Brad Jones is a military veteran, Forest City Elementary School principal, Armed Forces Historical Center of North Iowa executive board vice chair and volunteer who helped paint the museum interior. The WWII barracks building that came to Forest City from Algona will be the Armed Forces Historical Center of North Iowa. It and two other former Algona POW barracks helped draw the "Silent Night in Algona" movie crew to Heritage Park.
Vintage WWII barracks, with fascinating history itself, is being transformed into a military veterans museum on the Heritage Park grounds in Forest City. The Armed Forces Historical Center of North Iowa is slated to open to the public sometime this summer.
From left, Trevor Kibler, Dawn Arispe, and Rick Christenson are shown with large hams that were donated by God's Blessings in Wells, Minnesota. Christenson and his grandson, Kibler, brought the donated hams to Heritage Park of North Iowa in Forest City, represented by Arispe.
The interior of a WWII barracks building that came to Forest City from Algona will be the Armed Forces Historical Center of North Iowa. It and two other former Algona POW barracks helped draw the "Silent Night in Algona" movie crew to Heritage Park.
Years of work by members of Forest City and surrounding communities – among others – has brought the vision of a northern Iowa military veterans museum to the brink of reality.
Editor's note: AFHCNI contributed information and photos for this story.
Rob Hillesland is community editor for the Summit-Tribune. He can be reached at 641-421-0534, or by email at rob.hillesland@globegazette.com.
The AFHCNI executive board includes:
• Chair Kingland
• Vice chair Brad Jones
• Secretary Veronica Maas
• Treasurer Lee Lambert
• Property Committee co-chair Keith Brcka
• Property Committee co-chair Jared Kearney
• Fundraising Committee chair Loren Swenson
• Long Range Planning Committee chair Michael Brown
• Marketing and Communications Committee Chair Norma Hertzer
• Operations Committee Chair Troy Thompson
• Winnebago Historical Society Representative Riley Lewis
• Winnebago Historical Society Representative Dan Davis
• Heritage Park of North Iowa Representative Dawn Arispe
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Brad Jones is a military veteran, Forest City Elementary School principal, Armed Forces Historical Center of North Iowa executive board vice chair and volunteer who helped paint the museum interior. The WWII barracks building that came to Forest City from Algona will be the Armed Forces Historical Center of North Iowa. It and two other former Algona POW barracks helped draw the "Silent Night in Algona" movie crew to Heritage Park.
Vintage WWII barracks, with fascinating history itself, is being transformed into a military veterans museum on the Heritage Park grounds in Forest City. The Armed Forces Historical Center of North Iowa is slated to open to the public sometime this summer.
From left, Trevor Kibler, Dawn Arispe, and Rick Christenson are shown with large hams that were donated by God's Blessings in Wells, Minnesota. Christenson and his grandson, Kibler, brought the donated hams to Heritage Park of North Iowa in Forest City, represented by Arispe.
The interior of a WWII barracks building that came to Forest City from Algona will be the Armed Forces Historical Center of North Iowa. It and two other former Algona POW barracks helped draw the "Silent Night in Algona" movie crew to Heritage Park.
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