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.
Click Play!
