Community asset is even better

Since its inception, Freedom Park has been a significant community asset. Today, it’s better than ever.
Originally the brain-child of Doug Inman, executive director of The Portland Foundation, the park has proved to be a meaningful gathering place for events such as last week’s Veterans Day observance.
But it has had some glitches along the way. The initial design came up a little short, and maintenance of the park, which was to be a city responsibility, fell back on the foundation.
Today, however, the park is well maintained.
And two new additions have given it a sense of completion.
The first is a fountain at the center of the plaza.
It’s a much better focal point than the reflecting pool in the original design.
The second is the addition of monuments bearing the names of Jay County’s war dead since World War I.
Those monuments were officially dedicated last week, though they have been in place for some time.
With the help of the Museum of the Soldier and the late Gary Gibson, the foundation was able to develop a more complete and more accurate list of the county’s war dead than ever existed before.
Omissions and mis-spellings on other mon-uments were discovered and corrected.
The result is something the entire community can be proud of. It’s always been good. Today, it’s even better. — J.R.[[In-content Ad]]