All-
It has been 3 years ago today that we held our museum commissioning. It was a memorable experience for all present, especially the many veterans present.
The past 3 years have been exhilarating, challenging, eventful, enjoyable, and exciting. It has been a blessing for all of us to know each other on board IOWA. It has been a privilege to get to know each of you and I have the utmost respect for your dedication and contributions.
While we all have challenges (including myself), at the end of the day you are the best crew to be associated with. I couldn't ask for anything or anybody different.
The 4th year will be just as exciting! Thank you for being a part of the journey and the future!
Have a fun and safe 4th!
Sunday, July 5, 2015
Sunday, June 28, 2015
Three (3) Years of Battleship IOWA Museum in Los Angeles!
Crew, Supporters, and Friends:
Our adventure continues over the recent few weeks. I commend all of you for your continued hard work and support. As we look at July 4th, we must pat ourselves on the back for a job well done over the past 3 years. Can you believe it has only been 3 years?
We have had major accomplishments and it can be attributed to the great support and hard work that our entire team provides. The continued focus on the goals is astonishing and with the vast majority of the crew being volunteers, I commend you all for an amazing job well done.
Over the past few weeks the organization has continued its growth and strengthened its focus on guest experience. We have hosted a couple of important meetings which include the trustee / board get together, the board meeting, and the quarterly crew meeting. These meetings were all very positive in nature and have strengthened our ability as a crew to accomplish whatever we put our mind to.
Highlights include:
• Volunteer of the Quarter – Congratulations to Chris Nelson for receiving the volunteer of the
quarter award. Chris is always willing and able to do anything the ship needs or requires.
• Attendance – Attendance is up 26.5% year over year thru May. Great work to everyone that has helped spread word of the IOWA. It is with your continued support, that we are able to provide such a great experience to our guests.
• Revenue – Revenue is up. For the crew – I encourage you to attend the quarterly crew meetings for details.
• Fundraising – General fundraising is down year over year, but we are rapidly picking up pace. We have a few crew members assisting with development and we have submitted numerous grant requests over the past couple of months. We have also retained a fundraising consultant (thanks to a large contribution by Kehl Family Foundation) to help us build a strong foundation forward. Also starting in July, we are doing a direct mail campaign to generate contributions across the country. This program is at no up-front cost to our organization.
• Special Events – As many of you have noticed, our special events program has been extremely busy. Thank you to all crew members and supporters for their assistance and attendance at these great events. A special thank you, to all teams for working the long hours planning, setting up, breaking down, and providing a fun and secure time for our guests.
• Filming- We have had a few filming’s over the past month. A big filming was American Ninja Warrior. Please plan to watch this on July 6th and see our ship as an excellent backdrop.
• Membership – David Canfield has been hard at work programming Salesforce to be our primary member management system. I apologize to all of our crew and supporters that may have seen a lag (or lack) or member servicing. This is primarily due to a lack of efficient management system. We will see Salesforce doing its magic during July, with Tanya generating renewal notices over the next couple of months. Thank you for your continue patience and support.
• Operations – The OPS team has been hard at work painting, restoring, preserving and highlighting the ship. A big thank you to the OPS team for continually working on solving our head issue on board. Please reinforce all visitors and crew members to ONLY flush toilet paper down the toilets. Please no shirts, under garments, diapers, footballs, or anything else that may clog the system.
• Accounting – The finance team is hard at work finalizing our annual audit, which is due at the end of June. Thank you to this team for focusing on keeping us heading forward on finances.
• Education – Day of Discovery continues into the summer and I think we are close to expanding on this program in the future. Josh Stutz and his team of guides have provided an excellent experience to all of the kids that have visited. Keep up the great work!
• Museum - The IOWA Veterans Association exhibit is accelerating quickly, with a timeline of August for opening and completion (just in time for the Veterans reunion.) I commend Mike Getscher, Linda Ayers, Dave Way, and the rest of the team for their dedication and focus in achieving the objective.
In closing, I provide you with a statement that we use in many of our funding requests to help define who we are. Thank you again for your support, hard work, and continue assistance.
~JW
"The mission of the PBC is to celebrate the American spirit through the preservation and interpretation of the Battleship IOWA, to educate the public on the accomplishments and sacrifices of American patriots, and to engage our guests in unique and exciting ways that bring the ship to life by connecting the past with the future.
