Granite tablets installed

Jim Goldsworthy, Columnist

CUMBERLAND — Black granite tablets bearing the names of Pfc. Brandon Davis and more than 5,000 other American service men and women who’ve died in the line of duty since 1990 were installed Thursday at Cumberland’s Gulf War Memorial.

Davis, the second area resident killed in Iraq (Spc. George A. Mitchell of Antioch, W.Va., being the first) was the inspiration for the memorial.

“It’s been a long struggle, a long time coming,” said Davis’ father, Jeff Davis of Cumberland, “but it’s great seeing it. It comes from the hearts of the people.” He and his wife, Kim, were present for the installation.

The memorial has been in progress for four years, and some work remains to be done. It will be dedicated March 31, 2009 — the fifth anniversary of the day Pfc. Davis and four other American soldiers died when their vehicle was destroyed by an explosive device.

Davis originally asked Gary Lambert, then-commander of Henry Hart Post 1411, VFW, about the possibility of dedicating a small monument to his son.

Lambert said, “This is Cumberland. We can do better than that.”

The resulting memorial is located along Front Street behind Henry Hart Post and Fort Cumberland Post 13, American Legion.

Davis said, “It will be a great tribute” to his son and all the others who’ve fallen since the start of the first Gulf War. “We want all of the guys who are in Iraq and Afghanistan to know about this, to know they’re not forgotten. Four other soldiers were killed along with my son, and we want to get hold of their families to let them know about this.”

The Gulf War Memorial’s design containing “Books of Remembrance,” on which fallen servicemen’s names are engraved, is reminiscent of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington. Like that iconic structure, Davis said he hopes Cumberland’s memorial will be a place of healing that draws families and others who have someone to remember.

Davis said there have been times when people said they’d heard nothing about the memorial and wanted to know if any progress was being made, but such projects always meet delays and take time, effort and money to succeed.

“All of this was donated by people,” he said, “and the people should be proud of it. The government didn’t have anything to do with it.”

Private citizens and local organizations, contractors, unions, suppliers and other businesses have provided discounts, cash donations, materials and physical labor.

Mike Coughenour, a local engineer/surveyor, provided the architectural site plan and ceded 50 percent ownership in the design when it was copyrighted, allowing the Gulf War Memorial Committee to use the design in fundraising with all of the profits going to the Memorial fund.

Lambert said the granite slabs were installed by Georgia Memorials Inc. of Elberton, Ga.

“None of this would have been done if they hadn’t worked with us. There wouldn’t have been enough money,” he said.

He said the company donated a black granite bench that reads, “We Who Live In Freedom Today Can Only Acknowledge, Never Repay Our Debt To Those Who Served.”

Committee member Jeanne Rigglemen said, “It took a lot of people to get this far,” including Pete Rinehart and Shirley Biafore, who died before they were able to see the granite slabs installed.

“When we started, we didn’t know if we were going to have room for all of the names on the tablets,” said Pam Ellsworth, another committee member. The list is complete up through the end of September, but one tablet remains blank.

“We’re hoping we’ll never need the other one,” she said.

Five brass discs will represent the official seals of the five branches of the service (Army, Marines, Navy, Air Force and Coast Guard), and there will be lighting and flagpoles and a separate memorial for Brandon Davis.

The memorial fund will be an ongoing project because of necessary upkeep and the likelihood that more names will have to be added. A motorcycle fundraiser is scheduled Nov. 22.

Donations may be mailed to: Gulf War Memorial Fund, c/o Henry Hart Post 1411, VFW, 205 Union St., Cumberland, MD 21502 or log onto www.gulfwarmemorial.org.