(CLARKSDALE, MS) This afternoon, in a White House ceremony in the East Room, First Lady Michelle Obama will join Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) Director Susan Hildreth to present the 2013 National Medal for Museum and Library Service to Delta Blues Museum. The nation’s highest honor conferred on museums and libraries for service to the community, the National Medal celebrates institutions that make a difference for individuals, families, and communities. Museum Director Shelley Ritter and community member Travis Calvin will accept the National Medal.

The 2013 National Medal Ceremony will be streamed live on www.whitehouse.gov/live, beginning at 1:30 p.m EDT and official event photos will be distributed immediately following.

“Museums and libraries serve as centers for lifelong learning and as cornerstones for our communities. Not only is the Delta Blues Museum celebrating one of our country’s most fundamental genres of music, but they’re educating the next blues greats. We are proud to name Delta Blues Museum one of this year’s National Medal for Museum and Library Service winners,” said Susan Hildreth, director, Institute of Museum and Library Services.

Established in 1979 by the Carnegie Public Library Board of Trustees and re-organized as a stand-alone museum in 1999, the Delta Blues Museum is Mississippi’s oldest music museum. A 2013 recipient of the IMLS National Medal for Museum and Library Services, the Delta Blues Museum is dedicated to creating a welcoming place where visitors find meaning, value and perspective by exploring the history and heritage of the unique American musical art form of the Blues. The Museum’s current DEEPER ROOTS campaign seeks $1.2 million for new and enhanced exhibits for Phase II of its expansion–which includes the new Muddy Waters Addition–enabling the Museum to better preserve and display the history and work of Blues artists from the Mississippi Delta, and advancing the Museum’s ability to “tell” stories that inspire and educate future generations about this important American art form. Find out more at http://www.deltabluesmuseum.org/deeperroots.asp.

For more information on events or programs, please call (662) 627-6820, or visit the Museum web site at www.deltabluesmuseum.org.