The Weatherly Area Museum will kick off their 2017 season this weekend, and hold a benefit dinner this Saturday.

The museum, which opened in 2012, is packed with vintage items celebrating the town's heritage as a railroad hub, as well as memorabilia from generations of students at Weatherly Area High School.It is located in one of the historic Trainworks buildings in downtown Weatherly, once used by the Lehigh Valley Railroad.The dinner will take place at the First Presbyterian Church of Weatherly, located at East Main and Spring streets, starting at 4:30 p.m.Museum committee member Ruth Sabol said that they are working on preserving the vast archive of historical artifacts and stories compiled by the museum's founder, Jack Koehler.Koehler died last August at the age of 89."We want to keep his memory alive," she said. "He was worried what would happen when he went away. This was all his work."The dinner coincides with the opening weekend for the museum.Throughout the summer, the museum will be open from 2-4 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays. School groups are also available.People interested in attending the dinner should contact Sabol at the Weatherly Area Community Pharmacy at 570-427-5887, or look up the Weatherly Area Museum on Facebook.In addition to a menu including bacon wrapped tenderloin, apricot chicken and mushroom lasagna, the dinner will also feature a silent auction."If anyone hasn't seen it, there's a lot of history in the town showcased in the museum," Sabol said.