Veterans services officer shares details about monument project

Independence Veterans Service Officer Josh Morrison speaks at last Thursday’s City-County Connections meeting

By Andrea Bruner, White River Now

As Riverside Park undergoes a massive expansion and transformation, Independence Veterans Service Officer Josh Morrison has claimed one piece for a future veterans’ memorial.

Morrison spoke Thursday night at the City-County Connections, a monthly meeting held at The River with different guest speakers and updates on city and county projects.

A six-year U.S. Army veteran and former military policeman with deployments to Bosnia, Kosovo, and post-9/11 D.C., Morrison has spent the last seven years as a tireless advocate for veterans in Independence and Izard counties. His unwavering commitment earned him the 2023 VSO Excellence Award and the prestigious 2024 National VSO of the Year – one of only five such honors awarded nationwide. Currently serving as the public affairs officer for the Arkansas Military Veterans Hall of Fame and an active member of the local Veterans of Foreign Wars, Morrison continues to bridge the gap between service and support for veterans and their families.

For Morrison, the goal of the memorial inside Riverside Park is simple but profound: he wants the monument to stir the soul.

“Why build a memorial if it doesn’t produce emotion?” he asked.

His vision is for every veteran, regardless of where or how they served, to step into that space, feel the weight of their journey, and find a moment of deep, quiet recognition.

“I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

Morrison said this project actually started with a simple breakfast between two veterans, Joe Dry and Gregg Taylor. Drye, a Navy veteran, needed a ride to a medical appointment in Memphis, and that’s where Taylor, a former Marine, came in. The two enjoyed talking to one another so much that on the way home, they set a time to have coffee at McDonald’s.

One coffee led to a weekly meet-up, and word soon got out, with Morrison joining them and inviting a few other veterans as well. When they got to seven people, however, it was time to find a larger space.

“Now, we fill up half the Whistle Stop every Friday morning with veterans, and their family, and people that just want to sit with veterans,” Morrison said. “I never knew how important it would be for veterans to get together. I think when we attack isolation, we actually help the suicide rate of veterans go down. That’s my personal belief. I don’t have stats, but I believe that these relationships are more than just having a meal together. That’s where we started talking about the veterans’ memorial,” he said.

Morrison and Taylor went to visit the Veterans Plaza across from Harbor Freight, but with the tractor-trailers and other vehicles barreling down St. Louis Street, not to mention the fact that there is only one parking spot, Morrison said it was not a suitable place for a somber memorial.

They decided instead to come up with some ideas to present to the council.

“My ideas for the memorial were inspired by the stories I’ve heard from the Vietnam veterans, and what they endured when they came home, specifically. I tried to imagine how it would have felt to live in a jungle for a year, face life-or-death situations daily, and then return home to this great country that they fought for, just to be rejected and unappreciated,” he said.

“With combat changing their lives forever, with the government that failed to have their backs like it should have, those heroes suffered in silence and dealt with their demons.

“As if that weren’t bad enough, chemical Agent Orange was sprayed near the forest or the foliage; it caused many serious health issues, like coronary artery disease, prostate cancer, diabetes, other things like that. Even though they were told that that chemical was harmless, those humble veterans are still dying from the war today.

Still, they sit back and watch how the newer generation of soldiers get welcomed home with high praise and celebration. upon returning from their deployments, and instead of being bitter and resentful, they tell all their friends and family, ‘That’s how it should be.’

“My passion may have begun with the Vietnam veterans, but I wanted this project to be for every veteran. As all gave some, and especially for those who gave all.”

Last year, Morrison asked the city council for space in the park as renovations were underway, and the council voted unanimously to grant the space for the memorial.

Morrison also said the memorial will not be specific to Independence County. “It will be a national memorial placed perfectly in our own backyard. It will be a significant landmark, great for tourism, patriotic ceremonies, and school field trips. And most importantly, a place dedicated to honoring veterans and preserving their sacrifices through service for a lifetime.

“If you want this in our community, I invite you to help build it with me. This is your time. This is your opportunity to tell your grandkids, tell your family, I helped build that. I helped put that there.”

He also encouraged everyone to spread the word so that everyone has the opportunity to participate. “Together, we can ensure their service is never forgotten.”

Morrison said they’d like to raise $500,000. In the first four months, Morrison said they’ve raised $40,000, and now it’s time to raise awareness and bring donors in.

Barbara Henson, VFW Post 4501 quartermaster, said the VFW will hold a fundraiser for the memorial on March 17, with live music, pie auction, bingo, and a raffle.

Morrison also said there is another fundraiser selling bricks at the site for $150 each. These can be inscribed with veterans’ name, rank, service time/location, military decorations or other information. The honoree does not have to be local, he added. For information about the bricks, contact Morrison at 870-793-8812.

He said within the memorial, he would like to have seven different monuments representing the Army (military) values (loyalty, duty, respect, selfless service, honor, integrity, and personal courage), and in the center, a copy of the U.S. Constitution with an open Bible on the top representing God and country.

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Independence County Judge Kevin Jeffery and Batesville Mayor Rick Elumbaugh also spoke briefly Thursday night briefly about things happening within their jurisdictions.

Jeffery noted that remodeling of the property across from Row Lake at 1800 Myers St. will soon be finished, and it will house two agencies within the U.S. Department of Agriculture – the Farm Service Agency and the Natural Resources Conservation Service. He said contractors plan to have the building, which at one time housed Health Resources of Arkansas, ready next month.

“The big news in the county right now is there’s a new power plant that we’ve signed a preliminary (or pilot) agreement,” he went on to say.

In January, the Independence County Quorum Court approved a resolution to aid the Arkansas Electric Cooperative Corporation (AECC) in the form of a tax break to help facilitate the new $2 billion power plant, which should be online in 2030.

Jeffery said this is the largest financial project ever in Independence County, and that project is going to help its community and the Cedar Ridge School financially.

“They’ve already got big components (turbines) for the power plant ordered. … That’s been a lot of discussion for quite a while now, but that’s going to come to reality soon.”

Jeffery said the fate of the old power plant, which goes offline in 2030, is still undetermined. “They may do a retrofit, or they could demolish it, but they’re doing a retrofit on the sister plant right now. So, depending on how that goes, that may make the decision.”

Moving on, Jeffery said county crews had just completed a bridge – the sixth since he took office three years ago.

Both he and Elumbaugh commented on the recent snowstorm that hit in January.

“That was probably the most challenging one that we’ve had in many years,” Elumbaugh said. “And thank goodness for Mother Nature and warm temperatures because it did not come off very easily, but kudos to all the employees that stayed out there, took care of all the services and everything.”

The city has major renovations going on now at the water treatment plant as well as Riverside Park, and both are making progress, according to Elumbaugh.

On St. Louis Street, Slim Chickens has broken ground with plans to be open in May, he said.

Featured image by Andrea Bruner