Veterans Memorial at Magnolia Cemetery
The Veterans Memorial, located just inside the entrance to Magnolia Cemetery, 1040 Kingsley Avenue in Orange Park, is a place of quiet contemplation set aside to honor our veterans. The memorial features plaques engraved with the emblems of the six branches of the military as well as a stone with the inscription "Honor, Duty, Courage" to acknowledge the contributions of all veterans. The memorial also features engraved pavers provided by family and friends to honor individual veterans. A master list of all engraved pavers, sorted alphabetically by the first line of each paver, including the paver's location within the memorial, can be downloaded at the bottom of this page.
Each year on November 11, the Historical Society of Orange Park hosts the annual Veterans Day Ceremony at the Veterans Memorial at Magnolia Cemetery. This event honors the service and sacrifice of our veterans and provides our community with an opportunity to thank our veterans for their contributions to our great nation. Each year's ceremony is conducted at 11 AM, November 11. We hope to see you there.
Memorial Pavers
Purchase a Memorial Brick Paver
Would you like to honor a veteran in your life? Consider the purchase of an inscribed paver at the Veterans Memorial at Magnolia Cemetery. The pavers are 4"x8" and will be inscribed with the name of your veteran or your personal message. The cost of memorial pavers is $100 each.
To purchase a memorial paver, download the Memorial Brick Paver form and mail it with your payment to the Historical Society of Orange Park, P.O. Box 08, Orange Park, FL 32067. Please make your check payable to Historical Society of Orange Park. All proceeds will go toward the support and maintenance of the Veterans Memorial at Magnolia Cemetery.
Due to the minimum order requirements of our paver supplier, one annual paver order will be made for all paver requests received by July 30. This will allow time to procure and install new pavers prior to the annual Veterans Day Ceremony on November 11.
For more details contact us at info@ophistory.org.
Veterans Memorial Restoration
While it may seem like just yesterday, the Veterans Memorial at Magnolia Cemetery was dedicated on November 11, 2011. That’s right, it was over 10 years ago that the first of many ceremonies was held at the Veterans Memorial. Unfortunately, time and weather have been hard on the Memorial.
Many of the engraved pavers began to deteriorate. The lettering on many engraved pavers was at the point where they were almost unreadable. Certainly not what we anticipated, but a problem that had to be dealt with.
We identified a provider for new pavers that utilized an advanced engraving process that can better withstand our sun and moisture conditions. These pavers will be legible for many years to come. Work was recently completed to replace the deteriorated pavers with new, more durable pavers.
The Historical Society of Orange Park is seeking your help to mitigate the cost of replacing the weathered pavers at the Veterans Memorial and keep it in a condition of which we can all be proud.
Contributions can be mailed to the Historical Society of Orange Park, PO Box 08, Orange Park, FL 32067.
Veterans Day Essay Contest
While Hurricane Nicole forced the cancellation of this year's Veterans Day Ceremony, it did not impact the excellent work of the Clay County students that participated in our annual Veterans Day Essay Contest. We are proud to announce the winners of this year's contest:
Elementary Division: Daniel Troung
Junior High Division: Andelyn Caraway
Senior High Division: Olivia Bain
The students that submitted the winning essays in each division were awarded a plaque and cash prize. While the students were unable to read their essays at this year's ceremony, we are happy to post their essays here so that you may read them. The winning essays are posted below in the Downloads Section.
Our sincere thanks and appreciation to all students that participated in this year's contest.
L-R: Andelyn Carraway, Daniel Troung, Savanna Slonaker, Olivia Bain and Cynthia Cheatwood
