ROGERS -- City officials have combed through documents in recent months to compile a list of about 60 residents who were killed in military action.
The names will be placed on a Veterans Memorial near completion in Veterans Park, said Lance Jobe, a city planner. He said he's asking for the public's help in verifying the list.
"I want them to look at the list and submit anyone that they know that is not on the list," Jobe said. "We want to make sure that anyone who should be on the wall is on the wall. If someone died while serving we want to make sure they get honored for that sacrifice."
Granite slabs will be inscribed with the names of the veterans, Jobe said. The slabs will hang on a 6-foot brick wall at the memorial site. A 10-foot statue of a soldier also will be included in the memorial, which will sit in a roundabout on East Veterans Parkway. The roundabout is near the west entrance of Veterans Park.
Mayor Greg Hines said constructing a memorial for Rogers has been in discussion for many years.
"There were a lot of different ideas," Hines said. "I think the one we ended up with the community will be very proud of."
Veterans Park is an appropriate place for the memorial, Hines said.
"When you think of all the youth who travel through that park, not just from Rogers but the youth from all over the state and region, they will not pass through without seeing that monument, " Hines said.
Design work for the project started in 2010. The City Council approved a contract with LJB Construction of Rogers to start work on the memorial in June. The project will cost about $520,513.
Jobe said the list will include any Rogers resident who was killed on active duty. It also will include anyone who was serving in the the Rogers' National Guard unit when they were killed. The list of names along with applications to submit a name for the list is available at rogersar.gov. Applications are due by Oct. 30, Jobe said.
The memorial could be complete next month, Jobe said.
A few miles down the road, Lowell is starting discussions about a veterans memorial. The memorial could be in the proposed Kathleen Johnson Memorial Park. The 100-acres of undeveloped land sits on the west side of the city.
Glenn Jones, a resident of Lowell, is leading a task force for the memorial.
"When the city got the 100-acre donation, I approached the mayor and said, 'This is the time to have a memorial,'" Jones said.
The task force is in the beginning stages of defining what a memorial could look like, Jones said. All veterans in the city are invited to attend a meeting at 5:30 p.m. Oct. 15 at Lowell City Hall, 216 N. Lincoln St., he said. Veterans will be asked to share ideas about what they want from a memorial, he said.
Lowell city officials have yet to release a time line for developing the park.
NW News on 10/02/2015