Boeing, NavyArmy Credit Union give to aquarium. Firms each present the facility with a check for $10,000
By Susan Harr - January 20, 2009
CORPUS CHRISTI — Crowds lined the walkway outside the Texas State Aquarium, eager to pay the special $1 admittance fee Monday morning.
Meanwhile inside, aquarium officials had money on the mind, too, when they announced $20,000 in gifts. A number of representatives from the
Boeing Company were on hand to present a $10,000 check that will fund the expansion of the aquarium's Conservation Cove and construction of
Eagle Pass, a raptor conservation exhibit.
The Navy Army Community Credit Union presented a second $10,000 check to underwrite the costs of NavyArmy Dollar Day, the program that allowed
visitors to gain $1 admission to the aquarium Monday and future days. "These types of contributions help the aquarium expand its experience,"
said Mary McQueen, the aquarium's chief development officer. Eagle Pass is an outdoor exhibit created to display birds, particularly Grace, a
bald eagle who was rehabilitated in Alaska and calls the aquarium home, McQueen said. Aquarium board member Deneece Squires said she
knows how these donations impact the aquarium's visual and educational presence in the community. The construction of the Conservation Cove
has transformed the aquarium experience, she said. "It's easy for aquariums and zoos to let their facilities get old and rundown, but the aquarium
does a great job of keeping exhibits fresh and new so people come back," Squires said.
She is especially excited about the development of Eagle Pass. "I'm thrilled," she said. "I've never seen a real bald eagle except in a zoo. I think
it's very important in terms of conservation and understanding our role in nature." The aquarium doesn't receive any money from the city, Nueces
County or state. It depends heavily on donations to expand its exhibits and spread the message of conservation and environmental responsibility,
McQueen said.
"You don't vacation in your back yard very often," she said. "This is a way for the aquarium and its partners to give a gift to the community so that
individuals who don't have disposable income to come to aquarium still have access to the wonderful exhibits of animals, wildlife and marine life
that contribute to the important story of conservation."
