Virginia Living Museum

01/11/2025

Ready for a planetary parade? We've got one for you tonight. Come join us at the Virginia Living Museum for our monthly Stargazing event. We'll be getting out our telescopes (weather permitting) to check out all the planets of the solar system - except for Earth and Mercury.

Mercury is too close to the Sun right now for safe viewing, but all of the other planets are arrayed across our early evening skies. Want to see the planet Earth too? That's easy - just look around you. Besides planetary viewing, we will also have a night sky tour in the planetarium as well as several laser shows.

Observing beginning by 5:30pm Shows in the planetarium: 6pm Virginia Skies, 7pm Laser Vinyl, 8:30pm Laser Doors, 10pm Pink Floyd's The Wall

01/11/2025

The Virginia Living Museum cares for a wide variety of animals, but some aren’t commonly seen in the wild.

Join our education team for an up-close ambassador encounter with one of our skunks or opossum where you will learn about their adaptations, habitats, how we care for them, and their role in our ecosystem. Our expert educators are happy to answer your questions and share all about our amazing animals.

Public Ambassador Animal Encounters are every Saturday and Sunday 1:00 - 1:30 PM

Tickets available here: https://bit.ly/PublicAnimalEncounterTickets

01/10/2025

The Virginia Living Museum proudly partners with Community Knights, Inc. in their CK READY Program that provides work experiences in our community to DARS-eligible high school students who have developmental or intellectual disabilities.

Azzara Oston, Community Engagement Manager at the Museum says, "As a nature- and conservation-focused museum, we emphasize the importance of biodiversity in our natural world, and that includes diversity of people too! If we want to conserve our environment, it’s crucial that everyone is engaged and inspired. Our goal is for every person who comes through the doors of the Museum to feel that it’s a place for them, a place they feel safe and welcomed. When our team and community members feel included and valued, it creates a stronger Virginia Living Museum for us all."

Five students in this program have completed 608 total hours of skill-building at the VLM!

"Because of you, students are gaining real-world experience, building confidence, and developing personal and professional skills for success. We deeply appreciate your commitment to creating an inclusive workplace and look forward to your whole team's disability training in January. Thank you again for empowering people with disabilities!" says Director of Development and Training, Chris McCormick.

01/07/2025

Everybody was bundling up yesterday with the snow ❄️ the VLM will open at 11am today!

01/06/2025

🤿 Dive into an underwater adventure and discover how everyone’s actions affect the oceans. Ocean Bound gives visitors a unique and breathtaking introduction to the majesty of the waterways.

🌊 Ocean Bound is coming to the Virginia Living Museum January 25-May 4, 2025.

01/05/2025

Coming into 2025, the Virginia Living Museum would like to recognize a long-term volunteer!

Ros HaLevi has been a volunteer at the Virginia Living Museum for 22 years, supporting many areas of the Museum. Ros very recently celebrated her 93rd birthday, which makes her the Museum’s oldest Active Volunteer.

Ros loves the Trail, engaging with guests of all ages, and sharing her knowledge of Virginia wildlife. It’s fitting that Ros’ plaque is here by the Red Wolf Exhibit, as Ros loves to talk with guests about the importance of red wolf conservation. In fact, she is especially fond of interacting with children, and has many many stories to tell about the funny things that children say!

Ros has dedicated over 2,200 hours to the Museum, and was inducted to Cardinal Club in 2023. We are so lucky to have her as a member of the Museum team, and to dedicate this piling plaque to her at her home away from home.

01/04/2025

Naming submissions for the Virginia Living Museum's new porcupine are OPEN!

Naming Submissions Open: January 4th - January 11th

🗳 Voting Open: Jan 12 - Jan 19

🎙Her name will be announced on January 20th - As we continue to collect naming submissions, she will be splitting her time between our Wild Care Center and a special spot along the boardwalk as she settles into her home. Keep an eye out during your visits – you might catch her exploring her new surroundings!

Submit your name: https://bit.ly/newporcupinename

🤫 Please remember to give her space and use quiet voices as she adjusts to life at Virginia Living Museum. Thank you!

01/03/2025

The polls are open - Vote For Us!

