History of the WWII Memorial

In the summer of 1995, the City of Littleton invited veterans of World War II and their families to a barbecue to commemorate the war's end 50 years before. From that meeting grew the Coordinating Committee for the Memorial. On March 4, 1996, the committee was designated as a Cultural Facilities Agency of the City of Littleton.

These senior citizens met regularly to devise the goals and objectives of the monument, to select a site, to choose an architect, to raise money to pay for an architect's rendering of a design to use to solicit additional funds, to balance the design with its cost, and to work with South Suburban Park and Recreation District for their continuing landscaping and maintenance of the monument. History departments at the three Littleton high schools and at Arapahoe Community College wrote the texts of the theater monoliths. Fund-raising through grant preparation, sale of individual memorial bricks at local theaters and at Western Welcome Week parades, presentations at service clubs and veterans organizations, and mail solicitation of local businesses were all part of a major continuous effort of this committee for five years.

The committee is very proud of the work and patience of the architect Robert Root, of Root-Rosenman, Denver, who interpreted the goals of honoring all the veterans of World War II, of explaining the scope and magnitude of the war, and of educating the children and grandchildren and generations to come, about the reasons soldiers fought, and the geography of the world in 1941-45. The committee feels Root and his associates produced a stirring, contemporary, inspiring piece of art.

The committee is extremely appreciative of the City of Littleton, which launched the first idea of the memorial and shepherded the committee through five long years of effort, as well as helping it with very generous financial support. The mayors, the city councils, the treasurer, the city attorney, the city managers, and assistant to the city manager have supported the committee continuously. David Flaig, Littleton's senior landscape architect, was the project manager during the construction phase. His superior leadership and friendship led the committee in the completion of the memorial.

Special thanks to:
Mayor Susan Thornton
Mayor Pro Tem Pat Cronenberger
Council Member Susan Beckman
Council Member Shirley Harris
Council Member LaDonna Jurgensen
Council Member Rebecca Kast
Council Member Tom Mulvey
Former City Manager Andy McMinimee
Former Council Member Dennis Reynolds
Former Council Member Lance Foreman
Former Council Member Charley Emley
Former Council Member Deborah Foster
Former Council Member Robert Reed
Former Council Member Doug Clark
Former Council Member Beverly Dalton-Fanganello
City Manager Jim Woods
Budget Manager Mike Roeper
Assistant to the City Manager Kelli Narde
Finance Technician Susan Firmin
City Attorney Larry Berkowitz
Phyllis Larison, Bemis Public Library
Bill Hastings, Littleton Historical Museum

Graphic designer Chris Harguth