Community Corner
Gallery: Monument Fundraiser Marches Toward Goal
Saturday night's dinner and dance, along with earlier donations, gets the Global War on Terror monument almost a quarter of the way to its goal.
It's only a matter of time before enough money is raised to fund a Global War on Terror monument honoring veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan, said War Memorial Committee Chairman David Van Dam.
The chairman and about 150 people came to Saturday's monument fundraiser at the St. John the Baptist Club, on Burpee Terrace in Swampscott.
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There was food and live music by the band Sardonic, made up of four Swampscott musicians — Mark McEntee, Matt Nemeskal, Andres Llorente and Jimmy Legere.
One of the guests was a veteran home on leave, US Army Spc. Michael Gerome, 21, of Peabody. His time in the service has included a year in Afghanistan in Herat Province near the Iranian border.
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The chairman is confident the committee will meet its goal: unveiling the town's newest monument on Veterans Day, Nov. 11, 2012.
"It's going to happen," he said.
The funding goal for the monument is $25,000, and the committee has raised about 20 to 25 percent of that goal, the chairman said.
Van Dam said it's important to honor the sacrifices by the Swampscott veterans who have served in Iraq and Afghanistan and the two soldiers who died in Iraq, US Marine Capt. Jennifer Harris and US Army Spc. Jared Raymond.
Jared's mom, Jacki Raymond, is a member of the Swampscott War Memorial Committee and was at Saturday's fundraiser.
Just inside the club's door was a photograph of the monument's design.
Tracy Williams, a Navy veteran who is the Swampscott American Legion's secretary, said the new monument reminds her of the World War II monument on Monument Avenue.
She helped with the Desert Storm Monument project and says the Global War on Terror design fits well with the line of monuments on Monument Avenue.
David DePhilippo of Woodlawn Memorials has designed the monument.
Saturday night's celebration was a step forward in the march to build the newest monument.
Jim Schultz, a Marine Corps veteran and member of the War Memorial Committee, said the turnout Saturday was bit lighter than what he had hoped to see but the project is moving forward.
Getting to almost 25 percent of the goal is encouraging, he said.
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