'We Fought For Liberty:' Mich. WWII Vets Welcome Memorial: Art Fishman, 95 YO Navy Vet, Ethel Poland

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- World War II veteran Art Fishman is interviewed, Mon., April 4, 2022, in Oak Park, Mich. Fishman's dream of a Michigan state World War II memorial is about to take one more step toward reality. Fishman, who sailed on a Navy destroyer in the Pacific theater as an 18-year-old, was to be among those on hand Thursday, April 7 when ground is broken for The Michigan WWII Legacy Memorial in Royal Oak, Mich.
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- AP News, April 7, 2022.

ROYAL OAK, Mich. (AP) — Officials in Michigan are getting started on the construction of what they say is one of the few state-specific World War II memorials in the country. Art Fishman is excited that the project is taking another step toward reality.

The Oak Park resident, who sailed on a Navy destroyer in the Pacific theater as an 18-year-old, was among more than a dozen World War II veterans on hand Thursday afternoon when ground was broken for The Michigan WWII Legacy Memorial. “It’s more important than people think. Why? Because, if it’s handled right, it will teach the next generation what the war was about, why we were there, what did we fight for.

We fought for liberty,” said Fishman, 95, who sailed aboard the USS Robinson in 1945 during its stops in the Philippines, Iwo Jima, Okinawa and China.

The groundbreaking is for the first phase of the memorial, which includes the laying of more than 1,200 donated Walk of Honor paver bricks and the installation of both a statue called “Joe,” which depicts a soldier in a foxhole reading a letter from home, and flagpoles representing all military branches. Future phases are to feature a Wall of Stars honoring the 15,000-plus Michigan lives lost during World War II; additional statues, including one dedicated to Rosie the Riveter; an amphitheater and a colonnade of pillars.

The memorial, which is recognized by the Legislature as the state’s tribute to the war, is to be built in Memorial Park in the Detroit suburb of Royal Oak. Members of the committee that is overseeing the project said the U.S. does not have many state-specific World War II memorials, but some do, including New York and Washington, among others... Photos + Video, https://apnews.com/article/michigan-royal-oak-world-war-ii-7c62f12630abab29190c23f6d82839ae



- World War II veteran Ethel (Cricket) Poland holds a photo of her younger self during an interview, Mon., April 4, 2022, in Oakland Township, Mich. Poland, who has lived in MI since the 1960s, served for 3 years in Wash., D.C., as part of the WAVES (Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service) program. "Although my part in the war was very small, I feel that it was worthwhile," said Poland, who planned to be in attendance for Thursday's ground breaking ceremony for The Michigan WWII Legacy Memorial in Royal Oak, Mich.