Lynnfield addresses Veterans Memorial confusions

LYNNFIELD — War Memorial Committee Chair Joe Connell addressed recent confusions regarding the paver sales at the new Veterans Memorial on South Common Street at the Select Board meeting on Monday.

The committee opened its sale of War Memorial pavers for $250 on Aug. 6, which allowed donors to add an inscription of up to three lines, with a maximum of 15 characters per line.

According to the town website, when applying to buy a paver, the inscriptions can “pay tribute to a service member, past or present, or can include any message chosen by the donor.” The town can reject any inscriptions if it is deemed “unsuitable.”

Richard Davis, a Vietnam-era veteran of Lynnfield, requested the War Memorial Committee and Select Board stop the sale of pavers at the memorial.

“The War Memorial should be an exclusive dedication to keep the remembrance alive for the service and power of all veterans,” he said.

One concern of offering the sale of pavers is they will be used for advertising or commercialization, Davis said.

Connell said the committee has sold 45 pavers, totaling $11,250, as of Monday. He said the committee needs funding beyond the construction of the memorial to maintain it for years to come.

The names on the memorial itself are of veterans who served while they were residents of Lynnfield and the goal for the pavers is to honor members of the community whose friends or family served, but are not from Lynnfield, he said.

“We do not go to war as an individual or a service branch,” Connell said. “We go as a Nation, State, and towns, like Lynnfield. Without the support of the people of this country, we would not be as successful as veterans without question. The community deserves to be recognized as well. There are so many cases that show this.”

Each application for a paver is reviewed by the committee before it is approved, which prevents pavers being used for advertising or commercializations, he said. Of the 45 pavers sold, 94% say a veteran’s name or a veteran’s family name.

“In many cases, because Lynnfield went from 3,000 people in 1950, to over 8,000 in less than a decade, a lot of people had their parents (and) grandparents,” serve in the war as a resident of another town, Connell said.

“These current families, who now have lived here for at least one generation in Lynnfield want their veterans remembered as well. They should. This is exactly what we want,” he added.

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