The goal of celebrating the American Spirit is fulfilled through providing educational programs for school children; tours that teach the public on the activities necessary at sea; public events that commemorate significant American dates; and, a community platform for engagement with and for veterans and community members. Our public outreach activities are dynamic and include learning opportunities through our website and social media, as well as participation in community activities. Today, our social media presence exceeds all museums in Los Angeles and includes over 310,000 loyal Facebook followers. The Pacific Battleship Center’s annual budget is $4,101,250 and currently doesn’t operate at a deficit."
Our adventure continues over the recent few weeks. I commend all of you for your continued hard work and support. As we look at July 4th, we must pat ourselves on the back for a job well done over the past 3 years. Can you believe it has only been 3 years?
 |
| Photo Credit: Johnny Wu |
Over the past few weeks the organization has continued its growth and strengthened its focus on guest experience. We have hosted a couple of important meetings which include the trustee / board get together, the board meeting, and the quarterly crew meeting. These meetings were all very positive in nature and have strengthened our ability as a crew to accomplish whatever we put our mind to.
Highlights include:
 |
| Photo Credit: Johnny Wu |
quarter award. Chris is always willing and able to do anything the ship needs or requires.
• Attendance – Attendance is up 26.5% year over year thru May. Great work to everyone that has helped spread word of the IOWA. It is with your continued support, that we are able to provide such a great experience to our guests.
• Revenue – Revenue is up. For the crew – I encourage you to attend the quarterly crew meetings for details.
• Fundraising – General fundraising is down year over year, but we are rapidly picking up pace. We have a few crew members assisting with development and we have submitted numerous grant requests over the past couple of months. We have also retained a fundraising consultant (thanks to a large contribution by Kehl Family Foundation) to help us build a strong foundation forward. Also starting in July, we are doing a direct mail campaign to generate contributions across the country. This program is at no up-front cost to our organization.
• Special Events – As many of you have noticed, our special events program has been extremely busy. Thank you to all crew members and supporters for their assistance and attendance at these great events. A special thank you, to all teams for working the long hours planning, setting up, breaking down, and providing a fun and secure time for our guests.
• Filming- We have had a few filming’s over the past month. A big filming was American Ninja Warrior. Please plan to watch this on July 6th and see our ship as an excellent backdrop.
• Membership – David Canfield has been hard at work programming Salesforce to be our primary member management system. I apologize to all of our crew and supporters that may have seen a lag (or lack) or member servicing. This is primarily due to a lack of efficient management system. We will see Salesforce doing its magic during July, with Tanya generating renewal notices over the next couple of months. Thank you for your continue patience and support.
• Operations – The OPS team has been hard at work painting, restoring, preserving and highlighting the ship. A big thank you to the OPS team for continually working on solving our head issue on board. Please reinforce all visitors and crew members to ONLY flush toilet paper down the toilets. Please no shirts, under garments, diapers, footballs, or anything else that may clog the system.
• Accounting – The finance team is hard at work finalizing our annual audit, which is due at the end of June. Thank you to this team for focusing on keeping us heading forward on finances.
• Education – Day of Discovery continues into the summer and I think we are close to expanding on this program in the future. Josh Stutz and his team of guides have provided an excellent experience to all of the kids that have visited. Keep up the great work!
• Museum - The IOWA Veterans Association exhibit is accelerating quickly, with a timeline of August for opening and completion (just in time for the Veterans reunion.) I commend Mike Getscher, Linda Ayers, Dave Way, and the rest of the team for their dedication and focus in achieving the objective.
In closing, I provide you with a statement that we use in many of our funding requests to help define who we are. Thank you again for your support, hard work, and continue assistance.
~JW
"The mission of the PBC is to celebrate the American spirit through the preservation and interpretation of the Battleship IOWA, to educate the public on the accomplishments and sacrifices of American patriots, and to engage our guests in unique and exciting ways that bring the ship to life by connecting the past with the future.
 |
| Photo Credits: Angelo Salarpi |
The goal of celebrating the American Spirit is fulfilled through providing educational programs for school children; tours that teach the public on the activities necessary at sea; public events that commemorate significant American dates; and, a community platform for engagement with and for veterans and community members. Our public outreach activities are dynamic and include learning opportunities through our website and social media, as well as participation in community activities. Today, our social media presence exceeds all museums in Los Angeles and includes over 310,000 loyal Facebook followers. The Pacific Battleship Center’s annual budget is $4,101,250 and currently doesn’t operate at a deficit."
