Two Veterans reflect on their efforts putting together the Central Nebraska Veterans Memorial

KEARNEY, Neb.- Two central Nebraska veterans with more than 40 years of combined service are looking back on their project that honors all Nebraska veterans.

John Stewart served 26 years in the U.S. Air Force, and Bob Harpst served 31 years in the Army.

The Central Nebraska Veterans Memorial in Kearney honors all Nebraska veterans dating back to the start of the Nebraska Territory in 1854.

The first drawings for the project came from simple materials within arm’s reach.

“It was just an idea, and we started drawing some pictures on bar napkins, basically,” Harpst said. “And it just kind of blew up from doing a thing for Kearney to doing a project for all Nebraska veterans. It just kept getting bigger and bigger.”

The pair said the took about 11 years to complete, finishing four years ago on Veterans Day 2021.

The memorial is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Harpst encourages anyone passing through to stop, take a few moments, and reflect.

“They never close. You just pull into the parking lot, come in and look at it,” Harpst said. “Read all the plaques and see what it took to keep and secure the freedoms that we have.”

Both Harpst and Stewart thanked all the volunteers who helped make the project possible.