craigdailypress.com

The editorial board recently learned the Museum of Northwest Colorado’s Norman Rockwell exhibit has been extended for another month.

Rockwell is a renowned American illustrator and painter who is most famous for his images that graced 323 covers of The Saturday Evening Post over the course of four decades.

The exhibit opened May 14 and features all 323 covers Rockwell illustrated for the Post, as well as “Spirit of Education,” an original painting on loan from the Norman Rockwell Museum in Stockbridge, Mass.

The exhibit was scheduled to end Sept. 28, but Museum of Northwest Colorado officials were able to extend its stay until Oct. 29.

Since unveiling the exhibit Jan Gerber, assistant director at the museum, said visitation between May and August is up 41 percent over last year.

Many of those visitors came to Craig from out of town, Gerber said, including Steamboat Springs, Grand Junction, Glenwood Springs, Boulder, Denver and Wyoming.

Though excited about the increased out of town traffic, Gerber said she and museum director Dan Davidson were inspired to request the extension to give Moffat County School District teachers extra time to coordinate class field trips.

We think this is a great idea.

The editorial board understands, in today’s world of cell phones, iPads and interactive video games, that a few hours at the museum staring at inanimate objects probably doesn’t rank high on our student’s fun meter, but Rockwell is an American icon.

The editorial board has been hard pressed to come up with another American whose works provide a better template to blend education with history, American culture and the arts than Rockwell.

We urge local teachers to take advantage of this incredible opportunity.

Take our students to see the works of one of the greatest illustrators of all time, even if it’s against their will.

We promise one day they’ll thank you for it.

And for those of you lucky to have grown up with Rockwell’s works, we recommend visiting the museum as often as possible between now and Oct. 29.

Don’t forget to thank museum employees for the memories.