Honoring
100 Year s
of Freedom
B Y B R E T T W I L B U R
I
n the early 1920s, Carmel stone mason Brian
McEldowney's grandfather quarried the
sandstone that created the only World War I
memorial in the Monterey County area.
Located on Ocean Avenue in downtown
Carmel, the monument is now crumbling, in no
small part due to the abuse of tourists who
climb on it to take pictures.
"They are slowly destroying the stone," says
Mike Brown, who is organizing a restoration of
the memorial. "It doesn't seem right that it's not
protected."
Brown, who used to be a Carmel city coun-
cilmember, along with McEldowney and former
and present Carmel Planning Commission mem-
bers Ian Martin and Michael LePage, is hoping to
raise $20,000 for repair expenses in time for the
100th anniversary of the ending of World War I
on November 11th. A Vietnam veteran, Brown
wants to honor those "who made it possible for
us to be in this modern world."
Brian McEldowney and his father already
restored the monument in 1977 after a woman
crashed her car into it. McEldowney will donate
his labor, but funds are needed to purchase
enough sandstone, with materials left over for
future repair needs.
In addition, Brown would like to enact some
security measures to protect the monument.
"People are inundated with causes and we are
struggling to try to make this happen," he says.
To donate, please make checks out to "Action
Council Carmel WW1 Memorial" and send to:
P.O. Box 21, Carmel, CA, 93921. Or, go to
www.gofundme.com/friends-of-the-memorial-arch.
SHORTCUTS
GIVING BACK
Michael LePage, Brian McEldowney, Ian Martin and Mike Brown are fundraising and
donating their skills to restore the WWI Memorial Arch in Carmel.
74 C A R M E L M A G A Z I N E • H O L I D A Y 2 0 1 8
Photo:
DMT
Imaging
