A brief ceremony was held last week at the memorial stone for Staff Sgt. David M. Veverka not far from Nutting Hall on the University of Maine campus in Orono. Veverka, a UMaine student, was just 25 when he was killed May 6, 2006, in Iraq.
Veverka also is one of 13 Mainers whose Summit Project stone is on display at Cole Land Transportation Museum in Bangor, where all are welcome to visit the exhibit free through May 23.
Founded in 2013 by Bangor native Maj. David Cote, the Summit Project comprises 69 individual stones, no two alike, that are engraved with the initials, date of death and service branch of Mainers who have given their lives for their country since the attacks on Sept. 11, 2001.
On Memorial Day, selected hikers will carry the Summit Project stones to the top of Mount Katahdin to help Maine remember these special men and women.
Genealogists and family historians have a great interest in honor rolls, the various monuments that communities have erected to remember those who have served their country and particularly those who died in service.
My family, which for so many years gathered by the Abbot Honor Roll after the Memorial Day parade for pictures with my dad, whose name is on the World War II list of Abbot veterans, always realized what a privilege it was to mark that special day with our living veteran.
I had thought about running the list of Mainers in the Summit Project on Memorial Day but decided to print it now in hopes it might inspire some readers to visit the display while it is at the Cole Museum.
Often it is veterans who escort Summit Project stones at the beginning of a display at facilities, such as the Veterans Administration Medical Center at Togus. When the exhibit opened May 1 at the Cole Museum, each of the 13 stones was carried to the display case and announced by a student from Helen Dunn School in Greenbush.
Watching as each student carefully passed the stone to veteran Larry Puls to place in the display were museum founder Galen Cole, a Purple Heart veteran of World War II, and museum director of operations Jim Neville, a retired U.S. Marine who served in Iraq.
“It’s good that these children feel the simple, tangible weight of the stones and feel the intangible weight of loss and remembrance that they carry with them,” Neville said after the ceremony.
In addition to Veverka, those whose Summit Project stones are in the display at Cole Museum are Sgt. Kevin B. Balduf, Capt. John R. “Jay” Brainard III, Lt. Cmdr. Robert E. Clukey, Staff Sgt. Dale J. Kelly Jr., Maj. Samuel C. Leigh, Master Sgt. Ryan C.C. Love, Sgt. Brett E. Pelotte, Staff Sgt. Brandon M. Silk, Spc. Wade A. Slack, Pvt. Dustin R.F. Small, Lt. Jerry R. Smith and Spc. Christopher M. Wilson.
Here is the list of 69 people memorialized by the Summit Project — a very special Honor Roll, indeed.
— Pfc. Blaine N.B. Adams, U.S. Army, Farmington, Nov. 29, 2008
— Master Sgt. Evander E. Andrews, U.S. Air Force, Solon, Oct. 10, 2001
— Maj. Jay T. Aubin, U.S. Marine Corps, Waterville, March 20, 2003
— Sgt. Kevin B. Balduf, U.S. Marine Corps, Richmond, May 15, 2011
— Cpl. Joshua P. Barron, U.S. Marine Corps, Standish, March 21, 2011
— Spc. Beau R. Beaulieu, U.S. Army, Lisbon, May 24, 2004
— Lance Cpl. Joshua M. Bernard, U.S. Marine Corps, New Portland, Aug. 14, 2009
— Capt. John R. “Jay” Brainard III, U.S. Army, Newport and Atkinson, May 28, 2012
— Pfc. Jordan M. Brochu, U.S. Army, Oakland, Aug. 31, 2009
— Spc. Justin L. Buxbaum, U.S. Army, South Portland, May 26, 2008
— Capt. Christopher M. Cash, U.S. Army, Old Orchard Beach, June 24, 2004
— Spc. Cassandra L. Cassavant, U.S. Army, Cornish, Aug. 3, 2008
— Staff Sgt. Kristopher R. Ciraso, U.S. Army, Bangor, Dec. 7, 2006
— Lt. Cmdr. Robert E. Clukey, U.S. Navy, Orono, Nov. 3, 2002
— First Sgt. Christopher D. Coffin, U.S. Army, Kennebunk, July 1, 2003
