Our “Tales from the Magic Skagit” readers (we love you guys, by the way) will no doubt recall the story we recently published about our epic Port of Skagit signage project: a monument sign — topped by an actual aircraft, no less — marking the entry to Skagit Regional Airport as well as announcing the location of a recent jewel in the Skagit Valley’s cultural crown: Heritage Flight Museum.

For the story about the sign, I relied extensively on an interview with the Port’s executive director, Sara Young. Prior to that interview, however, I also sat down with Heritage Flight Museum’s vice president and executive director, Lt. Col. Greg Anders, and its community liaison, Karen Hicks, to learn about the museum’s history, its evolving mission, and how its soon-to-be-completed expansion will further its goals.

The purpose of Meyer Sign’s project, of course, was to create more awareness of the museum’s presence at Port of Skagit. The nature of how people experience the museum is meanwhile being dramatically transformed by its leadership and staff — as I learned during my October Q&A with Greg Anders.

Heritage Flight Museum is at a significant milestone in its history — and Meyer Sign heartily encourages our readership to experience the museum for themselves. It is an impressive undertaking that will change the way you think about not only the history of combat aviation, but also about the history of our country during a troubled but ultimately triumphant period. To do both as a museum is an ambitious undertaking that gets an enthusiastic two thumbs up from this avowed museum junkie.

Q: How did Heritage Flight Museum end up at Skagit Regional Airport/Port of Skagit?

A: The museum was originally in Bellingham, but we relocated it to Port of Skagit in 2014, largely because of community leadership — especially from the County Commissioners, and Kevin Ware in particular, who as a pilot set a tone for our relationship with Skagit County. He let us know we’d be very welcome. Meyer Sign’s sign is a good example of the kind of support we’ve received in this community. Working with (Port of Skagit executive director) Sara Young on the project has been great, and the sign is a demonstrative example of what I perceived our relationship with Port of Skagit would be, and why we came here. Also, this building that we are now sitting in was available. I think the fates were moving us in this direction.

Q: How do you describe the mission of Heritage Flight Museum?

A: The general mission of our museum is “honoring veterans and keeping history alive.” My personal mission is to tell the story of my parents. A big part of what this museum is all about is telling the story of Apollo 8. While we are doing that, there are some other really good stories we can tell along the way. We are here to tell the story of veterans that might otherwise be forgotten.

Q: How does the museum experience further its mission?

A: My favorite example of how we do this is our Sky Raider. It is a very unique airplane, and it is rare to see one flying — there aren’t many around. The Mustang is my favorite airplane, but there are plenty of Mustangs. We’ve got a cadre of former Sky Raider pilots, and we like to tell their stories when they come to our Fly Days. There isn’t much of the WWII legacy left, but we still have some former combat pilots around, and we are going to keep doing this mission to make sure they are honored.

Q: How would you recommend touring Heritage Flight Museum if you only had an hour?

A: Given our current expansion, the answer I would give you a year from now would be very different than the one I would give today. Otherwise, I would say that Fly Days are the days to come if you only had an hour. Come around noon and you’ll get to see these machines living and breathing. To see a Sky Raider start up is a special experience, and to see and hear a Mustang in flight is fun. You could also opt to come at 2:30, since we always try to finish strong.

Q: What is the goal of the museums’s current expansion?

A: Our new building will allow for two galleries. These represent what I’ve always wanted this museum to be about: story telling. From the museum entry you’ll enter into the “Earth Rise Gallery” for a full experience of Apollo 8 before you get to any of the aircraft — or you can come in from another entrance and enter “The 1968 Experience,” which is going to refresh everyone’s memory on what a bad year that was but highlight the Apollo 8 mission at the end of the year.

Q: How will these new galleries change the museum goers’ experience?

A: Our new galleries are going to fulfill my mission for this museum. I love airplanes — they’re interesting, and you can find some neat stories spread throughout their display — but what has been missing is a coagulating context that people need to truly appreciate the Apollo 8 mission. That will change when you go into the “Earth Rise Gallery,” which will have seven stations that include pre-Apollo 8 history, the mission launch, the trip to the moon, a safe with a very special display, the moon visit and the trip home, the famous reading from Genesis, the splashdown, and the near term results and the long term impact of the mission.

Q: How will the museum present the legacy of the Apollo 8 mission?

A: Part of the psychic impact of the Apollo 8 mission was that it marked in a positive way what was the end of an otherwise very bad year. It was an event that changed the character of 1968, and it took seeing our planet from space to accomplish this. An interesting fact about the famous “Earth Rise” photo that my dad took is that it wasn’t discovered until several weeks after the mission ended, when the all the film from the mission was being reviewed. As it is, when you talk about the legacy and long term impact of Apollo 8, it’s that photo. It is the genesis of Earth Day and the EPA — and the moon was the thing that made that image so stunning. The most impactful photo from my dad’s perspective is the one known as “The Blue Marble” — the image of Earth suspended in space from 200,000 miles away. We display the two together, but “Earth Rise” was the image that allowed us terrestrial pedestrians to see an image of contrast that made sense to us — the sense, finally, of “there we are!”

Q: What are your aspirations for Heritage Flight Museum looking forward?

A: We were well on the way with our expansion when 2020 happened — but ironically, I think people will relate to this current situation we’re in, since back in 1968 we experienced the Hong Kong Flu. Thanks to the expansion, we’ll have a financial engine to keep the doors open in the form of our event center. I’m hoping to grow the museum and our staff and expand our community relations, as well as develop an education program that inspires financial contribution as well. Looking ahead, I believe the museum will survive long term by being more than some really cool airplanes in a hangar. We’re more than that now, and as we grow into our mission we’re confident that we’ll have the volunteers and revenue streams to continue it. In the meantime, we hope everyone who visits us, whether at an air show, the new event center, our through our galleries and displays will appreciate the stories we have to tell and share them with their friends.