WWI Museum: keeping history's lessons alive.

What can World War I teach us about today? What can we learn from a bygone era when mounted horses were used to charge machine gun emplacements? How can a war in which success was measured by inches between trenches improve our understanding of the modern world?

Only a handful of World War I veterans are among the living today. And the number of people who were even born before the Armistice is dwindling.

It is for that very reason, that the "War to End All Wars" gives us an increasingly relevant and important angle on current events, says retired Marine Brig. gen. Stephen R. Berkheiser, Executive Director of the National World War I Museum.

"The history of World War I is old enough that we can put it in perspective. It was the time when America was just stepping on to the world stage. The decisions that were made then shaped how we look at ourselves as a nation today. At the same time, they're distant enough that we can use that period to look at ourselves in a different light," said Berkheiser.

The National World War I Museum opened in December 2006 in Kansas City, Mo. The history of the museum goes back to the immediate aftermath of the armistice when the Kansas City community proposed a memorial for men and women who served in the war and those who died.

The museum was constructed in what was once an empty cavern under the Liberty Memorial, a landmark erected in the 1920s. Plans for the museum came from famed museum designer and planner Ralph Appelbaum, whose resume includes the American Museum of Natural History and the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum, among other great works.

Visitors to the museum are asked to step back in time as they travel along a long ramp underground into the museum. On a glass bridge, they pass over a field of 9,000 red poppies, each representing 1,000 combat deaths.

Inside the museum, a massive portrait wall and interactive video gallery enables guests to search databases and learn about the sacrifices of those affected by the war.

The museum's comprehensive collection of information, imagery and artifacts covers events leading up to the war that far preceded U.S. involvement.

In addition to a complete chronology of the war, the museum provides "Immersion Galleries" that replicate the physical and emotional landscapes of the war. Interactive exhibits give visitors the opportunity to act out scenarios and look at the war and the period through a historical lens.

Finally, the Horizon Theater features a 100-foot wide screen theater where films are played atop a full-scale tableau depicting "No Man's Land."

According to Berkheiser, the goal of the facility is to create a learning laboratory where visitors, students and researchers can use the World War I experience to assess America's foundation as a global power, war and current events.

"We're not going to tell you how to think about anything. We let our visitors draw their own conclusions. You may have as many questions walking out the door as you had coming in. We want people to examine their lives, or maybe to look at what it truly means to be a citizen. If they walk away and find themselves thinking about what's going on in the world, where we've come from, and where we're going, we feel like we did our job," Berkheiser said.

The information is presented in a way that captures visitors' attention and imagination. Officials said that the average visitor spends around three hours at the museum. Parents, Berkheiser said, are often astounded to find their children engrossed in the interactive elements of the museum. Children often wish to stay longer than their adult companions.

Visiting groups of students are given role-playing assignments that examine the diplomacy and perspectives that incited the cultures and nations involved in the conflict. On every level, the museum asks people to think about the consequences of war and to look at global issues with new eyes.

Berkheiser is familiar with the human cost of war. As a second lieutenant in Vietnam, he was injured in a mortar attack that claimed the lives of many of his young Marines. His passion for history grew when he served as Deputy Chief of Staff for the U.S. European Command Headquarters during Operations Desert Storm and Desert Shield.

On his museum staff and among his volunteers, Berkheiser is surrounded by veterans, many of whom served in combat. He encourages them to identify themselves to visitors. The interaction with veterans helps the public become more familiar with the war experience.

"The issues don't change. Tactics have changed, war fighting has changed, but the lessons remain. When you have people who've lived it, you have people who can relate their experiences to others," he said. "Maintaining close ties with our veterans is important to us. It's important for kids who visit the museum, and it gives veterans who visit a feeling of camaraderie."

Engrossing themselves in the nation at war gives visitors pause to think about current events. It reminds visitors of the general public's detachment from the challenging issues facing the nation.

"The U.S. is not at war today in Iraq, the military is, their families are. We're not. We're not deprived of anything, we're not rationing anything. There's no outpouring of war bonds," Berkheiser notes. "There isn't that same connection. There are some really powerful messages that people are taking away from here, and these messages really honor those who came before us and made sacrifices."

"It's very rewarding and refreshing to get people to think, to internalize what war means--what it should mean. There are values to be learned, even if it's just being a more responsible citizen. We can become guilty of apathy. We're reaching out to a new generation and getting people involved in the world."

The museum works with the DAV and other veterans service offices as often as possible. DAV leaders applauded the museum's unique approach to memorializing those who've served.

"With just a handful of World War I veterans still with us, we're grateful to see this national museum honoring their contributions and holding sacred their place in history," said National Adjutant Arthur H. Wilson. "The DAV was founded by those patriotic veterans, and our movement continues the legacy they began. Hopefully, people who visit the museum will be reminded of the sacrifices of all who've served."

For more information on the World War I Museum, visit www.libertymemorialmuseum.org.