Statue in place, but project not yet complete.
Little more than a week before the Navy’s birthday on Oct. 13, the Lone Sailor statue finally made its way to Bremerton, marking a major milestone for those involved in bringing the patriotic icon to the city’s Harborside District.
The project is spearheaded by the Bremerton-Olympic Peninsula Council of the Navy League of The United States, which has spent the last couple of years seeking to make their vision a reality.
The statue is “a composite of the U.S. Navy bluejacket, past, present and future. He’s called the Lone Sailor, yet he is hardly ever alone, standing there on the broad granite plaza which forms the amphitheater of the Navy Memorial,” according to the group’s Web site.
It depicts a young sailor, who is the epitome of the best and brightest, who serve in the country’s Armed Forces, and the Navy in particular.
“His shipmates remember him with pride and tell their grandchildren stories, some of which, like him, are seven feet tall,” the group’s Web site states.
The Bremerton statue stands prominently on the edge of the Bremerton Marina closest to the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, as both a welcoming sight to sailors returning home from deployment and a lasting link between the city’s naval past, present and future.
Although the group has raised more than $245,000 so far, the fundraising goal hasn’t yet been reached, said Carolyn Dankers, who is one of many community leaders involved in the project.
“We still need to do more fundraising work, but the major work is behind us thanks to the generosity of lots of people,” Dankers said. “We have had many donations of $10 and $20, which is great,” Dankers said.
The formal dedication will be in late March or early April, and as the actual date approaches, the Navy League will provide more details, she said.
For more information on how to help the group complete the final push needed for the project’s completion, visit the Bremerton-Olympic Peninsula Council of the Navy League’s Web site at www.lonesailor-bremerton.org.