Friday, May 29, 2015
Lots of events and hours at the IOWA!
Supporters and Crew:
It has been a busy couple of weeks at the Battleship IOWA, as I am certain many of you are aware. Our crewmembers had been hard at work in strengthening our role as a community platform.
Through our efforts, today Battleship IOWA has become a focal point for public education, civic engagement, and veteran outreach. We are proud to host numerous public, family, and charitable events over the past couple of weeks including the Navy Seal Special Warfare Family Foundation fundraiser, Music Under the Guns concert, Movie Under the Guns showing, Memorial Day, and Casino Night festivals. All of these events reach out to the community in various ways to help raise awareness for veterans and local causes.
We also hosted our largest Memorial Day event thus far. A special thank you, to the entire crew, and KRLA870 for a job well done in the planning and execution of this major event! We had a festival atmosphere on the pier and held the ceremony on the ship. We honored the service of our veterans and the fallen with this event and we look forward to making it greater in the future.
May’s Movie Under the Guns, featured Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom. We had over 350 in attendance for this free community night. Often, we get stories of how families that can’t usually afford to go the movies have an opportunity to go to the movies on our ship. These showings on the fantail help to create special memories. We are proud of our ability to serve our community with events such as these.
The operations team has been busy with line adjustment, painting, event setup, and numerous other activities. As always, they are focused and busy on the job at hand. We are always looking for more volunteers and donors for the maintenance of the ship. Consider assisting or volunteering if you have the time. We will help train you!
A shout out to the security team for a job well done on Memorial Day! They did an excellent job with crowd flow, as well as identifying a potential risk. It was a definitely a proud moment for the board members present and myself to see the job you performed.
The tour team must be exhausted with all of the busy school tours and days we have had lately. Thank you all for taking care of the Day of Discovery and maintaining your patience during the recent events and rope movements. You have done a commendable job!
On the Sales and Marketing side, Group Sales has been hard at work with last minute school bookings and tour operator follow-ups. I will guess that Craig Post could use some assistance for any crewmembers looking to get into sales. The dynamic duo of Todd Caleca and VJ (when not busy producing all of the events above) are hard at work selling space for private event rentals. We are having a great year thus far in Special Events and I look forward to the growth in this department.
The Education department led by Josh Stutz has been putting in some hours! He has been focused on the Day of Discovery program during the week and Camp Battleship on the weekend. Day of Discovery is becoming a popular program and we all know about the Camp Battleship program. One of our goals is to expand Day of Discovery and this will require searching for grant opportunities that would be interested. More on this topic soon!
Coming up in the near future, we will introduce a few new exhibits including the Iowa Veterans Association exhibit and the Stick-Art panels. We will welcome home the Iowa veterans in August during their annual reunion and we will also see visits by Third Fleet US Navy ships, which are arranged by the LA Navy Days.
Personally, my June work plan includes our upcoming Board of Directors and Trustees meetings. I am also working on some cooperative marketing with our LA Waterfront partners. June will have a large focus on Membership and Fundraising, with a particular focus on streamlining membership programs and renewals.
Until the next post, thank you for all that you do and have a wonderful start to summer 2015!
It has been a busy couple of weeks at the Battleship IOWA, as I am certain many of you are aware. Our crewmembers had been hard at work in strengthening our role as a community platform.
Through our efforts, today Battleship IOWA has become a focal point for public education, civic engagement, and veteran outreach. We are proud to host numerous public, family, and charitable events over the past couple of weeks including the Navy Seal Special Warfare Family Foundation fundraiser, Music Under the Guns concert, Movie Under the Guns showing, Memorial Day, and Casino Night festivals. All of these events reach out to the community in various ways to help raise awareness for veterans and local causes.
A special highlight was the Seal-NSW Family Foundation fundraiser. You can see pictures and video on our Facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/pacificbattleship). The IOWA played a central role in the event with fireworks, a mock airplane attack, and the firing of turret 1. We also had celebrities Gene Simmons, Sarah Palin, and Jim Brown on board for the event. It was exciting and I hear the Seal-NSW Family Foundation raised some much needed funding to support the families of our American warriors.
