UCS eighth grader builds war memorial for Eagle Scout project

SHELBY TOWNSHIP — Utica Community Schools eighth grader Ben Wodniak had a vision to create a war memorial, which has now become a reality.

The project was dedicated at American Legion Hill-Gazette Post 143 in Auburn Hills on Veterans Day, Nov. 11, with Auburn Hills leaders and service members from the post in attendance.

Seeing the Vietnam Veterans Memorial inspired the Shelby Junior High School student to want to do something similar for those in his community. Wodniak was familiar with the Hill-Gazette Post, as his troop partners with it for flag retirement.

On Veterans Day, he presented the war memorial and unveiled it in front of former service members and their families. The memorial is located behind the post.

“A few years ago, my Cub Scout Pack 17 and my current troop did the trail in the back (of the post), and as an extra piece, they added a Vietnam War memorial. I had always wanted to do something for the soldiers who were killed in action and was inspired by the already-done memorial on the trail,” Wodniak said.

“The reason we are able to be active in the (flag retirement) ceremonies is because of a contact and friend of my dad’s we have there, Sgt. Michael Green, who served in the Desert Shield/Desert Storm war. I wanted to do something as a thank-you for him and all the other veterans and fallen soldiers of that war. I decided that a Desert Shield/Desert Storm War Memorial was the perfect Eagle Scout project,” he said.

More than 100 bricks carrying the names of the soldiers lost in Desert Shield/Desert Storm create a wall around a large plaque with a Desert Shield/Desert Storm logo, and a quotation from Sgt. Dodge R. Powell.

“I always wanted to do something for the soldiers who died in combat,” Wodniak said.

Post commander Greg Inman said they were honored to help Wodniak with his project and privileged to have him select the post for the memorial.

“Our primary mission as an American Legion is to support military service members and their families in times of need, and our secondary mission is to support our children, and especially Scouts,” Inman said.

“Again, we are honored to have Ben select this site for the memorial’s home where it will be forever,” Inman said.

To earn his Eagle Scout status, Wodniak had to lead the entire project from vision to design, and then from fundraising to assembling a team of volunteers to create the memorial.

“This project started in early April of this year and was fully executed on Nov. 4. I had around 17 volunteers help from 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. In total, I had to fundraise roughly $3,500. I fundraised by selling bricks, handing out ice creams on Memorial Day weekend at the post after the parade, and selling raffle tickets with donated prizes. The bricks all came from Landscape Source on 26 Mile (Road), the memorial was donated from Italian Granite and Marble, and all of the engravings were done by Epic Laser Engraving, who gave me a very generous discount,” Wodniak said.

He said he couldn’t have done the project without all the volunteers and people who donated and helped in many ways.

“I had a few doubts when I sat down to do the project and wasn’t sure if it would be done well. I had a model at the start to help sell the idea to start the project, which was entirely different from the finished project, because once I saw the progress, I wanted to change a few things,” Wodniak said. “I am so glad how well the finished product turned out, and I am so grateful with all the opportunities that came with it, because it’s not a topic that gets talked about that often.”