Military museum is meeting topic

4/30/2001

A Toledo nonprofit group that wants to establish a military museum in northwest Ohio will explain its purpose when it meets at 7 tonight in the lobby of the Government Center.

The Last Patrol wants to turn the old Bay View Armory in Point Place into a military museum.

The city bought the 65-year-old, 86,000-square-foot North Toledo landmark from the state in 1997 for $80,000.

“My main drive in this is to make the children and young people not only to understand the U.S. military history but the history of the area as well,” Jeff Nowakowski, the group's co-founder, said.

Mr. Nowakowski, 29, a Toledo electrical engineer, and his brother, John, 36, a Marine veteran who served in Beirut, started their 15-member group seven years ago to bring about a military museum in Toledo.

They envision a museum featuring arms and equipment from every branch of the service where area veterans or their families can keep their memorabilia, he said.

The meeting is the first of a series of four workshops scheduled through October to determine whether the plan has grass-roots support. Topics will include the preservation of the armory, acquisition and display of retired military equipment, and preservation and storage of veterans' personal mementos.