Memorial wall at Long Beach park to be unveiled Monday

Laura Herzog finally saw her longtime dream of a memorial wall come to fruition.

“It’s unreal. I feel like I’m not awake. I feel like I’m in a dream,” Herzog said after name plaques of fallen soldiers, airmen, Marines and sailors were placed on the Honoring Our Fallen Memorial Wall at Rosie the Riveter Park.

Herzog’s dream will be unveiled to the public on Monday at the park, 4900 E. Conant St. Memorial Day ceremonies begin at 6 a.m., with uniformed military veterans reading the names of the 6,864 fallen — confirmed by U.S. Central Command — since the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.

At 4 p.m., the plaques will be unveiled. Herzog said the event will include static military displays, including Humvees. She also said people can bring lawn chairs, blankets and picnics.

The memorial wall is unique in that it includes anyone who died while on active duty, Herzog said, regardless of how they died — training, accidents, suicide or something else. It’s the only one in her knowledge to do so, she said.

The wall was a dream of Herzog’s, she said, since about 2010, when she was working as a public affairs officer at the Joint Forces Training Base in Los Alamitos. Her job contract ended in 2011, and she launched the local Honoring Our Fallen nonprofit organization. The group supports families of those killed in action.

About two years ago she noticed an area where her idea could work — blank space on an ivy-covered wall at the back of Rosie the Riveter Park. One small part of the wall honors women who served on the home front in World War II and helped change the city.

The Honoring the Fallen organization then began raising money for their wall, Herzog said – an effort that continues. The initial cost for the wall was about $47,500, part of which came from a $17,000 donation by the family of fallen Marine Cpl. Claudio Patino. About $15,000 came from the organization’s GoFundMe account, as well as cash donations and the Honoring Our Fallen’s general fund.

Donations will recoup what the organization spent, make upgrades, add names of fallen and pay for maintenance. Upgrades include a plaque explaining what the wall is, Herzog said, as a baer is used now. Other wish list items include LED lights, landscaping and providing paper for loved ones to make rubbings.

So far, about $13,000 has been raised at the GoFundMe site. Donations can be made by visiting www.gofundme.com/9-11memorialwall.

For more information on Honoring Our Fallen, visit www.honoringourfallen.org.

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Emily Thoton is a staff writer with Gazette Newspapers. She can be reached at [email protected].