Town of Tonawanda Veterans Memorial facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Town of Tonawanda Veterans Memorial |
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| Location | Town of Tonawanda, New York, United States |
| Established | August 18, 2009 |
The Town of Tonawanda Veterans Memorial is a special place in the Town of Tonawanda, New York. It's located in Walter M. Kenney Field, at the corner of Brighton Road and Colvin Boulevard. This memorial was built to honor all the brave men and women who have served in the United States Armed Forces.
It took about seven weeks to build the memorial, and it was finished in mid-August 2009. A big ceremony was held on August 18, 2009, with over 1,500 people attending. Colin L. Powell, a retired U.S. Army General and former U.S. Secretary of State, gave the main speech. One year later, on August 18, 2010, hundreds of people gathered again for another ceremony. This time, it was to celebrate a major expansion of the memorial, which was needed because so many people wanted to donate and add names.
The most important part of the memorial is a seven-foot-tall V-shaped monument made of special granite. The "V" stands for Veterans. An artist and Vietnam War veteran named Ralph Sirianni designed this monument in 2007. An architecture company called Carmina, Wood & Morris designed the rest of the memorial and the area around it, making Sirianni's monument the center.
Granite plaques with the names of local veterans are placed on two curved walls. One wall is around the V-shaped monument, and a second wall, built a year later, wraps around the back of the memorial's raised area. The memorial also has seven flagpoles. One flies the flag of the United States and the POW/MIA flag. The other six poles display the flags of the U.S. Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, Coast Guard, and Merchant Marine.
Many trees and park benches surround the memorial. Each tree and bench has a bronze plaque with names of veterans, community groups, or local businesses. These plaques show who helped pay for the memorial's construction. Next to the memorial is a Korean War-era Grumman F9F-6P Cougar Naval jet. This jet has been on loan to the Town of Tonawanda from the U.S. government since May 1959. It's a well-known landmark in the community.
History of the Memorial
How It Started
The idea for the Town of Tonawanda Veterans Memorial began in 2004. It was a community effort to create a special place where people could remember and honor family, friends, and all Americans who have served in the U.S. Military. In 2007, a special committee was formed to make sure the project happened.
To raise money for building the memorial, the committee asked for donations from people and businesses in the town. For $100, a donor could have a veteran's name carved into the memorial. Donors could also dedicate a tree, park bench, or flagpole for a veteran by giving $1,000, $2,000, or $3,000. Between 2007 and 2009, the committee raised over $100,000 in private donations. They also received $47,500 in grant money from New York State.
By spring 2009, enough money was raised, and the project was ready to begin. The Tonawanda Town Board agreed to set aside space for the memorial at Walter M. Kenney Field. They also agreed to manage its construction. After a few tries, they found a construction company that fit their budget. With a contractor ready, the committee held a groundbreaking ceremony on May 22, 2009. Local veterans, residents, and town officials joined them at the future site of the memorial.
The "Blue Jet"
Walter M. Kenney Field was chosen for the memorial because it's easy to see from nearby roads and easy for people to visit. It's also important because it's been the home of the Korean War-era Grumman F9F-6P Cougar Naval jet for a long time. This "blue jet," as it's often called, has been on loan from the U.S. government since May 1959. Today, the memorial sits right behind the jet.
While the memorial was being built, a local car repair business volunteered to fix up the F9F-6P jet. Volunteers removed old paint, fixed dents, filled cracks, repainted everything, and added decals. This whole process took about three weeks.
For many years, local children used the jet as playground equipment. However, in February 2009, the town received a request from the National Museum of Naval Aviation. They asked the town to take full care of the jet and stop people from climbing on it. The town first put up signs asking visitors not to climb, but the damage continued. Less than a year later, volunteers repaired the jet again. After that, the town put a four-foot-high fence around this long-standing community landmark to protect it.
Dedication Day
The Town of Tonawanda Veterans Memorial was officially opened to the public on the afternoon of Tuesday, August 18, 2009. This Tuesday date was chosen so that the main speaker, Colin Powell, could attend. He was already scheduled to be in nearby Buffalo, New York for another event that day. Colin Powell has a connection to the Town of Tonawanda because his sister and brother-in-law used to live there.
More than 1,500 people came to Walter M. Kenney Field for the ceremony. This included local residents, government officials, active military members, veteran groups, and members of the Patriot Guard Riders. People who had donated money to the memorial were invited, but the event was open to everyone and got a lot of attention because Colin Powell was speaking.
The ceremony included military and police honor guards, a flag-raising, several speeches, and the unveiling of the V-shaped granite monument. A committee member also read a letter from U.S. President Barack Obama, who sent his best wishes to the people of the Town of Tonawanda for the dedication day.
In his speech, Colin Powell said the memorial was a way to thank military veterans. He also said it was a tool to teach young people about what military service means. He emphasized the important role young people play in society. He even mentioned that a teenager from the Town of Tonawanda started the idea to build the memorial. Powell said, "sometimes it is the youngest people in our community who understand what's important." He also noted that because the memorial is in a public park next to a playground, children will see it often. He believed it would "speak to them silently, but powerfully." He also talked about how much he appreciated military service throughout U.S. history and his own time leading the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
Powell ended his speech by talking about government programs that help veterans, like health care and other benefits. He said that offering these services is just as important a way to thank veterans as building a memorial in their honor.
Growing the Memorial
When the memorial was first dedicated, it had the names of almost 500 local military veterans. These names were sorted by their branch of service on 12 granite plaques. The wall was designed to hold 1,000 names, with the idea that more names would be added over several years. However, just a few months after the dedication, the original wall was full!
By the end of 2009, too many names had been submitted to fit on the first wall. So, the Town of Tonawanda decided to start a second phase of construction to make the memorial bigger. This expansion added another curved wall behind the existing memorial. This new wall created space for up to 2,500 more names on 30 new granite plaques. Construction began in spring 2010. Workers carefully built the new wall around the parts of the memorial that were already there.
Work on the second wall was finished in time for the town to hold another dedication ceremony. This happened exactly one year after the first, on August 18, 2010.
Images for kids
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Seven-foot-tall granite monument by Ralph Sirianni at the Town of Tonawanda Veterans Memorial.
