Ceremony allows early look at museum

[unhappycamper]

The National Infantry Museum will hold its grand opening in June, but it will open some areas following graduation from infantryman basic training March 19.


Ceremony allows early look at museum
By Gina Cavallaro - Staff writer
Posted : Saturday Mar 14, 2009 10:30:12 EDT

Infantrymen graduating March 19 from basic training at Fort Benning, Ga., will become the first to do so on the parade field of the new National Infantry Museum, outside the post’s gate.

The graduation will conclude a morning of gala ceremonies in which the $100 million museum will be partially opened in advance of a June grand opening.

The event on the 190,000-square-foot museum grounds will begin with a fly-over by Vietnam-era helicopters and a scattering of sacred soil from eight conflicts in which American soldiers fought.

The soil will be scattered on a 20-foot-wide pass-and-review strip on the parade field by descendants of soldiers and leaders from those wars, who will be accompanied by active-duty soldiers dressed in period costumes.

At 5 p.m., some parts of the museum will be opened to the public, such as the IMAX theater, the Soldier Store gift shop and the Fife and Drum Restaurant.


Article at: http://armytimes.com/news/2009/03/army_museum_031409w/%2e