MUSEUM RECEIVES SOUTHEAST REGIONAL AWARD FOR WWII EXHIBIT
Tuesday, December 14, 2010 - 9:41pm
Warner Robins, Georgia -- The Museum of Aviation has received the Southeastern Museums Conference 2008-2009 Award of Excellence for its World War II Exhibit The 507th Parachute Infantry Regiment and the Air Invasion of Normandy. The exhibit won the highest Award of Excellence in Museum Exhibition in the "over $100,000" exhibits category.
The award was presented in October at the business meeting of the SEMC conference in Charleston, West Virginia by Graig Shaak, SEMC Executive Director. Shaak is also the Associate Director Emeritus of the Florida Museum of Natural History. The competition is judged by southeastern representatives of the AAM Standing Professional Committee of Curators.
The award is the fourth one received for the exhibit since it opened in October 2008. The other awards were from Headquarters, U.S. Air Force; the Air Force Material Command; and the Georgia Association of Museums and Galleries.
The Southeastern Museums Conference (SEMC) is the museum association for the Southeast and is recognized as such by the American Association of Museums
(AAM). It includes museums from Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia,
Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee,
Virginia, West Virginia, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands.
The 6,000 square foot walk-through exhibit took two years to plan and produce and was sponsored entirely by private funds from Salute America, INC. Through the eyes of the 507th Parachute Infantry Regiment, the exhibit tells the broader story of the paratroopers, troop carriers, and glider regiments of the 82nd and 101st Airborne Divisions that successfully carried out the air invasion of Normandy in World War II.
Ken Emery, Museum Director said “Veterans that have come here have described the exhibit as ‘that’s how it was’ with tears in their eyes. We’re thrilled to be able to honor their service and sacrifices.” The exhibit is free and open to the public from 9 am-5 pm daily, and includes a movie produced exclusively for the museum entitled Papa Said: We Should Never Forget which has itself won several film awards including a Southeastern Regional Emmy Award. For more information call the Museum at (478) 926-6870 or visit www.museumofaviation.org.
