HONORING OUR HEROES

A long-awaited memorial on The National Mall in Washington, D.C., salutes the sacrifices and victories of the World War II generation.

A group of teenagers gathers around an elderly man at the World War II Memorial in Washington, D.C. They lean close to hear Ralph "Andy" Anderson's stories. Their eyes grow wide, and their expressions sober as they listen.

The Missouri native recalls D-day as if it happened yesterday. The landing craft that carried his platoon to Omaha Beach that day hit an obstacle and stopped yards from the shore.

"That didn't stop us," he says, his voice soft and measured. "We jumped off that ramp and ended up in water over our heads. I shed every piece of equipment I could just to keep from drowning."

As he pauses for breath, the students pepper the old soldier with questions. "What was your rank? Were you ever wounded? Do you have any medals?" He answers them patiently, but still they stare. Andy won one Silver Star, one Bronze Star, and three Purple Hearts, yet today he looks so ordinary, much like their own grandfathers. The teens look stunned, as if their world has shifted a bit, and they're not exactly sure why.

Before walking away, they circle the veteran and smile for a photograph. They'll likely forget Andy's name, but he hopes they'll take a few lesson from World War II with them.

A War Remembered

The long-awaited memorial honoring Andy, the 16 million others who served in the U.S. armed forces, and the millions more who supported the war at home opened to great fanfare in the spring of 2004. Since then, thousands of men and women from the World War II generation have made the pilgrimage to D.C.

Celebrating Victory

The memorial sits west of 17th Street in the shadow of the Washington Monument, at the eastern end of the Reflecting Pool that stretches from the Lincoln Memorial. It seems fitting somehow that those who fought so valiantly to defend the country's democratic ideals in World War II now take their place between monuments to Washington and Lincoln.

The entire memorial measures only slightly longer than a football field and about twice as wide. The sunken plaza embraces the restored Rainbow Pool, a now joyful fountain that sat empty for years. Bronze bas-relief panels line the walls of the entrance and depict scenes of America at war.

The Price of Freedom

Many find the Freedom Wall the most moving part of the memorial. As you approach the wall, which stands 9 feet tall and stretches almost 85 feet wide, you're engulfed in gold stars, the symbol of family sacrifice during World War II. The words "Here we mark the price of freedom" span the length of the wall.

"It's really moving if you study it," says veteran Bob Goold, a friend of Andy's who also traveled from Riverside, California. "The gold stars really get to me. Each star represents so many who died, and a lot of them were my friends."

The attention is humbling, most of the veterans say, but they're glad their countrymen appreciate the sacrifices they made. "I have looked at all the memorials," says Thomas H. Donohoe, a D.C. native who served as a member of the Third Core and First Marine Division and now lives in Florida. "I think this one has a regal, stately presence that's awe-inspiring. It's indeed a worthy tribute to all who served in World War II."

Copyright Southern Progress Corporation Nov 2005
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