The dedication of the Milford Vietnam Veterans Memorial on Nov. 11 drew together Army buddies who went to Vietnam in the same unit and whose service together is celebrated here with the viewing of Vietnam Veteran Steve Cox's inscribed name, one among 225 from Milford listed on the monument, an event shared here by his Vietnam veteran friends, from left, Tana Allen, (Steve Cox), Rick Lavoie and Connie Dionne. Courtesy photo by Gail Bloom of the Andres Institute of Art

MILFORD – A project of patriotic devotion launched in 2017 to honor 225 military from Milford who served during the Vietnam War or were lost during the war was realized on Nov. 11 with the dedication of the Milford Vietnam Veterans Memorial, a newly unveiled landmark located in Memorial Park alongside First Congregational Church, 10 Union St.

“I was Class of ’64 at Milford High School and I know a lot of those guys whose names are on that monument,” said Glenn Aborn, who retired as a Captain in the Army and served mostly in Panama. “This memorial will keep these veterans in mind for years to come.”

The ongoing project, reportedly funded at around $125,000, is nearing completion. Donations of around $25,000 more will facilitate the finishing touches of added artwork and decorative elements.

The Milford Vietnam Memorial Committee launched the project to commemorate the 50th Anniversary of the end of the Vietnam War (1955-1975).

Committee members include Jerry Guthrie (chairman and U.S. Navy Vietnam veteran), Douglas Cave (VFW representative and veteran), Rodney Dellafelice and Gene Gregory (Milford residents), Rick Mossey (treasurer and veteran) and John Weidman (monument sculptor, Vietnam veteran and technical advisor).

The craftsmen who applied their skills to creating the Milford Vietnam Veterans Memorial, a work in progress whose two blocks of six tons each of Milford granite are reflective of the open pages of a book, include these citizens, from left, Adam Medlyn (sandblasting), Christopher Tenaglier (stone carver), John Weidman (monument sculptor, technical advisor and Vietnam veteran) and Jim Larson (stone carver). Courtesy photo by Gail Bloom of the Andres Institute of Art

The committee members, donors, volunteers and town officials were well credited at the ceremony for endless hours of work. The sculpture consists of two large blocks of Milford granite weighing six tons each, both enclosed within a circumference of curved stones bearing dates of note relevant to the war.

Vietnam veteran Steve Cox, an Army veteran raised in Milford, attended the event with family members and three of his buddies who served with him in Vietnam.

Fellow veteran visitors Tana Allen, Rick Lavoie and Connie Dionne stood alongside Cox and admired the inscribed stone with full appreciation that Cox’s name is there as a Milford veteran who came home.

“It’s an awesome thing that they built this monument for all of us — those who returned and those who didn’t come home,” said Cox, a part of the 3rd Battalion 197th Field Artillery Regiment of the New Hampshire National Guard. “Everybody was on patrol there and a lot of us went right out of high school.”

The Milford Vietnam Veterans Memorial office is located within Milford Town Hall, 1 Union Square. More information is available online and online donations can be made by searching Milford Vietnam Memorial.

Drawings rendered in colored pencil by Jerry Guthrie

Donations for the monument’s completion with a reported $25,000 currently needed to finish various components of the project can be mailed to Vietnam Memorial Fund, P.O. Box 7252, Milford, NH, 03055.

Drawings rendered in colored pencil by Jerry Guthrie