Over the past ten years, the Cold War Museum has made great strides in honoring Cold War Veterans and preserving Cold War history. I am writing to provide you with a brief update on the Museum's activities. The museum is at a critical stage in its development. Fairfax County Park Authority has accepted the Museum's proposal and has begun the negotiation process necessary for our use of the former Nike Missile Base in Lorton, Virginia. We will be negotiating the terms of the lease over the next few months. The Commonwealth of Virginia has allocated $50,000 and Fairfax County has allocated $50,000 in their FY 08 budgets. Please write (or email) your elected leaders and let them know you support The Cold War Museum.

The Museum is working with the International Spy Museum in Washington, DC and the Atomic Bunker in Harnekop near Berlin, Germany to temporarily display some of its artifacts. The Cold War Museum is an affiliate of the Smithsonian Institution and has pledges of support for artifact loans from Smithsonian Air and Space, American History, National Portrait, and US Postal Museums. The Museum is part of the National Combined Federal Campaign and has chapters in Berlin, Germany and Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

The mobile exhibit on the U-2 Incident, the "Spies of Washington Tour," and related educational activities continue to generate interest and support. The mobile exhibit recently finished a display at the Southwest Virginia Museum in Big Stone Gap, Virginia. It will be at the March Airfield Museum in California later this year. If you would like to reserve the exhibit, please contact the Museum. The educational Spy Tour of Washington (www.spytour.com) is now booking group tours online.

On October 14, 2006, we hosted an international conference to commemorate the 50th Anniversary of the 1956 Hungarian and Polish Crises. Dr. Sergei Khrushchev, the son of Nikita Khrushchev, and David Eisenhower, grandson of President Eisenhower participated with VIPs from Hungary and Poland and well renowned scholars. The Hungarian and Polish Embassies, American Hungarian Federation, Fairfax County Economic Development Authority, the Hungarian Technology Center, as well as the Cold War Museum and the South County Secondary School were hosts for the program. A big thank you to our sponsors that included EnviroSolutions, Inc., K. Hovnanian® Homes, Marriott Fairfax at Fair Oaks, Northern Virginia Community College, Verizon, and Vulcan Materials Company. There are a variety of sponsorship opportunities available in conjunction with Cold War Museum events and activities. Please email gpowersjr@coldwar.org for additional information.

I am pleased to announce that Mr. David Eisenhower, grandson of President Eisenhower, has agreed to serve on the Museum's Advisory Board. He will join Fairfax County Board of Supervisor Chairman, Gerald Connolly; Prince William County Supervisor John Stirrup, Gordon Lunn from the Nike Historical Society; former Secretary of the USAF, Tom Reed; Sergei Khrushchev; and Congressman Tom Davis on the Museum's Advisory Board.

If you know of friends or family members that would be interested in our efforts, please share this update with them or encourage them to visit www.coldwar.org. Please consider a year-end tax-deductible contribution or artifact donation. Your gift will help ensure future generations remember Cold War events and personalities that forever altered our understanding of national security, international relations, and personal sacrifice for one's country.

Please help spread the word about the Museum. Together we can make this vision a reality. For more information, or to subscribe to our Cold War Times email newsletter list, please contact:

Francis Gary Powers, Jr.
Founder, The Cold War Museum
P.O. Box 178 - Fairfax, VA 22038
P-(703) 273-2381 / F-(703) 273-4903
www.coldwar.org / gpowersjr@coldwar.org