Downtown Muskegon Blog

Behind the Scenes – Carrier Coasts Downtown

Muskegon has a veritable military history with many distinguished veterans calling the area home, many factories still continuing to serve the military, and some very interesting museums/artifacts available to the public. All these factors make an upcoming screening of a film called Carrier of particular note. Carrier is a PBS documentary that tells about life on one of the Navy’s largest ships, the USS Nimitz. The ship and the film will be of interest in Muskegon as many know the story of Robert Gilman who was the commanding officer of the Nimitz, including during the time of the filming of the movie. WGVU is partnering with Waddell & Reed to bring a preview screening of the film to downtown Muskegon on April 22 at the Frauenthal Center. Main Street caught up with Bob Garretson to find out more about the event as well as W&R’s decision to move downtown Muskegon.

MS: First off, congratulation for finding a location and making a commitment to downtown Muskegon. How did that come about and what are your plans?

BG: I have been fortunate enough to come in contact with many of the individuals who are working so hard toward the revival and revitalization of downtown Muskegon. After meeting with Mike Teeter, Gary Post, Chris McGuigan and Wes Eklund, I was impressed by the potential of downtown and Waddell & Reed wanted to do what it could to support the efforts. We are thrilled to be moving into the Hines building in July of 2008 and look forward to keeping the momentum building for a thriving, vital downtown.

MS: Well, you will certainly be welcomed and we are glad to see you are already getting involved in downtown by sponsoring this upcoming showing of Carrier. How did you get involved in this project?

BG: Waddell & Reed was already advertising and working with WGVU on community events. The “carrier team” knew about my background as an officer in the U.S. Navy and asked me to help with the screening of the documentary “Carrier” in Muskegon. We contacted the Frauenthal as a natural location for the screening of “Carrier” and we look forward to having as many veterans and non-veterans come to the downtown for this unique event.

MS: What can you tell us about the movie?

BG: It is no “Top Gun”. This documentary is much more about the day-to-day life of sailors serving their country in support of operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. As most Americans realize and support, the effort being expended by our service members during this time of war is staggering. This movie and the 10 hour documentary that follows on WGVU really highlight the challenges and efforts put forward by members of the crew of USS Nimitz. There are some “Top Gun” moments with flight operations, but it is mostly the stories of the service members -who are the real stars.

MS: What about this movie will excite Muskegon viewers?

BG: That one of our own, Captain Gillman, was the Commanding Officer of the Nimitz during filming I think is exiting. For Veterans, the coverage of the day-to-day operations will be a validation of their previous service; that the torch has passed and young men and women are continuing their tradition of service. For anyone who has friends or family in the military, it is a unique look at a snapshot of the lives of military personnel. The screening is free, but we will also be taking donations for the Folds of Honor foundation and the Great Lakes Maritime Museum. The Folds of Honor foundation provides college scholarships to the children of military personnel that have fallen in Iraq or Afghanistan. The Maritime Museum is one of our local gems highlighting Muskegon’s rich maritime heritage.

MS: Again thanks for your investment with this event and with the move and we look forward to seeing more of you, and Waddell and Reed, as part of the downtown community!

BG: Thanks Dan, Waddell & Reed looks forward to sponsoring more community events and hopes to see a great turnout for the premier of “Carrier” in Muskegon on April 22nd at 7pm at the Frauenthal.


Check it out on the web

WGVU Ticket Information

posted by Dan & Sarah @ 1:52 PM