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Plaques pay tribute to veterans from 20 US wars, conflicts
YOUNGSTOWN
American Legion Road of Remembrance Post 472 is living up to its name.
At 1 p.m. Saturday, Post 472 will dedicate 20 plaques affixed to the fence at the back of its property at 323 E. Indianola Ave., to remember and honor veterans of all wars and conflicts, ranging from the Revolutionary War to the War on Terrorism.
Nineteen of the 28-by-24-inch plaques, one of which is dedicated to all service members past, present and future, are painted with a camouflage theme, and another, representing the Civil War, is blue and gray, said Larry Janesh, who presented the idea for the project to the post leadership about a year ago.
“I read an article in The American Legion Magazine that listed all the conflicts and wars in which the United States was involved, and I thought it would be a good project for the post, said Janesh, 67, of Youngstown. He served in the Navy as a sonar technician aboard the USS Rogers (DD-876) destroyer from 1968 to 1974 during the Vietnam War.
The leadership all liked the idea, but wanted to know what it would cost.
“As it turned out, it was put up with no cost to the organization,” said Janesh, the retired former owner of Frank’s Custom Draperies.
The public and members of veterans organizations are invited to attend the event.
In addition to the plaques and U.S. flags mounted on each fence post, the area was landscaped by George Conrad IV, a Life Scout member of Boy Scout Troop 119 in New Springfield, as his Eagle Scout service project.
George, the son of George Conrad III of Springfield and Darla Green of Youngstown, is a sophomore at Springfield Local High School, where he is a member of the marching band, and works at Panera Bread in New Springfield.
George, the grandson of George Jr. and Janice Conrad of Youngstown, and Carol Durkin of Youngstown, has three siblings, Vivian, 16, Emily, 12, and Michael, 8. His grandfather served in the Navy during the Vietnam War.
George said his project involved landscaping a 540-cubic-foot area.
“I put down 540 cubit feet of weed barrier, over 3 square yards of topsoil, 4 tons of river rock, and placed 20 plants,” he said.
The businesses that contributed to the landscaping project are Tabor’s Landscaping & Garden Services, North Lima; Elliott’s Garden Center, Poland; T.C. Redi-Mix Inc., Youngstown; and Bernard Daniels Lumber, Canfield.
“I would like to thank all of the people who helped me with this project. I would have never gotten it done if it wasn’t for them,” George said.