As part of the 200th Anniversary of the State of Maine, on Veterans Day, Wednesday Nov. 11, at 11 a.m. the highly anticipated Dedication of the Veterans Plaza will be celebrated on the Brunswick Downtown Mall. Among the dignitaries who will play a key part in the celebration will be U.S. Senator Susan Collins, and U.S. Senator Angus King – each engaged in an on-going and profound history of supporting veterans.

The featured guest speaker will be Command Sergeant Major Gretchen Evans USA (Ret.), a highlydecorated Afghanistan veteran and widely recognized advocate for a variety of well-known national veteran organizations. Joining her will be Major General Douglas Farnham, Commander of the Maine National Guard, and Rear Admiral Jan Cody Gaudio, USN (Ret.) who served his countryduring a distinguished 34-year Naval career.

“This Plaza represents a tribute by a grateful nation for the sacrifices made by all veterans of all military branches and the Merchant Marines throughout our nation’s history. It will serve as an educational tool for future generations as a reminder of the high costs associated with defending our nation’s freedom,” said W. David Watson, Commander of American Legion Post 20 and the project’s chair.

Besides featuring 12 sentinels, each representing a major U.S. conflict, the Plaza will exhibit a Purple Heart Memorial, one of only two in Maine that is open to the public. Integrated throughout the Plaza will be more than 435 individual granite Honor Blocks sponsored by family and friends of a veteran, each block noting the veteran’s service to the nation. This Dedication will be an unusual outdoor event, limited by COVID-19 protocols to a corresponding limited number of guests, the balance of the audience witnessing the celebration via Livestreaming via a link to the event here: http://veteransplaza.info/Live .

“The Organizing Committee is fully committed to meeting the State Regulations on outdoor activities to the letter of the law,” stated Commander Watson, “all with the required social distancing, mask requirements and the availability of both masks and hand sanitizer. We are working hard for this to be a very safe event for all of our invited guests.”

This one-of-a-kind Plaza project represents the culmination of a four-year effort of an evolving design, coupled with a fundraising campaign which has raised over $500,000 through support by veterans, civilians and other members of the community, fundraising events and the town of Brunswick.