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HARTINGTON — Plans are underway to complete the Hartington Veterans Memorial in time for the official grand opening and dedication planned for Saturday, May 27.
A reception at the VFW will follow the 2 p.m. dedication ceremony.
Further work on the memorial was suspended over the winter, and as soon as the weather warms up, work will commence until the memorial construction is completed, which is targeted for early May of this year.
The last work to be done on the memorial before this winter was the completion of all the concrete flooring and installation of the drainage system that will carry both snow melt and rain out of the memorial and piping it out to drain onto the back alley just east of the memorial.
The concrete floor slopes 13 inches from the west end of the memorial to the east end to allow for proper drainage. In addition, two kneeling bronze soldiers were placed last fall and both need additional concrete work at the base this spring.
According to Project Chairman Dan Kathol, the following work has yet to be completed late this winter or early spring with the timing dependent upon favorable weather.
“Before work continues, we will be trying to raise the remaining $12,000 needed to complete the memorial and to be able to keep some money back in the bank for future flags, flowers and any maintenance work that may arise," he said. "The area residents, businesses and out-of-the-area donations has been tremendous on the project to date and we, as well as all the veterans we speak for, will be forever grateful."
Kathol said fundraising needs to be completed by Feb. 6 so any donation over $500 can be honored with the names of the donors to be included on the Donor Board that will begin to be constructed in early February and installed in mid-May.
The following represents the work that needs to be completed yet on the memorial in the planned order of occurrence:
1. The steel pillars holding up the arch will be encased with brick to give the appearance that the brick pillars are holding up the arch. The pillars will have a concrete cap. Bill Hochstein will be installing the bricks as soon as the weather permits.
2. Starting April 17 and continuing for up to three days, all the monuments and benches will be installed. Heine Electric is supplying the crane and operator to move the larger monuments from the flatbed trucks over the east wall and placed into position on the respective foundations. The smaller monuments will be placed on a dolly and rolled into the memorial through the front entrance and set into position. Plainview Monument Co. will be in charge of placing all the monuments into the memorial.
3. The streetlight poles and flagpoles will be installed followed by the installation of all the lighting fixtures and outlets. All the electrical lines were stubbed in and installed before the concrete floor was poured last fall.
4. Roman Sudbeck will complete the painting of the inside and outside of the concrete walls and any finish work in sealing cracks with caulking. The walls will be painted in the current color now seen.
5. Wiechelman Repair is manufacturing the 42-inch-high black iron fencing and they will be installing it around the entire top of the concrete walls up to the arch pillars at the entrance. The fencing will have a patriotic flare to it, most fitting for the memorial.
6. The two large rocks on each side of the entrance will each have a plaque adhered to the rock’s flat top surface. One plaque will list the Veterans Memorial Committee members and the second plaque will honor all those veterans who were wounded or became disabled because of injuries during each respective war to include all those veterans who have suffered and continue to suffer from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).
7. Angie Peitz from Etched Impressions will finish the mural she started last fall on the outside of the east wall, which depicts the flag-raising by American Marines at Iwo Jima during World War II. The mural will contain a real American flag and pole that Angie will incorporate into the mural to bring it to life.
8. Grasses and daylilies will surround the two large rocks and large flower plots will be placed on each side of the entrance and on each side of the donor board. Additional flowers and greenery had to be eliminated and concrete brought up all the way to the inside wall to prevent water from entering and getting suspended under the concrete floor, which could cause cracking and bulging of the concrete during the winter months.
“We are anticipating a large turnout for the dedication as many people will be in town for the Memorial Day weekend and the cemetery programs," Kathol said.
To accommodate the large number of people expected, the intersection of Broadway Ave. and State St. will need to be blocked off with chairs set up and available for the elderly and handicapped and a good sound system in place for all to hear. To say we are all anxious to see the memorial completed is an understatement. We started the fundraising kick-off in October 2019 just after Ben and Erin donated the property, so it will be right at three and a half years to have completed the memorial from start to finish. When considering the rising prices of steel, concrete and other components of the memorial, the fundraising, getting 1060 veterans sponsored for the veteran wall as well as the desire to keep the original memorial design intact as much as possible, we can feel good that we are close to the finish line”, says Dan.
