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thedrifter
11-15-07, 06:39 AM
Push for Korean War Memorial gains momentum
Brian Messenger

Earl "Gill" Efinger was drafted 54 years ago this month, joining the U.S. Marines shortly after graduating from Punchard High School as a member of the Class of 1953.

Efinger, who fought in the Korean War from 1953 to 1955 and spent four years as a reservist, thinks the time has come for Andover veterans like himself to be honored with a monument of their own.

"People are in their 70s now," said Efinger, noting the typical age of a Korean War veteran. "I think it's certainly appropriate to do while the majority of the people are around."

Two war memorials have been erected in the Park in the last three years, with dedications to World War II and Vietnam veterans taking place on Memorial Day in 2004 and 2006, respectively.

The only recognition of Andover's more than 1,000 Korean War veterans is a small plaque on the Ballardvale Green, off Center Street in southern Andover, that also recognizes veterans of the Vietnam War.

"We're coming up on six decades since this [Korean] conflict," said Andover Veterans Director Michael Burke. "If we don't get this going now, I'm failing at my job. They're getting up there in age."

As a member of the Korean War Memorial Committee, Efinger, 74, and other veterans will meet on Nov. 14 with town officials, members of Andover's Design Review Board and the Ballardvale Historic District Commission to discuss the design and location of a proposed Korean War memorial. Ideally, Burke said the design and location will be determined at another meeting tentatively scheduled for Dec. 5, with a dedication taking place on either Memorial Day or Veterans Day in 2008.

"That's my job in this position | to make sure they get the recognition," said Burke of the veterans. "I want to make sure the community is represented as well."

Efinger, who has taken pictures of other communities' Korean War memorials, said an initial design was drawn up several years ago and included the dates of the conflict, seals of the Army, Navy, Marines, Air Force and Coast Guard, and the names of the four Andover residents killed in action.

What does Efinger want to see?

"Nothing large, but an appropriate monument," he said. "We don't want something elaborate."

But any plan to establish a Korean War memorial must first be approved by the town's five-member Design Review Board, a step that was not required for either the World War II or Vietnam War memorials.

"I think every resident of Andover is a stakeholder because these memorials are on public land," said Ann Constantine, chairwoman of the Design Review Board. "The better the location, the context, the surrounding landscape or other structures, the better the monument will look and the better job it will do honoring the veterans."

Efinger said he knows of a Korean War veteran who would like to see a new memorial in Ballardvale, but such a plan would also require approval by the Ballardvale Historic District Commission.

"Those would be things we'd have to approve, because it's in a historic district," said commission vice-chairwoman Diane Derby of the memorial's design and location. "Before anything major is added to public property, there should be an opportunity for citizen input."

Efinger believes the best spot for a Korean War memorial is in the Park at the corner of Bartlet and Chestnut streets, with the other two war memorials.

"People are not going to get into their car and drive wherever," said Efinger. "Put it in the Park, keep it simple, and let the people who are in their 70s have a smile on their face."

Burke said he hopes to go to the board of selectmen within the next few months to ask for final approval on the memorial plan. He believes veterans will support a simple granite memorial with a traditional feel.

"We want to bring all these stakeholders together," said Selectmen Chairman Brian Major. "Now it's their turn. We want to make sure we do it — and do it right."

Ellie