April May 2011 Newsletter

MUSEUM OF MILITARY MEMORABILIA,INC.(C)
MILITARY TIMES PAST(C)
Volume 5, Issue 3
Honoring the military
who protect our freedom
with their lives.
Preserving historical artifacts for present and future generations.
Presenting these articles
and the story they tell for
the greater understanding
Inside this issue:
Special operations
warrior fund (cont)
2
Great Loop Cruise
2
NICAEA Academy
3
Bonita Springs
Rotary Club Noon
3
About Us
4
Modelers Corner
4
British Airborne Jeep
April-May 2011
SPECIAL OPERATIONS WARRIOR FUNDRAISER
The Museum was proud to participate in a fundraiser on April 30 for the Special Operations Warrior Fund which raises money to help the families special operations Soldiers. The Museum had a tent under Camouflage netting with displays of Memorabilia
of special operations forces spanning from WWII to the present. We also had members military Vehicles with a WWII Jeep, A Vietnam era MUTT and a Dodge M37
Truck.
This was the Special Forces Motorcycle Clubs 7th Anniversary and
Fundraiser. For a $20 donation participants received food and beverages and
were treated to live entertainment by
the MARC VEE Band. There were silent
auctions and raffles to raise money for
the Special Operations Warriors Foundation. Since 1980 the Foundation has
pledged support and assistance to the
families of some 67,000 Army, Navy,
Air force and Marine Corp special operations personnel. They provide full college educations to the sons and daughters
of fallen special operations personnel,
educational and family counseling to ensure the success of their families and immediate financial assistance to the families of severely wounded special operations personnel so their family can be
bedside during their loved ones recovery. There were hundreds of Motorcycles parked on the back lawn as several
The Calendar Girls pose in front of the Museums
display tent
Displays included special operations forces uniforms, Am M60 Machinegun and a 1/7 scale
model of the M2A2 Bradley Fighting Vehicle.
Motorcycle clubs from across Florida participated, many traveling from as far as
Tampa. The Calendar Girls were there to entertain the crowd and the MARC VEE
band played during the lunch hour. The flag was lowered to half mast in the morning and raised in the afternoon as a tribute to our special operations warriors.
(Continued Page 2 )
Page 2
MILITARY TIMES PAST(C)
Special Operations Warrior Foundation (Cont.)
If you would like to learn more
about the Special Operations Warrior
Foundation please visit their website at
WWW.specialops.org. They are a four star
charity worthy of a contribution.
Ceremony Saturday morning lowering the flag to half mast.
M60 Machinegun, Uniforms and a
scale model of the Bradley Fighting
Vehicle
Greg Garcia had his 1942 Willys MB
Jeep on hand and Pat Radley brought out
his newly acquired 1953 Dodge M37
3/4 ton truck.
Bob McDonalds 1967 MUTT was
on display. Everyone loves a big
machine gun !
AMERICA’S GREAT LOOP CRUISE
At the Special Operations Warrior Event I had the pleasure of
speaking with George S. Sinko MSG Ret. USAR who will be
cruising the Eastern half of north America in a 26” pontoon
boat named “The Patriot” The goal behind this challenging
tour is to earn donations for the Special Operations Warrior
Foundation. A second goal is to earn a record in the Guinness Book of Records for the smallest pontoon boat to
accomplish this feat. Individuals and organizations who would like to pledge a tax free contribution of .01 to .05
cents per mile ( $60—$300 ) can make out a check or money order to the Special Operations Warrior Foundation and mail it to:
George S. Sinko MSG Ret. USAR
3421 Sabal Springs Blvd.
North Fort Myers, FL. 33917
Volume 5, Issue 3
Page 3
A visit to NICAEA Academy
On May 5th the Museum provided a history lesson through Military Memorabilia to the 3rd and 4th grade
classes of the NICAEA academy in Golden Gate. Ms. Birners students were a delight to work with and it was easy
to see how much they enjoyed our presentation. Museum Vice President Greg Garcia showed items from the
Revolutionary War up to the present Gulf Conflict. You can see many more pictures and a video of the complete
presentation on our website www.museum-mm.org
Ms. Birner looks on as her class begins the presentation. This
table had items from the Revolutionary War through WWI.
The Bus Driver at left was a Veteran and Joined Bob
McDonald, Greg Garcia and Pat Radley for a group shot
with Ms. Birners 3rd and 4th grade class.
The rotary club of Bonita springs noon
At lunch time on May 5th The Museum did a presentation for The Rotary Club of Bonita Springs Noon
(club #28929) Museum president spoke to the Rotary about our past plans with Collier County and current projects with Invest in America’s Veterans Foundation and the progress on our plans to display at the Naples airport.
Our display to the Rotary consisted of special forces items we had set up for the Special Operations Warrior fundraiser as they were already prepared for display. More pictures can be seen on our website.
Museum president Robert
McDonald with Rotary President
Lori Nelson.
Rotary Club Administrator Betty
Jean Christensen coordinated our
contact with the Rotary.
Setting up a display in front of windows does not
help for good pictures. Special Forces items from
the Vietnam War dominated out set up.
MUSEUM OF
MILITARY
MEMORABILIA,INC.
P.O.Box 112800
Naples,FL.34108
Phone (941)575-0401
Founded in April 2006 The Museum of Military Memorabilia has over 10,000 artifacts available for public viewing. We are pleased to present these treasures to local
area groups and the general public. Our goal is 1)Create a full service museum to
honor the veterans who have in the past, and are now protecting the cause of freedom,2)to preserve the artifacts associated with military history and 3)to present information that will create greater understanding of these conflicts among present and
future generations.
E-Mail
[email protected]
The present Board of Directors that governs
The Museum of Military Memorabilia
President-Robert McDonald
Vice President-Gregory Garcia
Chaplain-Reverend J.M. “SKIP” Torres
Secretary/Treasurer-Helen McDonald
Editor/Armorer-Patrick Radley
James Elson
MODELERS CORNER
This is a 1/6 scale model of the WWII British Airborne Jeep.
It was made from an old Hasbro G.I. Joe Jeep and modified with styrene plastic to have many of the features of the British Airborne Communications Jeep.
The British received a great deal of war material during
WWII under the lend-lease program and often modified this equipment to suit their needs. The Airborne jeep has the drivers side headlight replaced with a nighttime driving light. The spare tire is
mounted in front as the radio antenna and battery was mounted on
the rear. This helped reduce the length of the vehicle so it could fit
into the British Horsa Glider. Spare Batteries for the radio were
mounted on the front fenders and an equipment rack was mounted on
the hood. Three spare gas cans were carried in the vehicle and more
could be mounted on the hood if necessary. A mount was put on the
right running board to hold a BREN light machinegun. The front and
rear bumpers had brackets for a tow bar in case the jeep had trouble
moving or got stuck. The windshields were removed during glider
landings and were delivered later as conditions permitted. This is an
interesting variation of the famous WWII jeep.