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Cleveland County veteran names wanted for Norman Veterans Memorial

Norman Transcript - 5/23/2021

May 23—The Veterans Day Parade committee and the Norman Parks and Recreation Department are looking for additional submissions to get another round of names etched into the wall at the Veterans Memorial at Reaves Park before the November holiday.

Dedicated on Veterans Day in 2008, the memorial, located at the southwest corner of Reaves Park, was created to honor veterans who at one point were residents of Cleveland County.

Now with over 3,000 names, the memorial's next round of engraving will require 200 names. Norman veteran Terry O'Dea said the department is around 60 names short of that goal, and hopes veterans and their families decide to submit an application once they learn about the opportunity.

"We have received 100 names from the public, and 35 or 40 from the Norman Veterans facility on Robinson Avenue," O'Dea said. "The engraver requires 200 names on each visit to engrave the new names. We have had some applications on hold for close to two years."

Jud Foster, who recently retired after 42 years with the city's Parks and Recreation Department, said the memorial cost $380,000 and took over half a year to finish.

He said Don Schulenberg, a Norman veteran who served in the Vietnam War, approached the Veterans Day Parade Committee with fellow American Legion members to propose the need for a memorial.

The group met with Foster and initially discussed a plan to build a memorial at Andrews Park, a concept that led to a larger design that required more involvement.

The committee and the parks department collectively decided that a memorial at Reaves Park would be more visible, but O'Dea said the memorial is still somewhat of a hidden treasure today.

"Many people in Cleveland County don't even know about it," O'Dea said.

The centerpiece of the memorial is a monolith with bronze plaques that tell the story of the Army, Marines, Air Force, Navy and Coast Guard. Engraved into the base are the names of those from Cleveland County from WWI and onward who were killed in action. On top of the monolith is an eagle carrying the American flag, created by Osage artist Shan Gray.

The 25 panels around the perimeter are for the names of veterans who have lived in Cleveland County for any duration of time. On the ground is a star, with each point representing one of the five branches of the military.

Foster said the work of Bob Gowens, a retired planning professor at the University of Oklahoma, and Rich McKinney, president of McKinney Partnership Architects, was crucial to seeing the project through.

"They really led the design process, and then Schulenberg led a lot of the fundraising," Foster said. "He would sit out in front of Walmart or wherever he could and would set up a table and collect donations for the memorial."

Foster said a majority of the cost was covered through private donations. The extra money from the fund is saved to pay Ada Custom Memorials, the company that built the memorial, to handle each round of name etching.

The deadline for submissions of veteran names to be engraved this round is Sept. 1, 2021. Applications are available at the parks department website by clicking the veterans memorial tab and providing a copy of the veteran's DD Form 214, providing basic information about service.

Applications are also available at Master Tech Auto Services on 24th Avenue, Midway Deli on Eufaula Street and Carlstone Senior Living on Robinson Street.

Jeff Elkins covers business, living and community stories for The Transcript. Reach him at jelkins@normantranscript.com or at @JeffElkins12 on Twitter.

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