ASHWAUBENON, WI (WTAQ) – A new tribute to fallen heroes now stands where the former Brown County Veterans Memorial Arena once stood. A new multimedia living memorial wall was unveiled at the Resch Expo on Monday.
“The storytelling wall is really an interactive video with lots of Brown County veterans telling their story. It brings in a whole new perspective for us to gain a better appreciation of what a lot of our community members, our heroes, went through,” said Brown County Executive Troy Streckenbach. “An author can bring you into those places, but hearing it first-hand and seeing the emotions in their eyes and recognizing the human impact, it’s so powerful.”
Streckenbach credited the efforts of veteran Robert Reeners for pushing the plans forward. Reeners served in the Navy and Coast Guard, and was a driving force behind the plans for a new memorial to replace the old arena.
“He reminded us it was about the space. It was what the place that the community came together back in 1957 to dedicate the memorial. He pressed upon us to make sure that we were able to carry on that time,” Streckenbach told WTAQ News. “I think all veterans don’t want to see anybody go into those type of war conflicts. So if we can tell that story and that prevents us from having another war, I think we’ve done a great justice for everyone.”
While the stories at the Resch Expo are told via three video displays and a series of plaques to honor the previous memorials, more stories than could be counted filled the halls of the building on Monday. Veterans from across military branches and wars served showed up to see the wall unveiled.
“Veterans won’t be forgotten. It’s good to see this,” World War II veteran, Eugene ‘Jack’ Kraszewski told WTAQ News. “I’m proud that I served and I’m glad I was asked to speak today.”
Kraszewski shared his story with the audience. Some parts elicited laughter, while others sent chills down spines.
“I was a very, very small part of the 7-8 million men there that liberated these people, got rid of Hitler, and smashed his Nazi machine. Ever since then, I’m pretty proud of my service,” Kraszewski said.
You can hear his entire story here:
