VFW Post 1093

04/06/2026

Friends in Massachusetts, S2499 "An Act relative to establishing a plaque to commemorate the service members from Massachusetts who were awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor for Heroic Service during the Global War on Terror" ..................has stalled, and is currently stuck with the MA Senate Committee on Ways and Means.
An individual in the Senate Ways and Means informed me that Massachusetts residents who call their number and lend their voice in support of the Bill, will help with its being seen through. If you reside in Massachusetts, please consider calling and lending your voice in support: MA Senate Ways and Means Line: 617-722-1481.

Please support this effort.

03/23/2026

The Veterans Memorial Park and Walkway of Heroes Project Committee are announcing a new and exciting project to preserve the history of our communities’ veterans. With all the interest, respect and honor presented by the citizens of Ipswich and surrounding communities shown during the 80th Anniversary of D-Day Parade and the Dedication of the Veterans Memorial Park and Walkway of Heroes we will be producing an educational series specifically focused on honoring the Veterans whose names are etched in stone within the Walkway of Heroes.
The project will include a documentary video providing a historical path traveled by Ipswich residents from the American Revolution to present day. In addition, we will have individual presentations for each section of the Walkway of Heroes, identifying veterans named and relative information about their service and contributions by the residents of Ipswich.
Our project member Caleb Owen brings his expertise in the making of documentary videos. Our talented fellow veteran and Ipswich resident, Tom Palance will direct our music selection and coordination. There are several other Ipswich residents who have stepped forward to help with research and project work to include:
Linda Alexson, Chris Bevilacqua, Laurie Cameron, Pam and Denise Gaspar, Jim Graffum, Gordon Harris, Cindy Jordan, Gavin Keenan, Ted and Susan Lemieux, Paul Montanus, Steve Pelletrino, Donna Riccardi, Charlie and Laurie Surpitski, Denise & Jordan Townsend.
We extend an invitation to Ipswich veterans / residents to provide information about their own military service, their family members military service or civilian contributions in keeping America safe [ IE: Proximity Fuse Project or Robinson’s Boat Yard Project ]. If you would like to have your information included in our educational programs, please submit the following to: VFW POST 1093 110 COUNTY ROAD P.O. BOX 281 IPSWICH, MA 01938
1. NAME 2. BRANCH OF SERVICE 3. RANK 4. WAR SERVED IN OR TIME PERIOD 5. BRIEF STORY TO INCLUDE MILITARY GROUP SERVED WITH [ EX. 101ST AIRBORNE ]. 6. MILITARY AWARDS, MEDALS, RIBBONS RECEIVED 7. PHOTOGRAPH [ WILL BE RETURNED ]. Please submit your information by June 1, 2026.
This project is funded by a grant from the Massachusetts General Court and Secretary of State William F. Galvin for Veterans’ Heritage Grant Program.
Best Regards,
Larry Jordan, Commander Ted Lemieux, Past Commander Jim Graffum, Commander VFW Post 1093 VFW Post 1093 American Legion Post 80

12/24/2025

Ted Lemieux, Jim Graffum and I want to share the video documentary we just received from PAVERART ENTERPRISES regarding the Veterans Memorial Park and Walkway Dedication Ceremony. The video is on YOUTUBE and here is the link
https://youtu.be/Fv7_RXQfd6w

We hope you all enjoy this documentary and understand the work and time required to bring all of this together. So we send our sincere thank you's to everyone who stepped forward along the journey to help bring the Veterans Memorial Park and Walkway to completion.

Please share with your friends and let us know your comments.

Merry Christmas and Happy 2026.

11/26/2025

To all of the members of VFW Post 1093, their families and friends, as well as all who visit our Post, read our FB Page and fellow Veterans and those now serving in our military.....May all of you have a wonderful Thanksgiving with your family and friends. Enjoy the time with laughter, great reflection and a home cooked meal. Stay safe. God Bless.

Larry Jordan, Commander
VFW Post 1093

11/18/2025

Update on Veterans Memorial Park etched bricks for the "Walkway of Heroes": Yesterday, Monday, November 17th we received a delivery of 95 etched bricks and five etched pavers. They have been placed in protected storage for the winter and will be added to the VMP walkway in the spring, 2026. This delivery includes all etched bricks ordered after October 1st. All applications following this email will also be placed in protected storage for the winter. All bricks previously ordered and required to be replaced due to incorrect spelling or information are included in the above delivery. In addition, etched bricks that have been requested to be relocated to another section will be completed in the spring, 2026. Thank you for your partnership and your patience. We remain committed to providing a respectful and honorable walkway and Veterans Memorial Park.

11/05/2025

Update on the Veterans Memorial Park Walkway: We have a scheduled delivery of 97 etched bricks for the week of November 17th. We will work with our Mason contractor regarding a decision to move forward installing them if the weather / ground conditions are 100% favorable. If not favorable we will place them in covered storage and add them in the spring of 2026. Several of the etched bricks are "do overs" due to spelling errors or bricks we some how missed early on. We guarantee all purchased bricks will be accounted for and placed. At the same time we will be relocating several bricks into the appropriate section as requested. Thank you all for your patience, support and contribution. If you have any questions please message me with your phone number and I will call you. Hope to see everyone at our Veterans Day Ceremony to be held at the Veterans Memorial Park on Tuesday, November 11th. The ceremony will begin promptly at 10:45 am.

Call now to connect with business.

