Intrepid Museum
The Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum is one of America’s leading historic, cultural and educational institutions. Opened in 1982, the Museum has welcomed more than 10 million visitors. The Museum is centered on the aircraft carrier Intrepid (CVS-11), one of the most successful ships in US history, and now a national historic landmark and one of the most unique attractions in New York City. In 1943, Intrepid was commissioned and served proudly in World War II. She went on to serve as one of the primary recovery vessels for NASA, three tours of duty off Vietnam, and submarine surveillance in the North Atlantic during the Cold War. Today she continues her service as a premiere educational center and a monument to all who have served our nation in uniform.
The Museum features a range of interactive exhibits and events providing a snapshot of heroism, education, and excitement. Children and adults alike find themselves immersed in and inspired by the Museum’s exhibits, which range from thrilling historical re-creations such as Kamikaze: Day of Darkness, Day of Light, to new interactive displays. Visitors also can ride in the A-6 Cockpit Simulator, visit the Virtual Flight Zone, and tour the inside of the Growler Submarine. More than 50,000 school children participate in the Museum’s unique educational programs every year. These programs cover every age group and include special initiatives such as character and leadership development. The Museum also hosts the annual Fleet Week celebration in honor of our military personnel.
Since 1982, the Intrepid has become a national icon. More than 915,000 people visit each year. The mission of the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum is to honor our heroes, educate the public and inspire our youth. As an educational and cultural not-for-profit institution centered on the aircraft carrier Intrepid, a National Historic Landmark, the Museum is dedicated to promoting the awareness and understanding of history, science and service through its collections, exhibitions and programming.
Intrepid Fallen Heroes Fund
The INTREPID FALLEN HEROES FUND (IFHF) is a leader in supporting the men and women of the Armed Forces and their families. Since 2000, IFHF has provided over $200 million in support for the families of military personnel lost in service to our nation, and for severely wounded military personnel. These efforts are funded entirely with donations from the public.
Until 2005 IFHF provided close to $20 million to families of United States and British military personnel lost in performance of their duty, mostly in service in Iraq and Afghanistan. In January 2007 IFHF completed construction of the Center for the Intrepid, a $55 million world-class state-of-the-art physical rehabilitation center at Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio, Texas that serves military personnel who have been catastrophically disabled during their service to our nation. In June 2010 IFHF opened the National Intrepid Center of Excellence (NICoE), a $60 million, 72,000 square foot facility located at the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, MD. Today NICoE is the Department of Defense’s lead facility for research, diagnosis and treatment of Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) and psychological health conditions, which afflict hundreds of thousands of military personnel.
In 2013 IFHF launched a new campaign to extend the care provided at NICoE to more service members suffering TBI. IFHF is building ten “Intrepid Spirit” centers at major military bases around the country. These centers act as satellites to the central NICoE facility and allow urgently needed care to be brought to more troops and closer to home. Over $100 million has been raised to date and the nine Intrepid Spirit centers are open and operating at Fort Belvoir, VA; Camp Lejeune, NC; Fort Campbell, KY; Fort Bragg, NC; Fort Hood, TX; Joint Base Lewis McChord, WA; Camp Pendleton, CA, Eglin Air Force Base, FL and Fort Carson, CO. A tenth Center is under construction at Fort Bliss, TX.
