Tamworth Veterans Memorial to be dedicated Sunday

Parade set for 1:30 p.m.; dedication at 2 p.m.

As many as nine local World War II veterans are expected to take part in a parade and dedication of the upgraded Tamworth Veterans Memorial on Sunday.The parade starts at 1:30 p.m., with the dedication of the memorial at 2 p.m."We're hoping everyone will come out to join us and show their support, said David Haskell, chairman of Tamworth Veterans Memorial.The parade staging will start at Depot Road at 1 p.m., Haskell said. The memorial is located at the junction of Route 113 and Main Street.Haskell said volunteers erected a new flag pole and planted flowers this past week in preparation for the ceremonies on Sunday.Tamworth resident George Cleveland longtime former town moderator, grandson of President Grover Cleveland and executive director of the Gibson Center for Senior Services will serve as master of ceremonies at the dedication.Dignitaries expected to attend include District 1 Executive Councilor Raymond S. Burton (R-Bath); State Sen. and Gulf and Iraqi War veteran Joe Kenney (R-Wakefield); State Rep. Henry Merrow (R-Ossipee); and Lt. Col. (U.S. Army-Ret.) Robert Gilman of Alexandria.U.S. Sen. Judd Gregg's office is sending a congratulatory letter honoring local veterans. The letter will be read at the ceremony, and Gregg's office also sent a flag that once flew over the U.S. Capitol, Haskell said.The effort to upgrade the town's two memorials to its servicemen and servicewomen has been led by Haskell, a former selectman and Vietnam-era Army veteran who served in Germany, and Harland Snip Ross, a Korean War veteran, and several other local veterans and community leaders, including David Bowles, a retired state engineer and National Guard veteran; Alexandra Cook, whose husband, Harold, is a Navy veteran; Joanna Harte of the Brass Heart Inn and the Tamworth Historical Society; and Chris Clyne of the Cook Memorial Library, who assisted in the researching of names to appear on the town's two veterans' monuments.Haskell explained that the memorial has been upgraded and landscaped in the effort.A year ago November, said Haskell, we applied to the town at town meeting and were approved for a $1,000 article. We also applied to the Tamworth Foundation and received $5,000. The Ham Foundation gave us $2,500. And the Tamworth Community Guild raised over $6,000 through yard sales and more. To date, we have raised close to $33,000 our goal is to raise $72,000, so we're staying at it."Haskell also noted that a lot of work in-kind has been donated by local businesses and individuals.He said part of the effort includes the sale of commemorative pavers for the park. We're selling pavers 4-by-8s cost $50, and 8-by-8s are $100. We have sold 125 to date, and this year we'll probably install 300 or so, said Haskell, who said some have been installed at the memorial, while others will be added in years to come as they are purchased by the public.The memorial dates back to 1929, according to Haskell, who said it originally contained only the names of local veterans who served in the American Revolution, the Spanish American War, the Civil War and World War I.We're adding the names of 24 Tamworth veterans who served in the War of 1812, who for some reason never had their names put on it, along with the names of town veterans who served in World War II, the Korean War, Vietnam, Lebanon, Grenada and Panama, said Haskell.The names of World War II and Korean War veterans will be located on the left monument; on the right will be the names of local veterans of the Vietnam, Lebanon, Grenada and Panama conflicts. The center will feature the now-rearranged original monument, which contains the names of the American Revolution, Civil War and World War I veterans.The names of Gulf War veterans and veterans of the Iraqi War will be added to the honor roll, which is located in the town office, Haskell said.Snip Ross and I moved that honor roll from the town vault, where it had been stored in the townhouse, as it used to be on the front wall there. We moved it to the town office two years ago, Haskell said, noting that that memorial will be known as the Global War on Terrorism Honor Roll. He said the entire town has been supportive from the start, and especially thanked the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of the Eastern Slopes for granting the town an easement across their property to the memorial for water and electrical service. Following the dedication, the memorial will be under the perpetual care of the town of Tamworth, trustees of the trust fund/cemetery commissioners, Haskell said.Among those donating their services are Roberts Construction of Tamworth, led by Selectman John Roberts; Classic Curb; Permadrive Paving; Del Gilbert of Gilbert Block; Jeff Davis Electric of Chocorua; Jim Boothby III Plumbing of Tamworth; Peter Heimlich for donating use of his public address system; and the Bearcamp Garden Club, which will tend to the flowers at the memorial.