Free health screenings also to be offered by Wishard Health Services

INDIANAPOLIS – For the 12th year in a row, visitors to White River State Park attractions will receive free admission and free parking on Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Jan. 16, with a canned good donation (one can per person, per attraction). Returning for a second year, free health screenings will also take place indoors at Victory Field, courtesy of Wishard Health Services. The Park’s partnership with Gleaners Food Bank of Indiana has resulted in more than 150,000 pounds of non-perishable, canned food donations over the years from this one-day, annual event.   

"We are pleased to partner with White River State Park for the 12th year," said Cindy Hubert, Gleaners' president & CEO.  "The drive not only helps Hoosiers in need, but allows families to enjoy these wonderful facilities at no cost.  We're grateful for the Park's generosity as well as their patrons!"

*Special activities will take place all throughout the day at the six major attractions that make up White River State Park: Eiteljorg Museum, IMAX® Theater, Indiana State Museum, Indianapolis Zoo, NCAA® Hall of Champions and Victory Field.

New this year: The IMAX Theater will host a blood drive as a tribute to First Responders, who are showcased in the new IMAX feature film Rescue 3D debuting on MLK Jr. Day. All blood donors will receive free concession items, as well.

From 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., health care professionals from Wishard will offer blood pressure checks, fire prevention safety and general information about Wishard services. Nurses will be available to discuss the importance of primary and preventive care and Indianapolis EMS will also offer safety tips and fun activities for kids.  Those who participate in the health screenings will each receive two complimentary tickets to Opening Night at Victory Field (scheduled for April 13), courtesy of the Indianapolis Indians.

“We are honored to celebrate this long-standing partnership with Gleaners, as well as our partnership with Wishard Health Services and now the Indiana Blood Center, on such an important holiday,” said Bob Whitt, executive director of White River State Park. “Each year, our visitors rise to the occasion in filling the donation bins to benefit those less fortunate while enjoying plenty of entertainment and healthy activities throughout the day.”

The following FREE activities at Park attractions will be taking place on MLK Day:

• Indianapolis Zoo: Visitors can walk the grounds and see lots of animals (especially the ones that love the cooler temperatures), and enjoy the exhibits with smaller crowds. Favorite activities will include the 10:30 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. dolphin shows, indoor shark petting in the nation’s largest shark touch pool and heating things up with the meerkats in the Deserts Dome, where it’s a comfy 82 degrees.
• IMAX Theater: Experience the debut its newest film Rescue 3D, which plunges audiences into the hard, but inspiring work of saving lives in the face of a natural disaster. When an earthquake strikes Haiti, creating one of the biggest humanitarian disasters of the century, the audience is swept along, joining with the massive effort that brings military and civilian responders and hardware from around the world. Rescue 3D is a journey of real-world disaster and emergency response captured in 3D with unprecedented scale and impact for Indiana’s largest movie screen. Showtimes: 10 a.m., 11:25 a.m., 12:50 p.m., 2:15 p.m. and 3:40 p.m.
• NCAA Hall of Champions: Warm-up with a complimentary cup of hot chocolate or coffee and learn more about what it takes to be an NCAA student-athlete.  Student-athletes from IUPUI will lead fitness clinics at 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. There will be continuous screenings of “Game of Change,” a documentary that reaches far beyond sports, demonstrating the significance of the game of basketball in the struggle for racial equality. There will also be opportunities to win official NCAA merchandise throughout the day.
• Indiana State Museum: Films, live music, poetry and performance art fill the museum as the life and times of the great Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. are celebrated. Visit the Amazing Maize and Endurance exhibitions, and Heartland Art (additional $3 charge for Endurance). The Canal Café and the historic L.S. Ayres Tea Room will be serving lunch; reservations recommended for the Tea Room.
• Eiteljorg Museum: Visitors can immerse themselves in the Native American and Western cultures with the museum's many exhibits. Don't miss your chance to visit the West in the RB Annis Western Family Experience. See how four families live in the West and walk into a Navajo Hogan or climb aboard a true-to-life stagecoach. Don’t miss the exhibit We Are Here! showing contemporary art from some of today’s best native artists. And be sure to check out the lunch specials at the Eiteljorg Museum Cafe.
• Victory Field: From 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., health care professionals from Wishard will offer blood pressure checks, fire prevention safety and general information about Wishard services. Nurses will also be available to discuss the importance of primary and preventive care. Wishard will also have a booth and representatives on hand with information about the new Eskenazi Health set to open in 2014.  Plus, Rowdie, the Indians mascot, will stop by for autographs from 11 a.m. to 12 p.m.

The Park is also offering complimentary parking on MLK, Jr. Day. Visitors may park in the underground garage located off Washington Street in front of the Indiana State Museum, in the surface parking lots at the Indianapolis Zoo and Victory Field, and in the surface parking lot across from Victory Field next to the Park's Visitor's Center.  Parking is not guaranteed and is on a first-come, first-served basis.

For more information about White River State Park, visit www.inwhiteriver.org.