Missouri Korean War Veterans Memorial

2 months ago

The Missouri Korean War Veterans Memorial in downtown Kansas City owes a debt of gratitude to Missouri State Senator Mike Cierpiot, a Lee’s Summit, MO., legislator and businessman who led the effort to have the memorial named the official Korean War memorial for the state.

Cierpiot’s involvement came through a friend-of-a-friend who urged the senator to take up the challenge of having the memorial certified as the official state tribute to the 900 Missourians who died in Korea from 1950 to 1953.

To make that recognition happen, an act of the state legislature was necessary.

“There are a number of Korean War memorials around the state – one in St. Louis and other places – but most of those are dedicated to the men in their particular counties who died in the war,” Cierpiot said. “The only memorial that lists all the Missourians who died is here in Kansas City. We wanted to acknowledge that.”

While construction on the memorial and park was completed in 2011, certification didn’t come until several years later at the urging of the memorial’s board of directors.

Asking the legislature to designate the Kansas City memorial as the official state site (Senate Bill 656) was “a pretty easy lift,” Cierpiot said, with little opposition. The certification was approved in 2020.

“Senator Cierpiot’s leadership was crucial to the memorial’s recognition,” said Debra Shultz, chairman of the memorial. “The certification will really allow us to honor the Missourians and all the Americans, and Koreans, who gave up their lives for freedom.”

Cierpiot said that, like many others, he had not been aware of the memorial garden.

“It’s really quite an impressive thing,” he said. “It’s a shame it’s not better known.”

Construction of the memorial was funded by private donations on land donated by the Kansas City Parks and Recreation Department. The state designation will help the non-profit by allowing it to apply for specialized grants. Money raised will be used for increased sculpturing at the site, and to enhance awareness of the memorial and urge visitors to include the park when touring Kansas City.

The memorial is located in Washington Square Park, 174 East Pershing Rd., in downtown Kansas City, in the area of Union Station, Crown Center and the World War I museum.



Author: Frank Cook ... See MoreSee Less

The Memorial - Thanks Senator Mike Cierpiot

mokoreanwarmemorial.org

The Missouri Korean War Veterans Memorial in Kansas City owes a debt of gratitude to Missouri State Senator Mike Cierpiot.

Missouri Korean War Veterans Memorial

4 months ago

Honoring His Father, Serving His Community

Staff Sgt. Robert Lewis Kalkofen, now 90, served during the Korean War era as a logistics manager for the Marine Corps. His son, Bob Kalkofen, today serves as vice chair of the Missouri Korean War Veterans Memorial to honor his father’s service, and that of the thousands of other service men and woman who fought in the war.

“I never served in the military, myself, but I do consider myself to be a patriot,” said the younger Kalkofen. “I got involved in the memorial because I have a special connection to that branch of the service (Marines) and I wanted to support that. The Korean War veterans are important to us.”

Kalkofen, a retired funeral director, has been engaged with the downtown Kansas City memorial for 11 years, 10 of which as a member of the board of directors.

“I think the biggest reason for my involvement are the two plaques on the lawn, on the south side of the memorial, where there are 900 names of Missouri citizens killed in action in Korea. Those people made that sacrifice so that we, and the South Koreans, could remain free. We can’t let them fade into history without being named.”

The motto “Never forget the forgotten war” is a bittersweet reminder that the 34,000 Americans who died in Korea from 1950 to 1953 were not as revered as soldiers from other wars had been.

“World War II had ended, and then five years later the Korean conflict came to be,” Kalkofen said. “There was not the buildup there was for World War II. All the weapons, the machinery, even the uniforms, were left overs. There wasn’t the commitment to Korea that there was for World War II.”

The sacrifices made were as real as any war, however, and is remembered annually in Kansas City on Flag Day. Speakers at the memorial, the only certified Korean War Veterans memorial in Missouri, typically come from the military. Volunteers participating come from service groups such as the Veterans of Foreign Wars, Sea Cadets, and Boy Scouts.

“The American Legion band plays every year and they’re wonderful. It’s a very patriotic ceremony,” Kalkofen said. “People really should come out and see it.”

The Missouri Korean War Veterans Memorial is located in Washington Square Park, 174 East Pershing Rd., in downtown Kansas City, in the area of Union Station, Crown Center and the World War I museum.

#officialstatememorial #mkwvm #freedomisntfree #koreanwarveteransmemorial ... See MoreSee Less

Honring His Father, Serving His Community

mokoreanwarmemorial.org

Honoring His Father, Serving His Community Staff Sgt. Robert Lewis Kalkofen, now 90, served during the Korean War era as a logistics manager for the Marine Corps. His son, Bob Kalkofen, today serves a...

Missouri Korean War Veterans Memorial

5 months ago

A Lifetime of Service to Community & Country

In service to both community and country, Larry Phillips began when he joined the Army and served in Vietnam and Thailand. He continues that service today as vice chairman-elect of the Missouri Korean War Veterans Memorial in Kansas City.

Phillips, now retired from the Kansas City Transportation Authority, became involved in the memorial as a result of his membership in the local chapter of the Veterans of Foreign Wars.

“A friend asked if I could help set up chairs at an event at the memorial, and I did. The VFW is a service organization that helps in the community and helping at the memorial seemed like a good way to do that. As time went on, I was just doing more and more things there.”

Phillips said he finds the memorial, located in downtown near Union Station, is always a good place to be. “It’s wonderful for the Korean War veterans to come and visit.”

Like many other hoping to erase the conflict’s reputation as the “forgotten war,” Phillips actually has no direct connection to the military campaign where nearly 34,000 Americans, including 900 Missourians, lost their lives. But the soldiers who fought there deserve to be remembered for their valor and sacrifice.

Among his roles at the memorial’s June 14, 2022, Annual Flag Day Flag Retirement ceremony, he was chosen to make a presentation about those who have been Prisoners of War or are Missing in Action (POW-MIA). According to the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency, there remain more than 7,500 U.S. military still unaccounted for from the Korean War.

When Phillips retired from the military, he joined the municipal transportation authority, first as a bus driver, then moving to management, becoming a dispatcher, and eventually Assistant Superintendent of Transportation.

The Missouri Korean War Veterans Memorial, certified as the official memorial for the state of Missouri, is located in Washington Square Park, 174 East Pershing Rd., in downtown Kansas City, in the area of Union Station, Crown Center and the World War I museum. ... See MoreSee Less

A Lifetime of Service to Community & Country

mokoreanwarmemorial.org

A Lifetime of Service to Community & Country In service to both community and country, Larry Phillips began when he joined the Army and served in Vietnam and Thailand. He continues that service today ...