`Tribute to our fallen heroes'

Operation Stand Down, volunteers prepare for `Boots on the Ground' memorial

HONORING HEROES: Men, women, and even children made up the huge OSDRI volunteer workforce to prepare for “Boots on the Ground for Heroes.”

Sun Rise photo by Pete Fontaine

VOLUNTEER EFFORT: These are just some of the dozens of people who volunteered their time Monday at the Holly Charette House in Johnston to lace up more than 6,000 military-style boots

HELPING HANDS: These youngsters represented a Middletown Girl Scout troop Monday and helped lace up more than 6,000 military-style boots.

Posted Thursday, May 19, 2016 10:57 am

By Pete Fontaine

Parking was scarce Monday on Milton Street – and that was a welcome sight for Operation Stand Down of Rhode Island (OSDRI).

Over the course of 12-plus hours, dozens of people laced more than 6,000 military-style boots for the “Boots on the Ground for Heroes” memorial, which will be displaced at Roger Williams Park on Memorial Day weekend.

The boots will honor the fallen from Operation Iraqi Freedom, Operation Enduring Freedom, and Operation New Dawn. The memorial begins with a formal ceremony at 11 a.m. on Saturday, May 28.

“We’ve got all kinds of people here today,” said Erik Wallin, who serves as OSDRI’s executive director and general counsel. “There are OSDRI personnel, Gold Star Mothers, Blue Star families, veterans, volunteers from Citizens Bank and Blue Cross Blue Shield RI, and folks from throughout all our neighboring communities.” A Girl Scout troop from Middletown even made the trip to take part in the memorial preparations.

“These boots will be used to represent the fallen heroes who gave their lives defending our country post-9/11,” said Dee DeQuattro, OSDRI’s communications and development director.

The Roger Williams Park memorial will feature the boots, each marked with an American flag and a name placard representing one of the fallen.

“The memorial will open Friday afternoon and remain in place until Memorial Day,” Wallin said. “A memorial of this magnitude has yet to be done in the New England area. We are inviting the residents of this state to attend that [May 28] ceremony. It will be the first of its kind and certainly a moving tribute to our fallen heroes.”

For more information, call DeQuattro at 401-500-6031.