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| Photo Credit: Johnny Wu |
May’s Movie Under the Guns, featured Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom. We had over 350 in attendance for this free community night. Often, we get stories of how families that can’t usually afford to go the movies have an opportunity to go to the movies on our ship. These showings on the fantail help to create special memories. We are proud of our ability to serve our community with events such as these.
 |
| Photo Credit: Ross H. Tipps |
A shout out to the security team for a job well done on Memorial Day! They did an excellent job with crowd flow, as well as identifying a potential risk. It was a definitely a proud moment for the board members present and myself to see the job you performed.
The tour team must be exhausted with all of the busy school tours and days we have had lately. Thank you all for taking care of the Day of Discovery and maintaining your patience during the recent events and rope movements. You have done a commendable job!
On the Sales and Marketing side, Group Sales has been hard at work with last minute school bookings and tour operator follow-ups. I will guess that Craig Post could use some assistance for any crewmembers looking to get into sales. The dynamic duo of Todd Caleca and VJ (when not busy producing all of the events above) are hard at work selling space for private event rentals. We are having a great year thus far in Special Events and I look forward to the growth in this department.
The Education department led by Josh Stutz has been putting in some hours! He has been focused on the Day of Discovery program during the week and Camp Battleship on the weekend. Day of Discovery is becoming a popular program and we all know about the Camp Battleship program. One of our goals is to expand Day of Discovery and this will require searching for grant opportunities that would be interested. More on this topic soon!
Coming up in the near future, we will introduce a few new exhibits including the Iowa Veterans Association exhibit and the Stick-Art panels. We will welcome home the Iowa veterans in August during their annual reunion and we will also see visits by Third Fleet US Navy ships, which are arranged by the LA Navy Days.
Personally, my June work plan includes our upcoming Board of Directors and Trustees meetings. I am also working on some cooperative marketing with our LA Waterfront partners. June will have a large focus on Membership and Fundraising, with a particular focus on streamlining membership programs and renewals.
Until the next post, thank you for all that you do and have a wonderful start to summer 2015!
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| Photo Credit: Jim Gauderman Sr. |
Monday, May 11, 2015
Surge, pilings, patience, and community
Greetings!
For those that have been onboard the past couple of weeks, you may have experienced the craziness of the tidal surge, new pilings, and constant tour changes. Thank you for your patience!
The Port of Los Angeles did an incredible job with the installation of the pilings. This will help tremendously in providing us a secure mooring location. The operations team was hard at work on the necessary repairs to the gangway and adjusting mooring lines following the intense surge this past Monday. This was above and beyond their normal duties. Good job team!
Due to the pile driving and gangway repairs, the tour team and our guests were flexible in the rerouting of the normal tour route. There were almost daily changes on the tour route, but it was performed quite well. This coupled with hundreds of school kids showed the flexibility of the crew, especially the tour team. We appreciate the patience and dedication of all crew involved.
On Friday we played host to the French Legion ceremony in honor of the Victory in Europe during WWII. This was a well-attended ceremony and received positive nationwide media coverage. This is another great example of how we can provide a community platform for partner events.
Part of being a community asset includes working with our partners to help expand the reach of the LA Waterfront as a destination. This past week we hosted the second session teaching our partners on how to use Google AdWords to grow their business and reach. It was attended by approximately 10 community leaders and we are blessed to be able to help them grow their organizations.
We are in full swing planning the HNSA conference scheduled in September of 2015. Currently we are in the process of requesting submittals for presentations and are planning to include numerous experts. Included within the conference will be receptions, a boat tour, and a banquet on the IOWA. For IOWA crew interested in participating and volunteering, we will be able to provide special admission. Please stay tuned for more details. Current conference details can be found at: http://www.pacificbattleship.com/page/hnsa
On the fundraising front, we received a grant from the Confidence Foundation for our accessibility project. This grant was through an introduction from our newest board member, Arlo Sorensen. This project will allows us to provide better access to our guests with physical challenges. We still have a long way to go to raise the necessary funds, but we are moving in a positive direction.
Our current priorities for fundraising include Accessibility, Education, and Power. We have recently submitted a grant to go towards the power installation and have two additional grants due this month. Josh Stutz and Jerry Salazar (LAUSD) are hard at work preparing the necessary paperwork for grants towards the Day of Discovery. This program is very popular within the local school district and our goal is to expand it to reach additional at-risk students.
