The Indian River Citrus Museum at the Heritage Center in Downtown Vero Beach is one of more than 1,800 museums across America to offer free admission to military personnel and their families this summer in collaboration with the National Endowment for the Arts, Blue Star Families, and the Department of Defense.

 The complete list of participating museums is available at www.arts.gov/bluestarmuseums.  The effort to recruit museums has involved partnerships with the American Association of Museums, the Association of Art Museum Directors, the Association of Children’s Museums, the American Association of State and Local History, and the Association of Science-Technology Centers. Among this year’s new participants are the J. Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles, California, Grand Traverse Lighthouse Museum in Northport, Michigan, the Totem Heritage Center in Ketchikan, Alaska, and the World Museum of Mining in Butte, Montana.

 The Indian River Citrus Museum is part of the Heritage Center building in Pocahontas Park.  The building, listed on the National Register of Historic Places, was built in 1935 as the original Community Center for the city.  It has been in continuous use since that date and it was restored and renovated in 1991.  Preservation of this historic building is ongoing and it remains a valuable link to Vero Beach’s past while continuing to serve the community.  The Museum is open Tuesday through Friday, 10 AM to 4 PM.  More information is available at www.veroheritage.org or by calling 772-770-2263.

 According to Citrus Museum/Heritage Center executive director, Rebecca Rickey, “We are very pleased to be a Blue Star Museum. Although we charge no admission for any of our visitors we hope that our participation in this program will encourage military members and their families to visit us. With Patrick Air Force Base nearby we have a lot of potential visitors.  A number of our staff members and volunteers are veterans, including myself, and we can fully appreciate this effort to thank military members and their families for their service to our country.”