Sandy Springs commemorated Veterans Day with a special keynote address and the unveiling of two new sculptures at Veterans Park.
In a keynote address, Sandy Springs’s first city manager, John McDonough, said veterans’ sense of duty, honor, and sacrifice continue to shape the nation. McDonough is a retired U.S. Marines colonel who served in Iraq.
“Let us not only remember the sacrifices of those who serve but also recognize our responsibility to honor their legacy by living up to the values they defend, the freedom, safety, and opportunities we enjoy today were secured by the courage and commitment of our veterans,” McDonough said during his remarks.
Through experiences in the Sahara Desert, southern France, Egypt, the Mojave Desert, Korea, and around the Mediterranean, McDonough said he witnessed the incredible dedication of his fellow service members, whether operating in extreme cold, freezing rain, sandstorms, or enduring the intense heat of the desert. Through those experiences, his fellow Marines remained positive and found humor in the situation.
“That sense of camaraderie and shared sacrifice is something that I carry with me to this day,” McDonough said.
After McDonough’s remarks at the Sandy Springs Performing Arts Center, attendees crossed the street to the park for the sculpture dedications.
Curtis Pittman’s “Be the Light,” a 33-foot internally lit structure designed to emulate a flame, was designed so visitors can walk under and through the sculpture. Pittman said he couldn’t have created his work without the influence and poem by his high school friend and veteran, Jared Flood, who served in the U.S. Marine Corps from 1999 to 2005.
“He is a part of the creation because his poem and his saying is the metaphor,” Pittman said.
The artist had his friend, Flood, read the poem.
The True battle begins when the bullets stop flying,
choices for where life or death flow.
Love and fear grow,
a place where light and darkness know your name,
a torch to your soul,
forever burning its flame.
Sunny Park, who funded Pittman’s artwork, immigrated to the United States from South Korea. He described his firsthand experience with U.S. veterans including seeing many of them dead and dying in front of him when he was a child.
“I saw so many of them. They are husband of somebody, father of somebody, or son of somebody,” Park said.
He said those veterans not only served Americans but came to Korea and saved 50 million people in South Korea. When those soldiers first arrived, South Korea was the second poorest nation. Park said now it has the ninth-largest economy in the world.
Artist Kevin Chambers created “Three Generations,” a bronze statue depicting a multi-generational family honoring a loved one who made the ultimate sacrifice.
“Part of being an artist, especially being a sculptor, is you get a few opportunities along the way to create something much bigger than you, much bigger than all of us,” Chambers said.
David Boemig, who donated the funds for Chambers’ sculpture, said Veterans Park was reminds visitors that character, not currency, is the greatest asset.
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