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Draper Park unveils Gold Star Memorial built with Woody Williams Foundation monument and local sponsors
Summary
Draper Park now includes a Gold Star Memorial honoring families of service members who died in service. The city placed a monument from the Woody Williams Foundation, added landscape, benches and branch flags and used the plaza for this year’s Veterans Day observance.
Draper City opened a Gold Star Memorial at Draper Park, installing a monument from the Woody Williams Foundation and creating a plaza and landscape improvements funded in part by local sponsors, city officials said.
City leaders described the project as a year-long effort led by a committee that included Gold Star families. "It was a really, rewarding project. We had a great committee, made up of several gold star families," Assistant City Manager Kelly Schallberg said on the city podcast. The committee advised on design and the city secured local sponsorship for added landscaping and amenities.
The monument came from the Woody Williams Foundation, named for Hershel “Woody” Williams, a Medal of Honor recipient. City officials said Draper’s monument is among several the foundation has placed around the country and that Draper’s is one of a small number in Utah. Officials said the monument includes panels selected by the city council and that the plaza features flags for each branch of the U.S. armed services, benches representing each branch and a plaque honoring an unknown service member.
Assistant City Manager Kelly Schallberg and the mayor urged residents to visit the memorial at Draper Park near the flagpole and pavilion. The city used the site for its Veterans Day program this year, which the mayor described as "beautiful" and said included a retired Vietnamese rear admiral as a speaker.
City staff said the project reused an underutilized area of the park previously described as a sand or volleyball pit and converted it into the memorial plaza with open turf behind it. Officials characterized vendor work and family engagement as central to the memorial's final design.
Ending: The city invited residents to visit the Gold Star Memorial at Draper Park and noted the site will serve as a focal point for future veterans and remembrance events.
