Tag Archive for: #veteransmemorial

Veterans Monument Installation On Track For July 4 Dedication

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If all goes as planned, the new Veterans Memorial will be officially unveiled at a ceremony on July 4, a fitting day as the nation officially celebrates its 250th birthday.

Hartwell Wright, American Legion Post 60 commander, said the fundraising efforts are paying off, but there’s more to do.

The July 4 ceremony will be more of an “official” unveiling, Wright said, adding that it’ll be a little tough to keep a 9-foot tall, 6-sided granite monument in the middle of town under wraps.

“It’s kind of hard to hide something that large,” he quipped.

The Veterans Memorial, which will be situated outside the main entrance of the Henderson Police Department, will include all six branches of the U.S. military – the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, Coast Guard and the Space Force.

“We’ve been really, really busy trying to raise the funds for this thing,” Wright told WIZS recently. The price tag exceeds $150,000, and there’s still $50,000 or $60,000 left to go, he said.

“I feel real excited at this point,” Wright said. The foundation was to have been completed in the week leading up to Memorial Day, he noted.

“And hopefully, by the first of June, we’ll start digging a hole,” he said, in preparation of the monument installation.

If all goes according to schedule, Wright said the monument should be installed the last week of June.

“We just want our citizens to come out and take pride in Vance County and what God has allowed us to do in the United States of America to live the way we live and especially the way we are able to live right here,” Wright said.

He invites the community to come out to the ceremony – bring a lawn chair and enjoy the morning’s festivities.

In case of inclement weather, the ceremony will be held in nearby McGregor Hall.

Visit www.vcvm.org to learn more. There’s a link on the page for donations.

“We will keep our campaign going even after the monument is completed,” Wright said. He said the plan is to replace the benches near the future site of the monument with granite benches to match the monument.

Send checks to:

VCVM

P.O. 1765

Henderson, NC, 27536.

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TownTalk: Vance County Veterans Memorial in Progress

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Naysayers may have provided just the motivation that members of American Legion Post 60 needed to get the ball rolling on completion of a veteran’s memorial in Henderson.

You won’t be able to find a suitable location, they said.

But they did.

It’ll be difficult to get approval, they said.

But they got that, too, back in the fall, when the Henderson City Council gave the green light for the group to place the memorial in front of the police department entrance.

Those doubters, said Post 60 Commander Hartwell Wright, gave “all kinds of reasons why we can’t do it.” That made him and others, including Post 60 Vice Commander Andy Roberson, all all the more motivated to get it done.

Anybody want to tell them they can’t raise the $150,000 or so it’s going to cost to get the project completed?

Wright and Roberson were guests on Tuesday’s TownTalk to share updates about the plan to place the memorial in Henderson, which will give veterans and their families a place to gather, reminisce and remember.

When the group went searching for the perfect spot to put the new memorial that would make it accessible to the community, they were pleased when the city granted them use of the space at the police department entrance.

“They graciously allowed us to use their property,” Wright said, which also meant that no land would need to be purchased. “We were really excited about that.”

A company in Ohio has designed a 9-foot tall hexagon-shaped monument made of polished granite – one side for each of the six branches of the military – on which a bronze eagle statue will perch. There will be no individual names on the main monument; rather, each side will contain designs that depict the different branches: Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, Coast Guard and Space Force.

Roberson said, “We just feel like there are veterans around here that have never been recognized” for their military service…we want to recognize everybody.”

Wright agrees. “This memorial is designed for every single veteran that’s ever served. This monument is to celebrate you.”

A separate, smaller monument will contain the names of all the people from Vance County who were killed in military service, beginning with World War I.

Once the City Council approved the design back in October, the fundraising could commence.

The group formed a non-profit organization called Vance County Veterans Memorial, and Wright said “every dime that comes in stays here.”

“We have knocked on a lot of doors,” Wright said. Contributions are welcome, large or small.

There’s also a “donate” button on the group’s website, https://vcvm.org/.

How much is left to raise?

“Let’s just say we need around $100,000, plus a little bit,” Wright said.

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American Legion Post #60 Gets OK For Veterans Memorial

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In a unanimous vote at its regular September meeting, the Henderson City Council approved a request from the American Legion Post #60 to create a Veterans Memorial at the entrance to the Henderson Police Station on Breckenridge Street.

The circular space is about 25 feet in diameter and currently is planted with shrubbery. The American Legion Post #60 plans to raise the funds necessary to construct a memorial. The City Council, however, reserves the right of final approval of the design and placement of the memorial.

The explanation in the agenda package stated that “having a dedicated site for such a memorial will honor the men and women of our community that served our nation. It will give our community the opportunity to remember and reflect on the sacrifices made by many.”

Other than the cost of monthly electrical costs associated with lighting, the city wouldn’t be paying for any part of the memorial.

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