You may have noticed the number of special events we are hosting on board. The events team consisting of Todd Caleca and VJ Alcomindras are hard at work booking space onboard the ship. When they are not performing walk-throughs or preparing quotes, they are producing our internal events (which are numerous). They are always looking for volunteers that are interested in assisting with events, so please feel free to reach out to Sue or Todd to offer your assistance.
Memorial Day is coming up in a couple of weeks. I encourage everyone to join us in this special annual event. We will even have a special question & answer session with Bernie Kopell (USS Iowa Veteran and Love Boat Doctor.) It will be a special event and we look forward to your involvement.
Group sales are in the last minute push for the yearend field trip tours. As expected, we are receiving numerous calls to book student field trips. Thank you to the entire crew for your involvement and patience with the student groups.
In closing, thank you to the unsung heroes of the Battleship IOWA crew. Every department has the quiet heroes that keep the organization running. We couldn’t operate without every person’s involvement and for that- we are forever appreciative.
For those that have been onboard the past couple of weeks, you may have experienced the craziness of the tidal surge, new pilings, and constant tour changes. Thank you for your patience!
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| Credits: Ken Ken LaBruzzi |
Due to the pile driving and gangway repairs, the tour team and our guests were flexible in the rerouting of the normal tour route. There were almost daily changes on the tour route, but it was performed quite well. This coupled with hundreds of school kids showed the flexibility of the crew, especially the tour team. We appreciate the patience and dedication of all crew involved.
 |
| Credit: Ross H. Tipps |
Part of being a community asset includes working with our partners to help expand the reach of the LA Waterfront as a destination. This past week we hosted the second session teaching our partners on how to use Google AdWords to grow their business and reach. It was attended by approximately 10 community leaders and we are blessed to be able to help them grow their organizations.
We are in full swing planning the HNSA conference scheduled in September of 2015. Currently we are in the process of requesting submittals for presentations and are planning to include numerous experts. Included within the conference will be receptions, a boat tour, and a banquet on the IOWA. For IOWA crew interested in participating and volunteering, we will be able to provide special admission. Please stay tuned for more details. Current conference details can be found at: http://www.pacificbattleship.com/page/hnsa
On the fundraising front, we received a grant from the Confidence Foundation for our accessibility project. This grant was through an introduction from our newest board member, Arlo Sorensen. This project will allows us to provide better access to our guests with physical challenges. We still have a long way to go to raise the necessary funds, but we are moving in a positive direction.
Our current priorities for fundraising include Accessibility, Education, and Power. We have recently submitted a grant to go towards the power installation and have two additional grants due this month. Josh Stutz and Jerry Salazar (LAUSD) are hard at work preparing the necessary paperwork for grants towards the Day of Discovery. This program is very popular within the local school district and our goal is to expand it to reach additional at-risk students.
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| Credit: Todd James! |
Memorial Day is coming up in a couple of weeks. I encourage everyone to join us in this special annual event. We will even have a special question & answer session with Bernie Kopell (USS Iowa Veteran and Love Boat Doctor.) It will be a special event and we look forward to your involvement.
Group sales are in the last minute push for the yearend field trip tours. As expected, we are receiving numerous calls to book student field trips. Thank you to the entire crew for your involvement and patience with the student groups.
In closing, thank you to the unsung heroes of the Battleship IOWA crew. Every department has the quiet heroes that keep the organization running. We couldn’t operate without every person’s involvement and for that- we are forever appreciative.
Friday, April 24, 2015
Travel, security rocks, education is launching, and fun is in the air
I will say up front that I apologize for not posting for about a month. There have been a lot of exciting things keeping us all busy!
In opening, I ask that our supporters and crew keep those members of the IOWA family in their thoughts and prayers that are dealing with challenges, health issues, or loss. We have lost two crewmembers in the past week and it is always difficult to hear the news, but we can't even imagine what their family is going through.
Part of the reason my blog is late is due to my travels to the states of Iowa and Maryland. We had a great visit with our supporters in Iowa and a great board meeting with our fellow museum ships in Annapolis. We are hosting the HNSA conference this year from September 16 to 19th. Please consider attending!
