Military museum will remain open this year

To those visitors who hadn't called in advance or checked the web site, the big "Open" flag in front of the Military Museum of Southern New England on Sunday was a welcome sight.

It will stay there, at least until December, said Samuel Johnson, the museum's executive director.

Members of the board of directors, still stunned by the sudden death of the facility's founder and primary benefactor, John Valluzzo, voted Friday to keep the Park Avenue museum open for business through the end of this season, Johnson said.

The hours, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday, and noon to 5 p.m. on Sunday, will remain unchanged.

After looking over the books, board members realized that admission fees would provide sufficient revenue "to keep the lights on," Johnson said.

What will happen afterward to the museum, home to the largest private collection of military vehicles and tanks in the Northeast, as well displays and artifacts from every major United States conflict from World War I to the present, has yet to be determined.

The museum closed for two weeks after the death of the 75-year-old Valluzzo just before Memorial Day. Valluzzo was shot to death after he failed to drop his gun when ordered to do so by a Ridgefield police officer who responded to a domestic disturbance at Valluzzo's home on Ridgebury Road.

The shooting remains under investigation by Connecticut State Police.

"We just felt there was no reason not to reopen it," musuem board member Paul Mangiafico, of Newtown, said. "We're open for business. It's a great museum and it's in a great location. John put his heart and soul into it."

Jim Crossen, a former Marine from Wilton, was one of its visitors Sunday, along with his wife, Kerry, and their two sons, Caiden, 4 and Jack, 6.

"I always saw the signs and the tanks parked in front when I drove by, and I always wanted to check it out," Crossen said.

He said he checked the web site to make sure the museum was open before leaving home.

"The kids love the models," Kerry Crossen said, referring to the numerous, highly detailed dioramas featuring scale models of some of the full-size exhibits that are on display throughout the museum.

"That's what they play with at home," she said.

Johnson said the museum, which opened in 1995, attracts more than 8,000 visitors from April though December. It operates a reduced schedule, on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays, the rest of the year.

Attendance always goes up during the monthly "open turret" days, when visitors, especially children, get the opportunity to step inside many of the armored vehicles. The next turret event is scheduled for June 29-30.

Between the admission fees and the stepped-up efforts of many of the museum's 50 active volunteers, "We'll see how long we can go," Johnson said.

In addition to financing, Valluzzo was closely involved in planning displays and other special projects.

Because of his death, an exhibit on atomic warfare, intended to coincide with the anniversary of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima during World War II, had to be shelved, and the museum's long-term financial outlook is uncertain, Johnson said.

Historically, the museum has not been successful in obtaining grants, with the money received usually being offset by the costs of applying for them, Johnson said. The last state funding the museum received was in 1995, and that was just a portion of what was promised.

"We've filled the gap with sweat," he said, referring to the efforts of volunteers.

"What we really need is someone with a passion for military history or a philanthropist at heart," Johnson said. "This is the place, this is the time."
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