The courtyard between Florida’s old and new Capitol buildings will soon have a new addition. The State’s Fire Marshal office is partnering with other firefighter agencies to erect a Fallen Firefighter Memorial.
“The purpose of this memorial is to remember those firefighters who gave their lives in the line of duty and to provide a place of solace for their families, and then of course, for other citizens of the state who visit the Capitol to be able to see that memorial and be able to reflect on that sacrifice that both the individuals and their families have made,” said Rand Napoli, who's been involved in the project.
Napoli, a retired director of the Florida State Fire Marshal’s office, says construction is set to begin soon.
“Phase one is the majority of the memorial, which are going to be knee walls and on top of those knee walls, will be etched the names of all the firefighters in the state who have died in the line of duty,” he added. “And, then there will be some benches and a couple of other pieces of the walls in the area.”
After Phase one is completed, a ceremony will be held in April of next year. Phase two will include a couple of statues, which is expected to take awhile to sculpt and construct.
Last year, the Governor and the rest of the Cabinet approved a resolution that authorizes the memorial. It’s expected to cost about $400,000. Through donations, the project has already raised $300,000.
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