[0:00] - We are just tickled to

death with this new location.

[0:04] - Bloomington Remembers Veterans

is a 501c3 organization

[0:07] that was created to raise the funds

[0:10] for a future Bloomington

Veterans Memorial.

[0:12] We started in 2018

[0:14] and we've been working

passionately as a group

[0:16] of volunteers ever since

[0:18] to create this beautiful Veterans Memorial

[0:20] that will be here at Harrison Park.

[0:22] - The city of Bloomington

[0:23] and Bloomington Remembers

Veterans Organization have been

[0:26] working to site a Veterans Memorial

[0:29] for a number of years now.

[0:31] The opportunity with the Nine

Mile Creek Corridor Renewal

[0:35] Project came

[0:36] to be recently exploring this

site here in Harrison Park.

[0:40] The Nine Mile Creek Corridor

Renewal Project is not

[0:44] providing funding for the memorial,

[0:46] but the planned infrastructure

supports the location here at

[0:50] this site in Harrison Park, the

natural resource restoration

[0:54] that's already planned here,

[0:56] and then the accessible route

[0:58] to the trails along nine Mile Creek.

[1:00] I'll make it a really

good and fitting location.

[1:03] - We are really excited

[1:04] that the future Bloomington

Veterans Memorial will

[1:06] be at Harrison Park.

[1:08] We've looked at a couple

of other locations close

[1:10] to Civic Plaza

[1:11] and while there was a lot

of good things about those,

[1:14] this is really the ideal location.

[1:16] It's peaceful, it's

calm, it's a high point

[1:19] for entering the Nine Mile Creek Corridor,

[1:21] and it's going to be everything

that we want it to be.

[1:23] - We need a Veteran's

memorial in Bloomington.

[1:27] Bloomington is one of the

few cities in the state

[1:32] of Minnesota that doesn't

have a Veterans Memorial,

[1:35] and we need to honor our veterans.

[1:39] - This project is being funded

by a lot of resources, a lot

[1:42] of people coming together

to say this is important

[1:44] and to tell the veterans of Bloomington

[1:46] that this project matters to them.

[1:48] So we are really proud

[1:49] to have private donors from

individuals to local businesses.

[1:53] We have service clubs and

folks like that involved.

[1:55] We also have the support

of the city council

[1:58] and of the city themselves.

[1:59] And then we also secured

a large gift from the state

[2:02] of Minnesota, which we're

really, really proud of,

[2:03] which allowed us to show

Bloomington that this is a,

[2:06] a sizable project that really matters.

[2:08] And then we also have an

opportunity for folks to give

[2:12] to the memorial by adding their name

[2:14] or adding the name of a loved one

[2:15] as a veteran to the memorial.

[2:17] So that for $350, you can

add that name to the memorial

[2:21] - And there'll be six armatures

that contain the dog tags.

[2:26] There'll be QR codes throughout

the memorial. Visitors

[2:31] get the QR code, find their

dog tag that they're looking

[2:35] for, the veteran they're looking for.

[2:37] - And not only is it on

the physical memorial,

[2:39] but you'll also have a

digital page on a website

[2:43] that will be able to

tell the story of that.

[2:45] Veteran Bloomington remembers

veterans is really fortunate

[2:48] to be partnering with the city

[2:49] of Bloomington on this critical project.

[2:52] And we are are really

proud to be partnering

[2:54] and we're really proud to

have landed at Harrison Park.

[2:57] The opportunities here are immense

[2:58] and the peaceful setting

that we'll be able to deliver

[3:01] to our veterans is wonderful.

[3:03] - The plan is that the

memorial will be complete

[3:07] and ready to celebrate Veterans

Day in November of 2026.

[3:12] Project updates will be

[3:14] provided on the Bloomington

Veterans Memorial webpage,

[3:18] as well as the

bloomingtonforward.org website.