Lawmakers and Veterans Cut Ribbon for New Memorial Grove

by Kris Venezia | 07/13/2012 | 3:20pm

Lawmakers and Veterans Cut Ribbon for New Memorial Grove

The site honors soldiers who lost their life in WWII and the Korean War.

 Van Cortlandt Park in the Bronx has a new look commemorating the borough's war heroes.

The memorial now has brand new oak trees, benches, and bronze plaques commemorating Americans who died in combat. Congressman Eliot Engel says this site reminds people to pay tribute to American veterans. 

"As a society, we need to remember those who fought to keep our freedoms free," Engel said.
 
Oak trees scatter the memorial because they're considered a symbol of strength and endurance. Herb Barrett is a veteran and founder of Friends of Memorial Grove. He says he wants people to come and relax at the site. 
 
"It's up to you, because you're a lot younger than I... To carry it on for us; come here, visit here, just hang around, sit down on a bench and talk," Barrett said. 
 
Twenty-one soldiers from the Bronx, who lost their lives in World War II and the Korean War, have bronze stones at the memorial.

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