Journey Gunderson, executive director of the National Comedy Center, was recently named to the Blooloop 50 Museum Influencer List during the Blooloop V-Expo.

Blooloop’s inaugural Museum Influencer List recognizes 50 of the most influential people in the museum sector worldwide, celebrating the “innovation, excellence and creativity of these professionals who are shaping the development and future of the museum industry during this uniquely challenging time.”

Gunderson was one of only 20 museum professionals based in the United States to be selected by a panel of industry experts.

As stated in the Blooloop 50 Museum Influencer announcement, “As museums reopen, the visitor experience they deliver will be different. The pandemic has been an accelerator. New initiatives, technologies and innovations will shape the museum of tomorrow.

And it is the people driving and enabling this change we celebrate with this list.”

A Chautauqua County, native, Gunderson was selected for “managing the museum through the pandemic with dedication and expertise, while creating innovative ways to stay engaged with comedy fans across the country,” including the launch of the new National Comedy Center Anywhere online content platform, creating the first virtual Lucille Ball Comedy Festival this past August and reopening the National Comedy Center this past July with its new award-winning LaughSafe health and safety program, which has “transformed one of the most interactive museums in the country and revamped the experience with protocols specifically designed for the COVID era. As a result, the museum experience delivered has been not only touch-free, but stress-free.”

“We are enormously proud of this honor, which is also wonderful acknowledgement of the entire National Comedy Center organization,” said Tom Benson, president of the National Comedy Center board of directors. “This has been a year of innovation, creativity and adaptability for the National Comedy Center, and we are grateful to be recognized among such a distinguished group of museums worldwide.”

Added Gunderson: “This ultimately speaks to the dedication and creativity of the entire National Comedy Center team – from the extremely hard-working staff, to the board and our industry partners in both comedy and museum design. It’s a testament to the tenacity of the community of Jamestown, New York to establish itself a leader in the museum space world-wide.”