It was the roses near the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Kennewick that set Kevin Veleke on the path to bringing the veterans memorials scattered around the city back to their former glory.

The Marine veteran of the Vietnam War was pruning the thorny bushes at the memorial when other veterans he volunteered with told him about the four other veterans memorials. And after visiting them, he saw they were in need of care.

Fast forward to today. His efforts to rally the community have raised about $15,000 and organized dozens of volunteers, who have already improved two of them, with work on another memorial hopefully starting this summer.

“A lot of these things don’t get taken care of until there’s a squeaky wheel, and I guess I’m the squeaky wheel,” Veleke said.

All five veterans memorials in the city of Kennewick are on city-owned or managed land. They include:

• The Vietnam Veterans Memorial on the east side of Gum Street just before the cable bridge.
• The Regional Veterans Memorial in eastern Columbia Park near the Columbia River.
• The adjacent American Legion Veterans Memorial and VFW Veterans Memorial in Columbia Park between Highway 240 and the fishing pond.
• The Cpl. Gerald Carmichael Memorial on a street island at the intersection of Carmichael Drive, Garfield Street and Vineyard Drive in downtown Kennewick.

Veleke said it was clear to him that the memorials needed work. Along with general cleaning, the Vietnam memorial’s flagpole was failing and needed to be replaced.

All but one of the recessed lights illuminating the regional memorial weren’t working.

The Carmichael memorial, a low white-painted concrete pyramid with a small plaque, stands among unkempt river rock.

So Veleke, along with Navy veteran Greg Ford, got to work organizing.

With the support of the Port of Kennewick and the Pasco chapter of Combat Veterans International, they secured funding for the Vietnam memorial’s new flagpole.

In October 2024, volunteers, along with support from Brashear Electric, Tri-Cities Sunrise Rotary Club, Kennewick VFW and the city of Kennewick removed the old flagpole and installed the new one.

Meanwhile, in November 2024, the Kennewick Man of the Year Club (Veleke was named Kennewick Man of the Year for 2024.) provided the funds needed to replace the regional memorial’s recessed lights, with volunteer electricians from Brashear Electric, Sierra Electric and CED Electric assisting with installation.

Both projects culminated in dedication ceremonies attended by community members and supported by veterans organizations, the Knights of Columbus and the local Marine Corps recruitment office.

“I’m a committed veteran that has compassion for all this and as Vietnam vets say, ‘Let us not forget,’” Veleke said.

And the work’s not done. The Carmichael monument, named for the first Kennewick man to die in the Vietnam War, will be completely redone once the project has the green light from the city, Veleke said. That could come in the next 30 to 45 days.

The American Legion and VFW memorials will have to wait longer. Both sit on land controlled by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and work can’t begin until that land is reconveyed to the city of Kennewick.

Regardless, Veleke said he’s proud of how the community responded to the effort to revitalize the memorials. Now they just need to be maintained so future generations can remember the sacrifices behind them.