FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
TH“MIGHTY MO” WELCOMES MILESTONE 500,000

VISITOR IN 2013
thPearl Harbor, HI – (November 21, 2013) – The Battleship Missouri Memorial today welcomed its 500,000 paidvisitor in 2013, achieving a new milestone and fulfilling a major goal set 15 years ago when the retired USS Missouri
was berthed at its permanent home in Pearl Harbor.
thFelix Garcia of Phoenix, Arizona was the 500,000 visitor to the “Mighty Mo” arriving at 2:00 pm. Felix, joined by hiswife Erika, was presented with a commemorative USS Missouri coin and official USS Missouri hat by Michael A. Carr,President and COO of the Battleship Missouri Memorial.
Carr commented, “Crossing the half-million mark in visitors for a single year is a significant feat that is a tribute to thetireless dedication and hard work of our employees and volunteers over our first 15 years. The Battleship Missouri
Memorial’s popularity reflects its evolution into a magnificent showcase for anyone who appreciates our nation’shistory.”
When the Missouri was relocated to Pier Foxtrot 5 at Pearl Harbor’s Ford Island in 1998, the board of directors for theUSS Missouri Memorial Association put forth a strategic plan with a number of major goals to ensure its long-term
viability as a world-class historical attraction. The other goals, such as paying off millions of dollars in bank loans tobring the Missouri to Hawaii and placing the battleship in dry-dock for a thorough refurbishment, have all beenaccomplished.
Welcoming 500,000 paid visitors in a calendar year was the Association’s last major goal to fulfill, and the Battleship
Missouri Memorial achieved it for the first time with more than five weeks to spare.
In addition to paid visitors, the Battleship Missouri Memorial also serves as a popular site to host special events andmilitary ceremonies, including re-enlistment, promotion and retirement ceremonies for service members. To date, theMissouri has hosted more than 1,000 special events and ceremonies in 2012 – averaging more than three per day.
Stretching three football fields long and standing 20 stories tall from keel to mast, the Mighty Mo was instrumental tovictory in major battles of the Pacific, before serving as the memorable site where General Douglas MacArthur andthe Allied Forces accepted Imperial Japan’s surrender to end World War II and restore world peace on September 2,1945. The Missouri’s “Surrender Deck” is a must-see site where visitors can stand in the same spot where theceremony took place ending the war.
Battleship Missouri Memorial
The Battleship Missouri Memorial is open daily from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. General admission, which includes choiceof an optional tour, is $22 per adult and $11 per child (4-12). Military, kama‘aina (local resident) and school grouppricing is available. For information or reservations, call (toll-free) 1-877-644-4896 or visit USSMissouri.org.
The Battleship Missouri Memorial, located a mere ship’s length from the USS Arizona Memorial, completes ahistorical visitor experience that begins with the “day of infamy” and the sinking of the USS Arizona in Pearl Harborand ends with Imperial Japan’s surrender aboard the USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay.
Following an astounding career that spans five decades and three wars, from World War II to the Korean conflict tothe Liberation of Kuwait, the “Mighty Mo” was decommissioned and donated to the USS Missouri Memorial

Association, Inc., a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, which operates the battleship as a historic attraction andmemorial.
The Association oversees her care and preservation with the support of visitors, memberships, grants and thegenerosity of donors.
###Images provided courtesy of the Battleship Missouri Memorial

Link to image: http://i.imgur.com/hwdlX8D.jpg
Caption: Felix Garcia with his wife, Erika (middle), was presented with a commemorative USS Missouri coin andofficial USS Missouri hat by Michael A. Carr, President and COO of the Battleship Missouri Memorial.

Link to image: http://i.imgur.com/9VYUl5I.jpg
Caption: Felix Garcia (left) with wife, Erika (right) under the historic Gun Turret One aboard the USS Missouri.
Media Contact:
Patrick Dugan808-539-3411/808-741-2712
Patrick.Dugan@AnthologyGroup.com
Jaclyn Hawse(808) 455-1600 x246
JaclynH@ussmissouri.org