Oct 21, 2005 By Jennifer Harr 3 min read

The group started its meeting with the Pledge of Allegiance, offering a moment of silence for veterans. Their dedication was obvious.

It was a group of different veterans’ posts – the Veterans of Foreign Wars, American Legion and AMVETS – coming together for a common goal. They wanted to reconstruct a World War II monument honoring their fellow local servicemen who fought in that war.

The monument used to sit at the corner of Main and Court streets near the Fayette County Courthouse, according to John Petro of VFW Post 47 in Uniontown.

Petro organized a steering committee made up of veterans in the local posts. He said that they needed to raise an estimated $80,000 to pay for the monument.

To raise the money, Petro suggested not only going to businesses, but also asking residents and their children to get involved.

“It’s up to us to do it,” he said.

Rob Chuey, a tax attorney and senior vice commander of the American Legion Post 51 in Uniontown, said he’s received a $25,000 grant from some local state officials, with tentative commitments of $10,000 to come from state Sen. Richard A. Kasunic (D-Dunbar) and $20,000 from state House Minority Leader Rep. H. William DeWeese (D-Waynesburg).

If those donations come before Nov. 11, Veterans Day, Chuey said the group would have enough money to break ground on the monument.

Petro said when the monument was taken down, no one made a record of the names on it. He estimated there were 2,200 names on the former 38-foot-long monument. The monument was dedicated in May 1944, according to an account in the former Uniontown Morning Herald.

The group discussed using land near the courthouse where the former monument was, but Chuey said he’s talked to a local businessman who volunteered to donate land on Gallatin Avenue in hope of having the monument eventually added onto. The businessman also spoke of turning the location into a park, Chuey said.

To get the project accomplished, Chuey said that the group needs to approach both corporate sponsors and run a grassroots campaign.

But the most difficult part of the project is proving to be verifying the names of local veterans who left to serve during WWII.

Using college and high school students, Chuey said he’s been able to use the Internet to research many names of locals who should be placed on the wall. But he’s also heard from people who said a relative left for the war but is not on his list.

“The real labor of love is verifying the names,” he said.

Chuey said he’s been asked when veterans groups will stop building commemorative walls. Noting that he just attended the funeral of a friend who died in combat, Chuey said, “the walls will stop when the wars stop.”

The men who gathered Wednesday at VFW Post 47 all seemed to agree that it was not a matter of taking credit, rather working together to honor veterans.

Petro said he hopes to find the same cooperation he’s seen in the past, particularly during the “Heroes All” weekend that honored veterans earlier this year.

He also hopes to set up a Web site to inform the public about the planned memorial to stir up interest, but needs someone to design it.

Donations can be sent to the City of Uniontown World War II Veterans Honor Roll, P.O. Box 1631, Uniontown, Pa. 15401.

The group will meet at 2 p.m. Tuesday to continue planning for the memorial.