An Ohio native, Armstrong was a longtime friend and advisor to the Museum of Natural History & Science and Cincinnati Museum Center. He served as a member and chairman of the board of trustees of the Museum of Natural History & Science at its Gilbert Avenue location. In 2004, Armstrong was a spokesperson for the Union Terminal operating levy campaign.

On April 18, 2006, Armstrong received NASA's Ambassador of Exploration Award at a ceremony held in Cincinnati Museum Center's Reakirt Auditorium. Nearly 300 invited guests and media attended the event including NASA-TV, which covered the proceedings live. Additionally, Senator John Glenn (retired astronaut and Ambassador of Exploration award recipient) and NASA Administrator Dr. Michael Griffin were on hand and spoke at the ceremony. Click here or scroll down to the bottom of this page to watch the entire ceremony, and click here to download Armstrong's speech.

As part of the Ambassador of Exploration Award ceremony, Armstrong chose Cincinnati Museum Center to receive a moon rock collected during his Apollo 11 mission, in which he became the first man to set foot on the moon. The moon rock is on display in the Museum of Natural History & Science at Cincinnati Museum Center along with a replica of his Apollo 11 space suit and tools.

"Neil has been an inspiration to so many, here locally and around the world," said Douglass W. McDonald, president and CEO of Cincinnati Museum Center. "He is truly an American hero and a man of quiet dedication to science. We hope his contributions to science and humanity will continue to inspire future scientists and engineers in generations to come."