Idaho Eternal Patrol Memorial by Allen Thayer
The Idaho Eternal Patrol Memorial honoring fallen submariners is slated to be finished and dedicated on Saturday, May 23, in Idaho Falls just before Memorial Day on May 25.
According to Gregg Smith, senior vice commander at Hawkbill Base in Arco, the planned memorial was adopted through the United States Submarine Veterans Inc., of which Hawkbill Base is the local base for eastern Idaho.
The 93 members of Sub Vets of East Idaho approved development of a memorial to honor all Idaho submariners who died while on active duty.
We’ve identified 38 submariners who will be so honored along with the name of their boat, the date and their town of origin in Idaho,” Smith said. “The idea behind it is to perpetuate the memory of those who made the ultimate sacrifice.
“We regularly post dates that submarines sunk,” said Smith, who is responsible for the Hawkbill Base webpage and Facebook page. “And then I thought, what about the people?
“Who from Idaho was on any of these?” Smith asked. “It ends up that it was a little bit easier than I thought to find the people that were from Idaho.”
That led Smith to posting names and photos of the those who died from Idaho on the group’s Facebook page. After finding out there was no existing memorial for these fallen submariners, he brought the idea of building a memorial to Hawkbill Base Commander Ross Carroll.
“The first time we brought it up to our board in September it was unanimous,” Smith said. “Let’s do it.”
Smith said Idaho Falls Parks & Rec officials approved the memorial site near the Idaho State Vietnam Veterans’ Memorial in Russell A. Freeman Park. The excavation area has been measured out.
“We’ve got the spot designated,” Smith said, “and they’re going to actually pour the concrete base for us.”
Murdoch Memorials in Idaho Falls is building the granite memorial, Smith said. Hawkbill Base made the second and final payment of $3,300 on Tuesday.
To fund the memorial, Hawkbill Base is conducting sales of custom granite pavers (bricks) that can be purchased by non-submariners, organizations and companies, Smith said, as well as by friends, family and other veterans.
The large 8-inch by 8-inch paver has four lines of text with 15 characters per line and costs $400. The smaller 8-inch by 4-inch paver has two lines of text with 15 characters per line and costs $100. All money will go toward paying for the pavers and monument, Smith said. The deadline to purchase pavers is March 31.
The submarine Dolphin Paver with three lines of text may only be purchased for those qualified in submarines, Smith said. All pavers will be placed in front of the memorial in rows of six.
Anyone who wishes to purchase a paver or donate toward the memorial can email Smith at gsmithbeer@aol.com.
For more information or to contribute, you can also visit the Idaho Eternal Patrol Memorial website or the Sub Vets of East Idaho website.
Formal plans for the dedication have not yet been made, but Smith said everyone who purchases a paver will be invited, as well as city officials and others.