The Museum will name its East Foyer in honor of the Inasmuch Foundation
[Oklahoma City, August 16, 2024] – Inasmuch Foundation Board of Directors unveiled the naming of Inasmuch Foundation East Foyer at the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum. The naming honors the Foundation’s $3 million gift to the Museum’s ongoing Live the Code capital campaign, which has been underway since August 2023. Live the Code is a large scale, three-year initiative to raise $40 million to modernize the storied Museum’s guest experiences and infrastructure.
“We enthusiastically support the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum’s Live the Code campaign to modernize exhibit offerings and infrastructure to one of America’s national treasures. These efforts allow the Museum to continue to be a top destination for guests from across the world. Making this gift extra special, Inasmuch Foundation founder Edith Kinney Gaylord’s brother Edward L. Gaylord was instrumental in the founding of the museum in 1955,” said Robert J. Ross, Chairman and CEO of Inasmuch Foundation.
Planned improvements to the Museum funded by Live the Code range from new cutting-edge exhibits and parking improvements to renovations of the Museum’s massive art and artifact storage vault, which houses more than 25,000 items, and a relocation and expansion of the Museum’s research center to provide scholars and the public greater access to the 3 million items housed there.
“Inasmuch Foundation continues to positively impact Oklahoma, and this generous donation will enable The Cowboy to continue transforming itself by creating best-in-the-world experiences to better teach and interpret the diverse history of the American West,” said Jeff Ewing, Executive Vice President and Chief Development Officer of National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum.
Completed campaign projects include the Code of the West interactive experience, which has cutting-edge technology and a 30-foot LED screen to let guests explore the “cowboy code of ethics” and become part of the larger story of the West, and the Find Your West immersive exhibit, a 3,000-square-foot, floor-to-ceiling exhibit that uses 23 million LED lights to encircle guests in western vistas and immerse them in the sights and sounds of the American frontier.
About Inasmuch Foundation
Founded in 1982 by Edith Kinney Gaylord, Inasmuch Foundation awards an average of $25 million plus in grants each year to nonprofits supporting initiatives in community and civic engagement, education, human services, and journalism. Learn more at inasmuchfoundation.org.
About the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum
The National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City is America’s premier institution of Western history, art and culture. Founded in 1955, the Museum collects, preserves and exhibits an internationally renowned collection of Western art and artifacts while sponsoring dynamic educational programs to stimulate interest in the enduring legacy of the American West. The Museum is located only six miles northeast of downtown Oklahoma City at 1700 Northeast 63rd Street. For more information, visit nationalcowboymuseum.org.