Statewide Memorial to be Built at Valley Forge

Pennsylvania's new Gold Star memorial honoring the families of servicemen and women killed in the line of duty is now well on the way to becoming a reality.  The memorial will be built on the campus of the Freedoms Foundation at Valley Forge National Historical Park.

This week the foundation and memorial organizers received a single donation from a King of Prussia pharmaceutical company that will cover half of the anitcipated $60,000 cost of building the memorial.

The following information from the non-partisan, non-profits Freedoms Foundation describes the plan for the memorial and the gift from employees of CSL Behring.

CSL Behring donated $30,000 to the Freedoms Foundation at Valley Forge for the Gold Star Family Memorial.  CSL Behring employees Mark Ridge and Karen Etchberger presented the donation to the President of the Freedoms Foundation at Valley Forge and their Board Members.

A Gold Star family is a wife, husband, mother, father, stepmother, stepfather, parent through adoption, foster parents who stand or stood in loco parentis, children, stepchildren, children through adoption, brothers, sisters, half brothers, half sisters, grandchildren and grandparents of a member of the Armed Forces of the United States that sacrificed their life for our way of life and the American flag under which they served.  The Gold Star Family Memorial was created by Medal of Honor Recipient Hershel “Woody’ Williams to remember those families who have made the ultimate sacrifice.  Mr. Cory Etchberger, son of posthumous Vietnam Medal of Honor Recipient, will be the Chairman of the committee for the Gold Star Family Memorial. The committee for the memorial will be comprised of several Gold Star families from the Pennsylvania area.  The Freedoms Foundation at Valley Forge will continue to find the remaining funds for the memorial.  To learn more about donating to the Gold Star Family Memorial, please visit http://www.freedomsfoundation.org/contact.cfm or contact Melissa Farkouh at (610)933-8825 ext 270.

The memorial will be constructed by local memorial business H.C. Wood, Inc.  To learn more about the memorial, please visit http://www.hwwmohfoundation.org/gold-star-monument.html.

CSL Behring is a global leader in the plasma protein biotherapeutics industry. They research, develop, manufacture and market biotherapies that are used to treat serious and rare conditions

The Freedoms Foundation at Valley Forge provides a wide range of educational and awards programs for students, teachers, and citizens to cultivate a greater awareness of U.S. history, constitutional rights, citizen responsibilities, student entrepreneurship, and youth leadership development.