Veterans Games Support National Guard Museum Expansion

Revenue from the sale of Kansas Lottery Veterans Benefit games is making it possible for the Kansas Museum of the National Guard to expand its facility. July 11, 2009, marked the beginning of construction on a major addition to the 12-year-old facility. Located in Topeka, the Museum is dedicated to preserving the heritage of the Kansas National Guard and honoring the memoires of the soldiers and airmen who have served Kansas and the United States whenever the call was made.

The Museum includes over 80 interior exhibits from the Civil War to the Global War on Terrorism. A five-acre outdoor display area features equipment of the Kansas Army and Air National Guard, including M-1 and M-60 tanks, and an F-4 fighter aircraft. The new $900,000 addition to the Museum, expected to be complete in the fall of 2010, will include space for a Museum Education Center, a Research Library and a new 35th Infantry Division Museum.

“This addition will give us the space needed to properly highlight the legacy and accomplishments of 35th Division soldiers and the sacrifices they have made in the cause of freedom,” said Maj. Gen. Tod Bunting, Kansas Adjutant General.

Funding for the addition comes primarily from the sale of Kansas Lottery Veterans Benefit scratch-off tickets, as a result of a bill passed by the Kansas Legislature in 2008 extending the sale of Veterans tickets to 12 months in order to provide construction funding for the Museum.

“We have greatly appreciated the creative Veteran’s lottery tickets designed by the Kansas Lottery, and sales for the first year exceeded the projected $1.5 million profit,” said the Museum’s president, retired Brig. Gen. Ed Gerhardt. “It’s a win for everybody.”

The Museum of the Kansas National Guard is located near the main entrance of Forbes Field in Topeka. Hours of operation are Tues.-Sat. from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. There is no admission charge. For more information, visit www.kansasguardmuseum.org.

The Lottery transferred more than $1.6 million for these Kansas veterans programs in FY09: 30% Museum of the Kansas National Guard, 40% Kansas National Guard Scholarships, and 30% Kansas Commission on Veterans Affairs for veterans’ and soldiers’ homes.