Bravery deserves to be remembered. It also deserves to be protected.
When the Medal of Honor Museum opens today in Arlington, Texas, both its visitors and the stories it preserves will be protected—thanks to donations from Convergint, Motorola, Assa Abloy, HID, and other members of the physical security community who stepped up to help safeguard this important institution.
The museum tells the story of the recipients of the Medal of Honor, the highest military honor in the United States. It’s given to those who have gone above and beyond the call of duty to risk their lives in combat. More than 40 million people have served in the U.S. Armed Forces. Less than 4,000 men and women have received the medal.
“When we called on our partners to give back to those who have sacrificed so much, they answered as one,” said Kelle Shanks, who led the effort within Convergint to leverage the company’s partner ecosystem for the museum project. “This museum honors those that have protected us.”
The backbone of the museum’s security system features Motorola’s cloud-based ecosystem, including the Avigilon Unity Video Access and Control system, which will allow the museum to take a unified, proactive approach to security. All security workflows – from surveillance to access management to emergency communications – are consolidated, intelligent, and cloud-connected.
“For us, this was about protecting a living piece of history, so future generations can engage with these stories and understand the bravery and sacrifice that has been made for us,” said Robert Backus, a Motorola business development specialist based in Dallas who worked closely with Shanks on the project.
On permanent display in the museum is a Vietnam War-era Huey helicopter whose pilots risked their lives to evacuate U.S. servicemen during the conflict. The helicopter helps illustrate the impact of the helicopter in Medal of Honor actions. Helicopters have been involved in 8 Medal of Honor actions.
One example of the security system at work embodies how Motorola describes the ecosystem: “Powerful alone, game changing together.” Using advanced AI features and a comprehensive integration of other security capabilities, Motorola’s analytic cameras will monitor critical areas, such as the helicopter exhibit, triggering real-time alerts if individuals approach restricted zones. In the event of a lost child, the system will assist security personnel in quickly identifying and locating the child’s guardians. Once an incident is detected, the platform will automatically notify security teams — both in the security operations center and on the ground — via integrated alerts sent directly to their Motorola handheld radios utilizing the Motorola ecosystem.
That capability, automated detection and alerts, can also be applied to other scenarios. In addition to telling the story of Medal of Honor recipients, the museum is expected to host heads of state and other dignitaries for events and meetings.
For Shanks, the project began about three years ago, when the building’s general contractor requested RFPs for the security system. She spotted an opportunity to put Convergint’s core values into action. She called then-Vice President of Marketing Tony Varco, who retired in 2025. He immediately asked the company’s founders, Dan Moceri and Greg Lernihan, if the Convergint Care’s Foundation, the company’s 501c3, would be interested in contributing.
The response was immediate, as was the response from Motorola and other partners.
“This donation is significant, more than seven figures,” Shanks said. “That’s money that can go right back into this museum’s mission so that this history isn’t forgotten.”
