Anthem to sponsor Free Thursdays at art museum:

Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield in Indiana has signed on as the presenting sponsor of Free Thursdays at the Indianapolis Museum of Art through the end of the year. The sponsorship allows IMA to continue offering free admission to both the museum and the Oldsfield-Lilly House and Gardens. Anthem was right for the sponsorship because it paralleled the IMA’s mission, said IMA spokeswoman Suzanne Peralta Wolski.

“Improving health of people we serve’ is Anthem’s commitment to the community,” Wolski said. “That commitment really lies parallel to what the IMA tries to achieve, which is health through the arts.”

Anthem’s sponsorship allows the museum to take the revenue lost from Free Thursdays and explore new ways to enrich the guests’ experience, Wolski said.

Eliminating Free Thursdays was never an option.

It’s “a way of giving back to the community,” Wolski said.