Studer Community Institute

Memorial to Floridians lost in Iraq, Afghanistan comes to Pensacola

June 29, 2015
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An exhibit honoring Floridians who have died serving the U.S. in Iraq and Afghanistan will open on July 2and run through July 16 at the National Naval Aviation Museum. The traveling exhibit is titled "Remembering Our Fallen," and features photographs of the more than 300 Floridians who have died as result of their injuries in Iraq and Afghanistan since 9-11. The concept of the memorial dates to November 2010, when Bill and Evone Williams of Omaha, Neb., read a story in their local paper about the father of a serviceman killed in action in Iraq, who expressed concern that his son had been forgotten even as the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan continued. The couple created a temporary exhibit honoring all of Nebraska’s sons and daughters who had died in the Global War on Terror, its impact on the families of the deceased. They also sought to inspire people in other states to create similar panels. Florida is one of 22 states for which a memorial has been completed through the work of the Williams’ nonprofit Patriot Productions. “It is important for our visitors to not only understand and appreciate the people and events of decades past,” said Robert Macon, acting museum director, “but also gain an appreciation for the history that is being made on the battlefields of today through the sacrifices of young men and women in uniform.” Florida’s Remembering Our Fallen was dedicated in March 2015, in Palm Bay and Pensacola is one of the stops on a statewide tour. The National Naval Aviation Museum is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Pensacola Naval Air Station. Details: Call (850) 452-3604 or visit www.navalaviationmuseum.org.

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Memorial to Floridians lost in Iraq, Afghanistan comes to Pensacola

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