Maricopa Veterans Memorial in planning stage

Maricopa resident Bob Howard’s Air Force father was a prisoner of war in a German stalag during World War II. A brick commemorating his sacrifice is part of the Plano, Ill., Veterans Memorial walkway.

Howard, who is from Plano, got the idea there for a similar memorial in Maricopa.

Plano’s Memorial Park features three flagpoles and a commemorative plaque in the center of a walkway consisting of 1,100 square feet of concrete pavers (sold for $50 each) surrounded by beds of flowers. The park is about 60 feet by 90 feet in area. Celebrations are held there on Memorial Day and Veterans Day.

“The Maricopa Veterans Memorial Foundation is a grassroots organization dedicated to the construction of a veteran’s memorial here in Maricopa,” said Howard, a local Ace Hardware employee.

“We are in the initial planning stage,” he added. With the involvement of Maricopa VFW Post 12043, Boy Scout Troop 993 and local citizens and businesses, I feel we could have a veteran’s memorial that is befitting the city of Maricopa.”

Presently various volunteers and interested veterans are constructing a Web site, writing bylaws for the foundation and formulating articles of incorporation to become a not-for-profit group.

A site has not been selected for the memorial, but at its completion the foundation would turn it over to the city to be maintained. Ultimately, the Maricopa Veterans Memorial project will have to go to city council for approval.

Howard added that anyone who is interested in serving on the foundation’s board or offering ideas or services should contact him, and, of course, the foundation is still looking for a site for the memorial itself.

For further information contact Howard at 520-413-5431 or via email.

Submitted photos