PDA

View Full Version : Historical council looking to restore World War II memorial



thedrifter
11-23-07, 06:47 AM
Historical council looking to restore World War II memorial
Posted by the Asbury Park Press on 11/23/07

BY ERIK LARSEN
STAFF WRITER

BELMAR — One year after the Belmar Historical Council completed a successful effort to restore the borough's famed World War I monument, Spirit of the American Doughboy, the group is mounting a campaign to restore the town's 1949 World War II memorial.

The monument stands on Main Street near the Belmar Elementary School, between 12th and 13th avenues, off a sidewalk known as Monument Row. There also are other monuments honoring the service of uniformed airmen, Marines, sailors and soldiers from the Korean, Vietnam and the Gulf wars, as well as the service of borough firefighters.

The World War II monument essentially is a big, rectangular rock that stands on its short end on a gray base surrounded by a brick pathway. There is a plaque on the front of the monument that reads: "For God and Country this Tablet is Erected in honor of the Men and Women of Belmar who Answered their Country's call in World War II and to the Eternal Memory of the Following Comrades who made the Supreme Sacrifice."

Fourteen names, representing the fallen, are listed on the World War II memorial.

"It's over 50 years old now, and we want to do the same thing for that memorial as we did for the Doughboy statue," said Naomi Reissner, a spokeswoman for the Belmar Historical Council. "The memorial is beautiful and with the way things are going, we just feel, especially with the Iraq war, you feel it necessary to preserve this story."

For specific amounts donated by an individual, family, organization or corporate entity, an engraved, brick paver will be laid at the doughboy monument on the other side of town, where a visiting area around the site is being expanded.

The cost of a 4-inch by 8-inch brick paver, providing for up to 13 characters per line on three lines, costs $100.

An 8-inch by 8-inch paver, providing for up to 13 characters per line on four lines, costs $500. That includes one star to signify the $500 donation.

A two-star paver, appearing on an 8-inch by 8-inch paver with the same specifications as the one-star donation, will cost $1,000. A three-star paver, also to the same specifications, will cost $1,500 and is typically reserved for a corporate, family or other group sponsorship. To obtain an application, call Reissner at (732) 280-3204.

Staff writer Nancy Kearney contributed to this story.

Ellie