Explore & More and the Buffalo Naval Park Honor Local Veterans this Veterans Day

Buffalo, NY – Explore & More – The Ralph C. Wilson, Jr. Children’s Museum along with the Buffalo & Erie County Military & Naval Park, are once
again honoring our nation’s Veterans this November through a series of events from November 1-11.

Explore & More is offering Veterans free admission on Veterans Day, November 11th. This is in addition to the ongoing free admission for active military members and their families, with the support of National Fuel, through the Blue Star Museum program.

On November 7th, through a special partnership with the Veterans One Stop Center, Veterans who have pre-registered will also receive free admission to the museum! Throughout the event, the museum is also collecting toiletry items for the 914th at the Niagara Falls Airbase. Deployed troops often need basic supplies like soap, shampoo and deodorant, to name a few, due to the challenging environment and difficulty in obtaining supplies abroad. By collecting and sending care packages, we can help give our deployed troops a sense of comfort and a reminder that we are thinking of them. The public is encouraged to drop off toiletries or purchase items from our Amazon Wishlist, developed in conjunction with National Fuel.

“As a children’s museum, we feel it is a part of our mission to teach children how important it is to honor our Veterans,” states Michelle Urbanczyk, Chief Executive Officer at Explore & More. “We are so lucky to have such an incredible veteran community in Western New York and we invite them all in for some fun and play this Veterans Day.”

In collaboration with the Buffalo & Erie County Naval & Military Park, the organizations are collecting photos of Veterans to create a collage that will hang at Explore & More in November and then move to the Naval Park in 2021. The public is asked to submit their photos of themselves and/or their family along with a special veteran in their life. We also ask to share a brief description of why that veteran is so special to them! Photos can be posted on social media using #VeteransDayCollage2020 or emailed directly to [email protected].

Paul Marzello, President and CEO of the Buffalo Naval Park, states: “Western New York is home to one of the largest concentrations of military veterans in the United States, making the Naval Park a popular attraction as well as a center of pride with this stakeholder group. We look forward to our collaboration with Explore & More and appreciate each and every opportunity to support and honor our veterans, especially on Veteran’s Day.”

Throughout the event the children’s museum will also host a variety of in-person and virtual educational opportunities for children to learn about and honor Veterans. From painting American flag stained glass and writing thank you letters to send to deployed troops to hearing Storytime stories read by Veterans there many ways for children to engage with our Veteran community.

About Explore & More
Explore & More’s mission is to provide best-in-class PLAY experiences where all children, families and the community can explore, learn and
develop together. A world where play unlocks the limitless potential in all of us. After 20+ years in East Aurora, the museum moved to its new home
at Canalside in 2019, expanding to 4 floors and over 40,000 square feet of play. Visit exploreandmore.org and connect with us on Facebook,
Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.

About Buffalo & Erie County Naval & Military Park
In 1976, the Buffalo Urban Renewal Agency and a group of community supporters gathered to create a non-profit organization and request a decommissioned naval vessel from the U.S. Navy as part of a waterfront development plan. The Buffalo & Erie County Naval & Military Park opened in 1979 and is the largest inland naval park in the country. It is the home to four decommissioned naval vessels, a museum, monuments garden, and military displays. Its mission is to preserve the military artifacts entrusted to our care; honor veterans, active military, and military families; educate about the history and values of service and sacrifice in defense of freedom; and inspire a sense of patriotism and appreciation in protecting the right to liberty and justice for all. Visit buffalonavalpark.org and connect with us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and
YouTube.