The goal is to hold dedication on Veterans Day 2020.
Brad Jacobs hopes the Dover Veterans Memorial, which is being built along with the new Dover Area High School in rural York County, Pennsylvania, will serve as a reminder of those who served our country.
“I was told by someone looking at the plans that everyone should be allowed to come out and spend some quiet time at the memorial, to help them understand what every vet has done to ensure their freedom,” Jacobs says.
Jacobs, a 1962 Dover alum and chair of the Dover Veterans Memorial Committee, is working closely with Murphy & Dittenhafer Architects, which is designing the monument pro bono.
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Jacobs wrote Dover school officials with the idea for the project in January 2018, offering to solicit donations and chair the committee.
“I contacted Frank Dittenhafer, a fellow Rotarian and Dover grad, and his staff put together the draft design, which was accepted by the committee and the school board,” Jacobs says.
The veterans committee is now raising funds for construction.
The soft approach
The memorial will be near a side entrance to the new high school, about 150 feet from the main entrance, at a roughly 45-degree angle from the main entrance’s path.
“This will be available for students, veterans, and community members in an unobtrusive way,” says M&D Architect Blake Gifford. “Frank wanted there to be no front or back to the memorial, for it to be something you can walk into from any direction,” Gifford adds. “It’s not forcing patriotism on anyone.”
An Army National Guard officer during the Vietnam War, Jacobs agrees with this approach.
“During Vietnam, the folks who served weren’t respected when they came home,” he remembers. “This is a ‘soft’ approach to say thanks.”
Purposeful design
M&D Architect Blake Gifford says the veterans committee worked cooperatively with the Architects on the initial design and revisions.
“We started with the central circle with the star, and everything radiates out from this,” Gifford says.
Two granite pylons will name the memorial. Six other pylons, for each branch of the service and the National Guard, will contain each branch’s respective logo and motto.
“This is different from some memorials,” Jacobs acknowledges, but he thinks it’s especially important here. “The PA National Guard is probably the most active guard in the world.”
Across the back of the granite pylons is a furled flag, and on the two pylons naming the memorial are eagles — Dover’s symbol – Jacobs adds.
The memorial will have muted red, white and blue colors, and two wing walls with quotes, according to Gifford.
Benches for community members to sit, reflect, reminisce, or have quiet time, will reinforce the memorial’s gentle approach.
Community businesses join commitment
Jacobs says he, Dittenhafer and Gifford are already seeing the community make a commitment of its own.
“Lobar, the general contractor for the new high school, and York Excavating Company will provide prep work for the granite pylons and pavers (bricks), pro bono,” Jacobs says. “Bachman Memorials is supplying the granite at cost.”
The Dover Veterans Memorial Committee is soliciting contributions to cover other costs while hoping more businesses will donate time and material.
“We’ve already received cash donations from the Hawks Club of Pleasureville and Shiloh American Legion,” Jacobs notes.
He is also pleased this memorial, originally conceived as honoring Dover Area High School alumni, has expanded to include anyone who attended Dover schools or served as a staff member there.
“A daughter whose dad went to Dover in 10th grade and served in World War II mailed me, as did someone who attended Dover elementary and moved out in fifth grade,” he says. “These are considered Dover alums, and they, too, will be honored.”
Anyone interested in purchasing a paver to honor or remember a veteran can contact the Dover Eagle Foundation, 101 Edgeway Road, Dover, PA 17315. Donations are tax deductible.
“Everybody is sharing something to make this project come to fruition,” Jacobs says.
The goal is to hold dedication on Veterans Day 2020.
Murphy & Dittenhafer Architects took on the Architecture, Interior Design, & Overall Project Management for the new Bedford Elementary School, and the outcome is impactful.