Next Generation Veterans of Indian River County recently unveiled its Words from War Monumental Sculpture at Riverside Park, near the entrance to Veterans Memorial Island Sanctuary. The group had commissioned artist Ross Power to create the massive sculpture nearly five years ago.
A large crowd of veterans, military families and local dignitaries stood alongside civilian members of the community, all united in their belief that it is as important to assist members of the Armed Forces once they return home as it is to support them while they are on active duty.
The monument was constructed to represent the sacrifices made by the men and women of our military services, a concrete representation of the community’s support of veterans from all conflicts. Power said he designed the monument to resemble a T-Wall, symbolizing the concrete walls used as blast protection for soldiers serving in Iraq and Afghanistan.
The sculpture is an imposing structure, built to last. Power used more than 48,000 pounds of cast concrete and epoxy-coated rebar to construct the 9-foot-high by 18-foot-wide monument.
During a private Thank You Reception for donors on the eve of the Saturday morning unveiling, Bruce Cady, project lead, commented that it had been a collaborative effort, supported by more than 250 individual donors, the City of Vero Beach, various veterans organizations and community partners.
“The community has touched this project,” said Cady. “The words, the sentiment, the art that Ross created, speaks to everyone that’s wearing a uniform.”
“Words are important,” said Power, who had interviewed veterans and extrapolated their words to convey their experiences, memories and thoughts. Among the 48 words etched or written in relief are duty, honor, protect and courage.
He explained that the bullet-riddled metal hangings under a dome connected to the walls are meant to represent the ugliness of war and the total destruction that our veterans encounter.
“How can you expect a veteran to come back from war and ever be the same?” asked Power.
“We need to not only love and support and honor our veterans, but we must realize that it is the mental health of the world that creates war. And it is the mental health that we need to focus on to help our veterans to stop the ridiculous and painful amount of suicide and constant returning from service with PTSD that lasts forever.”
As a voting member of the Veterans Council of Indian River County, the mission of Next Generation Veterans is “to create a network of next generation of veterans, provide a venue for social support, combat misconception about returning veterans and represent our generation by positively engaging the community.”
In addition to connecting veterans with services and social gatherings, the group runs a PTSD support group in partnership with Dogs for Life and Gold Star Mothers of Indian River County. Through Operation React and Recovery, they provide shutter assistance to veterans in need and are working to create an extreme weather bunker of emergency supplies and recovery equipment.
Membership is open to veterans in all branches of the U.S. Armed Forces who served honorably from 1990 to the present. They meet at 6:30 p.m. the second Wednesday of every month at in the Felix Poppell American Legion Post or via Zoom. For more information, visit ngvirc.org.
Photos by Kaila Jones and provided
