The return of the Douglas F-3D2 in Lakewood

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The return of the Douglas F-3D2 in Lakewood

May 25, 2015

8 am to 9 pm

Del Valle Park
4658 Woodruff Ave
Lakewood, CA 90713

www.lakewoodcity.org/news/displaynews.asp?NewsID=410&hootPostID=04259050c75eded71f66af743abfed8b

Memorial Day will be extra special this year in Lakewood, with the rededication of the newly expanded Veterans Memorial Plaza, including the refurbished Del Valle jet plane and the unveiling of over 1,400 memorial bricks purchased in the name of veterans and Lakewood community members and groups.

A very large crowd is expected, so the City of Lakewood is organizing two events on Memorial Day in an effort to spread out the audience and try to create the best viewing experience for the most people possible.

Lakewood City Council Members will join with members of American Legion Post 496, Veterans of Foreign Wars Memorial Post 8615, Disabled American Veterans Chapter 19 and Vietnam Veterans of America Chapter 756 in leading the community at the two memorial events.

The first event will be the city's traditional Memorial Day ceremony running from 11:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on Monday, May 25 at Veterans Memorial Plaza in Del Valle Park at the corner of Woodruff Avenue and Henrilee Street. Extra parking will be made available this year on the MacArthur Elementary School playground (enter from Centralia Street). Parking for persons with disabilities will be on Henrilee Street and on the portion of the MacArthur playground closest to Veterans Memorial Plaza.

Click for parking map - http://admin.lakewoodcity.org/civicax/filebank/blobdload.aspx?BlobID=24592

After the event, community members can see their memorial bricks and get an up-close view of the newly renovated memorial, which is being constructed in the theme of an aircraft carrier flight deck. That matches the history of the Del Valle jet plane, which is a Douglas F3D-2 "Skyknight" fighter assigned to the Marines and Navy in the 1950s. Engraved in stone on the new memorial will be prominent features of the original Lakewood memorial, including the names of Lakewood's Vietnam War dead and the poem, "The Boys of Del Valle Park." 

The second specially added Memorial Day event will take place at twilight on Monday, May 25 and feature the first public lighting of the renovated memorial at night. The jet plane and runway include special dramatic lighting of the plane. The evening event will start at 8:15 p.m. with a short ceremony, including musical entertainment. Then at approximately 8:45 p.m., the plane and memorial will be lit publicly for the first time. Residents who wish to view their memorial bricks up close are encouraged to come before the ceremony in order to see them before dark.

Parking will not be available at MacArthur Elementary School for the evening events because of a lack of lighting. Parking for persons with disabilities will still be available along Henrilee Street east of Woodruff Avenue.

Community members wishing to pick up the replica copies of bricks that they pre-ordered can do so from 1:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. at a designated tent next to the memorial. After that time, replica bricks can be picked up during regular business hours any day starting Tuesday, May 26 at Lakewood City Hall at the Public Works Department.

In spite of the city's best efforts to organize two events on Memorial Day with extra parking and hundreds of extra seats, it's possible that it may be difficult to find a seat or close-up viewing of the memorial during the two ceremonies. The Lakewood Veterans Memorial Plaza will be open all afternoon on Memorial Day, which may provide a more casual, less crowded time for parking and viewing bricks and the memorial. And after Memorial Day, veterans plaza will be open seven days a week, and the lights on the plane, runway and memorial will be lit every night after sunset. Lakewood's CityTV will run a videotape of the morning ceremony one week after Memorial Day. You can view it at www.lakewoodcity.org/CityTV or check there for when it can be seen on Channel 31 on FiOS and Time Warner Cable.

For more information or questions on the Memorial Day ceremonies and the new Veterans Memorial Plaza, please call Lakewood City Hall at 562-866-9771, extension 2140

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