CLARKSVILLE, TN (CLARKSVILLE NOW) – A new monument to Fort Campbell’s fallen soldiers set to be built by the Combat Veterans Motorcycle Association Clarksville chapter was approved by Clarksville’s City Council Thursday night at their August regular session.
The gifted monument will be placed along Fort Campbell Boulevard at Patriots Park, the same location where the CVMA hosts their Flags for the Fallen events.
The yet-to-be-named monument will depict the names, ranks and dates of death for Fort Campbell soldiers who died in Iraq or Afghanistan since Sept. 11, 2001.
City Council members voted unanimously 11-0 to accept this gift to the city.
CVMA chapter commander Kevin Armstrong told council members last week at their executive session that the monument is still in the design phase, but is expected to utilize an existing cobblestone path and consist of multiple concrete slabs, one on each side of the path.
Armstrong said the memorial will have space to add additional names in the future.
“It means so much to us. Many of us are veterans from Fort Campbell, and many of us have friends and family, brothers and sisters, that will end up being on that wall,” Armstrong told council members
Multiple City Council members thanked CVMA members, many of whom were in attendance.
“It never ceases to amaze me that we have come to the point where our battle buddies are going on these walls,” Ward 12 council member Trisha Butler tearfully told the CVMA members in attendance. “I just want you to know that this means a lot to me and that you all mean a lot to me.”
The CVMA 18-2 Clarksville Chapter is a 501(c)3 charity group made up of combat veterans, many of whom served at Fort Campbell. In addition to the quarterly “Flags for the Fallen” events, the group assists the city in maintaining a flower bed at Patriots Park.
The total cost of the monument is estimated at $150,000. The CVMA has pledged to fully fund the project and have already begun the process of raising funds.