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World War II Memorial
The National World War II Memorial, May 24-25, 2004
Battle of the Bulge veterans Dorothy S. Davis of Kensington, Md., right, embraces George Watson of Long Island, N.Y., right, as Earle R. Hart of Berwyn, Pa., speaks with Brigadier General Dany E. Van de Ven, Defense Cooperation Attaché of the Embassy of Belgium, far left. The group gathered to welcome visiting Belgian Foreign Minister Louis Michel, who came to lay a wreath at the memorial.
Battle of the Bulge veterans Dorothy S. Davis of Kensington, Md., right, embraces George Watson of Long Island, N.Y., right, as Earle R. Hart of Berwyn, Pa., speaks with Brigadier General Dany E. Van de Ven, Defense Cooperation Attaché of the Embassy of Belgium, far left. The group gathered to welcome visiting Belgian Foreign Minister Louis Michel, who came to lay a wreath at the memorial.
 
Days before its official dedication, the National World War II Memorial is depicted at night. The memorial is located between the Lincoln Memorial and the Washington Monument on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. The memorial opened in April, giving visitors an extra month to explore the mall.s newest addition before its dedication during Memorial Day weekend, May 29, 2004. Soldiers engaged in jungle warfare are depicted in a bronze bas-relief sculpture panel on the Southern balustrade of the memorial.s ceremonial entrance wall. Twenty-four bas-relief panels were created by sculptor Ray Kaskey for the Memorial. Many panels are based on photographs from World War II.
National Park Service Ranger Mike Balis leads a tour near the north end of the memorial plaza. The quote on the Northern Wall by General George C. Marshall states: .We are determined that before the sun sets on this terrible struggle our flag will be recognized throughout the world as a symbol of freedom on the one hand and of overwhelming force on the other.. Performers Ryan Kelley and Rebecca Shezman rehearse a televised routine for the National Memorial Day Concert, filmed by Capital Concerts, Inc., for the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS). The pair dance near the Rainbow Pool at Memorial.
Ray Gresham, supervisor of the National Park Service.s Memorial Maintenance Crew, takes an early morning survey along the plaza encircled by 56 granite pillars. The new memorial is one of many sites that are maintained by Gresham.s crew, which cleans the National Park Service.s monuments and memorials every morning before tourists arrive. A bronze baldacchino in the form of four American eagles holding a victory laurel surrounds the ceiling of the Pacific Theater.s Memorial Pavilion. For more information visitors can go to http://www.wwiimemorial.com/.
Battle of the Bulge veterans Dorothy S. Davis of Kensington, Md., right, embraces George Watson of Long Island, N.Y., right, as Earle R. Hart of Berwyn, Pa., speaks with Brigadier General Dany E. Van de Ven, Defense Cooperation Attaché of the Embassy of Belgium, far left. The group gathered to welcome visiting Belgian Foreign Minister Louis Michel, who came to lay a wreath at the memorial. A group of young people tours the Pacific Theater Memorial Pavilion located on the southern side of the memorial.
A veteran of the Battle of the Bulge and the Army Nurse Corps, Dorothy S. Davis of Kensington, Md., visits the memorial with fellow veterans. As night falls over the memorial, visitors cool off on the granite benches of the National World War II Memorial the week before its official dedication during Memorial Day Weekend.

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