Jul 6, 2021 / 11:20 PM EDT
POWELL, Ohio (WCMH) – It’s Military Appreciation Week at the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium.
To recognize the week and honor servicemen and women, the Eyes of Freedom Lima Company memorial will be on display.
The memorial arrived with a motorcycle and police escort Tuesday.
The memorial of life-sized portraits was made for the 23 men of Lima Company 3/25 who died in the Iraq War in 2005. Artist Anita Miller finished it in 2008, and the memorial now travels the country.
“We’re just blessed to be back at it again,” said Eyes of Freedom Memorial Executive Director Mike Strahle. “We do about 30 events a year on average and last year, it was our best to even be able to do six or seven.”
The Marines of Lima Company, 3rd battalion, 25th Marines, took some of the heaviest casualties during the Iraq War. The losses from that incident and so many others still haunt the unit, which is why their commanders reached out to The Independence Fund, which had partnered with the Department of Veterans Affairs to participate in a pilot program to prevent additional suicides among veterans.