A Place for Those Who Show Up: The US National Museum and Center for Service
Building America’s First Museum of Service: A Vision for Unity and Recognition
Presented by Brian Baird, Founder and Chair, National Museum and Center for Service
Okay, so here’s the big idea: What if we had a physical space—not just a monument, not just a temporary exhibit—but an actual living, breathing museum dedicated to the everyday people who serve? Not for fame. Not for profit. Just because they give a damn.
Brian Baird has been working on exactly that.
A Museum That Isn’t About the Past—But About What’s Possible
This isn’t your grandfather’s museum, where dusty objects sit behind glass. This is a space that moves, that connects lived experience with emerging action. It’s the kind of place where you don’t just learn about service—you get invited into it. Right then. Right there.
Read more about Brian here.
The idea came out of Brian’s time as a U.S. Congressman, traveling into the heart of conflict zones, disaster areas, and post-crisis recovery efforts—not to talk about service, but to witness it. He kept running into the same thing: Americans showing up for one another. No cameras. No medals. Just people leaning in.
Doctors, teachers, Red Cross volunteers, civic-minded neighbors, frontline workers. People who said, “I’ll go. I’ll help. I’ll stay.”
Why It Matters Now
Let’s be honest. We’re a little frayed right now as a country. Trust in institutions is shaky. Polarization is high. But here’s the wild thing—service doesn’t play that game. Service is what binds us. Brian calls it fundamental to our national character. We agree.
If we can tell those stories—about compassion, risk, and resilience—then maybe we can help reweave the social fabric we all depend on.
More Than a Building: A Distributed Movement
This initiative isn’t just about a flagship space near the National Mall (though that is happening). It’s about pushing the story of service out into everyday spaces:
Pop-up exhibits in public libraries
Student-led installations in high schools
Interactive displays on college campuses
And yes, a full-scale museum in Washington D.C., where visitors can connect, contribute, and co-create the narrative of American service.
This Is Where You Come In
The Museum is looking for partners—not just donors, but collaborators. People who see service not as a nice-to-have, but as a must-have for a functioning democracy. Corporate social impact leaders, community builders, DEI practitioners, educators, creatives, systems thinkers, neighbors—folks like you.
This isn’t just about commemorating service. It’s about sparking it.
Because if we do this right, the museum won’t just honor what’s been done. It’ll ignite what’s next.