U.S. Army veteran Jim Joyce said people in Henry County, and beyond, are clamoring to see an upcoming mobile display for the Heritage Park Veterans Museum in McDonough.

  “It’s not limited to Henry County,” said Joyce, museum curator and facility coordinator for the county’s Parks and Recreation Department. “I’ve already received an e-mail from the American Legion in Macon requesting that it come and make a visit to them. I’ve also been contacted by the American Legion post in Marietta for the same thing.”

  The mobile display will hit the road in the coming months, paying visits to facilities including schools, senior centers, hospices, and nursing homes. Doing so, said Joyce, will allow him to take the museum to people who would otherwise not be able to enjoy it.

  “I am sincerely hoping that we can start going out to locations March 1,” said Joyce. “We’re going to have at least one small vehicle that we will carry with us. We’re going to load up with artifacts, pictures, uniforms and information about the history of the American armed forces.”

  Joyce said the trailer was made possible by donations from visitors to the museum, at 101 Lake Dow Road, as well as a donation from McDonough Tourism.

  “For the museum and for the trailer, there’s been no cost to the taxpayer in the county at all,” he said. “That’s because the families and the people that live in Henry County are so supportive of the military, past and present. That community support has enabled us to gather enough donation dollars to make this all happen.”

  He said the next step is to install shelving to house the displays, to be rotated from time to time.

  The museum at Heritage Park opened in 2010 and features memorabilia from every war from World War I onward. Its volunteer staff — all of whom are veterans themselves — create displays, catalog donations and guide visitors on tours of the facility. Most of the items on display at the museum are donations from veterans or their families. Joyce said the museum is the only installation of its kind not located on a military base.

  He added that area residents are “excited” about the prospect of the mobile display coming to them.

  “This is a way for us to give back to the community that supports us, and this community truly supports its veterans,” he said. “It means that the museum is not just located in one place, but that we can bring history to those who might not be able to visit, like people in nursing homes or hospices, in addition to schools and other organizations.”

  The museum at Heritage Park features vehicles, uniforms, and artifacts, a display of two Henry County Medal of Honor recipients, a library room and an area designated for fallen service members. The latter component, said Joyce, is “unique to anywhere in the country.”

  “There’s not another museum or any type of location that has a Wall of Honor for fallen servicemen and women that’s not on a military installation,” he said.

  However, he emphasized that the Wall of Honor will not be included as part of the mobile display.

  The museum is open to the public Monday through Friday from 10 a.m., to 4 p.m., and admission is free. Donations are accepted.

  For more information, call Jim Joyce at 404-831-9740, visit www.heritageparkveteransmuseum.com or see the museum’s page on Facebook.