Florida XI

I flew in and out of Jacksonville on my first trip to Florida and on the day I was to fly home I just drove around a bit. I eventually stopped at a neighborhood restaurant and had something to eat and a beer, or maybe two.

I got talking to some guys in the place and told them some of my story and they wanted to know if I had seen the memorial in the parking lot at the Jacksonville Jaguars stadium. I had not and as it turned out it was only a short drive away.

This memorial, like so many others honors those from several wars, WWI on through the Global War On terror and an eternal flame honors their final sacrifice.

Originally built in 1995 and expanded in 2005 in honors more than 1600 from the Jacksonville area.

I am always struck by the reflections so many of these sites provide. I have written before about how they are designed to be reflective, for us to see ourselves in the lost, but the reflections still grab me, every time.

Something I have never before encountered surprised me as I read the names on the wall. The names are listed in groups of which High Schools they attended. I really liked this approach and have not seen it again in over 500 visits to other memorials.

Next time, on the21st, we will return to Maryland, so join me there, as usual, at 9:00am

To see additional memorials from Florida, or any other state, click the state name on the left side of this page.