Remembering the Past Through Storytelling and Service
When I was asked to write a short article for the inaugural issue of Uniting Through Service for Zones 26 and 27 about the role storytelling plays in preserving history, shaping understanding, and helping future generations make sense of complex moments in time, I thought that this would be the perfect way to enhance my ongoing efforts to honor Cold War veterans, preserve Cold War history, and educate future generations about this time period. Since this storytelling platform is focused on service, leadership, and global impact, one of the core goals of the platform is to elevate voices that help readers understand not just events, but their meaning, context, and human impact. Strong storytelling is essential to that mission and this is exactly what the Cold War Museum does to keep Cold War history alive for future generations.
The importance of historical storytelling, truth, and context, or how narrative helps bridge generations and misunderstandings, is incredibly powerful. Hopefully, future articles like this will help set the tone for the platform and encourage other Rotarians to step forward and share meaningful stories of their own.
As for my personal story, I founded The Cold War Museum in 1996 as a result of my research to find out more about my father, CIA U-2 pilot Francis Gary Powers, and the truth behind the May 1, 1960 U-2 Incident. As a result of being shot down over the Soviet Union, interrogated by the KGB, put on a public show trial, and serving two years of a ten-year sentence, many conspiracy theories and false narratives resulted as to what my father endured.
The Cold War Museum and a Family Legacy
In addition, several movies have been produced about the U-2 Incident, including Steven Spielberg’s 1995 Cold War thriller, Bridge of Spies, that depicts my father’s exchange for Soviet KGB spy Rudolph Abel at the Glienicke Bridge in Potsdam, Germany. It was an honor to be a consultant on this film directed by Steven Spielberg and starring Tom Hanks as James Donovan, who was the attorney for Soviet spy Rudolph Abel and who brokered the exchange between the Soviet spy and my father in February 1962.
As a result of my research for my second book, Spy Pilot: Francis Gary Powers, the U-2 Incident, and a Controversial Cold War Legacy, my father was posthumously awarded the POW Medal in 2000 and the Silver Star in 2012. During my 40 plus years of research into the U-2 Incident that began in 1985, I discovered that our Cold War veterans were not being honored for their sacrifice, struggles, and participation during this conflict and that high school students were not being taught Cold War history to the extent that it needs to be taught in order to understand the world we live in today.
During my 40 plus years of research into the U-2 Incident that began in 1985, I discovered that our Cold War veterans were not being honored for their sacrifice, struggles, and participation during this conflict and that high school students were not being taught Cold War history to the extent that it needs to be taught in order to understand the world we live in today.
This was the catalyst for the creation of The Cold War Museum.
Located at Vint Hill, The Cold War Museum is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. The mission of the museum is to educate, preserve, and research the global, ideological, and political confrontations between East and West from the end of World War II to the dissolution of the Soviet Union. The museum vision is to inform the present and influence the future through an understanding of the past, with exhibitions of artifacts, documents, and events related to the Cold War era.
Preserving Cold War History at Vint Hill
It took 15 years to secure a brick-and-mortar facility at Vint Hill, VA, a former Army listening post located 45 miles west of Washington, DC, that was used by the CIA, NSA, and Army Security Agency to monitor foreign embassy communications and international signals during the Cold War. Prior to the museum opening in 2011, a dedicated museum team collected as many Cold War artifacts as we could find. In the 1990s, Cold War artifacts were easy to find, whereas now they are increasingly rare. We were ahead of the curve, knowing one day we would open a physical museum.
Artifact donations included US, Soviet, and Eastern European flags, banners, regalia, uniforms, photographs, and related Cold War era items.
The Vint Hill Room, one of the museum’s most popular exhibits, explores the site’s history as a secret Army signals intelligence base. Visitors can view original equipment, such as radio transmitters and receivers, photos of women codebreakers, uniforms, signage, and a Morse code display that demonstrates how Vint Hill monitored international and embassy communications during the Cold War.
The Cold War Museum Exhibits and National Collection
Other displays feature artifacts from key Cold War events and programs, including the USS Liberty and USS Pueblo Incidents, the U-2 and SR-71 spy plane programs, overhead reconnaissance platforms such as the Corona, KH, and Hexagon spy satellites, and the Iranian Hostage Crisis. The U-2 Incident display and a Cuban Missile Crisis display include a Soviet SA-2 missile booster, while other items range from submarine artifacts to ICBMs, and Patriot and Nike missiles, which offers a comprehensive collection of Cold War relics that tell the international story of the Cold War.
The mission of the museum is to educate, preserve, and research the global, ideological, and political confrontations between East and West from the end of World War II to the dissolution of the Soviet Union.
The museum also has the largest collection of Civil Defense items in the United States, having saved and salvaged the Civil Defense Headquarters near Washington, DC, in 2000.
The museum is open Saturdays from 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., Sundays from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m., and midweek by appointment. It also hosts the Cold War Conversations Presentation Series, a monthly virtual program featuring firsthand accounts, expert insights, and author discussions on Cold War events, personalities, and activities.
Service, Rotary, and International Understanding
The Cold War Museum relies on public donations and foundation grants to sustain its mission. It is actively seeking interns, docents, volunteers, and a grant writer to secure additional funding. Donations of Cold War artifacts and other forms of support are also welcome as the museum works toward its long-term goal of becoming a state-of-the-art facility or merging with a like-minded institution. For more information or to make a tax-deductible donation, please visit Cold War
In addition to my work with the museum, I also organize Spy Tours of Washington, DC, and International Cold War Espionage Tours of Europe. More info on my tours can be found online at Spy Tour As a result of my research, I lecture internationally and have written six books about the Cold War that include: Letters from a Soviet Prison, Spy Pilot, and Enemy Territory and The Berlin Airlift, which are graphic novels. My most recent book, Cold War Virginia, was released in 2024. My next book, Cold War California, will be released in May 2026, and Cold War Florida will be released in 2027.
In the past I have been a keynote speaker for several Rotary District Conferences in Reno, NV, Blaine, WA, and Sheboygan, WI. If there are any Rotary District Conferences that would have an interest in hearing my story during their event, please let me know. I have been a Rotarian for over 30 years and am the Club Secretary for the James River Rotary Club in Midlothian, VA, where I am currently an Honorary member. Finally, I am the current secretary for the US / Russia Rotary Intercountry Committee (ICC). Rotary ICCs are unique entities within RI that connect Rotary clubs from different countries to foster lasting connections between Rotarians around the world, and to promote peace and international understanding across borders.
