Andy Walter

The reimagination of Cincinnati Museum Center:

Enhancing the visitor experience of Union Terminal through technology

Technology has helped transport people from place to place for centuries. From steamboats and trains to global positioning systems and virtual realities, it can take us to places and times we thought we’d never reach. Cincinnati Museum Center has a history of embracing technology. You can see it at work in the films we show at the Robert D. Lindner Family OMNIMAX^® Theater and 3D printing at KidSPACE in The Children’s Museum. Updated technology helps in igniting minds with monumental experiences, and inspiring the pursuit of careers in science, technology, engineering and math.

Following the restoration and repair of Union Terminal, we are able to position ourselves in the community as more than a building and more than a museum. CMC seeks to break through the expected and put you at the center of monumental experiences. Imagine that you can now use an app on your phone to navigate the intricate halls of Union Terminal. A grandparent points their tablet down the concourse to see it as it once was during the peak of its use as a train station. A group of students on a field trip lands on the moon with the help of a multi-projector 360° panoramic display of real NASA photography and computer-generated imagery and animation.

Andy Walter believes this is all possible and volunteers on the Board of Trustees to help make it so.

“After 26 years and retiring from Procter & Gamble, I've been involved with technology startups across the world. When the opportunity came up to be part of the restoration of Union Terminal and reimagination of Cincinnati Museum Center, it was exactly what I was looking for, the opportunity to give back to my home town and leverage my passion for technology.”

Technology accelerates our ability to tell the rich stories of our area’s people, from the earliest human habitation to modern Cincinnatians. It deepens our understanding of the changes in our region’s natural environment – past, present and future. And it allows us to connect the arc of our history of discovery with today’s globally significant innovation in immersive, new experiences.

“I was attracted to Cincinnati Museum Center as result of the impact it truly makes in our community. The long line of school children that have passed through these halls, my own family's passion for the Children's and other museums, and the financial stewardship and impact it makes for the Greater Cincinnati area.”

The Western Museum, the predecessor to today’s Museum of Natural History & Science, first opened its doors in 1820 – marking 2020 as 200 years of discovery for the organization. Gifts to Cincinnati Museum Center help underwrite the cost of new technology that conserves and preserves history, creates and facilitates new knowledge and makes it available to our community – and the world – for generations. That’s why Andy and his wife, Laurie, committed to the campaign to ensure the next 200 years of Cincinnati Museum Center.

“I can't wait to bring my future grandchildren to Cincinnati Museum Center!”