It’s Finally Here!

Nearly 20 years of war, an estimated 2.8 million American soldiers served in-country during its length, and more than 58,000 of them were killed or went missing. These are the truths of the Vietnam War. On Marco Island, a close-knit band of Vietnam Veterans, additional servicemen, and patriots came together to create The Vietnam Veterans’ Memorial, the United States of America’s largest bronze cast statue memorial for the Vietnam War.

The American Legion Post 404 members have spent the last six years creating, planning, and implementing the rise of this memorial. Facing their fair share of obstacles along the way, they now can breathe a little easier as the statues, at long last, made their grand arrival to Veterans Community Park on Wednesday, June 17, a day that for many members of the American Legion and residents on Marco Island alike will become synonymous with history made.

It all began in 2020, after the traveling Vietnam Veterans’ Memorial Wall finished its third tour to Marco Island. There were funds left over and Lee Rubenstein, then Commander for the American Legion Post 404, knew that they should go towards something big. Something meaningful. Something memorable.

In discussion with another member, Bill Duncan, it came like a vision: A lasting memorial for the Vietnam War. But not just any memorial; his idea was to create something so large with a message so powerful that anyone who takes it in could not only learn about the War but leave with a deepened sense of purpose and appreciation for our servicemen, women, and military working dogs.

City Council Vice Chair, Chair of the Vietnam Memorial Committee, and principal donor, Rene Champagne commented, “For four years, there was little progress. Two years ago, I was selected to fill a vacancy on the council. At that time, I found both the other six councilors and the City Manager were far more receptive to the idea of creating a Vietnam Veterans Memorial than we had originally assumed or realized. They requested we meet with Dan Smith, Community Affairs Director of the city, to learn about the specifications to be met. They assured that if we met them, ultimate approval would be realized.” Champagne pointed towards the existing Freedom Fountain in the park and commented that originally the memorial was intended to be in that general vicinity of the park. At the last minute, they had to pivot away from this idea due to a water main issue.

From there, the Legion was encouraged to walk the park and scout for a new location. After a walk down the promenade, the perfect spot was found. Once they discussed the new location with city officials, approval was given for the new site. Dan Hope Inc. performed the requisite site work, and Joshua Greenwell Designs was the acting architect.

Next came the actual artistic creation of the memorial. After four years at the helm, Rubenstein stepped down and Champagne took over the Vietnam Memorial Committee. “The first thing I did was call the committee together and say, ‘Gentlemen, we will never get this memorial built if we continue to treat each other with disrespect. I need one thing from all of you: your assurance that you are going to cooperate even if you initially disagree. We must reach consensus on every issue to succeed overall.’” The group agreed.

Though there were many disagreements to follow, at each meeting, the committee would be reminded to reach a consensus on every issue and they willingly did so. Progress began. A team was born!

From there, it was a matter of procuring the artist. Bronzeman, one of the most trusted art dealers in the world with over 25 years’ experience in supplying quality bronze statues, was commissioned to create the memorial.

Based in California, Bronzeman is known to work closely with the bronze foundries and is an expert at making one’s vision come to life in every detail, large and small. They were the artists who created the nine-foot-tall in-flight American Eagle crowning the Freedom Fountain at Veterans’ Community Park. Since the Legion had firsthand experience with their ability and quality of production, they decided it made sense to use them for the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.

For the owner of Bronzeman, CEO, and artistic director Tobi Spellerberg, it was an honor to be commissioned a second time. “Lee Rubenstein first approached us and said he wanted to do something enormous like this,” she gestured to the memorial in front of her, “and he really liked the concept of having each soldier a different ethnicity.”

Beginning with a sketch, every modification of the intended memorial would have to be doubly approved by both the Vietnam Memorial Committee and the City of Marco Island. “We kept positioning all the soldiers,” said Spellerberg.

Greg Shellow, Spellerberg’s partner, added, “I even did some AI rendering.”

“Once we figured out the idea, and the approval of the concept was given, we then had to sketch out each figure and also put together the 25-foot pedestal for approval.”

The statues were then sculpted in what is called ‘the lost wax process.’ This has been used for over 2,500 years and is a multi-stage technique. “The first thing they do is sculpt an original clay model. Then we would take pictures of the clay and tweak it and make changes if something's not anatomically correct.” She shared that each time they added clay, they would send photos to the Vietnam Memorial Committee for approval and then off to the Marco Island City Council for approval.

From there, the artists made molds off the clay model and started casting it. The casting process took about four months for each figure.

The bronze foundry where they were cast was located in Bangkok, Thailand. There were around three artists per figure, with one man who specialized in the figure’s facial work.

