The Military Museum of Fort Worth will remain open for now thanks to a lifeline that appeared just a day before they closed their doors for good.
On Friday the group Roll Call announced that they will help fund the museum in west Fort Worth for the next 6 months.
At the beginning of the year the museum announced they would close their doors on Dorothy Lane as of March 11 due to a lack of funds.
The Military Museum was opened about 8 years ago by Tyler Alberts but their location in a small building near the UNT Health Science Center, but well off the beaten path in a local neighborhood, has made drawing visitors a struggle.
"Unfortunately being a bunch of middle class guys without a lot of marketing experience, we seemed to have failed to get our message out to the general public," said Alberts. "We just weren’t getting any visitors."
Alberts said attention for the museum dramatically increased when news of the closure hit local media, but the end still looked inevitable until Roll Call came into the picture.
The group’s founder Kevin Boldt said Roll Call’s mission is to preserve the legacy of the US military through monthly luncheons and an on-going project called the Texas KIA Project.
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A partnership with the museum seemed like a no-brainer for the group.
"Fort Worth needs this museum," said Boldt. "This is the only military history museum in Fort Worth and it’s a small museum but we want to grow."
Boldt and Alberts plan to use the next 6 months to find better ways to increase traffic and grow the museum.
Boldt said he’d love to ultimately move the museum to a better, larger location and see the groups work together in a permanent alliance.
Alberts said he plans to make the most out of the partnership to see the museum continue its mission of honoring the people who have served.
The Military Museum of Fort Worth has a rotating collection of about 13000 artifacts and tells the story of the military through the stories of actual service members who fought in various eras.
"The last thing I could ever think of is to put their stories away in a box," said Alberts.
The museum is free to enter but encourages donations to continue their mission. They are located at 712 Dorothy Lane and are open Wednesday through Saturday.