— Spc. Daniel F.J. Cunningham, U.S. Army, Lewiston, April 4, 2003
— Capt. Patrick D. Damon, U.S. Army, Falmouth, June 15, 2006
— Sgt. Corey A. Dan, U.S. Army, Norway, March 13, 2006
— Spc. Jason E. Dore, U.S. Army, Moscow, July 8, 2007
— Sgt. 1st Class Shawn Dostie, U.S. Army, Lewiston, Dec. 30, 2005
— Sgt. Thomas J. Dostie, U.S. Army, Somerville, Dec. 21, 2004
— Sgt. Blair W. Emery, U.S. Army, Lee, Nov. 30, 2007
— SO1 Patrick D. Feeks, U.S. Navy, Gorham, Aug. 16, 2012
— Sgt. Corey E. Garver, U.S. Army, Topsham, June 23, 2013
— Sgt. Christopher D. Gelineau, Maine Army National Guard, Portland, April 20, 2004
— Sgt. Nicholas D. Golding, U.S. Army, Addison, Feb. 13, 2004
— Cpl. Mark R. Goyet, U.S. Marine Corps, Westbrook, June 28, 2011
— Spc. Dustin J. Harris, U.S. Army, Patten, April 6, 2006
— Sgt. 1st Class Aaron A. Henderson, U.S. Army, Houlton, Oct. 2, 2012
— Spc. Jeremiah J. Holmes, U.S. Army, North Berwick, March 29, 2004
— Master Sgt. Robert M. Horrigan, U.S. Army, Belfast, June 17, 2005
— Sgt. Joel A. House, U.S. Army, Lee, June 23, 2007
— Spc. Joshua U. Humble, U.S. Army, Appleton, Feb. 26, 2006
— Cpl. Andrew L. Hutchins, U.S. Army, New Portland, Nov. 8, 2010
— First Sgt. Michael D. Jones, U.S. Army, Unity, March 3, 2005
— First Lt. Benjamin D. Keating, U.S. Army, U.S. Army, Shapleigh, Nov. 26, 2006
— Staff Sgt. Dale J. Kelly Jr., U.S. Army, Richmond, May 6, 2006
— Sgt. Joshua J. Kirk, U.S. Army, South Portland, Oct. 3, 2009
— Maj. Samuel C. Leigh, U.S. Marine Corps, Belgrade, Oct. 29, 2009
— Cpl. Dustin J. Libby, U.S. Marine Corps, Presque Isle, Dec. 6, 2006
— Master Sgt. Ryan C.C. Love, U.S. Marine Corps, Frankfort, July 19, 2012
— Sgt. 1st Class Jonathan A. Lowery, U.S. Army, Houlton, Dec. 14, 2007
— Pfc. Buddy W. McLain, U.S. Army, Mexico, Nov. 29, 2010
— Sgt. Edmund W. McDonald, U.S. Army, Casco, March 28, 2007
— Sgt. Richard K. Parker, U.S. Army, Phillips, June 14, 2007
— Sgt. Brett E. Pelotte, U.S. Army, Waterville, Aug. 19, 2003
— Staff Sgt. Lynn R. Poulin, U.S. Army, Freedom, Dec. 21, 2004
— Sgt. Nicholas A. Robertson, U.S. Army, Old Town, April 3, 2008
— Lance Cpl. Angel Rosa, U.S. Marine Corps, South Portland, March 13, 2007
— Staff Sgt. Eric Ross, U.S. Army, Kenduskeag, Feb. 9, 2007
— Sgt. Lawrence A. Roukey, U.S. Army, Westbrook, April 26, 2004
— Cmdr. Robert A. Schlegel, U.S. Navy, Gray, Sept. 11, 2001
— Staff Sgt. Eric B. Shaw, U.S. Army, Exeter, June 27, 2010
— Staff Sgt. Brandon M. Silk, U.S. Army, Orono, June 21, 2010
— Spc. Wade A. Slack, U.S. Army, Waterville, May 6, 2010
— Pfc. Andrew R. Small, U.S. Army, Wiscasset, Aug. 11, 2006
— Pvt. Dustin R.F. Small, U.S. Army, Palmyra, June 30, 2009
— Lt. Jerry R. Smith, U.S. Navy, Greenville, Aug. 15, 2007
— Pfc. Tyler J. Smith, U.S. Army, Bethel, March 21, 2008
— Pfc. Clinton E. Springer II, U.S. Army, Sanford, Sept. 24, 2010
— Pfc. Tyler M. Springman, U.S. Army, Hartland, July 17, 2011
— Sgt. Nathan C. Stewart, U.S. Army, Waldoboro, Jan. 1, 2013
— Sgt. Jason W. Swiger, U.S. Army, South Portland, March 25, 2007
— Spc. Deon L. Taylor, U.S. Army, Lexington, Oct. 22, 2008
— Capt. Daniel J. Tranchemontagne, U.S. Army, Portland, May 30, 2004
— Staff Sgt. David M. Veverka, U.S. Army, University of Maine, Orono, May 6, 2006
— Staff Sgt. Jessica M. Wing, U.S. Army, Glenburn, Aug. 27, 2012
— Spc. Christopher M. Wilson, U.S. Army, Bangor, March 29, 2007
— First Lt. James R. Zimmerman, U.S. Marine Corps, Smyrna, Nov. 2, 2010
For more information on the Summit Project, visit thesummitproject.org. Information on the Cole Museum is available at colemuseum.org or 990-3600, ext. 13.
For i nformation on researching family history in Maine, see Genealogy Resources under Family Ties at bangordailynews.com/browse/family-ties. Send genealogy queries to Family Ties, Bangor Daily News, P.O. Box 1329, Bangor 04402, or email familyti@bangordailynews.com.