One of the things that makes San Antonio so special is our history and role as Military City, USA.  A commitment to military service has always distinguished our community from many others, and that service cannot be underestimated.

One of our priorities is paying tribute to those men and women who have paid the ultimate sacrifice. Their selflessness has allowed us to enjoy many freedoms in this great nation. The City’s Veterans Affairs Commission  has recommend a memorial that would honor those individuals who had been given the highest military decoration awarded in the United States – the Medal of Honor. The medal is given for “conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of life, above and beyond the call of duty, in actual combat against an armed enemy force.”

The Medal of Honor Memorial will honor local soldiers who have received this prestigious award.  The Veterans Affairs Commission has recommended to City Council that this proposed memorial be located in the Veterans Memorial Plaza Historic District.

 

The Veterans Memorial Plaza is home to four other military memorials: the Municipal Auditorium, dedicated to American soldiers killed in WWI; the War Mothers Memorial honoring mothers whose sons also fought in WWI; a sculpture honoring Vietnam War Veterans; and a sculpture dedicated to Korean War Veterans.  All of these memorials are located across from Auditorium Circle at Jefferson and Martin Streets.

The City selected Barbara Grygutis – a nationally renowned artist from Tucson, Arizona – to design and create the Medal of Honor memorial. As we embarked on the development phase of the project, Ms. Grygutis conducted meetings with downtown stakeholders, veteran’s organizations and military groups, businesses, i.e., AT&T and Medal of Honor recipients and family members.  In addition, two public meetings were held throughout the year to hear the public’s thoughts and ideas and discuss planning and design possibilities.

In addition, Ms. Grygutis made presentations and obtained feedback from the Historic Development Revitalization Committee, Public Arts Committee, Conservation Society and the MOH Steering Committee. This process enabled Ms. Grygutis’ to obtain valuable feedback and evolve to a final recommended design, which she presented before City Council on October 9, 2008, which was unanimously approved.

 

We’ve always been Military City, USA. This project is a chance to once again demonstrate how proud we are of our local military heroes by publicly recognizing their service. The financial costs of a Medal of Honor Memorial are nothing in comparison to the costs borne by these heroes.

 

As I leave office, I want to make sure that this project continues to have the priority that it deserves. I fervently believe that as a City who has always held a high regard for our military, both active and retired, we can continue to see this MOH memorial to fruition. The memorial is the City’s legacy to these courage’s men and women for many generations to come, inscribed with pride, gratitude, commitment and love.

Therefore, I urge you to support our MOH project and encourage every individual, veteran or civilian, to honor our heroes by contributing toward this great effort. Please log in to  www.samoh.org to make your contribution, where you will find the “MOH Memorial Fund”.

Thank you,
Mayor Phil Hardberger