United Memorial Medical Center is contributing $50,000 toward the construction of a new veterans' memorial at the corner of Bank Street and Washington Avenue.
The total price of the project is about $500,000 and local veterans groups have been working diligently to raise the funds.
The former memorial was removed to make way for the new surgical wing at UMMC.
Pictured are Ron Konieczny, left, Dan Waterman, Beth Lapp, Hall Kreter, Marc Schoell, Paul Gaylord, Steve Hawley, Paul Sullivan, Assemblyman Steve Hawley and Clayton Fry.
I have a question for our
I have a question for our vets out there....the hats the the vets (and Steve Hawley) are wearing in this (and other) photos.....what is the significance/origin of these? What do the patches on the side of the hat represent? and is it proper for non-veterans to wear these hats? was Steve Hawley ever in the military?
The blue hats with gold
The blue hats with gold piping are American Legion hats. You need to be a legion member to have one (I have one from my time when I was active with the La Mesa American Legion post, but have not gotten a Batavia hat yet). Patches and pins either relate to elements of military service or service in the post.
I believe two of the gentlemen in the picture are wearing Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) hats.
To be eligible for membership in the legion, you need to have served (not necessarily in combat or overseas) during a time of a specific armed conflict (there's a congressionally approved list of what conflicts qualify and the dates of service eligible).
I'm eligible for legion membership only because while I was in the Air Force, President Reagan invaded Granada. If I had been overseas at the time, I believe I would be eligible for VFW membership. (I served at Loring AFB, Maine, and Vandenberg AFB, on the central coast of California.)
According to Steve Hawley's bio: "He served seven years in the Ohio Army National Guard and the U. S. Army Reserves, earning the rank of 1st Lieutenant."