The site has been chosen, plans are underway and the Veterans Memorial Fundraising Committee has begun efforts to raise money for the new memorial.

The memorial will be built off of Homestead Road, in the field adjacent to the Southern Human Services Center.

Renee Price is an Orange County Commissioner and committee member. She says she has backed the memorial from the beginning, and now that everything else has been decided, it’s time to start raising money.

“I think once people know that something is happening; the momentum is there; it’s real, then they’ll start giving.”

The committee presented renderings at the walk-through to show board and community members what the finished memorial could look like. The memorial plan will have four different sections, or rooms. Each will have a different theme such as: family, freedom or sacrifice. There will also be a spot with an American flag toward the middle.

“That will have somewhat of a formal design around it. The rest of this is very informal and natural. But around the flagpole it will have kind of ordered and regimented, if you will, design elements,” said David Swanson – the landscape architect for the memorial.

He says, while the design for the project was important, it was also important to incorporate preservation into the project.

“The scale of this is, as we say, it’s four outdoor rooms, but they’re all set into a natural grove of trees which is these beautiful, I would say 100 year old trees.”

But before these outdoor rooms can be built around the trees, Fundraising Chairman Lee Heavlin says it’s going to take a lot of community effort.

“Anyone who wants to participate in raising money, it’s going to take a lot of people and their energy to build what we need – which is about $250,000 to $300,000.”

But Price says she thinks Orange County residents will realize the importance of the memorial, and will want to help.

“A lot of people may think of veteran’s memorial; they think military; they think war. But this is about—yes indeed, wars occur – but nonetheless, we do have to celebrate our freedoms and this is one way of doing that.”

The fundraising committee says they are hoping to work with church groups, schools and veterans groups to make the Orange County Veterans Memorial a reality.

Related Stories
‹
Orange County Veterans Memorial Holds Ceremony, Continues Construction – But Without Longtime Supporter
The Orange County Veterans Memorial’s leadership held its customary Veterans Day ceremony to honor the holiday and local veterans.
Orange County Veterans Memorial Hosts First Event with New Phase of Construction
Veterans and their family, as well as local elected officials and community members, gathered at the Orange County Veterans Memorial Monday morning for a special Memorial Day program. The event at the memorial site, located near the Southern Human Services Center in Chapel Hill, is the first held at the space since Phase 2 of […]
Orange County Veterans Memorial Holds Inaugural Memorial Day Service
The Orange County Veterans Memorial at Chapel Hill hosted its inaugural Service of Remembrance on Monday, aimed at recognizing the various military members and veterans from the local area. Although the memorial itself has not been constructed, a site was approved in 2016 on Homestead Road near the Seymour Center. The memorial will be funded by […]
First Phase of Veterans Memorial Nearing Completion
The Veterans Memorial Committee of Orange County says that they hope to unveil the first facet of their new veteran’s memorial on Memorial Day of this year. Director of Asset Management Services for Orange County Jeffrey Thompson says that they have reached about 15 percent of their total goal, which is $500,000. “The memorial has […]
Groundbreaking Ceremony Held in Chapel Hill for Orange County Veterans Memorial
Undercurrents of pride and patriotism were palpable as deputies from the Orange County Sheriff’s Office posted the colors before a sweltering crowd of supporters under the spring sun. It was a crowd that Rev. Albert Williams soothed shortly thereafter with a prayer that marked the commencement of a groundbreaking ceremony for the Orange County Veterans […]
Orange County Veterans Dedicate Site for Future Memorial
Community members, officials and veterans celebrated Veterans Day a little differently this year, honoring the dedication of the area for the Orange County Veterans Memorial. They gathered at the site adjacent to the Southern Human Services Center Friday to take part in the ceremony. “My dream is that it will be on the must-see spots […]
Fundraising Effort Underway for Orange County Veterans Memorial
A site has been chosen for an Orange County Veterans Memorial and now fundraising efforts are underway to help make that vision a reality. “The beauty of this is that we have all theses old trees here,” Lee Heavlin said in describing the wooded plot adjacent to the Southern Human Services Center off of Homestead […]
Orange County: Highlights From Commissioners Meeting, CARE Team Expands, More
Chair of the Orange County Commissioners Jamezetta Bedford spoke with 97.9 The Hill’s Andrew Stuckey on Wednesday, September 10, discussing county news and events. She talked about highlights from the county commissioners meeting, which included a request for more information on the Land Use 2050 Plan. She discussed the recent funding of an expansion for […]
Orange County Creates Work Group to Advise Its Property Tax Revaluation Approach
The Orange County commissioners approved the creation of a work group to review and potentially update its property tax assessment process.
Future Chapel Hill Affordable Senior Housing Development Earns $1.3 Million Tax Credit Award
A future affordable senior housing development in Chapel Hill was recently awarded with $1.3 million in tax credits.
›