Posted on 06/14/2012 10:52:47 AM PDT by SandRat
There are photos of 139 Arizonans — of which seven are from Cochise County — who are part of the Remembering Our Fallen From Arizona traveling memorial, which begins a nearly two week display at The Mall at Sierra Vista Thursday.
At 11:30 Thursday morning a public event at which Army Maj. Gen. Jennifer Napper, commander of the Network Enterprise Technology Command on Fort Huachuca, will open the display to the public near the Sears entrance inside the mall during a short ceremony, which will include a ribbon cutting.
The opening is part of recognizing the 237th birthday of the Army and the 235th of the establishment of the U.S. flag. Photos of 100 soldiers from Arizona, most them active duty, with some Arizona Army National Guard and Army Reservists, are part of the display.
Records indicate 155 Arizonans have died in the recent conflicts but photos of all have not been provided by family members. The event is jointly hosted by the Greater Sierra Vista Area United Veterans Council and The Mall at Sierra Vista.
Doug Clithero, the manager of the Arizona exhibit said there are eight states currently involved in the project, whose national sponsor is Bellevue University in Nebraska.
The idea for such a state-specific display to honor those who died in Afghanistan and Iraq came from Bill and Evonne Williams, who currently have four sons in the military, he said.
The display was escorted by Patriot Guard Riders, an organization of various military service and other biker groups.
When the display arrived, the motorcyclists were allowed to drive into the mall, as was Clithero, to begin the setup process.
Clithero said individuals can sign a book and write notes on post-its to be placed by photos of individuals they may know. Notes from family members remain with the photos and the others are placed in a book, he said.
The display, which is part of the nonprofit Patriotic Productions, will be open to the public from noon Thursday through noon June 25.
Beautiful tribute. So glad to see you still posting.
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