Mike Trickey, Ray Carlson, Iris Katers and Tom Ranta are seen beside the new monument. (Photo courtesy of the City of Marquette Arts and Culture Office)

MARQUETTE — The “Freedom Monument” was successfully installed recently at the Marquette Veterans Memorial Mall in Harlow Park. Etched with excerpts of the Preamble to the U.S. Constitution and the Declaration of Independence, the monument serves as an educational landmark and functional enhancement to the site’s ceremonies and programs.

Inspired by the late Marquette resident Ron Katers, the two granite podiums will be officially dedicated at 11 a.m. July 4, as part of the American Legion Post 44 Fourth of July Celebration.

Before passing away on March 4, 2024, Ron Katers asked his wife, Iris, to find a way to teach local children about the nation’s founding principles. To honor his legacy, Iris worked with the Marquette Public Art Commission to fulfill Ron’s vision for this site. Drawing on her experience as a schoolteacher, Iris pursued a public space where young minds could directly engage with these historic texts and discover their meaning firsthand.

Ron Katers carried a lifelong passion for honoring military service, though he was unable to serve himself. Iris reflects, “Why was this important to Ron? He had three schoolmates who died in Vietnam. Through the years, he thought of his schoolmates and found their names on the Vietnam wall. He visited war memorials in the US and Europe, and it shook him to know that 1.3 million military people died in wars, mostly very young men.”

For Ron, honoring veterans meant preserving the liberties they died for. His research into U.S. memorial sites revealed that while monuments frequently honor the signers of the nation’s founding documents, there were very few dedicated to the texts themselves. He believed Marquette needed a monument to actively educate the public about the American principles all veterans have fought to protect.

Bringing Ron’s vision to life was a collaborative effort. Iris Katers was supported by Amanda Stenfors and Jeremy Hansen of Fassbender Funeral Services; American Legion Post 44 members (including past Commanders Ray Carlson, Tom Ranta, and Mike Trickey, with advice from Jim Provost); and placement specialist Dean Doney. Backed by the Marquette City Commission, the project relied on the leadership of the City of Marquette Office of Arts and Culture, planning with the Marquette Public Art Commission and the technical expertise of City’s Engineers and Facilities & Maintenance.

Entirely funded by private donations, the Freedom Monument also includes a fund for future maintenance. The Freedom Monument pillars have been adopted into the Marquette Public Art Collection.

The structures were crafted by Sunburst Memorials in St. Cloud, Minnesota. Each podium weighs 3,500 pounds and is made of polished granite designed to complement Harlow Park’s existing Veterans Memorial Mall. The bases are crafted from the same gray “Veteran’s Granite” used in many Washington, D.C. memorials, and the words are cleanly etched into the face of the black polished granite. Serving as functional podiums, when speakers lean on them, they lean on the physical reminder that their freedom of speech was paid for by the millions of people who have sacrificed for American liberty.