SHAWANO, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) – At the heart of Woodlawn Cemetery, sits a renewed Veterans Memorial site.
“This is the first Memorial Day service held in the new area, so we’re very proud of it,” said Mayor Ed Whealon.
Whealon tells FOX 11 the site was completed earlier this year, honoring each branch of the military.
“The benches, the stones, a lot of the flag poles were all new, the planting and American flag. The plantings and flags here were all donated.”
Whealon said the year-long project was only possible with the help of community members.
“Had a number of donations totaling $25,000 to redevelop and improve this area.”
The new development and Memorial Day ceremony drew a large number of veterans, including Kevin Barkow.
Barkow told FOX 11, the memorial not only honors those who died defending the country but also veterans who suffer from Post -Traumatic Stress Disorder.
“The memories of what happened in the war, and it just gets to the point where they can’t take it anymore and they take their own lives and we want to honor those people as well. And we have to do something as a nation to take care of them.”
Supporters like Sheriff Adam Bieber marked his squad car with different military branches, hoping to get a message across.
“You give a piece of yourself when you sacrifice in the armed forces; I just want to make sure we honor them, not just once a year, but 365 days a year,” said Bieber.
Parts of the Chapel in Woodlawn Cemetery was also renovated.
