Free admission to South Florida museums for service members and their families

At ease, soldier!

Report with your family on the double to Bonnet House and Gardens in Fort Lauderdale or to one of 16 other South Florida museums and gardens for some needed R&R.

Beginning Memorial Day, the Blue Star Museum program's Operation Appreciation will offer free entry to more than 1,600 U.S. museums for active-duty military and their families. The program will run through Sept. 3.
Tropical tranquillity abounds at Bonnet House, the historic 35-acre estate of Frederic and Evelyn Bartlett.

Swans glide across the lily pond and wander among the orchids, one of the largest collections in the Southeast. Manatees and wild Costa Rican squirrel monkeys occasionally drift into the Boathouse Canal.

"We are delighted to offer free admission to military members and their families as a thank you for serving our country," says Monica Estevez, marketing manager for the nonprofit museum. "They can experience a part of Florida's history and also enjoy our beautiful grounds. Be sure to stop by to say hello to Peaches, our Moluccan cockatoo."

The site and home, built in 1920, was donated by Mrs. Bartlett to the Florida Trust for Historic Preservation in 1983. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

In 2008, the National Trust and the Florida Trust designated it as one of America's 11 most-endangered sites because of surrounding development, according to BonnetHouse.org.

Other South Florida venues offering free admission as part of the program include the Historic Stranahan House, the Museum of Art in Fort Lauderdale, the Boca Raton Museum of Art, Vizcaya Museum and Gardens in Miami and the Bass Museum of Art in Miami Beach.

The deal is offered to active-duty members of the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, Coast Guard, National Guard and Reserve, and up to five family members with ID.

Founded in 2010, the program is a collaboration between Blue Star Families, the National Endowment for the Arts and the Department of Defense.

dchristense@tribune.com

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Bonnet House and Gardens

When: 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays, 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Sundays

Where: 900 N. Birch Road, Fort Lauderdale, 954-563-5393 BonnetHouse.org.

Cost: $20 for adults, $18 for seniors, $16 for children 6-12, free for 11 and younger

Go to SunSentinel.com/BlueStarMuseums for more info and to see a list of participating venues.

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