Investing in our future should include remembering our past

Freedom isn’t free and memorializing its protectors costs $75,000 in Houma.

The Regional Military Museum foundation, which is comprised mostly of Houma-area residents, built a military museum on Barrow Street in Houma and they were seeking state money up to $75,800 for improvements and new exhibits for their museum.

But the state dishonorably discharged their proposal, saying the building the foundation leases for the museum is privately owned. Therefore, the money the foundation was seeking could only fund projects involving publicly-owned facilities.

The foundation hoped to get a waiver for this requirement, but learned just a couple days before the parish council’s Budget and Finance Committee meeting its application for funds was in jeopardy.

The foundation was also seeking support from the Terrebonne Parish Council.

In this state, we have a reputation for investing in “good old boy” pork-laden projects.

But, as lawmakers throughout southern Louisiana strive to right our state’s smudged reputation, we as a state often fall far short in our determination to preserve our history.

We must remember such preservation is equally imperative for the benefit of our future generations.

Museums like the one proposed by the foundation should be heralded by the community, as they provide a gateway to the past-one we would be foolish to neglect.