park last Friday, and especially the damage that was done to the museums there. Although I’ve been living in Bogalusa since last August and I’ve visited Cassidy Park numerous times, I had not yet taken the time to check out the historical artifacts and other exhibits that are housed at those museums.

And now, it seems like I’ll have to wait a bit longer.

However, I am encouraged by the numerous people that have already stepped up to the plate to help bring back the museums and park. You can read about one of them in today’s paper, as Keith Hughes recently made a $10,000 donation to the cause. I was also impressed by a story I saw on Facebook, about how a citizen traveled on a boat through the floodwaters in the middle of the storm Friday, just to try and save some of the museum’s collection.

Cultural facilities like museums are only successful if there is enough community support and enough volunteers to ensure they are run well. It’s obvious that isn’t a problem in Bogalusa.

Museums are an important part of a town’s heritage, and in many ways they are the closest link that we have to our past and our history.

I know that the Cassidy Park museums will eventually return, and they will be better than ever.

And this time, I’ll make the most of my chance to visit.

Thanks for reading The Daily News!

Justin Schuver is the publisher and editor of The Daily News.