New Air Force Academy Visitor Center named for first USAFA graduate
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) -- The U.S. Air Force Academy's new visitor center near the north gate will be named for the Academy's first graduate, Lt. Gen. (Ret.) Bradley C. Hosmer ’59.
A generous gift of $5.5 million dollars was made to the Air Force Academy Foundation by Jerry ’70
and Pam Bruni of Colorado Springs. The Brunis’ gift and the naming were celebrated at the future site of the Hosmer Visitor Center on Friday.
The USAFA said the Brunis’ $5.5 million commitment provides immersive and engaging displays and exhibits to enhance the visitor experience at the Hosmer Visitor Center. The Brunis’ commitment is the lead component of support totaling nearly $16 million for infrastructure and enhancements to the Hosmer Visitor Center, and for the entire TrueNorth Commons development near the North Gate.
RELATED: Plans finalized for new AFA Visitors Center; construction to start soon
According to the USAFA, Mr. Bruni said Lt. Gen. Hosmer, the Academy’s first graduate in 1959, was a logical choice for naming the visitor center. Mr. Bruni said he has enjoyed serving with Lt. Gen. Hosmer on the Air Force Academy Foundation board of directors and called him a “remarkable individual.” He said Lt. Gen. Hosmer is known by all to embody the Academy’s core value of Service Before Self.
The $41 million Hosmer Visitor Center will be the first element of the TrueNorth Commons
project to open in 2024. It will feature architecture designed to look like wings in flight. Its
exhibits will incorporate state-of-the-art technology and experiential storytelling to illustrate a
day in an Air Force Academy cadet’s life, as well as a cadet’s four-year journey from
inprocressing to graduation.
