A memorial stands at last to our 'greatest generation'

The tens of thousands who gathered in Washington this weekend to mark the dedication of a national memorial honoring America's veterans of World War II have an Ohioan to thank for the much deserved and long overdue monument and commemoration.
Forty-four years ago, Roger Durbin, a Sylvania, Ohio, native and a tank mechanic for the 10th Armored Division who fought in the Battle of the Bulge, visited the nation's capital and was dumbstruck by the lack of a physical memorial to the conflict. His persistence over the next four decades -- and that of U.S. Rep. Marcy Kaptur, D-Toledo, who shepherded memorial legislation through Congress over the past two decades -- has paid off with rich dividends.
The $175 million granite and bronze National World War II Memorial, prominently located on the National Mall between the Lincoln Memorial and Washington Monument, stands as a realization of his dream and that of millions of other World War II veterans.
It stands, too, as a permanent educational tool for generations removed from the war and as an enduring symbol of the impact of the World War II era on America at home and abroad. Most important, it stands as an appropriately mammoth tribute to the war's 16 million veterans, 400,000 of whom lost their lives in the conflict.
A multifaceted memorial
The memorial, which spans the length of a football field, is rich with references to battles, key figures and events during the war.
There is the D-Day quote of Gen. Dwight David Eisenhower emboldened on a granite entrance: "You are about to embark upon the Great Crusade toward which we have striven these many months. The eyes of the world are upon you. I have full confidence in your courage, devotion to duty and skill in battle."
There is the Field of Stars, a panel representing the 400,000 American lives lost.
There is the ring of austere granite pillars representing the contributions of every state and territory in the union. The Ohio Pillar is in the southwestern part of the ring between those of Kentucky and Indiana.
There are the Atlantic and Pacific Pavilions, representing the two major theaters of operations plus a registry of Americans who contributed to the war effort at home and abroad.
Collectively, the pavilions, pillars, stars, registry and more will reinforce the singular importance of the era in American history for generations to come.
According to the American Battle Monuments Commission, the memorial is a "monument to the spirit, sacrifice and commitment of the American people to the common defense of the nation and to the broader causes of peace and freedom from tyranny throughout the world. It will inspire future generations of Americans, deepening their appreciation of what the World War II generation accomplished in securing freedom and democracy. Above all, the memorial stands as an important symbol of American national unity, a timeless reminder of the moral strength and awesome power that can flow when a free people are at once united and bonded together in a common and just cause."
A tribute to veterans
Most important, the memorial heralds the valor and sacrifice of our 16 million veterans who fought in it, including the 4 million of them who are alive to witness its completion. It is unfortunate that the memorial took so long to achieve, delayed in part by spats over how money should be raised and managed, debacles over design considerations and feuds over where exactly it should be built.
As a result, three-quarters of those who served in the war -- including Durbin, who died four months before groundbreaking for the memorial in 2000 -- are now dead. According to the Department of Veterans Affairs, about 1,000 World War II veterans are dying daily.
The annual number of deaths, which had been accelerating, has begun to slow as the size of the group declines. Actuarial tables project that 954,000 World War II veterans should still be alive a decade from now, according to the American Battle Monuments Commission.
But the true significance of the memorial will live on long after the last veteran of what Tom Brokaw called America's "greatest generation" has died.
As Steve Shepas, 86, of Poland, a World War II veteran who spent 30 years in the military, aptly put it, "The monument is a symbol of our dedication that will never fade away."