Kent Wang honored with President’s Lifetime Achievement Award
Kent Wang, a volunteer docent at the National Air and Space Museum, was presented with the President’s Lifetime Achievement Award in a ceremony May 21 at the Udvar-Hazy Center in Chantilly, Va. Presented by the Corporation for National and Community Service and the Office of the President, the award honors a “lifetime commitment to building a stronger nation through volunteer service.”
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Kent Wang has given more than 4,000 hours of service to NASM over the course of 21 years as a volunteer and has shared his love of air and spacecraft with hundreds of thousands of curious museum visitors. Each member of the volunteer corps is inspired to share their love of flight, but Kent has a special knack for connecting with visitors during gallery tours. Besides being a great storyteller, Kent takes an imaginative approach to interpreting exhibits. For example, he may spin visitors around to demonstrate how airplanes stay aloft. “I love doing things that make the museum a place where you can have fun while you learn,” he says.
Kent takes visitors into the galleries and lets them travel in time with his storytelling. He works to get visitors’ perspectives and establish relationships with them. He improvises to accommodate their interests and tailors the pacing and delivery of his tours in response. Why use precious tour time for storytelling? Museums are increasingly being transformed into hybrid spaces, where virtual and digital information coexists with tangible artifacts. Storytelling has “grabbing power.” Even in this age of electronic extravaganzas and microseconds, the words “let me tell you what happened” command attention. During his 21 years as a docent, Kent has learned how to deal with visitors ranging from rowdy high-school boys to former pilots to confused foreigners while remaining professional. “I always do a little meditation exercise” before tours, Kent says. “You have to like people in this job. Sometimes, those with an extremely detailed knowledge of aviation history may try to correct you when you’re talking, or kids may interrupt,” he says. “You have to learn not to get upset.” Kent also conducts tours in Chinese several times a week and will speak Mandarin if he senses a visitor may be more comfortable using that language. The Air and Space Museum is extremely popular with Chinese visitors. “The Wright Flyer and Apollo Lunar Module are real draws,” Kent says. “I feel that it is important to emphasize for foreign visitors the role Americans played in aviation and space exploration,” Kent says. “We were the big shots!” The Lifetime Achievement Award recognizes the best in the American spirit, and encourages all Americans to improve their communities through volunteer service, and civic participation. Kent Wang is a wonderful example of that spirit and an inspiration for his creativity in sharing the history of aviation and space flight with hundreds of thousands of visitors. Congratulations, Kent, and thank you for your service! |
A diligent volunteer honored with the President's Lifetime Achievement Award
Let's congratulate Kent Wang, a diligent volunteer at the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum, who recently received the Lifetime Achievement Award from President Donald Trump. The awards ceremony took place inside the Claude Moore Education Center at the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center in Chantilly, Virginia on May 21. Kent apparently was on “cloud 9” and still is since being presented with his accolade.
As a volunteer docent, Kent has inspired a love of air and spacecraft in hundreds of thousands of curious visitors for the last 21 years. Last week, he was honored with the President’s Lifetime Achievement Award in recognition of the more than 4,000 hours of service he has dedicated to the NASM. Kent accepted an official pin, a personalized certificate and a letter from President Donald Trump in honor of his service. The Lifetime Achievement Award recognizes the best in the American spirit, and encourages all Americans to improve their communities through volunteer service, and civic participation. “I am truly honored to be given this prestigious award from the Office of the President of the United States,” said Kent. Kent loves two things: aircraft, and sharing his knowledge with others. This is true of all the members of the NASM docent program, but Kent has a special knack for connecting with guests during his gallery tours and creating moments he calls “magic.” Besides being great storyteller, Kent takes an imaginative approach to the tours himself – he’ll often spin visitors in circles to demonstrate what makes an airplane fly? How does a spacecraft stay in orbit? Or assisting visitors to interpret exhibits and presenting hands-on demonstrations on the science of flight. “By doing these things, the museum becomes a place where you can have fun while you learn. That’s what I love,” he says. Adding a little magic to a tour is not Kent’s only specialty – he also has been conducting tours in Chinese several times a week, and speaks Mandarin with visitors upon request or when he sees they might be more comfortable speaking Mandarin. Aircraft and spaceships lure Chinese tourists — not surprisingly, Chinese tourists flock to the Smithsonian’s Museums in their thousands. “They like the status,” he said. “The Wright's Flyer and Apollo Lunar Module are real draws for them as well.” “I feel that it is so very important for foreigners to realize that Americans were the ‘big shots’ of the aviation and space exploration,” Kent said. While Kent has always appreciated air and spacecraft, his true joy as a docent comes from learning about the perspectives of the guests who take his tours. During his tours, Kent establishes relationship with visitors; formally shape their interactions; improvise to accommodate the responses of his audience; and make choices about pacing, delivery style, and voice in acknowledgment of the drama of the aviation and space achievements. Kent takes the visitors into the galleries and let them travel in time with his storytelling as he leads them into the surroundings and subject they are looking at. Why use precious tour time for storytelling? Museums are increasingly being transformed into hybrid spaces, where virtual and digital information coexists with tangible artifacts. Storytelling has “grabbing power.” Even in this age of electronic extravaganzas and microseconds, the words “let me tell you what happened” command attention. And, it is just this state of readiness and anticipation that Kent wants. During his 21 years as a docent leading visitors through the various galleries at the NASM, Kent learned how to deal with rowdy high-school boys and confused foreigners while retaining their professional demeanor. Before leading the teenagers and foreigners to the galleries and exhibitions, he said, ‘‘I always did a little meditation exercise.'' ''You have to like people in this job, especially with those who may have an extremely detailed knowledge of aviation history and may interrupt you and try to correct you when you're talking,'' he said. ''You have to learn not to get upset.'' Kent is a wonderful example of someone whose spirit and creativity in teaching and sharing for passion are inspirational. He finds the greatest satisfaction working in the museum when he has an opportunity to make a difference in someone’s day by telling the awesome stories and enjoys interaction with these curiosity-driven visitors. Now that’s dedication—and a good story, too! Kent, we’re proud of you and look forward to what you will accomplish during your next 4,000 hours of volunteer service at the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum. |