After years of planning and hoping, the Gardendale Beautification Commission will host a dedication ceremony on May 15 for the Gardendale Veterans Memorial.

Located on a strip of property on the 1200 block of Decatur Highway, between the highway and Main Street, the memorial honors Gardendale residents who served their country.

The memorial is an addition to the Gardendale Veterans Memorial Park that was built in the 1960s and dedicated in the mid-1980s. The new large granite marker will be added to the long-standing cannon and anchor.

The park could soon have another addition. On Monday, the Gardendale City Council adopted a resolution to request a donation of combat material from the Department of the Army. The material, a helicopter, would be placed at the memorial park.

The memorial to be dedicated on May 15 is made of black granite. It stands more than 8 feet tall and depicts war scenes and the seals of the nation’s armed forces.

Richard Bradley of Laser Works Alabama inscribed the scenes on the monument.

“We wanted to build the memorial to honor veterans living and dead,” said Louie Pearson, president of the beautification commission. “We also wanted to beautify the park and call attention to our community.”

Pearson said funding for the project came from the Jefferson County Commission, in the form of a $15,000 donation, and from the sale of black granite bricks, which contain the names of veterans and pave the area around the monument.

Jefferson County Commission President Betty Fine Collins will attend the event, Pearson said, along with state and local officials and an honor guard from Gardendale First Baptist Church.

The dedication ceremony is open to the public.

Parking will be at the former Food World parking lot across Decatur Highway from the memorial, with shuttles taking people across the highway. Parking for handicapped individuals will be at Captain D’s.

Pearson said there will be no Memorial Day ceremony at the site, but he and other beautification commission members are discussing hosting annual events at the park.

The May 15 dedication ceremony starts at 10 a.m.