Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: WEDNESDAY, June 7, 1995                   TAG: 9506080042
SECTION: EDITORIAL                    PAGE: A-10   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: 
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium

MUSEUMS

Oh, we asked them, you were impressed by Hotel Roanoke, were you? You loved the City Market? The restaurants, the shops, the festivals, the views from the mountain?

Nope.

The neat thing about Roanoke is you can climb all over the trains and stuff at the Virginia Museum of Transportation, said one of the visitors from Lynchburg.

That's not nearly as good as getting to spend the night in the Science Museum of Western Virginia, insisted the other. ``You're only supposed to do it once, but I got to do it twice. And, you know, like, the big bear? It's OK during the daytime, but in the middle of the night, it's really scary.''

``Well," retorted the first, "what about all the spooky stuff at the Transportation Museum? They said there was probably ghosts on the mail train, the people killed by the robbers. And you shoulda seen the old hearse. They got this tray in the bottom, see, where they had to put ice to keep the bodies cold.''

``Oh, gross!''

It happens that Roanoke's big fans in Lynchburg are brother and sister, ages 10 and 13 respectively. So their visits, in themselves, may not have hugely boosted Roanoke's economy. The boy came on a school trip to explore the Transportation Museum, probably with $5 in spending money for the day. The girl came (twice) as part of the Science Museum's camp-in program offered through the Virginia Skyline Girl Scouts Council.

Like thousands of schoolchildren who visit Roanoke each year, they saw the city with fresh eyes. Their enthusiasm for the museums is boundless. And their memories are a potential public-relations gold mine. (Bet on it: They'll bug their parents to bring them back. And when they grow up, they'll want to bring their own children.)

Sorry, the big stuffed bear at the Science Museum has since been sent to another museum, in Idaho. But there's lots of other stuff still to see. The Science Museum is adding significantly to its exhibits now - and it is by no means the only museum to visit in Roanoke.

Most Roanokers are aware of the excellent museums in their midst. Some Roanokers also understand that these institutions have strong educational missions throughout Western Virginia and beyond.

But too many of us seem inclined to take what's here for granted. Like New Yorkers who never attend the theater or Floridians who ignore their beaches, we can get blase about our own back yard's offerings.

It's worth reminding ourselves, as our young friends from Lynchburg recognize, that Roanoke's museums are marvelous places of discovery and enrichment.