By Alexander Dworkowitz
The city has allocated $370,000 to build a monument dedicated to veterans of the Korean War in Flushing’s Kissena Park, a project that community leaders have pushed strongly in recent years.
The money, which was announced at a news conference last Thursday, comes as veterans have pledged to raise at least an additional $200,000 to see that the memorial becomes a reality.
“This so-called ‘Forgotten War’ must no longer be forgotten,” said Councilman John Liu (D-Flushing), who pushed for the funding. “A monument in Flushing, where many veterans, Korean as well as American, reside and which is the heart of the Korean-American community in New York, is most appropriate and fitting.”
The announcement of the funding comes just days before the 50th anniversary of the cease-fire ending the war, which occurred on July 27, 2003.
This year also marks the 100th anniversary of Korean immigration to the United States. In 1903, the boat SS Gaelic arrived in Honolulu, carrying 100 Koreans to work on Hawaii’s sugar plantations.
The planning of the Korean War monument is being spearheaded by Andrew Musumeci of Whitestone and Shi Young Bae of Flushing, both veterans of the Korean War.
The monument will be a statue, possibly of a soldier, Musumeci said. It is slated to be built near the entrance of the park at Rose Avenue and Parsons Boulevard.
The material from which it will be made has yet to be determined.
“If we raise a little bit of money, it will be made of cardboard. If we raise a lot of money, it will be gold,” Musumeci joked.
Musumeci said the monument would be dedicated to both the soldiers who survived and those who died in the war.
“The general idea is to recognize the people who not only fought in the war, but the people who were lost in the war,” he said.
Bae, chairman of United Korean Americans for America, said it was important for the Korean population to see a memorial to the war come to their own neighborhood.
“I’ve seen many different monuments in Suffolk County, Manhattan, Washington DC,” Bae said. “We have to have a similar kind of monument put up here.”
Bae said his group would push hard to quickly raise the necessary money so the statue can be constructed by next June 25, the day the Korean War began.
“Hopefully, we’ll have the memorial by 2004,” he said.
In addition to the city and private funding, the state has allocated $10,000 for the project, while another $50,000 in state funding is pending.
Reach reporter Alexander Dworkowitz by e-mail at Timesledger@aol.com or call 718-229-0300 Ext. 141.
