March 1, 2023

Dear Friends,

The team at the National Museum of the Surface Navy at the Battleship IOWA is always looking for ways to share our passion for preserving and showcasing the legacy of the oldest and largest community in the Navy – the Surface Navy. Our goal is to open Phase 1 of the National Museum on October 13, 2025, and we are well on our way to achieving that goal.

Our crew is comprised of a small but mighty paid staff and a significant number of volunteers dedicated to our mission. Working aboard IOWA, our volunteers find deep social connections and opportunities to provide value to an essential community platform. Without our crew, we would be a stagnant museum solely reflective of past generations. Instead, we are a vibrant center of waterfront activity and impactful connection.

Battleship IOWA is a 7-day per week, 24-hour per day responsibility, which can take its toll on the team during crises like the recent California storms. While these events may appear to be simply storms, their cascading effects have exposed deck leaks, reduced attendance, diverted resources, caused damage, and ultimately decreased revenue.

There are bright spots, too. We are grateful to be able to recognize individuals like volunteer crewmember CAPT Rich Abele, USN (Ret.), who have stepped forward to help cover some of the costs incurred during the most recent storm.

COO Mike Getscher (left) receives a generous check from CAPT Rich Abele (right)

As we strive to achieve measurable progress, we continue to seek funds and support in all areas, including administration, technical, maintenance, sales & marketing, fundraising, and more. We have seventeen (17) different departments, all of which have been resourced at differing levels since our establishment in 2012.

Volunteers and donors alike step forward to help when they find a specific arena that inspires them. From behind-the-scenes endeavors such as accounting, to forward-facing jobs such as education, this organization presents no shortage of opportunities for support.

Our team works constantly to find the delicate balance between passion, innovation, and focus. Passion feeds critical support, innovation drives the future, and focus is essential to maximize the limited resources available.

We have made significant progress on Goal #1 – opening Phase 1 of the National Museum of the Surface Navy. Our recent investments in experience design, space mapping, ambassador committees, infrastructure, and programming have been critical to achieving this goal.

We have made transformative structural changes that have involved functional leadership, management empowerment, and crew engagement and affected areas such as marketing, advertising, volunteer recruitment, preservation and maintenance, technology, development, administrative, revenue generation, and more.

As we look to the future, your support remains critical. Hull preservation, for example, may not sound exciting, but it is our most important annual fund campaign.

Preventative hull maintenance ensures the ship remains afloat and able to function as a community platform for our diverse set of programs and services as well as an iconic symbol of freedom and the Surface Navy for future generations. Just like the foundation of your house, investing in hull preservation makes certain that Battleship IOWA will live on for generations to come.

We invite you to invest in the future of Battleship IOWA to ensure she continues to serve the community and evolve into the inspirational museum of the future – the National Museum of the Surface Navy at the Battleship IOWA.

Thank you for your support. I look forward to continuing to share our progress with you.

Best regards,

Jonathan Williams
President & CEO