Tillamook veterans’ memorial installed

A new veterans’ memorial was installed in downtown Tillamook on June 26, honoring veterans from World War I to the present day across the county.

The project was the brainchild of late Tillamook City Councilor Doug Henson, who raised more than $200,000 in donations and in-kind contributions before Tillamook City Councilor Nick Torres took over for the final stages of the project when Henson became ill.

Henson told the Herald last fall that he was inspired to tackle the project when friends of a high school classmate who died in Vietnam asked him why Tillamook did not have a veterans’ memorial like other communities they had visited.

When Henson found that the only commemorations for veterans in the county were two plaques at the county courthouse and post office, he sprang into action to bolster those offerings. Henson Quickly landed on the triangle property between First Street and Pacific and Main Avenues that was previously home to a Shell as a site for a memorial and commissioned a preliminary design.

That design allowed Henson to come up with an estimated budget of $200,000 for the project, at which point he began approaching local contractors to further dial in the cost estimate.

The contractors Henson spoke with surprised him by offering to donate materials and services to the project, allowing him to quickly complete the fundraising push after several cash donations came in to cover the $83,000 purchase of the memorial itself.

At that point, Henson identified OM Stone in Hillsboro as the company that should engrave the memorial’s plinth and affix the bald eagle statue to its top and oversaw the installation of a rebar-reinforced concrete base for the memorial in November.

Unfortunately, soon after completing those preparatory steps, Henson fell seriously ill and was forced to withdraw from public life, handing the project off to Torres, who saw it through.

The newly installed monument features engraving on all four sides of the seven-foot-tall granite plinth, in addition to the bald eagle statue on top. The side facing First Street features a POW-MIA logo and the reverse a rifle and a helmet in honor of soldiers who died in combat.

The side facing Pacific Avenue features a thank you to the memorial’s sponsors Jerry Dove, the Loren E. Parks Trust, Werner Beef Jerky, the Pastega Family Foundation, Tillamook Sporting Goods, North Coast Lawn, Tillamook Peoples’ Utility District, Brian Werner Concrete, Aufdermauer Trucking & Excavation, Burden’s Towing, CoastWide Ready Mix and the Tillamook High School Charity Drive.

The final side, facing Main Avenue, is inscribed with a dedication to the veterans in whose memory the monument was erected:

“This monument is dedicated to the brave men and women who made the ultimate sacrifice for our nation during times of war. We honor their selfless service and remember their sacrifices.

“To our military personnel, past, present, and future, we offer our heartfelt gratitude. Your service and dedication to our country will always be remembered.

“To the families of those who gave their lives for our freedom, we offer our deepest sympathies. We hope that this monument will serve as a reminder that their loved ones will never be forgotten.

“May God bless our Veterans, our military personnel, and the United States of America.”