Tuesday May 13, 2008

Veterans and their families will join with the community at an annual Memorial Day Ceremony on Monday, May 26, 2008 at noon at the Patriots Peace Memorial to honor members of the Armed Forces who lost their lives in the line of duty under conditions other than hostile action. The memorial is located next to Thurman Hutchins Park on River Road near Zorn Avenue. This ceremony is free and open to the public.

The families of two veterans will participate in a wreath-laying ceremony. Two glass bricks, which will be installed in the monument's wall to memorialize these veterans, will be unveiled. The ceremony will also include a keynote address by Major General Edward W. Tonini, Adjutant General of the Commonwealth of Kentucky. As the Adjutant General, he serves as the Commanding General of both the Kentucky Army and Air National Guard and as Executive Director of the Department of Military Affairs where he guides the preparation of the 8,400 Citizen Soldiers and Airmen, along with the Division of Emergency Management, to respond in times of state and national emergency. The ceremony will conclude with a twenty-one gun salute and taps.

Since it was created, 426 patriots have been enshrined in the memorial. As a name is added, a concrete brick is removed and replaced with a personalized glass brick identifying each Patriot, signifying our loss. This void in an otherwise solid wall becomes a portal of light transforming the interior by day and radiating outward at night through each name as a daily reminder to celebrate the joy of freedom safeguarded by these brave men and women.

The memorial's web site,www.patriotspeacememorial.org, contains information about the memorial, a list of all enshrinees and contact information for those wishing to nominate a veteran for enshrinement. The Patriots Peace Memorial was dedicated in 2002 on land donated by David and Betty Jones along River Road, west of Indian Hills Trail and across from Carrie Gaulbert Cox Park.