Corrections & Clarifications: A previous version of this story incorrectly identified the amount of money raised so far for the National Desert Storm War Memorial. The association for the memorial has raised about $200,000 of the estimated $25-40 million it will cost.
The first major celebration marking the 25th anniversary of the Persian Gulf War will happen Monday, as 500 veterans from the war will march in the Memorial Day parade in Washington, D.C.
“We will have 500 veterans coming from around the country as well as the board of directors of the Desert Storm War Memorial Association, marching together on Monday. This is our biggest event,” said Frederick Wellman, public relations chairman of the National Desert Storm War Memorial Association.
While Feb. 28, 2016, marked the official anniversary of the cease-fire that ended the war 25 years ago, no special celebrations were held on the day, a disappointment several war veterans fumed over.
"The U.S. government had not planned any events for the 25th anniversary, so we actually had a little bit of discussion with the Department of Defense about not recognizing it,” Wellman said.
According to the Washington Post, the war veterans had several frustrated exchanges with the Department of Defense on its failure to mark the anniversary. Instead, Scott Stump, president and founder of the National Desert Storm War Memorial Association attended an event at the Canadian War Museum in Ottawa at the invitation of the Canadian Armed Forces.
The association is now escalating their efforts to build the planned National Desert Storm War Memorial in Washington, D.C.
In January, the National Capital Memorial Advisory Commission, that oversees commemorative landmarks in Washington, D.C., officially recommended the construction of Desert Storm memorial in Area 1 of the city. Area 1 encompasses the space around the National Mall and, according to U.S. Code, includes memorials that are “of pre-eminent historical and lasting significance to the United States". The recommendation now awaits to be passed by the Congress.
The estimated cost of the memorial is between $25-40 million, and the association has raised about $200,000 so far, Wellman said. A grass-root fundraising campaign, majorly targeting the Gulf War veterans and their families, is planned to begin this summer.
"The Desert Storm is not really taught in many schools, outside of political history books,” said Wellman. “We are pushing hard to educate the people about how incredibly important the event was in the American history, and if nothing else, 383 Americans didn't come home. We owe it to them, and that's what drives us.”
The memorial is planned to be completed by 2019-2020.
