Ella Sharp Museum will join museums nationwide in the Blue Star Museums initiative, a program that provides free admission to currently-serving U.S. military personnel and their families this summer. The 2021 program will begin on Armed Forces Day, Saturday, May 15, 2021, and end on Labor Day, Monday, September 6, 2021. Find the list of participating museums at arts.gov/bluestarmuseums.

“Ella Sharp Museum is proud to serve our community and ensure art and culture experiences are accessible to all,” said Valerie Herr, Interim Director of Ella Sharp museum. “Through this program, the Ella is able to offer opportunities for active military and their families to engage with the Jackson community and make lasting memories.”

Blue Star Museums is an initiative of the National Endowment for the Arts in collaboration with Blue Star Families, the Department of Defense, and participating museums nationwide.

“Like the resilience that military families demonstrate time and again, Ella Sharp Museum is an example of resiliency in the arts sector over the past year,” said Ann Eilers, acting chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts. “We are grateful to Ella Sharp Museum for their leadership in strengthening community through their participation in the Blue Star Museums program this summer.”

Blue Star Museums include children’s museums, art, science, and history museums, zoos, gardens, lighthouses, and more, and hail from all 50 states, as well as the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. The current list of participating museums will continue to develop over the summer as organizations are welcome to register to be a Blue Star Museum throughout the summer.

The free admission program is available for those currently-serving in the United States Military—Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, Coast Guard as well as members of the Reserves, National Guard, U.S. Public Health Commissioned Corps, NOAA Commissioned Corps, and up to five family members.

Qualified members must show a Geneva Convention common access card (CAC), DD Form 1173 ID card (dependent ID), or a DD Form 1173-1 ID card for entrance into a participating Blue Star Museum.

Follow Blue Star Museums on Twitter @NEAarts and @BlueStarFamily, #bluestarmuseums.

About Ella Sharp Museum

The Ella Sharp Museum, a 501(c)(3), was founded in 1965 and offers programs, exhibits, and experiences preserving community history, advancing art appreciation, and connecting children with astronomy. Our 6-acre campus includes the Hadwin Center with exhibit galleries, program spaces, rental facilities, and offices; the Merriman Sharp farmhouse, a one-room schoolhouse, a log cabin, barns, and the Hurst Planetarium. Our mission focuses on providing opportunities to connect our community with history and the arts. Additional information about Ella Sharp Museum is available at www.ellasharpmuseum.org.

About the National Endowment for the Arts

Established by Congress in 1965, the National Endowment for the Arts is the independent federal agency whose funding and support gives Americans the opportunity to participate in the arts, exercise their imaginations, and develop their creative capacities. Through partnerships with state arts agencies, local leaders, other federal agencies, and the philanthropic sector, the Arts Endowment supports arts learning, affirms and celebrates America’s rich and diverse cultural heritage, and extends its work to promote equal access to the arts in every community across America. Visit arts.gov to learn more.

About Blue Star Families

Blue Star Families is the nation’s largest grass-roots military family support organization, with a mission to support military families to improve military readiness. Its distinctive approach builds stronger communities around military families through knowledge and programs that address the unique needs of those who serve. Blue Star Families’ nationally recognized surveys and analysis give military families an important voice that informs policymakers and its military family programs. It uses the power of its collective resources and cross-sector collaborations to make a difference in the lives of hundreds of thousands of members of military families to strengthen the troops, their families, and our nation as a whole. For more information, visit bluestarfam.org.

——–

For more information please contact Jena Smoyer, Ella Sharp Museum Marketing Coordinator, at jenas@ellasharp.org.