PRESS RELEASE
For Immediate Release
For More Information, Please Contact:
The Media Relations Manager
Prince William County/Manassas CVB
703-396-7130 (ext. 14) info@visitpwc.com |
|
 |
May 17, 2007
DUMFRIES DISTRICT SUPERVISOR MAUREEN CADDIGAN WELCOMES VISITORS TO THE NATIONAL MUSEUM OF THE MARINE CORPS
 Triangle, VA – Maureen Caddigan of the Prince William County Board of Supervisors greeted dozens of visitors to the National Museum of the Marine Corps (www.usmcmuseum.org) the morning of Monday, May 17, 2007, as part of a National Tourism Week event organized by the Prince William County Convention and Visitors Bureau (www.visitpwc.com).
“It brought tears to my eyes,” Caddigan said of an emotional encounter she had with a visitor from Florida who had come to the museum to donate a medallion owned by her late son and her late husband, both Marines. Caddigan learned Katherine Stevens of Cocoa had just said final goodbyes to her husband, Major Glenn Bradley Stevens, Sr. (Ret., U.S. Marine Corps) during his funeral at Arlington National Cemetery only the day before. Mrs. Stevens had brought her daughter, son-in-law, granddaughter and great granddaughter to the museum, to honor her late husband and late son’s service in the Marine Corps.
Caddigan was joined during her appearance by: Lt. Col. Scott Yost , Operations Officer, U.S. Marine Corps; Molly Davis, representing the Dumfries District on the Convention and Visitors Bureau’s Board of Directors; the CVB’s Tourism Marketing Manager, Esther Turner.
Caddigan says even though her husband is retired from the Army, the museum accepts her as a member of its family, calling her “Maurine.” She has served since 1992 as the county representative on the Civilian-Military Relations Council. She is also a member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars Ladies Auxiliary.
Caddigan has served on the Board of County Supervisors for three terms. She has twice been elected by the BOCS as Vice-Chair. Previously, she served for seven years on the Prince William County School Board, including three years as Chair.
The National Museum of the Marine Corps welcomes an average of 1500 visitors a day, and has seen 300,000 people from all the world come through its doors since it opened in November 2006.
 |
|
|
Tourism has a $1.5 billion annual economic impact on Virginia, accounting for 280,000 jobs with an associated payroll of $4 billion. Virginia welcomes 35 million visitors each year. National Tourism Week, observed annually since 1984, promotes a better understanding of travel as a major U.S. industry, vital to the economic stability and global perception of the United States.
|
