DAR Museum one of more than 600 museums
to offer free admission
to military personnel and their families this summer
WASHINGTON, DC - The National Society Daughters of the American Revolution is proud to announce its participation in Blue Star Museums, a partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts, Blue Star Families, and more than 600 museums across America to offer free admission to all active duty military personnel and their families from Memorial Day through Labor Day 2010. Families can visit www.dar.org for hours of operation and additional information. The complete list of participating Blue Star Museums is available at www.arts.gov/bluestarmuseums.
The DAR Museum is already open to the public for free year round, so in recognition of the Blue Star Museums partnership, a specially designed scavenger hunt tour of the building will be available for active duty military personnel and their families along with a goody bag. The DAR Museum is composed of 31 period rooms depicting scenes from life in early America, as well as permanent and changing exhibitions which showcase American furnishings and decorative arts prior to 1830. The current exhibition "Honoring Lafayette: Contemporary Quilts from France and America," runs through September 4, 2010 and celebrates the life of the Marquis de Lafayette and explores the cultural bonds between France and America. Also offered through the Blue Star Museums program will be free admission to DAR Library for genealogical research as well as a special scavenger hunt section for the Americana Room exhibits (which are free year round) featuring items from the historic manuscript collection.
"The Daughters of the American Revolution is honored to partner with the Blue Star Museums program to offer active duty military personnel and their families not only a special free self-guided tour to our DAR Museum and Americana Room but also to waive the research fee for our DAR Library," says DAR President General Linda Calvin. "For 120 years the DAR has promoted historic preservation, education and patriotism and it is only natural to participate in this worthy program to show our appreciation for the U.S. Military personnel and their families."
"America's museums are proud to join the rest of the country in thanking our military personnel and their families for their service and sacrifice," said National Endowment for the Arts Chairman Rocco Landesman. "I cannot imagine a better way to do that than welcoming them in to explore and enjoy the extraordinary cultural heritage our museums present. The works of art on view this summer will inspire and challenge viewers, and sometimes they will just be a great deal of fun."
"There have always been wonderful examples of partnerships between museums and military installations, but the scale of this gift from the museum communities to military families is thrilling," said Blue Star Families Chairman Kathy Roth-Douquet. "Military families work hard for this country, and it is gratifying for us to be recognized for that. We anticipate that thousands of military families will participate in the program and visit museums this summer – many of them for the first time. Blue Star Families will work hard to help our military families make the most of these opportunities."
Blue Star Museums Details
More than 600 museums in all 50 states and the District of Columbia are taking part in the initiative. Blue Star Museums runs from Memorial Day, May 31 through to Labor Day, September 6, 2010. The free admission program is available to active duty military and their immediate family members (military ID holder and five immediate family members), which includes active duty Reserve and active duty National Guard. Some special or limited-time museum exhibits may not be included in this free admission program. For questions on particular exhibits or museums, please contact the museum directly. To find out which museums are participating, visit www.arts.gov/bluestarmuseums. The site includes a list of participating museums and a map to help with visit planning.
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You can download the self-guided tour to your iPod or other MP3 device by visiting the DAR Museum Podcast page, or by going directly to the iTunes Store and searching for "DAR Podcast."
If you're summer plans do not include a trip to Washington, DC, but you'd like to take a look at the DAR Museum, you can always take a "virtual tour" of the DAR Period Rooms from the comfort of your own home. In your pajamas.
For more information, please visit the DAR's web site.
Copyright © by Elizabeth O'Neal
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