Contact:
Dan Carpenter
(325) 673-4587
Marketing@thegracemuseum.org

KidzFest to celebrate opening of new Grace Children's Museum and Education Center

Abilene, TX (May 7, 2007) - To celebrate the opening of its new Children's Museum and Education Center, The Grace Museum will host KidzFest, a free children's festival in Historic Downtown Abilene, Texas, on Saturday, June 9.

The Grace, which houses three museums and serves as a cornerstone for cultural arts and education in West Texas , is partnering with the National Center for Children's Illustrated Literature, the Paramount Theatre and other area nonprofits to bring a fun-filled day of free activities for children and their families.

Festivities will begin at 10 a.m. and culminate with the main event at 2 p.m. - a free concert by Grammy award winner Dan Zanes and Friends hosted by The Grace Museum at the Historic Paramount Theatre. Dan is featured regularly on the Disney Channel and has received national press with features in such publications as Vanity Fair, Rolling Stone and The Washington Post. He was recently awarded a Grammy for his most recent CD, Catch That Train! A Time Magazine article from 2005 describes his music as "eclectic folk rock for kids."

Among the other activities scheduled at KidzFest include:

- Special performances and appearances by Rachel Coleman, star of Public Television's Signing Times , which teaches toddlers how to communicate with American Sign Language before they are able to speak

- Abilene Philharmonic “Instrument Petting Zoo”

- An Old West reenactment by Frontier Texas !

- Abilene Zoo Animal Show & Tell

- “Gallery Quest” at the Center for Contemporary Arts

- Face painting and kite-flying on the roof of the Museum

- A dunk tank featuring local celebrities as the “dunk-ees”

- Musicians and theater performances

- Entertainment, free ice cream and balloons.

The New Children's Museum

The Grace, which houses three museums including The Children's Museum, enriches and enhances the cultural life of Abilene and the West Texas region through its permanent collections, special exhibits, classes, seminars and special events. From its inception, The Children's Museum has always been – and continues to be – the No. 1 reason why people visit The Grace. Annually, it attracts more than 55,000 visitors.

Among the changes to be unveiled at The Children's Museum are a variety of new exhibits designed by a nationally-known Children's exhibition designer better suited to specific age ranges and feature a significant step up in quality and design, including:

- A fully padded toddler exploration area that includes a two-level Texas pecan tree with a hidden bird nest that children can play in.

- A secret repeating whisper phone for relaying messages to friends and parents.

- A large working interactive clock that also includes pulleys, levers and fulcrums to teach children about mechanical advantage and systems.

- A health and fitness learning area with a life-size “Operation” game table and “Build a Body” using X-rays; an interactive ambulance, a kiosk on the digestive system with kid-friendly pullout “guts” and much more.

In addition to the new exhibits, The Grace is also opening a brand-new 4,000-square-foot Education Center . Located on the third floor, this center will provide space for growth in all areas of The Grace's educational programs, including Top Spot, teacher workshops, Internet-based distance learning programs, and summer camps.

KidzFest is being sponsored by KRBC-TV, United Supermarkets, Bourland Family Dentistry, the NCCIL, the Historic Paramount Theater, the Abilene Downtown Association, and American State Bank.

The renovation of the Children's Museum has been made possible by a generous gift from the Dian Graves Owen Foundation, with subsequent gifts from the Terrell Tone Owen Memorial Fund, Abilene Regional Medical Center, Hendrick Health System, Dr. Eric and Sue Schackmuth, Dr. Sandip and Mishi Mathur, Roz and Jerry Love, Taylor-Jones-Haskell County Medical Alliance, and Cardiology Consultants.

The Education Center is being funded by grants from the Dodge Jones Foundation and the Shelton Family Foundation.

The Grace Museum is open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday; and from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. every Thursday. Admission is free Thursday evening after 5 p.m.

For more information, call 325-673-4587.

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The Grace Museum 's exhibitions and educational programs are supported in part by grants from the Texas Commission on the Arts, the Abilene Cultural Affairs Council, the City of Abilene , Taylor County , and the Downtown Revitalization Program of the Tax Increment Finance District.

The Grace Museum is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Built in 1909, The Hotel Grace served as a rest stop for railway travelers. The mission-style building was renovated and re-opened in 1992 as The Grace Cultural Center. The Grace Museum , a non-profit organization, now serves as a home to a Children's Museum, History Museum , and Art Museum. At 55,000 sq. ft., The Grace Museum is the 10th largest general museum in Texas . The Grace Museum is the cornerstone of cultural arts and education in West Texas.