A scale model of the National World War II Memorial was unveiled Sunday, April 14, at the Wisconsin Veterans Home in King.
Sen. Bob Dole, a decorated WWII veteran, used this same model in 1993 during his presentation to Congress on the proposed memorial.
Designed by architiect Friedrich St. Florian, the memorial is located between the Lincoln Memorial and the Washington Monument in Washington, D.C.
Covering more than seven acres, the memorial consists of 56 granite pillars, two 43-foot arches, fountains and pools, and a Freedom Wall with 4,048 gold stars, each representing 100 Americans who died in the war.
Pillars of Honor, a nonprofit group in Illinois, travels throughout the country with the model so that WWII veterans who are unable to participate in the Old Glory Honor Flights to the nation’s capital can learn about the memorial.
During Sunday’s ceremony, George Haupt spolke about his experience as a guard at the Tomb of the Unkown Soldier.
Located in Arlington National Cemetary, the tomb’s first unidentified soldier was buried there after World War I. Unknown soldiers have subsequently been buried there from each of the major wars.
Haupt noted that due to DNA analysis, there will be fewer unkown soldiers in the future.