Officials commemorate new location of Veterans Wall of Honor

WASILLA — Members of the Mat-Su Borough Assembly, Wasilla City Council, Palmer City Council, and the Mat-Su Health Foundation gathered at the site of the old Iditarod Elementary for what is to become a groundbreaking new monument.

“This is going to become a beautiful home for what’s become a treasured monument in our Borough and a great location to have future celebrations,” Deputy Mayor of the Mat-Su Borough Matthew Beck said.

The Veterans Wall of Honor that was taken down from its location on the Mat-Su Regional Medical Center property will have a new home in Wasilla. MSHF CEO Elizabeth Ripley described plans for an aggressive timeline to get the wall built by Veterans Day.

“The wall is not a thing just for any one group, it is for the whole country to recognize those who have gone ahead of us and served in an honorable way. So, being part of that means being a part of history,” Simon Brown of the Alaska State Defense Force said.

Members from five different veterans groups came together to sign a lease for the property, which will also feature the Wasilla Police Department when construction begins. The process to move the wall has been some three years in the making.

Ripley spoke briefly on behalf of the health foundation and recalled a conversation she was having with Bert Hall, who was instrumental in organizing the original construction of the wall.

“He described it as a labor of love for our veterans that have given so much for our country and for us right here in our community. I think this project is another example an extension of that labor of love,” Ripley said.

Not everyone was happy with the move, but Beck and Ripley were confident that the beauty of the site and the accessibility would be better in the long run.

“I for one am going to look at this as a new start for our wall and hopefully we have the opportunity to make everything right. We can indeed be proud of this new location for our memorial,” said Dino Beligotti.

The designer of the project is Alder Architecture and Design from Wasilla and Coffman Engineers. The contractor is Axys Construction of Palmer.