MEMORIAL DAY 2020

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     It is a terrible thing, this Covid-19 virus outbreak. Everyone has been impacted in one way or another and our daily lives have been changed forever. The negative aspects of the "new normal" recently reached the VMM in a very significant way when the Board of Directors had to make the extraordinary decision to cancel this year's Memorial Day Commemoration. 
     Since the museum shut down in March to comply with social distancing guidelines, it had been a possibility that this years program might not happen. As our social quarantine continued into late April, it became apparent that planning a program that could, in all probability, put the health and lives of our visitors and volunteers in danger, the decision was made to err on the side of caution. 
     While our expression of the love and respect we have for our fallen service members is much less than we would like for it to be, we hope that you can understand and respect the reasoning behind this decision. Paying respect to those who gifted this country with the ultimate sacrifice is foremost in our minds. A short video does not take the place of our normal ceremony, and we understand that. The board is currently considering the possibility of reopening the VMM, with a very strict set of guidelines, and on a limited basis. Unfortunately, this does not include a plan to reschedule the Memorial Day program, as this would, in reality,  be virtually impossible to do without putting people at risk.
     We encourage everyone, wherever you might be on Monday, May 25th at 3:00 p.m., to take a moment to pray, pause, or reflect for the over 600,000 men and women who have died in combat in U.S. history....We owe them SO much more, but we can and should, at the very least, give them this one moment of respect.