“There is a complete and total vision for how that memorial was supposed to be, and it’s not completed,” said Jeff Shawan, who was recently elected vice president of a reorganized committee for fundraising and maintenance of the Butler County Veterans Memorial Wall.
The group met recently to make plans to complete a digital database of the more than 3,000 names on the wall, which was erected in front of the Black River Coliseum more than twenty years ago.
Funds are also needed to repair vandalism and the marks of time, according to Larry Kimbrow, who was elected president of the committee.
It is the goal of Kimbrow, Shawan and the newly organized board to keep the veteran’s wall relevant and protected.
“We have to keep it protected and make sure we continue to promote it,” believes the group, which includes Tucker Davis of First Midwest Bank as treasurer and Gary Carter as secretary.
The wall needs both upkeep and repairs, the group has found.
The wall has been damaged by disrespect and needs some maintenance as well, according to Kimbrow.
“Someone has stood up there by the pool and thrown a glass, a bottle of paint, and it’s splashed on the bricks and then on the granite. There are big red splotches that will have to be cleaned,” he said.
The group hopes to protect the vision for the wall that began as early as 1999, with architect Harold Porterfield, said Kimbrow, a U.S. Navy veteran.
The final design of Porterfield’s contribution was dedicated Nov. 11, 1999, with the motto “ALL GAVE SOME — SOME GAVE ALL.”
Porterfield, a local architect, designed the memorial at no cost.
“They had a skeleton of a memorial and there was a group of people, some of them were World War II veterans, this is going back roughly 15 years. Betty Pruitt, who is the baby sister of Private Billy Kanell and Porterfield, they were the driving force,” said Kimbrow. “But they were having a hard time getting it completed because all of the granite needed to be ordered at once so all that cladding would match and it was requiring something to the order of $60,000.”
Coliseum Director Jason Davenport and then Mayor Lloyd Matthews came up with the idea to put a loan together with local banks to complete the project, and also improve the uneven, unsightly walkway.
But fundraising to repay the loans was also slow.
Shawan, a former legislator and long time veteran supporter, organized a 237-mile bike ride to spur more contributions.
“I’m thinking, to me, it would be disrespectful to our veterans if the city had to pay off that lien. And I didn’t want that group to fail,” said Shawan.
“So at that time I did extremely athletic things to raise money, so I concocted, almost to my demise,” Shawan chuckled, “an event called the Ride for the Veterans Wall.
“So, what I was doing was getting people to donate $1 or some amount of money for every mile that I was going to ride on the Katy Trail in one ride. Me and two other men rode the entirety of it in one ride, 237 miles.”
Shawan said there were others who contributed to the cause in a big way.
“A local businessman, Doug Gregory, who’s the founder of Gregory Logistics, reached out and donated a Mercedes Benz and we raffled that off and raised about $12,000 in raffle tickets,” he explained.
The car was won by Z95 and donated back to the cause. It was then auctioned off, according to Shawan, and “collectively ... we raised around $40,000 to $45,000.”
Former city manager Dr. Tom Lawson was able to raise the amount that was left.
“And the money for those two pillars that have been placed out there that are very beautiful,” added Shawan.
The wall is now in need of upkeep and completion.
It is the hope of Shawan and Kimbrow that they can create a digital database that will enable people to locate their loved ones’ names on the wall, with more than 3,000 names to organize.
Kimbrow said there is still a lot of room for additional names to be added to the wall.
“There are 43 large panels. There’s room for 132 names, two rows, two columns on each. Then there’s 50 smaller panels, I took an average of about 7,276 names,” he said.
The cost to add a name to the Butler County Veterans Memorial Wall is $60, according to Kimbrow, and a brick is $25.
“There’s a pathway of red bricks all around and that is $25, anybody can put a family name or business name on those,” he said.
Kimbrow stressed any veteran from any area is welcome to have their name on the wall.
“It is important they know they do not have to be a Butler County resident,” said Kimbrow, who continued explaining, “(It also can include) the National Guard and Reserve, their veterans, even though the federal government and the VA doesn’t classify the National Guard.”
The list of past and current supporters of the memorial wall is extensive, including the city of Poplar Bluff, Butler County and the surrounding area.
Applications for the memorial wall can be picked up at the following locations: John J. Pershing VA Medical Center in the volunteer services office, located on the second floor; or Beehive Natural Foods, located at 900 Ida Street in Poplar Bluff.
Additionally, anyone can request a copy of the application by emailing Larry.Kimbrow@Yahoo.com or texting/calling Larry Kimbrow at 573-776-3496.