This was the single biggest project that this Bangkok foundry ever handled and promised delivery dates never came close. “As we received pictures of the sculptures to approve, we were able to see that the foundry was quite small and not modern-looking in appearance,” said Champagne. The positive side is that their production costs were significantly below what US foundries would charge.

As Spellerberg would call to say she would not be able to make dates, Champagne and the committee decided that they did not want to compromise quality for a faster arrival time and told her she could have all the time it takes to complete the work but keep them informed as to the best estimates for delivery. They were sent individual pictures of each statue as they were completed.

Once they had a pretty good idea of when the shipment would be, Terry Kehoe took over acquiring the remaining ancillary parts that were needed. “Lowes stepped up big time! They said that they were all in and whatever they carried was ours at no charge! We owe a huge thank you to Lowes. They saved us a lot of money!” said Champagne.

After Lowes generosity, more and more vendors came aboard with donated goods and services. Lowes donated the stone, and Tri-Star Tile and Flooring placed the stonework along the podium wall at their cost. Meadows Granite constructed the memorial placard at cost. The engineer who had to do the site plan, Blair A. Fole PE LLC, did it at his cost. “It's just amazing. Once they became aware this was a Vietnam veterans project, everyone became very cooperative.” He smiled at the collaborative efforts. “The city has become incredibly cooperative. The police are really working their tails off providing security and have done a magnificent job.” He laughed as he added, “There is an old saying that it takes a village to raise a child. Well, we have learned a slight twist: it takes a whole community to raise a Vietnam Veterans Memorial!”

Once the statues were completed, they were shipped in a container to California for careful final inspections before being loaded onto a truck destined for Marco Island.

During the four-day drive from California to Florida, there was concern about potential damage. “There was concern we might lose some pieces like the IV and the dog’s leash. Just the vibration of the truck could do it!” said Spellerberg. The driver drove 600 miles a day carrying the load. Each statue had a GPS tracker around its neck so Spellerberg could track them.

Now safely at their final destination, their home, the artists took in their last few moments with the statues as workers carefully positioned them upon the pedestals. Cementing the vision to fruition, “The American Legion has been a pleasure to work with, and it’s been my honor to work with them. We love doing commissions, and it’s surreal to have somebody's vision and see how it comes alive... look at the faces,” She pointed to the statues, “we can really get in that moment and feel their expression.” Spellerberg continued, “I love the magnitude of each piece. We did create them 15% larger than life-size!”

Shellow added, “It's gonna be a great addition to this park, for sure!”

AP Builders, the contractor, along with Affordable Landscaping, brought a large crew to guide each statue into place. They assisted the Crane Operator, Alliance Crane and Equipment. Tarik Ayusun, who is on the board of LCEC, paved the way for Alliance to be there on install day and saw to it that the cost was waived.

Owner of AP Builders, Alex Parker, explained the drilling process of each statue to bolt down and secure them into the reinforced concrete of the 25-foot diameter base of the pedestal. With a small crew from American Concrete on the drills, he elaborated, “We not only have to go through segments of concrete, but I've got 300 rebars in there.” The helical pilings were installed by TL Coastal. “With downforce on the drill, they're going to go down to the bar with a special drill and go right through the rebar. It is a newer procedure.” From there, he went on to educate on the anchoring process, “This is like a molly that you hang a picture on the wall,” he held up the anchor, “it’s called a wedge anchor. These are all stainless steel and are 5/8”. We will drill in a ¾” hole, then drop it in. That is when we start tightening, and it will expand and become the wedge anchor.” He pointed at the bases of the statues where the team had begun the detailed process, “These bronze statues are not going anywhere! Then we torque the nuts to 80 pounds per square inch.”

Parker was happy to contribute to the memorial, “It really is a part of history, and I don’t think people realize it yet!”

For Terry Kehoe, who served in the 39th Infantry Platoon Scout Dog, 173rd Airborne Brigade in Vietnam, the years leading up to the statues uncrating were far beyond personal. Serving as a Handler with his own Scout Dog, Prince 672M, having their work remembered and represented through their own statue was both an honor and a remembrance.

One of the most dangerous jobs in the military, the Scout Dog and their handler would go out 20-50 meters in advance of the troops, putting themselves first in the line of fire from the enemy. The K-9s were trained to sense trip wires, booby traps, tunnels, and the enemy before seeing them, and kept many Infantry soldiers alive in the bush or ‘boonies’. It is estimated that 10,000 more names of American Troops KIA would be on the ‘Wall’ if not for the efforts of the War Dogs.

