Today@Sam Article

Museum Offers Free Admission Through Blue Star Program

May 19, 2015
SHSU Media Contact: Tammy Parrett

For the fifth year, the Sam Houston Memorial Museum is joining more than 2,000 museums across America to offer free admission throughout the summer to military personnel and their families in collaboration with the National Endowment for the Arts, Blue Star Families and the Department of Defense.

Through the Blue Star Museums program, active duty military personnel and their families can visit the Sam Houston Memorial Museum, and any of the other participating museums, for free from Memorial Day to Labor Day, Sept. 7.

The program also provides families an opportunity to enjoy the nation’s cultural heritage and learn more about their new communities after a military move.

“We are participating in our fifth year of Blue Star Museums.  It’s a way for the museum to give back to the men and women who are serving our country and their families,” said Megan Buro, museum marketing coordinator. “We will officially launch the program on Tuesday, May 26, due to the museum being closed on Memorial Day.”

This year’s Blue Star Museums represent not just fine arts museums, but also science museums, history museums, nature centers, and 75 children’s museums in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and American Samoa.

“Blue Star Museums has grown into a nationally recognized program that service members and their families look forward to each year,” said Blue Star Families chief executive officer Kathy Roth-Douquet. “It helps bring our local military and civilian communities together, and offers families fun and enriching activities in their home towns. We are thrilled with the continued growth of the program and the unparalleled opportunities it offers.”

The free admission program is available to any bearer of a Geneva Convention common access card, a DD Form 1173 ID card, or a DD Form 1173-1 ID card, which includes active duty U.S. military—Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, Coast Guard, as well as members of the National Guard and Reserve, U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps, NOAA Commissioned Corps—as well as up to five family members.

The complete list of participating museums is available at arts.gov/bluestarmuseums.

The Sam Houston Memorial Museum is open Tuesday through Saturday from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. and Sunday from noon to 4:30 p.m. 

For more information on the museum’s summer events and exhibits, visit samhoustonmemorialmuseum.com or call 936.294.1832.

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