Banner program will raise funds to maintain community’s memorial displays
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Howard County long has been known as having the most veterans per capita of any community in the nation. It has statues and displays commemorating the service of these men and women. Several bridges across the county are named after local military heroes.
But Kokomo is missing something that many other communities have had for years: banners depicting local veterans in honor of their service. The Howard County Memorial Corp. (HCMC) intends to change that. It has unveiled the Military Heroes Banner Program, a tribute to veterans who have served in the U.S. Armed Forces. The intent is to remind the community of the dedication to their country these veterans demonstrated.
“I’m up to about 60 banners,” said Kirk Daniels, HCMC president, of the first banners to go on display earlier this year. “The first batch were hung by Memorial Park, and I see why the city did that. But we’d love to have them all over the city as well. We want them to be seen by everyone.”
Daniels explained that the idea for the banners came from driving around other cities across the state and seeing similar displays. It occurred to him that the banners could serve two purposes in Kokomo. They could honor local veterans, and they could serve as a fundraiser to help the HCMC maintain the several statues and memorial displays across the community.
“(Former HCMC president) Jerry Paul dove right in as a fundraising machine,” said Daniels. “He’d go out every weekend, come home with $1,500 or $2,000. But since he passed away, we’ve got all these monuments and no Jerry Paul. The monuments are well-maintained, but selling these banners will allow us to use the profits for monument maintenance.”
Daniels explained that the flowers and landscaping accompanying the monuments at Memorial Park and on the courthouse square are maintained by the Howard County Master Gardeners at no charge for labor. But the statues must be hand-rubbed with a preservative to prevent the bronze from taking on a blue-green patina. The HCMC also is in the process of replacing security cameras at Memorial Park.
“So, you can see the money is needed,” said Daniels.
Each banner features a photo of the veteran, along with their name, the service branch and logo, and a designation if the veteran served in a war. The cost of each banner is $200, and they will remain on display for two years.
In order to be eligible to be displayed on a banner, the individual must have served in the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, Coast Guard, Space Force, National Guard, or Reserves. They must be either an active service member or an honorably discharged veteran.
Banners can be purchased by family or friends for veterans or in honor of deceased service members. Applications can be obtained at Freedom Financial Group, 325 N. Main St.