CLAY COUNTY, Fla. — Less than 24 hours after Action News Jax reported on the Military Museum of North Florida’s struggle to replace its failing air-conditioning system, the community delivered.
On Thursday, crews with Willman Air spent hours installing a brand-new air-conditioning unit at the museum free of charge.
Museum leaders say the new unit will help protect thousands of military artifacts, documents and pieces of history housed inside the museum’s historic World War II-era Quonset hut.
Earlier this week, museum officials warned that the aging system had failed, leaving the building vulnerable to extreme summer temperatures. Leaders feared the heat could damage irreplaceable artifacts and even force the museum to close temporarily.
The museum, located on Bunker Road in Green Cove Springs, operates entirely through donations and volunteer efforts. President Virmara “Nene” Landfair previously told Action News Jax the organization had only about $2,000 in the bank and could not afford the estimated $6,000 cost of a replacement unit.
Following Action News Jax’s report, Willman Air stepped forward and donated both the new system and the installation.
“It was just so overwhelming because I was like, we’re going to have to close down,” Landfair said before the donation was announced. “This is one of the free items that people can come to and they can spend hours here. And we all are really just volunteers. We love it.”
The museum welcomes about 2,000 visitors each year and preserves military artifacts and stories spanning multiple wars and generations of service members.
While the immediate A/C crisis has been resolved, museum leaders say donations remain important to help cover other operational expenses and future preservation efforts. The museum still plans to host upcoming fundraisers, including the No Man’s Land Chili Challenge in September and the Whistling Death 5K and 10K in October.
A lot can change in the matter of a week. The Military Museum of North Florida is proof.
Less than seven days after Action News Jax shared the museum’s struggle with a failing AC unit, blessings from the community keep coming their way.
On top of the new AC, the spouse of one of their former volunteers who passed away brought in a check to fix a jeep.
“We have been trying to fix for years, but didn’t have the money. We’re going to name the Jeep after Mr. Toby, an awesome soul,” said Nene
For now, museum leaders say they can breathe a little easier knowing both visitors and the artifacts they work to preserve will stay cool.
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