‘Soldier’s Journey’ unveiling completes National World War I Memorial
On Sept. 13, at sunset, sculptor Sabin Howard’s “A Soldier’s Journey” will be unveiled during a “First Illumination” ceremony at the National World War I Memorial in Washington, D.C.
The epic 38-figure, 60-foot-long bronze relief will be lighted scene by scene during a “wonderful night of music and narration,” says Jari Villanueva, executive director of the Doughboy Foundation, the nonprofit partner to the U.S. World War One Centennial Commission and steward of the memorial.
The event will start at 7:15 p.m. Eastern time. The public is invited to watch in person at the adjacent Freedom Plaza, 1325 Pennsylvania Ave., NW, or online via livestream at ww1cc.org.
The U.S. Army Band, “Pershing’s Own,” will perform, followed by the ringing of a bell by Howard in tribute to the fallen. Twenty buglers dressed in World War I uniforms will play an opening fanfare.
“First Illumination” opens WWI Living History Weekend, a series of immersive events hosted by the Doughboy Foundation. From 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sept. 14 and 15, visitors to the memorial can see displays of World War I vehicles by the National WWI Mobile Museum, historical presentations by authors and World War I reenactors, Douglas Taurel’s one-man play “A Soldier’s Journey Home” and more. The lineup also includes musical performances by the American Expeditionary Forces Headquarters Band, the Community Bands of Westmoreland County, Pa., and the Old Guard Fife and Drum Corps. Belgium’s Last Post Association will conclude each day with a ceremonial playing of bugle calls.
With the installation of “A Soldier’s Journey,” the National World War I Memorial is complete. And thanks to the Doughboy Foundation, it’s something to experience as well as see, with the daily sounding of taps, augmented-reality mobile apps and more.
“We leave you our deaths. Give them their meaning .... Remember us.” For Dan Dayton, the foundation’s chairman, these words by poet Archibald MacLeish on the memorial’s Peace Fountain gave him an idea about how they might remember veterans daily, in a consistent way. That led him to Villanueva, America’s foremost expert on the revered bugle call.
“He looked at me and said, ‘So you want to play taps at the World War I Memorial every night at 5 o’clock, rain or shine or whatever it might be, for the rest of time?’” Dayton recalls. “I said, ‘That’s right.’ And he said, ‘I got it.’”
Villanueva organized a Daily Taps program, recruiting buglers through the nonprofit Taps for Veterans. Volunteers have included active-duty and retired servicemembers, and even Cuban-born jazz trumpeter Arturo Sandoval. Feb. 19 marked the 1,000th consecutive sounding of taps.
The inspiration came from Ypres, Belgium, where buglers have performed “The Last Post” at the Menin Gate for nearly a century. “It’s a wonderful tradition, and now we do it here,” Villanueva says.
Anyone can dedicate a Daily Taps to a veteran, on a day of their choosing, at doughboy.org.
Other ways to engage with the National World War I Memorial include the WWI Memorial Virtual Explorer and Visitor Guide apps. The first allows users to walk through a digital 3D model of the memorial from anywhere in the world. With the second, visitors can access the memorial’s augmented-reality features to “place” a timeline and World War I planes, ships, tanks and other vehicles over the reflecting pool to get a sense of size and scale.
Built into both apps are Stories of Service, based on letters, memories and anecdotes about those who served in the Great War. “You can learn what they experienced, in their own words,” Dayton says.