Free admission for service members and families to 600 museums across nation 5/25/2010
by MC2 (SW/AW) John Scorza
SAN DIEGO (NNS) -- The Blue Star project offers free admission for all active duty military personnel and their families from Memorial Day through Labor Day 2010 to 600 museums across the country.
The 600 museums across America have come together to create Blue Star Museums which is a partnership among the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) and Blue Star Families which is an organization that supports military families and increases awareness of the unique challenges of military life.
One of the key note speakers, San Diego Mayor Jerry Sanders, thanked the arts community for their support and acknowledged challenging times for military members and their families.
This is an effort by the nation's arts community to reach out to military members across the country, said Sanders. "We have [San Diego] 150,000 active duty military personnel and 14 museums throughout the county that will be participating in this program, which includes seven in Balboa Park. It goes without saying that this is an extraordinarily challenging time for military families."
Rear Adm. Garry Bonelli, deputy commander Naval Special Warfare Command, spoke at the event where he thanked Blue Star and the city of San Diego for their support.
"What does this mean to our families? As we look at the Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard teams; this means a lot," said Bonelli. "Most of families at the E-6 and below level really can't afford to go to museums and pay the full price of admission. Many more of our service members today are married and have children. The ability to come to a museum and get exposure to the arts really helps families that sacrifice so much for our nation and not only them, but their families to be exposed to the arts."
Bonelli added that service members today need more than just training.
"Yes, we train people in the military to be warriors, but we also need them to be diplomats and have a well-rounded background," said Bonelli. "When you join the Navy, you join to see the world…one of the ways to get used to seeing the world is an appreciation for the arts."
For a complete listing of participating museums, visit http://www.arts.gov.
