Dover memorial to honor Korean War vets
- Groups selling bricks to raise %2410%2C000
Two veterans groups have banded together to raise $10,000 for a memorial in Dover honoring those who served during the Korean War.
The memorial, just over 3 feet high, is in the shape of Delaware. It will sit at the Kent County Memorial Park, just behind the Kent County Levy Court near U.S. 13. The land for the site was given to the groups by the county.
George Goss, 83, of Lincoln, said the state's Korean War veterans deserve a memorial in Delaware's capital. There's already one in Sussex and New Castle counties, he said.
The war, battled from June 1950 to July 1953, and its veterans are often overlooked, said Goss, president of the Korean War Veterans Association of Delaware.
"It has been called the 'Forgotten War', and I think until recently, it was forgotten," he said. "But thanks to a lot of members who have gone out, I think we are now getting the recognition we are entitled to."
His group and the local chapter of the Vietnam Veterans of America are spearheading efforts for the memorial.
Goss said he fought in Korea between 1951 and 1952 as a forward observer with the Army.
He returned to Korea lst year for the second time since he served. It's amazing how far the country has come since the war, and how they still remember the sacrifices made by soldiers more than 60 years ago, he said.
"The Korean government cannot do enough for the veterans," Goss said. "They are probably the only country in the world that is still saying thank you."
Bricks, which can be dedicated and placed at the memorial park, are being sold for $75 each to fund the project.
They hope to raise the $10,000 and dedicate the monument on July 27, the anniversary of the war's ending, organizers said.
So far, they've raised about half of the money and Goss said he's hopeful they'll have the full amount by July.
The idea to build the monument came up last year, when Goss was approached by members of the Kent County Chapter 850 of the Vietnam Veterans of America.
There's already a memorial for Vietnam veterans and one for Gold Star Mothers at the park, and it's only appropriate to have one for the Korean War veterans, said chapter president Joe Startt Jr. The group also has a site there for a memorial dedicated to those lost during conflicts in the Middle East.
Veterans of both the Korean and Vietnam wars share a lot in common, Startt said.
A lot of the people who served in those two wars didn't talk about it when they came home, and just tried to return to a normal life, Startt said. One such person was his own brother-in-law who, until the planning for this memorial started, Startt had no idea served in Korea. He said it's only appropriate to remember those like his brother-in-law, who has since passed away.
"We just forgot about them, just like Vietnam, and that was bad when we came home. We can forgive, but we don't have to forget," he said. "Never again will one generation of veterans abandon another."
Contact Jon Offredo at (302) 678-4271 or at joffredo@delawareonline.com. Follow him on Twitter @jonoffredo.
TO HELP
Order forms for the the bricks for the Korean War memorial can be downloaded at http://delawarevva.com/pages/memorials/index.php or by calling Paul Davis at (302) 697-8384.