The LAUSD Day of Discovery kicked off the past couple of weeks with great success. Our partnership with the school district is tremendous and we are exposing numerous kids to the IOWA and STEM learning. In addition to this program, they have assisted flawlessly in our partnership with ITEP to do an underwater robotics program. I commend Mike Getscher, Josh Stutz, and the entire education guide team for a job well done.
Our spring break attendance was very good this year and the Easter brunch sold out. Good job to the events team and all volunteers that helped during spring break and the Easter brunch. Your help is what made it successful.
The operations team has been busy as usual on maintenance and restoration. Notice the dress ship painting going on? How about the security shack? The deck preparation? The wood for sale? Or the Iowa Veterans Association space? Thank these team members for their humble participation.
We hosted the families of the Iowa 47 and Veterans from the USS Iowa on April 19, 2015 for the 26th anniversary of that tragic event. It was a touching memorial service and the support by the crew was emotional and embracing. Every year this service brings new meaning and helps define who we are. I personally thank the families and veterans for allowing us to play a small part in remembering their friends and loved ones.
An enormous thank you to our security team, for embracing the change to the parking policy and security shack! The security teams are the unsung heroes in making parking for all volunteers come true. Without their support and participation, we wouldn't be able to bring the parking to fruition. Please thank them when you pick up or drop off your daily parking pass. They deserve it!
We need all of your help to recruit crew members for the summer. It will be busy and exciting. Please call your friends and fellow crewmembers to encourage their participation on the Battleship.
We played host to the Navy Days LA committee this past week and we look forward to supporting the annual Navy visit in August. We hope to have as much fun as we did last year!
What are we doing on the fundraising front? We are raising funds for a few important projects. They include power and accessibility. We are also working on STEM education programming funding to expand and operate the Day of Discovery. If any of this interests you, please email us at development@labattleship.com.
What is coming on the horizon?
-The second deck expansion including the Iowa Veterans Association exhibit.
-Sticks art panel exhibit in the museum.
-Veterans Association visit in August.
-HNSA visit in September.
-Day of Discovery expansion.
I am certain there is much more that I am not aware of. Pat yourselves on the back for the dedication and hard work necessary to pull it off.
In closing, we are eternally grateful for your involvement and participation. I know that sometimes things get rough, but as a family we always pull through. Remember that we are doing an enormous task and are admired by many for our amazing job.
Be safe, have fun, and take care of each other.
Tuesday, April 21, 2015
Loss of two great Battleship IOWA Crewmembers
All-
We have lost two tremendous and dedicated crew members over the previous week. It is always difficult for us to say goodbye to people that have committed their efforts to our ship, but it is much more difficult for their families to say goodbye to a life long companion.
As a crew, we will keep their families in our prayers and thoughts as we continue our daily work to preserve the Battleship IOWA. We plan to have a memorial wall to honor our shipmates installed by the end of 2015.
We have lost two tremendous and dedicated crew members over the previous week. It is always difficult for us to say goodbye to people that have committed their efforts to our ship, but it is much more difficult for their families to say goodbye to a life long companion.
As a crew, we will keep their families in our prayers and thoughts as we continue our daily work to preserve the Battleship IOWA. We plan to have a memorial wall to honor our shipmates installed by the end of 2015.
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| Alan Lowe Ship Operations |
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| Carl Clausen Tour "American Spirit" |
Friday, March 27, 2015
Fun in the sun, a ships stroll, and Easter!
Hello crew and supporters!
Over the past couple of weeks, we have had a lot of warm weather and good attendance. We are headed into spring break with a strong momentum!
As some of you know, we have worked with the Port of Los Angeles on a parking resolution. While it is not perfect, it will still be a positive thing for us. We appreciate everyone’s patience as we roll out this program.
Part of the parking program includes a new security shack that you may see being built in the northern yard. John (a local carpenter) was kind enough to come in and help build the shack. He has done a great job and I am hoping we can recruit him to stick around as part of the wood deck crew.
Speaking of wood, Stan Sato was honored this past crew meeting as the volunteer of the quarter. This award is well deserved for Stan and we are proud to have him as our first winner. The recipient is selected by a jury of peers and I personally did not know it was him until an hour before the meeting was to start. I want to thank everyone that participated in the process and we look forward to honoring future recipients!
