Country Music Hall Of Fame And Museum Names Galleries In Honor Of Judy & Steve Turner

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Photo: Courtesy of the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum

The Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum has named the galleries housing the museum’s permanent exhibit, “Sing Me Back Home: Folk Roots to the Present,” in honor of Judy and Steve Turner.

“The Judy and Steve Turner Galleries” span two floors of the museum, and is made possible through a multi-year leadership gift from the James Stephen Turner Family Foundation. The naming recognizes the Turner family’s leadership support, including Steve Turner’s longtime commitment to the preservation and growth of the museum’s permanent collection. The gift supports the highest level of care and management of the museum’s growing collection as well as access for generations of researchers and learners from all over the world.

Steve Turner, who passed away in February of this year, was chairman emeritus and served as a longtime board chair for the museum. Judy Turner was a key supporter of the museum’s educational initiatives and passed away in June 2023

“Throughout Steve Turner’s leadership, he constantly urged staff and stakeholders alike to hold the museum’s collection in the highest regard,” says Kyle Young, CEO of the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum. “As he often reminded us, the collection should be cared for at the uppermost level and should continue to grow and expand. Its current growth and expansion have happened, in large part, due to Steve’s steady leadership and strong resolve. I can’t imagine more fitting names to have recognized in our core gallery spaces.”

In 2024, the museum’s unrivaled collection of country music treasures grew dramatically and with the Turner family’s leadership gift, the museum is launching a preservation fundraising campaign, which will continue to underwrite the intensive, multi-year work of processing and cataloging the museum’s archives, rehousing and shelving, digitizing rare manuscripts and correspondence and more. The campaign is the first fundraising initiative of its kind in the museum’s history and will offer permanent naming rights for limited spaces within the museum.

Lorie Hollabaugh
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