Curator Corner Museum Program Update (September 2025)

It has been over a year since our last update on the VA Museum Program (VAMP). So, what have we been up to? In our last update we let you know that we relocated the collections and our offices to building 126 (the old warehouse building dating to 1933). Since then, we have installed professional compact shelving to maximize our space and to properly store historical objects and archival materials that are part of the NVAHC permanent collections. This movable shelving allows us to store the collection more efficiently than traditional fixed shelving.  

Our Collections Manager, Gage Huey, also finished cataloging and housing all our unprocessed objects. This involves properly documenting each object and entering it into the collections management system, Fennex. This system happens to be named after my best friend (and man’s best friend), Fennex the dog. As part of my duties I travel to VA facilities to help them manage collections and projects. Fenn loves to help pick me up from the airport.

We completed properly storing all collections in the spring. This includes putting small and medium size objects in acid free boxes wrapped in acid free tissue paper. Larger objects are stored on open shelving with a special acid free type of cardboard underneath to protect them.

The VAMP has been working to develop an Augmented Reality Tour for the Dayton Campus and to develop a Virtual Museum. Our contractor for this project is Timelooper. They have developed several virtual experiences for historic sites. As you might expect, this is a long process, but we are planning for the first of these experiences to be available in 2026! We worked with Timelooper to develop immersive digital assets that will be used in the tour and virtual museum. They include holograms, timescape videos, and other techniques to engage with VA History like never before.

Our mission is to preserve and share VA history. This includes bringing new life to historic buildings when possible. Our team knows firsthand that working in a historic building is a worthwhile effort but does come with unique challenges. In a previous Curator Corner, we talked about flooding from a busted pipe facilitating our move to building 126. Unfortunately, one challenge of moving from a 100 year old building to a 93 year old building means that unexpected leaks continue to be a problem. 

These types of issues are typical for organizations that preserve history, but thanks to a great team and proper disaster planning, we have spent a significant amount of time this year mitigating those issues without any damage to the collections. For humidity control, we also use dehumidifiers to remove moisture that comes from leaks and typical summer weather in Ohio.

As I mentioned previously, we also help other VA facilities with their projects and collections. I recently traveled to the Tuskegee VA Medical Center to help them with their museum project. They are planning new exhibits for their mini museum. The best part of my job is helping others share their history. The VA has a rich history that reflects its commitment to Veterans. My goal is to ensure that we share that story through engaging experiences. This is a commitment that I see continuing long after I have retired and gone fishing.  

Looking ahead to 2026, we are excited to be supporting VA’s commemoration of our country’s 250^th anniversary. For more than a year, we have been working with the larger VA History team to develop content and events to support the President’s executive order. Stay tuned as those efforts are announced. The best way to follow new stories and events is to subscribe to the VA history newsletter.