A Lawton teen is finalizing plans to create a memorial to 9/11 in Elmer Thomas Park.
This article was originally posted on the official Lawton Constitution website, written by Kim McConnel, we are simply sharing it raise awareness among our 9/11 Community.
A Lawton teen is finalizing plans to create a memorial to 9/11 in Elmer Thomas Park.
Teresa Leday-Mauney is a senior balancing her plans to graduate with her Lawton High School class later this week against her plans to create the 9/11 tribute which will highlight the seven Oklahomans who died Sept. 11, 2001, when terrorists crashed jetliners into the Pentagon and the World Trade Center. The seven — three died in the Pentagon, four at the World Trade Center — included another young woman with Lawton ties, U.S. Army Spec. Chin Sun Pak “Sunny” Wells, a 1995 graduate of Eisenhower High School who was assigned to the Pentagon.
Leday-Mauney said the project has special meaning, beyond honoring the victims of 9/11 and the Oklahoma roots that some had.
She is the daughter of two Army veterans, and, as a Senior Scout in Troop 224 of the Girls Scouts of Southwest Oklahoma, she is planning a project to help earn her Gold Award. The award, the highest in Girl Scouting and the equivalent of Eagle Scout in Boy Scouting, requires a special project and Leday-Mauney said the 9/11 tribute is one that is close to her heart because such monuments help heal the nation’s wounds.
And, she thinks it is important for Lawton to have a monument that honors the Oklahoma victims.
Photos provided by: Teresa Leday-Mauney Girl Scout and Creator of This 9/11 Memorial in Oklahoma. Click to enlarge
Leday-Mauney already has preliminary designs -
For her monument, and she took those designs to the members of the Lawton Enhancement Trust Authority (LETA) to get their approval for placement among the other military-themed memorials near Lake Helen in Elmer Thomas Park. She’s already started her fund-raising campaign, and LETA Chairman Jay Burk said the group will be happy to help the young woman meet her goal.
Leday-Mauney said she picked Elmer Thomas Park because of its central location and because of military-themed monuments that already are there, but she didn’t want to go any further in her project until she won approval for the placement.
The rendering she showed to LETA this week includes a monument with two pillars, along with a piece of granite in a pentagon shape, red crepe myrtle trees (“Red looks really good and the trees do really well here.”) and benches for people to sit and contemplate.
She said she already has financial commitments for seven crepe myrtles and the benches, meaning her continuing fundraising efforts will be focused on the two pillars (estimated cost, $3,100 each) and the pentagon-shaped granite piece that will be the centerpiece of the monument (still being determined).
“Room for the 9/11 monument near four war memorials”
Parks and Recreation Director Jack Hanna said he has looked at the park and there is room for the 9/11 monument near four war memorials that already in place on the east side of Lake Helen. Hanna said the monument also fits into the City of Lawton’s plans to install a concrete sidewalk around the lake.
“I love the idea. It’s awesome,” Burk said, adding LETA is willing to commit funding to the project, as it has done with other youth-led community initiatives.
While Leday-Mauney doesn’t have a final estimate on the total cost of the project, Burk said LETA typically contributes half the total cost, which, under rough estimates, could be about $9,300 for Leday-Mauney’s project. LETA’s guidelines also specify that anyone who is seeking money for a project raise a comparable amount through private donations. Leday-Mauney already has a headstart with donations that will cover the crepe myrtles and benches, Burk said.
Photos provided by: Teresa Leday-Mauney Girl Scout and Creator of This 9/11 Memorial in Oklahoma. Click image to enlarge
Leday-Mauney said she wanted to nail down permission to place the memorial in the park before continuing her plans.
“I want to keep this as doable as possible,” she said, of a project that she wants to keep simple in design and execution, with completion in time to mark this year’s 9/11 ceremonies.
She already has approached groups about donations or just letting them know what she is doing, to include veterans and civic groups, and some families of the 9/11 victims.
“We will help with the exact need,” Burk said, noting Leday-Mauney was directed to return with hard costs so LETA can set a grant amount.
Photos provided by: Teresa Leday-Mauney Girl Scout and Creator of This 9/11 Memorial in Oklahoma. Click image to enlarge
Support This Project
Help Teresa build this 9/11 Memorial in Elmer Thomas Park!
You can help this memorial get underway by sharing about it on social media and donating (if you can) to the cause.