Another statue depicts a nurse on the battlefield tending to a wounded soldier. There were more than 11,000 female military nurses serving during the length of the war, eight of whom lost their lives in Vietnam. They played a vital role in saving thousands of soldiers’ lives, and were the last people holding the hands of the fallen during their final breaths.

With Kehoe leading the charge with installation and organizing the moving parts surrounding the memorial, his plate remains full: “We still have work to do with the benches and pavers, but it’s coming together!”

The memorial benches arrived at Veterans Community Park on June 8. Albert Benarroch of Affordable Landscaping and their workers used a front-end loader to unload the numerous pallets of bench pieces. In addition, a pallet jack from Jack and Martha Montgomery was used for the on-ground moving of the heavy bench parts. From there, a large crew from Lowes completed the assembly of the 35 benches. A few of the Lowes team were veterans themselves and wanted to give their time to help with this project.

One could see the devotion towards the project radiating off Kehoe as he barely slowed down during installation day. He was sure to praise all the people and companies that were involved to get the memorial thus far and for the work ahead. “It’s a group effort to make this happen.”

Meadows Granite of Georgia created and delivered the large 6,000-pound granite informational sign that was designed and co-written by Bill Duncan, Charlette Roman, and Terry Kehoe. The informative sign summarizes key information about the Vietnam War.

The art of compressing 10 years of history into a few sentences was no easy task, but the result will educate even a novice as to what happened during the Vietnam War. “We thought this was necessary because a lot of people are going to wonder what it’s all about. After all, it’s been 58 years. We thought we'd give them some background so they can understand what the soldiers are and did. It's not about war and killing; it's about remembering,” said Duncan.

Duncan volunteered for service at 19 years old and turned 20 on the way over to Vietnam. He was wounded twice while there, the second time left him lying in the jungle for 11 hours before they could get out. “The guys never left me; that’s why we are brothers.”

When asked how it must feel to see the memorial and the granite sign for the first time in person, he replied, “It brings you back to life. It's just coming full circle now for us, you know?”

Champagne listened as he watched the granite information sign being lifted, adding on to what Duncan shared. “The memorial does not celebrate war. Rather, it honors the men and women who served in the war, their families, and their friends. The memorial also honors all other patriots who chose to serve their country in the military during any war at any time.”

For Navy vet and local resident, Rhonda Gloodt, the memorial was a long time coming. “It was just a promise out there.” With nothing more than a few sketches, a small visual mock-up, and a digitally created image to go off of for the six-year journey, the magnitude of the memorial was hard to comprehend. “It’s been years, and now it’s finally here! It’s wonderful!”

Work has yet to be done, especially with landscaping. Affordable Landscaping will provide crowns of thorns, bushes, and additional shrubbery around the base of the pedestal, followed by a rope fence barrier to prevent children and others from attempting to climb, which is prohibited. Sealing and painting will be completed by Skampa Painting. Condee Electrical has overseen the electric designs and necessary installation for nighttime illumination, along with the security cameras.

The Vietnam Veterans Memorial will be lit every night, and there will be four security cameras to monitor 24/7 to prevent vandalism. Round-the-clock patrols will be performed by MIPD.

The memorial is considered to be near sacred by veterans, and they hope the community will honor and treat it with the same respect.

As members of the Vietnam Memorial committee sat down to soak in the culmination of six years of hard work, they chuckled. “You know, we were pulling our hair out along the way, but now that we have reached this point, every one of us has said, ‘Holy cow!’”

“We're watching history, which will last forever,” Champagne pointed to the memorial. “This is going to last forever.” Champagne went on to say that after the unveiling, it will be copyrighted and then a formal donation will be made of the memorial, the benches, pavers, everything, to the City of Marco Island.

The memorial will remain enclosed by fencing until its completion and until the security cameras are functional. There will be a Dedication Program put on by The American Legion Post 404, Marco Island at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial site on November 11th during the 2026 Veterans’ Day Ceremony at 11:00 AM. All are welcome!

Champagne closed his remarks with heartfelt thanks to his Vietnam Veterans Committee Teammates. “My teammates have exceeded expectations by solving many problems along the way. These are incredible people: Lee Rubenstien, Terry Kehoe, Bill Duncan, Joe Varano, Joe Batte, Skip Merriman, Harry Weathers, John Apolzan, Alex Parker, Al Benarroch, Greg Schneider, and Martha Montgomery.”

“On behalf of the American Legion, a humble thank you goes out to all the vendors, workers, civilians, and businesses who contributed their time, materials, and support to bring the memorial to completion: Teammates, we salute you. Job well done!”