Vesterheim Participates in the Blue Star Museums Program

From Memorial Day, May 30, 2011, through Labor Day, September 5, 2011, Vesterheim Museum will be offering free admission to all active duty military personnel and their families through the Blue Star Museums program, a partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), Blue Star Families, and museums across America.

For the second year, Vesterheim is proud to join more than 800 museums in thanking military personnel and their families for their service and sacrifice. Vesterheim welcomes them to explore the living heritage of Norwegian immigrants to America and hopes many families will take advantage of this summer offer.

The American Association of Museums, the Association of Art Museum Directors, and the Association of Children's Museums each invited museums to participate in the program. In addition to 30 children's museums across the country, participating museums represent a broad range of art, history, science, and cultural topics. The complete list of participating museums is available at www.arts.gov.

"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 NEA 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."

Blue Star Families is a national, non-partisan, non-profit network of military families from all ranks and services including guard and reserve, with a mission to support, connect, and empower military families. The National Endowment for the Arts is a public agency dedicated to supporting excellence in the arts, bringing the arts to all Americans, and providing leadership in arts education.