National Monument to Honor WWII Sacrifices

“Dutchy” Wenrich, Phelan, Lt. Lewis . . . rest easy, my friends, this is for you.

Because of your sacrifices, along with those of thousands of other World War II veterans who paid the ultimate price in helping to preserve the way of life we Americans are privileged to enjoy and celebrate, you are finally to be honored with a lasting memorial to your bravery and unashamed patriotism.

Admittedly, the country is not yet perfect for all. But we are working on that perfection as diligently and with the same fervor you displayed when you gave your lives in the cause of freedom.

To help perpetuate the memory of you and other fallen comrades and for what you helped achieve, I have made a personal commitment to help build a fitting and long-overdue WWII Memorial in Washington, D.C. I have accepted appointment as a registered field representative of the American Battle Monument Commission’s National World War II Memorial Campaign for Ventura County.

As a combat veteran of the U.S. Navy from 1942 to 1945 and participant in various battles as a crewman on the destroyer USS Robinson, I naturally feel very strongly about the purpose of the monument. During the liberation of the Philippines I stood next to then-Lt. Elmo “Bud” Zumwalt Jr., destined to become our country’s youngest chief of naval operations, as we launched five torpedoes at a Japanese battleship during the battle of Surigao Straits near Leyte Gulf. It is also for the late Admiral Zumwalt that I feel the memorial is long overdue.

To the men with whom I served as a radioman in a special communication unit attached to the Marine Corps on Guadalcanal near the end of that campaign, to the men with whom I stormed ashore on a hostile beach on Bougainville, to those who lived and those who died, I feel the time for such a memorial is long overdue.

As difficult as it is to realize, other than the heroic image personified in the statue of the Iwo Jima flag raising there is as yet no national World War II monument dedicated to that perilous time in our history. Never before or since have we as a nation experienced such an undivided effort in the preservation of liberty.

Significantly, the planned memorial will honor not only the veterans of the war but all Americans: defense workers, civilians of all colors and creeds, who helped immeasurably in the war effort in any way they could.

We were a team--and, thankfully, an unbeatable team--in the face of the greatest evils ever faced by a civilized society.

We are now at another historic time in our national life when each of us has the opportunity to participate in building the memorial.

Construction of the memorial is scheduled to begin on Veterans Day, Nov. 11. It will cost $100 million to construct and maintain. To date, we have raised approximately $85 million from private individual contributions and corporate sponsors.

To be situated in the center of the mall between the Washington Monument and the Lincoln Memorial, the memorial plaza and Rainbow Pool will incorporate elements of both, visually and symbolically. In addition, the 237-by-338-foot sunken plaza will allow the memorial to accent and frame the grandeur of the mall. Two memorial arches will also serve to accent two 70-foot flagpoles and frame the ceremonial entrance on 17th Street.

That is the physical aspect of this historic project. The emotional aspect is difficult to overstate. Become a part of history and help us embed forever, in granite and steel, a monument to one of the most important periods in our nation’s history.

If you have any questions about the memorial, or would like a descriptive brochure, please call our offices at (800) 639-4992. Donations may be mailed to:

World War II Memorial Fund

P.O. Box 98147

Attn: GRKFU

Washington, D.C. 20090-8147

Please be a part of this effort to make the monument a true and permanent source for pride, remembrance and reality for all Americans.