William Adams, Jr., P.E. (retired), summarized the importance of the Fresno Scraper, developed in the San Joaquin Valley in the late 1880s. The horse-drawn device was used to build irrigation ditches and level farmland for irrigation. It later was used throughout the world, including in the construction of the Panama Canal and the early levees in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. It was the forerunner of virtually all subsequent earthmoving implements.

The ASME landmark plaque was unveiled and presented by past ASME president Robert Nickel, P.E., to Larry Ruhstaller, chair of the County Board of Supervisors, and Ken Vogel, Supervisor, County of San Joaquin.

David Stuart, Executive Director of the Historical Society and Museum, introduced the exhibition on earthmoving equipment now being developed at the Museum. He invited the 65 attendees to visit a "preview" of the exhibition in the Brown-Jones Building and to see the 1919 Holt 75 Caterpillar Tractor being restored by volunteers in the Museum's restoration workshop in the Hammer Building.

The students were assigned full sets of equipment and materials, and received instruction from renowned local artist Gil Dellinger. They did “studio work” in the Museum multi-purpose room, painted outside at locations within the Museum grounds and at the Japanese Garden (in Micke Grove Regional Park), and took a field trip to The Haggin Museum. The students progressed through a series of exercises to develop their skills. For example they started with the development of ability to see and interpret values from photographs, then moved on to interpret the same values from natures, and finally explored how to turn those value studies into accurate color studies.

The San Joaquin County Historical Society plans to offer additional art camps at the Museum in the future.

The Sunshine Trail is a unique educational and recreational resource—a loop trail that passes through plants representing life zones in a transect across California, from the Redwood Coast, through the Valley, and into the Foothills and the Sierra. The exhibition was initiated and championed by Soroptimist International of Lodi and was planted 25 years ago. The trees have matured and recent years of deferred maintenance had taken their toll.

In June 2008, tree crews from Grover Tree Service removed a number of large hazardous trees. They also completed the high-level removal of deadwood, thinning/weight reduction, and the removal of many smaller trees that were shaded out. The technical tree work was funded by the Lodi Lions grant.

Work crews from Lodi Lions Club and Tree Lodi removed thousands of invasive Privet trees—from seedlings to large trees that had to be felled by chainsaw—and did lower-level clean-up. This will allow Museum staff to access and repair the irrigation system. Eventually, many of the lower-story specimens that had been shaded or crowded out will be replanted.

The financial planning firm Drummond & Hickingbottom has assisted by encouraging gifts to an endowment for ongoing Sunshine Trail maintenance.