I have been strolling the ship these past couple of days and have had the opportunity to pop into areas that I haven’t seen in a while. The veteran’s exhibit is coming along nicely with the beautiful paint job in the space. The Bobby Scott cabin is fully decorated and ready to open soon! The wardroom movie is almost live and the wardroom itself is cleaned up! The wood decks aft are being working on with the steel being cleaned up the last week. There is a lot of excitement at the ship and the crew is hard at work to provide a great visitor experience. Thank you to all of the crew for the focus on completing these exciting projects!
Last week, I was at the HNSA board meeting where we met on numerous things including the future conference in September. We are excited to play host to our fellow ships and are looking forward to an educational and enjoyable conference. The IOWA crew is already working on creating one of our stellar events.
On Thursday, March 27th, we hosted our LA Waterfront partners for a meeting in the wardroom. This coalition has come together and created a collaboration that will help move the waterfront forward. As a member of this group, we have helped develop the waterfront passport and provided work together for future programs and products. We also heard that our neighbor LA Maritime Museum has a real neat exhibit coming up soon! It is our hope to have a small role in publicizing it.
On the fundraising front, we are working on a few key areas of interest this year. They are interactive education, accessibility, power, aviation, hull maintenance, and continued deck replacement. We have some strong early interest and we are hoping to grow our organization locally and nationally with our programs.
Memorial Day is shaping up to be an exciting event with our partners at KRLA. We will have Bernie Kopell coming to the IOWA to do a Q&A along with our Memorial Day ceremonies. This will be a fun event to put on your calendars.
Speaking of events, don’t forget to join us for Easter Brunch in April. The Easter Bunny will show up and the brunch will be invigorating. Hope to see you there.
Thank you again to all of our supporters and crew members for staying passionately involved!
Over the past couple of weeks, we have had a lot of warm weather and good attendance. We are headed into spring break with a strong momentum!
 |
| Photo Credit: Ross H. Tipps |
As some of you know, we have worked with the Port of Los Angeles on a parking resolution. While it is not perfect, it will still be a positive thing for us. We appreciate everyone’s patience as we roll out this program.
Part of the parking program includes a new security shack that you may see being built in the northern yard. John (a local carpenter) was kind enough to come in and help build the shack. He has done a great job and I am hoping we can recruit him to stick around as part of the wood deck crew.
Speaking of wood, Stan Sato was honored this past crew meeting as the volunteer of the quarter. This award is well deserved for Stan and we are proud to have him as our first winner. The recipient is selected by a jury of peers and I personally did not know it was him until an hour before the meeting was to start. I want to thank everyone that participated in the process and we look forward to honoring future recipients!
 |
| Photo Credit: Ross H. Tipps |
I have been strolling the ship these past couple of days and have had the opportunity to pop into areas that I haven’t seen in a while. The veteran’s exhibit is coming along nicely with the beautiful paint job in the space. The Bobby Scott cabin is fully decorated and ready to open soon! The wardroom movie is almost live and the wardroom itself is cleaned up! The wood decks aft are being working on with the steel being cleaned up the last week. There is a lot of excitement at the ship and the crew is hard at work to provide a great visitor experience. Thank you to all of the crew for the focus on completing these exciting projects!
Last week, I was at the HNSA board meeting where we met on numerous things including the future conference in September. We are excited to play host to our fellow ships and are looking forward to an educational and enjoyable conference. The IOWA crew is already working on creating one of our stellar events.
On Thursday, March 27th, we hosted our LA Waterfront partners for a meeting in the wardroom. This coalition has come together and created a collaboration that will help move the waterfront forward. As a member of this group, we have helped develop the waterfront passport and provided work together for future programs and products. We also heard that our neighbor LA Maritime Museum has a real neat exhibit coming up soon! It is our hope to have a small role in publicizing it.
On the fundraising front, we are working on a few key areas of interest this year. They are interactive education, accessibility, power, aviation, hull maintenance, and continued deck replacement. We have some strong early interest and we are hoping to grow our organization locally and nationally with our programs.
Memorial Day is shaping up to be an exciting event with our partners at KRLA. We will have Bernie Kopell coming to the IOWA to do a Q&A along with our Memorial Day ceremonies. This will be a fun event to put on your calendars.
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| Photo Credit: Ross H. Tipps |
Thank you again to all of our supporters and crew members for staying passionately involved!
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