Cast your votes in Virginia Living's most popular issue here: https://bov2025.virginialiving.com/eastern

Categories for Voting:
Annual Charity Event > WRITE IN: Otter Ball
Family Entertainment > WRITE IN: Virginia Living Museum
Festival > WRITE IN: Bacchus Wine & Food Festival
Museum > Virginia Living Museum
Special Event Venue > Virginia Living Museum
Summer Camp > WRITE IN: Virginia Living Museum
Tourist Attraction > Virginia Living Museum

Thank you for your support!

01/02/2025

The Virginia Living Museum is proud to announce that Virginia Living Magazine awarded us with Top Wedding Vendor 2025!

We are so appreciative of all the couples who have chosen to share their special day with us and support our conservation and education efforts that we are founded on.

We are looking forward to celebrating with many more couples in 2025!

Photo credit: Myles Katherine, Fowler Studios, and Brooke Waldroup

01/01/2025

The Museum is CLOSED today, January 1st, but will reopen tomorrow, January 2nd. We wish everyone a happy new year and invite you to peruse some of our enrichment throughout 2024!

01/01/2025

Happy New Year!

Today we welcome 2025 with a look at NGC 2025 - a small open cluster in the faint constellation Mensa the Table. Mensa is not well visible from most of the United States, and this tiny, obscure little cluster, comprised of a about 1000 or so young stars, cannot be seen without the aid of a fairly large telescope.

Perhaps this is in indication that 2025 will be quiet, calm year. We can only hope. Best wishes to all for a peaceful and happy 2025.
Image by Donald Pelletier.

12/31/2024

12/31/2024

We welcome guests to celebrate at a special time right alongside our animals. Dance the day away with fun science experiments and crafts and an EXPLOSIVE way to countdown to the New Year.

Schedule of events for Noon Years Eve:

Countdowns – Join us at 11:00am, 12:00pm and 1:00pm to coundown to the next year with explosive science demonstrations!

Animal Shows – Join us at 11:30 and 12:30 to meet one of our animal ambassadors!

Activities throughout the day – Celebration Paper Crown Crafting, Resolution Wall (Write down your resolutions for going green in the new year), Sensory Bins (Let your imagination run wild as you build and create with legos), Science Activities (Make this year explosive with stomp rockets, catapults, and play parachute), and a dance party with a DJ!

Come dressed in your party attire and kick off the new year right!

12/30/2024

Thank you Newport News Art Commission for supporting our STEAM Challenge Lab 🥼 this past weekend! Visitors were engaged in a variety of tasks from figuring out how to build a durable boat that would also float, what type of plane design would fly the furthest, learning about native creatures and their contribution to our local ecosystems and so much more.

Thank you also to everyone who attended these challenges! Keep an eye out for more programs coming up soon!

12/28/2024

A huge thank you to York County Arts Commission for sponsoring live student performances from Tabb High School Jazz Band, Cellist The Josh, The SantaBones Trombone Quartet, Percussionist Ricky Micou, and Soundscapes Performance Ensemble!

The live music was absolutely lovely and welcoming during Winter Nature Nights.

12/28/2024

New Year, New Animals! 🦔

We're excited to introduce the newest member of our Virginia Living Museum family – a curious young porcupine who has recently arrived and is ready to capture your hearts!

Our adorable North American Porcupine, who traveled to us all the way from The Alaska Zoo, is a fascinating addition to our wildlife family and represents a species that is now very rare in Virginia's diverse landscapes.

The keeper team caring for her states that she is a "cute, messy eater that gets crumbs on her feet!" With her lovable little face and curious personality, she's already becoming a staff favorite. Notice how we haven't mentioned her name?

Stay tuned!

12/27/2024

Time is running out to make your year-end gift and help remove the barriers that keep science and conservation education from being accessible to everyone.

Last fiscal year, our dedicated educators brought science to life for over 32,000 students, 58% of which were from Title I schools. Additionally 27,000 children and adults enjoyed a free or discounted visit thanks to the Dr. Lawrence J. Sacks Community Education and Outreach Program.

Their visit could be what inspires each of these young visitors to become the next generation of scientists, doctors, and nature enthusiasts. But they can't do it without you.

Make your gift before December 31st and invest in a brighter future:
https://bit.ly/3BGoB94