Captain Christopher J. Cassidy has never opened a museum before, but the U.S. Naval Academy graduate has walked in outer space, so it’s surely not the scariest thing he’s ever done.

“The first time you open that hatch, man, it gets your attention,” Cassidy says. “Walking in space is by far scarier. The first time you do anything is scary because there are some unknowns involved.”

He will open the doors to the new National Medal of Honor Museum on March 25, located at 1717 E. Randol Mill Road in Arlington.

As the president and CEO of the National Medal of Honor Museum Foundation, he oversees the 100,000-square-foot Arlington facility designed to honor the United States’ 3,519 recipients of the National Medal of Honor.

Established by President Abraham Lincoln in 1861, the Medal of Honor is given to members of the American armed services for courage, sacrifice, commitment, integrity, citizenship and patriotism.

Arlington won the site for this museum after a national search, Cassidy says. With a 99-year lease for $1 a year from the city, the facility was constructed north of Globe Life Field and Choctaw Stadium. Being at the center of so many North Texas attractions, the museum is sure to attract visitors far and wide.

“We need to be relevant for a whole family and interesting for people to visit once but also come back,” Cassidy says. “In today’s day and age, in a museum, you can’t just read a plaque, or view a picture.”

Along with those expected pictures and plaques, the museum will feature videos and even a virtual reality headset putting visitors in the place of making a helicopter pilot’s decisions. Sitting in a theater having an AI-generated conversation with an American hero is also part of the creative, interactive exhibits.

The museum will offer event space for corporate events, visiting speakers and even weddings. Its event hall can seat and feed 400 people with in-house catering, the theater can accommodate 230 people and smaller areas can hold 50 to 75.

“First and foremost, it’s a place for stories of people, but not necessarily a military museum,“ he says. “This is about people.”

Cassidy comes to North Texas after retiring from an impressive military career. He was born in Massachusetts and grew up in Maine before attending the U.S. Naval Academy. A retired U.S. Navy SEAL, he was awarded the Bronze Star with combat ‘V’ and received a second Bronze Star for combat leadership service in Afghanistan.

In 2004, the platoon he commanded was awarded the Presidential Unit Citation for a nine-day operation on the Afghanistan-Pakistan border. As a NASA astronaut, he completed three spaceflights, including 10 spacewalks and two missions aboard the International Space Station. Before retiring, he served as NASA’s chief astronaut for two years. His most recent tour of duty, after moving his family from Houston, has included everything from meeting with architects to okaying flooring selections to budget considerations.

Much of his recent attention has gone toward planning the museum’s grand opening this month. National Medal of Honor Day, celebrated every year on March 25, was chosen as the museum’s official opening date. Opening festivities, though, will be held the Saturday prior on March 22. The public celebration will begin at 7 p.m. and end with a fireworks show.

Excitement surrounds the opening of the museum that boasts an array of supporters from military brass to titans of industry. Honorary directors? They are none other than former presidents Barack Obama, George W. Bush, Bill Clinton and the late Jimmy Carter.

Cassidy knows the museum will be a point of pride.

“The medal is so universally supported,” Cassidy says. “Our whole mission is to inspire people through the stories of Medal of Honor recipients to espouse those values.”