Walking through downtown Greenfield, the presence of local government and history are evident, from the courthouse and its annex building to city hall and the Riley Home Museum, but just down the street lies a marker reminding us of duty and sacrifice — Hancock County Veterans Memorial Park.
That park is filled with bricks dedicated to soldiers and their families from wars ranging back over a century and as recent as Army Lt. Gen. Timothy J. Maude, the highest-ranking member of the military to die in the September 11 attacks 23 years ago, whose grandson still works for Greenfield Power and Light today.
Walking through the park, visitors can see the names of hundreds of local veterans and their families and see artwork depicting the histories of each branch of the military throughout American history.
The park has continued to transform since its dedication in 2010, adding bricks and sponsors over the years. The most recent addition was a statue along the park’s eastern edge depicting the battlefield cross, in which a fallen soldier’s boots, weapon, helmet and dog tags are arranged to honor them at the end of the day.
The process of caring for the park has been a complicated one, though, as local veterans groups have struggled to figure out how to maintain it. After building the park with the help of the city, the city’s parks department initially took care of the park, but the veterans groups didn’t feel that the park was maintained well enough. Eventually, the veterans decided to hire private landscapers to help maintain the grass while the groups rotate monthly to do basic maintenance such as cleaning.
Costs have presented an issue as well for the veterans groups, with the upkeep of the park running them around $9,000 per year. The park’s only sources of income are the bricks which line the sidewalks of the park and the sponsorships for various pieces of the park, including light poles, artwork and memorials for specific wars, but despite there being numerous unchiseled bricks and unclaimed sponsorships, the veterans groups have had to foot much of the bill, splitting the remaining cost amongst themselves.
Despite the challenges, though, the groups say they’re proud of the work they’ve done with the park.
“Yeah, we’re pretty proud of the park,” Veterans Service Officer Bob Workman said. “And it’s going to be here for years. It’s been here for what, 17 years?” After a pause, he laughed and continued “Gosh, I was younger then!”
As he looked around, the pride was evident on his face for what he and his fellow veterans had accomplished in a small lot in a small downtown in Indiana, and he went on to say as much, too.
“Outside of the parks in [Washington,] D.C., this is the best one I’ve ever seen,” Workman said. “It was a lot of work. It makes you feel good.”
As people stroll through downtown Greenfield, the park remains as a spot of peace amongst the comings and goings of the courthouse and city hall and as a reminder of those who came before.
