TOM MORTON Star-Tribune staff writer | Posted: Monday, November 10, 2008 12:00 am
The living who honor the military dead on Veterans Day next week will do so in an expanded chapel at the Oregon Trail State Veterans Cemetery.
"For some, it's like a home," said Nate Mulliken, project manager for Russell Construction of Douglas.
"These people deserve it," Mulliken said.
He and project supervisor Norman Kelley oversaw the landscaping and finishing touches for the chapel before the Veterans Day commemoration.
Veterans Day began as Armistice Day, when the nations fighting in World War I agreed to end hostilities on the 11th hour, of the 11th day, of the 11th month, of 1918.
Tuesday, Gov. Dave Freudenthal will speak after a tribute to the departed comrades and a dedication of the chapel, located on the cemetery grounds at the end of Curtis Street north of Evansville, according to a news release from the Wyoming Military Department.
"We are proud to honor our fallen comrades as well as those who are still serving and have served in the Armed Forces of our great country," said the cemetery's assistant director Darrin Brahaney. "This expansion allows the families of our deceased veterans more room to honor the passing of our nation's heroes."
In 2007, the Legislature approved $647,000 for the expansion, and construction began late last year.
Tobin & Associates of Cheyenne was the architectural firm and Jerry Voight was the architect of record, Mulliken said.
The projected added about 1,600 square feet to the chapel, and increased seating from 60 to 120, he said.
The expansion also features restrooms, a sound room, upgraded heating, and more storage space.
The most notable, although out-of-the-way, improvement is a canopy and new hoist outside the front of the chapel for hearses to off-load and on-load caskets, Kelley said.
The canopy, adjacent to a doorway cut in the wall, gives more dignity to the movement of the casket in and out of the chapel for funerals, he said.
During the construction, Mulliken said he observed the daily activities of the chapel, who visits and what they do.
"You spend time here and see people come and go, and you realize it's a special place," Mulliken said.
Reach Tom Morton at (307) 266-0592, or at Tom.Morton@trib.com.
If you go:
The annual Veterans Day ceremony, sponsored by area veterans groups, will be held at 11 a.m. Tuesday at the Oregon Trail State Veterans Cemetery at the end of Curtis Street north of Evansville.
Gov. Dave Freudenthal will be the keynote speaker.
The annual Veterans Day ceremony, sponsored by area veterans groups, will be held at 11 a.m. Tuesday at the Oregon Trail State Veterans Cemetery at the end of Curtis Street north of Evansville.
Gov. Dave Freudenthal will be the keynote speaker.
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