10/19/2025

As I sat on one of the new Veterans Memorial Park benches today I watched the large crowd gather carrying all sorts of signs, barking like dogs, ringing bells, beating drums, singing and chanting. They were focused on their beliefs about President Trump and they were fulfilling their mission of letting everyone that traveled by know how they felt. I enjoyed the sunshine, people watching and even having an occasional conversation with a passerby who admired my service dog. Peaceful protest, families having a moment together with something they felt strong about....I respect all of it. I don't agree with all of the signs, especially the signs that young children and mothers should not have to read, but call me old fashion. The crowd was truly large and many from out of town as they had no idea they were on the Veterans Memorial Park site even with the sign clearly visible. Several asked me about the walkway and monument and were very impressed with the attention given to veterans. Some were questioning why we were walking on the names that were etched in stone. I politely explained the effort and support the veteran community received from the community at large and they just were unable to understand walking on the names. Then the crowd grew larger as the morning went on and there was a very kind lady with an orange vest on asking the protesters to move off of the Veterans Memorial Park. As I watched this lady communicate with the protesters she was gracious, kind and did a nice job explaining that an agreement was made to keep the park site open.....everyone complied. And then I watched as a woman climbed up on the monument taking pictures of the crowd. I immediately went over to her and instructed her to "please get off of the memorial....it is not a platform for you to take photo's from". She said she was only taking photo's and my response was not kind I'm afraid. She did get off the monument and I tried to explain to her and her friend that climbing on the monument was desecrating our Veterans Memorial. Her friends comment followed with a rather sarcastic, "so what". They faded into the crowd. Two more similar incidents followed by others which were quickly taken care of ...... both apologized. Apology accepted, and they also faded off into the pack of protesters. As the time went by I helped others, not a part of the protest group, find family etched bricks and still others who were interested asked about the walkway and made very complimentary remarks. Once the protesters started to leave many took the time to walk the etched walkway with interest and respect, others took advantage of the benches and sat in the sun resting......that's what the park is all about. I did have to pick up coffee cups and other trash left behind. There were also dozens of stickers left behind: FEED TYRANTS TO THE GROUND. That showed me there were protesters there with anger and had no respect for our Veterans Memorial Park. I had a conversation with one of the organizers, John, a truly nice guy who apologized and told me they did communicate to everyone about the agreement we had and that the VMP must be respected. We both agreed that no matter how hard you try to prevent such incidents from happening there will be a few who "just don't care about the respect or guidelines established". The afternoon ended, the crowd dispersed back to other communities and as I was leaving with my service dog I had a conversation with a group of protesters sitting on the black wrought iron bench....they loved the park, thought it was a nice tribute to veterans and thought my service dog was very well behaved! Life moves forward, the area was now at peace and hope remains possible that our great nation heals itself. Our veterans names sit untarnished with the utmost respect and honor. We will never forget them or their stories as their service experience is important to be told over and over again.

10/11/2025

Veterans Memorial Park Dedication Ceremony update as of October 11, 2025: The committee wants to thank the many individuals and companies that worked with us to bring this respectful and honorable Veterans Memorial Walkway together. Our work continues. We are asking for your help with any photographs or videos you might have taken during the dedication ceremony. We had communicated with ICAM the importance of documenting the event for historical preservation and education opportunities, however ICAM informs us that they did not record any of the ceremony after attempting to film the event from the most advantageous location during the event. We apologize to all those who were hoping to witness the event through ICAM capabilities. If anyone has photographs or video they would share to be a part of our documentation please contact me with a private text or leaving a phone message at VFW Post 1093: 978-356-4730 and I will get back to you. We will be working with knowledgeable videographers to piece together a documentary that will be available in the near future on Facebook and other electronic web sites. We will also provide the Ipswich Public Schools, the Ipswich Public Library and the Ipswich Museum with a printed copy of gathered photographs, copy of the Dedication Book and up to date listing of Veteran's names memorialized within the walkway. We hope you all visit the Veterans Memorial Park throughout the day and evening....the night time illumination provides a beautiful visual that honors our Veterans. Best Regards.

09/26/2025

VETERANS MEMORIAL PARK update, Thursday, September 25th: The final phase of the project is close to completion. The entire walkway, over 2,000 bricks have had two coats of protective finish applied by Dave Keough Masonry, a final mowing of the lawns will take place tomorrow morning, the Gold Star representing Gold Star Mothers and Families has been given three coats of gold leaf paint, Gordon Greenhouse has once again stepped forward and replenished fresh flowers, Corliss Brothers donated new boundary shrubs, flowering trees and potted flowers and the list goes on and on. We are excited for 1:00 pm this Saturday, September 27th and hope we have a great crowd joining us. The illumination will go on at 6:30 pm for the first time and "Ipswich Brass" will provide appropriate music. Today, we prepared information signs, staged our new podium and will be at the park early tomorrow morning, as well as Saturday morning, to ensure our Town of Ipswich residents, friends and family are pleased with our efforts. Hope to see all of you at the dedication ceremony.

09/19/2025

Today, Thursday, September 18th, Dave Keough and his team installed our new 250+ pound bronze plaque. Exact measurements were required to properly install the heavy plaque and the team's installation was flawless! Hope to see you all on Saturday, September 27th for the dedication ceremony of VETERANS MEMORIAL PARK at 1:00 pm and the first illumination of the park at 6:30 pm.

09/14/2025

Preview of Veterans Memorial Park illuminated......join us on September 27th at 1:00 pm for the dedication ceremony and 6:30 pm for the first night illumination.