2012-09-13
(L to R): Beth Fuller, president, YCF; Rick Hardman, project designer; Dale Pettit, field representative, Woodmen of the
World; Loren Jackson, president, Korean War Memorial; Don Kennedy (background) and William Haymond, Korean War veterans.
The Marion County Patriot Memorial Flag campaign has moved
closer to its goal, thanks to a $35,000 donation from the West Virginia
Fraternal Alliance of the Woodmen of the World.
An additional donation of $3,000 from Chesapeake Energy will
cover the cost of installing and maintaining floodlights to illuminate the
massive flag.
The fund is now approximately half-way to the amount needed
to erect a 125-foot flagpole overlooking I-79 in Fairmont and to build an
endowment, the proceeds of which will be used to replace and maintain the
30-by-50-foot flags that will be flown at the site.
A dedication ceremony is planned for noon on Flag Day, June
14, 2013, at the site of the Korean War Memorial being built at the East Marion
County Park in Fairmont. The Korean War Veterans will provide the first flag.
“These generous donations by the Woodmen of the World and
Chesapeake Energy are major steps forward in our project, and we are very
grateful to them for their contributions and for their display of patriotism,”
said Rick Hardman, designer of the project, which is sponsored by Marion County
Chapter 163 of the Korean War Veterans Association.
“We are continuing our efforts to build an endowment fund
that will be invested to increase its value, with the net income used to
purchase new flags as they are needed,” he said. “We estimate that because of
wind and weather and the sheer size of the flag, two or three replacements will
be needed every year at a cost of approximately $1,500 a flag.”
The endowment is managed by Your Community Foundation, a
non-profit philanthropic organization that provides funds for numerous programs
and scholarships in North Central West Virginia. Hardman estimates that another
$40,000 is needed to bring the endowment to the level needed to perpetuate the
project.
“We’re hoping that other sponsors will come forward,” he
said. “For example, if we could find 400 people to donate $100 each, or some individual
or corporate sponsors to make larger donations, we could build this endowment
very quickly and the project will become totally self-sufficient.”
The Marion County Parks and Recreation Commission will
provide care and maintenance of the flags and pole.
Hardman, a Vietnam veteran, said he was inspired last year
by the story of two men who were traveling the country flying a large “Patriot
Flag” in all 50 states and ending their trip at the 911 memorial site in New
York. “I decided to use the ‘patriot’ name after reading their story and
talking with them,” he said. “This is a way for us to continually show our own
patriotism, so we named our project the Marion County Patriot Memorial Flag.”
Tax-deductible contributions in any amount should be made to
the Patriot Memorial Flag Fund in care of YCF, P.O. Box 409, Morgantown, WV
26507. Donors can make memorial contributions to honor an individual at the
gold level ($1,000), silver level ($500) or bronze level ($100). Those
donations will be recognized on a plaque to be placed on the concrete base of
the flag.
Click here to view a video clip:
http://www.wboy.com/video?clipId=7667739&autostart=true