Deadline extended for city's military memorial

The bricks will be used to cover the footing of the F-11A static display in Carl Miller Park.

The Mountain Home Chamber of Commerce set a deadline of April 1 for those wanting to contribute to a new memorial dedicated to military service members and veterans.

The chamber initiative seeks to redesign the pedestal of the F-111 aircraft display at Carl Miller Park as a lasting tribute to those who currently serve or previous were part of the U.S. armed forces.

Key to this effort was the sale of engraved bricks with the names of veterans along with their service branch and any wars they served in during their military career. The bricks would then cover all four sides of the pedestal that supports the military fighter display.

To make the idea work and to cover the pedestal, the chamber needed to sell 800 to 850 of these engraved bricks, according to chamber executive director Mindy Cuevas.

However, the effort to sell the minimum number of bricks came up short, prompting organizers to delay the effort by several months. Originally, they hoped to have it finished by Veterans' Day last November.

To date, the chamber has sold 150 of the engraved stones.

According to former chamber president Lisa Harvel, the memorial is open to all military veterans, living and deceased. In addition, it's not limited to those who lived in the Mountain Home community or at the nearby Air Force base.

In fact, Harvel had already purchased a brick for her father, a Korean War veteran currently living in California, along with ones dedicated to her father in law as well as her husband and son.

While the chamber hoped to keep the memorial specifically as a military tribute, chamber president Robbie Robinson added that the effort may open up to other outlets to meet the 800-brick goal.

"This won't be a 'patch job,' because our military veterans deserve better," Robinson.

The cost is $75 for a four-by-eight inch brick with an eight-by-eight versions selling for $150 a piece. The smaller stones can hold up to 45 characters of text, including word spacing, while the larger ones can feature up to 90 characters.

Families also have the option of ordering a duplicate version of their engraved brick for an additional $40 or $60 respectively. For more information on the military brick wall display, call the chamber office at 587-4334 or go online to www.mountainhomechamber.com.