Let Freedom Ring Loud and Clear

Freedom means a lot of different things to different individuals and groups. In the United States we are fortunate enough to have several freedoms that are sometimes taken for granted, such as the freedom of speech, freedom of the press, freedom of religion, freedom to vote, and freedom of assembly, to name a few. Over three years ago there was a small group of individuals in Grand Terrace, largely made up of veterans, who got together to form the Veterans Wall of Freedom Organization as part of the Foundation of Grand Terrace. This group's goal is to build a monument of freedom for those men and women who answered the call to defend liberty and protect freedom by serving in the military. The site selected for the monument is Pico Park in the city of Grand Terrace, which is centrally located within the Inland Empire, stretching throughout Riverside and San Bernardino counties. The site was dedicated on November 11th-Veterans’ Day-of 2011. The monument is to honor our military men and women, past and present, for their sacrifices, dedication, and service to our country. As in any well-intended endeavor, there are many obstacles to overcome, first of which is locating the funding to construct the monument, and second securing the proper manpower to forward the message to all of the veteran organizations and veterans themselves about this incredible opportunity to memorialize their service to the Country. Within the Inland Empire, it has been estimated that there are over 250,000 veterans and triple that amount for family members of veterans. The Veterans Wall of Freedom will be a unique memorial to American veterans, as it will spell out the word FREEDOM in large block letters which will stand six-feet tall, three-feet wide and 15 inches deep. This monument will span nearly 60 feet with seven flag poles strategically set in front of it to honor the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, Coast Guard, and POW/MIA with the American Flag situated in the middle on a 25-foot flag pole. The American Flag will fly every day and evening, with the other flags being flown only on special occasions or ceremonial dates. When construction on the monument is complete, there will be nearly 1,600 plaques available to honor individual veterans. Each plaque will measure six inches wide by three inches tall and will be able to contain three lines of text for the veteran’s name, rank, branch of service and other noteworthy information. This monument will be open to “ALL Veterans”. The call of freedom that is ringing loud and clear is coming from the organization itself, saying, “We need more volunteers who can support the challenge of creating this remarkable monument either with their time, talent or financial donations. Freedom is not free and the overall cost to design, construct, and maintain the wall is over $150,000. The overall goal is to dedicate this completed Wall of Freedom on Veterans Day, Monday, November 11th, 2015 at Pico Park. Please help us meet this challenge and honor the service and sacrifice of those who gave us our freedom—for they gave us the freedoms we enjoy every day.” The Organization meets the first Monday of every month at 6:30 a.m. They would like to invite anybody who wants to give a helping hand to contact either Don Larkin at 951-756-4711 or Robert Lavin at 909-234-2767 to find out where to join us. We need as many people as we can get to help us achieve our goal of honoring the veterans throughout the Inland Empire and surrounding cities. Remember to ask yourself this question—“What would I pay for freedom if I didn’t have it?”