GREENWICH, CONN.- After Hours at the Bruce Museum, a special program hosted by the Museum on Thursday, March 5, will offer evening gallery hours and a variety of activities – including a chance to take a “selfie” with an American Black Bear -- with free admission from 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. The Museum normally closes at 5.

“After Hours is a program inspired by the spirit of philanthropy,” says Peter C. Sutton, Executive Director of the Bruce Museum. “We cannot exist without the generous support of the community. Since March 5 is Fairfield County Giving Day, like most other local non-profits, we will be asking for the community’s support. We wanted to also give back to the community, and make accessible the treasure that is the Bruce.”

In addition to free admission and open galleries, the Museum will be offering special tours and other activities designed for families and accessible to all. Several experts will be on hand and available for discussion and questions, including Executive Director Peter Sutton; Jack A. Somer, the owner and collector of the antique maps currently on display in the Museum’s Lecture Gallery; Tara Contractor, the Museum’s Samuel H. Kress Interpretive Fellow and an expert on the Hohenbuchau Collection paintings currently on view; and Daniel Ksepka, the Museum’s Curator of Science. Special marine tank animal feedings will be held, and visitors will have an opportunity to take a “selfie” with an imposing figure, the Museum’s specimen of an American Black Bear.

Fairfield County Giving Day, in only its second year, is a one-day, regional effort to raise money for local nonprofits hosted by Fairfield County’s Community Foundation and sponsored by Bank of America. The Foundation’s goal this year is to raise $1,000,000 in just 24 hours for local Fairfield County non-profits. Last year Fairfield County Giving Day raised a collective $750,000.

To give to your favorite local non-profit on Fairfield County Giving Day, you must donate during the March 5th 24-hour period, from midnight to 11:59 p.m., and must do so on the Fairfield County Giving Day website, fcgives.org. Participating non-profits each have a dedicated page on the specially-created site. To donate to the Bruce Museum, visit their page at https://www.fcgives.org/#npo/bruce-museum-inc11.