Upper St. Clair unveils bronze statue at Veterans Memorial Park
The South Hills Honor Guard from American Legion Post 760 renders a gun salute.
William Kofmehl III stands in front of the statue he sculpted.
William Babcock, one of the veterans who spearheaded efforts toward the memorial park, stands in front of the new statue.
U.S. Navy veteran William Babcock salutes during the Veterans Day commemoration at the Upper St. Clair Veterans Memorial Park.
T.J. McGarvey greets eight-month-old Lidia Shaw.
Members of the eighth-grade band at Fort Couch Middle School perform during the Veterans Day commemoration.
Bob Malley of Marine Corps League South Hills Detachment 726 participates in the ceremony.
Members of Upper St. Clair High School’s Chanteclairs vocal group sing “God Bless America.”
Chad Mertz serves as master of ceremonies for the Veterans Day commemoration.
Ched Mertz, left, greets T.J. McGarvey, president of Veterans Park Inc, the nonprofit organization formed to raise money for the Veterans Memorial Park.
James Boston, an Upper St. Clair High School junior, has played “Taps” at each of the Veterans Day commemorations at the Upper St. Clair Veterans Memorial Park, starting in 2011.
Joe Turba of Marine Corps League South Hills Detachment 726 participates in the ceremony.
Bernie Hoffman of Marine Corps League South Hills Detachment 726 participates in the ceremony.
Ched and Rachel Mertz stand in front of the new statue.
Aric Miller, a first lieutenant on active duty in the U.S. Army, attended the commemoration with his wife, Tara.
Tara Miller, an Upper St. Clair resident whose husband, Aric, is on active duty in the U.S. Army, spoke about what it means to a family when a member is in the military.
Marine Corps veteran T.J. McGarvey listens to a presentation during the commemoration.
The statue is about to be unveiled.
William Kofmehl III speaks about his inspiration for the statue he sculpted.
A flag-saluting boy, in bronze statue form, is the latest addition to the Upper St. Clair Veterans Memorial Park.
William Babcock and T.J. McGarvey, the two local residents who first approached township commissioners with the idea for the park, helped pull the wraps to reveal the sculpture during Friday’s Veterans Day commemoration.
“The unveiling of this statue here today completes the dream of a small group of Upper St. Clair residents who would not be denied,” McGarvey, a Vietnam War-era Marine Corps veteran, said.
The dedication of the first phase of the park, featuring monuments to all branches of the U.S. military, took place Nov. 11, 2011. Last year, the veterans park committee started planning for the statue as the second phase, raising money and interviewing prospective sculptors.
“We probably had six out of eight sculptors come and propose an eagle,” Ched Mertz, a former township commissioner who serves on the park’s board of directors, recalled. “We thought that was a great idea. We love eagles. Who doesn’t?”
But they decided to go a different direction.
“We also wanted something that really would honor our children,” he said, “and give our children instruction on what it to be a patriot and what it is to honor veterans.”
Enter sculptor William Kofmehl III, who visited the park last year with his family and spoke Friday about being inspired by a plaque that reads:
“Walk tall, my child, for this land is free. Breathe sweet the air, from sea to sea. Linger a while and reflect with me upon the price they paid for you to be an American.”
“I knew instantly, as I looked at my own son,” he said about young William IV, “that this was the catalyst for this sculpture: a child.”
Kofmehl elaborated on the concept surrounding the 450-pound statue.
“He is not situated within a classroom, where he’s prompted to salute,” the artist said. “He’s not at a ballpark. He’s alone within this Upper St. Clair Veterans Park. He makes his way through the park, learning of the sacrifices of many men and women. And he arrives at the flag.
”Confronted by the flag, he decides to remove his hat, bring it down to his side. His arm is drawn up, and he salutes.
“This boy is proud to be an American, and I am, too.”
The budget for the statue was set at $50,000, and as of Friday morning, the goal still was about $7,500 short, according to Mertz. But many of those in attendance came forth with donations at the end of the commemoration.
Babcock, a Naval officer during the Vietnam era, spoke during the event and posed the question: What is a veteran?
“A veteran is a young man or woman who at 17, 18 or 19 years of age signs a blank check, payable with their life, to serve this country,” he said. “I think it’s important to remember that those in uniform today represent less than 1 percent of our population. Those 2.5 million men and women in the uniformed services and the Reserves protect 330 million Americans.”
McGarvey gave his perspective about the Veterans Memorial Park’s meaning:
“For those who are not familiar, LZ is a military term that means landing zone,” he said. “This is a safe LZ for all our veterans and their families.”