The Highground's Persian Gulf Tribute
Wednesday, July 20th, 2016 -- 11:45 AM
-A media reception was held before the opening ceremony of The Highground’s Operation Persian Gulf Welcome Home Veterans Event.During the reception, I spoke with Juli McNeely of the Million Dollar Round Table Organization who was instrumental in helping The Highground acquire funds for the event.
"At the point when we started filling out the grant, we didn't know for sure that it was going to be this event. We actually applied three years ago and didn't get it and we went back for it again and we built it around this idea, this vision. And because we had such a compelling story, we did receive the grant because we wrote about what was going to happen on a day like today or a week like this week."
I also spoke with Steve Jamroz of Blue Design Group who was the designer of the Persian Gulf Tribute and he talked about where his inspiration came from.
"The competition came out in 2008 and then it was sent out again in 2009, so it was done twice. And I remember before when I got the first one, I said a prayer and whatever I design, let it be, if it is picked, let it be an opportunity to provide healing for those that seek it out. When we got the request for the second design, I sent it back in the same way it was the first time because that's the image that came into my head."
Finally, Mike Martino talked about the process of creating the three sculptures found inside the tribute.
"I worked with the committee basically. This is what their ideas were and I just made it into a three dimensional sculpture. If I can help somebody with this, I mean I really appreciate this place being a place of healing and education. And a place to remembered. I try to get, when I do any of my work, I try to bring a human element and an emotional element to it, so it's not just an object. You actually inspire some kind of emotional response and it tells a story."
This week’s event is already continuing The Highground’s mission of healing and education.
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